#thank god my teachers are most leftists too

[finecutvoidsalt]

reflecting on my education in middle and high school is fucking wild. like it's a miracle i didn't become some kind of fascist with how they were prepping me to fall down the far right pipeline. christian private schools will literally just teach you anything huh

like I just had a memory beam into my head of my history teacher teaching us that andrew jackson was actually totally cool and that he was only held back by those pesky laws that didn't let him genocide ALL the natives. like what the fuck is that. how did I hear that and think it was normal. trick question it's because i was a (undiagnosed autistic) child and my brain was squishy enough that I was still absorbing everything authority figures told me as absolute truth. even if something sounded wrong, everyone else around me says it's ok, so I guess it is?? type shit

thank fuck I had a genderfluid friend in high school. Eren if you're out there I need you to know you probably saved me from becoming an ultra far-right dumbass, you actually got me thinking about other groups of people as actually PEOPLE. we were already friends before they realized they were genderfluid and (very patiently) explained the concept to me. my autistic ass was like "wait people can feel like their gender? It's not just a label that's arbitrarily placed on you and you just accept it?" and THAT took me a hot minute to figure out (tbh I still don't really understand because I've never felt that strong of a connection to my own gender, but I understand enough that it is important to a lot of people and to be respectful and that's what matters most I think. so thank you for that eren)

but still, that was only my first, tiniest baby step out of the hyper-religious and conservative bubble I was raised in. i try not to be too angry at past-me for all the bullshit I believed in, I was very much a product of my environment and I did change once I was exposed to other people and religions, but. man. I was looking though old school assignments a while back (and yes I still have them because I have a weird fear of throwing away certain things like homework/paperwork, regardless of the fact that I'm no longer in school), and WOW that shit was racist as hell. holy fuck. WHY was I taught that the Catholic crusades were a good thing????

Also I was exclusively taught that Capitalism Good and Communism Evil. we read Ayn Rand and were told that the invisible hand was awesome and that all governmental regulations on economics are terrible. also taxes are bad. poor people deserve to live the way they do because they are just Bad With Money and the government shouldn't support them financially because uhhhhh reasons. If I was talking to a Church Person they would follow that up with "the church should be the ones supporting the poor, not the government" and I would be like "so why aren't churches supporting the poor" and they'd be like "well not all churches follow the bible like Us, The True Christians" and then I respond "so who is supporting the poor if the government shouldn't be allowed to and the churches won't?" and they would say "uhhhhh why don't you go hang out with the other teens ahaha"

huge shout out to this one girl I knew in my old church, who managed to see past all the bs and was a very staunch feminist. girl I am SO sorry for all the stupid shit I said to you. I my brain was poisoned from all the indoctrination and steven crowder I was watching on youtube. Society IS fucked and I'm sorry I was so annoying about being like "um well, acktually, statistically—" god I was so fucking stupid. She's still out there being a leftist/feminist icon somewhere cause I heard her family being like "she needs prayers for her to Return To God". although there's also the chance she's a terf now or something, can't discount the fact that she was also raised hyper religious and to hate trans people, that shit sticks in your brain if you don't take steps to address it

ANYWAY all this to say, thank FUCK I escaped that line of thinking. so thankful to all the online communities that opened me up to left leaning politics and supporting LGBTQ+ people, and even more thankful to all my LGBTQ+ friends who have been patient with me (and welcomed me into the community!! shout out to my other aroaces) and answered my questions in good faith over the years, I'm genuinely trying to be better <3 I'm under no illusions that I'm finished learning, I'm sure there's still plenty of shit beliefs hiding somewhere in my psyche that I haven't figured out yet, but I'm staying open to change and to listening to others' experiences and beliefs!!

#long post #vent i guess #lmao remember how conservatives are always like ''the left is indoctrinating children!!1!!'' BRO WHAT DO YOU CALL THIS #indoctrination #thats what you call it #ough

[cozmostreet]

ah just another great day of tearing capitalism down in my school essays

#thank god my teachers are most leftists too #theu chronicles

[boglog]

Soooo I'm gna get mauled here but tumblr's unquestioning praise of Killing Eve as a progressive, prestige show about womanhood and sexuality is... looking like a problem to me.

This is not to shame people who watch the show or even to guilt people out of enjoying it, especially seeing as I've done both, (unabashedly admiring Phoebe Waller Bridge's distinctly quirky humour and Fiona Shaw's deliveries). This is to say, though, that the Killing Eve franchise is something to think more critically about before we give it more praise, more money. We can be critical of media we like, not limit activism to media criticism and not feel that media criticism in some way robs us of something. In my opinion.

[tw for discussions on sex, rape, pedophilia, violence, death, q slur]

[[more]] <---more --!>

Firstly the generation-wide age gap: Eve's original portrayal in the book is 24, exactly two years Villanelle's senior so the only logical excuse for it be added in the adaptation was bc the crew were desperate for big name actors. And while I love Sandra Oh, it was not worth it to create bizarre sexual tension between a forty year old and a twenty year old. This isn't even the first time Jodie Comer was the on-screen love interest to a middle aged person (see also Dr Foster), which is doubly messed up. Ideally replace Oh with an actor Comer's peer or replace Comer w someone Oh's age. It's not that hard.

