#and discussing politics and philosophy

[brekkie-e]

Chants lovingly.

Bria. Bria. Bria.

#i cant stop doodling her yall #thats my wife #i finally have an oc idea for her #she's going to get the wife she deserves or ill die trying #basically the premise is my canon inquisitor and bria are in cahoots to try and establish independence for the dales #and my inquisitor doesnt trust anyone from the actual inquisition to be a liason cause its very hush hush #so she sends her childhood best friend as her personal diplomat/spy #and the two fall in love after many secret little meetings over tea #and discussing politics and philosophy #briala #the masked empire #dragon age inquisition #dragon age #dragon age fan art #dalish #lavellan #bria bria my darling bria #kisses each of her freckles #this is a celene hate blog #my art #brekkie art

[tbookblurbs]

The Final Empire - Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn Era 1, #1)

5/5 - fabulous characters, heist novel, Vin my beloved!! start of a truly fabulous trilogy, really innovative magic

SPOILERS BELOW!!!

This was the first Sanderson novel I read and it really captured my heart (as it probably obvious). As such, it holds a special place of honor To Me as one of his superior works.

The Final Empire is excellent for a number of reasons. First, it's a heist movie in a book. Think Ocean's 11 (2018). The crew is all very likeable and they come together to put together a truly insane plan. The best part is that, at several points in the story, key elements of the plan go completely wrong. It's delightful. Nothing is better than watching characters who are supposed to be clever actually act clever.

TFE is also distinct amongst many trilogy consisting of a fight against an evil overlord in that the fight happens and succeeds in the very first book. It doesn't take them the usual first attempt, minor success, second attempt horrific failure, and third attempt actual victory that usually happens over the course of fantasy trilogies. This also means they actually have to have the philosophical discussions that usually get tossed to the wayside regarding what to do after a revolution succeeds. Delicious I tell you.

Sanderson is also a master of describing places that are foreign compared to Earth and then sells these concepts by changing the way that characters behave. People thinking plants being green would just be weird? Extra notes of importance on the color white because of all the ash? The world doesn't only look different, which is common in most fantasy settings, but the characters feel like they're from somewhere totally different, which some books are not successful at.

Allomancy as a concept is also something that's super distinctive to me. Sanderson is pretty well-known in fantasy circles for defining "hard" and "soft" magic and he abides pretty strictly by those rules.

And the cherry on top of the cupcake is Vin. My beloved. Her struggle with identity, trust issues, her own power, it's just everything to me. She goes through a whole "I'm not like other girls" arc and yet she's still struggling. She's immensely powerful and yet so inexperienced. I love her. I would do anything for her.

Also Vin and Elend's romance is just so cute. You have to feel for Vin the whole time. They have my whole heart.

Now having read The Secret History, I still harbor some conflicted feelings towards Kelsier. He's such a good father figure to Vin (which makes him dying so heartbreaking) but his whole religious arc still leaves me feeling weird.

PS: If you would like some really good Vin art, or good Sanderson art in general, I highly recommend @lamaery their Vin design and their costume design is !!! crazy good

#I could wax poetic about this book #AND I WILL #i didn't even get to talk about Sazed or ab Ham's philosophy discussions or the mist or the POLITICAL MANEUVERING?? #but i'm trying to be brief. i love this book. #only problem is that Elend is blond and I just don't think blond men are pretty :/ sorry Elend #mistborn #the final empire #mistborn spoilers #vin venture #kelsier #mistborn era 1 #cosmere #book review #fantasy #high fantasy #brandon sanderson #elend venture

[irithnova]

One of the funniest things I've seen someone say is "I hate when people try to FORCE POLITICS into HISTORICAL HETALIA" girl I have really bad news for you

#I'm sorry but history + politics aren't these 2 completely separate things #Just like how philosophy + politics aren't two completely separate things etc #And accusing people of “forcing” politics down historical hetalia's throat or something is just nonsensical #People who say this usually don't have an issue with politics being discussed in historical hetalia #They only have an issue with it when it makes their blorbo look bad lmao #Lol #Again I just wanted to highlight how stupid it is to say something like that #Like HISTORICAL hetalia specifically girl yeah maybe there will be talks of politics 💀💀💀 #If it was like. General hetalia ok I'd maybe get it #BUT HISTORICAL HETALIA ? #Sorry I'm too humanities brained for this nonsense

