#Disbelieving - That's the real crime! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

magicbystarlight · 1 year

Text

Chapter One: Visitation

Prologue

Summary: You catch the eyes of three ghastly figures. If only you knew before it was too late.

Warnings: 18+, creepy behavior. Dark series with parts that will include rape/noncon as well as other explicit and violent triggers. Heavy religious themes. All parts will be tagged accordingly. Minors DNI.

Word Count: 981

“What came first, preacher? The sinner or their sin?”

“How long do you think you’ll be out there?”

Erica’s voice came out through hissed static in the receiver. You hoped the horrible reception was connected to the rain and constant overcast sky but, given the state of the rest of the town, you doubted there would be much improvement on a clear day.

“I’ve got about two months of vacation saved up, but I don’t think I could be in this place longer than a couple weeks.”

“Oh, it can’t be that bad.”

“The deadbolt doesn't even work. It's stuck or something. So I'm screwed if some killer rolls through town. And the roads here aren't even roads, it’s all dirt and gravel. What's worse is that the closest Starbucks is forty minutes out of town.”

“Oh yeah,” she laughed, “a place without a Starbucks is a far bigger crime than you not having a lock on your door. Heaven forbid you have to get a coffee anywhere else or, you know, make it yourself.”

You snorted, leaning against the old fridge. “I prefer to overpay for my bean water, thanks.”

“Yeah, well, then you better get started on the house, huh? Unless you want to spend an arm and leg on gas for that piece of junk.”

“It’s not that bad —”

You cut off as you looked out the window to the beat up thing, surprised to find it wasn’t the last car on the gravel driveway. A decades old police car—older than even Grandpa's truck—with a singular red light stuck to the top sat behind it. A man wearing an equally outdated hat and a shirt tucked under his overhanging stomach was making his way up the gravel driveway towards the house. Was the town really that strapped for cash? As if he could feel your stare, his attention turned to the window. A smile pulled onto his face as he waved.

Erica’s annoyed “Hello?” brought you back to the phone you were clutching. Averting your eyes, you shifted out of the sight of the window.

“Sorry, I think I’m gonna have to call you back. Some cop showed up.”

Her annoyance vanished as she asked, “Do you want me to stay on the phone?”

“No…no,” you said, despite the tightness crawling up your throat. Memories of one too many bad interactions with a cop stirring in your mind. “He seems…friendly.”

“I'm sure he’s a very friendly backwoods cop,” she said with a disbelieving snort. “Call me back when he’s gone, alright?”

“Yeah, I will,” you agreed, hearing the wooden steps creak outside. Ending the call after a quick goodbye, you waited until you heard two knocks echoing against the front door.

The cop was handsome. Older and overweight, sure, but undeniably handsome. His eyes must have been the cause of the overcast sky, the cerulean stolen by irises far too enchanting to belong to some small town cop. “Sorry to bother you, ma’am,” he said, tipping his hat. “The Reverend mentioned you got into town yesterday and I wanted to come by and pay my condolences.”

Reverend John hadn't mentioned anything about that to you. “Oh, thank you, um?”

“Sheriff Bodecker.” He held out his hand, one you were surprised to find freezing cold. “But a pretty thing like you can call me Lee.”

"Right, thank you, Lee."

"Your grandfather was a good man. Never caused no trouble, kept to himself." His playful smirk felt at odds with a man paying his respects for the departed. "Real shame he was all alone when it happened."

You pulled your hand back from his, his handshake far too long and words far too harsh for his honeyed voice. "We'd been trying to get him to go to a nursing home closer to us," you rush out defensively. You had been trying to convince him. No one else in the family seemed to care that Grandpa had been getting to the age where he had trouble taking care of himself. By the state of the house, it had gotten worse since Dad had been around the year before. Or, more likely, Dad hadn't wanted to spend the money to get him the help he needed and downplayed how bad it was.

"Those old folks' homes are so impersonal. Like living at the hospital.” He adjusted his belt, eyeing you up in a way that made you pull your cardigan closed. “Though if the nurses were as pretty as you, suppose it wouldn’t be so bad.”

“Right…” The interaction had taken a nosedive. Why were men such men? “Well, thanks for, um, stopping by. Appreciate it. But I’ve really gotta start getting this place sorted. There's a lot of stuff to do to go through."

He licked his lips. “You know if you need another pair of hands, I'm more than happy to help. A girl like you shouldn't have to do any heavy lifting.”

The cold fast food that had served as a poor replacement of breakfast bubbled unhappily in your stomach. Handsome as he may be, something felt off. Not quite right. “I'll keep that in mind,” you lied, grabbing the edge of the door, “but I’m just going through things for now.”

“Well, if you need anything at all, you can always give the Reverend a call. He'll get back to me faster than any dispatch I've seen..”

“Of course." The door already half-way shut before you called out, "Have a good day, sheriff.”

“You too ma’am,” he said, stepping back and tipping his hat again. "I look forward to seeing you again."

You stood at the door unmoving as you listened to his slow, retreating footsteps that crunched through the gravel. You waited for some sound of a creaking metal door. To hear an old engine roar to life. Tires against the rocks. Minutes passed and nothing.

But when you peaked through the window, he was gone.

Dark!All Taglist: @bamboozledflamplant @my-current-fandom-is @squishytomatoes @theresa-b

#arvin russel x reader #lee bodecker x reader #preston teagardin x reader #robert pattinson x reader #sebastian stan x reader #tom holland x reader #the devil all the time fanfiction

217 notes · View notes

avalovesfolkpunk · 15 days

Text

CAN I PLZ RANT ABT HOW TOUCH-TONE TELEPHONE IS SO FYOZAI CODED, GUY HEAR ME OUT PLEASE.

'Cause you're the only person in the world who'd understand

'Cause you're the only person in the world who'd understand the meaning of this

LIKE DAZAI IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN SLIGHTLY CURE FYODORS BOREDOM. THEY BITH HAVE RIDICULOUS INTELLIGENCE TO THE POINT ONLY THEY CAN TRULY KNOW THE OTHERS MOTIVES.

And like you, I'm a genius before my time

Disbelieving, that's the real crime

Pretty soon, they'll discover me

GENIUS BEFORE MY TIME?? I KNOW SOUKOKU IS ONE SOUL IN TWO BODIES, BUT FYOZAI IS PRACTICALLY ONE BRAIN IN TWO BODIES. “THEYLL DISCOVER ME” FYODORS ABILITY, HIS TRUE PAST, HIS MOTIVES?? ITS LIKELY WE WOULDNT HAVE HAD ANY OF THIS REVEALED WITHOUT DAZAI, CHUUYA, AND SIGMA. (NIKOLAI TOO OFC.)

