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athingofvikings · 7 months

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In my own experience as a Jewish Leftist, and corroborated by the similar experiences of other Jewish Leftists, there are, roughly speaking, five to six broad categories of Leftists in their attitudes towards Jews. This is a tangential categorization in terms of precise political affiliation; in other words, one's position in these categories is not dependent on what precise type of Leftist/Progressive an individual is.

Type 1: Open And Unapologetic Jew Haters

These Leftists hate Jews and don't try to hide it at all. According to them, Jews are the Problem, and they know what type of Solution they want enacted.

The archetypal example that I'll currently use is Cynthia McKinney, former US Congresswoman and US Green Party presidential candidate, who, well...

But this is also the class of Leftists who say that there is no room for Judaism in their ideal, imagined perfect world, that they picture everyone assimilating and giving up their ethnic and cultural identities to just be "human", and often single out Judaism as a particular problem in that regard.

Type 2: Closeted Knowing Jew Haters

These Leftists hate Jews, know that they hate Jews, but know that it's bad optics to openly praise Hitler or cozy up to the KKK to satisfy their hatred of Jews, so they try to find the barest veneer of plausible deniability to hide behind. "Anti-zionism" is a particular favorite on the Left, but the hatred has a way of slipping past the mask when they get questioned.

A classic example here is the Boston Mapping Project, who literally made up a list of every Jewish institution in Boston, Mass, on suspicion of them being "Zionist"--including elder homes, Jewish high schools, and Kindergartens, and including scary "links" on the map to various government agencies, no matter how tenuous or outright imaginary, thereby invoking old conspiracy tropes about "Secret Jewish Control of the Government". (And BDS, as the parent organization, also gave the lie that they're just antizionist, not antisemitic, when they disavowed the Mapping Project for bad optics, not the rank antisemitism and conspiratorial thinking they were promoting). Another example would be the organizers of the Chicago Dyke March, who explicitly expelled Jews from the March and crowed about "zio tears" (which is a slur originally used by the KKK, no less).

However on first encounter, Type 2 are indistinguishable from and camouflaged by...

Type 3: Undereducated And Unknowing Traffickers In Antisemitism

These Leftists don't hate Jews per se... they're just unaware of the deep antisemitic history of repeating claims that "Jews have too much power", or stating that the Holocaust was "White on White violence", or that "Jews are just White People from Europe", or any of a host of other antisemitic beliefs that are endemic on the Left. They're initially indistinguishable from Type 2, as they say the same things, and can only be told apart by their reactions; a Type 3 will go, "Oh, I didn't know and I'll try to learn!", while a Type 2 will typically double down, or let the mask slip in some other way.

The problem is that, from the perspective of Jews, Type 2 and Type 3 are indistinguishable from each other at first glance, and rather than try to engage and risk the emotional harm, a lot of Jews tend to write off all of them as Type 2, and there's a lot of debate on the ratios between the two.

Also worthy of mention, as a midpoint between Type 2 and Type 3 are:

Type 2.5: Openly Antisemitic "I'm Not An Antisemite, I Just Refuse To Learn, Listen, Or Let Jews Define Antisemitism"

As a midpoint between types, these Leftists openly traffic in antisemitic motifs, conspiracies, and attitudes, all the while insisting that they're not antisemitic. They're a midpoint between types 2 and 3 because they've had plenty of time and opportunity to learn about the bigoted attitudes they're espousing, but refuse to do so... but at the same time, they genuinely seem to think that they're not antisemitic. They just think that there's a vast Jewish conspiracy out to get them personally, or any of a number of other antisemitic beliefs, and refuse to accept or learn that what they're saying is antisemitic. They can believe that they themselves are not all they want, saying that Jews have too much money and power and run the world's politics is still trafficking in antisemitic conspiracy theories.

The archetypal example of this type, assuming we can take his word for it, is Roger Waters. Waters is openly and explicitly antisemitic, saying that there is a widespread conspiracy of Jews running the world's politics... but he has been insisting for over 40 years that he's just "antizionist, not antisemitic."

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But these are just the outspoken ones. None of them would get anywhere without the tacit support of...

Type 4: The Silent Majority

These Leftists are, being blunt, hypocritical cowards. They don't want to get involved in issues on antisemitism. When a Leftist Jew is being harassed by one of Types 1 to 3, they don't speak up, they don't get involved, they just say nothing.

Maybe they agree with one of the above types. Maybe they just don't want to get involved. Maybe they're afraid of seeming sympathetic to Israel. Maybe they're afraid of getting the social backlash that the Jew is experiencing. But ultimately, their motivations don't matter, their actions do—and their actions give tacit social support to the antisemite in the Leftist group, not to the Jew being harassed and chased out.

And the reason they're hypocritical cowards?

Well, if your ideology claims that you want a better life for everyone and social progress and being against racism and bigotry... but yet they don't speak up when it's happening right in front of them...

Well.

That says a lot, doesn't it? Both on what their ideals actually mean to them... and how highly they value Jews. And we know that it is possible, because of...

Type 5: The Pro-Jewish Leftist

These Leftists are, in my experience, a minority outside of Leftist Jews, but they do exist among non-Jewish Leftists. They stand up to Types 1, 2, and 3 when they express antisemitic views, and try to shame and cajole Type 4 into standing up as well.

And, just to point out how normalized antisemitism is on the Left...

Some people in this category might object to being labeled as "Pro-Jewish", as if they're biased for Jews. But I have to ask... do you think that they would also object to being labeled "Pro-LGBTQ"?

#antisemitism #leftist antisemitism

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stressedspidergirlsfandomblog · 4 years

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Okay, so imagine this

Kaer Morhen is a place that little boys go to die, if they’re lucky, or they become witchers.

(In some ways, Strangers Like Me is what fucking ran thru my head literally all night last night. I wrote nothing, I could not sleep, and my brain SPIRALED all over this)

And somehow, despite the world beating him down and beating him down and beating him down and shelling him out over and over, he runs into an idiot bard who has no fear of him. Who slowly goes from thinking he’s a simpleton to realizing there is a man in there, a boiling seething lake of feelings and anger overtopped by a thick layer of ice. And the bard makes it his life’s mission to help him learn that he is human. (the whole fic idea is more Geraskier, but it has to START the development elsewhere)

he also bumps sorceress who teaches him love and anger and all sorts of other things -fancy table manners, philosophy etc. He has access to things with her he’d never have had in the keep. She teaches him how to eat chicken on the bone with a fork and knife (book canon), and all the other fancy utensils because he’s a person dammit and he should know that his napkin goes in his lap. He devours her books, and since she can read minds she can draw out the conversations from him. She teaches him how to have those conversations and those debates.

TWs for all the canon compliant fucking misery that is Geralt’s life. Child abuse, neglect, assault, etc.

Geralt is incapable of believing good about himself, or expressing himself normally or knowing what to do in social situations. He mimics, he copies, he attempts to replicate, but if the situation changes he isn’t sure what to do.

Trauma gives us 4 options. Fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. He knows how to fight, but sometimes it leads him to battles he’ll never win. Flight is usually safest. Freeze can also work well, but he doesn’t know how to fawn, no one’s praised him enough or taught him how to give praise or fake affection in turn. Usually, he chooses to freeze until he can assess better. If there’s no blades drawn, it is time to freeze.

( I am looking at this purely from a child abuse perspective)

He has no idea what to make of Yennefer. She is rage, and greed, and feelings, and luxury. She teaches him to fight back. She teaches him you can be angry and people will not always leave you. Some children/adults will do anything to please someone in hopes of affection until they feel safe, and they begin to test boundaries. And with Yennefer, he’s allowed. Neither one of them knows how to process emotions in a healthy way, not really. But if she wants to throw a jam jar at the wall -not at him, never at him. She doesn’t want to hurt him. She’s just angry and has to break something. Better the jar than herself. Or him. He learns to stomp and yell right back, to knock things off the dresser or desk. Maybe it’s not a good lesson, but it’s something.

