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ariminiria · 1 year

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What's going with DnD???

Aside from OneDnD (a dumbass name for 6e) being the most washed up, bland, gentrified bullshit, Wizard of the Coast is now trying to revoke the Open Gaming License which protects homebrew creators and other publishers based off of the system. The problem is that an OGL is meant to be perpetual and unrevocable. It would be one thing if they were merely applying this OGL 1.1 to OneDnD, because it's new and so is OGL 1.1, but WotC is also trying to (illegally) retroactively apply it to at least 5e, and potentially 3.5e if I recall correctly? (someone correct me if 3.5e is safe)

The community was understandably enraged by this notion, as it is a clear cut attempt for WotC to not only clamp down on the game, but also TTRPGs in general. They're trying to get an iron monopoly going. It also had wording that would allow them to use any homebrewed or non partner content based on the system without needing permission from the creator.

It took weeks for WotC to respond to the backlash. It should be noted that this info came from a leak. WotC sent this new OGL to the top publishers for them to sign onto but someone leaked it to the community and stopped them from doing all of this in the dark. When they finally did respond, they said statements like "Some people are worried we would steal your works - the thought never crossed our minds!" and another statement of "some people will say that we lost because we're making this statement and some changes to the OGL, but actually no! We won :) everybody won :)"

The only reason they said anything at all was because of the mass cancelations of DnDBeyond subscriptions

They're pretending to back down now with OGL 2.0, but the damage was done. A whistle-blower anonymously leaked the info that WotC has an active distate for the community and only sees it as a cash cow. The higher ups want everything to be more monetized, with microtransactions and all, and most average joe employees are scared to speak out because people have gotten fired for voicing opinions or feedback, even it has been asked for, hence why the whistle-blower was anonymous.

Anyways, a bunch of publishers who would be affected by this said "okay bet" and are now banding together to create an Open RPG License that would be even more permanent and even more protective of players and creators, and many of said publishers are even beginning work on brand new systems

The whistle-blower also mentioned that WotC only cares about their bottom line, so no amount of outrage will change their minds, because they are strictly monitoring DnDBeyond subscriptions as an indicator of how this all is being received. way to broaden the sample size, guys 🙄

It is important to note that they technically have no legal right to do most of this. The creators of the OGL, who are no longer with the company, spoke out and said that the original OGL was meant to be perpetual and irrevocable, in addition to a few other illegal aspects of it. But there is some loophole wording that may still allow them to get away with it if the community doesn't backlash hard enough to convince them it's a bad idea. The fact that they have even attempted such a move sets a worrying legal precedent in my mind.

Anyways, here's some memes I've collected during the course of all of this nonsense under the cut

#i think some of this should be tagged under dnd nonsense #dnd nonsense #no promises tho #im bad at consistent tagging

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the-real-zhora-salome · 4 months

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The UN security council on Friday approved a toned-down resolution calling for large-scale delivery of aid to Gaza, but stopping short of a call for a ceasefire.

Will the new UN resolution on Gaza make any difference to conditions on the ground?

UN security council resolution 2720 will not stop the Israeli offensive, and does not seek to. It only calls for “urgent steps” to establish “conditions” for a sustainable ceasefire, which are open to interpretation. Israel believes those steps involve the complete destruction of Hamas. As for humanitarian deliveries, it depends. A UN special coordinator is to be appointed to orchestrate an increase in the flow of aid, and the resolution “demands” that concerned parties, ie Israel, give full cooperation. The precedents are not good however. Israel generally sees the UN as hostile and biased actor and recently revoked the visa of the resident UN coordinator for occupied Palestinian territories.

Does the UN resolution have the force of international law?

No. Only a small number of UN resolutions are considered legally binding. International lawyers do not always agree on what it takes to make a resolution binding, but there is general consensus that it should mention chapter VII of the UN charter which gives the security council the right to take military and nonmilitary action to confront a “threat to international peace and security”. The resolution should also say that the council “decides” on a course of action, rather than just calling for it.

Resolution 2720 fulfills none of those conditions, but some lawyers argue that by using the word “demand” the council is creating a legal obligation outside chapter VII. But Israel has broken more than two dozen prior security council resolutions, including many “demanding” it stop building settlements on the occupied West Bank.

What is the point of such resolutions then?

UN security council resolutions are often a form of political signaling about world opinion. For the chronically divided five permanent members to agree on anything is rare, so if they agree your country is doing something wrong, it is of note diplomatically. The process of hammering out a resolution can also be a vehicle for resolving differences between major powers. Friday’s resolution on Gaza carved out a small policy space which both the US and Russia could live with. The US has used UN resolutions in the past as a way of sending signals to Israel. When Washington, on rare occasions, abstains on a resolution critical of Israeli policy or upholding Palestinian rights, it is usually a message to Tel Aviv that the administration is running out of patience with whatever Israel is doing.

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knaveofmogadore · 4 years

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Just a thought but non-ace people don't get to decide whether or not rep is "good enough" for us

#messages from knave #you dont get to have an opinion #opinion rights permanently revoked #asexual #romantic asexual #demisexual #ace discourse

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eretzyisrael · 3 years

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How They Did It

Between 1967 and 2021, the enemies of the Jewish state and the Jewish people created in effect an army of anti-Israel operatives in key positions in Western societies, including Israel herself. These operatives are often opinion leaders who influence the behavior of their countries.

Here is how they did it.

The Arab nations failed to defeat Israel in major military conflicts in 1948, 1967, and 1973. At that point, they turned to cognitive warfare, the manipulation of information, attitudes, beliefs, and feelings, in order to weaken their enemy and deny it support from third parties. Thus there were two primary targets: the population of the State of Israel, and the Western nations that might become sources of financial, logistical, diplomatic, or other forms of help for the Jewish state.

The objective of cognitive warfare is to divide, disrupt, and isolate the enemy so that it be finished off more easily by military means. Terrorism is an important part of cognitive warfare, because frightened people are prone to Stockholm syndrome. But this discussion will be limited to the non-kinetic aspects of cognitive warfare.

The cognitive war began around 1967, initiated by the Soviet KGB as a propaganda campaign. The terrorists of the PLO – whose actual ideology was close to that of Nazi Germany – were presented as a national liberation movement, which found approval in the leftist student and antiwar movements that were part of the larger Soviet cognitive assault on the West.

By 1973, the challenges facing the cognitive warriors of the Arab world and their advisors were great. The Jews of Israel had lost the overconfidence of the post-1967 era. The USA had (finally) resupplied Israel with the weapons needed to reverse the advance of her enemies and – although she was prevented from achieving a crushing victory – she had clearly established her military superiority. But the militarily weak Arabs strengthened their cognitive warfare capabilities to include more than mere propaganda. They launched operations to fundamentally change important features of the social landscape of the West.

Cognitive attacks were aimed at the following Western targets:

International institutions; the UN and its agencies (easy targets because of the built-in Soviet/Third World majority).

Major early victories included several anti-Israel UN Security Council resolutions during the Carter Administration (the US abstained), and of course the “Zionism is racism” resolution in 1975. Although the resolution was ultimately revoked, the “UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People” it created and the annual observance of “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” remain. The UN Human Rights Council has a unique permanent agenda item to discuss Israel’s “human rights abuses” at every session. UN reports on health, the status of women, the environment, and other subjects often wrongly single out Israel as a violator.

International NGOs have been persuaded, by infiltration and financial grants from Arab and left-wing sources, to join the campaign. “Human rights” groups like Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International have been particularly useful in accusing the IDF of war crimes. Recently HRW produced a tendentious report calling Israel an apartheid state.

Institutions of higher education (easily bought with oil money).

Starting almost immediately after 1973, Arab states began to make major donations to leading universities, establishing departments of Middle East Studies (where “Middle East” does not include Israel), endowing chairs and fellowships, and so on. This has continued to the present day. Other quasi-academic institutions, such as influential think tanks like the Qatar-supported Brookings Institution, have also benefited.