Second, the age gap is exasperated by Villanelle's "mental age" which is far below twenty. Honestly the fact that both these problems were added into the adaptation by female actor/writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge makes me wna scream. Book!Villanelle was appropriately mature enough—emotionally, psychologically, intellectually—to warrant her high-ranking status as an assassin. Her behaviour, while still devoid of empathy, manages to be a believable portrayal of an upper-class 20 yr o behaving like a thirty year-old. Phoebe Waller-Bridge (and co)'s reinterpretation has Villanelle being a hyperfeminine, materialist, petty teenager that slowly spirals into impulsive outbursts and a scene where she's crawling around a suburb in a onesie. How do we reconcile Villanelle's lust and her love of violence with this childish persona? How is Eve's attraction to her justified? How do ppl think that's hot? It's comedic shock value flirting with homophobia, pedophilia, and the Born Sexy Yesterday trope. Not to mention the violent little girl trope. Despite all of Luke Jennings' flaws, he at least did not do That and my God is the bar low.

Both book and show heavily overplay Villanelle's sexual promiscuity to the point of being voyeuristic. Villanelle's sociopathy is largely an excuse for her violence, sex life, and lack of empathy to be over-the-top, even comedic, especially in the show adaptation. Villanelle's only true human connection is her infatuation with her language teacher, Anna. Which, rather than explore the show's pedophilic undertones, only serves to justify it via backstory.

The show does handle this way worse though: through Anna's dialogue, we're assured that the attraction was mutual ("She seduced me.") and that they've had sex. Which at the time would be when Oxana (Oksana) was in her late teens as she was still a high school student under Anna's tutelage. In the show, Villanelle murders Anna's husband partially out of revenge and possibly bc she took Anna's joke too literally. Book!Villanelle meanwhile castrates Anna's rapist. The former attempts to draw parallels between Eve and Anna, Nico and Anna's husband, treating the story like a melodramatic Shakespearean love triangle while once more reminding us of Villanelle's immature social skills. Which, again, serves to justify age gap lust. Meanwhile, the book attempts to question Villanelle's warped attempts at human connection via vignettes of violent shock value, it's marginally better than the adaptation but in the overall scheme of things I'm not sure Jennings makes enough commentary on violence against women to warrant this.

Finally sexuality in the franchise is a big question mark. Eve and Villanelle's attraction to each other is explained simply by obsession and lust intermingled with violence. Villanelle and Anna's relationship devolves into much the same in the show. Eve and Nico have a relatively stable yet dispassionate relationship meanwhile Bill is implied to be bisexual with an open marriage, though this is never seen and he's murdered shortly after this confession. A Chinese politician has a hospital fetish and, in the book, a right-wing fascist has a kin/kink for Eva Braun which leads us to a highly disturbing transphobic scene involving an exploding dildo. Notably, Villanelle's on/off frenemy romance with Lara (who is... you know... her age) in the book is cut and replaced Nadia, whom she basically kills as soon as possible.

The relationship between Oxana and Lara is explored more in the book (and it's post-season 1 sequel) though ultimately, Lara dies and Villanelle can't feel remorse let alone love. Both book and show have Villanelle hooking up with various people but the book goes into painstaking detail about her sexual promiscuity being motivated by her desire to manipulate peole. Clearly, Jennings shows that Villanelle's sex life includes all genders yet with little regard for her intimacy and level of attraction for anyone. She is "bisexual" (or "lesbian") only insofar as actual physical sex is concerned. Emotionally, she is attracted to no one. Which let me just say is a capital y Yikes.

And the cherry on top of course is that the show is getting accused of queerbating due to the heavy marketing a nd WLW undertones despite Sandra Oh's denial of any romance btwn her and Jodie Comer's character. 🙄

All of these play heavily into existing homophobic stereotypes. The predatory lesbian. The hypersexual bisexual. The manipulative, hedonistic, childish, lustful qu**rs, who, having foresaken family values to screw anything and everything, are not emotionally mature enough to be first class citizens. From watching the show and reading the book, the writers play with these "dark" themes with little introspection to how these relate historically to LGBT politics, how their use of sociopathy and age gaps has political and sociological significance. There's little real deconstruction or reflection on gender, sexuality, violence etc to be considered satirical and these aspects are largely thrown in for entertainment's sake.

Jennings and Waller-Bridge have both, respectively, made attempts at thematic critiques of wealth and gender. Neither of which in my opinion saw its theme through enough to be satirical. There's something to be said about how PWB converted Jennings' anti-materialist subtext into "empowering" aspects of literally weaponised feminity (i.e. all of Villanelle's weapons are high-end women's products) almost as a critique of cultural dismissal of femininity and it's association with materialism. PWB seemed to want to create a comedic, empoweringly gendered, spy movie but this theme of weaponised femininity nose dives at Villanelle's immaturity not to mention its superficiality. Weaponised femininity directed at whom? The show seems much more fascinated with Villanelle herself than the fact that she's employed by The Twelve, which obscures the importance of who Villanelle is killing, who Villanelle exerts weaponised feminity against and why. Not to mention the concept of the feral, empowered or weaponised woman has always been positively attributed to white women, which to make a long story short is not new or progressive or empowering.

I'm not too puritanical to understand the use of taboo themes in satire. This is not satire. KE's appeal seems to be the sexualisation of its deuteragonists at the expense of nuanced conversations about sex, violence, and gender. PWB was way more fixated on comedy than I think she should have been, and both creators rely most on shock value than anything else in how they construct what they believe be the most entertaining and well-structured narrative. There's little evidence that they regard the responsibility they have in portraying bisexual women in positions of power, in age gap relationships or as violent characters in a political espionage thriller. This is not satire this is a very eclectic comedy with clumsy homophobic caricatures at best.

Lastly, there are essays on why leftist fixation on "representation" is a symptom of our digital hyperreality and at best will never truly address material problems faced by real people. Big ass metas on tumblr is not necessarily activism and as I'm sure you know the revolution will not be televised. But should show runners and co be rewarded for so called groundbreaking dark comedy that in fact seems to support harmful stereotypes? And goddamnit am I tired of people unironically romanticising Villanelle and Eve. Thank you for listening to my TEDtalk.