[salvidida]

There's so much bad faith criticism about how "anti feminist" fma 03 supposedly is (ironically without using any form of feminist analytical lens beyond pop feminism 101) that I'm almost surprised that I haven't seen anyone claim that the 2003 anime and Conqueror of Shambala are 'misogynist' because both final villains are women

#feminism according to fandom is whether or not only good things happen to badass women #i'm not claiming that fma in general is feminist or not; if anything simplifying a work down to a large political philosophy can flatten #both our ability to dissect and discuss a work as well as gloss over the nuances of different feminist frameworks #but the number of times i've seen people state that 03 is specifically ANTI-feminist blows me away #as if one of the core themes of the anime is ''we must enforce the patriarchy'' or ''the oppression of women is a societal good'' #no version of these interpretations are present and yet the accusation gets passed around all the same #fma #fma 03

[darkwood-sleddog]

My biggest dog community pet peeve is this:

Person A: a valid critique on a breed/community/sport/ethics

Person in said breed/community/sport: this is hate! *refuses to have mature discussion.

#dogblr #please learn to take constructive cricisim #dog community 2k23…. #I feel like too many people make an entire community be it breed sport etc or even a side of a training or breeding debate #a core aspect of their personality #so any critique on such is taken as a personal affront #it is not hateful to point out ~polite~ valid critique of said things #like ‘despite what old fashioned breeders have done in the past this dog type DOES need health testing’ #is not hate #nor is ‘this breed has a color breeding problem’ or ‘this sport encourages overstimulated dogs’ #I’m honestly tired of this attitude in general bc no real discussion or progress can be made in any of these avenues #not even going to touch the training philosophies debate bc woof

[some-teeth-in-a-trench-coat]

hi

you are not morally obligated to give platform to every voice that makes you feel guilty, ever

guilt does not make you a good person, that's not how anything works

thanks for reading I sincerely hope you can also comprehension

#politics #philosophy #ok to reblog #personal #sfw #I'm not gonna talk about what prompted this just know that I just saw a very bad take oozing with guilt being reblogged like great wisdom #idk if you're glorifying guilt or just succumbing to it but I'm begging you to think for more than a second first when discussing genocide #I don't care about your fandom takes but if you care so much about current events could you maybe put in the effort of thinking first? #is that too much to ask? #I'm gonna sleep now please don't make me wish I turned reblogs off #tw genocide mention #cw genocide mention #tw current events #cw current events #and the following don't fully apply but it's what everyone is gonna think seeing it and better safe than sorry #tw Palestine mention #cw Palestine mention #tw Israel mention #cw Israel mention

[sillyfreakx3]

Ok but can we stop arguing with each other and can we just have long philosophical discussions on transIDs and what & how personal identity is, what does it mean to BE something, what counts as real, the effects of calling yourself something on your identity, and so on? :c

Respectful antis too, just everyone discussing transIDs' implications on various areas of philosophy without bringing in politics and discourse

#Like don't get me wrong i love discourse!! #And discourse/politics discussions are very important #I JUST ALSO WANT THE PHILOSOPHICAL ONES TOO #what do you expect me to read actual philosophy literature on similar things? #Ughh i don't know how to search for stuff related to that I couldn't find anything when i was fixating on(voluntary especially)alterhumanit #Though conceptual relativity WAS interesting I'll give you that #I need to actually read more on it because I'm not sure if i 100% understand it #transid #Transx #radqueer #rq 🌈🍓 #rq safe #pro transid

[amateurphilosophybullshit]

I'm on the fence about the "mad pride" community, specifically on tumblr. I am mentally ill. I am proud to be mad. I want to be understood and I want to be treated better by society. But there is something off about the thing I see on tumblr.