This is an extremely far-sighted and effective strategy, because influence trickles down to other faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates. Ultimately these students graduate and take their places in education, business, government, and even law enforcement and the military.

Even in Israel, leftist academics produce a constant flow of pseudo-academic material that can be used as support for NGO and think tank documents that call for anti-Israel policies. Israeli NGOs, supported by the international Left and Arab/Iranian/Turkish sources, provide information for use in lawfare against Israel and the IDF, as well as propaganda.

Student and labor movements, liberal churches (easy targets because of left-wing connections).

Since 2004, resolutions supporting the Boycott-Divestment-Sanctions movement against Israel have been debated and often passed by student governments, labor unions, and liberal churches. While there has so far been little effect on Israel’s economy, the debates provide a forum for disseminating false accusations against Israel.

Student organizations have been established on campuses that promote anti-Israel ideas and intimidate anyone who supports Israel. The recent widespread acceptance of postmodern “woke” ideas including intersectionality, critical race theory, and third-worldism has made it possible to connect Palestinism to diverse causes, even some that are clearly inconsistent with it, such as LGBT rights.

These organizations are supported and nurtured by faculty, departments, and administrators that were put in place by Arab (and more recently) Iranian oil revenues, as well as traditionally left-leaning academics.

Corporate interests (easy targets because of their dependence on Arab oil).

Immediately after the 1973 war, the Arab oil boycott caused a spike in prices and supply shortages. Oil companies in the US, who have great influence in politics, began to take public political stances, calling for what they referred to as a “more even-handed” policy in the Arab-Israeli conflict (in other words, calling for the government to stop supporting Israel). They funded propaganda outlets that followed the Arab line.

More recently, large corporations – particularly the very influential and powerful tech companies – have begun to adopt “woke” policies, out of a combination of fear of popular boycotts and the absorption of woke ideas from the academic world that provides their personnel. Infiltration of anti-Israel activists and attitudes into the tech companies that increasingly determine popular culture is especially worrisome.

Social media.

Recently someone noted that pro-Palestinian personality Bella Hadid has 21 million Instagram followers, significantly more than the total number of Jews in the world. Social media provides a huge amount of leverage for cognitive warfare, since it reaches literally billions of people throughout the world. Clever manipulation of social platforms can have a massive effect at very low cost. As usual, Russia is leading the world in developing this cognitive warfare technique, using bots and human-operated social media farms. But Iran and other enemies of Israel aren’t far behind.

Minorities (whose grievances could be blamed on Jews and Israel).

As early as the 1930s, Soviet propagandists realized that racial discrimination in the US could be used to sell communism to disaffected minorities. It has also been possible to sell them Jew-hatred, and the closely related hatred for the Jewish state. The racial mass psychosis that has gripped the US lately presents a wonderful opportunity to attach anti-Israel messages to “anti-racist” activities via the principle of intersectionality. Combined with the historically high level of antisemitism in the black community, it’s been possible for Israel’s enemies to spread preposterous lies, such as that “Israel trains American police to be racist” effectively.

Antisemitic politicians.

Politicians like Jeremy Corbyn, Ilhan Omar, and others are effective propagandists. It’s difficult to defend against them, because opposition can be discounted as politics, and because they have large bases of support (e.g., among Muslim populations) of which the politicians in their own parties are afraid.

For whatever reason, Israel’s successive governments have either been unable to fully internalize the danger posed by cognitive warfare, or have failed to come up with an effective strategy for fighting it. But with each military conflict that Israel is involved in, the cognitive attacks become more and more intense. They have already affected the IDF’s ability to fight.

The solution is to employ a proactive, not reactive strategy; to attack rather than defend. But what would such a strategy look like?

That’s the subject of my next post.

Abu Yehuda

#Academia #information war #Jew Hatred #The UN #Wokeness

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yerjigsawpuzzleblues · 3 years

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Can the United Nations help settle the situation in Burma?

@nitziesche736, a reply isn’t enough to fit all the shit I have to say regarding this issue, so here ya go. Oh, and I guess this can also help explain a couple of things regarding the situation in Burma, y’know. Not that I have anything meaningful to say, of course.

Technically speaking...

Yes. Being the world’s most powerful inter-governmental organisation, the UN is especially equipped to help settle this fuckery. For example, it can...

issue statements of concern and condemnation;

impose targeted sanctions against both individuals and businesses connected to those responsible;

advocate for a global arms embargo;

refer the case to the International Criminal Court (trust me, those cunts have a lot to answer for);

invoke Chapter VII of the UN Charter and the R2P clause, which may or may not include military intervention in addition to the options above.

So, there are a lot of options, but as you can see, we really want the UN to take Option 5.

Why the delay?

Guess which option the UN has stuck to since the coup. Yup, that’s right — they have issued statements left and right ever since the coup oh, I forgot that we’re not supposed to call it that. China and Russia wouldn’t like that very much, y’know. Using their status as permanent members of the UN Security Council, they have consistently vetoed statements threatening further actions (e.g., sanctions) and of course, calling a spade a spade and referring to the military takeover as the coup it absolutely fucking is despite the fact that the majority of the world, including the other UNSC permanent members, have agreed to call it a coup. I know, I know; China and, to a slightly lesser extent, Russia have consistently blocked UN action that might hurt the Burmese military even before the coup citing a non-interference policy, but this has sorta created an idea in people’s minds that the CCP is in cahoots with the military (also partly the reason why most people here wanted 🍊 to win in 2020 because everyone thought he’d be tough on China). Add to that the clandestine nightly flights from Kunming (I think these flights stopped in early March) that the Chinese claimed were for sending in seafood but what most people think were for sending in IT experts to create a firewall, Chinese state media calling the coup ‘a major cabinet reshuffle’ and generally misrepresenting a lot of shit* from here as per usual, and China and Russia being two of the most prominent countries selling weapons to the military, and it’s no wonder why most people think that Winnie the Pooh actually gave The Motherfucker* the green light to take over the country, y’know. And guess which UN body’s go-ahead is needed to take any of the last four options. So, yeah...

TL;DR: Yes, it can, but no, it won’t. Unless there’s some sort of miracle or something. This won’t be a frivolous one, I swear.

*One of the more egregious instances of misrepresentation in my opinion is the recounting of the incident in Hlaing Thar Yar on March 13 2021. This is what an Burmese news agency had to say about it (https://www.myanmar-now.org/en/news/at-least-six-killed-after-factory-owner-calls-in-military-in-hlaing-tharyar)

Now, this is what a Chinese news agency had to say about the very same incident. (https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202103/1218875.shtml)

Oh, and while we’re on the topic of the press, the junta has cracked down on press freedom, revoked the licence of media outlets including the one I linked (no private newspapers are currently published in Burma), and detained/beat up a ton of journalists.

*The commander in chief (aka the guy who took over following the coup)’s initials are MAL, which also stands for Ma Aye Loe, the Anglicisation of the Burmese word for ‘Motherfucker’. The same goes for the Burmese alphabet as well. Obviously, this has been one of the easiest jokes to crack and have been repeated ad nauseum by everyone since and even before the coup, because we, as a society, don’t have a lot of love for the military, y’know.

ETA: I linked the wrong thing for the Hlaing Thar Yar incident like the dumbass I am.

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scotianostra · 3 years

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Prince Charles Edward Stewart, AKA Bonnie Prince Charlie was born in Rome on December 31st 1720.

Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Maria Stuart – to give him his full name, is one of the most talked about people in Scottish history, in my opinion the only person to come close to Charlie is Mary Queen of Scots.

His father, James Francis Edward Stuart, had been brought to Rome as an infant when his deposed father, James VII, received Papal support after fleeing London in 1689. James Francis married Maria Clementina, a Polish princess with a large inheritance, in 1719. After the failures of the second and third Jacobite Risings in Scotland at the beginning of the 18th century, the birth of a Stuart heir was heartening to the Jacobite cause.