#killing eve #ke #sandra oh #phoebe waller bridge #jodie comer #luke jennings #long post #u #c #onion post

[go-redgirl]

The Senate Votes To Approve The Controversial Spending Caps, Debt Ceiling Bill. The Final Passage Vote Was 67-28. This Bill Now Goes To President Trump to sign.

The Senate votes to approve the controversial spending caps, debt ceiling bill. The final passage vote was 67-28. This bill now goes to President Trump to sign.

_____________________________________________________________

INDIVIDUALS/COMMENTS/POSTS:

Steven Jones ​yep! Torrok 01 is a paid Leftist TROLL! Everyone just iggy it. Bye Troll! no one cares anymore about you internet morons.

Ya'akov benAwake ​Citizenship question on census please .

Phil Mueller ​Vote Trump to protect America from socialism

caro sato ​1000 dollars for everyone is a Ponzi scheme

Destiny Menzies ​Yeah because y'all are lining your pockets with it rather then spending the money on what it was meant for!!! Gggggrrrrr wake up people!!!

Uganda Knuckles Christ ​ANTIFA = terrorisme

greywolfe ​TRUMP 2020👍

Rod Bender ​the census aids gerimandering

HK ​Artemis Fow Thank you i was confused 😸

Drill Bit ​torrok 01​, Yea, That*s why he gives his Salary to Charity.

Star Dust ​What did you do with those taxes before Trump became President ? Talk to Obama about high drug prices.. He did that

Merlin Krisp ​Where’s my royals Roy’s 😂😂 JK

andrew richardson ​Balance the G da..mn budget, get your sh..t together CROOKS

John Ortiz ​War famine diseases natural disasters and civil war is coming soon to America. Christians prepare

text kite ​CREEPER, AW MAN

Joey Big Things Poppin ​The kids shouting for Trump is because their parents are part of the 1%. while these children never worked a day in their life ,college paid for lmfao..

Havefunplayguitar ​Baltimore? Send money I need to pay my beach house mortgage

Why are you so Angry? ​Thats what we pay you clowns to do! Do your jobs, or fear, fear our LIBERTY!

torrok 01 ​If you make $50k a year Trump tax cut gave you $570. If you make $1m it gave you $70k. Is that fair? I would rather $1k a month

Annika_green ​@Joey that’s a broad generalization .

awildbill rightous ​HK ,, may the force be with you!👀👌

Happy Voice ​tax cuts for the rich lead to higher deficits and diminishing returns for the country

Travis Jackson ​Our President Trump is making Me proud.

GDPops ​Government shouldn't spend money they don't have. TRY DOING THAT AT HOME

Fuzz Man ​1 state 1 vote

Rebecca Brown ​Trump 2020!

Nothing ​Vote for democrats if you want your cities filled with 💩💩💩 and 💉💉💉

Edward Wallace ​Government bad answer to all problems. Marianne Williamson 2020

Mo Hamhead ​If it was up to me there would be zero free stuff for lazy unambitious parasites

nighttr ​I have an idea lets give the super wealthy a tax break,

Danny Hemphill ​the people that make a lot of money pay a lot of taxes idiot

Ramiro Garcia ​RINO'S & DEM'S SUCK.

David Hensley ​shut down the government good do it

Merlin Krisp ​True Danny 👍

richardcvlr5 ​there's creepy joe he's moving kinda slow in the men's room.

IR_Dankenstein ​Will there still be gummy bears? If not, it's on like Donkey Kong!

Drill Bit ​46% of people, don*t pay taxes.

Why are you so Angry? ​Many take pride in the fact that their children are made to work in honorable situations, with the word of god in their hearts, integrity in their minds, and a knowing of behavior. Who made you stupid

torrok 01 ​$1000 a month to everyone stimulates growth better than giving money to the rich

Havefunplayguitar ​I was blocked

abc def ​Joey why u watch fox,no tin foil hats here

Friendly Tourist ​I ❤ Cop Splash 💦🐖🐖

Niobokupletskite ​i say having it in your hand now is better then going out and find it

Uganda Knuckles Christ ​trump 2020 Landslide

HoarderCatG ​Nicole junkermann

Rod Bender ​people that make 12k a year and afford 1k per year taxes dumbocrats

awildbill rightous ​Master Jedi Trump leading the Jedi now! 2020 The lightside will defeat the darkside!🤜

Amy Tyler ​🚬🚬🚬🚬🚬🚬🚬🚬

Bob A ​Richard he’s in there with booker

Rebecca Brown ​We The People demand Term Limits for congress and grandfather the limits.

Annika_green ​If there’s a crash & the bankers and corps get bailout, I will be upset!!! I think a check one time to WE THE PEOPLE IS FINE

Fuzz Man ​all the money all the billionaires in the world has would not pay for dems dreams

Dan Williams ​if there is more of something, does it increase in value?

Edward Wallace ​So don't spend pay the dog gone debt. Marianne Williamson 2020

Last Days ​What a fool. OH BUT THEY want to give everybody free S___! to put that debt on the backs of his grands

origine online ​Free education Free medical 5 weeks vacation bigger salary thx , try to be more like my friends in europe

Joey Big Things Poppin ​Never watched fox ever.. Alphabet

Happy Voice ​Raise taxes to reduce the deficit and fulfill budget shortfalls, it's not rocket science. Can't tighten the belt much more.