She teaches him choice in bed. He’s never had choice in bed, he’s never made love. He has had sex. Voluntary, involuntary. Me for her, let the girl go, use me instead. He heals. He always heals. He can kill them if he wants to, but that raises more problems than it solves. Kaer Morhen has no women. He learns very little about making love there, either, feelings are forbidden. However, he learns to keep himself silent and still as his cock is stroked, he learns to not let the bed so much as creak the slightest bit, not the softest change in his breathing. He learns how to use precum as lubricant because there is nothing else, and while he doesn’t learn how to kiss, or fuck, he learns how to touch. There’s no kind of education like that. It’s control, management of pain, seeking approval from people who rarely give it.

Yennefer gives him approval. She gives him choice, and she teaches him to move his hips. She teaches him it’s alright to breathe through it, to beg for it, to twitch, it’s okay to want something for himself. He can’t reconcile it, can’t adapt well to it. But in bed, with her, he allows himself to be freer. It doesn’t translate for him, into other situations. His learning is contextual. He has trouble applying the lessons she tries to teach him to other social situations. He can fight back with her because she likes him. He can argue with her about books because she starts the conversation for him because he doesn’t know how. He is heinously smart, he can read, write, and speak at least three languages, he can synthesize information so quickly it stuns her. If he’d been chosen as a mage, if he could access the Source, he would set the world on fire.

She teaches him to say ‘no.’ It’s not something he knew he could do. Not outside of negotiating a contract. Most of his world is lived inside of his own head because he isn’t allowed to offer opinions unless someone asks. Other than contracts. There is a script, there are rules, he can say ‘I won’t kill that’ or ‘that’s not enough coin’ or ‘no.’ Those situations he can talk freely and articulately.

They experiment in bed, to a point. She can tell when he’s getting cagey and stops. She never makes him say ‘no’, never lets it get that far, because she knows he’ll freeze. When he’s vaguely curious about light bondage she simply tells him to see if he can even stand to put his palms on the headboard and not touch her. He can’t. He can’t stand it if she won’t touch him, either, when she offers to return the favor and see if he likes that edge of control. He doesn’t. She’s had other lovers, but none like him. None as broken and angry as she is. (The book says, it flat out says, they did not know HOW to be kind, but they wanted to be, and so they were, when it describes how they make love.) They try other things, some things he more tolerates than enjoys -the unicorn. But he doesn’t hate it, he just doesn’t prefer it.

He can’t admit to feelings, he can’t admit to loving her, and so she can’t tell him because he isn’t ready to hear it. He can’t believe any of it, and so she can’t say a word. Telling him would chase him out of her life forever. When he tries to share things with her, when he tries to push himself to describe any part of himself, she listens. She uses many of his failings against him when they fight, but never what he tells her in confidence and struggle and broken words. When he tells her ‘they botched it’ meaning they botched him, he’s worthless, not made right, and horrible, she tells him perhaps she is the same.

Eventually the fighting is too much, the frustration at themselves is too much. They can’t heal each other. What they need doesn’t line up yet.

They break apart and he travels again, happy to reunite with Jaskier. Not that he understands that feeling. But something feels ...easier, with the bard around. He tries on occasion to engage in conversations, just sharing a random fact or quote with the bard and Jaskier doesn’t realize what Geralt is doing for weeks until Geralt stops and he finally asks him what his quote of the day is. Geralt visibly perks and Jaskier finally understands what Geralt has been trying to tell him. He finally asks the right question and Geralt talks to him for hours, long after the sun sets, as animated as his training allows him to be, describing how he’s connected this human myth to an elvish historical event that is corroborated by the dwarves, he had to read it in Elvish, and also Dwarfish, but he can’t find a written version of the myth he’s only heard it spoken or sung.

Jaskier takes him to Oxenfurt and leads him in and out of guest lectures. They sit in the back so Geralt can hide, because that’s what he does. Don’t look people in the eye unless they tell you to. Don’t look up, don’t be big, don’t exist if you can help it. And he hides and scrunches in on himself, but he listens, and the bard lets him pore over libraries and scares off anyone who would complain at a mutant witcher touching precious tomes. Geralt is gentle, and careful, and sweet, and he deserves to read what he wants, he deserves answers to questions about the world he could never find in Kaer Morhen where his only training was how to survive as a witcher.

Jaskier teaches him how to answer the question asked, not just say what he thinks people want to hear. That’s not what I asked you. I asked what your preference was. He learns that Geralt was very much raised to believe children should be seen and not heard, in terms of himself. He doesn’t speak up, doesn’t offer anything unless asked. Not unless it’s about witchering, then he is allowed. And so he makes sure to ask. Are you hungry? Would you like to stop for the night, too? Does that hurt, it looks like it hurts. And Geralt learns to listen to the words, and he learns if asked, he is allowed to speak for himself. He doesn’t have to do what he thinks Jaskier wants. Unless prompted, around people, he rarely speaks, rarely converses, and just tries not to be terrifying. Keeps his head down, hood up, he doesn’t want to be hurt. He’s sick of being hurt. He’s sick of going hungry, he is sick of being miserable. And he has found if he is invisible, people leave him alone. He doesn’t get stoned, he doesn’t get beaten, he doesn’t get chased out for just wanting a bed to sleep in and a warm meal. If he doesn’t take up space, he can exist. Jaskier speaks for him, people think perhaps he’s a simpleton who the bard travels with, they don’t know the quick mind behind the eyes focused firmly on the ground.

It constantly breaks Jaskier’s heart. He has never seen Geralt smile. He has never heard him laugh. He has heard him talk with intonation on occasion, and usually only when reciting what he’s been told. He is an incredible mimic for tone and pitch and it astounds the bard. When he asks Were you even listening to me at all? and Geralt begins reciting everything he had said, with perfect inflection, since Geralt’s last one word response, perfect tone, perfect everything other than he doesn’t change his voice, his gravelly voice will never soar into tenor heights.

Children, ones who don’t know what he is, love him. Parents who don’t know, don’t see the swords strapped to Roach, they don’t mind the bard’s pet simpleton playing pat-a-cake with their children, they don��t mind them teaching him to make flower crowns. Or watching them draw in the dirt. The children never think he’s stupid, they like him all the more for knowing they aren’t, either. He lets them pet his horse, and boosts them into the saddle. He helps them reach fruit on tree branches, and pulls down prickly berry vines full of blackberries so they can gorge on the sweet fruit. Jaskier loves watching him with children, because he’s less guarded. He starts out small, makes himself so small, so nonthreatening, and when the children realize he’s happy to play with them, he relaxes. The tension leaves him and the villagers ignore him. Any adult stupid enough to want to play with children, to humor them, and listen to their stories can’t be right in the head. The bard’s assurances he won’t touch them or hurt them goes a long way.

He used to freeze and flinch and shudder whenever Jaskier touched him, because he could not understand. He still doesn’t. Emotions make no sense, touching for affection that isn’t between lovers makes no sense. Jaskier stays with him, so they must be friends. He’d admit it openly if asked. He doesn’t understand he loves the other man. He wouldn’t know that’s what he was feeling even if he was told. He feels nothing, it’s a scooped out shell, there is nothing inside of him other than sometimes anger. That’s why he had to leave Yennefer. She was the sun and he just reflected her warmth, he had nothing of his own to give back.

Patently untrue, but there’s nothing that would convince him otherwise and Jaskier doesn’t try. Geralt is ridiculously capable and educated, and wonderful and the bard does what he can to praise him when he can because he knows Geralt needs to hear it. No one praised him or loved him as a child. Hugs are still foreign and after years of them his first instinct is still to flinch. He will sleep comfortably draped across the bard, or with the bard curled into him. He doesn’t care about that. He doesn’t have the same personal boundaries other people do. If he’s cold, and Jaskier is there, he sees no reason not to share heat.

It had given the bard heart failure when they’d been sitting around the fire after eating and Geralt had just started pleasuring himself without understanding why that might not be socially acceptable. He’d offered to help the bard first. Not wanting to give Geralt another reason to be ashamed, or small, or scared, he had declined, and wondered in what world could a boy grow up afraid of being held, but feel perfectly comfortable jerking himself off in the company of others. What had been even odder was the witcher had continued their conversation as though this was normal. Hadn’t lost focus, his breathing had never changed, he hadn’t seemed to take much pleasure from his actions, and Jaskier couldn’t understand why he was doing it.

