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YOUR UNALIENABLE RIGHTS

Bill of Rights: https://nccs.net/blogs/americas-founding-documents/bill-of-rights-amendments-1-10 27 Amendments: https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/amendments Civil Rights: https://helpfulprofessor.com/civil-rights-examples/ Constitution Protections: https://www.usconstitution.net/constitutional-protection-of-rights/ Criminal Justice Rights: https://www.thoughtco.com/criminal-justice-and-your-constitutional-rights-4120815 Human Rights: https://thehaguepeace.org/site/what-are-the-30-human-rights/

How To Educate Yourself Against AI Age Verification (KOSA / OSA)

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Social Media, Companies, and Organizations Have the Tools to Protect People... They Just Choose Not To

WARNING!!! The materials listed below contain instances of Sexual abuse, Child sexual abuse, Harassment, Attempted suicide, and Suicide. If any of these topics distress you, please skip reading these articles!!!

History of Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church: https://elephantsinthelivingroom.us/pastoral_docs/History_of_Sexual_Abuse_in_the_Catholic_Church.pdf There's a whole book about it published in 2006, "Sex, Priests and Secret Codes: The Catholic Church's 2,000 Year Paper Trail of Sexual Abuse". It's probably outdated now Activision Blizzard Lawsuit Timeline: The Story So Far (2021): https://www.ign.com/articles/activision-blizzard-lawsuit-timeline-the-story-so-far Unredacted Meta documents reveal 'historical reluctance' to protect children (2024): https://techcrunch.com/2024/01/17/unredacted-meta-documents-reveal-historical-reluctance-to-protect-children-new-mexico-lawsuit/ Burning Sun: the BBC Eye documentary about the women who exposed secret K-pop chat groups (2024): https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/2024/bbc-eye-burning-sun-women-who-exposed-secret-kpop-chatgroups AG Platkin Sue's Messaging App "Discord" for Unlawful Practices That Expose NJ Kids to Child Predators and Violent, Sexual Conent (2025): https://www.njoag.gov/ag-platkin-sues-messaging-app-discord-for-unlawful-practices-that-expose-nj-kids-to-child-predators-and-violent-sexual-content/ In this case, Discord DIDN'T have the resources to protect kids, knew they didn't have the resources to protect kids while advertising they do, and neglected to improve their security for years Roblox Retaliates Against Child Abuse Survivor Who Exposed Platforms Predator Problem (2025): https://www.wral.com/story/roblox-retaliates-against-child-abuse-survivor-who-exposed-platforms-predator-problem/22118981/ (There are also YouTubers like FFI who exposes predators in VR Chat)

How To Educate Yourself Against AI Age Verification (KOSA / OSA)

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DATA BREACHES AND DATA TRACKING

YouTube Hits 25% Surge in Hacking in 2023 (2023): https://www.spikerz.com/blog/youtube-hits-25-surge-in-hacking-in-2023 Google Confirms That All YouTube Accounts Were Vulnerable to Hack (2025): https://tech.co/news/google-confirm-youtube-security-flaw Google confirms data stolen in breach by known hacker group (2025): https://cyberguy.com/security/google-confirms-data-stolen-breach-known-hacker-group/ Twitter Data Breaches: Full Timeline Through 2023 (2023): https://firewalltimes.com/twitter-data-breach-timeline/ What Happened in the X / Twitter Breach? (2025): https://databreach.com/breach/x-twitter-2025 Discord's Massive Data Breach: Over 4 Billion Messages Leaked and Sold in April 2024 (2024): https://www.privacyhawk.com/resources/discords-massive-data-breach-over-4-billion-messages-leaked-and-sold-in Researchers Dump 2 Billion Scraped Discord Messages Online (2025): https://gizmodo.com/researchers-dump-2-billion-scraped-discord-messages-online-2000605471 (I found one, you guys!!!) Four reasons why hack linked to Vinted and Spotify should worry all app users (2025): https://inews.co.uk/news/technology/four-reasons-vinted-spotify-hack-worry-app-users-3473393 What Happened to Spotify on April 16, 2025? (2025): https://inckredible.com/what-happened-to-spotify-on-april-16-2025/ Data breach causes dating app to take down messaging system (2025): https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2025/07/30/tea-dating-app-data-breach/85443741007/ The Tea App Data Breach: What Was Exposed and What We Know About the Class Action Lawsuit (2025): https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/the-tea-app-data-breach-what-was-exposed-and-what-we-know-about-the-class-action-lawsuit/ 5 of the biggest cyber attacks of 2025 (So far) (2025): https://riscitsolutions.com/the-5-biggest-cyberattacks-of-2025-so-far-key-takeaways-for-businesses/ Data breach exposes 3 billion PII records, class action suits filed (2024): https://www.biometricupdate.com/202408/data-breach-exposes-3-billion-pii-records-class-action-suits-filed Hack of Age Verification Company Shows Privacy Danger of Social Media Laws (2024): https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/hack-age-verification-company-shows-privacy-danger-social-media-laws

