#it feels like real politics

[fictionadventurer]

*

#okay i promise i'm going to get off tumblr and actually get something decent done #but i just have to mention that i started reading 'thief liar lady' #the cinderella retelling where she's pulling a con #which i did not have high expectations for because that concept screams 'we're going to prove how dumb the original cinderella story is' #so i have to give it credit that so far it's pleasantly surprising me by pulling back every time it's about to do something stupid #within the first page or two we have 'they say the slippers were glass and the carriage was made of a pumpkin which is so dumb' #which seems like standard cinderella bashing but it's also framed as an explanation of the magic system #as in 'this is a waste of magic based on the rules' not 'this story is stupid and my 'real' one is better' so i can live with it #we have the enemy prince she's trying to con but he's not a dumb strawman royal #he's actually a sweet guy and a shrewd diplomat #all the royals are actually getting credit for talents as well as flaws #no strawmen in sight (i still shudder to remember 'just ella') #it feels like real politics #and there is *so much* politics and i am eating it up #(which makes me realize that one of the reasons i love cinderella retellings is that there's a lot of potential for politics) #we did have a scene where she goes into the throne room and meets a strange disheveled nobleman lounging on the throne #which made me roll my eyes because you could not have had a more obvious 'meeting the ya love interest' scene #but then there's a scene where she's like 'i don't care about embroidery' #and i internally groaned #but then she's like 'but i do like the embroidery circle because it's relaxing to be away from the men for a while' #so to my delight i could cancel the 'not like other girls' alert #the queen is feminine and her social skills are presented as a vital political skill #the swearing is really stupid and out of place and brings the book down #and i know that there'll most likely be something that makes me stop reading it before the 25% mark #but i do want to give the book credit for pleasantly surprising me #i'm liking it more than i otherwise would because of all the ways i was expecting it to disappoint me

[zevranunderstander]

i dont think i will ever be over dragon age 2. like. bioware made an epic fantasy story about a chosen one having to save a country and stop the apocalypse and then they made the second installment of the series be about the sociopolitical climate in ONE city through the lens of a family of refugees fleeing from the war of the first game and just. made it about political tensions and class dynamics and the influences of living in a church-mandated state and the growing tension over an occupied piece of the city and political killings and interpersonal conflict and power and its story is ENTIRELY character-driven. it has easily the most iconic set of companion characters. the premise of living through a story told over the course of ten years and knowing from the start that something really bad will happen in the end was so fresh and exciting. the fact that the acts really built on top of each other andhow much the city changed over time. and the game was so mature in terms of the topic of fighting against oppression in so many ways (im usually generous and say that the short development time left some things a bit wanting), and as much as some people say that the game treats mages and templars as being equally bad, i don't think that that is actually true about the game and it very earnestly tries to grapple with some pretty complex political dynamics.

and then the game completely flopped financially and was almost universally hated for its queer themes and its sympathy for "terrorism" and a lot of the things that stemmed from basically having no production time at all and then the studio just made another epic fantasy story about a chosen one that has to save the world from the apocalypse

#myposts #da #dragon age #i feel like. dragon age origins is dark fantasy. dragon age 2 is a political thriller that is at times too really dark #and dragon age inquisition is a fantasy game with a moral complexity suitable for 10-year-olds #whose themes are all over the place and that has zero thematic coherence or any real vision for what the fuck they are doing with the story

[eskildit]

i think a lot about hot sauce and jeannemary. two young girls so ready to kill and to die. a comparison made all the worse when you recall that hot sauce lost all her family to the cohort, that she can specifically recall fourth style necromancy (using corpses as bombs). a fourteen and thirteen year old that could easily have been on opposite sides of the same front line. 

#the locked tomb #the loss of childhood! senseless violence! #opposite ends of the propaganda machine #eskildit posts tlt #all of nona the ninth #how am i supposed to tag hot sauce #jeannemary chatur #ok to rb #edit: okay im actually gonna use these tags to ramble a lil #in many ways i feel alecto the ninth is gonna be the hardest book to actually pull off #first for the obvious reason that its an ending and endings are always hard #but second because nona the ninth was by far the most political book of the series #books 1 and 2 following harrow and gideon mean we're following characters on the outskirts of the empire #gideon is individually oppressed by the ninth and even harrow is considered a black sheep outsider of the nine houses #but they are still WITHIN the houses gideon has dreams of the cohort harrow has dreams of of revitalizing her house #nona was our actual introduction to the real consequences of the empire that characters like judith like jeannemary like corona herself #have their livelihoods and status entirely built on the imperial violence we see first hand on new rho #anyway i say all of this to say it means coming back to these characters might be kinda tricky! #the cost of the empire is no longer abstract its extremely palpable! #how does one return to our core cast we've know for multiple books now that we understand that #idk. interested to see where we go!

