#function is not random

[lesser-mook]

Evolution is just change, change is just part of the design. They're not separate. (The Folly of Accidental Design)

Thats the riddle humans need to figure out and stop trying to make the two separate because tribalism is one helluva drug that man can't seem to quit.

If spontaneous combustion of all that is- is accidental, how does Evolution happen accidentally without design to aplly specific function when according to these same people, all of it is meaningless anyway BECAUSE its an accident.

So if its an accident, why is there specific functions applied to micro-animals we cant even see?? Why do microorganisms serve a purpose, why does anything serve a function if its all an accident anyway?

The lie itself isn't even sustainable. Red flag.

One of the biggest lies is religion using the truth as a weapon and the scientist enclave convincing people that universal specification and design from the solar system operating like an atom, to us designing computers, tv & smart phones like mini-universes in our hands just like God or Quantum Intelligence designed this simulation we live in.

Hell we modeled an actual game after our own simulation (The Sims) where we are god watching our creation.

The Earth being specified for our every need from herbs, spices, livestock, natural painkillers, water. Etc. Even using our corpses as fertilizer.

Some parasites are harmful to humans but help the ecosystem which includes humans.

From a microorganism animal living on your skin, the bacteria in your mouth. To a Seed with glider wings. To a SuperNova. Or Eclipse.

All of that parallel, ALL of that specific function is an accident, all a coincidence. 😂Bold faced lie told by smart people.

And the elites pushing that crap, so many more smart people writing all those folly books & narratives trying to convince you a macrocosm of articulate CONSISTENT effects & functionality NO DIFFERENT from a computer (a creation of man which is not an accident) is somehow a meaningless accident anyway on a macro-cosmic scale.

This isn't even about God, think of it as what it is a Transdimensional "Quantum Intelligence". Really think about how specific everything is from a blade of grass to our own white blood cells.

Think about how eerie it is that most of what we do & create emulates the universe.

Just as the orbiting motion of the solar system emulates the atom, a lot people overlook that.

Evolution Scientists/Theorists (Keyword:THEORY) explaining how things work aren't wrong. The folly is not their findings on how organisms develop the issue is some do not credit it to any design, when by design its too consistent and articulate to be an accident, its not wishful thinking, it's simple logic.

Cause and Effect. You dont get a chemical reaction without a catalyst, it just doesnt happen. Anything less is magic or a very elaborate cope to dance around the fact that some people refuse to admit that something primed this dimension that we perceive to be: Life

So at that point it boils down to hubris, ego. I have zero problem considering that this is all a very very epic nigh impossible happenstance-- I'm not above the possibility that it is an accident. That all of this is a result of matter, particles and gas compiling and colliding into cosmic crescendo.

I can consider that it is exactly that. Thats intellectual honesty.

But what most ppl need to consider is can you get out of your own way and see what is as it is, regardless if the realization intimidates your existential confidence in what you WANT to be true because what most of us want is a sense of control than the truth.

Anything less is Blue Pill baby. Blue pill.

Two lies of the same rusty coin. Misuse the truth or deny it.

One as a means of control.

The other is a desperate attempt to maintain an illusion of control.

Otherwise, a seed with wings, incredible. That's one spectacularly specified/ modified accident.

The code of the universe is what drives function: DNA

If there is functionality thus function was installed, if it's installed, that implies design. Design is not random.

Do what I did: merely consider it.

[siriuslylantsov]

spencer starts trying to tone down his rambling in the workplace in efforts to look more professional

but he can't just not go down a rabbithole when he starts thinking

so he starts sending you voicemails whenever he feels the urge to start chattering

literally 3-5 minutes of a windy did you know ramble

then it's see you tonight :) and he hangs up

“hey, angel.” 

his voice rings out through your phone's speaker. you can almost see him as he speaks–his hand shielding the mic to eliminate any external noise while he frantically explains whatever's on his mind today.

you set your phone up nearby, turning the volume up enough so you can hear it while you go about your menial tasks of brushing your teeth and making the bed.

you opt for his voice instead of your playlist during your commute to work—softer now, a quiet murmur through your headphones. you can hear the hum of the jet, the muffled conversation from his team, followed by a sharp reid that brings his ramblings to a screeching halt, promising to continue in the next one. (he does, picking up exactly where he left off.)

the messages accumulate throughout the day, filling your inbox. you should be more worried about the capacity and the possibility that you might miss messages from other people, but he's the only one who ever leaves you any. who even uses voicemail anymore?

they become your personal podcast, taking up far too much storage on your phone. you’ve saved every single one. they help when he's away and you miss him. you replay them more than you’d like to admit–you’ve nearly got them all memorised.