Stephen Rothwell ​maybe the good senators can donate his salary and half his net worth if he loves the kids so much

L Yachty ​TRUMP 2020

MsMyxlplyx

​CUT SPENDING....START WITH CONGRESS PORKERS Welcome to live chat! Remember to guard your privacy and abide by our community guidelines. LEARN MORE

Leandro Garcia ​leave here , and go to the CSPAN live stream if you like

window789456123 ​trump 2020

Mo Hamhead ​There's too much parasite and not enough host now

Steven Jones ​do not buy the 1% LIE! That is all it is. LIES! Taxes went to everyone almost. THIS IS A LIE!

Why are you so Angry? ​Get a job, vote the Nanny government OUT of OUR lives! Figure it out, grow up. Most of us do, with or without the perpetually pubescent.

Danny Hemphill ​oh yes. free this free that equals loss of freedom

Blue Wizard ​🏆TRUMP 2020🏆

nighttr ​Trump supporters sure could use the free education

Drill Bit ​The rich make their money just like you do. Have you ever been hired by poor person???

torrok 01 ​Google Andrew Yang and check out his policies

Merlin Krisp ​Shut up 🤐

KritterKracker ​It's called stealing from Peter to pay Paul

De Dowd ​this guy is a Phoney Windbag! All talk and no action as long as his palm is greased with cash. Just watched a press conference in Baltimor and the Feds are cracking down on the drug dealers. Finally!

andrew richardson ​torrok 01, you sir, are an idiot, don;t breed

GDPops ​$22,022,376,894,711.12 National Debt

Kirrsty Locklear ​this dude is full of it our money is being stolen and not spent on the issues and foreign countries ain't paying their bills

Havefunplayguitar ​Why am I being censored?

Uganda Knuckles Christ ​Eat bacon our leave USA🥓

Amy Tyler ​This is so interesting! NOT!

Nothing ​no such thing as free you will have uneducated taxpayers paying for top earner college graduate degrees

Niobokupletskite ​tax break for the rich is a disinfection for the rip of businesses that surround us

Adrana West ​VOTE THE RIGHT WAY FOR AMERICA: TRUMP 2020

john doe ​ugh...

ascii ​Has anyone mentioned Israel yet?

AA14/MoshDuck ​Amy Tyler: Then why are you here?

Friendly Tourist ​🌚 PAGAN 🌛

IR_Dankenstein ​Word of the day is: Entitlement

Rod Bender ​"healthcare" should not be confused with "health insurance" DUMBOCRATS

Edward Wallace ​No one should be taxed by Government. Marianne Williamson 2020

grabitz ​slow mode

Bill Bush ​n

Star Dust ​why did you let Bush and Obama have all that money ?

Annika_green ​Stop taking too many meds and eat healthy. Again, PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY

No Regrets ​vote Trump 2020 President Trump 20/20 all the way

Happy Voice ​It's fiscally responsible to raise taxes on everyone, not just the rich, but middle class as well, before we even talk about changing healthcare or education.

Greig Ballantine ​oh my omar

BayouSef1 ​I don't know what he is talking about. It didn't cost me that much for a 12 year old.

Drill Bit ​Mushroom Williamson, Throw back from Woodstock

Steve Landy ​Trump 2020 ok

torrok 01 ​Trump has done nothing for you. Google Andrew Yang

AnabelleLee100 ​CAPS ARE ONLY WAY TO FIX HEALTHCARE COSTS

Joey Big Things Poppin ​Talk deficit yet their spending more than they can print

andrew richardson ​National debt goes up 100 million per hour 24/7

GDPops ​DISGUSTING DEMOCRATS - BOHICA

Spiny Norman ​taxation is theft, crime does not pay

DRUNKEN RAMBLE ​We're all gonna get a Skyscraper on 5th Ave one day. It's gonna be Huge!!!!......lololol

David Hensley ​so who is this guy lobbying for big pharma?

Uganda Knuckles Christ ​Omar antifa leader?

Dawn Gray ​Joe Biden SAID it last night. GOV'T has failed us 40yrs. Joe has BEEN THERE 49 THERE LIES THE PROBLEM. #TermLimits #ForthepeopleBythePeople

Danny Hemphill ​torrok01. your delusional. never gonna happen. IT'S called communism

DFG ​Corey Booker is the whitest person running for president

junior ​Andrew Yang 2020

KritterKracker ​The Superiority of the Republics freedom TRUMPS the inferiority of Congress

Keonte ​Andrew Yang 2020

awildbill rightous ​We clearly need Master Jedi Trump another 4 years ,💯

HK ​Torrok 01 come on man don't be Rude

abc def ​soros antifa and dem leader,fact

Mo Hamhead ​How come the Democrats aren't talking about Mueller any more? It's like he never existed

360Nomad ​I AM THE SENATE

Ganesh Jayatpal ​🚩🚩🚩

American Patriot 1776 ​Andrew Yang 2020 I agree Keonte

Happy Voice ​Taxes are used to support a government that provides necessary public services, such as a police force, public education, and public infrastructure, "taxation is theft" is simply idiotic.

Roger Clinton ​F Dems

Drill Bit ​Spiny Norman​ It pays for these people. They all rich.

SAND BLAST ​DEMOCRATS WERE IS MULLER ?

Jenny Ward ​I I bet Nancy Pelosi cart and baby roaches and lice flee from her arse.

Jim Brauer ​YANG 2020 / FREEDOM DIVIDEND / M4A / Humanity First / Abundance Mindset / $1,000 per mo per adult / Solution to POVERTY = CASH in the hands of Parents and Teachers !!! YANG = YES !!! TRICKLE UP

Annika_green ​@American Patriot 1776?Yang?! You want the taxation called VALUE ADDED TAX???

no halo ​President Trump should read that deal again because democrats and republicans agree to it,there has to be a catch,and you can't trust crooked career politicians!

Why are you so Angry? ​No more alms.