The Christmas song, 'O Come All Ye Faithful, is said to have it’s origins in the Jacobite cause, a Durham University Professor claims “The meaning of the Christmas carol is clear: ‘Come and Behold Him, Born the King of Angels’ really means, Come and Behold Him, Born the King of the English – Bonnie Prince Charlie! “

Charles was charismatic and sociable from a young age, characteristics that would later compensate for his lack of skill in battle. As a royal heir, he was privileged and well educated, particularly in the arts. On myth I would like to dispel is that he could not speak English, in fact he spoke several languages, including enough Gaelic to be understood in Scotland, and he is said to have played the bagpipes. He was fair-faced and rather effeminate, characteristics that earned him the nickname “Bonnie Prince.”

As the son of the claimant and heir apparent to the throne of Great Britain, Charles was raised to believe in his divine right to an absolute monarchy, something I have covered many times in my posts, the divine right of kings was not just a Stuart belief, but was widespread in European history, a political doctrine in defence of monarchical absolutism. It was Charlies life’s purpose to ascend to the throne of Scotland, Ireland, and England, and it was this belief that ultimately lead to the so-called Young Pretender’s defeat, as his desire to capture London after securing Edinburgh exhausted his dwindling troops and supplies in the winter of 1745.

In order to reclaim the throne, James and Charles needed support from a powerful ally. After the death of Louis XIV in 1715, France revoked its support of the Jacobite cause, but in 1744, with the War of Austrian Succession waging across the continent, James managed to secure financing, soldiers, and ships from the French to advance into Scotland. At the same time, the aging James named 23-year-old Charles Prince Regent, tasking him with taking back the crown.

In February 1744, Charles and his French company sailed for Dunkirk, but the fleet was destroyed in a storm shortly after departure Louis XV refused to redirect any more effort from the ongoing War of Austrian Succession to the Jacobite cause, so the Prince pawned the famed Sobieska Rubies to finance two manned ships, one of which was immediately decommissioned by a waiting British warship. Undeterred, Charles pressed on, stepping foot in Scotland for the first time in July 1745.

The standard was raised for the Bonnie Prince in August at Glenfinnan, comprised mostly of destitute Scots and Irish farmers, a mix of Protestants and Catholics. The army marched south through the autumn, taking Edinburgh in early September.Some think it would have been wise for Charles to wait out the ongoing war on the continent in Edinburgh, a move that would have exhausted the Hanoverian army

Instead, motivated by a desire to claim the throne in London, Charles marched his army into England, getting as close as Derby before being forced to retreat. The Jacobites retreated north, up to the highland capital, Inverness, Charles’ most important holding.

Government troops were not far behind, and a bloody battle was fast approaching. On the night of April 15, 1746, the Jacobites attempted a surprise attack, but they got lost in the marsh and darkness, rendering the attempt a dismal failure. As the sun rose the next morning, Charles ordered his Jacobite army, sleep-deprived men, to prepare for battle on the flat, muddy Drumossie Moor at Culloden.

In less than an hour, the Government army obliterated the Jacobites, and Charles was nowhere to be found. In tears, the Young Pretender had fled the battlefield.

Charles spent the subsequent months in hiding. He was introduced to Flora MacDonald, who disguised him as her maid, “Betty Burke” and smuggled him safely to the Isle of Skye. He eventually crossed the mainland once more to catch French ships en route to the continent. In September 1746, Charles Edward Stuart left Scotland for the last time.

After a few years searching for Jacobite support, Charles returned to Rome, blaming his senior commanders for the loss at Culloden. He fell into drunkenness, and in 1772 married Princess Louise of Stolberg, a girl 30 years his junior. The pair had no children, leaving Charles without an heir, though he did have one illegitimate daughter, Charlotte. Charles died in Charlotte’s arms in 1788.

In the aftermath of Culloden, Jacobitism became shrouded in myth, and over the years, the Bonnie Prince became the symbol of a valiant but doomed cause rather than who some portray as a privileged, unskilled prince that abandoned his army.

In reality, it was, at least in part, the impatience and impudence of Charles Edward Stuart that simultaneously cost him his throne and permanently ended the Jacobite cause.

#scotland #scottish #history #the stuarts #the stewarts #bonnie prince charlie #jacobites #scots-italian #England #great britain

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sk1fanfiction · 3 years

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Chapter Sixteen: A Dose of Pessimism

"I know," he began, "that the recent changes must make many of you feel anxious. Aurors watching your classes, Hogsmeade privileges being revoked... Each and every one of you has been searched, doubtlessly several times, on your entrance to classes beginning this morning. And I believe that you have the right to know why. I assure you that this situation shall not be by any means permanent."

"What situation?" whispered Theodore, and several people shushed him.

"I believe that we have grown complacent in the belief that this castle can withstand all assault, that it is impervious to enemies. But that is simply not true. Once, there was a young man, who, like yourselves, sat in this very hall, walked this castle's corridor, and slept under this roof—"

"Who is he talking about?" whispered Ruby, and the shushing came again.

"The Dark Lord," Alastair whispered back. "Now pay attention."

In which Dumbledore answers a few questions, Quirrell acts suspect in Ruby’s opinion, perfectly-fine in Harry’s, Harry learns to play Quidditch, and the security measures continue.

Read from the beginning at FFN | AO3!

#harry potter #fanfic #hp fanfic #pawns rooks and queens

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brotheralyosha · 3 years

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Training wheels on a bike aren’t as effective on dirt and gravel as they are on pavement. That’s a pretty good bet to make, but I learned it for sure because the dead-end street outside my childhood home in Jerusalem was only partly paved. My family lived in Sheikh Jarrah, a neighborhood in East Jerusalem, and though Israel governs the city — including the occupied Palestinian side — it consistently fails to provide adequate services to Palestinian areas, such as routinely paving roads. One of the first few times I tried riding a bicycle there, the bike wobbled too much and I scraped my leg on the gravel. So my parents and I took my bike to a nearby playground, just at the edge of the neighborhood, and I eventually learned how to ride it there.

Today, that neighborhood has a hashtag — #SaveSheikhJarrah — because Israeli settlers, with the help of Israeli soldiers and the Israeli government, have been trying to steal Palestinian homes and displace Palestinians in their effort to permanently and illegally expand Israeli territory into East Jerusalem. It’s part of what Palestinians refer to as Israel’s ongoing ethnic cleansing campaign, which has sparked yet another deadly chapter in Israel’s occupation of Palestine: As of this writing, Israeli forces have killed 17 Palestinians in the West Bank and over 230 Palestinians in Gaza, including at least 65 children. Ten Israelis have been killed by rockets fired by the Islamist militant group Hamas.

The land theft that is happening in Sheikh Jarrah and across Palestine is not new; it’s what the Israeli state was founded on. In fact, back at the playground in Sheikh Jarrah, I learned how to ride a bike in the shadow of an Israeli government building that sat on my own grandfather’s land. The building houses the National Headquarters of the Israel Police — the very police force that kills and brutalizes Palestinians, illegally detains us, and routinely tramples on our rights. Till the day my grandfather died, he could not get over the fact that his land had been stolen. Anytime we passed by the building, he would point to it and say, “That’s on my land.”

Not only did Israel steal my grandfather’s land; it has also stolen Jerusalem from me. Growing up in the city, I was an undocumented resident in Israel’s eyes despite the fact that my mother’s family has lived there for generations. My mom was born and raised a mere 10-minute walk from my childhood home, but my father’s family is from Tulkarem, a small city in the West Bank. And so my dad, my siblings, and I have West Bank IDs while my mom, a Jerusalemite, has a Jerusalem ID. That meant that while my mother had a right to live in Jerusalem, the rest of us were only guests in our own home, living there because we renewed travel permits that technically allowed us only entry into Jerusalem, not a permanent stay. (Israel has been trying to revoke Jerusalem IDs from Palestinians like my mom for decades.)