IM SORRY GUYS I DONT HAVE ANYONE TO RANT TO ABOUT THIS

#bsd #fyodor dostoevsky #dazai osamu #fyozai

14 notes · View notes

cannabisbutch · 6 months

Note

As someone who was very under weight as a kid and am now considered overweight, I can say that while there is stigma, fatphoba is worse and even hurts those who are underweight, getting laughed off for worrying about losing weight for no reason cus I'm "lucky". Family making jokes that I'm anorexic, it sucked ass. But the hate I face now that I'm chubby is worse, it's constant from meda. People made fun of me for being skinny yes, but it feels like being fat is a crime. It's unacceptable

yea, being skinny shamed can absolutely be a form of bullying, but its different than oppression!

you will never lose your job for being skinny

you will never be screamed at on the street to go home because you're too fat and ugly to be in public

you will never be disbelieved about your eating habits/exercise amounts for being skinny

you will never be told you are disgusting and lazy because you are skinny

and thats just a few examples of real things that happen to fat ppl (and all but the job one have happened to me)

#also i understood u anon ur good

24 notes · View notes

smallerdelta · 2 years

Photo

disbelieving, that’s the real crime!

(for a fan story ive been working on a little!!)

#tsp #the stanley parable #stanarrator #tsp stanley #tsp narrator #employee 432 #timekeeper #settings person #my art #tw eye strain #eye strain #just in case #my eyes started to hurt a little when making this so!#bright colors

199 notes · View notes

blue-chimera · 30 days

Text

(cont. from x)

Drinking, Sex, & Violence¹ — What it says about Dean Winchester in Season 7

We've looked at the trial in "Defending Your Life" (specifically as it relates to Amy's death), but there's more to unpack in this episode.

~ Drinking Alone ~

Let's start with the fact that Dean's drinking is getting out of control again. From the very beginning of DYL, he's got a beer in hand pretty much every moment he isn't driving or actively working the case. And things escalate fast once a bar gets involved. (Remember that this is not something we saw from him for most of S6.)

Dean drinking while speculating that the victim drove drunk is just one of several ways the episode associates him with the other guilty parties.² Note that Sam doesn't have a beer. When Dean's drinking in moderation, he's usually engaging in social drinking. When Dean's spiraling, he's often drinking alone.

Meanwhile, he's dragging his feet on the case, resisting & resenting what needs to be done at pretty much every turn, muttering things like, "The fun never stops" and even letting out a disbelieving, "What?" at one point when Sam casually mentions their (obvious) next steps. He's treating things like checking out the crime scene and doing a simple salt & burn like massive burdens. He's bitterly sarcastic & constantly on edge.

The easy explanation is that Dean dislikes cases where the victims aren't obviously innocent or undeserving, to the point where he'd rather leave the supernatural alone in those situations — and you might point back at S2:E8 "Crossroad Blues," for example, to support this argument. But that wasn't the only case they worked where victims were seemingly getting what was coming to them. It's just the only other case they worked where that fact bothered Dean enough that he didn't want to work the case anymore.

In comparison, Dean wasn't inclined to let the Trickster go in "Tall Tales," even though the demigod was only hurting jerks (and offered to leave town without a fight). In "Houses of the Holy," while clearly disturbed to discover that all the victims were perpetrators of horrific crimes, he wasn't at all deterred from laying the avenging spirit to rest. And, in "Red Sky at Morning," the fact that the ghost ship only targeted people who'd killed their own kin didn't persuade him to walk away, either.

The difference between those other cases and these two episodes ("Defending Your Life"/DYL & "Crossroad Blues"/CB) is that, in these episodes, Dean is taking something personally: relating just a little too hard to the people involved. In CB, he's angry at John for his sacrifice and projecting that onto other people who've made deals. In DYL, he's feeling guilty for killing Amy (and like he'd deserve whatever punishment came his way) and he's projecting that.

~ Sex! (Or Not...) And More Drinking ~

There's something else interesting that we discover in DYL, and that's the fact that Dean's playboy ways have been (kind of) left in the dust: casual sex isn't really casual for him at this point. Which makes sense, considering just how long it's been since he had a fling. He was monogamous with Lisa for a year between S5 & S6, then clearly faithful during their long-distance relationship (which lasted at least up through S6:E6). After E6, it's less clear, but I would guess he still wasn't sure if they were broken up "for good" for a while (like, Lisa called him a bunch, but he never picked up, but he kept thinking about calling her back, but he didn't, etc.), until things finally culminated in a "real" breakup conversation in S6:E14 "Mannequin 3: The Reckoning," where both sides got some closure.

He didn't have much time to do anything about being single again, though: barely a month later, things came to a head with Eve... and then Dean was crushed by the events of S6:E20, E21, & E22, as we examined here.

All told, by the time DYL rolls around in S7, he's been out of the game for at least 2 years.³ So, when the hot bartender he's chatting with makes it clear she wants to get lucky with him, that's exciting (and unexpected) enough to break through his guilty ruminations.

However, he's clearly nervous. It's not obvious, though, whether his nerves are entirely because of how long it's been or if his dark mood is also to blame. It's like, this is too good of an opportunity to pass up — or maybe he just can't imagine a Dean Winchester who would say "No" here — but he really hasn't done this sort of thing in a long time & he's also kinda distracted by the stuff he's obsessing over, so he doesn't really have his head in the game & he isn't super in the mood, and, all in all, he's just not entirely sure this is going to go well...

But it's moot in the end. Thanks to Osiris, he doesn't get to find out.

You can't get much more "not a playboy anymore" than giving yourself a pep talk before a one-night stand.

Then, in "Shut Up, Dr. Phil," Dean's mood — and his drinking — only gets worse.

Compare Dean's instinctive "No thanks, I'm working" in S6:E6 (when the bartender asks if he'd like another) to S7:E5's dismissive "We're always 'on the job'!" when Sam questions him about drinking while they're on a case.

In E6 "Slash Fiction," Dean doesn't have much opportunity to drink while tearing up the country in pursuit of his doppelganger. Meanwhile, their status on the FBI's Most Wanted List excludes any possibility of casual sex off-screen. Then, by the conclusion of the episode, Dean has lost Sam & Baby both — his brother and the closest thing he's ever had to a home.

So maybe it should be unsurprising that in E7, after Dean's spent a week & a half alone with nothing but his thoughts, we get another hat-tip that (despite repressing like his life depends on it, to the point where he comes across as almost manic) Dean is on the verge of completely losing his shit. Let's just say that some time apart was not exactly what he needed.⁴

Dean is almost aggressively casual as he tries to pretend everything's fine, while Sam's body language clearly conveys his anger. Body language is a major theme of this episode, as psychics (both real & fake) discern that Sam is pissed & grieving a loss, while also clocking that Dean is exceptionally stressed (despite putting on a fake smile & tap-dancing for all he's worth).

After a tongue-lashing from Ellen beyond the grave, Dean confesses that he's in a bad place & that he knows his instincts might be shot right now. He did what felt right, but it could've been wrong.

In E8, Dean finds himself alone once more — first, when Sam would rather hike in the desert than join him drinking in strip clubs in Las Vegas (a valid choice, if not particularly helpful to Dean), and then again when Sam leaves him for Becky (because he's been bespelled, of course... not that Dean knows it at the time).