L Yachty ​Majority vote TRUMP obviously

OurSavageGaming ​MAGA 2020 🦅🦅🦅

JESUS CHRIST ​OLD FOLKS WANTING MORE CONTROL PRETTY SOON WE WILL BE WALKING LIKE SOLDIERS

Alan Johnson ​All of them are thieves! If they are talking they are Lying! Drain the swamp!

AnabelleLee100 ​Universal Health Exploitation does not fix Costs. Caps on Medical Charges ONLY Way to Fix Healthcare.

Joey Big Things Poppin ​So Taxation on the American people is a crime

Nothing ​democrats hate all human rights. they are anti free speech, privacy, self defence, due process. I cant think of 1 human right democrats support

Danny Hemphill ​yang is a con man commie

Borng Jak ​ខ្ញុំ

KritterKracker ​Freedom from Congress' Bad Debt

Dawn Gray ​MY Indep VOTE goes to TRUMP2020 #IndependentsForTrump

David Hensley ​and the police force is a arm of corporate America that listens to those who make the laws they are the arm that inforces them

Fake News ​DEBT CEILING MATTERS. PASSING IT IS A GOOD THING

abc def ​deport the whole yang family,enemies of the state

Kodiak ​suddenly Durbin cares about the troops.

_______________________________________________________

OPINION:  Great, great news to hear.  The Senate is doing an outstanding job.  

Lets give them applaus👏

[somuchbetterthanthat]

What do you think the barricade boys would be like today. Like with everything going on.

I was thinking about this, and I thought “oh my god, I have zero idea, that’s why it’s so hard to really write les amis in modern AU” but, I can try to actually give the beginning of an answer (and I’m ready to hear everybody’s opinions on this, really, because I think, depending our own situations, we’re gonna imagine something different for all of them.). This turned extremely long.. sorry.

I think the easiest to pin down are Feuilly and Grantaire, to be honest. 

Grantaire, would be That Guy who never went to vote to an election because “what’s the point? They’re all the same.” Or maybe, the first time he was able to vote was for a presidential, he voted someone, they didn’t pass (or they did and disappointed him) and he was disappointed and he went “whatever, voting is not as cool as I was told it would”. Grantaire won’t say he avoids the news because the bullshit around him actually affects him, and he totally won’t ever admit how much he loves being friends with people who ARE optimist and who sees humanity’s beauty and want to make things better. Grantaire is also the guy who is Totally in Favour of Women’s Rights, Especially the Sexual Liberation Part of It *wink wink*. He… probably had unfortunate sentences like “girls don’t like the nice guys, they just want assholes” (i mean he basically already say unfortunate things like that in canon). Irma probably said once to him “Dude, you are an asshole, and I don’t see women running to your feet, so shut the hell up.” In my opinion, he’s also a white man in his twenties, with all the blind prejudice it can bring. He’s bi, but not that comfortable with it. 

Feuilly, and dear god will I fight anybody on this if I must, is a STUDENT. (Or was a student, depending on which age you give them). Feuilly still struggles with money, because he’d live in fucking Paris, but Feuilly would NOT struggle to study, because FRANCE’S UNIVERSITIES ARE CHEAP (in comparison to some other countries, I mean), and also there are different financial help for people like Feuilly who don’t have the financial means to pay everything from their pockets. It’s still highly probable Feuilly would work anyway, probably in retail or tutoring!, though. Feuilly would spend his time reading and Getting Angry or Passionate about everything that’s going on in the world, that won’t change in our modern world. It’s not about Poland anymore, but oh man Feuilly would rant hours on the situation of Syrians refugees. He probably sat in baffled, horrified silence after Trump’s election. He makes sure people know about what happens in countries the media aren’t interested in. In fact, I could see him write long articles on international problems. 

To be honest, I really don’t know If I can do this for all of les amis (perhaps not as detailed). A lot of this is only my personal opinions on how they might be in modern France. 

In a world where Law school isn’t the only available school for people who don’t want to graduate for School, what do Bossuet and Bahorel do? I can see them, of course, going to university, again and again, but? Would they really not get a diploma…? I mean, okay, poor Bossuet probably doesn’t because of Circumstances, but for Bahorel, I don’t know - he can still have gone to study Law in the first place, find it filled with Terrible Arrogant Competitive People, went “nope” and just. Tried a lot of other things, accidentally majored and got a diploma in at least two of them, and somehow ends up with the most diploma in the group???? Which is baffling because Bahorel would also clearly be a Stylist. He has a page and everything. People don’t get it. I dunno. 

Concerning politics activity, Bahorel would still be the person who Knows Everybody In Paris, which means he goes from group to group - Bahorel probably knows the most radical leftist you can find in Paris, and he has tried to infiltrate an extreme-right meeting once or twice (but that ended up badly). Bahorel probably is the Main Messenger of l’ABC. He’s also probably very good at corrupting students and making them think “maybe being Far Left is actually quite cool”

Jehan probably is vegan? I have no idea what radical art movement is actually scandalizing the Good Society, but he’s probably part of that in some way (with Bahorel). Street art..? I truly have no idea here, so I won’t embarrass myself trying to say something. He still writes a lot of poems, he’s still very erudite, and he’s probably still very rich. He probably gives a lot of money to charity - for women, children, and animals, and he’s an active participant in at least one of them. He’s very big on the “nature doesn’t belong to human and we should be respectful of it” sustainable development movements. 

… Of course les amis would probably all be for sustainable development cause they’re not idiots but. you know.