[rosalilis-randomness]

Meme that my math teacher put on our lessons:

[irenespring]

Today I would like to shout out that one random Twitter person who made up that JD Vance bragged about fucking a couch.

Imagine making a random shitpost and less than two months later your joke is being used by a major party nominee for Vice President on live television at his introduction rally, earning him thunderous applause.

That poster must be having quite the experience.

[rillils]

You know, for so long I tried to pinpoint what exactly about the bank vault scene from CATWS was so exquisitely painful to me (aside from, well, the obvious bits), and I think maybe I finally got it.

This is immediately after the causeway fight and Bucky's interaction with Steve - a brief exchange where, I think, he got to hear Steve's voice for the first time since '45; hell, where somebody called Bucky's real name for the first time since '45, and where Bucky was just forced to really look at Steve, as something other than a target or an obstacle to his mission.

And Bucky hasn't been the same since. Imagine him turning those precious few seconds over and over in his mind on his way back to the bank, trying to make sense of the feelings stirring in his gut.

He can't stop thinking about it. Steve's face is familiar (and when has Bucky been able to associate the word familiar with anything else in the last seventy years?). It brings flashes of long-buried memories back to the surface - perhaps not enough to put the whole story together, but that's not the point here.

The point is, Bucky's gone back to his handler - Pierce. This is the man Bucky defers to, the man he depends on; the man Bucky trusts to tell him who he is, and what his purpose is, and what his life amounts to; the man whose orders Bucky obeys blindly, wordlessly, because Pierce knows best.

Pierce is the brain here; he is authority, he is power, he is cunning: his word is law. He commands Bucky, even guides him in a sense - in a horrible, twisted kind of irony - like a father does his child. He provides a secure fixture in Bucky's existence, a pillar of trust and truth.

Bucky, on the other hand, is only the tool here - the fist of hydra. He doesn't make the big decisions, he doesn't know what's happening in the world out there beyond what Pierce tells him, he doesn't understand the artfulness, the finesse behind these games of power Pierce seems born to play. And how would he, with his scattered brain?

He simply has to trust Pierce's word. Whatever Pierce tells him, that will be the unquestionable truth to him. The Soldier may doubt himself, but never his handler.

AND YET.

And yet right here, right now, Bucky dares to defy this once unbreakable rule.

Bucky brings to Pierce this question that's been churning inside him, that just won't leave him alone. He doesn't really know what it means; all he knows is that it's important, so important that he's willing to risk being sent on a jolly ride on the electroshock chair, just in the attempt to bring this to the light.

And the darndest thing happens, because even when Pierce tries to distract him with his whole "a gift to mankind" spiel, even when he tries to dismiss Bucky's question as to who Steve is, denying any deeper tie to him than "you saw him earlier this week on another assignment", Bucky doesn't believe him.

This poor boy, he's got every reason to doubt himself, every reason to rely on Pierce and take his word at face value (Pierce's word is law, remember?), and yet.

For the first time, Bucky's doubting this man's word, and trusting his own broken mind instead.

Those few seconds where Steve looked at him, gave him a name, saw him in a way nobody has seen him since before he can remember, have sparked something dangerously, unexpectedly powerful within Bucky. Something that runs much, much deeper than any brainwashing; something that gives him the strength and stubborness to question his handler's word, to go so far as to insist (!) that he knew the man he saw on the bridge, to refuse to let this be dismissed, because. Because Bucky knew him. He doesn't know how or why, but he knows this, and he knows that it's important, so important that he needs to hold onto it for as long as he can. This feels personal, intimate - this thing, this truth belongs to him, and he's trying to defend it, even as completely vulnerable and defenseless as he is.