Then, in E9, after a conversation where Bobby tells Dean he's noticed that Dean's been acting like he doesn't care if he lives or dies (which, in hunting, gets you killed pretty quick), Bobby is fatally shot.

Dean's state of mind does not improve in E10.

¹Whoops, I lied — sorry! This got long. Violence is gonna have to be in the next part. ²Note that this scene contains a colloquialism that wouldn't typically be written out and might be confusing in print. Despite the negative construction, Dean is actually suggesting that the guy probably was drunk when he ran the child over. Much like if a colleague said, "Maybe the boss just hasn't thought of that... I wonder if somebody shouldn't raise that point at the next meeting?" he would be suggesting that somebody should raise that point. Similarly, someone who says, "I wonder if that man isn't our new teacher?" strongly suspects that the man is their new teacher. (This is possibly related to rhetorical constructions like, "Isn't the sunset beautiful tonight?" which also imply that the speaker takes a positive stance on the issue.) ³ Longer, if you think his last casual encounter dates back to the last one we saw on screen, which would've been with Anna in S4:E10 "Heaven and Hell." Although I think it's just as likely that he had a couple of rolls in the hay afterwards that were just off-screen, since we see him flirting with women with that intention a few times between then & "Swan Song." (And it seems likely that, at age 30, if Dean Winchester was interested & available, he probably wasn't having too hard of a time getting laid.) ⁴Raise your hand if you were surprised to discover that Dean has abandonment issues.

#dean winchester #spn meta #understanding dean winchester #spn #supernatural season 7 #character analysis #character development: dean winchester #dean studies

13 notes · View notes

hannigramislife · 7 months

Text

#1 scene from my Random Mdzs Fanfiction:

Prompt: What if 3zun reincarnated in modern au?

Added touch: What if I make it a mafia au? What if Jin Guangyao always remembered the past, while Lan Xichen didn't remember yet? What if Nie Mingjue only remembered after his father died and he took over the family business aka organized crime mafia? Oh, and Lan Xichen is a lawyer, childhood best friend of Nie Mingjue who had no idea what he was up to?

Scene: Jin Guangyao gets involved into this mafia world, not knowing either Nmj or Lxc in this life.

"This is not real." Jin Guangyao was, for once, completely shocked. "There is no way...you-"

"And here I thought you came to see me." Nie Mingjue, arguably the most morally strict person he'd known in both lifetimes, apparent crime boss of one of the largest gangs of the country, smirked at Jin Guangyao. He wore simple black suit pants, and a white buttoned up shirt, sleeves rolled up to reveal tattoos slithering over his forearms. His hair was long as Jin Guangyao remembered, and he felt a pang in his chest seeing them put in the same Nie braids as back then.

He remembered. There was no other explanation. Jin Guangyao let out a disbelieving laugh- he was being delivered to the man he'd killed and dismembered in his past life, like a perfectly wrapped gift of revenge. What an insane situation.

"This has to be some sort of karma," he said quietly, looking Nie Mingjue in the eye. "This doesn't seem like your usual scene, gang leader." Sect leader, is what he meant with the slow drawl of the title.

Nie Mingjue looked him up and down, his gaze burning and as intense as it had always been.

"Isn't it?" Nie Mingjue said, tilting his head in mock thought. "It feels quite familiar. A powerful leader holding a nobody's fate in his hands. Haven't we been here before?"

Jin Guangyao felt the words hit like a punch in the face. Those were not words his Nie Mingjue would have said. The sect leader he knew was brash and blunt, but also with a stubborn sense of fairness and justice. Much as Jin Guangyao was loathe to admit, Nie Mingjue was one of those powerful people that didn't seem to lord it over others. It was his warrior strength that Nie Mingjue had prided himself in, not his status.

This Nie Mingjue, clearly, knew power better.

#the untamed #mdzs #mo dao zu shi #cql #nie mingjue #jin guangyao #lan xichen #nieyao #nielan #xiyao #3zun #fanfiction

16 notes · View notes

positivelybeastly · 3 months

Text

REPOST & LIST 6 SONGS THAT INSPIRE YOU TO WRITE YOUR MUSE .

In no particular order . . .

Touch-Tone Telephone, by Lemon Demon.

And like you, I'm a genius before my time Disbelieving, that's the real crime Pretty soon, they'll discover me In the Super-Sargasso Sea I try to call you every day What can I say when the truth comes out? (Of my very own mouth) I've been working on a unified theory If I make it through tonight, everybody's gonna hear me out (now)

Dust and Ashes, by Josh Groban.

Is this how I die? Was there ever any other way my life could be? Is this how I die? Such a slough of feelings inside of me But then why am I screaming? Why am I shaking? Oh god, was there something that I missed? Did I squander my divinity? Was happiness within me the whole time?

Dead Man's Party, by Oingo Boingo.

I got my best suit and my tie Shiny silver dollar on either eye I hear the chauffeur comin' to my door Says there's room for maybe just one more I was struck by lighting, walkin' down the street I was hit by something last night in my sleep It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more Everybody's comin', leave your body at the door Leave your body and soul at the door

Dr. Wanna Do, by Caro Emerald.

I sat down and I waited Til I heard my name get called It's like I'm at races And I think I won them all He asked me to step forward First I caught my breath, and ran For endless observation In the hands of Superman

What This World Is Coming to, by Nate Ruess ft. Beck.

So let's get high in the moonlight Even the stars go right over our head I know I'm gonna shine here in the afterlife Leaving the fight for peace of mind instead You know that I can't stop thinkin' bout you You're the source of everything I do You brought faith to songs I sing, so I went and bought a diamond ring I wanna spend each night here with you

Paper Rings, by Taylor Swift.

In the winter, in the icy outdoor pool When you jumped in first, I went in too I'm with you even if it makes me blue Which takes me back To the color that we painted your brother's wall Honey, without all the exes, fights, and flaws We wouldn't be standing here so tall, so Kiss you once 'cause I know you had a long night (Oh) Kiss you twice 'cause it's gonna be alright Three times 'cause you waited your whole life (One, two, one two three four)

Tagged by: @revenantinflames (Thank you!)

Tagging: anyone who wants to do it!

Honestly, these give me such different energies and correlate to entirely different Hanks and different time periods:

Dust and Ashes has me RIGHT in Morrisonian body angst and depression.

What This World Is Coming To has me in what I'm starting to call the 'animal with no natural habitat' aspect of Hank's feeling of never belonging and need to find solace in others.

Paper Rings is his hopeless romanticism and boundless energy.

Dr. Wanna Do is his sexuality and his confidence.

Dead Man's Party is his eccentricity and moroseness and fascination with the unknown.

And Touch-Tone Telephone is . . . well. All of it, actually.