It had made his heart hurt in new ways. It’s a perfunctory action, meant to relieve an itch, not something for pleasure’s sake alone. Everything he does has function and reason and logic.

When they run into people Jaskier knows, and they want to talk to the white wolf, or see him, or bother him, Jaskier tells them to leave him be. He won’t talk to them. His poor witcher gains a bit of a reputation as being a tame monster, trailing his bard on a leash and killing monsters as directed.

When they’re low on grain for the horses, he goes to busk and see if he can drum up coin. When he comes back to pay the stablemaster, the last thing he expects is for Geralt to be paying with his body, a blank expression on his face as he braces himself against the door of an empty stall. He looks at Jaskier without any kind of shame, any understanding of what’s happening to him because he needs feed for Roach, and she needs a warm place to sleep out of the muck during the rainy seasons. Her hooves need to be dried out, he needs to borrow tools to clean the frogs and check her shoes. He might need the services of a ferrier. He’ll get a bit of coin for this and then some extra. If it isn’t sex with a lover, it’s just a transaction, what should he care? The bard escapes when he realizes only Geralt saw, and pukes his guts up into the gutters. He’d have tried to stop it, but the stablemaster was bigger than he was and he couldn’t take the risk the man would hurt Geralt.

The horses taken care of, Jaskier uses the coin he’d earned to have a bath drawn up and helps Geralt bathe until all trace of stable is washed away. He tries to ask, and when Geralt openly tells him it’s just better that way, he bites his tongue so hard it bleeds rather than reply or push the issue. He has coin, they’re fine, Geralt won’t need to do that again while they’re together.

He notices how the witcher gets thinner after, stress and shame eating his insides even if he won’t admit it. He’d been the heaviest Jaskier had ever seen him after living with Yennefer for a few years. Healthy. Shiny hair, bright eyes, enough meat over his bones to hide them. Slowly his spine creeps through his skin and the bard can count the vertebrae. It will pass, and he realizes he’s seen this pattern. This has happened before he just hadn’t seen. It passes, Geralt finds lucrative contracts, and his body fills back out.

They continue to work on what feelings are. Geralt remains baffled by the fact the bard will not bed him in any capacity, and doesn’t understand why they can’t share a little pleasure. Jaskier knows if he gives in, Geralt will never let it progress beyond more than just skin on skin. He’ll never understand it could be more. He has to wait, he has to keep pushing for the witcher to understand there is more.

They happen upon a town, and a small girl, perhaps three or four years old, picks flowers by the side of the road. There’s a house visible in the distance, but it’s awfully far for a small child to have wandered. Geralt immediately looks around for a dead body, half expecting to find the child’s mother dead in a ditch. Nothing. When she notices his hair peeking out from under his cloak as he crouches down to talk to her, she pushes the fabric off his head to twirl her fingers into his hair. He barely breathes as he asks her where her ma and pa are. She points at the house and said she wanted the orange flowers. He looks over and sees that while there are what seems like thousands of wildflowers much closer, none are the color she’s currently collecting. The child will be missed soon enough, he supposes as he offers her a seat on his shoulder. Before she accepts, she splays small fingers under his eye and he freezes, waiting for her to scream or reject him. She simply says ‘pretty.’ When he lifts her up, she tangles a hand back into his hair to help her hold on and keep her balance. She stuffs the flowers into her small apron -probably made more to humor her than for any practical purpose, and occasionally pats Geralt’s head and tells him again, his hair is pretty and he’s nice to take her home.

When screaming reaches his ears, he knows the little girl’s name is Ivana, and he tells Jaskier, “Make noise, her mother is in the fields looking for her.” The bard’s trained lungs will project far better than his will. His lungs are trained to breathe evenly and slowly in all things. He will endure if he keeps his heart slow and his breathing calm.

“Over here! We’ve found her!” Jaskier calls, his voice ringing stridently over the fields. He’s not sure how she could hear him from so far that only Geralt can hear her frantic calls, but all the same he sees how Geralt tilts his head and nods to himself.

They speed up, Geralt’s stride long and even as the woman comes pelting across the grass, crushing flowers, and her skirts hiked up over her knees to keep them out of her way. She gasps slightly when she sees Geralt and the brightly dressed bard, not sure what they will do to her or her daughter. She can see the swords on the roan mare. “I haven’t coin, please don’t hurt her,” she says.

Jaskier feels Geralt shrivel. “We just saw her picking flowers and knew she’d be missing,” he explains. “We don’t want coin. Not for returning a toddler to her mother,” he protests. When she reaches out for her child, and Geralt obliges by leaning to hand her off, the girl shrieks in displeasure.

Geralt freezes, one arm half coming up to ward the mother off, but unsure. Why wouldn’t she want to go back? It’s Jaskier who saves the situation by laughing. “I see she’s gotten quite attached,” he tells the anxious mother. “Here, Ivana, come down, he’s very tired and he’s not a pony. You brought flowers for your ma, didn’t you? You can’t show her very well from up there,” and holds out his arms. The girl allows Geralt to pass her over, and he swiftly deposits her on the ground where her mother relaxes immediately. She shows the flowers, and offers Geralt one.

“Are you a witcher?” she asks.

“Yes,” Geralt says, careful not to open his mouth too much. His teeth are a bit too white, and his canines a bit too sharp. Not fangs, but some people choose to see them that way. They’d grown in sharper when he’d lost his baby teeth, he’d seen plenty of other humans with teeth like his, but against his pale skin and yellow eyes, the effect was more noticeable. More monstrous.

“There’s a wyvern, my man, when he gets back from ploughing, he can show you. I see Ivana has taken to you. If you’ll watch her while I bundle herbs, I’ll feed you both lunch.” She isn’t afraid of witchers. “We don’t have much coin, but there’s a bounty on the beast, you can turn it in, if you travel up the road a bit. In the mean time, I can offer you a place to sleep, some feed for your horse, and a meal in a few hours once I’ve finished my tasks.”

Jaskier knows Geralt is well pleased with the idea just from the shift of his shoulders. “Geralt’s a wonderful babysitter,” he smiles. “I can help you with the chores, I’m sure. Just put me to work. My name is Jaskier, that is Geralt, and you are?”

“Oh gods above, I’m so sorry, I’m Melina.” She reaches out to shake Jaskier’s hand and the bard accepts warmly, but when she tries to do the same for Geralt the bard gives her a look and she drops her hand. Odd. “Ivana, you mind Master Geralt, or I’ll give you such a hiding you won’t sit for weeks, do you hear me?”

“Yes, Mama,” she promises. “I will show him where to put the horse,” she says proudly and Geralt makes a ‘lead the way’ gesture at her with a little bow that makes her giggle. He takes Roach’s reins from Jaskier and follows the girl child to the barn.

“He won’t hurt her?”

“No, he’d die in her defense in a heartbeat.”

“But he can’t shake hands?”

“He wouldn’t know that’s what you wanted,” Jaskier tells her. Not sure if that makes it worse or puts her more at ease. “You don’t seem much afraid of him, considering how we started.”

“Witchers help people,” she smiles faintly. “My pa would have died long before he met my ma if not for a witcher who saved him on the road. Took a bad rake across his face, though, the witcher. My Pa taught us, even if we don’t know much reading or writing, history turns. People used to trust witchers. Then they tried to kill them all. And they’ll trust them again. Any man willing to risk dying to save others can’t be all bad.”

“That is what I’ve been saying.” He glances up to see the black-clad witcher come back into view with Ivana swinging his hand happily. He can’t hear her, but he knows she is chattering nonstop.

“Is he... simple?” she asks softly, watching as her daughter teaches Geralt a new clapping game he hasn’t seen before. He seems to be devoting all his energy to the game.

“No,” Jaskier breathes. “No, he’s brilliant,” his heart aches. “Will they be alright out here, your man won’t come home and try and beat him with a stick?”

“No, Roddy would never. He’ll come from the back fields as is. My Roderick is a good man. How could he hit your Geralt for playing with our daughter?”