I can’t see Joly as anything else than a doctor, and I tend to think he’d go for caring for kids in particular. He’s good with them. To be honest, when it comes to politics, Joly and Bossuet are the hardest for me to pin down - I have zero doubt they’re as invested as the others, but I don’t think they’d have as much “clear” role if you know what I mean? Joly probably organizes things for the children at hospital, like having people come here to visit them and make them laugh (Bossuet would probably help with that, and, in fact, probably so would Grantaire), or making sure they can see That Movie that just got out, etc. Joly would also be highly invested in the cause of nurses, which are having a hard time in France right now. Bossuet, drawing from his own experiences, would probably help people in situation of poverty - homeless people, etc. Perhaps he’d help in Le Refuge, which is an association that helps lgbt kids in France who are homeless. 

As for Joly, I can’t see Combeferre as anything else than a doctor, apart if he’s a teacher. Combeferre could totally be a teacher. however, Combeferre would probably be a family doctor, after trying a lot of different specialization. In fact, Combeferre probably went for medicine after trying a bunch of other things, and probably did at least two years of “prépa” (I have zero idea how to explain what it is. Two years of school that prepares you to a test that will allow you to enter prestigious schools all over france?) in like, physics or something because he used to plan to become a scientist. Combeferre is fascinated by technology and how it can help; probably works on making teleportation a thing during lost hours; has contacts all over the scientist words, and spends a lot of time with Jehan speaking about how we could actually already put into place green energy all over the world. Combeferre also tutors kids, he’s involved in feminist groups, and of all his friends, he is the most socialist while everybody else is pretty far into radical left.

Would Courfeyrac be a lawyer? Honestly, I could see it! There is something about Courfeyrac that feels right about this, choosing to defend the innocent and all, he’s a paladin isn’t he - of course he would be a real life lawyer, not a fictional one, and I don’t know exactly which branches of law exists for him in modern-france, but he would be for the one who comes closest to helping either children, group of people being wronged, etc. He probably also gives free lawyer advice for those who don’t even know perhaps they hAVE rights. Courfeyrac would deal with everything social media in the group, and he would still have an uncanny eye to notice people that might fit and belong in their group. He’s charming in a less intense way that Enjolras might be, which makes him an easy “first contact”. 

 As for Enjolras, well, duh, he’d be a printer. He’d be involved in particular with everything that touches the right of workers, what the EU means for France’s companies, and what generally speaking international market do for workers that might not have a chance to fight against the competitive prices of other countries. Chances are, the printshop would also have an editorial branch to it, too. Which brings me to my point-

I think les amis de l’ABC would have a newspaper of sort: they’d started with a blog, and somehow it turned into a very political, humanist newspaper, of which Enjolras would be the principal editor: all of les amis might write articles from times to times - Bahorel, Bossuet, Courfeyrac and Jehan are the one who find other authors to fill in. Grantaire probably writes the horoscope, and it is mocking and still very PoliticalTM, but the tone is humouristic and there are a lot of puns and les amis are much too weak for puns.  

They would also have a branch dedicated to tutoring students of all ages, particularly in “difficult neighborhoods” (which would go hand in hand with Valjean’s center, which is a vague idea of mine that i like). That’s Combeferre and Feuilly’s responsibilities, though Joly chimes in when he can, as well as Courfeyrac and Enjolras. 

They would, obviously, protest - that’s a French Given. They would be, as I said, very active on social media (Courfeyrac on youtube, please and thank you, videos of Enjolras speaking, etc.). A lot of their stance might be on visibility and education: which wouldn’t stop them from direct action when it needs to happen. Les amis de l’ABC would very much be far left, though I don’t think they would like the idea of two big parties anymore, because that’s a feeling that every french people feel nowadays, i think, or so it feels anyway. 

And while I said “he” all the while in this post, because I put them all from canon to modern era, obviously not all of them would be “he”. Les amis de l’ABC would be boys, girls, trans, non-binary, they’d be white or black or brown-skinned, atheists, muslims, catholics, jewish people, etc. Les amis de l’ABC would be very diverse. Also, probably bigger than they were in canon-era - apparently there wasn’t that much of them because of political restrictions of the time-period, but nowadays they could be as much as they can freely, so, there’s that.  Of course, that doesn’t change the idea that Enjolras, Courfeyrac, Combeferre, Feuilly, Bahorel, Jehan, Bossuet, Joly and Grantaire might be the “core” of their association/group. 

I don’t… actually know if that answer your question at all? I hope so?  

#this is a very hard question truly #les amis de l'abc #les amis #Les Misérables #my vague tentative to put les amis into a modern au

[keywestlou]

TRUMP'S SALUTE TO AMERICA SPEECH FAILS

Trump’s Fourth of July speech yesterday a failure. Lies, misrepresentations, innuendos, and pure ordinary bullshit do not make for a patriotic endeavor.

The speech included a defense of “American heroes,” an attack on the Chinese, and an attack on the media. Trump tried to highlight what he views as the shared “great” heritage of Americans.

He called for “unity.” Claimed the country is defeating the “radical left.” He emphasized “protecting and defending” the American way of life.

Always quick to pass the buck, blame another, part of Trump’s China attack included blaming China for coronavirus. In addition, he blamed increased testing for the increased number of confirmed cases.

The speech was not very American. In fact, left me feeling a bit dirty by its end.

A July 4 Presidential Address should leave the citizenry feeling as if they were listening to the song America. Patriotic. The opening stanza a reflection of goodness: “My country, ’tis of thee, / Sweet land of liberty, / Of thee I sing; / Land where my fathers died, / Land of the pilgrims’ pride, / From every mountainside / Let freedom ring!”

An abolitionist version of America was written by A.G. Duncan in 1843. Its second stanza exemplary truth: “My native country, thee, / Where all men are born free, if white’s their skin; / I love thy hills and dales, / Thy mounts and pleasant vales; / But hate thy negro sales, as foulest sin.”