#outofmuffins #dash game

7 notes · View notes

sir-qwillian-ferne · 2 months

Note

I think it's time For you to know The awful truth The truth about me, and the truth about you 'Cause you're a brand new species Big cat Space Nazis Robert Stack God damn it, gonna snap Leonard Nimoy, Call me back (Call me back)

I try to call you every day I'm rehearsing what to say When the truth comes out (Of my very own mouth) I've been working on a unified theory If I make it through tonight everybody's gonna hear me out 'Cause I'm the right one On my touch-tone, touch-tone telephone I'm the only one On your A.M., A.M. radio

Oh, I'm crying now Authentic tears They flow out of me when I think about you 'Cause you're the only person in the world who'd understand 'Cause you're the only person in the world who'd understand the meaning of this Oh My God I try and I try and I try to make you listen to me

Don't hang up yet, I'm not done I'm an expert, I'm the one The one who was right all along Better to be laughed at than wrong I'm an expert in my field UFOlogy, yes, it's all real Ancient aliens, it's all true I'm an expert just like you And like you, I'm a genius before my time Disbelieving, that's the real crime Pretty soon they'll discover me in the Super-Sargasso Sea

I try to call you every day What can I say When the truth comes out? (Of my very own mouth) I've been working on a unified theory If I make it through tonight everybody's gonna hear me out (Now, now, now) 'Cause I'm the right one On my touch-tone, touch-tone telephone I'm the only one On your A.M., A.M. radio

Somg

5 notes · View notes

i-am-aprl · 6 months

Text

The Guardian had a copy of “Letter to America” posted, but once these TikToks went viral, the Guardian took it down, which has only led to more interest in the letter and conspiracies from TikTokers who say this is part of the media and the powers that control it trying to silence the truth.

The letter from the Guardian:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,

"Permission to fight (against disbelievers) is given to those (believers) who are fought against, because they have been wronged and surely, Allah is Able to give them (believers) victory" [Quran 22:39]

"Those who believe, fight in the Cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (anything worshipped other than Allah e.g. Satan). So fight you against the friends of Satan; ever feeble is indeed the plot of Satan."[Quran 4:76]

Some American writers have published articles under the title 'On what basis are we fighting?' These articles have generated a number of responses, some of which adhered to the truth and were based on Islamic Law, and others which have not. Here we wanted to outline the truth - as an explanation and warning - hoping for Allah's reward, seeking success and support from Him.

While seeking Allah's help, we form our reply based on two questions directed at the Americans:

(Q1) Why are we fighting and opposing you?

Q2)What are we calling you to, and what do we want from you?

As for the first question: Why are we fighting and opposing you? The answer is very simple:

(1) Because you attacked us and continue to attack us.

a) You attacked us in Palestine:

(i) Palestine, which has sunk under military occupation for more than 80 years. The British handed over Palestine, with your help and your support, to the Jews, who have occupied it for more than 50 years; years overflowing with oppression, tyranny, crimes, killing, expulsion, destruction and devastation. The creation and continuation of Israel is one of the greatest crimes, and you are the leaders of its criminals. And of course there is no need to explain and prove the degree of American support for Israel. The creation of Israel is a crime which must be erased. Each and every person whose hands have become polluted in the contribution towards this crime must pay its*price, and pay for it heavily.

(ii) It brings us both laughter and tears to see that you have not yet tired of repeating your fabricated lies that the Jews have a historical right to Palestine, as it was promised to them in the Torah. Anyone who disputes with them on this alleged fact is accused of anti-semitism. This is one of the most fallacious, widely-circulated fabrications in history. The people of Palestine are pure Arabs and original Semites. It is the Muslims who are the inheritors of Moses (peace be upon him) and the inheritors of the real Torah that has not been changed. Muslims believe in all of the Prophets, including Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon them all. If the followers of Moses have been promised a right to Palestine in the Torah, then the Muslims are the most worthy nation of this.

When the Muslims conquered Palestine and drove out the Romans, Palestine and Jerusalem returned to Islaam, the religion of all the Prophets peace be upon them. Therefore, the call to a historical right to Palestine cannot be raised against the Islamic Ummah that believes in all the Prophets of Allah (peace and blessings be upon them) - and we make no distinction between them.

(iii) The blood pouring out of Palestine must be equally revenged. You must know that the Palestinians do not cry alone; their women are not widowed alone; their sons are not orphaned alone.

(b) You attacked us in Somalia; you supported the Russian atrocities against us in Chechnya, the Indian oppression against us in Kashmir, and the Jewish aggression against us in Lebanon.

(c) Under your supervision, consent and orders, the governments of our countries which act as your agents, attack us on a daily basis;

(i) These governments prevent our people from establishing the Islamic Shariah, using violence and lies to do so.

(ii) These governments give us a taste of humiliation, and places us in a large prison of fear and subdual.

(iii) These governments steal our Ummah's wealth and sell them to you at a paltry price.

(iv) These governments have surrendered to the Jews, and handed them most of Palestine, acknowledging the existence of their state over the dismembered limbs of their own people.

(v) The removal of these governments is an obligation upon us, and a necessary step to free the Ummah, to make the Shariah the supreme law and to regain Palestine. And our fight against these governments is not separate from out fight against you.

(d) You steal our wealth and oil at paltry prices because of you international influence and military threats. This theft is indeed the biggest theft ever witnessed by mankind in the history of the world.

(e) Your forces occupy our countries; you spread your military bases throughout them; you corrupt our lands, and you besiege our sanctities, to protect the security of the Jews and to ensure the continuity of your pillage of our treasures.

(f) You have starved the Muslims of Iraq, where children die every day. It is a wonder that more than 1.5 million Iraqi children have died as a result of your sanctions, and you did not show concern. Yet when 3000 of your people died, the entire world rises and has not yet sat down.

(g) You have supported the Jews in their idea that Jerusalem is their eternal capital, and agreed to move your embassy there. With your help and under your protection, the Israelis are planning to destroy the Al-Aqsa mosque. Under the protection of your weapons, Sharon entered the Al-Aqsa mosque, to pollute it as a preparation to capture and destroy it.

(2) These tragedies and calamities are only a few examples of your oppression and aggression against us. It is commanded by our religion and intellect that the oppressed have a right to return the aggression. Do not await anything from us but Jihad, resistance and revenge. Is it in any way rational to expect that after America has attacked us for more than half a century, that we will then leave her to live in security and peace?!!

(3) You may then dispute that all the above does not justify aggression against civilians, for crimes they did not commit and offenses in which they did not partake:

(a) This argument contradicts your continuous repetition that America is the land of freedom, and its leaders in this world. Therefore, the American people are the ones who choose their government by way of their own free will; a choice which stems from their agreement to its policies. Thus the American people have chosen, consented to, and affirmed their support for the Israeli oppression of the Palestinians, the occupation and usurpation of their land, and its continuous killing, torture, punishment and expulsion of the Palestinians. The American people have the ability and choice to refuse the policies of their Government and even to change it if they want.

(b) The American people are the ones who pay the taxes which fund the planes that bomb us in Afghanistan, the tanks that strike and destroy our homes in Palestine, the armies which occupy our lands in the Arabian Gulf, and the fleets which ensure the blockade of Iraq. These tax dollars are given to Israel for it to continue to attack us and penetrate our lands. So the American people are the ones who fund the attacks against us, and they are the ones who oversee the expenditure of these monies in the way they wish, through their elected candidates.