“People have done worse for far less,” Jaskier says bitterly. He has no idea why he’s sharing with her. Perhaps months on the road of people being truly horrible to Geralt have made him desperate to talk to someone who isn’t. Someone who is kind.

“I see.” She shows Jaskier the herbs she’s drying, some to sell, some for home remedies. Vegetables to jar and pickle, and hundreds of other small tasks made near impossible by having a small child to mind. “My boys help their father in the fields, so that he can work on other tasks once they can manage the rest.” As the bard gets the knack for how to tie the herbs, she watches him a few seconds. “So what’s wrong with him?”

“Nothing,” Jaskier protests. “Nothing at all,” he aches for Geralt. “People, people are the ones who are wrong. He does everything he can to not draw attention. The less he talks, the less he moves, the less people notice and the less likely they are to-” His head snaps up when he hears a husky chuckle from outside. “Your man early?”

“No, he doesn’t laugh like that,” she says.

“Who the fuck is that then?” he demands, peering from the small window. Ivana is pointing at something dramatically and stamping a foot and he realizes the laugh is Geralt. His heart squeezes and he blinks rapidly. He hadn’t known Geralt could laugh. Not in all the years they’d been travelling together. “Oh,” he gasps, the wind knocked out of him.

“Let them be, if she starts to have a true tantrum I’ll rescue him. It’s about time for her to nap, she’ll be fussy soon enough.”

“Eh, he’ll be fine,” Jaskier tells her, rubbing at his eyes with a knuckle. “He’s faced worse than a grumpy toddler before.”

“Perhaps, Master Jaskier. But he cannot swing his sword to stop her from inconveniencing him.”

“He would never. Although, he might turn tail and run in here, seeking rescue,” he tries to turn the conversation somewhere else.

#geraskier #gerlion #yenneralt #eventual geraskefer #yenralt #geralt of rivia #the witcher

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nerdygaymormon · 4 years

Note

You said you feel like there is one more thing you are meant to do from inside the church, would you mind sharing what that one thing is? Also, I love your insights on everything, it has truly blessed me and my perspective as a gay member :)

Thank you so much for that compliment! :)

I feel like I need to keep that last thing private as it involves another person and their family.

Thanks for being interested. I appreciate that.

—————————————————————

In Nov 2015 there were several things I thought would happen if I stayed

Helping young gay Mormons accept themselves

speak to leaders and help them understand better

speak to youth of my stake about being gay

maybe have a chance to share my story as a gay Mormon

Each of these went much bigger than I anticipated. For example, I thought I might talk with some local bishops or the stake president, not General Authorities.

—————————————————————

Here is a list of things that I think fall within this idea of a work to do in the Church if I stayed rather than walk away in Nov 2015:

2016 - January - My church assignment changed from stake young men president to stake executive secretary. The stake president says it is so my unique viewpoint can be heard in all the highest councils of the stake

2016 - June - I wrote my first blog post and it received exactly 0 likes or comments (prior to this I had only reblogged from others). It was about meeting the Sistas in Zion.

2016 - August - met a Seventy, Elder Joaquin Costa, and came out to him and he treated me with kindness

2016 - November - received my first anonymous ask/comment

2017 - April - After Elder Joaquin Costa spoke in General Conference, I again wrote about meeting him in 2016, this time with more details. That post went viral, receiving over 500,000 hits (mostly from Facebook people linking to it).

2017 - April - that viral blog post caused a lot of people to contact me, including a lot of queer teens & twenty-somethings who were hurting.

2017 - November - met Elder Claudio Costa. He and I got off to a rough start on a Friday night, but by Sunday afternoon we were friends & he invited me to visit him in Utah

2018 - January - Spoke at a stake youth fireside, gave message specifically for LGBTQ youth who may be in attendance

2018 - February - Spoke to the bishops in my stake about how to respond if someone comes out to them

2018 - March - The Out Foundation published a profile of me as a gay BYU alumnus

2018 - June - PFLAG of Provo asked me to create a square for a quilt that would be carried at the July 4th parade

2018 - September - Had lunch with Elder Claudio Costa in Utah. I told him God must love LGBTQ people because He keeps making more of us

2018 - November - I was on an episode of the Queerstake podcast

2018 - December - I had dinner with Elder Dale Renlund and we discussed a letter I had sent him about being a gay member.

2019 - January - I received a letter of apology from a Seventy who had told me that my assignment was to get a wife. I had written to him about why that was inappropriate and how to better approach others about that subject in the future.

2019 - February - I was quoted in an online article about my reaction to the Policy of Exclusion and having it added in the Preach My Gospel for missionaries

2019 - April - A bishop asked me to help him be more sensitive to LGBTQ members in his congregation

2019 - June - Went to Utah and met both Elder Claudio Costa and Elder Joaquin Costa again

2019 - July - I was on an episode of Richard Ostler’s podcast Listen, Learn & Love

2019 - September - I was interviewed by a French weekly newspaper

2019 - October - I spoke in a stake priesthood meeting (all males age 12+) and I included some ideas of how they could use the new Church youth initiative to be sensitive to gay youth in their ward

2019 - November - I received an impromptu request to speak in my ward. I spoke about being gay and how that puts me in the position of Hagar, the servant of Abram & Sarai. Hagar gave God a name, “the god who hears me.” Like her I deal with hard things, and God hears me and other marginalized people

2020 - January - I wrote a letter to Elder Holland

2020 - February - Received my 1000th ask on Tumblr, which is just incredible to me. This has been a way for me to address subjects that are of concern to LGBTQ+ people

2020 - February - Became President of Affirmation’s Florida chapter. It’s been dormant for 5 or 6 years, so basically it’s like starting a brand new chapter. Will organize a few events each year so LGBTQ+ people, their friends & family, whose lives intersect with the LDS Church, past or present, can get together and meet each other and feel supported & part of a community.

2020 - ??? - I will have several quotes in a book by Richard Ostler

—————————————————————

Seeing this all compiled into one list is, wow, I don’t even know how to describe what I’m feeling, but I can see that I have done what was asked of me by staying.

If something happens tomorrow and I get hit by a bus or I feel like God releases me from being a member, I can leave satisfied

This list doesn’t include all the one-on-one interactions.

And also this list doesn’t include how I tried to use this this blog to provide some honest experiences and feelings of a gay member, including good and hard times, which I feel are often missing in church.

Also, on this blog I provided resources for queer members along with some perspective & history. I wanted to reframe how we view ourselves because the church & scriptures are often so negative about us. We aren’t meant to hate ourselves, we’re meant to have joy in this life.

“[People] are that they might have joy.” 2 Nephi 2:25

Have Joy! Research shows, and my own experience corroborates it, joy is most likely to be found in association with others.

Let’s find joy in life. If that means being part of the church with your friends & family, then find joy there. If it means finding companionship and letting go of loneliness, find joy in that. If it means walking away from institutions and people who hurt you and inhibit your ability to feel joy, then go find joy.

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white-collar-lawmen-and-conmen · 4 years

Text

The Salted Coffee Hit List

Summary: When it’s your turn to go undercover, some technical difficulties subject you to Neal’s mounting anxieties.

Word Count: 2,107

“Can we move this to your office?” You asked, tilting your head, baring your neck and subtly trying to get Ryan, an embezzling broker, to notice the faux diamonds plated in your earrings. He wasn’t versed enough in jewelry to tell they weren’t real.

Ten stories down and fifteen yards away, Neal and Peter were in collapsible chairs in the back of a van marked as an electrical service. Neal listened intently, his heart beating harder than it did when he was the one working an op. You didn’t have the experience he did, and this dirtbag owned two guns – and those were just the ones that were registered.

“Don’t push him too fast,” Neal warned, leaning in as if the surveillance equipment could somehow bring him closer to you. Maybe if he felt it hard enough, you would telepathically hear, the thief reasoned. He didn’t see the steady green light on the hardware. “You don’t want him to spook.” He wished he were inside with you.

“I think she’s got it handled,” Peter intervened, tone mild. You kept your face even but were grateful that the agent was stepping in. If Neal was fretting in your ear this entire time, it would be a challenge to stay patient.

