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"The bottom line isn't how Israel treats queer people... it would still be a country that's committing genocide and killing 100,000 Palestinians... It is important to point out that this [pinkwashing] is also a lie and propaganda, but the bottom line is that it doesn't matter. There is no amount of 'progressivism' a country can achieve that could permit it to commit genocide and mass starvation. [...]

The bottom line of my refusal [to join the Israeli military] is that no aid, no resources, no cooperation should be given to a state that's committing genocide. And of course, that's not to say that before October 7th, Israel was a 'moral' state that was 'suddenly corrupted.' Obviously it's a state that's upholding an apartheid system that's been committing ethnic cleansing for 77 years. But the reality as it exists today makes the question of what is to be done very simple: We need to employ every tool that we have to withhold as much help as we can from [Israel] to continue advancing its goals.

For me, it's withholding myself as a resource for the continuation of genocide. For people living abroad, it's putting pressure on governments, institutions, businesses, to cut all ties and aid with the state of Israel, and to take matters into their own hands and block the flow of weapons into the state of Israel... What I'd encourage everyone to do is to find a group that wants to exert as much pressure as possible, and organize with them, and do it, because that's what needs to be done."

- Yona Roseman, "The Trans Teen Imprisoned for Refusing to Join the IDF" | matt bernstein

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33 Curtain Tassel brushes for Clip Studio Paint for illustrators, manga and comic artists, etc.

Download HERE!

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The full language from BDS is below

The Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), the broadest Palestinian coalition leading the global BDS movement, officially endorses the grassroots, organic campaign to boycott ZARA. We call on people of conscience around the world to boycott ZARA, the flagship brand of the Spanish multinational Inditex, for its deep and growing complicity in Israel’s regime of settler-colonialism, apartheid, and genocide.

At the start of 2025, amid Israel’s ongoing genocidal assault on Palestinians in Gaza, ZARA opened its largest-ever store in Israel - a 4,500 m² flagship in the Big Fashion Glilot complex near Tel Aviv. This expansion deepens ZARA’s economic ties with Israel, where the brand already operates dozens of stores. It comes at a time when Israel’s genocidal regime is carrying out mass killings, forced displacement, and the destruction of Palestinian cultural life with full impunity. Israel’s attack on Gaza has, to date, killed an undercount of over 80,000 Palestinians and has obliterated the Strip’s healthcare and education systems, devastating its social, cultural, and economic fabric, deliberately inflicting conditions of life in Gaza calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians. 

ZARA’s complicity with Israel’s regime of oppression runs deeper still. In October 2022, Joey Schwebel, chair of Trimera Brands, ZARA’s Israeli franchisee, hosted a campaign event at his home for far-right Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Ben-Gvir, who has openly called for the expulsion of Palestinians, the shooting of civilians, and the denial of humanitarian aid to Gaza, was cited in the International Court of Justice’s case, which found that Israel is plausibly committing genocide. Following the event, Ben-Gvir praised ZARA, tweeting: “ZARA, beautiful clothes, beautiful Israelis.” 

In June 2021, ZARA Woman’s then-head designer, Vanessa Perilman, launched a racist tirade against Palestinians in Instagram messages to Palestinian model Qaher Harhash. ZARA responded with a weak public statement distancing itself from the remarks but took no meaningful action or accountability.

In December 2023, ZARA released an offensive ad campaign titled “The Jacket,” depicting mannequins wrapped in white shrouds next to crumbled statues, imagery eerily similar to that of shrouded Palestinian bodies seen daily in Israel’s livestreamed genocide in Gaza. Following international outrage, ZARA removed the ad and issued a hollow “apology,” stating it “regretted the misunderstanding,” while doing nothing to address its deep business ties to Israel’s apartheid regime.

ZARA and Inditex have remained silent on Israel’s destruction of Gaza’s cultural sector and 4,000-year-old cultural heritage. They have said nothing about the killing of Palestinian fashion and textile figures, including Israel’s assassination of renowned designer Walaa al-Afranji, founder of Fashion Room by Walaa, along with her husband in Nuseirat refugee camp in December 2024. At the same time, ZARA chose Israeli model Sun Mizrahi to front its global campaign in 2024, whitewashing Israel’s crimes by glamorizing its image during a genocide. Commenting on ZARA’s campaign, a spokesperson for Mizrahi said that “[she] is happy to be the Israeli face so identified with our country around the world, especially in such times.”

Inditex’s complicity in human rights violations extends beyond Palestine. The company has been linked to abusive labour conditions in Brazil, and to allegations of workers’ rights violations in Myanmar, forcing the company to quit the country after a public pressure campaign. These cases form part of a wider pattern of Inditex’s failure to uphold basic rights across its global supply chains.

​​As highlighted in a legal analysis by Dr. Irene Pietropaoli for SOMO and Al-Haq, executives of corporations worldwide can be held legally accountable for complicity in Israel’s genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza. The report warns: “Companies also risk complicity in the Israeli government’s violations even just by carrying out their business activities in the country and contributing to the wider economy, for example, and paying taxes to a government that is committing genocide. Silent or tacit complicity, as detailed below, is apparent when a company does not directly contribute to or benefit from the genocide but is aware of it and fails to distance itself from it – assuming there is still a close link with the situation, for example a company that carry business in Israel and pay taxes to the Israeli government.” ZARA and Inditex executives must take heed: continued operations and partnerships in apartheid Israel may not only cost its business, they may carry legal consequences.