(c) Also the American army is part of the American people. It is this very same people who are shamelessly helping the Jews fight against us.

(d) The American people are the ones who employ both their men and their women in the American Forces which attack us.

(e) This is why the American people cannot be not innocent of all the crimes committed by the Americans and Jews against us.

(f) Allah, the Almighty, legislated the permission and the option to take revenge. Thus, if we are attacked, then we have the right to attack back. Whoever has destroyed our villages and towns, then we have the right to destroy their villages and towns. Whoever has stolen our wealth, then we have the right to destroy their economy.

And whoever has killed our civilians, then we have the right to kill theirs.

The American Government and press still refuses to answer the question:

Why did they attack us in New York and Washington?

If Sharon is a man of peace in the eyes of Bush, then we are also men of peace!!! America does not understand the language of manners and principles, so we are addressing it using the language it understands.

(Q2) As for the second question that we want to answer: What are we calling you to, and what do we want from you?

(1) The first thing that we are calling you to is Islam.

(a) The religion of the Unification of God; of freedom from associating partners with Him, and rejection of this; of complete love of Him, the Exalted; of complete submission to His Laws; and of the discarding of all the opinions, orders, theories and religions which contradict with the religion He sent down to His Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Islam is the religion of all the prophets, and makes no distinction between them - peace be upon them all.

It is to this religion that we call you; the seal of all the previous religions. It is the religion of Unification of God, sincerity, the best of manners, righteousness, mercy, honour, purity, and piety. It is the religion of showing kindness to others, establishing justice between them, granting them their rights, and defending the oppressed and the persecuted. It is the religion of enjoining the good and forbidding the evil with the hand, tongue and heart. It is the religion of Jihad in the way of Allah so that Allah's Word and religion reign Supreme. And it is the religion of unity and agreement on the obedience to Allah, and total equality between all people, without regarding their colour, sex, or language.

(b) It is the religion whose book - the Quran - will remained preserved and unchanged, after the other Divine books and messages have been changed. The Quran is the miracle until the Day of Judgment. Allah has challenged anyone to bring a book like the Quran or even ten verses like it.

(2) The second thing we call you to, is to stop your oppression, lies, immorality and debauchery that has spread among you.

(a) We call you to be a people of manners, principles, honour, and purity; to reject the immoral acts of fornication, homosexuality, intoxicants, gambling's, and trading with interest.

We call you to all of this that you may be freed from that which you have become caught up in; that you may be freed from the deceptive lies that you are a great nation, that your leaders spread amongst you to conceal from you the despicable state to which you have reached.

(b) It is saddening to tell you that you are the worst civilization witnessed by the history of mankind:

(i) You are the nation who, rather than ruling by the Shariah of Allah in its Constitution and Laws, choose to invent your own laws as you will and desire. You separate religion from your policies, contradicting the pure nature which affirms Absolute Authority to the Lord and your Creator. You flee from the embarrassing question posed to you: How is it possible for Allah the Almighty to create His creation, grant them power over all the creatures and land, grant them all the amenities of life, and then deny them that which they are most in need of: knowledge of the laws which govern their lives?

(ii) You are the nation that permits Usury, which has been forbidden by all the religions. Yet you build your economy and investments on Usury. As a result of this, in all its different forms and guises, the Jews have taken control of your economy, through which they have then taken control of your media, and now control all aspects of your life making you their servants and achieving their aims at your expense; precisely what Benjamin Franklin warned you against.

(iii) You are a nation that permits the production, trading and usage of intoxicants. You also permit drugs, and only forbid the trade of them, even though your nation is the largest consumer of them.

(iv) You are a nation that permits acts of immorality, and you consider them to be pillars of personal freedom. You have continued to sink down this abyss from level to level until incest has spread amongst you, in the face of which neither your sense of honour nor your laws object.

Who can forget your President Clinton's immoral acts committed in the official Oval office? After that you did not even bring him to account, other than that he 'made a mistake', after which everything passed with no punishment. Is there a worse kind of event for which your name will go down in history and remembered by nations?

(v) You are a nation that permits gambling in its all forms. The companies practice this as well, resulting in the investments becoming active and the criminals becoming rich.

(vi) You are a nation that exploits women like consumer products or advertising tools calling upon customers to purchase them. You use women to serve passengers, visitors, and strangers to increase your profit margins. You then rant that you support the liberation of women.

(vii) You are a nation that practices the trade of sex in all its forms, directly and indirectly. Giant corporations and establishments are established on this, under the name of art, entertainment, tourism and freedom, and other deceptive names you attribute to it.

(viii) And because of all this, you have been described in history as a nation that spreads diseases that were unknown to man in the past. Go ahead and boast to the nations of man, that you brought them AIDS as a Satanic American Invention.

(xi) You have destroyed nature with your industrial waste and gases more than any other nation in history. Despite this, you refuse to sign the Kyoto agreement so that you can secure the profit of your greedy companies and*industries.

(x) Your law is the law of the rich and wealthy people, who hold sway in their political parties, and fund their election campaigns with their gifts. Behind them stand the Jews, who control your policies, media and economy.

(xi) That which you are singled out for in the history of mankind, is that you have used your force to destroy mankind more than any other nation in history; not to defend principles and values, but to hasten to secure your interests and profits. You who dropped a nuclear bomb on Japan, even though Japan was ready to negotiate an end to the war. How many acts of oppression, tyranny and injustice have you carried out, O callers to freedom?

(xii) Let us not forget one of your major characteristics: your duality in both manners and values; your hypocrisy in manners and principles. All*manners, principles and values have two scales: one for you and one for the others.

(a)The freedom and democracy that you call to is for yourselves and for white race only; as for the rest of the world, you impose upon them your monstrous, destructive policies and Governments, which you call the 'American friends'. Yet you prevent them from establishing democracies. When the Islamic party in Algeria wanted to practice democracy and they won the election, you unleashed your agents in the Algerian army onto them, and to attack them with tanks and guns, to imprison them and torture them - a new lesson from the 'American book of democracy'!!!

(b)Your policy on prohibiting and forcibly removing weapons of mass destruction to ensure world peace: it only applies to those countries which you do not permit to possess such weapons. As for the countries you consent to, such as Israel, then they are allowed to keep and use such weapons to defend their security. Anyone else who you suspect might be manufacturing or keeping these kinds of weapons, you call them criminals and you take military action against them.

(c)You are the last ones to respect the resolutions and policies of International Law, yet you claim to want to selectively punish anyone else who does the same. Israel has for more than 50 years been pushing UN resolutions and rules against the wall with the full support of America.

(d)As for the war criminals which you censure and form criminal courts for - you shamelessly ask that your own are granted immunity!! However, history will not forget the war crimes that you committed against the Muslims and the rest of the world; those you have killed in Japan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Lebanon and Iraq will remain a shame that you will never be able to escape. It will suffice to remind you of your latest war crimes in Afghanistan, in which densely populated innocent civilian villages were destroyed, bombs were dropped on mosques causing the roof of the mosque to come crashing down on the heads of the Muslims praying inside. You are the ones who broke the agreement with the Mujahideen when they left Qunduz, bombing them in Jangi fort, and killing more than 1,000 of your prisoners through suffocation and thirst. Allah alone knows how many people have died by torture at the hands of you and your agents. Your planes remain in the Afghan skies, looking for anyone remotely suspicious.