I think that's why it gets to me, because, fuck - even as confused and scared and miserable as he is, even when being compliant and letting this drop would spare him a world of excruciating pain, even when he's been conditioned to think of himself as only a machine and of his handler as his only god, omniscient and omnipotent and infallible, Steve - all of Steve, Steve's place in Bucky's memory, in his heart, in his life - is the only truth Bucky never doubts, and he refuses to deny it. He knows what's coming - Pierce's command to "wipe him" doesn't seem to surprise him at all - but still he refuses to let this go.

Like!!! Fuck!!!!!!!! That's how deeply rooted his love for Steve is!! That's the kind of hold it's got on him!!! That's how much he'd risk for the chance to hold onto the faintest memory of him! Five seconds spent looking in Steve’s eyes and he's ready to overturn and upend and second-guess the very basis of his existence as he knows it. How fucking powerful is that?

I just, I just can't deal with this wtf 😭😭

[thatguywhodoesstuff]

How I Imagine The Smiling Dead Came Together

==================

*Knock-knock*

Mud: (Answers the door) Ken? What’re you doin’ here?

Ken: (Beaten to hell & back and holding a baby Mel) Heya Mud, so, funny story, you’re an uncle now.

Mud: (Cigarette drops out of his mouth) Wha- Where the hell did you get a baby!?

Ken: (Paradise Lost exploding into fire behind him) …Don’t worry about it.

========

Years Later

========

*Knock-knock*

Mud: (Answers the door) Hmm?

Ken: (A newborn Breadhead standing next to him) Heya Mud, so, funny story, you’re an uncle… again.

Breadhead: (Waves at his uncle)

Mud: (Quickly looking between his brother and new nephew) Wha- Stop bringing kids home!!

[cozymochi]

I can't help but imagine Nyoka doing this scene from Mulan

LMAOOOO Love that

Too bad he also wasn’t born with a silly tongue to do that thing with :(

[feralboo-the-weirdo]

You know what is just mind boggling? Neurotypical people exist. Like there are people who can just DO things and not have depression, anxiety (in every form ever), RSD, sensory overloads, and not get overwhelmed. Like there are people who can work for eight hours every day and still do things after. People who can make phone calls with no struggle. Who aren't constantly bombarded by a cacophony of thoughts both good and bad when they do things. Who have anxiety but it isn't crippling. who can spend hours, WEEKS with people and not get tired or fear that everyone there hates you. People who have no idea what Depression or intense trauma feel like. People who hear instructions and do it right first go. People who can follow a conversation without zoning out, or having to mask.

Like. Do neurotypical people actually exist?

Because I can't even imagine what it would be like to be neurotypical. Or mentally healthy. Both sound alien and foren. But like. Obviously they exist because neurodivergent people wouldn't struggle so much if not for how the world was structured for Neurotypical people but I don't know if I've ever met a neurotypical.

idk. food for thought I guess.

[lightningthunderstorm]

No Starscream you and your “combat” lackeys cannot win against an overworked single father of 5 who runs on nothing but espresso and sheer will along with a group of construction workers live off minimal wages while busting their afts off on the road 16hrs a day

[smokey07]

Just have a thought

Agamemnon sucks for a lot of people, I know. He sacrificed a lot of people’s life and even his own family for the war, his own child.

But in context of siblings,

it’s often the older sibling to play the mean one, the evil one and the younger sibling could then be less “stained”. That it’s the older one’s duty to take care of his little brother when their parents were not there. That he needed to put up a brave face so that no one would take his younger sibling lightly.

His wife, his children came later into his life, they were indeed important, but his siblings, they knew each other the moment the younger one’s sign of life bloomed in their mother’s womb. It’s a lifetime bond. They knew each other then when they were nothing, and now when they’re something. And if life went well , they would die roughly the same time too.

Parents would only be there during the first half, and their spouses and children during the second half. But siblings, wouldn’t they live along each other all of their lifetime?

“No cheerios for you, but I would gladly give you my kidney”

Am I saying what he did is right?Hell no. But it’s another way to look at his ruthlessness and protective tendencies for his lil bro.

[thenarwhalgal]

I think the funniest thing about Arcane is that Jayce and Jinx never actually meet.