Ryan looked behind you, put his hands in the pockets of his crisp black trousers, and looked back at you with a small smirk. His eyes didn’t linger on your jewelry – not the not-diamond earrings, nor the shining glimmer of pearls around your neck.

“Maybe we should wait. I’d hate to make a poor deal because you were hasty.”

Neal could barely keep his feet still, and he saw no point in holding his tongue. You didn’t respond well when someone talked to you with that tone of voice. He couldn’t blame you, but he also couldn’t bear it if your temper let this end badly. “Just let it go,” he said. Neal Caffrey had too much pride to beg… but he didn’t mind emphatically suggesting with his hands steepled. The brunet turned to Peter. “You should have gone in,” he said again, repeating himself from earlier. “You have the accounting background, she doesn’t.”

It took all of your willpower not to twitch. Between this rich, pompous jerk looking down at you like your pretty gems meant you had a slow brain, and Neal questioning your ability to do your job, you were losing patience rapidly. Man, that boy was going to get a talking-to after this was over.

“I know what I’m doing,” you said clearly and firmly, to both of the men on your nerves. Ryan’s eyebrows raised, a little surprised by the stubbornness in your voice. You couldn’t see Neal’s face, but you hoped he was cowed.

Two seconds later, you realized he wasn’t. “She’s pushing him,” Neal groaned quietly, putting his head down.

“I see.” Ryan was measured but civil. You were glad that this meeting had been arranged at a time when there happened to be another person in the company’s lounge. The broker nodded and you caught a glimpse at the top of his head – he wore so much gel that the overhead lights were reflecting off his hair. “Well, let’s take it to the office, then. We can talk in privacy.”

You nodded archly, letting him know that you weren’t taking no for an answer. He gestured to the hall and you went first, letting him direct you verbally towards his office. In the van, Peter gave a small, proud smile. He knew you could do it. You were well-trained and very resourceful, and no one spent as much time around Neal as you did without picking up on a few things.

Ryan’s office was pristine – almost sterile, even. It felt impersonal and uncomfortable, as if it were pulled from an IKEA brochure and was only there for show. It corroborated with your knowledge of the man himself as a control freak. The desk was a bright, reddish-color of a polished, expensive wood and the high-backed office chair was upholstered with suede. Ryan pulled out a less impressive chair (but still padded with suede) for you before making his way around and sitting at his desk. He leaned back and put his arms up over him, locking his hands behind his head.

“Let’s talk shop,” he said, putting his eyes on you. His body was relaxed, his face was amused, and his eyes were hawkish. You inclined your chin just slightly. You saw through that friendly demeanor… but you weren’t going to call him on it. It was better to let it play out.

Neal tensed, shaking his head. Talking shop was the last thing you should be doing – you didn’t have enough knowledge of accounting or investing. “No, no, no.”

“Let’s,” you agreed, ignoring Neal’s muttering voice.

“The entire meet is gonna be blown,” Neal told Peter, increasingly frustrated. The minute Ryan realized you weren’t really who you said you were, he was going to shut you down and kick you out and clean up after himself, this time with a lot more caution. And hell, it wouldn’t do to forget about those two registered guns. What did he need two guns for, anyway?!

The look that Peter gave him was less amused than it had been before. “Stop that,” he said, delivering a sound smack to Neal’s shoulder. “Calm down. Unless you want me to tell her how many times you insisted she was going to fail?”

You appreciated the threat, but you were already keeping score. And unless Peter shut up, too, he was going to be added to your little hit list of whose coffee to dump salt in.

Neal quieted and considered. He trusted you, but he was very worried. He liked being on your good side and didn’t want to make you think he didn’t believe in your ability to do the job – and do it well, at that – but he also didn’t want to stay calm when you were up there, on your first undercover mission in months, in a room alone with a guy who had two guns. Maybe in that very room. He listened so he could be on his toes and run in as soon as things seemed even a little bit off.

“My portfolio has risen by three percent this quarter and by eleven since this time last year,” Ryan announced. If you were feeling more generous, you might have called him prideful – but tense as you already were, you just thought he was being egotistic. You leaned into your chair, mirroring his posture. “And in this economy, that means something. I can’t afford to partner up with someone who’ll slow this firm down. My clients deserve better.”

Yeah, because you’re so worried about what they deserve. You held your tongue. He would get his dues for stealing from his clients soon enough, but only if you held your tongue.

“I agree,” you said, matching his tone closely. Becoming a behavioral reflection of your mark was a trick Neal had taught you, and in the few times you’d had the chance to employ the technique, it had worked surprisingly well. “Which is why I came to you instead of the dozens of other firms a taxi ride away. I only go for the best. What I need to know is if you can give your best to me.”

“I don’t give anything. It comes at a price.” Ryan unlocked his hands and leaned over the table. You crossed your legs, left over right, and sat up with your back straight. “And it’s not cheap.”

It was the crux of the conversation – if you said the right thing, then it was all going to be coasting for the rest of the meeting. You thought quickly, ignoring the voices that were literally in your ear.

Neal relaxed a little. You were doing well, you were mimicking the bravado, and it sounded like you were making a subtle play on the suspect’s ego. “It’s not that I think she’ll fail,” he told Peter, shifting in his chair and turning his body towards the agent.

In the office, you wanted to scream. It was impossible to craft your lines and manipulate the script with Neal being such a distraction every other minute! You bought time with your facial expression, looking at him and analyzing his face, proving that you were thinking it through before making a commitment.

“I know she’s good at this. It’s just that I worry. I worry about myself, too,” he offered, just to prove to Peter that he didn’t need to report to you about how poorly you were expected to do. “I worry about myself all the time. Especially when you send me into offices that might have guns in them.”

That made four ruined coffees for Neal Caffrey.

“I’m sure you do,” Peter grumbled.

“This is an investment firm,” you stressed pointedly. “People like us don’t go for cheap. We go for payoff. That’s what I’m in for, and I’m in for the long haul.”

Ryan studied you with an excellent poker face. You wondered if he hustled people that way, too, and focused on how you were a federal agent, he had no idea, and he was going to pay for all the bad things he’d done. Even Neal had the human decency not to take from the poor. Ryan was a snake who had put people on the streets.

“He’s not saying anything,” Neal observed, looking at Peter again.

Tiredly, Peter responded, “Yes, Neal, I can hear everything you can.”

“I’m mostly concerned with what we’re not hearing.”

Salt in the coffee had seemed like a good plan when you were making it, but now you were starting to think that Neal didn’t deserve any coffee, even the disgustingly salted kind. Hm. What was worse than salted coffee?

There wasn’t much time for you to think about it before Ryan’s poker face broke. “Payoff’s the name of the game,” he agreed, grinning broadly. He reminded you of the toothy, wide-mouthed grins of sharks. “Let’s look at this a little harder and see where we can fit you in, Ms. Y/L/N.”

~~~ The Salted Coffee Hit List ~~~

You deserved an award. You had even decided exactly where you would put this award: in your kitchen, on the windowsill, just behind your coffeemaker. The two things that made you happiest would be sitting near each other. It was a good arrangement.

As you were trying to decide what the plaque of the award would say, Ryan stood up from behind his shiny desk and reached across. You gave him your hand to shake as you followed his cue and rose, smoothing down the softness of your wool skirt.

“I think this has gone very well,” Ryan said, giving you a crooked but handsome smile, except for his smug eyes. You pretended not to notice, because if you paid too much attention, your mask might slip. “I’ll contact you.”

“When can I expect a call?” You asked, letting the man pull you by your hand out from behind your chair.

“By the end of the week,” he promised. He dropped your hand and put his near your back, not quite touching you but herding you out of his office. Your welcome had expired.

You let the grifter see you out the doors of the office suite. You gave him a wave over your shoulder, just a little bit flirty, before turning to walk towards the elevators down to the ground level. After you heard the heavy glass door close, you risked another look behind you. Ryan was out of sight, and you were free to talk.

“You know your microphones have been on this whole time, right?” You hissed lowly, furious.

In the van, Peter and Neal both looked at the recording equipment. The light indicating their line was open was indeed still on. Neal hopped up from his chair.

“I was just really worried,” he said, grabbing at his coat and making pleading eyes at Peter. If he didn’t leave the van before you got back, he wasn’t sure he’d be leaving in one piece. He knew firsthand how annoying it was to have someone constantly talking in his ear when he was undercover.

“Yeah, you should be,” you said darkly, “Because I’m going to kick your-“

Your voice stopped abruptly and Neal looked up while hurriedly buttoning his jacket. Peter pulled his fingers away from the buttons, took off his headset, and set it down on top of the machine. The microphone was off on both sides.

“Better late than never,” Peter remarked.