I want a world where people can be healthier, not "more normal". However, some of the rhetoric on here seems dangerous, such as anti-recovery. Sometimes we do have to get help if our conditions will hurt us. I need help to make sure I don't kill myself. If left alone to my own devices, my condition only worsens.

We should absolutely distrust those who want us to be more "normal". We must get rid of the violence that oppress us, but we have to be wise and strategic about it. We mustn't shame those who wish to get better, and we shouldn't make ourselves more vulnerable to those who wish to hurt us. If we risk hurting ourselves, or if somebody is taking advantage of our condition in order to abuse us, are we truly changing things for the better?

Not to mention, there is some odd takes on healthy/neurotypical people, such as them being stupid and unable to see the world in a complete way. While most of the anger I saw was righteous, this seems a bit misguided.

Nobody sees the world in an "incomplete" way. We experience what we experience. We all provide different perspectives on life.

The only way to dismantle the systems of oppression that harms all people is for us to communicate and help each other. The revolution can only be successful if it is born out of love for humanity, not hate for another group.

I may be misguided, but I am confused.

I feel like a terrible person for feeling so suspicious and uneasy. I wish everything was clearer. The only reason I feel this way is because I want a community for people like me, but I need one that'll help me heal. If a community only wants me to suffer just for political gain, do they really care about me? If I am a political enemy for finding that therapy and medication helps me, then what am I guilty of?

We need to make a new system that relies on the autonomy of the patient instead of coercing people into psych wards and hospitals. Therapy helps me, but that's because everybody is different. What helps me doesn't work for another. Why force somebody to do something that doesn't help them? Why destroy something that helps me?

Society dehumanizes us, but we cannot throw away the field of medicine just because they weaponize it. Unlike the policing system or the prison system, we cannot live without doctors and medicine. Unlike the policing and the prison system, it'll benefit us to reform it. The reformation will rely on autonomy rather than coercion.

#mad pride #madpunk #feel free to discuss #tw sanism #tw ableism #tw suicide mention #politics #on tumblr #philosophy #pro recovery #anti psych #anti recovery #psychology #psychiatry #left wing #leftism #actually mentally ill

[smallfrenchstudyblr]

Hi. I just read your answer to the nonnie who asked about some theory. I, too, am a student of IR (second year) and I was wondering (if you have spoons, of course)... what exactly is positivism? I just don't get it. I read the book you mentioned in your answer, I also read the books our profs recommended, I even googled and read different articles, but... I just don't get it. I can't explain what is positivism in IR: I was wondering if you could, maybe, explain it, like "Positivism and postpositivim for dummies". Thanks a lot! :)

Hello Anon!

You have no idea how happy this question makes me, because I genuinely think it is one of the most under-explained aspects of IR to undergrad, despite how key it is. So here is your "positivism and post-positivism in IR 101" under the cut!

So get this.

To understand what we are talking about, we are going to talk about ontology and epistemology - and stay with me here, I swear it is actually fun and not very hard to understand.

We are in the XIXth century, and French sociologist August Compte had the (at the time) brand new idea that rather than wondering how society should, how people should behave, or more metaphysical questions, we should just look at how society works, and understand how it works. Just like you would study why plant grow in certain environment and not others, how alloys are formed or how the body works, you can study society, politics (international relations!) and find out rules, laws, to explain how things work. If you drop a ball from a building, it will always fall toward the ground at a given speed. If you have two equal superpowers dominating international politics, the system will always be more stable than if you have more.

Now, there are actually a whole lot of assumptions, here. First, ontological assumptions (="what is reality?): you assume something about reality. You assume that there is a single thing, called "society", that EXIST, and we can all have the same understanding of what it is. But ok, most theories would agree with this today. But then, you have an epistemological assumption (=how can we KNOW reality?): you assume that not only this reality, in theory, exist, but that we can gain knowledge of what it is, in an objective fashion. We can research it, empirically, because we all experience the exact same reality, we can gain a shared, common understanding of what is society, and how it works. THIS, is positivism.

Therefore, positivist theories are those who really treat political science (including international relations) like a SCIENCE. It tries to uncover an objective truth, which not only DOES EXIST (ontology), but that we CAN EMPIRICALLY DISCOVER (epistemology).