I mean really think about it… these characters are like two of the most major driving forces in the entire show. These two for some reason keep managing to effect the other throughout the whole show. Like it’s crazy how specifically intwined the two are with both each other and the Arcane.

And yet they literally never meet. Not once. They get close multiple times. Powder is a single door away at the beginning of the show. She’s the reason his workshop blows up and he meets Viktor and almost gets banished. He’s the reason she gets her hands on the crystals that kill her family. She’s the reason he becomes a counselor by stealing the hex crystal and his research (a second time from the same person lmao, which btw allows Caitlyn to free Vi on his faked order), so he tightens security and lockdown the bridge, and Silco pushes Jinx more because of that, so then Jinx bombs the bridge, then that leads directly to Jayce killing a child which leads to peace talks which leads Jayce to ask for Jinx in return for Zaun. Which indirectly leads to Jinx blowing up the counsel. Which leads to Jayce putting Viktor in cryo-stasis and becoming Jesus, and Jinx becoming a revolutionary icon herself, and then a bunch of other stuff happens and oh no! Jayce blows up Viktor and leads to Isha dying and Vander being lost forever and despite Jinx being right there… they still don’t actually meet!

Jinx goes to blow herself up and Jayce goes to start a war and then Ekko saves her last minute because he’s been off in a side quest which… uh… well… that anomaly and the reason Ekko was there was Jayce’s fault wasn’t it? Though it was Ekko’s fault that Powder blew up his apartment in the first place if you don’t count the reason for that as being Jayce shopping illegally for parts in the Undercity to begin with. Anyway Ekko saves Jinx using Jayce’s rune, and Jinx joins that war last minute and they once again end up right next to each other for the third time! For about half a second as he flies past her fighting with her father and Vi. And they still don’t even lock eyes!!!! They don’t see each other! And then they both die immediately after.

So yeah. Jayce and Jinx end up right next to each other three times. Jinx steals from him twice, both times either making her life suck immediately or his life suck immediately. Jayce tries to arrest her, and Jinx blows him up. But they never see each other. They never… not once… meet. They are… in like 10 different ways always two degrees of separation apart.

Which is really funny, because uh… they mirror each other perfectly for their respective cities? Jayce and Jinx are both icons of Zaun and Piltover respectively, both icons because of Hextech. Both of them start out only wanting to help the world, fail at this job repeatedly and in brutal fashion. And then eventually end up becoming revolutionary figureheads.

I guess it just goes to show, the real Jinx was the Jayce’s she stole from along the way.

[elumish]

every day I am appalled by the degree to which people on all sides of the partisan spectrum do not understand the government

[allastoredeer]

Hiii,

I was just wondering what you think the power hierarchy for overlords is, I’ve seen some people say Zestiel’s the strongest overlord and others say it’s Alastor. Tbh a pet peeve of mine is when people write Alastor as way stronger than Vox/ The Vees, personally I see Vox and Alastor as being on the same level, maybe with Alastor being slightly stronger. That’s why they haven’t fought it out, there’s to much for both of them to loose, like when in Stayed Gone Valentino said Alastor ‘Almost’ beat him.

Just wondering what you think xx

I think all the Overlord's are on a similar level to each other, if not in terms of raw power, than in politics. I believe Viv confirmed that Rosie isn't as powerful as the other Overlords, or at least she's the least powerful of them, but I think it's through politics that keeps anyone from messing with her. She's literally running an entire district full of cannibals. If you mess with her, you're going to find out what it's like to have the population in your district gobbled up.

Sure, none of them will permanently die, but if they were in your employ, it's gonna cause a fuckton or problems (and financial losses) when none of your employees make it to work.

With the Vee's, I can see them sharing all the souls they own, or keeping it split evenly between them. Even so, having to keep things fair can put a damper on their individual power since they can't just gather souls en masse without consulting the other two.

If they're sharing souls, however, (and each Overlord in the Council has roughly the same amount of souls - if there's a certain number of souls you have to own to be considered an Overlord) the Vee's being able to tap into power that is 3x stronger than a single Overlord has it's advantages XD I'm sure there are still drawbacks to it, everything has their pros and cons.