~~~

A/N: This was supposed to be an imagine... but it didn’t end up as one.

This was requested by an anon who said I could choose whether Neal x Reader were already together or not. I just decided to leave it vague, so it can be read as an either-or.

Requests are closed, but if you like this story and would be interested in commissioning another, my standard oneshot length is a little bit longer than this and pricing begins at $4. If you’re interested, please drop me a message/ask, or go straight to my Ko-Fi page!

#white collar #white collar x reader #neal caffrey #neal caffrey x reader #oneshot #the salted coffee hit list #humor #requested #lawmen and conmen #white collar lawmen and conmen #peter burke #reader insert

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plaintesjustifies · 5 years

Text

Ex-VoxMakers VS Thomas Cyrix : next / Ex-VoxMakers VS Thomas Cyrix : suite

Thomas Cyrix published his answer on the night of May 24-25. They put forward arguments against VoxMakers ex-members accusing them of creating false evidence and inciting hatred, posing as a victim. Some of his remarks are defensible and verifiable, but others have no valid evidence, which is problematic. After losing more than 20k subscribers, he decided to file a complaint against former VoxMakers members. Having no knowledge of entrepreneurship, computer law and accounting, I let those who know the most verified his words. My knowledge of his subjects is too bad for me to give my opinion. I can still say that I think he insists a lot on the financial side. Indeed, he speaks about more than half of the video while it’s only a quarter of the video of former members of VoxMakers. Nevertheless, on a human level, I can say that there is no evidence that VoxMakers' claims and their evidence are false. Be careful, I'm not saying that he's lying, just that it's difficult to verify. It should take the testimony of many people in the entourage of the said victims as well as that of their doctor (for those who had a depression at this time). He also says he is being harassed, which is highly possible. He accuses VoxMakers of having conducted a campaign of hate, to have even encouraged suicide (The soapy board ???), but they have not clearly expressed at the end of their video, in their claims: (Translation)

"Tai - Today, we need to finally express to the world what has happened and we want justice done. Our demands, because it's all well and good to make this video but what do we hope for in this video? We told you, it’s to be listened to. Modern Hermit - We don’t want his excuses. It's over, that. Tai - Anyway, we don’t believe them. Ermite Moderne - We don’t believe them. We can’t believe it. He has already apologized to us many times and every time he rolled us, so it's over. MJ - And then, to apologize it didn’t work for ??? Tai - What we want is for everyone to know how he behaves, that he doesn’t fall into his trap anymore. That everyone knows that we didn’t stop for management issues but because it was really a bully, someone horrible, as we have just described in this video. That's why we left. Modern Hermit - We want everyone to know the true nature of their actions and that there are no other people who, in a professional relationship, rot themselves. Tai - We want support because we want to make up for the disastrous communication and how we had to leave VoxMakers as s**t, because we had no choice. We should have been able to flee VoxMakers without being able to communicate. Today, we know that there are many people who aren’t aware that we have continued the videos for more than two years and that we have done a lot of things since then. We would like you to help all of us know, well, what happened in VoxMakers and now, if you want to keep up, we have our own channels and we needs support, that we need you to help us out there, that you subscribe to all the creators you've enjoyed in VoxMakers' time, so we can continue what we do. We would like the VoxMakers channel to finally be fully demonetized. It includes his own videos, which is at least a justice somewhere. We can not ask him to pay back the 100 000 € he stole from us during his 6 years, although we are entitled. On the other hand, we can ask him not to win any more on our backs. MJ - More delirium with ??? or that kind of thing ... Tai - And to verify that, we want Ermite to regain access to the channel to be able to verify that the videos have been demonetized. Ermite Moderne - This is non-negotiable. I must have access to the channel otherwise it doesn’t mean anything. Tai - Note that he’s able to completely remove the string since he did it with Facebook. Ermite Moderne - There were all the memories, the pictures of conventions, the articles, everything was there. He deleted them. Chain… Sasha - There are also the things he said ... Ermite Moderne - Of course. There were also private Facebook, discussions, he has them ... Tai - We must suppress the evidence. Ermite Moderne - You must remove all evidence. Tai - And if I don‘t have them, no one will have them. It has always been that. And precisely, the fact is, we doubt that he will respond to this video. We doubt that there will be an answer. So we can not convince you more than in this video that he that, in any case, his excuses are false, that they manipulate you, that he is lying. Here we are, we know it amply with all that we have just said. Sasha - All we said here is stuff with evidence, with several witnesses ... Tai - All we can say is that here we are more than fifteen VoxMakers and members revolving around to corroborate its facts, to validate independently of each other, without consulting each other at the base ... Ermite Moderne - To have the same experience. Tai - And have the same experience with Thomas Cyrix and I'm sure there are plenty of others. We invite them to testify as soon as possible on the #Voxmentor on Facebook or in the comments to help us spread this message and validate what we say is true. Ermite Moderne - We can also expect that soon there is a group of ??? with other members next door, who will add more their version of the story, on what they lived. We will group a maximum. Because we speak on our behalf with us four of them Lunatic, Antoine, Seia and Mad Dog but we also want them to express themselves from their own point of view, which tells their personal version of the facts as well as that Voxplumes and that sort of thing. Maybe we'll do that and we're off to ... " P.S : I wanted to rewrite the words of the ex-members of VoxMakers, which I apologize for spelling, grammar and conjugation mistakes, as well as the absence of certain words that I could not transcribe. I searched for a legal definition of incitement to hate but I didn’t find (or looked for) a definition. I will therefore base myself on the legal definition of incitement to racial hatred, which is very close. It would have been pushing a third party to show hatred, violence or discrimination against certain people. For the term defamation, I had fewer difficulties. Defamation is an allegation or imputation of an act that offends the honor and consideration of a person. The word "honor" seems vague to me so I inquired. Honor is a moral principle of action that leads a person to behave in accordance with a social norm (as to probity, virtue, courage) and to enjoy the esteem of others. to keep the right to his moral dignity. I don’t know you but I never see them asking to hate or harass Thomas Cyrix. The hatred suffered by Thomas Cyrix is only due to the hatred of the viewers who want to protect their favorite Youtubeurs. Without wanting to make a reductive metaphor (so don’t feel insulted, it's just an image), it's as if you're accusing a dog of protecting his master, while the latter never orders him to make. I admit that one thing irritated me a little. His ironic and mocking tone didn’t help me take it seriously, just like the multiple appearance of messages between two paragraphs argumentative to convince us of the horror he seems to live (Call for Mercy ?? ?). Nevertheless, since it seems to have initiated a legal procedure, I will wait for the conclusion of justice to give me a final opinion. I hope that this story goes quickly and well to end.