Because I still have a West Bank ID, as an adult I can never live in Jerusalem again despite it being my hometown. Under Israeli law, West Bankers aren’t allowed to drive or work in Jerusalem unless they have special permits, which are very rare and hard to get. They are also not allowed to buy or rent a home. But those rules do not apply to Jewish people, be they from Israel or anywhere else in the world. So long as someone can prove their Jewish ancestry, Israel will help them settle in Jerusalem and offer them full rights and privileges — ones that I, an indigenous Palestinian, can never get for the sole reason of my identity.

That’s what an apartheid state looks like: a government that maintains systematic discrimination against and repression of a group of people because of their identity, while doing all it can to ensure that another, prioritized group remains in control. And Israel operates precisely this way because the survival of its identity — that of one day becoming a democratic Jewish state — is predicated on the erasure of Palestinians as a people. And that means separating them from one another within Palestine, like West Bankers and Jerusalemites, making their lives miserable or even killing them, and making them leave their land, never to return.

But what the Israeli regime that upholds this oppressive system fails to realize is that no matter how hard they try to erase Palestinians as a people, we will always remain. And while they can dispossess us, displace us, or expel us, the one thing that they can never take away from us is our memories — those of our lives, our homes, and our land — which we will carry with us forever. After all, how could I possibly forget where I learned how to ride a bike?

#israel #palestine #Abdallah Fayyad #boston globe #long post

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rjzimmerman · 3 years

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Description of the book from Oregon State University Press, the publisher:

Fracking, the practice of shattering underground rock to release oil and natural gas, is a major driver of climate change. The 300,000 fracking facilities in the US also directly harm the health and livelihoods of people in front-line communities, who are disproportionately poor and people of color. Impacted citizens have for years protested that their rights have been ignored.

On May 14, 2018, a respected international human-rights court, the Rome-based Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal, began a week-long hearing on the impacts of fracking and climate change on human and Earth rights. In its advisory opinion, the Tribunal ruled that fracking systematically violates substantive and procedural human rights; that governments are complicit in the rights violations; and that to protect human rights and the climate, the practice of fracking should be banned.

The case makes history. It revokes the social license of extreme-extraction industries by connecting environmental destruction to human-rights violations. It affirms that climate change, and the extraction techniques that fuel it, directly violate deeply and broadly accepted moral norms encoded in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Bearing Witness maps a promising new direction in the ongoing struggle to protect the planet from climate chaos. It tells the story of this landmark case through carefully curated court materials, including searing eye-witness testimony, groundbreaking legal testimony, and the Tribunal’s advisory opinion. Essays by leading climate writers such as Winona LaDuke, Robin Wall Kimmerer, and Sandra Steingraber and legal experts such as John Knox, Mary Wood, and Anna Grear give context to the controversy. Framing essays by the editors, experts on climate ethics and human rights, demonstrate that a human-rights focus is a powerful, transformative new tool to address the climate crisis.

#Bearing Witness #fracking

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eyes-talks-ocs · 3 years

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Did a thing. Drew a new ref for 808. And I hate it because I have such difficulty drawing women....but it works I guess. Even if I hate it.

808 belongs to my Social Throwaways project. She is the main female lead to accompany my main male lead (Macaw) in this series. The writing project follows these two characters.

Name: Adder Fisher

Nickname: 808

Age: 19

Taken?: Well kinda? Yes? It depends. I have it head canoned that she and Macaw could end up together. But, not until Macaw fixes himself first and goes through a heavy character arc. He's got far too many emotional issues to even handle normal friendships - let alone a healthy relationship. Until he gets a hold of his issues, a relationship with him would be incredibly toxic (again just being a friend with him can be toxic/borderline abusive if he's not handling himself properly. So they won't be together until Macaw does his thing first. As the author I'll make sure of that. There's already enough toxic relationship viewed as "normal" in dramas and books. I won't add to it.)

Home?: Vindurpolis, fictional city that would be set somewhere in northern Nevada or potentially southern Idaho. (Somewhere in that region.)

She and the 3 others: Macaw, Dog, and Snake, live in an abandoned grain elevator/agriculture warehouse just on the outskirts of the city. All of them are fated with living their lives as Rats.

Rat? - A slang term used to describe social status of some citizens of Vindurpolis. Rats are the people who no longer have a DES number, and because of that, they have had most of thier rights and privileged stripped from them. There's a number of ways to lose your DES, ranging from simple things like not having a job for a duration of time to violent crimes. Depending on what the reason was for losing it, it can be recovered or it could be revoked permanently.

Other info/personality traits:

-She is shy and cautious in nature, but once over the initial new interaction will quickly settle into her more bold personality and take on a more leader like trait. (Ex. Meeting new people, exploring new surroundings, doing a new task, ect.)

-She's bullheaded and can get quite bossy and opinionated. This character trait especially comes through when interacting with Macaw - who's just as bullheaded and set in his ways as she is. Yes they fight, but usually Macaw will back down when she gets in his face. Mainly because he's confused because most don't have the balls to confront or try to boss him around. Let alone a teenaged girl, who should be afraid of him. He genuinely doesn't know how to handle the situation and just storms off angerly in most cases.

-She's kind, and the feeling of 'need to help people' runs deep. She makes a better healer than fighter. Because of her empathy and the draw she feels to always be the one to 'help' someone else. She often neglects her own personal needs and gets emotionally burnt out from it.

-Willful and blissful ignorance to a lot of the demons in their society. She slowly starts to see and accept things as they are throughout the beginning of their story.

-Has issues with keeping a filter. Not so much with instances with explicit language. But more so, she thinks out loud and often times doesn't realize what she just said/asked until she already said it. Talks without thinking. She doesn't mean to come off as offensive. Just sometimes she'll say or ask something rather intrusive/personal/hurtful. (Ex. Seeing Macaw reading like usual, and her blurting out "how can you read?" Then not understanding why that question made him angry. Her asking him how he does normal every day things, however innocent the question was, was insensitive. It's known amongst the group not to ask about or point out Macaw's blind eye, or really any of his scars/injuries in general. It's not something he wants to talks about. But her lack of filter has her constantly asking/saying things that she shouldn't to Macaw/everyone else in the group. She even catches Dog off guard with her questions and statements, and that's a difficult thing to offend Dog.)

-Mostly all bark. She CAN hold her own pretty okay, but can wind herself up into trouble trying to bluff her way out of something.

-Got her nickname from Macaw. He got pissed off at her for being too loud and noisy while he was trying to nurse a hungover. He called her an 808, and since than that's what he's called her.

Ect. That's all I can think of right now to add. Just ask if you want to know more about her!

#art #ref sheet #my art #social throwaways #Adder #oc #original character #original creation #writing project #character design #dystopian #dystopian story

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wolftattoo · 3 years

Note

Thoughts on werewolves

i wish i could answer this in a cool way but any time anyone asks my thoughts on werwolves its just like (tv static) bc my brain is so loud. i like all of the it.

ill share an opinion tho im mad at werewolves being all just loud and violent and “beasts” bc we are actually a lot quieter and just... calm like a little cringe to compare ik but dogs arent barking all the time. i wish movies w werewolves n practical effects wouldnt give them permanent snarls also almost every werewolf movie looks cool but sucks ass sans like four . moviemakers i revoke your right to make werewolf movies until you make a good one.

#nonny #ask

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burnouts3s3 · 4 years

Text

A Long Post about Disney Plus

(Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit unprofessional blog post written by an unprofessional blog poster. All purported facts and statement are little more than the subjective, biased opinion of said blog poster. In other words, don’t take anything I say too seriously.)

A Long Post about Disney Plus

UPDATE: Movies such as Dumbo and The Lady and the Tramp have not been altered from their original content but instead include a disclaimer stating the movie may contain "outdated cultural depictions". Toy Story 2 still does not have the Stinky Pete scene. The episode "Stark Raving Dad" of the Simpsons is NOT on the platform.