(e)You have claimed to be the vanguards of Human Rights, and your Ministry of Foreign affairs issues annual reports containing statistics of those countries that violate any Human Rights. However, all these things vanished when the Mujahideen hit you, and you then implemented the methods of the same documented governments that you used to curse. In America, you captured thousands the Muslims and Arabs, took them into custody with neither reason, court trial, nor even disclosing their names. You issued newer, harsher laws.

What happens in Guatanamo is a historical embarrassment to America and its values, and it screams into your faces - you hypocrites, "What is the value of your signature on any agreement or treaty?"

(3) What we call you to thirdly is to take an honest stance with yourselves - and I doubt you will do so - to discover that you are a nation without principles or manners, and that the values and principles to you are something which you merely demand from others, not that which you yourself must adhere to.

(4) We also advise you to stop supporting Israel, and to end your support of the Indians in Kashmir, the Russians against the Chechens and to also cease supporting the Manila Government against the Muslims in Southern Philippines.

(5) We also advise you to pack your luggage and get out of our lands. We desire for your goodness, guidance, and righteousness, so do not force us to send you back as cargo in coffins.

(6) Sixthly, we call upon you to end your support of the corrupt leaders in our countries. Do not interfere in our politics and method of education. Leave us alone, or else expect us in New York and Washington.

(7) We also call you to deal with us and interact with us on the basis of mutual interests and benefits, rather than the policies of sub dual, theft and occupation, and not to continue your policy of supporting the Jews because this will result in more disasters for you.

If you fail to respond to all these conditions, then prepare for fight with the Islamic Nation. The Nation of Monotheism, that puts complete trust on Allah and fears none other than Him. The Nation which is addressed by its Quran with the words: "Do you fear them? Allah has more right that you should fear Him if you are believers. Fight against them so that Allah will punish them by your hands and disgrace them and give you victory over them and heal the breasts of believing people. And remove the anger of their (believers') hearts. Allah accepts the repentance of whom He wills. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise." [Quran9:13-1]

The Nation of honour and respect:

"But honour, power and glory belong to Allah, and to His Messenger (Muhammad- peace be upon him) and to the believers." [Quran 63:8]

"So do not become weak (against your enemy), nor be sad, and you will be*superior ( in victory )if you are indeed (true) believers" [Quran 3:139]

The Nation of Martyrdom; the Nation that desires death more than you desire life:

"Think not of those who are killed in the way of Allah as dead. Nay, they are alive with their Lord, and they are being provided for. They rejoice in what Allah has bestowed upon them from His bounty and rejoice for the sake of those who have not yet joined them, but are left behind (not yet martyred) that on them no fear shall come, nor shall they grieve. They rejoice in a grace and a bounty from Allah, and that Allah will not waste the reward of the believers." [Quran 3:169-171]

The Nation of victory and success that Allah has promised:

"It is He Who has sent His Messenger (Muhammad peace be upon him) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam), to make it victorious over all other religions even though the Polytheists hate it." [Quran 61:9]

"Allah has decreed that 'Verily it is I and My Messengers who shall be victorious.' Verily Allah is All-Powerful, All-Mighty." [Quran 58:21]

The Islamic Nation that was able to dismiss and destroy the previous evil Empires like yourself; the Nation that rejects your attacks, wishes to remove your evils, and is prepared to fight you. You are well aware that the Islamic Nation, from the very core of its soul, despises your haughtiness and arrogance.

If the Americans refuse to listen to our advice and the goodness, guidance and righteousness that we call them to, then be aware that you will lose this Crusade Bush began, just like the other previous Crusades in which you were humiliated by the hands of the Mujahideen, fleeing to your home in great silence and disgrace. If the Americans do not respond, then their fate will be that of the Soviets who fled from Afghanistan to deal with their military defeat, political breakup, ideological downfall, and economic bankruptcy.

This is our message to the Americans, as an answer to theirs. Do they now know why we fight them and over which form of ignorance, by the permission of Allah, we shall be victorious?

#saved for later #bin laden #osama bin laden #gaza #palestine #the guardian #free palestine #israel #jerusalem #فلسطين #i stand with palestine #arab #America #Usa #americans #letter to america

9 notes · View notes

miammey · 1 year

Note

Okay okay hear me out Sigma and Jouno friendship HEAR ME OUT I KNOW THEYVE NEVER MET BUT I THINK THEY WOULD VIBE AND I MADE A LIST WHY !!CONTAINS SPOILERS!!

They're both their organization's lead interrogation force With vastly different methods, sure, but Sigma would feel like Jouno would have no real intention of using him as he possesses the skills himself.

Both got recruited in the face of death basically Jouno was saved from death row by Fukuchi, after being a convicted criminal, in order to join the Hunting Dogs, Sigma was saved from walking aimlessly after escaping from armed people and being held prisoner for his ability. Neither has much say in their destiny, with the alternative choice clearly being worse Jouno can't leave the Hunting Dogs, since the surgery will not allow him to live longer than a month upon defecting, Sigma cannot leave because the casino is the thing that gives him purpose and a reason to exist, and he cannot stray from the writings of the page

Both really need a break from their colleagues Jouno's opinion of his fellow Hunting Dogs is often written in suffix along the lines of 'What idiots' or 'Are they stupid?' (even more so in Wan, even if that is not canon), Sigma takes a more passive approach, by labeling himself 'the most normal person in the room' in prison, as well as some clear confused or just disbelieving expressions

Jouno would kick absolute butt at poker (with braille cards) Jouno could easily read the excitement of his opponent, and even use his blindness as an excuse to get the others to read the cards out loud in order to get a more accurate read on their hands. He would have a near perfect idea of his odds of victory at all times and can bet accordingly.

Sigma could get government witness protection- something like that- were he to leave the DOA Yes, he'd most likely be better off with the ADA, given his ability is not combat-based, but the Hunting Dogs have shown in the past that they also have the power to make sure criminals do not get prosecuted for their crimes, as Tecchou once promised for Lucy, so it's still a viable option.

And- this one might be a stretch but HEAR ME OUT- Jouno would see Sigma as himself at an earlier stage in life Given Jouno's history of crime before landing on the good path, he could see the potential in Sigma- especially because Sigma never really had the desire to hurt anyone, unlike Jouno. He would know better than anyone that it is possible to be changed, and I believe he'd support it in his own way, especially considering Sigma's age.

Anyway, just a silly bit of propaganda I've been sharing online, so far I've corrupted like 5 discord servers with it >:) Here's to many more.

Would love an opinion from the artist of all time!

Skylar

OOOOHHHH YES YES YES, THIS IS AO INTERESTING!!!

Firstly, I love throwing random characters into relationships (romantic, platonic, familial, whatever), so no need to say “hear me out,” I’m all ears!!!