[buckttommy]

this isn't a horny post but. has buck even... seen a hard penis before that was not his own? like yeah yeah porn but. that's not really the same is it. not when you're not even looking. not when you don't even know that you want to look. like for all intents and purposes buck is completely virginal here and that's. ummm. that's a lot.

#like. oh. oh he's such a baby. he really is a BABY gay like sweet boy. you know nothing #you are about to get your entire perception of life and your body and your inner being absolutely fucking rearranged #especially the perception of his life like. for 30+ years he has lived in one world and it only took one kiss. one handful of seconds to no #just *change* that world but transport him to a completely different one. #everything is going to be different. from the way he approaches his politics (because it means something different when you're actually #fighting for your OWN rights) and the way he approaches his body like. and that's the real kicker for me is like #buck knows his body. he knows what he likes and this that and the other #but he doesn't actually KNOW his body because he doesn't know ALL the ways that it can feel #and all the ways that it can make HIM feel #he has not yet tasted the way his body can electrify him and render him undone and it's like #it truly is like he's becoming another person #and i know that's cheesy to say but this really is like being born again. #oh my god. i'm actively falling asleep. i don't know if this makes sense. you guys get the picture

[modwyr]

i love when game companions don't have a positive relationship and they aren't 'found family' (whatever that term means nowadays). to me it feels like it really emphasises the idea of this being a group of characters gathered together by the protagonist for a common goal, and therefore have clashing ideologies, and it makes everything more natural, from big game moments to companion banter, to have them argue or act awkward and stilted with each other because that's how people are

#and of course i've gone on record saying i like when companions fight (gladio train scene/thinking anders & fenris hating each other is ok*) #but also when relationships just aren't good like eder and xoti for most of deadfire where he's just made uncomfortable by her and is tryin #to politely/not so politely get out of talking to her #because that feels like a real human reaction to another character #text

[unityrain24]

is anyone brave enough to infiltrate the usa right-wing social media spaces and talk about how kosa is going to take away their freedom of speech and violate the FIRST AMENDMENT of the us constitution?

#i feel like firing them up against kosa along with all the minorities the bill is going to be targeting could give us a real chance at stopp #kosa #stop kosa #politics #us politics #kids online safety act #unityrain.txt

[ruelpsen]

Fuck it, I'm going to go out and say it: while I often enjoy being teased on here, a fair portion of what I receive irritates me as it's misguided at best and reeks deeply of unlearned, malicious fatphobia at its worst. Yes I want to be fatter but I'm not fat. I am a 140-lbs/63.5-kg twink despite all my efforts to gain weight. I'm not stick thin, sure, but I'm sure as hell not fat either. So why are some people insistent on calling me fat/huge/big? Are actual fat people too much for you (perhaps even in spite of you being a self-professed FA)? Is your idea of fatness grounded in equating 'not even that chubby' with 'fat' while not even being attracted to people who are actually fat? Do you solely find bloated skinny guys hot while still saying you like fat people? Or are you not attracted to fat people at all and here simply to take your fatphobia out on the people closest to your image of ideal thinness, who you'd be more openly attracted to if they lost 10-20 pounds, all while still scoffing at or ignoring the fat people at the heart of these communities?

Some of y'all really need to do better. Either own up to your love of people who are actually fat (which may entail adjusting your understanding of what fatness is), clean up your nomenclature, or don't be here. Yes unlearning biases like fatphobia takes time and effort, but your choices really are more or less that simple.

#i've seen a number of posts lately from actual fat feedees/gainers discussing how even in these circles they feel marginalized #and yeah they most certainly are #i may not be in that weight cohort myself but my own experiences further go to show that it is a real and noticeable problem #to the fat people here you are not alone and i'm sorry some people still insist on being shitty like this #your body is lovely and deserving of far better attention than the dickish/creepy shit they have to give anyway #i am open to more discussion on this if people want it btw #body politics

[uncanny-tranny]

I just find it very interesting that all the labour classed as lesser (most often seen as "women's labour") becomes indispensable in moments of crisis. It's just interesting to see how quickly people turn to that labour and then discard it in moments of peace or prosperity, devaluing it until another crisis hits.