So, the almighty Disney Corporation, aka, that giant conglomerate that has bought Marvel Studios, 20th Century Fox and Star Wars, is planning to release Disney Plus, a streaming service that has multiple shows, movies and original content under the Disney Banner.

And frankly, I’m a bit… worried.

Let me start off by saying, I’m not here to criticize you, the reader and potential consumer. However you want to spend your money is your business. If you wish to boycott Disney out of some personal philosophy or ideology or whatever reason, that’s your business. I’m not here to dictate how you spend your cash.

I would, however, like offer a humble suggestion before you decide to dive in head first into a potentially disastrous scenario.

So, Disney Plus is a streaming service that promises to provide lots of content to potential subscribers and let them view whatever content for a subscription. Obviously, this is Disney’s response and plan to combat other streaming services such as Netflix, HBOMax, Apple TV Plus and so on and so forth. While Streaming services aren’t nothing new, the addition of the Disney brand as well as the multiple Intellectual Properties under its umbrella.

What worries me is where both Disney and its potential customers go from here.

There’s already early reports of certain franchises being put “behind the Disney Vault” aka “We’re not rereleasing these films”. For example, the Aliens Franchise is apparently being one of those films.

www.alien-covenant.com/news/di…

However, Alien and other Fox properties will still be locked away in an effort to combat independent theaters and chains from profiting by screening those classic films.

Other reports indicate that certain films will be censored or excluded from the platform entirely. For example, the Siamese Cats from “The Lady and the Tramp” or Jim Crow from Dumbo will be cut out of their respective films entirely (and would explain why Disney is so keen on doing a live action remake of the Lady and the Tramp). Another case would be a Toy Story 2 after credits scene where in Stinky Pete is flirting with some Barbie Dolls and promising them parts for Toy Story 3.

boundingintocomics.com/2019/11…

CNBC also reports that Disney will remove its Jim Crow character from Dumbo. “The Jim Crow character from the original “Dumbo” will be edited out of the film version that appears on the streaming service.” This also isn’t new news. Boardwalk Times noted the scene would be changed back in April. They reported at the time: “The Jim Crow scene in 1941’s Dumbo will also be edited out for the digital library that launches November 12.” The scene was also removed for the recent live-action Dumbo remake from director Tim Burton as well. CNBC also reports a post-credit scene from Toy Story 2 featuring Stinky Pete will also be removed from the film on Disney+. The scene sees Stinky Pete appearing to seduce two Barbie dolls and promises he can get them roles in Toy Story 3.

youtube

Obviously, this is all legal. Disney owns the rights to the properties and they want to have a clean 21st Progressive Identity to hide behind. Besides, I suspected that “Song of the South” was never going to be on the platform.

But this is part of the same problem that everyone, even the most vocal Anti-Disney people, seem to be overlooking.

In which we, the consumer, are trading a product in favor of a service.

What I mean is that because of the success of things like Netflix, Hulu, Youtube, etc., too many of us have gotten used to the idea that we need to pay a subscription for digital access instead of paying a flat rate for a product. That’s NOT a good sign.

The debate of whether exclusive content such as the Original Series, The Mandalorian, is worth the price of admission or whether streaming services are necessary in the age of digital piracy are one thing, but in the age of dubious ownership and the doing away of physical content, ownership still matters.

It all goes back to one thing; when you subscribe to a service to access your content, the people you pay have the right to revoke your service and keep your money. That’s not a good thing regardless of political ideology. And while it’s tempting for PC gamers to pay for what amounts to a digital license to be onboard the same ship, the fact is having all that content tied to one account risks the danger of losing all that data if you should lose access to your account.

I’m a firm believer of owning physical media. For example, I own a Blu Ray of Assassination Classroom. No matter what I say or do online, I don’t have to be afraid of Chris Sabat kicking down my door and taking my Blu-ray away from me (or, at least, I shouldn’t have to…). Because when I buy a physical product, it’s mine as long as I don’t lose it or it isn’t damaged.

But a subscription (and to a lesser extent, a digital license) can be lost really easily. Even if I were to take extra good care of my account and prevent people from hacking it, guess what? The people who make the content can revoke access.

Remember Minecraft: The Telltale Series? Interesting story. See, when Telltale when bankrupt, one of the games they had made, Minecraft, would no longer be accessible or downloadable from digital platforms, even to those who held the license.

Can you imagine what kind terrifying precedent that sets? Keep a movie or show permanently downloaded onto your storage or lose access to it forever? We’re dealing with a system that makes it so that you don’t own the stuff you paid for now!

Owning a product gives me a plethora of options. It allows me to keep it, re-watch it, lend it to someone else or, if I decide to hock it for drinking money, sell it. It’s not perfect, but it’s preferable to having something that I paid for as opposed to having nothing. My loyalty to whatever company makes said product ends with a transaction (a transaction that can be easily outmaneuvered through a 3rd party purchase or sale). With a service, you can’t help but be loyal to said company.

If I start badmouthing Disney and Disney decides to deny me access to my subscription, my account or my digital licenses, guess what? I’m up a particularly smelly creek without a paddle.

I doubt Disney will go that far and will adopt a similar strategy to Funimation, as in they give digital vouchers for their Blu-ray series but it’s only redeemable on Disney Plus the same way digital vouchers from Funimation Blu-rays are only redeemable on its streaming service, FunimationNow. I also understand the economic argument in which lots of lower income families cannot afford specific shows and just want a plethora of options. But I know a step in the wrong direction when I see one and with stuff like Kevin Feige saying true Marvel fans must subscribe to said service or Disney saying Disney Plus subscribers will have early access to Frozen 2 or Captain Marvel, the case is there.

youtube

This is what happened to things like Dumbo and Lady and the Tramp and Toy Story 2. When you don’t own a physical content of your media, you’re at the whims of a corporation that can alter it whenever they want.

We all have different opinions when it comes to taste or entertainment. But whatever your feelings on the Disney corporation, whether you think of Kathleen Kennedy’s leadership of the Star Wars franchise, whether you thought the Last Jedi was a piece of junk, whatever you feel about Disney’s relationship with China, one thing is certain.

When you buy a product, you own that product. When you buy a service, the service owns you.

#disney plus #disney+#disney #sjw #the last jedi #star wars #gamergate #netflix

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mystarsignisno · 4 years

Text

Mallard X Nate, 2.5k words

Working title: Memories are tricky things (you can't escape them)

Summary: Losing Nate leaves Mallard with scars. Years later, they get reopened. And oh, do they bleed.

Mallard hadn't had time to think that night.

No time to consider the consequences of his actions, no time to organise cover stories or distractions to take the spotlight off him, mind occupied with a thought that created an unspeakable dread deep inside him.

Nate, better known as Coronation 6220, was being scrapped in the morning.

He pulled into the scrapyard, parking his engine on a siding before his human form materialised in his cab, without any sort of plan.

It was just as well, because any plan would have flown away at the sight that presented itself to Mallard as he tumbled from his cab in a disorganised tangle of barely-familiar limbs.

Nate's engine was parked on another siding, scuffed and grimy and so wrong, complete anathema to everything he had been. Sitting against a nearby crate was the man himself, head in his hands.

With a cry of "Nate!" Mallard rushed over, falling to his knees beside his once-rival. Their rivalry had led to friendship, then to something more that they had never explicitly acknowledged. Nate could barely lift his head, and he met Mallard's worried gaze with exhausted eyes.

"...Mal..."

The single syllable seemed to drain Nate, though as Mallard knelt beside him an invisible weight seemed to ease from Nate's frame.

Mallard leaned close, letting his forehead rest on Nate's, and let out a shaky sigh.

"I... I'm sorry I didn't get here earlier... I had hoped you'd be spared," he whispered.

A dry, raspy chuckle escaped Nate's mouth.

"None of us will be, Mal. We're obsolete now. Old tech, making way for the revolutionary."

Mallard wanted to grab Nate by the shoulders and shake him from his depressed state. The truth of Nate's words stuck like a multitude of pins in his mind and stayed his hands, tears beginning to roll down his cheeks.