Inditex owns ZARA, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Oysho, Stradivarius, and ZARA Home. While all operate in apartheid Israel, ZARA is Inditex’s most prominent and strategically marketed brand, and is therefore the primary focus of the strategic BDS boycott campaign.

The BDS movement calls on workers, artists, students, trade unions, human rights defenders, and ethical consumers around the world to boycott ZARA, and pressure Inditex to end its complicity in Israel’s crimes and withdraw its operations from apartheid Israel.

ZARA has chosen to side with genocide. Boycott ZARA until it ends its criminal complicity. 

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Anon visits webpages in 2022

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WALLSCROLL MEGA-SALE!!!

I am moving from California to Sweden and can't bring these big scrolls with me, so everything is on super sale! These scrolls will never be in stock again so this is your last chance to get them! Signatures are free upon request during check out :) Get them before they're gone forever at YuumeiArt.com/shop

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I don't know I'm not done talking about it. It's insane that I can't just uninstall Edge or Copilot. That websites require my phone number to sign up. That people share their contacts to find their friends on social media.

I wouldn't use an adblocker if ads were just banners on the side funding a website I enjoy using and want to support. Ads pop up invasively and fill my whole screen, I misclick and get warped away to another page just for trying to read an article or get a recipe.

Every app shouldn't be like every other app. Instagram didn't need reels and a shop. TikTok doesn't need a store. Instagram doesn't need to be connected to Facebook. I don't want my apps to do everything, I want a hub for a specific thing, and I'll go to that place accordingly.

I love discord, but so much information gets lost to it. I don't want to join to view things. I want to lurk on forums. I want to be a user who can log in and join a conversation by replying to a thread, even if that conversation was two days ago. I know discord has threads, it's not the same. I don't want to have to verify my account with a phone number. I understand safety and digital concerns, but I'm concerned about information like that with leaks everywhere, even with password managers.

I shouldn't have to pay subscriptions to use services and get locked out of old versions. My old disk copy of photoshop should work. I should want to upgrade eventually because I like photoshop and supporting the business. Adobe is a whole other can of worms here.

Streaming is so splintered across everything. Shows release so fast. Things don't get physical releases. I can't stream a movie I own digitally to friends because the share-screen blocks it, even though I own two digital copies, even though I own a physical copy.

I have an iPod, and I had to install a third party OS to easily put my music on it without having to tangle with iTunes. Spotify bricked hardware I purchased because they were unwillingly to upkeep it. They don't pay their artists. iTunes isn't even iTunes anymore and Apple struggles to upkeep it.

My TV shows me ads on the home screen. My dad lost access to eBook he purchased because they were digital and got revoked by the company distributing them. Hitman 1-3 only runs online most of the time. Flash died and is staying alive because people love it and made efforts to keep it up.

I have to click "not now" and can't click "no". I don't just get emails, they want to text me to purchase things online too. My windows start search bar searches online, not just my computer. Everything is blindly called an app now. Everything wants me to upload to the cloud. These are good tools! But why am I forced to use them! Why am I not allowed to own or control them?

No more!!!!! I love my iPod with so much storage and FLAC files. I love having all my fics on my harddrive. I love having USBs and backups. I love running scripts to gut suck stuff out of my Windows computer I don't want that spies on me. I love having forums. I love sending letters. I love neocities and webpages and webrings. I will not be scanning QR codes. Please hand me a physical menu. If I didn't need a smartphone for work I'd get a "dumb" phone so fast. I want things to have buttons. I want to use a mouse. I want replaceable batteries. I want the right to repair. I grew up online and I won't forget how it was!

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How Not to Break Your Sewing Machine

I work in a shop where we repair sewing machines (a LOT of sewing machines), and unsurprisingly we see a lot of the same problems over and over again, so I'm here with some advice on how to keep your machine running longer.

When you break a needle, dig around until you have found the broken piece. If you leave it in there, it can end up in the wrong place at the wrong time and break something vital.

SLOW DOWN. The function of your sewing machine depends on the different moving parts ending up in the right place at the right time. Having to go through a lot of/heavy material slows the needle down, but it doesn't slow down the mechanism underneath the needle plate. If you try to go your usual speed, the needle will arrive too late and collide with something it shouldn't, breaking either the needle or the bobbin case. If the material is especially heavy (say you're sewing several layers of denim, or sewing webbing onto canvas), take your foot off the pedal and turn the machine by hand.

Clean out the bobbin area after each project. Really. Your machine comes with a little brush for this purpose. If it doesn't, a little dollar-store paint brush will work just fine. Remember what I said above about things being in the right place at the right time? Everything needs to be able to move freely for this to work. I know it looks like it's just a little dust and fluff, but it will jam up your machine eventually.