#politics #feminism #yes this is me reflecting upon the knitting and war video #it's interesting how a 'feminine' craft like knitting became recognized only in tangent to the violence of war #my feelings about this are complex but i think textile craft is a good example of what i mean #because textiles are revolutionary to humanity - just like the discovery of fire. and yet it is so often devalued #especially when it comes to profit over human welfare #look the textile artist to even stauncher hater of capitalism pipeline is real and i'm barreling down it faster than the speed of light #complex feelings on this but this is my general thesis i guess #(context: i was watching a video about knitting and how it supported war efforts in wwi and wwii) #(and while i did know a lot about the topic in that it was a huge part of war support propaganda it was still interesting) #i feel like that video encapsulated a lot of angst i have about crafting labour especially #and also by 'interesting' i actually mean infuriating and stupid

[thechekhov]

the food group game of thrones got me sweating bullets

brennan lee mulligan should be tried for his crimes, and then immediately exonerated for his craft

#crown of candy #yeah yeah i knew it was gonna be like this #is this how people felt with game of thrones? #weirdly enough i feel like im rewatching steven universe again #the inanimate object worldbuilding to political intrigue drama pipeline too real #dimension20

[dumbass-is-my-default]

I cannot get over how efficient The Silt Verses is at capturing what it’s like living under late-stage capitalism it’s actually insane. The absolute existential dread that something so much greater than you is destroying your world and it couldn’t care less about you yet you’re still forced to give your life to it. I get the same feeling from this podcast as I do when I talk about the state of my country. Incredible.

#the silt verses #tsv podcast #tsv #I feel like someone who doesn’t really follow the news or politics or anything would understand how I feel by listening to this podcast #Like #we are living this #that feeling of abject terror is probably what we should be feeling every day in our real actual lives

[bonefall]

For Riverstar’s Heir, do you have any idea where you want to land themeatically? Because from my reading of the possible themeatic directions, with the whole story being about this crisis of politics and succession, it feels like the character who “should” become the next leader of RiverClan narratively should be the Most ruthless/aggressive/willing to resort to dishonorable methods of dealing with rivals (reinforcing RiverClan’s entry into/building up of the early Clans’ emerging systems of battle society)

The alternative “most interesting” option I can imagine would be one that is least likely/least aggressive/some otherwise sort of underdog candidate (maybe not even technically “legal” depending on what qualifications there are for heirship?), but I’m not sure exactly what themes that would play into, other than maybe how the pursuit of power can change someone?

That said, your themeatic instincts are strong enough that I can see you having a strong idea for a “middle-of-the-pack” candidate winning out over the others just as much, so— I am genuinely curious what your thoughts are for where you Want this crisis of succession to end, narratively, even if you don’t have an exact cat picked yet.

Good ask because I'd not been clear about the theme yet, I think. What Riverstar's Heir is trying to get at, at the heart of the issue, is that this is a bloodbath caused by naiive optimism and greed.

The commandments to establish borders and prevent killing are nice, but not enough. You can't just have a society on good will, not when POWER is up for grabs in the scramble. It's about collapse, and how innocent, well-meaning people get caught up in the devastation. Not JUST the troublemakers.

Riverstar was an EXCELLENT king, beloved and wise, but if you don't prepare a proper successor, everything you worked hard to build might crumble to ruin.

Something unique is lost in this shuffle. It's no longer the River Kingdom, and the Wind Coalition also becomes WindClan at this point. For better, and for worse, they both lose a bit of what made them special. Redscar's choice at the end also solidifies the early political power of Clerics, which is eventually broken many generations later with Larkwing's Strike.

So, fragment time,

At LEAST three "heirs" end up getting killed.

So, because these ones are gonna die, I have Three Heir "Slots" that I'm committed to and just need to fill;

The Eldest, Riverstar's oldest living biological child.

The Chosen, Riverstar's adopted heir, a rather meek prince easily pressured into backing off his rightful claim. This one is likely going to be the BB! version of Mossfire.

The Firstblood, directly descended from Riverstar's FIRSTborn child. This one is likely going to be the BB! version of Jumpfoot.

I also have two tentative slots.

The Accomplished... who is a blood relative of Riverstar, but more of a "puppet" for WindCo. Someone they're intentionally propping up hoping for power.