"You know," Mallard muttered, "I think I could happily give up my world record if I could keep you with me. It means a lot to me, and the LNER, but I would trade almost anything to save you from this."

Nate's lips twitched upward, a half-formed smile on his face.

"I'm doubt Gresley would be very pleased with you. He's quite proud of that record."

Mallard snorted in a mix of frustration and amusement. "I don't bloody well care. Good grief, Nate... You don't deserve this!"

Nate placed a gentle hand on Mallard's cheek, taking a steadying breath.

"In all actuality, Mal... I never thought you'd care enough to actually come tonight. If it's as short notice as you make it seem, you'll be missed in the sheds. I... You'll be reprimanded for sure. You're technically... consorting with the enemy? I'm not sure what they'd say."

Mallard's eyes narrowed unconsciously, and Nate could feel his brow furrow.

"Heavy is the head that wears the crown. Almost as heavy as the head that did not receive it."

Nate blinked, stunned. "Are you... Spouting poetry?"

Mallard sighed, rolling his eyes.

"That's the seventeenth emotional you've ruined with your bloody logic, you prat."

Nate's shoulders shook with suppressed laughter.

"I'm sorry. I had to take the opportunity, you know. You can't pass a golden moment like that by."

Mallard's answering huff made it very hard indeed to keep laughter from spilling past his lips, but after a moment Mallard began to smile too.

"Nate, you imbecile. Give me one last kiss, we're far too young to die yet."

Nate tilted his head, and Mallard captured him in a kiss that ended with the two of them panting for breath, pressed close to one another. Nate rested his head in the crook of Mallard's neck, listening to Mallard hum softly and card his fingers through Nate's hair. When Mallard stilled, tears now dry on his face, Nate glanced up at him.

"Do... Do you really think this will be the end of steam?"

"Mal... We were never going to make it out of this together, and both of us knew that from the start. As for the others... You know how the railway is run. The old make way for the new, with a lucky few preserved for posterity."

Mallard shuddered, and closed his eyes briefly as if to rid himself of the thought.

"You're right, of course. Although..."

At Nate's curious expression, Mallard finished his sentence.

"If that is true... The diesels will have their day in the scrapyards too."

Nate sighed, and shook his head fondly.

"You are a vicious bastard, you know that?"

"I'm no bastard," Mallard replied dryly, "I'll have you know my pedigree is beyond reproach."

That finally pulled a laugh from Nate, causing Mallard to grin victoriously. At least, until Nate started coughing.

Mallard sat with Nate through the night, until Nate passed on in the early hours of the morning. His physical form dissipated, and the engine seemed duller. Lifeless.

Mallard made it back to the sheds in perfect time to have Gresley ream him out, in front of the other LNER engines.

"What were you thinking, Mallard! Running off like that, and to a scrapyard too! You can't be this irresponsible anymore. You're the face of the railway!"

Mallard's gaze was fixed on his maker, eyes dull. His voice was soft, almost strained.

"Of course, sir. My apologies. It won't happen again."

Gresley shook his head in barely restrained disgust. "What was of such import that it could not wait until morning? A last gloat over your rival?"

"Nothing so petty, I assure you," Mallard replied dispassionately. "I… I supported my late paramour in his last hours. Had I waited until morning, I would have been too late. He slipped away during the night."

There was a sharp intake of breath from the other engines. Mallard, paragon of the LNER, admitting to having broken the rules? Having snuck off to visit an engine in the scrapyard, from a rival railway and a lover to boot? It was almost unthinkable, and one of the shunters near the back elbowed a silver-clad figure beside him.

"Hey, do you think there was something in the coal this morning?"

Silver Link shot the presumptuous little shit a look, before shaking his head.

"There can't have been. We consume coal at different rates... I just can't believe this. No one so much as suspected him of this... If anyone had known, we all would. Gossip travels far too quickly here."

Gresley narrowed his eyes at the engine he'd been so proud of only days earlier.

"You're quite lucky to be as well known as you are. It stops me from putting you on permanent goods duty, which would reflect badly on our railway."

Mallard seemed to deflate slightly at that, glancing away. Like a bird of prey, Gresley targeted that moment of weakness mercilessly.

"You will pull your trains when they are scheduled, and you will take on water and coal only when necessary to ensure these trains arrive. In addition, you will be required to check in when you are off duty. You have gravely disappointed me, 4468."

The use of Mallard's number instead of his name was an indicator of supreme disgrace, and the engines around Mallard took unconscious steps away from him. Few engines would willingly associate with him until he earned back his name.

"Yes, sir."

Mallard's head was bowed as Gresley walked away, and his vision kept tunneling. Was his maker so enraged that his name was taken? Had he not earned it, through his record and exemplary work since? Was the love of an engine so unforgivable?

Hurried footsteps grabbed his attention, and he glanced up to see the other engines almost fleeing from him as if he carried a deadly plague. Whispers of 'traitor' floated back to him, accompanied by piercing glances.

Mallard was left standing alone, never having felt more lonely in his life.

Of course, the years wore on heedless of Mallard's feelings. He found time slipping past, a blur of nondescript faces and people.

He'd thought coming to the museum would be a fresh start, but it hadn't quite turned out like that. The engines had gossiped quite a lot, and the volunteers were... well informed of his failings.

Sir Nigel Gresley had died before Mallard could reconcile with him, a few years after he revoked Mallard's name. In the opinion of the other engines, the privilege of his name was officially lost to him forever. The new controller had used his name anyway, leading the other engines to revile him immensely. His own siblings shunned him, and no sane engine would ever associate with him. He was an A4, a Gresley, in name only; forever tainted by his love for 'an enemy'.

The workers and volunteers at the NRM came to share most of the other engines' opinions of him, and it was almost as if nothing had changed.

The one bright spot was a young girl who found herself fascinated by Mallard, and went out of her way to find him. She would sit beside him, chattering away on one topic or another, and was one of the only people Mallard was willing to talk to.

Then Flying Scotsman, better known as 'Scott', came to the NRM. The little girl began to spend more time with Scott, and when she was talking with Mallard the topic always circled back to the new arrival. His damned cousin stole one of his only companions without even trying!

Mallard had, at one point, asked the little girl who she liked best. At the time, she'd replied that he was the coolest. After Scott's arrival, the title went to him instead. Mallard would have been lying if he'd claimed that this loss was unexpected, but it still stung.

It should have been no surprise that Mallard withdrew, becoming antisocial and isolated. The other engines mostly saw it as one more thing about him to mock: he was the 'grumpy duck of the NRM'. He found himself taking comfort in small, enclosed spaces; like unoccupied cupboards and the corridor of his tender.

Years later, the engines of the museum were offered time with counselors after a long-buried hurt caused a fight during an after-hours movie night. Funny that they had acted now, when the many times Mallard had taken shit from the other engines were brushed off and ignored. There was a photo floating around in an album somewhere of a group photo: right before it was taken, Scott and Truro had dumped a bucket of water over his head. The photo was of him, dripping wet, surrounded by laughing engines.

The counselor, Eva, was a young woman with a kind face, and Mallard relaxed just the tiniest bit more than usual.

She asked him some meaningless questions about how he was feeling and whether there was anything particular he wanted to talk about, before asking the harder questions.

"What's the happiest memory you can remember?"

"Do you want pre-NRM, or more recent memories?" Mallard gestured, replying in an acidly sarcastic tone. "Because there's a larger amount of one than the other."

Eva seemed nonplussed by his prickly demeanor, and noted something down in her notebook.

"Pre-NRM, to start. We can get to the others another time."

Mallard sighed, and got comfortable.

"My happiest memory... Probably setting the 126m/ph record. I remember pulling into the station, and everything ached in the way it usually does when one overexerts themselves, but Sir was standing there on the platform... He had a wide smile on, and he..."

Mallard paused, and she glanced up at him.

"...Yes? What happened?"