I think Zestial is definitely one of the most powerful out of them, considering he's the oldest and thus has had that much longer to collect souls. But we also know that he's currently retired, so I don't think he's really in the game of upping his collection. I think he's content where he is and won't get involved unless absolutely necessary.

Carmilla on the other hand, I can see getting up there with Zestial, not in the amount of souls she owns, but because of her trade. She literally makes weapons using angelic steel (a material that can not only kill sinners - like the other Overlords - but demon royalty like the goetia). As far as we know, Carmilla has a monopoly on the creation and distribution of angelic weapons, which makes a serious threat to a majority of the hierarchy in Hell. I imagine that she is constantly being watched by the other Overlords cuz there's always the possibility she'll turn her weapons on them. Which is also why I think she's so careful about not inviting violence into her home.

Creating weapons with angelic steel gives her a big advantage over everyone else, but it also puts a massive target on her back. I can see the other Overlords creating an alliance to take her out if she ever gave the impression of turning her weapons on them, because in that case, she'd be a threat to all of them. If she were to align herself with certain Overlords, I can also see the rest of the council seeing that as a threat. Which is why I think she stays so neutral. She's friends with Zestial, but Zestial's also retired, so I don't think they consider that much of a threat.

I don't know what Zeezi or fire-guys deal is. We don't know much about them.

But Alastor? I think Alastor is a very special case. He was taking out Overlord's very early after his death, which i imagine is incredibly hard to do. I mean, they're Overlords for a reason, and they were heavy-hitters (according to Mimzy).

Even then, it's not like he killed them and then immediately broadcasted their screams. Mimzy said Overlords started going missing, and then later Alastor broadcasted their screams. So, he didn't only take them out, but he was keeping them somewhere. It could have something to do with the deal he made, but no one else knows about that. To all of them, Alastor was working on his own.

All they know about him is that he took out a LOT of the previous Overlord Council, and then broadcasted their screams. Considering the Overlords were never heard from again afterward, one could assume that he'd killed them.

Did he use angelic weapons to do this? Hell if they know.

How did he manage to grab so many and come out without a scratch? It's a mystery.

Where and how did he broadcast their screams? The question remains unanswered to this day.

Alastor literally came into Hell like an Overlord's worst nightmare. Can you imagine the Council's reactions as, one by one, their members started going missing? They didn't know how, they didn't know who was doing it, and they didn't know if they would be next. Alastor came in like the apex predator to Overlords and did something no one thought was possible almost overnight.

Do you think he showed up to the Overlord Council meetings on his own? Or was he invited? Can you imagine how the other Overlord's must've felt sitting next to Alastor, the person who had killed (as far as they're concerned) other Overlords like them?

In the show, it doesn't look like Alastor has any territory like the others, nor does he really have a trade like everyone else, Carmilla's weapons, Rosie's emporium, the Vee's products and entertainment, (except his radio show, but we don't actually know if he makes money off of that). He's not necessarily active in the city's economy (except providing quality entertainment!), so in all respects, he's kind of just...vibing. He's just there to have a good time.

I also think the reason none of the other Overlord's mess with him is because they don't want him to go back to killing Overlord's. He's unpredictable at best, so there's no telling if he'd decide to up and do it again one day, but he seems content where he is and they'd rather he stayed that way. They're not all buddy-buddy with him (except Rosie, and maybe Zestial), but they won't antagonize him either (except for you, Vox).

Considering in the present they don't treat Alastor like they're afraid of him or nervous about his presence, I think enough time has passed that they've stopped worrying he'd going into another Overlord murder-spree, but the thought lingers from time to time, especially if you were there during his murder-spree. I can't imagine Valentino or Velvette (Velvette especially) giving a lot of credit to Alastor's skill or backstory since they weren't there to experience his broadcasts first hand. Wonder if they're tune would change if they WERE there for it.

I also wonder how many new Overlords popped up after Alastor took out a majority of the others. Who in the Overlord council do we know were there. Zestial, for sure. But Rosie? Zeezie? Fire-guy? Carmilla?

Until we know when they died, we can't be sure, but I do love thinking about it. The aftermath of Alastor's murder-spree had to be something.