There was a July 4 White House celebration which resulted in the death of a President. President Zachary Taylor in 1850.

I am not sure of the significance, but the Washington Monument was under construction at the time. The celebration might have been held at the construction site rather than the White House.

President Taylor consumed water and raw fruit. Five days later, he died from a gastrointestinal illness that historians believe was cholera. Cholera the result of ingesting infected water and/or fruit.

Trump always needs a particular group of people to vilify. In fact, to ride to election victory.

In 2016, it was immigrants. This year, other Americans.

Trump claims the burning of the American flag before the White House this weekend was organized by radical leftists. Far right leftist. Two groups. The Revolutionary Communist Party and Refuse Fascism.

May be true. I don’t know. What I do know is whether true or not, it is Trump trying to improperly paint all liberals as radical leftists. In this case, communists and perhaps fascists.

A statue of Christopher Columbus was taken down and thrown into Baltimore Harbor saturday night. A statue of Jeffrey Epstein mysteriously appeared outside the Albuquerque City Hall over the weekend. It was removed within 24 hours.

When does this crap stop?

Florida is close to being #1 in coronavirus outbreaks. Presently #2.

The reason Florida’s numbers are increasing dramatically is the actions of our inept Governor De Santis. Trump’s lap dog. He does everything Trump wants or suggests. Ergo, De Santis has been as successful as Trump in fighting the virus.

Yesterday, Florida had 11,458 new coronavirus cases. A new one day high!

Things are moving swiftly. Florida is up to 190,052 confirmed cases, 3,803 which resulted in death.

I want to say something rarely mentioned. The last war the U.S. won was World War II. We have not won any wars in which the U.S. has been engaged since.

The ending of the Vietnam War especially bothered me. The world watched its last days on television.

The last day was April 30, 1975. We all watched the last group of Americans airlifted off the roof of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon. While on the ground, North Vietnamese forces were in effect reaching the gates of the Embassy.

Embarrassing. The most powerful nation on earth being brought to its knees by a tiny Asian country.

The last 18 hours found 81 helicopters landing on the Embassy roof and removing 6,000 civilians  and more than 1,000 Americans to safety.

Baby feeding not a major problem today. A mother can try breast feeding if she so desires. If she cannot produce sufficient milk, the solution is at the super market. Canned formula.

A baby is never left crying from hunger.

Not the way it was in 1855 in Key West.

William Hackley’s wife Matilda had given birth. Breast feeding was the mode of the day. She could not produce enough. The baby would cry half the day and night.

The solution in Hackley’s day was goat milk. Get your own goat and milk it.

By July 3, 1855, Hackley had bought or rented 2 different goats from 2 different sources.The goats were as barren as Matilda. Hackley was desperate. He sent to Havana for a goat. A few days between the order and receiving the goat.

The baby continued crying. William and Matilda continued walking the floor.

On July 4, Matilda’s nipples began suffering from the baby munching so hard on them. Hackley went to South Beach to get some Bay Cider for Matilda’s breasts.

Very sorrowful canned formula was not available back then.

May Johnson’s life remains in good stead in July 1896. The 20 year old Key West school teacher is living life. Respectfully.

July 3, 1896 must have been a day of rest. Very little done. May and her girl friends weighed themselves. May came in at 124 1/2 pounds.

July 4 was another story! Independence Day! America was celebrating. May and Key West were celebrating.

May has a strange relationship. Her “love” is Ernest. He rarely is in Key West. Works in Miami. They correspond. May’s last letter to Ernest 17 pages.

May goes dancing almost every day however at La Brisa. Never dances with one. Dances with many. For hours.

She began July 4 by writing to Ernest.

The Battleship Maine was in harbor. A reception was scheduled on the Maine. May and her friends were invited.

May wrote, “We went all over the ship.”

She claims she made a “dead smash” on Mr. Ward, claiming, “My! He is so handsome.”

I assume a “dead smash” is a kiss.

The Maine visit ended with May and her friends returning to shore by boat. The boys were “much drunk, Ugh!”

She described her Fourth as “gloriously grand, much Fourth, Ah!”

She concluded her diary entry advising “she came to bed at 12 o’clock.” Significant because I do not recall her ever mentioning such a late bed time before.

Key West cancelled its annual White Street Pier fireworks because of the virus. My neighborhood had its own.

Seems like my neighbors in every direction had fireworks. They went off constantly for 3 hours.

I never went out to watch. Too many people on the street.

Today, Sunday. Will be a typical one for me. As it has been for more than 3 months. Staying in to avoid the virus.

I am getting through this time with actually no difficulty. Thank God I enjoy researching and writing. Otherwise, I might be a basket case.

Enjoy your Sunday!

TRUMP’S SALUTE TO AMERICA SPEECH FAILS was originally published on Key West Lou

[kidsviral-blog]

Mich. schools close as teachers protest right-to-work in Lansing, students thrilled

New Post has been published on https://kidsviral.info/mich-schools-close-as-teachers-protest-right-to-work-in-lansing-students-thrilled/

Mich. schools close as teachers protest right-to-work in Lansing, students thrilled

http://twitter.com/#!/JannnaXO/status/278227120835162113

When the morning bell rings tomorrow, the desks at several Michigan schools will be empty. Schools are closing in anticipation of teachers calling in sick in order to protest the state legislature’s recent votes on right-to-work legislation:

UPDATE: a 2nd MI school district forced to close Tuesday so teachers can protest in Lansing. herit.ag/UQd4WP

— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) December 10, 2012

Warren Con & Taylor schools closed tomorrow. Look out, Lansing!