Finally, my friends, one last message for you. Faced with incredible information, strange, sulphurous, don’t forget to remain skeptical because there are things we can’t doubt in our world. We can’t doubt that people are lying to us. There can be no doubt that people are trying to attract attention to get noticed. We can’t doubt that some people can create fake news just to hurt, to take revenge …

Thomas Cyrix a publié sa réponse dans la nuit du 24 au 25 mai. Ils posent ses arguments pour contrer les propos des ex-membres de VoxMakers en les accusant d’avoir créé de fausses preuves et d’incitation à la haine, se posant en victime. Certains de ses propos sont défendables et vérifiables mais d’autres n’ont aucunes preuves valident, ce qui posent problème. Après qu’il est perdu plus de 20k d’abonnés, il a donc décidé de porter plainte contre les ex-membres de VoxMakers. N’ayant aucune connaissance en manière d’entreprenariat, de droit informatique et de comptabilité, je laisse ceux qui en savent le plus vérifié ses propos. Mes connaissances sur ses sujets sont trop mauvaises pour que je donne mon avis. Je peux tout de même dire que je trouve qu’il insiste beaucoup sur la partie financière. En effet, il en parle sur plus de la moitié de la vidéo alors que ce n’est qu’un quart de la vidéo des ex-membres de VoxMakers. Néanmoins, sur le plan humain, je peux dire qu’il n’y a aucune preuve que les propos de VoxMakers ainsi que leurs preuves soient fausses. Attention, je ne dis pas qu’il ment, juste que c’est difficilement vérifiable. Il faudrait prendre les témoignages de nombreuses personnes dans l’entourage des dites victimes ainsi que celle de leur médecin (en ce qui concerne ceux qui ont eut une dépression à cette période). Il dit aussi subir du harcèlement, ce qui est fortement possible. Il accuse VoxMakers d’avoir mené une campagne de haine, de l’avoir même incité au suicide (La planche savonneuse???), mais ils n’ont pas clairement exprimé à la fin de leur vidéo, dans leurs revendications :

« Tai - Aujourd’hui, on a besoin d’exprimer enfin, au monde, ce qui s’est passé et on veut que justice soit fait. Nos revendications, parce que c’est bien beau de faire cette vidéo mais qu’est-ce qu’on espère dans cette vidéo ? On vous l’a dit, c’est d’être écouté. Ermite Moderne – On veut pas ses excuses. C’est finit, ça. Tai – De toutes façons, on ne les croit pas. Ermite Moderne – On les croit pas. On ne peut pas y croire. Il nous a déjà fait des excuses plein de fois et à chaque fois, il nous a roulé, donc c’est finit, ça. MJ – Et puis, demander des excuses ça a pas marché pour ???… Tai – Ce qu’on veut, c’est que tout le monde sache comment il se comporte, qu’on ne tombe plus dans son piège. Que tout le monde sache qu’on n'a pas arrêté pour des questions de gestion mais parce que c’était vraiment un tyran, quelqu’un d’horrible, comme on vient de vous le décrire dans cette vidéo. C’est pour ça qu’on est parti. Ermite Moderne – On veut que tout le monde sache la véritable nature de ses agissements et que y’est pas d’autres personnes qui, à titre professionnel, relationnel, se fassent pourrir à leur tour. Tai – On veut du soutien parce qu’on souhaite rattraper la communication désastreuse et comment on a dû partir de VoxMakers comme des m****es, parce qu’on n'avait pas le choix. On aurait dû pouvoir fuir VoxMakers sans pouvoir faire de communications. Aujourd’hui, on sait qu'y’a beaucoup de gens qui ne sont pas au courant qu’on a continué les vidéos depuis plus de deux ans et qu’on a fait plein de choses depuis. On aimerait que vous nous aidiez à que toutes ses personnes sache, enfin, qu’est-ce qui s’est passé dans VoxMakers et que, désormais, si vous voulez continuez de nous suivre, nous avons nos chaînes perso’ et qu’on a besoin de soutien, qu’on a besoin que vous nous aidiez sur ce coup là, que vous vous abonniez à tous les créateurs que vous avez appréciez du temps de VoxMakers, pour qu’on puisse continuer ce qu’on fait. On aimerait que la chaîne VoxMakers soit enfin démonétisée totalement. Ca comprend ses propres vidéos, qui est au moins une justice quelque part. On ne peut pas lui demander de rembourser les 100 000 euros qu’il nous a volé pendant ses 6 ans, bien qu’on soit en droit. Par contre, on peut lui demander de ne plus en gagner sur notre dos. MJ – Plus de délire avec ??? ou ce genre de choses… Tai – Et pour vérifier ça, on veut qu’Ermite retrouve l’accès à la chaîne pour pouvoir vérifier que les vidéos ont bien été démonétisées.

Ermite Moderne – C’est non négociable. Je dois avoir l’accès à la chaîne sinon ça ne veut plus rien dire. Tai – Notez qu’il est capable de supprimer totalement la chaîne puisqu’il l’a fait avec le Facebook. Ermite Moderne – Il y avait tous les souvenirs, les photos de conventions, les articles, y avait tout. Il les a supprimés. La chaîne… Sasha – Il y a aussi les trucs qu’il a dits… Ermite Moderne – Bien sûr. Y avait aussi les Facebook privés, les discussions, il les a… Tai – Il faut supprimer les preuves. Ermite Moderne – Il faut supprimer toutes les preuves. Tai – Et si je ne les ai pas, personne ne les aura. Ca a toujours été ça. Et justement, le fait est que, on se doute qu’il va répondre à cette vidéo. On se doute qu’il va y avoir une réponse. Alors nous, on ne peut pas vous convaincre plus que dans cette vidéo qu’il ment, que, de toutes façons, ses excuses, c’est faux, qu’ils vous manipulent, qu’il ment. Voilà, nous on le sait amplement avec tout ce que l’on vient de dire. Sasha – Tout ce qu’on a dit là, c’est des trucs avec des preuves, avec plusieurs témoins… Tai – Tout ce qu’on peut vous dire, c’est que voilà, on est plus de quinze VoxMakers et membres gravitant autour à corroborer ses faits, à valider indépendamment des uns des autres, sans se consulter à la base… Ermite Moderne – À avoir le même vécu. Tai – Et avoir le même vécu envers Thomas Cyrix et je suis sûr que y en a plein d’autres. On les invite à témoigner dés que possible sur le #Voxmenteur sur Facebook ou dans les commentaires pour nous aider à répandre ce message et à valider ce qu’on dit est vrai. Ermite Moderne – On peut s’attendre aussi que, bientôt, il y est un groupe de ??? avec d’autres membres en à côté, qui viendront rajouter en plus leur version de l’histoire, sur ce qu’ils ont vécu. On va regrouper un maximum. Parce que l’a, on parle en notre nom à nous quatre et eux de Lunatic, Antoine, Seia et Mad Dog mais on voudrait aussi qu’ils s’expriment de leur propre point de vu, qui dise leur version personnelle des faits ainsi que les Voxplumes et ce genre de choses là. On fera peut-être ça et on est parti pour… » P.S : J’ai voulu réécrire au plus proche des paroles des ex-membres de VoxMakers dont veillez m’excuser des fautes orthographiques, grammaticales et de conjugaison ainsi que l’absence de certains mots que je n’ai pus retranscrire.

J’ai cherché une définition légale de l’incitation à la haine mais je n’ai pas trouvé (ou j’ai mal cherché) une définition. Je vais donc me baser sur la définition légale de l’incitation à la haine raciale qui est très proche. Se serait le fait de pousser un tiers à manifester de la haine, de la violence ou de la discrimination à l’encontre de certaines personnes. Pour le terme de diffamation, j’ai eu moins de difficultés. La diffamation est une allégation ou l'imputation d'un fait qui porte atteinte à l'honneur et à la considération d'une personne. Le mot « honneur » me paraît vague donc je me suis renseigné. L’honneur est un principe moral d'action qui porte une personne à avoir une conduite conforme (quant à la probité, à la vertu, au courage) à une norme sociale et qui lui permette de jouir de l'estime d'autrui et de garder le droit à sa dignité morale. Je ne sais pas vous mais jamais je ne les vois demander de haïr ou de harceler Thomas Cyrix. La haine que subit Thomas Cyrix n’est dû qu’à la haine des viewers qui veulent protéger leurs Youtubeurs favoris. Sans vouloir faire de métaphore réductrice (donc ne vous sentez pas insulter, ce n’est qu’une image), c’est comme si vous accusiez un chien d’avoir protéger son maître alors que ce dernier ne lui à jamais ordonner de le faire. J’avoue qu’une chose m’a un peu énervé. Son ton ironique et moqueur ne m’a pas aidé à le prendre au sérieux, tout comme l’apparition de multiples fois de messages entre deux paragraphes argumentatif pour nous convaincre de l’horreur qu’il semble vivre (Appel à la pitié???). Néanmoins, vu qu’il semble avoir lancé une procédure légale, je vais attendre la conclusion de la justice pour me faire un avis définitif. J’espère tout de même que cette histoire va vite et bien se finir.