[rubenesque-as-fuck]

Turns out getting laid is also great for my executive function. Who knew the boardroom just needed some backshots to get shit done

[anghraine]

Hi! Can you explain what really the power of foresight was with Faramir? I read the books earlier this year and I don't really quite understand it. He could predict the future? Like he would see it in his dreams? But how did he found out from Gollum that he was taking frodo and sam to cirith ungol and that he had committed murder before?

No problem, it's one of my favorite topics!

The concise explanation: I think Faramir's foresight/aftersight in terms of visions is a largely separate "power" from his ability to bring his strength of mind and will to bear on other people and animals, and to resist outside influence. The visions seem more a matter of broad sensitivity, something Faramir doesn't appear to have much if any control over. The second power is (in our terms) essentially a form of direct telepathy, limited in some ways but still very powerful, and I think this second ability is what Faramir is using with Gollum.

The really long version:

In my opinion, Faramir (or Denethor, Aragorn, etc) doesn't necessarily read thoughts like a book, particularly not with a mind as resistant as Gollum's. Faramir describes Gollum's mind in particular as dark and closed, it seems unusually so—

"There are locked doors and closed windows in your mind, and dark rooms behind them," said Faramir.

Still, Gollum is unable to entirely block Faramir's abilities. In LOTR, it does not seem that Gollum can fully block powerful mental abilities such as Faramir's, though his toughness and hostility does limit what Faramir can see. (Unfinished Tales, incidentally, suggests iirc that Denethor's combination of "great mental powers" and his right to use the Anor-stone allowed him to telepathically get the better of Saruman through their palantíri, a similar but greater feat.) I imagine that this is roughly similar to, but scaled down from, Galadriel's telepathic inquiries of even someone as reluctant to have her in his mind as Boromir, given that Faramir is able to still see some things in Gollum's mind, if with more difficulty than usual.

(WRT Boromir ... ngl, if I was the human buffer between Denethor and Faramir, I would also not be thrilled about sudden telepathic intrusions from basically anyone, much less someone I had little reason to trust.)

Disclaimer: a few years after LOTR's publication, Tolkien tried to systematize how this vague mystical telepathy stuff really works. One idea he had among many, iirc, was that no unwilling person's mind could be "read" the ways that Gollum's is throughout LOTR. IMO that can't really be reconciled w/ numerous significant interactions in LOTR where resistance to mental intrusion or domination is clearly variable between individuals and affected by personal qualities like strength of will, basic resilience, the effort put into opposition, supernatural powers, etc. And these attempts at resistance are unsuccessful or only partially successful on many occasions in LOTR (the Mouth of Sauron, for one example, is a Númenórean sorcerer in the book who can't really contend with Aragorn on a telepathic level). So I, personally, tend to avoid using the terminology and rationales from that later systematized explanation when discussing LOTR. And in general, I think Tolkien's later attempts to convert the mystical, mysterious wonder of Middle-earth into something more "hard magic" or even scientific was a failed idea on a par with Teleporno. Others differ!

In any case, when Gollum "unwillingly" looks at Faramir while being questioned, the creepy light drains from his eyes and he shrinks back while Faramir concludes he's being honest on that specific occasion. Gollum experiences physical pain when he does try to lie to Faramir—

"It is called Cirith Ungol." Gollum hissed sharply and began muttering to himself. "Is not that its name?" said Faramir turning to him. "No!" said Gollum, and then he squealed, as if something had stabbed him.

I don't think this is a deliberate punishment from Faramir—that wouldn't be like him at all—and I don't think it's the Ring, but simply a natural consequence of what Faramir is. Later, Gandalf says of Faramir's father:

"He can perceive, if he bends his will thither, much of what is passing in the minds of men ... It is difficult to deceive him, and dangerous to try."

So, IMO, Faramir's quick realization that Gollum is a murderer doesn't come from any vision of the future or past involving Gollum—that is, it's not a deduction from some event he's seen. Faramir does not literally foresee Gollum's trick at Cirith Ungol. His warning would be more specific in that case, I think. What he sees seems to be less detailed but more direct and, well, mystical. Faramir likely doesn't know who exactly Gollum murdered or why or what any of the circumstances were. Rather, Gollum's murderousness and malice are visible conditions of his soul to Faramir's sight. Faramir doesn't foresee the particulars of Gollum's betrayal—but he can see in Gollum's mind that he is keeping something back. Faramir says of Gollum:

"I do not think you are holden to go to Cirith Ungol, of which he has told you less than he knows. That much I perceived clearly in his mind."