If you can, get your timing adjusted by a professional. I know most people don't have a sewing machine repair shop in their neighbourhood, but if you can do this, it's worth it. If the machine's timing is good, then you're more likely to have a little leeway for heavier fabric or a lintier bobbin case. When the timing is just a bit off, it takes less of an obstacle to put the needle in a place it shouldn't be.

If you can, buy a machine built before 1980. If it's still working 50 years after it was made, it's gonna keep working. Those older machines are made with metal gears and therefore weigh a ton, so they're definitely not a good choice if you don't have a permanent setup for your machine, but it means they basically last forever. Newer machines are made with plastic parts, and no matter what you do, they will break.

Don't buy a Singer Heavy Duty. I'm sure those machines have their benefits, but they are absolutely not heavy duty. We repair more Singer Heavy Dutys than any other single model of sewing machine. If you're already stuck with a Heavy Duty, then follow my advice above even more scrupulously, and start shopping around for a replacement if you can. You can get a used sewing machine of better quality for significantly less than a new Heavy Duty.

To keep things working properly, make sure you're:

threading your machine properly

using the right kind of bobbin

adjusting your tension properly

and using the right kind of needle for the fabric you're sewing!

(These things are unlikely to break your machine, but they will keep it from sewing properly.)

Other than that, get your hands on your machine's manual and read it carefully. If you can, bring your machine in for a cleaning and adjustment now and then. Your machine will need repairs every once in a while: it's a lot of little moving parts! But these are some basic precautions you can take to avoid some common problems.

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Everyone: Please please please don't write your books in Google Docs. Frankly don't use Google Drive for personal stuff.

Their terms of service say they take down stuff like content related to terrorism and trafficking, but this Google Sheet was literally a list of movies I'd watched this year and books I'd read.

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宋朝- 男圆领袍 (Yuanling pao)

Song Dynasty - Men's round-collar robes

The round-collared robe passed down from the Tang Dynasty, into the Five Dynasties, and finally into Song. It was loose-fitting, more often wide-sleeved although form-fitting sleeves have also been discovered. Men wore this for casual daily wear, work wear, and for special occasions.

Much like the round-collar robe of the Tang Dynasty, the round-collar robe of the Song Dynasty can also be separated into two categories based on style:

1) One-piece (通载)

2) Separate pieces, with horizontal fabric at bottom (分载，接底襕)

1) One-piece (通载)

These robes were popular among men of all economic classes during the Song Dynasty. Both sides had slits running up to around the waist area. The "one-piece" in the name refers to the pattern, the robe is made without any horizontal breaks in the fabric from top to bottom.

2) Separate pieces, with horizontal fabric at bottom (分载，接底襕)

This type of robe was mostly used by government officials, or the wealthy class. There were also rules governing who could wear what based on ranking, for example:

level 9 and up could wear green

level 5 and up could wear red

level 3 and up could wear purple

(Chinese government officials were ranked from 1-9, with 1 being the highest level and 9 being the lowest.)

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Deep Blue is 30 years old and was capable of defeating chess grand champions. It could be housed in a single cabinet.

ChatGPT spans untold data centers devouring massive amounts of electricity and it got its ass whipped by an 8 bit gaming console from the 1970s.

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Cosplay Materials/Tools I Wish I’d Known About Forever Ago

Because I’m just getting this shit recently and it’s all amazing.

Hot Knife - Holy fucking shit it heats up and you can slice and dice anything you fucking want pretty much. And you can get a multitool version of it with interchangeable heads so you can fry different patterns on to your work how fuckin neato is that? (Cut away from you. Cut away from you. Cut away from you. Don’t be me. Don’t slice yourself with a sharp and also vERY HOT blade. Don’t do it. CUT AWAY FROM YOU).

Dremel - Hand sanding is for people with strong arms (not me) and the patience of saints (also not me). Sand shit down at the speed of FAST. Multiple tools can be attached to the spinning doo-hickey and you can cut and grind and buffer to your hearts content.

Paperclay - Forget wall spackle for filling cracks in props, just use fucking paperclay. Plaster can suck on an egg, put paperclay over your props and sand that shit down for a smooth as fuck and sturdy finish. Build little embellishments with it. Build pretty much fucking anything with it holy wow its great.

Dentists Tools - Listen you’re gonna need poking tools. You can either look through the junk drawer for a pencil or pen to poke things, or you can spend 5$ and get a set of sharp metal sticks that bend every which way and are amazeballs for getting in to the nooks and crannies of your costume. They’re so useful please get them.

Clear Plastic Storage Tubs - I know it sounds stupid but I used to store all my stuff in old shoe boxes (my mom buys a lot of shoes). Having big tubs you can SEE THROUGH is a fucking blessing. You dont have to go digging, you’ve got a place to put your shit, stuff is moderately more organized (lets face it we’re all going to be huge messes no matter what), and its easier to keep track of all your miscellaneous junk.

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I think a lot about how, if the glorious violent revolution happens, every kid with significant medical needs in a hospital where power gets cut will die.

You can decide you're willing to sacrifice your own life, but you don't get to tell everybody else on the planet that they're acceptable collateral damage.