— Cara Hice Lougheed (@WonderTeach) December 10, 2012

Schools in Taylor and Warren face inadequate staffing and a short supply of substitute teachers and therefore will be unable to operate.

I guess a lot of teachers are going to Lansing tomorrow so there won’t be enough teachers at school. So thy might just call school off.😁

— hannah keller. (@hannahkellerr) December 10, 2012

No school because of support of the union vote in lansing tomorrow. Most likely a lack of staff tomorrow. To everyone that is curious.

— Karlee Harding (@HKarlee_) December 10, 2012

@ijgots2luvme We have no school tomorrow, cuz the teachers r going to lansing..

— ☆WeRTheCrazyKids☆ (@_KPIDPTNT_) December 10, 2012

all my teachers are going to lansing so no school for me

— Giovanna (@drinkbl3achplz) December 10, 2012

@nicoleragnoni all of our teachers are going to Lansing to protest or something 😁

— Jacquelyn Barwin (@jackiebarwin) December 10, 2012

For students, the strike means a day off from school, and they couldn’t be happier:

GOD BLESS GOVERNOR SNYDER FOR WANTING TO PASS A DUMB THING AND MAKING TEACHERS HATE HIM SO THEY’RE ALL GOING TO LANSING TOMORROW AND

— Haley Sesi (@haley_sesi) December 10, 2012

No school tomorrow because teachers are protesting against the Right to Work act in Lansing. Thank god!

— Miley Ray Cyrus (@WeRockMiley) December 10, 2012

I FREAKING LOVE MY TEACHERS FOR DECIDING TO PROTEST AT LANSING TOMORROW!! & I love our administration more for deciding to cancel school 💃💃

— Nansi Zakar (@NansiZakar) December 10, 2012

Anyways I don’t have school tomorrow bc all the teachers at my school are going to Lansing to protest hallelujah

— Sam is a Queen (@s4mstagram) December 10, 2012

That awesome moment when they announce that there’s no school tomorrow because all the teachers are goingto Lansing to protest >>>

— Kim (@SowrongitsKIM) December 10, 2012

We Don’t Have School Tomorrow Beacause All The Teachers Going To Lansing To Protest (:

— ❤Ja’niyla❤ (@KissMe_Meak) December 10, 2012

Others not “fortunate” enough to live in Taylor or Warren are hoping that their schools follow suit:

Really hoping all the teachers decide to go protest in Lansing tomorrow so we don’t have to go to school! #notenoughsubs #praying

— Jackson Niemi (@JacksonNiemi) December 10, 2012

Hopefully all the teachers go to Lansing to protest tmrw and we won’t have school #wishfulthinking

— alexis featherston (@_afeather) December 10, 2012

why can’t our teachers at tower go protest in Lansing?

— Serena Voss (@xoxobossyy) December 10, 2012

Our teachers better go protest in Lansing tomorrow. #CancelChippewa

— Taylor (@ItsTheGinge96) December 10, 2012

Praying to god more teachers start going to this shit in lansing so we can have tomorrow off too!

— megan snider (@Megansniderr) December 10, 2012

why cant tower go protest in lansing???

— ♡ heather ♡ (@HeatherYagloski) December 10, 2012

I would love if all the teachers took the day off tomorrow to go to Lansing & we didn’t have school. #wishfulthinking 🙏

— Lindsay Darnell (@lindsay_darnell) December 10, 2012

So jealous the school district my sister teaches in doesn’t have school tomorrow cause all the teachers are going to Lansing to protest

— Carley Born (@Carley_Born) December 10, 2012

Crossing my fingers that the teachers at northern want to go to the ralley in Lansing so that they will cancel school #pray #please 😩

— Page DuBois (@pageduboiss) December 10, 2012

Yo our teachers need to get their asses to Lansing!!

— Garrett(@5_Garrett) December 10, 2012

Lovely. Essentially, striking teachers — adults — are throwing a colossal temper tantrum and teaching children that that sort of behavior is not only acceptable, but productive and desirable. Shameful. In aligning with union thugs and buying into Leftist lies about the right to work, these teachers are willfully hurting the students that they should be protecting.

Always putting kids first. NOT! Warren Con Schools will be closed Tuesday because many staff members going to Lansing for #RTW @micapcon

— Nick Hawatmeh (@NicolaHawatmeh) December 10, 2012

URGENT: Warren, #MI schools closing tomorrow because teachers are going to protest #rtw in Lansing. Children held hostage!

— Shelley M G (@ShelleyMGO) December 10, 2012

Mad, so screw the kids eh? MT @wxyzdetroit: Warren Con. Schools cancel classes as many teachers head to Lansing in protest of Right to Work.

— Patrick (@GunOfBavaria) December 10, 2012

All about the kids? RT @mlive_detroit: Taylor schools cancel school Tuesday b/c teachers protesting #rtw in Lansing. ow.ly/fYYKr

— Eric J Guerin (@EricJGuerin) December 10, 2012

If you call in sick and show up in Lansing Tuesday, are we too believe it’s about the kids?

— Scott Young (@redreddog) December 10, 2012

If you are a teacher you aren’t gaining any support from me by canceling school tomorrow so you can march on Lansing. #stupid

— My Son’s Biggest Fan (@mrssmartypantz) December 10, 2012

Lansing protestors are to be pitied and prayed for. Their universal motto- Students Last! #backchannel #EarlyRisers #tcot

— Bruce Davidson (@defeat_the_left) December 10, 2012

Indeed. If this is the kind of education these teachers have to offer our students, we’re in big trouble.

Read more: http://twitchy.com/2012/12/10/mich-schools-close-as-teachers-protest-right-to-work-in-lansing-students-thrilled/