Meanwhile, in a letter written shortly before the publication of LOTR, Tolkien said of Faramir's ancestors:

They became thus in appearance, and even in powers of mind, hardly distinguishable from the Elves

So these abilities aren't that strange in that context. Faramir by chance (or "chance") is, like his father, almost purely an ancient Númenórean type despite living millennia after the destruction of Númenor (that destruction is the main reason "Númenóreanness" is fading throughout the age Faramir lives in). Even less ultra-Númenórean members of Denethor's family are still consistently inheriting characteristics from their distant ancestor Elros, Elrond's brother, while Faramir and Denethor independently strike Sam and Pippin as peculiarly akin to Gandalf, a literal Maia like their ancestress Melian:

“Ah well, sir,” said Sam, “you [Faramir] said my master had an elvish air; and that was good and true. But I can say this: you have an air too, sir, that reminds me of, of—well, Gandalf, of wizards.”

He [Denethor] turned his dark eyes on Gandalf, and now Pippin saw a likeness between the two, and he felt the strain between them, almost as if he saw a line of smouldering fire drawn from eye to eye, that might suddenly burst into flame.

Meanwhile, Faramir's mother's family is believed to be part Elvish, a belief immediately confirmed when Legolas meets Faramir's maternal uncle:

At length they came to the Prince Imrahil, and Legolas looked at him and bowed low; for he saw that here indeed was one who had elven-blood in his veins. "Hail, lord!" he [Legolas] said. "It is long since the people of Nimrodel left the woodlands of Lórien, and yet still one may see that not all sailed from Amroth’s haven west over water."

In addition to that, Faramir's men believe he's under some specific personal blessing or charm as well as the Númenórean/Elvish/Maia throwback qualities. It's also mentioned by different groups of soldiers that Faramir can exercise some power of command over animals as well as people. Beregond describes Faramir getting his horse to run towards five Nazgûl in real time:

"They will make the Gate. No! the horses are running mad. Look! the men are thrown; they are running on foot. No, one is still up, but he rides back to the others. That will be the Captain [Faramir]: he can master both beasts and men."

Then, during the later retreat of Faramir's men across the Pelennor:

At last, less than a mile from the City, a more ordered mass of men came into view, marching not running, still holding together. The watchers held their breath. "Faramir must be there," they said. "He can govern man and beast."

Tolkien said of the ancient Númenóreans:

But nearly all women could ride horses, treating them honourably, and housing them more nobly than any other of their domestic animals. The stables of a great man were often as large and as fair to look upon as his own house. Both men and women rode horses for pleasure … and in ceremony of state both men and women of rank, even queens, would ride, on horseback amid their escorts or retinues … The Númenóreans trained their horses to hear and understand calls (by voice or whistling) from great distances; and also, where there was great love between men or women and their favorite steeds, they could (or so it is said in ancient tales) summon them at need by their thought alone. So it was also with their dogs.

Likely the same Númenórean abilities were used for evil by Queen Berúthiel against her cats. In an interview with Daphne Castell, Tolkien said:

She [Berúthiel] was one of these people who loathe cats, but cats will jump on them and follow them about—you know how sometimes they pursue people who hate them? I have a friend like that. I’m afraid she took to torturing them for amusement, but she kept some and used them—trained them to go on evil errands by night, to spy on her enemies or terrify them.

The more formal version of the Berúthiel lore recurs in Unfinished Tales:

She had nine black cats and one white, her slaves, with whom she conversed, or read their memories, setting them to discover all the dark secrets of Gondor, so that she knew those things "that men wish most to keep hidden," setting the white cat to spy upon the black, and tormenting them.