The Diplomat, from WindClan, who is a lot like WindCo's puppet but this one is more subtle about it. Poetic. Happy to purr and remind the world of the wonderful, deep ties that had existed between King Riverstar and Thunderstar.

And, LASTLY, there's The Deputy. The most qualified choice, who served Riverstar, but was no relative.

It feels right that the Deputy is the one who is chosen in the end... hm.

Anyway

After a smaller conflict near the start of the story, either The Eldest or The Firstblood seems to be the favorite to win... but decides to wait for the morning to set out for the Moonstone and take their lives.

In this time period, without selecting a successor, this heir is assassinated.

In fact it might be VERY fun if this heir, being so much like King Riverstar himself, decided to throw a pre-emptive celebration.

Meat! Merriment! MURDER!!!

Having them go out via poison would be a fun way to send a character off.

This is going to be why the "DEPUTY BEFORE MOONHIGH" rule is established, but it's also what kicks off the bloodier parts of the plot.

Thinking about it... a cleric and/or the deputy should probably tell this heir, "Hey, buddy, you should really get going" and they're ignored.

With Eldest Heir gone, the small conflict from earlier becomes an LARGE conflict.

And, like they did back in DOTC, families start to rally together. Especially Eldest's offspring, who think they're just as entitled to the Throne as The Firstblood/Jumpfoot

King Riverstar used to encourage cats to enter the River Kingdom freely. The borders were essentially open, and everyone was allowed in, as long as they were willing to cross the river.

(maybe I'll even have him pull down the tree from Riverstar's Home intentionally, happy to accept other cats into his Kingdom. Then he defends it from Skystar, specifically, but refuses to destroy what he built.)

This had allowed River Kingdom to grow large and powerful, but it also meant everyone in River Kingdom had connections to the other Clans.

Which meant there were cats supporting OTHER bids to the Throne, like the one from WindCo and the one from ThunderClan.

Smelling a way to grab power, Duststar supports his favorite heir, and Whitestar of ThunderClan also begins to stick his nose in.

Each Heir tries to run the River Kingdom, and things start to get hostile. If there's more than just the three heirs, even more of them start to get openly attacked, chased out, killed, until there's only The Chosen and The Firstblood left.

Somewhere around here, River Kingdom is invaded. Probably by the leader of SkyClan at the time, claiming that they don't even NEED an heir to take what these cats clearly don't deserve.

And that's when the internal conflict becomes a FULL-BLOWN WAR between four Clans.

In those days, the camp was at Sunningrocks, right in the middle of the river.

ThunderClan jumps in to help its "Ally" against SkyClan, just like historical precedent, but they have NO IDEA who they're fighting against, because the whole Kingdom is divided. It's not as simple as it was in DOTC anymore.

WindCo came to support its favorite heir, but its cats don't obey Duststar's orders when it comes down to fighting their own friends and family, meaning they're functionally fighting EVERYONE and losing a TON of cats

SkyClan is getting pummeled because EVERY group is pissed at them as well as each other, getting a painful awakening that they are NOT being run by Skystar the War God anymore and they're no longer the biggest, baddest bananas in the bunch

(shadowclan is watching all of this and eating popcorn. moisturized. in their lane. unbothered.)

The climax here, between The Chosen and The Firstblood, is a battle that matches the chapter from COTC. They launch at each other, in a battle to the death.

The first Sunningrocks Battle.

They both wear "crowns" on their head, one custom made for Mossfire's short-furred head, and traditional, braided into Jumpfoot's long, lush fur.

As they claw, bite, and tumble, they plunge into the river.

Fighting and hissing, they try to pull apart to rise up for air-- and can't.

They're STUCK

The crowns became tangled in their skirmish, and neither one can work with the other to bring them both to shore, against the current.

Both heirs, the last with a proper claim to the throne, drown together in the river.

At the end of the bloodbath, the tone is very somber. The rules were meant to prevent The First Battle from ever happening again... but The Second Battle had just taken place.

The body count wasn't AS high as the First Battle, but it was still a bloody loss. Every Clan lost warriors. Even ShadowClan, who hadn't even been IN the conflict, checked its ranks to find that powerful warriors had run off to go fight with their Kin.

Now they could be buried with them, too.

And now, there was no proper heir. If any descendants were still kicking around, they were refusing to take a throne that so many cats had died for. Jumpfoot and Mossfire never emerged from the River, their bodies, and their legendary crowns, were never found.