Secondly, YESS!!! I love the idea of them becoming friends!!! I feel like they’d definitely have an understanding of each other, and can both bond from being former criminals, as you said.

I mean, Jouno literally asked Kunikida, who he fully believed was a terrorist, to join the Hunting Dogs, most likely because he himself was in the same position as Kunikida at one point and joining was a great decision in his life, why not do something similar with Sigma, in this case??

I also think that Jouno wouldn’t really find Sigma annoying the same way he he does most people, Sigma’s pretty polite and well-mannered most times, and so is Jouno when he’s in a good mood and not being irritated by something, so I feel like their friendship would actually be pretty relaxed compared to their relationships with their coworkers.

Also Jouno would be amazing at card games, he could practically read all of his opponent’s intentions by their heartbeats, slight movements of their fingers against their cards, not even people with the best pokerface can hide anything from him

Thank you for sharing this with me, but if you wanted to get the opinion of the artist ever you should’ve asked them!!

#again thank you!!! this is amazing!!!#asks #bsd jouno #bsd sigma #I should start tagging my asks with characters #people might wanna be able to find them later

26 notes · View notes

skylarstarlight · 1 year

Text

Spreading Unlikely BSD Friendship Propaganda

Day 1: Sigma & Saigiku Jouno

Spoilers for the BSD Manga (obviously)

Both are their respective organisation's interrogator

With vastly different methods, sure, but Sigma would feel like Jouno would have no real intention of using him as he possesses the skills himself.

Both were recruited in the face of death & are now unable to leave easily

Jouno was saved from death row by Fukuchi, after being a convicted criminal, in order to join the Hunting Dogs Sigma was saved from walking aimlessly after escaping from armed people and being held prisoner for his ability Neither has much say in their destiny, with the alternative choice clearly being worse Jouno can't leave the Hunting Dogs, since the surgery will not allow him to live longer than a month upon defecting Sigma cannot leave because the casino is the thing that gives him purpose and a reason to exist, and he cannot stray from the writings of the page

Both are their organisation's 'wtf is wrong with my colleagues' person

Jouno's opinion of his fellow Hunting Dogs is often written in suffix along the lines of 'What idiots' or 'Are they stupid?' (even more so in Wan, even if that is not canon) Sigma takes a more passive approach, by labeling himself 'the most normal person in the room' in prison, as well as some clear confused or just disbelieving expressions

Jouno would kick ass at Poker

[If the cards support braille, that is] Jouno could easily read the excitement of his opponent, and even use his blindness as an excuse to get the others to read the cards out loud in order to get a more accurate read on their hands. He would have a near perfect idea of his odds of victory at all times and can bet accordingly.

Sigma could get government protection were he to leave the DOA and get his crimes excused

Yes, he'd most likely be better off with the ADA, given his ability is not combat-based, but the Hunting Dogs have shown in the past that they also have the power to make sure criminals do not get prosecuted for their crimes, as Tecchou once promised for Lucy, so it's still a viable option.

Neither has a prejudice against the other specifically (considering they have not yet met)

Sigma may have a general distaste for the Hunting Dogs due to Teruko and Tachihara's intrusion, but on the occasion that they would meet when Jouno is not recognized as a Hunting Dog, they are on equal ground without prejudice

Jouno would see Sigma as himself at an earlier stage in life

Maybe a slight stretch, but hear me out: Given Jouno's history of crime before landing on the good path, he could see the potential in Sigma- especially because Sigma never really had the intention to hurt anyone, unlike Jouno. He would know better than anyone that it is possible to be changed, and I believe he'd support it in his own way, especially considering Sigma's age.

End of Day 1

This will most likely not have daily updates

#bsd #bsd sigma #bungo stray dogs season 4 #bungo stray dogs #bungou stray dogs #bsd jouno #skylar rambles #bsd friendship propaganda series #jouno saigiku

21 notes · View notes

cryptid-on-a-string · 2 years

Text

disbelieving, thats the real crime

pretty soon they'll discover me,

IN THE CLUB. THE MODEL RAILROAD CLUB

#lemon demon

86 notes · View notes

popolitiko · 4 months

Text

youtube

After initially finding some common ground on the matter of Donald Trump's 14th amendment constitutional challenges conservative writer Andrew Sullivan had a heated exchange with MSNBC commentator Ari Melber on Real Time with Bill Maher about to what extent both sides the progressive left and the Democratic party versus the progressive right and the Republican Party are responsible for the current toxic state of American politics.

We have a couple of Clips to look at in this video and I'll say the most recent episode of Real Time with Bill Maher a show that I don't follow that much anymore was actually pretty good fodder for commentary.

We just did a video about the interview between Maher and Gavin Newsome the governor of California.

But this exchange between Sullivan and Melber who are two political commentators of two very different political lenses was fascinating to me because it spoke to one of the things that we complain about quite a bit on this channel which is the urge of centrists and conservatives and even some on the left to create this artificial balance - this false equivalence between two imperfect but still wildly and fundamentally different political factions and so with that in mind I want to play this clip and for context Maher is going to ask about or ask these two about a recent story about a right-wing Republican Trump Ally wanting to do something pretty drastic.

Maher: So Roger Stone one of his favorites. This is amazing that I mean it was not a big story I would think it would be media I reported it. there a tape he's talking about killing people for Trump I not saying with Trump's approval but he says it's time to do it let's go find that's Congressman Swalwell it's time to do it then we'll see how Brave the rest of them are it's either Swalwell or Nadler has to die before the election let's go find Swalwell and get this over with. That’s not right is it? I mean I feel like we're spinning out of control a little here with this…

Sullivan: I think what Trump set in motion and what the divisions of the country has done and what the Democrats have done the last four years which has respond to Trump by going even further to the left means that we are losing the legitimacy of the system and that is the critical thing when you lose that core legitimacy you lose your democracy that's where we're really going to lose our democracy because we don't believe in it anymore and you can see that the result of that the way this works is you start disbelieving in all the institutions and then you say who do I want you want a strong man you want someone to come in and cut all the knots this is the classic case of how you lose a democracy yeah and he's almost certainly going to be there he's going to win this election.

So before Melber responds I just want to remind you okay Maher just provided a recent story which in my opinion was hella under reported about a very close Trump Ally a guy who worked on Trump's 2016 campaign Roger Stone in private scheming about murdering two Democratic Congress people. Okay so that is a right-winger scheming to perpetrate a heinous crime against two left-wing public officials and you know Andrew Sullivan's first instinct to say yeah Trump kind of set this emotion but man the Democrats they've really pushed far left so that's the context just to remind you and this is how Ari Melber responds.

Melber: I think you make Fair points Andrew but you sound a little bit both sidese I don't know if that's on purpose. But there are absolutely problems with the Democratic Party and the overreaction to Trump. We just spoke about the ballot case and its thinness and we cover that all the time on the news. But there's not equivalence here on the problems that you just referred to…

There’s not equivalence on political violence

There’s not equivalence on responding to court cases.