This why so many positivist authors will refer to philosophers of science like Popper, Kuhn, Hempel, coming up with theories which must then be tested against reality, in a way that is transparent, falsifiable, replicable. Really see it as "biology, but about society". If it ain't testable, replicable and generalizable to other situations, it ain't a good theory.

Now.

The thing is, for International relations at least, this was developed mainly by white straight men based in the US, from the 50s to the 00s. In a sense, because the pool of researchers was so uniform, they never doubted that there is a shared single reality, that they can all agree on what it is, that they get to experience the same reality, that they are objective in their research.

But you know. At some point, people who were NOT cishet white US males started to be heard as researchers (finally). And we realised that those ontological and epistemological assumptions we had ? They might not be THAT obvious. Maybe you cannot, actually study society with the same objectivity as you study plants. Because you are PART of society, as a researcher. Or because society itself is not a single, unique thing which can be explained and understood empirically through general laws.

Classification, here, becomes a bit more tricky, so here is an attempt (but I have seen other classifications just as good and valid).

Post-positivism tends to agree ontologically (there is a single reality, out there, somewhere) but not empistemologically (we don't get to empirically explore it like we would for astronomy, because each theory and theory-testing cannot be free from the structure of powers in which they are created).

This includes all theories like feminist theories, queer theories, post-colonial theories... Typically, they do not try to "explain", to provide big all-encompassing laws of how IR work - because you can't, according to them. Instead, they look at everything in context, reflecting on their own subjectivity and the subjectivity of everyone else, accepting that they will explain an event rather than test a theory through said event. There is often an emphasis on discourse, meanings, agendas, values, and time-place specific understanding of it all, as well a power dynamics between various communities and how it shapes both IR and IR theories.

Interpretivism tends to disagree ontologically (there is not single reality of society which exist in theory, society does not exist in and of itself but only through experience, therefore there can never be a single "society", only individualized experiences of it) and therefore also disagrees epistemologically.

I am much less familiar with interpretivism, but from what I understand, it focuses quasi-exclusively on subjectivity and individual experiences - therefore, I am not sure how well developed in could be in international relations? The idea is that nothing is taken for granted, no concept existing in one time-place can be assumed to also exist, in a comparable manner, in another time-place. Halperin and Heath have a really great discussion in their manual and if you are curious about it, they can explain it much better than I every could - but once again, not sure how relevant this one would be to IR.

So there it is.

Hopefully that will have been of some help. There is really no way around it, you need to go back to some basics of philosophy of science to understand what is happening with positivism and post-positivism ! But you do not need to read through all of Popper (derogatory) to understand what's up either. You've got this!

#ask me things #political science #philosophy of science #we love some discussion of ontology and epistemology #I am a nerd and I will not apologize for this #actual idea discussion topic for a first date I am not even kidding here

[boudicca]

used to listen to political arguments on here but as i've been reading political theory it's becoming very clear that nobody on here had read it either

#for some of u political discussion is just throwing philosophy 101 buzzwords into a hat and arranging them in whatever way sounds smartest #like genuinely. genuinely #p

[copperbadge]

I'm getting depressingly good at identifying the formula for Pop Academic Books About ADHD.

Regardless of their philosophy it pretty much goes like this:

1. Emotionally sensitive essay about the struggle of ADHD and the author's personal experience with it as both a person with ADHD and a healthcare professional.

2. Either during or directly following this, a lightly explicated catalogue of symptoms, illustrated by anecdotes from patient case studies. Optional: frequent, heavy use of metaphor to explain ADHD-driven behavior.

3. Several chapters follow, each dedicated to a symptom; these have a mini-formula of their own. They open with a patient case study, discuss the highly relatable aspects of the specific symptom or behavior, then offer some lightweight examples of a treatment for the symptom, usually accompanied by follow up results from the earlier case studies.

4. Somewhere around halfway-to-two-thirds through the book, the author introduces the more in-depth explication of the treatment system (often their own homebrew) they are advocating. These are generally both personally-driven (as opposed to suggested cultural changes, which makes sense given these books' target audience, more on this later) and composed of an elaborate system of either behavior alteration or mental reframing. Whether this system is actually implementable by the average reader varies wildly.