Mallard's voice cracked as he spoke.

"...He... He told me he was proud of me."

It was Eva's turn to pause, and when she set her notebook down and actually looked at Mallard, she could see his fists tighten until his knuckles were white. Unshed tears make his eyes seem unusually bright. She stood slowly, walking over and tentatively draping an arm around Mallard's shoulders.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Mallard shuddered, wiping at his eyes in what was likely meant to be a discreet manner.

"I'm... I'm fine."

Eva patted his back comfortingly, before returning to her seat opposite him.

"And what would you say was your second happiest?"

Mallard took a moment to gather his composure, exploring his relatively limited collection of happy memories.

"My rivalry with Nate, better known as Coronation 6220, was one of the happier times of my life. Our competition started quite fiercely, with Nate taking the speed record for the LMS at 114m/ph."

Eva noted down Mallard's mention of his rivalry being a positive experience. He also seemed to refer to Nate with uncommon fondness. Was there something there?

"Of course, I took the record the next year. Nate was understandably miffed, and we began to bicker whenever possible. Bickering became bantering, and we did exchange some correspondence. Due to the hostility between our railways, both Nate and I destroyed letters once they had been read."

"How did you feel about Nate specifically?" Eva prodded Mallard with questions. "Was it purely rivalry, or a more positive relationship?"

Mallard was silent once more.

"...Will this information be made available to others? Museum staff, the other engines?"

Eva was mildly offended, but kept her voice calm.

"That would violate patient confidentiality. If, however, you pose serious and imminent threat to any persons including yourself, I am required to report that to my superiors and certain museum staff."

Mallard calmed, slumping a little with relief.

"Very well. I assure you that I currently pose little threat to anyone, and simply want to keep my personal information from being bandied about."

Eva didn't necessarily believe him, but she signalled for him to continue.

"Nate and I were very close; to the point our makers and siblings would have considered us... odd, and shunned us had they known. We never actually said it to each other, but... I loved Nate. I loved him dearly, and I feel that he loved me back."

Eva nearly dropped her notebook. Oh, this was insane! An inter-railway romance? Between two famous engines? And two males, at that?!

A whole lot of people would be very, very agitated if this ever got out. Now she understood why Mallard was so desperate for privacy.

She glanced up at him, and realised that Mallard was no longer paying attention to her. He seemed lost in old memories; a soft smile and absent gaze on his face.

"Er, Mallard... What happened? When Nate was withdrawn?"

Mallard froze, expression blank. The ever-present pain, anger and loneliness crashed over him; memories of that night so familiar he wouldn't be surprised if they had burnt into his eyes...

He stood abruptly, almost grinding his teeth.

"I think that's all for today, Miss Eva. See you next week."

He strode out of the room, back to his engine.

Curled up in the corridor of his tender, Mallard did his best not to make a sound. Tears slipped silently down his cheeks, shoulders shaking with each muffled sob.

He hadn't had time to think that night, but now it was all he ever thought about.

Outside, the other engines happily milled around, chatting about their sessions. No-one even noticed that Mallard was absent.

#sad boi mallard #mallard #fanfic

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werevulvi · 5 years

Text

I don't know what's going on with me. Lately I've been trying to fight off a worry of that if I'd ever wanna go back on testosterone I might not be able to, cause of no longer being considered trans, diagnostically, since I went to get that diagnosis revoked. Then yesterday that ramped up into an almost panic, thinking I actually do want to go back on it. I had to force myself to stop thinking like that. Cause I know it's just me worrying about my body hair disappearing or thinning out a lot, and wanting to prevent that from happening.

So I told myself it's unreasonable to go back testo cause of wanting to prevent something I can't even know will or won't happen yet. That I need to calm myself down and give it more time.

But then yet a few hours later I started thinking even further in that direction, that what if I should go back to being a trans man. That maybe I really just want to look feminine, and not like female. Cause obviously I do like looking male in the face, my deep voice, being hairy, etc. If it wasn't for that I want to have breasts again and that I present with fake breasts in public, there's not much of a difference between me and really feminine trans men. That I don't need to hate my pussy, or my wide hips, or want a dick, to be a trans man when those aspects are apparently not at all relevant for my passing as male in society. Since I can’t pass as female again no matter what the fuck I do, I mean. But I don't feel good thinking about that at all. It makes me feel sad, and it feels like I'd be giving up something that deeply matters to me.

I think it comes down to a lot of different aspects. Could I be fine with considering myself a straight man? No, absolutely not! I'm a femme lesbian, I couldn't make it as a feminine trans man trying to squeeze myself into the straight dating market in the past, in fact it spat me right out without any consideration. Fem straight men is just not a thing, and that for a deeply sexist, very real reason. And why "fem men" are always associated with attraction to other men. And I would never want to date straight women anyhow. But then of course I don't think there would really ever be anything stopping me from dating lesbians for as long as I'm still bio female. But whatever, I'm not exactly in the dating market now anyhow, so that's kinda moot right now, but I just mean in a long term perspective of "you never know what may happen 10 years from now" or whatever.

But let's leave that aspect and move on to the next one. And what about my chest then? I know I'm in a tight spot about that, cause I damaged my chest/ribs kinda bad from those 5 years I was binding prior to my top surgery, and although that was now 5 years ago and I'm usually fine physically when I'm not restricting my chest in any way... just wearing a simple bra for a few hours makes those old pains and issues flare up again. Most days, I can’t wear any kind of bra, but luckily I only need to be out in public once or twice a week. So I focus my bra-wearing on those days. But oh god, I wish I never had to take my boobs off! Let alone needing to spend most of my time without them. It’s mentally excruciating. It's like my chest is telling me it's had enough. I've been wanting to ignore that issue, hoping that once I have new breasts again I could just be braless most of the time and probably only wear a sports bra for when I go back to karate again (luckily no such garment is necessary to wear for exercise by swimming) and maybe a push-up bra on rare occasions, which would save my chest really a lot of those issues and pains. Cause hopefully breasts made of mostly just firm implants wouldn't need a whole lot of external support, even if they're somewhere up in the size of a C or D cup... right? Yeah, there's a lot of hoping going on with me there, and not so much thinking it through properly. I’m fully aware of my wilful ignorance. Cause I don’t wanna know if that’s a bad route to take. I don’t wanna know it if my situation is so hopeless I may as well just... nevermind. If I really can't manage living a fulfilling life without breasts, then yeah I'm sure I could work with that somehow, even if it might involve making some sacrifices to my health. But I know it would still be better for my body if I don't get a breast reconstruction and never wore bras again. But I can't do that. Honestly I dunno how to solve that miserable situation. Cause it's been 5 years since my op and my chest is making me feel awful. I regret everything I’ve done to it. It was a bad idea to get top surgery, but it really was an even worse idea to bind my chest for that long and that much that it irrevokably damaged it on some deep internal level that I can only speculate about. Yes it’s my opinion that the top surgery was a lesser mistake than the binding was. I think it might be ligaments in/between my ribs being damaged (the malformation of my ribcage is a sign of something like that, I think) as well as muscles being weakened, considering my breathing issues that seem to be unrelated to my cigarette habit. Because if I didn't have those issues then I wouldn't have to worry about wearing bras now or continue wearing them after breast reconstruction, or if the breasts themselves (meaning implants) would put too much pressure on my chest, for that matter. I don't know if I could rehab my chest better with some special exercises for a few years or forever, or if it's a lost cause. But now that I do have those issues, and feel so bad about my chest being flat... I dunno what to do. I don't want to live as a man again, I don't feel like I'm a man in any sense. I don't wanna be male. Even just the thought of having male body parts makes me clamp my legs shut in an instinctive reaction to protect my pussy. God damn it, I love being a woman cause I love my beautiful parts that nature gave me. That is a burden that no one can snatch from my tight grip. No, I do not want to be a man. I once used to think I did, but I was wrong. And that I changed my body, permanently, because of that mistake, fucks with me. Even though, and because, I like the changes that I got from testosterone and want to preserve them. I don't wanna be a man, even if I could be fine with staying flat-chested but otherwise wear the same stuff as I do already these days. It goes against what my heart is telling me. It goes against what feels natural for me. So is it just because it's difficult to live as a woman who looks like a man? Well... it should go without saying that that is indeed a very difficult road to walk. But I can't figure out if there's any aspect of me that actually genuinely wants to live as a man again, even if I'd still consider myself a lesbian, be fine with being female, etc. All the other aspects, except dating, of "being" a feminine man in public I'm already facing all the shittiness of. Cause this thought of "going back" to being a trans man just keeps coming back to me. It's riddled with sadness and desperation. But I can't shake it from my mind. So I think, for at least 95% of the reasons why the ghosts of my past are haunting me about this... is that it would just be easier to live as a feminine man at this point, than it is to reclaim any sort of womanhood. That train has passed. I may be a woman factually and biologically, which I'd never deny, but that I'm not recognised as female socially and not even believed to be when I'm confronted about it, means that I'm essentially still living as a man... against my will. Cause society doesn't care about my biology being female when it does not believe me. That is also a fact that doesn't care about my feelings. Thus... it would be easier to accept that I'm now practically a man and there's nothing I can do about it. (Although only socially and how I appear to the world around me). That although my “sex change” was not actual in any medically scientific sense, it was in a social and superficial sense. My social gender is male, no matter how much I hate it. Transmedicalists do have a point about that, as much as I don't want to admit it. It would be easier to go back to being a trans man, at this point, as much as it breaks my heart. Cause it does. Totally. I willed my way to this difficult place... and I ran straight into a trap. So what do I do then? I'll keep trying for as long as I can, to stand up for myself as the detransitioned woman that I am. And I think it's understandable that I have moments like these, of contemplating giving up on detransitioning and "going back" to being a trans man again, even though I don't want to and don't think I actually will. So this doesn't change anything, but I want to share these thoughts cause I don't see many other detransitioners confessing to contemplating admitting this kind of defeat in dark moments, and I refuse to believe I’m somehow the only one. If misery wants company, know you're not alone. This goes for both detrans women and detrans men out there. I don't know if I'll get through this detrans debacle that I turned my life into, but I'd like to believe so. To be strong does include daring to be vulnerable; remember that.