At first I'd been considering Redscar being swapped to become a RiverClan Cleric, but now I'm thinking it actually makes sense he's still from ShadowClan. ShadowClan was the ONLY neutral group-- it's reasonable for the clans to turn and request their partiality.

So, Redscar peruses the options, having followed the situation from afar.

His choice, in the end, was The Deputy. The most experienced advisor who knew Riverstar, and probably tried to stay at his adopted daughter's side as well. The closest thing they'd had to a leader all along.

(Thought: Maybe this character will be the POV. Make it like a bit of a fake-out title, you THINK Riverstar's heir is Mossfire. But it's actually been this one all along.)

He creates his famous false sign, and from there, the five groups discussed how they could prevent this from ever happening again.

They create the Law of the Deputy, commanding that ALL Clans have a single Deputy who will inherit the Clan after the leader passes away, ending dynasties in WindCo and River Kingdom and centralizing power in the other 3.

With the massive losses that WindCo and River Kingdom experienced, they also restructure, forced to accept a lot of help from ThunderClan and ShadowClan.

The borders began to close up, leading to the sentiment that would lead to Commandment 4, the Law of Loyalty, in just one more generation.

#better bones au #BB!DOTC #Riverstar's Heir #I feel like I need to add in more 'human' moments #But it's also a very broad overview type thing #Having the Deputy be the POV will help immensely I think once I get into the details #Since she'll be thinking about how to keep the Kingdom together. How to feed people. How badly it's all crumbling #And how distracting the violence all is #But this is a broader draft of the major politics when the REAL meat of this story is in the minutia. #(Ottoman Empire ass drama in the background) ``no time for that goku. its fall. the salmon r coming.`` #Unsure if this is Flowerstem or Maplewhisker.... #The Eldest would make sense as Mothpelt #Again: COTC my beloved

[sacchiri]

Hellsing 2002 calendar illustration.

Ein wunderliche und erschröckliche Hystori von einem großen Wüttrich genant Dracole wayda Der do so ganz unkristenliche marrter hat angelegt die mensche, als mit spissen als auch die leut zu Tod geslyffen

A wondrous and frightening story about a great berserk called Dracula the voivode who inflicted such unchristian tortures such as with stakes and also dragged people to death

#hellsing #alucard #kouta hirano #translation was found in a comment by u/lazyfoxheart on r/Kurrent #fun fact this is the highest quality version of this image that exists online #i know because i've been looking forever for a version that's clear enough to actually read what hirano wrote under '1443' #but there weren't any so i had to take matters into my own hands #the real image on the back of the guidebook is only 2 inches tall so i had to take this with my smartphone and will my hands not to shake #anyway i'm pretty sure it's supposed to say Eğrigöz (the location vlad was imprisoned) so yeah. thank you hirano very cool #if i might rant for a sec it took me an embarrassingly long time to figure that out because i didn't have the guidebook at first #and in the images i could find online that part was just a blur that looked suspiciously like a person's signature and i was like. who tf #i was thinking matthias corvinus since he issued some political propaganda against vlad iirc but it didn't match his signature on wikipedia #then i thought it might be vlad II dracul's since he probably had to sign an agreement to send his sons over as hostages at some point #but that didnt seem right either so i kept skimming vlad's wiki page #and then i was like goddammit...hirano.....you just misspelled Eğrigöz didn't you.. .... #i maybe should've made a separate post dedicated to this instead of writing a novel in the tags but eh #the hellsing brainrot runs deep #also- i put it in the source link at the bottom of the post but the german inscription is copied off a real woodcut of vlad from 1491 #except instead of depicting him as an adult hirano drew him as a child which gives the inscription a very different feel imo #the one final thing that interests me about this is the fact that hirano published this calendar in 2002 #which is REALLY early in the series. like this was before volume 5 came out?? #i have no idea why he decided to do a massive spoiler drop in a random piece of japan-only merch #sandwiched between a drawing of alucard as john travolta from saturday night fever and integra as a fish no less #it makes me really curious to know what the fan response to this was back then. like did people even know who this was #maybe im just an idiot and everyone back then was like 'ah yes its alucard as a 12 year old. how very informative'

[aeonsaeons]

I have no idea why I’m not seeing anything about this anywhere, but I’m wanting this video to really blow up. At least show people there’s more than 2 options nobody really wants. The working class can work together and allow for a viable third option. I really think this is possible this election!! Everyone’s pissed!