5. A brief optional section on how to make use of ADHD as a tool (usually referring to ADHD or some of its symptoms as a superpower at least once). Sometimes this section restates the importance of using the systems from part 4 to harness that superpower. Frequently, if present, it feels like an afterthought.

6. Summation and list of further resources, often including other books which follow this formula.

I know I'm being a little sarcastic, but realistically there's nothing inherently wrong about the formula, like in itself it's not a red flag. It's just hilariously recognizable once you've noticed it.

It makes sense that these books advocate for the Reader With ADHD undertaking personal responsibility for their treatment, since these are in the tradition of self-help publishing. They're aimed at people who are already interested in doing their own research on their disability and possible ways to handle it. It's not really fair to ask them to be policy manuals, but I do find it interesting that even books which advocate stuff like volunteering (for whatever reason, usually to do with socialization issues and isolation, often DBT-adjacent) never suggest disability activism either generally or with an ADHD-specific bent.

None of these books suggest that perhaps life with ADHD could be made easier with increased accommodations or ease of medication access, and that it might be in a person's best interest to engage in political advocacy surrounding these and other disability-related issues. Or that activism related to ADHD might help to give someone with ADHD a stronger sense of ownership of their unique neurology. Or that if you have ADHD the idea of activism or even medical self-advocacy is crushingly stressful, and ways that stress might be dealt with.

It does make me want to write one of my own. "The Deviant Chaos Guide To Being A Miscreant With ADHD". Includes chapters on how to get an actual accurate assessment, tips for managing a prescription for a controlled substance, medical and psychiatric self-advocacy for people who are conditioned against confrontation, When To Lie About Being Neurodivergent, policy suggestions for ADHD-related legislation, tips for activism while executively dysfunked, and to close the book a biting satire of the pop media idea of self-care. ("Feeling sad? Make yourself a nice pot of chicken soup from scratch and you'll feel better in no time. Stay tuned after this rambling personal essay for the most mediocre chicken soup recipe you've ever seen!" "Have you considered planning and executing an overly elaborate criminal heist as a way to meet people and stay busy?")

Every case study or personal anecdote in the book will have a different name and demographics attached but will also make it obvious that they are all really just me, in the prose equivalent of a cheap wig, writing about my life. "Kelly, age seven, says she struggles to stay organized using the systems neurotypical children might find easy. I had to design my own accounting spreadsheet in order to make sure I always have enough in checking to cover the mortgage, she told me, fidgeting with the pop socket on her smartphone."

I feel a little bad making fun, because these books are often the best resource people can get (in itself concerning). It's like how despite my dislike of AA, I don't dunk on it in public because I don't want to offer people an excuse not to seek help. It feels like punching down to criticize these books, even though it's a swing at an industry that is mainly, it seems, here to profit from me. But one does get tired of skimming the hype for the real content only to find the real content isn't that useful either.

Les (not his real name) was diagnosed at the age of 236. Charming, well-read, and wealthy, he still spent much of his afterlife feeling deeply inadequate about his perceived shortcomings. "Vampire culture doesn't really acknowledge ADHD as a condition," he says. "My sire wouldn't understand, even though he probably has it as well. You should see the number of coffins containing the soil of his homeland that he's left lying forgotten all over Europe." A late diagnosis validated his feelings of difference, but on its own can't help when he hyperfocuses on seducing mortals who cross his path and forgets to get home before sunrise. "I have stock in sunburn gel companies," he jokes.