Bush vs. Gore was very controversial but there was no violent response and there was not any mainstream response from Democrats about overthrowing the certification. Al Gore actually showed up on Jan 6 remember it was that date and certified it so there isn't a bothsidesism to this Decay and what Trump does And I agree at times he may draw his opponents into messy dumb feuds but he is the one banking on a cynicism an attack on democracy and a complete rejection of the policy democracy that you want because they didn't even have a platform so he's saying “It's just me. You don't even know what I'm going to do just vote for me”. No platform and you've got a whole Republican party that's basically codifying that.

So Sullivan's about to respond but I just want to emphasize Melber's response there was very accurate very honest and I would argue perhaps even charitable to a fault. He went out of his way to acknowledge -- which is something Republicans very rarely do if ever -- that there are issues with the Democratic Party and he said it repeatedly and he also reminded Sullivan of the Common Ground that they shared earlier in this interview because both of them think that the 14th Amendment challenges to Donald Trump's eligibility are weak and this is coming from an MSNBC legal commentator and he's publicly admitting that at least from his perspective (I completely disagree) but that's his perspective. So he's again going out of his way to try to establish some commonality and reiterate that with Sullivan while also saying you can't create a false equivalence here if you do I'm going to reject it.

Note how Sullivan responds

Sullivan: It would be good at MSNBC if you actually did think about both sides and weigh the arguments and make constructive arguments against that side while respecting them. You don't do that. It’s propaganda all the time.

Melber: What you just said - just describe my show. I had a trump lawyer on this week I've had Steve Bannon on my show I've had officials … So describing a goal that I'm achieving I take that as a compliment

Sullivan: well you might.

You can tell there's obvious tension there. But also know Andrew Sullivan started to say something before Melber cut him off-- which was you know… he’s like… you should make constructive arguments … and respect the people that are making those arguments.

Well and here's the thing -- Melber just did that. Melber just said - and then he goes on to say Sullivan does that you know you're denying the denying and he was clearly starting to say that you're denying that Democrats do anything wrong but Melber actually said that to the contrary. He’s like there are issues with the Democratic Party and he talks about how the Democratic Party will fall for various rhetorical traps of Trumps and perhaps overreach from time to time in their criticism of him so again he was generous reiterating the common ground and making it very clear that he doesn't think the Democratic Party is perfect. That went right over Andrew Sullivan's head because even though Andrew Sullivan by the way and he even mentioned it in this interview he doesn't like Trump he thinks that Trump is dangerous he doesn't he won't vote for Trump I want to be very clear he's an anti-trump conservative he still is compelled to try to create some artificial balance between his side and the opposition when his side is very clearly in the wrong far more often. They have fewer facts on their side there are much many more moral transgressions on their side and Sullivan is not prepared to confront that fact right.

He’s prepared to seed the ground on Trump but he… well uh… you know listen… well the left has its problems too

Well listen if you're going to be an honest conservative if you believe in conservative principles which presumably Andrew Sullivan does

You should also have the Integrity to admit that… yeah right now … like Liz Cheney. I don't like Liz Cheney. Liz Cheney's voting record and her policies are terrible but Liz Cheney will admit and has admitted publicly that right now there is a bigger problem by far with the Republican Party than the Democratic Party. and this is coming from not just a lifelong conservative but somebody who was a lifelong Republican and a republican public official right and even she has found the fortitude to say that right now it's not a both sides issue not that both sides are perfect but one is much worse than the other

Andrew Sullivan doesn't have the courage to admit it and he's so biased in that respect that even when Ari Melber says yeah the Democratic Party has its faults.

Sullivan doesn't hear. “You deny that there's any problem with the Democratic Party”.

Well no I don't. But the other thing I want to focus on is this idea that you know listen you should be able to give constructive criticisms of the right while still respecting the right and we've talked about this before again that asymmetry of expectation.

When is the shoe ever on the other foot?

I think it was yeah Nicholas Grossman wrote this article in the Bullwork back in August of last year “The media still doesn't get Biden voters”.

We’re not going to read the whole thing but just to give you a bit of a refresher.

“Conservative and mainstream media don't agree on much but one point of consensus is that everyone should work harder to understand Trump supporters. The implicit message you don't have to agree with the populist right but you should be listening to empathizing with and engaging with them more

And he gives two various examples.

Actually numerous examples of like a New York Times article and Matt Yglesias who is like a liberal leaning Centrist always talking about how important it is to show empathy and understanding for the right.

But this is what Grossman points out:

“Seeing these arguments I was struck by the asymmetry of our political moment. I've never seen Centrist like Iglesias say to people on the right or Center that it's important to read progressives (even if they're super woke or whatever left-wing equivalent of Hanania’s racism is). Nor have I ever seen traditional conservatives like David Brooks call for empathy with people on the left or claim that any left-wing extremism is merely an inevitable reaction to Centrist and conservative Elites mistakes. Reporters don't do safaris to Biden country seeking to understand what the voters who put him in the white house while there are pieces explaining how for example black women in Georgia suburbs made a big difference in the 2020 election there's nothing approaching the ongoing coverage of white men in Ohio diners.

And so on and so forth and he goes on and he makes the case like listen you know to whatever extent it is the moral obligation of the left to understand the right by definition the right has the same obligation. Especially when and very often they're in a position of minority. There are more people who vote Democrat - so if Republicans want to win more elections perhaps they should also take time - like damn why are people voting against Donald Trump? Why are people voting for Joe Biden or Barack Obama or whoever it may be?

But again that's never the expectation. Andrew Sullivan doesn't talk about that. Conservatives and Centrist don't talk about that. It’s always the impetus is always on the left to understand the right. Democrats to understand Republicans.

And my position is this - if that is an obligation - it is it is by definition and it's non-negotiable it has to be reciprocal.

If the left has to understand the right - the right must understand the left.

The left's... you know Fox News and others as well they should be asking “why do so many people hate our party's front runner?” but nobody asked that question -- and it's always blamed on TDS Trump Derangement Syndrome.

This asymmetry is disgusting it really is- and I love the fact that Ari Melber publicly called it out you know. So I think that was a great exchange and I think it further illustrated the weakness of conservatives and centrists again they cannot function

Everyone is always beholden to them everyone must come to them and understand them and understand their views and perhaps so -- but they should reciprocate they have a moral obligation to do so.

Ari Melber very clearly won that argument and you can see it with how upset Andrew Sullivan got how triggered he got and I love it

I love seeing that exposure of the weakness of centrists and conservatives and their snowflakes. They just can't handle it.

So let me know what you think in the comments

---------------------------------------------------

Comments * I appreciate Ari Melber for his opinions on this awful show with Bill Maher. * Ari attempted to use logic and intelligence while Sullivan tried to be a prick. * Having watched Andrew Sullivan for more than a decade on the show, it’s great to see someone call him out on his nonsense. This is par for the course for Andrew and his narcissistic view of self. Love you Ari! *

*https://youtu.be/6DHvGrxRnCM?si=1sQZ-mvPysa_d-6x

#Youtube

3 notes · View notes