Enfin, mes amis, un dernier message pour vous. Face à une information incroyable, étrange, sulfureuse, n’oubliez pas de rester sceptique car il y a des choses dont on ne peut pas douter dans notre monde. On ne peut pas douter sur le fait que des gens nous mentent. On ne peut pas douter sur le fait que des personnes essayent d’attirer l’attention pour se faire remarquer. On ne peut pas douter sur le fait que certaines personnes peuvent créer des fake news juste pour causer du tort, pour se venger…

Source :

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzxzFWRwVug&feature=share

- https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/N31126

- https://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/honneur

News of the day (video edited on May 24, afternoon) / Nouvelles du jour (vidéo monté le 24 mai, l’après-midi)

Mad Dog, a former member of VoxMakers, made a video of less than an hour to testify in turn individually, as we have already done two of his comrades live. He began positively by asking not to lynch against Thomas Cyrix, whom he named as manager, and said he enjoyed his years in this group. He also talks about the financial hardships they suffered and the sadness he felt that he was forced to leave the group. He explains that the pressure put on them by this "manager" seemed normal to them because it’s like that in many companies. He said that they felt put away from people and looked to everything to have at least a minimum wage to live. He said that they thought the money was going into all the equipment and services that were needed. He also said he received positive but negative testimonials from their former manager. He calls for mistrust but not for total cut or lynching. He explains that their manager took the big head a few months before he was fired. It was the beginning of the end of Mad Dog's participation in VoxMakers. He explains that the group was not taken seriously because of the lack of work in the shows in which the manager participated. There is also the project Putaclic, a kind of parody of the many tops that can be found on the net. The texts of presentations he had then made for their manager were given by him to Lunatic because he was the one who presented the best. Finally, the project was canceled by the manager but Mad Dog and Lunatic managed to convince him to continue, even if he could feel a bit of bitterness at his manager. Then there was also the story of Lunatic's relationship with a girl Mad Dog knew. The couple kept the secret of their bond for fear of reflections. Mad Dog advises them to reveal the truth, their love life being private and not to influence the work of Lunatic. Later, he learns that the couple is being disputed by the rest of the group following the revelation of their secret. He got upset with the VoxMakers, coming out of things that were not happening at times. The Modern Hermit says that the VoxMakers didn’t think badly and apologize. Mad Dog accepts their excuse for attachment to the group and apologizes in turn publicly. He’s then dismissed from the group. He talks about it to the modern Hermit who has totally changed his mind. He was totally isolated from the rest of the group. We feel that his memories are hard for the Youtubeur who gives the impression of being about to cry. He explains that he was disconnected from the net, disgusted by Youtube and monitoring on Facebook. He also accuses of being dismissed from the group in the wrong way because he explains that it isn’t by a vote that one can send a person back to an SAS company. This marks me against the old VoxMakers and Thomas Cyrix. He explains the situation as neutral as possible with only a few points to explain his sadness and his distress and the difficulties he has suffered. He never refers to Thomas Cyrix's person directly, only his role in VoxMakers. He doesn’t treat him as manipulators, liars, crooks ... He explains the facts and where that led him. I didn’t notice an attempt at manipulation in his words, whether on the emotional level or logic. I add here a remark that I made myself in the video of Thomas Cyrix. Indeed, I observed that he used the same arguments as his accusers when it concerned the human aspect. In the video of Mad Dog, I find very few of his arguments. I also want to remind one thing : the #Voxmenteur is used for testimonials. If you want to encourage former VoxMaker members, just leave a message, no need for a hashtag. Neither do you need to insult the accuser, you only complicate things.

Mad Dog, ancien membre de VoxMakers, a fait une vidéo de moins d’une heure pour témoigner à son tour individuellement, comme l’on déjà fait deux de ses camarades en live. Il commence positivement en demandant de ne pas faire de lynchage contre Thomas Cyrix, qu’il nomme sous le nom de gérant, et dit avoir beaucoup apprécié ses années dans ce groupe. Il parle aussi des galères financières qu’ils ont subi et de la tristesse qu’il a ressentit d’avoir été obligé de quitter le groupe. Il explique que la pression que leur poser ce « gérant » leur paraissait normal car c’est comme ça dans beaucoup d’entreprises. Il dit qu’ils se sont sentis mis à l’écart des gens et chercher à tout prit à avoir au moins un SMIC pour vivre. Il dit qu’ils pensaient que l’argent passait dans tout ce qui concerne le matériel et les services nécessaires. Il dit aussi avoir reçu des témoignages positifs mais aussi négatifs de leur ancien gérant. Il appelle à la méfiance mais pas à la coupure totale ou au lynchage. Il explique que leur gérant a pris la grosse tête quelques mois avant qu’il ne soit viré. C’était le début de la fin de la participation de Mad Dog à VoxMakers. Il explique que le groupe n’était pas pris au sérieux à cause du manque de travail dans les spectacles auxquels le gérant participait. Il y a aussi le projet Putaclic, une sorte de parodie des nombreux tops à l’arrache que l’on trouve sur le net. Les textes de présentations qu’il avait alors faits pour leur gérant ont été donnés, par lui, à Lunatic car il était celui qui présentait le mieux. Finalement, le projet fut annulé par le gérant mais Mad Dog et Lunatic ont réussit à le convaincre de continuer, même s’il pouvait sentir une pointe d’amertume chez son gérant. Puis, il y avait aussi l’histoire de couple entre Lunatic et une fille que Mad Dog connaissait. Le couple gardait le secret de leur lien par peur des réflexions. Mad Dog les conseille à révéler la vérité, leur vie amoureuse étant privée et ne devant pas influencer le travail de Lunatic. Plus tard, il apprend que le couple se fait disputer par le reste du groupe suite à la révélation de leur secret. Il s’est énervé contre les VoxMakers, ressortant ce qui n’était pas passer à certains moments. L’Ermite Moderne dit que les VoxMakers ne pensaient pas à mal et s’excuse. Mad Dog accepte leur excuse par attachement au groupe et s’excuse à son tour publiquement. Il est alors renvoyé du groupe. Il en parle à l’Ermite Moderne qui a totalement changé d’appréciation. Il a été totalement isolé du reste du groupe. On sent que ses souvenirs sont durs pour le Youtubeur qui donne l’impression d’être sur le point de pleurer. Il explique avoir était déconnecté du net, dégoûté par Youtube et en surveillance sur Facebook. Il accuse aussi d’avoir était renvoyé du groupe de la mauvaise manière car il explique que ce n’est pas par un vote que l’on peut renvoyer une personne dans une entreprise SAS. Ce qui me marque par rapport aux anciens VoxMakers et à Thomas Cyrix. Il explique la situation de la plus neutre possible avec seulement quelques points pour expliquer sa tristesse et son désarroi ainsi que les difficultés qu’il a subi. Il désigne jamais la personne de Thomas Cyrix directement, seulement son rôle dans VoxMakers. Il ne le traite pas de manipulateurs, de menteurs, d’escrocs… Il explique les faits et où cela l’a conduit. Je n’ai pas repéré de tentative de manipulation dans ses dires, que se soit au niveau émotionnel ou de la logique. J’ajoute ici une remarque que je m’étais faite dans la vidéo de Thomas Cyrix. En effet, j’avais observé qu’il utilisait les mêmes arguments que ses accusateurs quand cela concernait l’aspect humain. Dans la vidéo de Mad Dog, je retrouve très peu ses arguments. Je tiens aussi à rappeler une chose : le #Voxmenteur sert aux témoignages. Si vous voulez encourager les anciens membres de VoxMaker, laisser juste un message, pas besoin de hashtag. Pas besoin non plus d'insulte envers l'accusateur, vous ne faites que compliquer les choses.

youtube

Source :

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AG8pdMFtFrk&feature=share

#voxmakers #voxmenteur #thomas cyrix #ermite moderne #starrysky #mj - fermez la

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