#detransition #dark moments #deep thoughts #transition regret #inner strength #damaged from chest binding #top surgery regret #gender expression #dysphoria #social gender vs bio sex #gender critical #tight spot was most definitely a pun #in case you couldnt tell

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uchihasavior · 5 years

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What are the unresolved issues between Fugaku and itachi?

[[ ahAHAH goodness...

I’ll try to go in order. It’s a sad topic, because I love both their characters, and they tried their best, but the issues between them are both their own faults. You can’t just blame one single party. Keep in mind these are canon (NOT headcanons) and pulled from the Itachi novels, which are also canon.

TL;DR Huge-ass post ahead. ]]

1) Fugaku’s plan to introduce Itachi how the world worked backfired horribly.

When Itachi is four, Fugaku takes him to a stormy battlefield near the end of the 3rd world war. The purpose of this visit was to introduce Itachi into the fact the world is full of strife, fighting, and he should not get too used to peace because he is going to end up fighting people one day. It was to “break him in,” but it worked against him, because Itachi only ended up disagreeing with Fugaku, and making his philosophy to end all the fighting in the world, not get accustomed to it.

Fugaku gets a lot of shit for this (I’ve seen some people call him horribly abusive) and while I fully agree it’s a bad move we HAVE to remember the culture towards fighting/death in Naruto is MUCH different from our own. Analysis on the actions people take in Naruto has to be done from THEIR point of view VS ours. Of course we see it as a really shitty, damaging action. And it is, but Itachi took something different from it, and Fugaku lives in a culture where this was seen as an acceptable way to introduce a child to a world that’s gone through three wars by this time. This isn’t even necessarily in defense of Fugaku.

2) Fugaku was silent in a situation where Itachi was bombarded with dissent/aggression from other Uchiha.

Again, another pretty complicated situation, and the result is more isolation between Father and Son. Itachi, now a freshly minted Genin, is allowed to attend Uchiha clan meetings. However, he doesn’t understand that the Uchiha are legitimately being oppressed and so when his clansmen talk about getting back the rights that have been revoked to them, Itachi proposes they take a less violent route. I understand Itachi said this because he genuinely doesn’t know better, but Yashiro and his group fail to actually... explain this, to Itachi. Instead of letting him understand, they immediately turn on him, scream at him, put him on the spot with their Sharingan, and Itachi turns to his Father.

Fugaku, pressured by his clan but also not wanting it to look like he’s favoring his son, doesn’t really do anything. He DOES feel bad about it, but doesn’t take action.

This results in Itachi’s opinion of the rest of the clan being permanently soured. Now Itachi thinks they’re just a bunch of barbarians obsessed with their lineage and he still doesn’t understand the actual oppression they’re facing, and he thinks he’s better/smarter than them because he’s not a brute who turns to violence first.

3) Fugaku pressures his son to become a spy between the Uchiha and the village.

I shouldn’t have to explain this one too much. Fugaku’s glad Itachi was chosen for ANBU primarily because it means he can ferret important village information back to the Uchiha.

Not only does Itachi fail in this regard, but he also fails to get information for his actual “boss”, Danzo, for the Uchiha. Itachi’s actually really bad at this double spy thing.

But the fact Itachi failed to procure this information also drives a bigger wedge inbetween them.

4) Fugaku takes actions that Itachi views as being anti-Sasuke or not prioritizing Sasuke enough.

This one is actually 100% Itachi’s fault.

I’ve made posts about this on several blogs, but it runs like so.

Anytime Fugaku does anything, anything at all that Itachi views as hurting Sasuke in some way, it counts against Fugaku. When Fugaku yells at him about possibly abandoning his mission, and wakes Sasuke up in the middle of the night? Itachi isn’t mad that he got yelled at. Itachi’s mad that Fugaku woke Sasuke up.

From Itachi’s POV, he thinks that Fugaku doesn’t care about Sasuke. If he cared about Sasuke, surely he would keep his voice down to let him sleep, wouldn’t he? Obvs Fugaku cares about both his sons, and waking Sasuke up wasn’t intentional, and it wasn’t out of any malice, but Itachi still sees this as counting against Fugaku. This is purely Itachi’s own bias towards Sasuke worsening an already shitty connection. Especially because Itachi is frequently a hypocrite in this regard.

5) Itachi blatantly assumes that his Father is too stubborn to be talked to.

This one is also Itachi’s fault. People talk about Itachi reading people well, or being willing to talk to people and not putting people as “beyond help,” but he willingly does this to his own Father. The irony is that Fugaku is more than willing to talk to Itachi, if only Itachi would actually come forward to speak with him.

Itachi doesn’t do this. He thinks Fugaku will not have his mind changed no matter what, so he doesn’t bother, therefore fulfilling his own prophecy.

6) The extreme lack of father/son bonding. Emotional bonding/Physical bonding.

Both of them realize this when Itachi has to kill him.

They don’t have a good father/son connection, as I’ve spent time explaining. Fugaku realizes he’s made a lot of mistakes, robbed Itachi the chance of being a child, and both of them have almost no physical contact during Itachi’s life. Itachi realizes, crying on his Father’s back, that he really wants a hug, or to be carried, but it’s too late. It’s too late to try to mend this.

Fugaku realizes he should’ve supported Itachi more, and Itachi realizes he should’ve been more open about how he felt.

Fugaku’s committed a lot of mistakes.... but Itachi has done him some in turn. Altogether, with the pressure of the clan, the village’s elders trying to anger the Uchiha as much as possible, and Fugaku trying to juggle the issues of his clan with his firstborn son? It’s a mess.

#itachi #fugaku #itachi uchiha #ooc #meta #fugaku uchiha #Anonymous

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