#sam has adhd #self help #satire

[teachanarchy]

How Debate Got Stupid

#debate #ela #government #politics #ideology #dialogue #socrates #philosophy #discussion #pedagogy #learning #sophists #propaganda #media literacy #literacy #Youtube

[alstroemerian-dragon]

the tough thing about writing realistic narrative conflict is that. when there aren’t larger sweeping stakes, something like 80% of narrative conflict is predicated on miscommunication or the withholding of information, big or small. and as someone who is both fairly autistic and well trained in conflict resolution, my brain is screaming “WHY DO THEY NOT SIMPLY DISCUSS THINGS OPENLY!!!!!!”

its something im practicing but BOY its hard fkdhfjdhfjs. im having to go “okay what would i say in this situation. now. would this character actually admit that? no. fuck. okay how can i hint towards it without them straight up saying it”

#personal #its an awkward balance to have especially with particular characters #its not necessarily an issue when im writing hajime #both because hes ALSO autistic. and because post shutdown (at least in my brain) hes much more blunt and straightforward #who give a shit about being polite or dancing around words when youre basically a war criminal right #now fuyuhiko is a balance to strike. because when talking to ANYONE ELSE he will say NOTHING about how he really feels unless hes pissed off #or really stressed and running his mouth on accident #now with hajime hes a lot more willing to Discuss Hard Things. however. there are still things he would Never Fucking Say. unless forced #and hajime will force it. eventually #akane is similar to hajime in that shes also very autistic and also just doesnt really care or pay attention to what other people think #but she also has a hard time tackling or discussing more intellectual topics solely because she just. doesnt get them. and also doesnt care #SHES NOT STUPID!!!!! SHE JUST DOESNT GIVE A SHIT ABOUT PHILOSOPHY OR WHATEVER AND THATS FINE #sonias an interesting one because. as a princess she has a LOT of experience talking around things #and so i think she does it just. habitually. pasting on a smile and a pleasant expression and everything is fine #but shes trying really hard to be more open because of hajime and the others. knowing these people are safe to just be her around #its hard bc she spent a year and a half being a military dictator acting on and forcing other people to act on her every sadistic whim #so now shes like ‘i have to be soooooo nice and never cause problems or i’ll die! i’ll simply die’ #now kazuichi. kazuichi would never admit any kind of shit under penalty of death #except for the fact that he can not keep his mouth shut to save his life #so whether he wants to or not he will say what he is thinking at the least opportune moment possible #okay i was gonna say more and i wrote it all out but i reached max tags without finishing #so im just not going to say any more <3 love and peace #i have the most experience writing these five but im slowly expanding #i need to get better at kyoko makoto and byakuya bc theyre vital to the first week of recovery #and i. unfortunately. do not care about the first game very much #so im kinda flying by the seat of my pants with them #i need to make byakuya MORE OF AN ASSHOLE. but in a somewhat affectionate way. bc hes had a little time to grow #but hes still. byakuya togami. so he is an Asshole. #i think ive got naegi down. kyoko’s proving the hardest

[tenth-sentence]

Five years later these political discussions, which really only took place on the margin, so to speak, of conversations on physics and general philosophy, were to have an important influence on the course of global history.

"Brighter than a Thousand Suns: A Personal History of the Atomic Scientists" - Robert Jungk, translated by James Cleugh

#book quote #brighter than a thousand suns #robert jungk #james cleugh #nonfiction #politics #political discussion #conversation #physics #philosophy #influential #global history

[vraska-theunseen]

I JUST REALIZED THAT IN ORDER TO GET MORE ENGLISH CLASS DISCUSSION (bc i love to discuss symbolism and i win at english class discussion) AFTER HIGH SCHOOL I HAVE TO JOIN OR START A BOOK CLUB. CRACKED THE CODE.

#okay now who wants to read atlas shrugged with me #just kidding. only reason i'm good at english class discussion is bc the books in the core classes i take aren't abt philosophy or politics #and really dense bc any time i try to read books like that i can't understand it (like any really REALLY in depth political discussion abt #like. ancaps or whatever. like complex terminology) i don't understand it and i couldn't discuss it with other ppl without sounding stupid 😢 #alex talks

[ironshrikes]

the politics of it all, im going to EXPLODE

#doing art history stuff #and im overwhelmed by all of the politics and philosophy inherent in how we discuss these things #its a lot #but i know there are ppl who read this unaware of all of that!!! #all of the layers beneath #how are you taking this in but missing the counterpoint the harmony the timbre the texture #ahhhh reading about history makes me crazy #lab notebook 📓