Faramir, by contrast, has a strong aversion to harming/killing animals for any reason other than genuine need, but apparently quite similar basic abilities. He typically uses these abilities to try to compassionately understand other people or gather necessary information, rather than for domination or provoking fear. Even so, Faramir does seem to use his mental powers pretty much all the time with no attempt to conceal what he's doing—he says some pretty outlandish things to Frodo and Sam as if they're very ordinary, but it doesn't seem that most people he knows can do all these things. This stuff is ordinary to him because it flows out of his fundamental being, not because it's common.

It's not clear how much fine control he has, interestingly. This is more headcanon perhaps, but I don't feel like it's completely under his control, even while it's much more controlled than things like Faramir's vision of Boromir's funeral boat, his frequent, repeated dreams of Númenor's destruction, the Ring riddle dream he received multiple times, or even his suspiciously specific "guess" of what passed between Galadriel and Boromir in Lothlórien. Yet his more everyday mental powers do seem to involve some measure of deliberate effort in a lot of the instances we see, given the differing degrees of difficulty and strain we see with the powers he and Denethor exhibit more frequently and consistently.

This is is also interesting wrt Éowyn, because Tolkien describes Faramir's perception of her as "clear sight" (which I suspect is just Tolkien's preferred parlance for "clairvoyance"). Faramir perceives a lot more of what's going on with Éowyn than I think he had materially observable evidence for—but does not see everything that's going on with her by any means. He seems to understand basically everything about her feelings for Aragorn, more than Éowyn herself does, but does not know if she loves him [Faramir].

I'm guessing that it's more difficult to "see" this way when it's directly personal (one of the tragedies of his and Denethor's relationship is that their shared mental powers do not enable either to realize how much they love each other). But it also doesn't seem like he's trying to overcome Éowyn's mental resistance the way he was with Gollum, and possibly Frodo and Sam—he does handle it a bit differently when it's not a matter of critical military urgency. With Éowyn, he sees what his abilities make clear to him, is interested enough to seek out Merry (and also perceive more than Merry says, because Faramir has never been a normal person one day in his life) but doesn't seem to really push either of them.

So I tend to imagine that with someone like Faramir, Denethor, Aragorn etc, we're usually seeing a relatively passive, natural form of low-grade telepathy that simply derives from their fundamental nature and personalities (as we see in Faramir with Éowyn, possibly Faramir with Aragorn). That can be kicked up to more powerful, forceful telepathy via active exertion of the will (as described by Gandalf wrt Denethor's ability to "bend[] his will thither" to see what passes in others' minds, and seen with Faramir vs Gollum, Aragorn vs the Mouth of Sauron, more subtly Faramir vs Denethor). At a high point of strain this can be done very aggressively or defensively (Denethor vs Gandalf, Denethor vs Saruman, Denethor vs Sauron seriously is there a Maia that man won't fight, Faramir vs the Black Breath given his completely unique symptoms that Aragorn attributes to his "staunch will", possibly Aragorn vs the Black Breath in a healing capacity...).

Anyway, I hope these massive walls of text are helpful or interesting! Thanks for the ask :)

[fedoraspooky]

Man I haven't been on instagram in a while but HOLY SHIT the search is even more useless than it was the last time I was there

Like the bar is so low it has started tunneling into the earth at this point, folks! I didn't even think it'd be possible for it to be this bad

Forced AI explanation at top describing thing you are searching for (I ALREADY KNOW WHO FELIX THE CAT IS META SHUT UUUP)

Not only is there no way to search by newest, there isn't even a top posts section now, either. There is no way to sort or filter your search at all aside from the tabs at the top.

There is only Reels. There is no normal image post tab AT ALL save for whatever pops up in For You (and For You is also sprinkled with reels)

For You just shows me the same collection of results over and over so if i wanna find new art of something, I'm SOL.

Hashtags are entirely useless. There is a Tags tab in the search, and clicking on any of the relevant ones just leads you right back to the For You tab on the search!

So riddle me this, Batman- How the heck do you find anything new there for specific things you're interested in?? The only option is "For You"! And no, it does not in fact Have It For Me!!

So what are you supposed to do on there if you actively wanna see something? Just sit around and wait, twiddlin your thumbs and hoping that some kinda rng will hand-deliver a crumb of your favorite thing to you every now and then?

Fuck off with that lol