#there’s a link under the vid that goes to their website if you want to volunteer in the campaign #that’s the only way it’s going to get done folks #I feel so dumb being like those bots that do political stuff on tumblr #promise I’m a real person #is if we all work together are getting our collective voices heard #Claudia De La Cruz #Karina Garcia #election 2024 #Votesocialist2024 #PSL #party for socialism and liberation #?? #Youtube #but this is really important to me as someone who is of a marginalized group that is being targeted and most of my loved ones are as well #Uhh 😬 yeah #🧍 #psl national #socialism

[sanyu-thewitch05]

Me watching the LGBT community who almost never rarely gives black women and girls, asexuals, or aromantics genuine respect, pretend we’re all friends and have always treated us right the minute it’s June 1st and want to use black women(mainly darkskinned) and girls as their little poster girl:

#asexual #aromantic #It’s always coming from the non black people(including other racial minorities) too #and the stuff coming out of the lgbt community towards black women and girls has gotten real nasty #i have seen numerous people(although they’re mainly black) say that black people are inherently queer because we’re unnatural and strange #in the eyes of white supremacy and white people #like are you ok in the head??? why do you want to say that black people are inherently strange and we defy every social standard #as of our existence is a social statement #I personally think the worst thing I’ve personally heard(from yet another black person) #was that black women and girls would get seen as men or trans women because our hair is nappy #what does our natural hair have to do with getting seen as men or trans women?? #and the white lgbt people just applauded them and hearted their tweet #it annoys me how for some weird reason political and social movements will mainly use black women especially darker black women as rep #and It’s almost always by a non black person #like why don’t you use a girl or woman from your own race in your political and social justice artwork #oh wait that’s right #because in general the lgbt community views black women and girls as magical negras who will be their ride or die sista soulja #who will mule and fight for them no matter how badly they outright insult us or sneakily talk badly about us #pride month is basically another black history month when it comes to how everyone reacts to it #every reaction to it is superficial and they’re only celebrating us because they feel like they had to or wanted social points #had it been any other month they would’ve been focusing on the group that they belong to

[hajihiko]

That is generally sad because having parents who aren't really abusive or emotionally straining yet- they don't really feel like people who LOVE you? I guess? Like- Hajime's parents were probably just normal everyday parents like Makotos but, I'm just spit Ballin here, they're less optimistic than Makotos parents, who in contrast, always bonded with their children and loved them right off the bat.

You can feel like a stranger in your family, and that sucks. It's no one's direct fault and no one can point to any huge grievance, which makes it hard to pinpoint, which means you never get the Comfort Of Family or the Tools of Dealing With Abusive Parents- you just. Manage.

#Parents who do their due diligence but cannot connect with their kid once it has a personality and opinions- it's real ask your friends #I feel like Hajimes parents just sort of went By The Book and nothing more. #Convo at the dinnertable was just. How was school? How was work? Any extra curriculars? #The neighbours got a dog. How is your old friend? Oh you havent talked in 6 years? The balcony needs painting. #That's it. Bed time. No one ever gets close at all. It's more polite conversation than you'd have at the bus stop #No interest and most of all no desire or dare to rock the boat. This works. We function as a family. That's the best we can do. #Otherwise we'd bring up a problem which unearths years and YEARS of unhappiness that ruins our otherwise stable life #Every single moment of frustration comes out at once. Because none of it ever got aired out. Cant have that can we?? #So again. How was school? Doing good? Try hard okay? Good night.

[kirby-the-gorb]

#kirby #politics #us politics #daily kirby #my art #digital #hal laboratory #nintendo #please vote if you're able! it may not feel like it's worth much but it's not nothing. #(I got my ballot by mail and already sent it in.) #(some people are not able and that is fine.) #(but if you're able at least take a look at the ballot and vote for things you think are better (and/or less bad)) #(if you'd rather overthrow the government or whatever that's between you and god and I guess the government) #(but we might as well use the power they've already given us access to to make it less bad in the meantime.) #(it does very little harm and it may do very real and concrete good.) #(for example california has a ballot measure to write abortion protections into the state constitution.) #(that's pretty important to vote on!) #if you live in a vote-by-mail state and haven't mailed your ballot yet you can still take it to a drop box to make sure it's counted. #drop box locations are generally available online through the state or county website.