"YouTube and other companies said that once they verify you're an adult, they'll get rid of your information!"

They are lying! Many online platforms have been exposed for leaking their users' info in the past to third parties (mainly to ad companies). Here are some examples:

Google Says It Doesn't 'Sell' Your Data. Here's How the Company Shares, Monetizes, and Exploits it (2020): https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/03/google-says-it-doesnt-sell-your-data-heres-how-company-shares-monetizes-and Don't Fall Down the Rabbit Hole: The Importance of YouTube Privacy (2022): https://digitaltattoo.ubc.ca/2022/04/01/dont-fall-down-the-rabbit-hole-the-importance-of-youtube-privacy/ Twitter fined $150m in US for selling user's data (2022): https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-61606476 FTC Charges Twitter with Deceptively Using Account Security Data to Sell Targeted Ads (2022): https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/05/ftc-charges-twitter-deceptively-using-account-security-data-sell-targeted-ads Twitter Caught Selling Data to Government Spies While Complaining about Surveillance (2024): https://futurism.com/the-byte/twitter-selling-data-government By government spies, the article means police and the federal government The Dark Side of Spotify Data Collection (2024): https://www.makeuseof.com/spotify-data-collection/ After 620m users had their messages scraped and sold, Discord responds (2024): https://www.eurogamer.net/after-620m-users-had-their-messages-scraped-and-sold-discord-responds Creepy monitoring service sells searchable Discord user data for as little as $5 (2024): https://www.engadget.com/creepy-monitoring-service-sells-searchable-discord-user-data-for-as-little-as-5-170228224.html Discord's AI features violate our privacy, and it's time we push back (2023): https://www.techradar.com/opinion/discords-ai-features-violate-our-privacy-and-its-time-we-pushed-back

How To Educate Yourself Against AI Age Verification (KOSA / OSA)

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HOW TO EDUCATE YOURSELF AGAINST AI AGE VERIFICATION (KOSA / OSA)

In my previous Boycott Survival Kit posts, I said one of the best ways you can combat AI age verification, is to educate yourself and the people around you. For some, you already started researching or know about this, and that is awesome, but this post is for people who probably don't know where to start. So, I put together some stuff to help you get started.

DISCLAIMER!!!

Most of these PDFs and articles I got from using Duck Duck Go and after only seven days of research. If anyone else has any new information or I got something wrong, please share it!

Also, most of what I found out about Carnegie comes from Ali McForever's article, "How Carnegie's Blood Money Bought British Law: The Online Safety Act Exposed". You can read her investigation in full here:

How Carnegie's Blood Money Bought British Law: The Online Safety Act Exposed: https://alimcforever.substack.com/p/how-carnegies-blood-money-bought

And most of what I found out about Yoti and Illuminate Tech comes from Cyber Waffle's videos, "Who is Behind the Online Safety Act?" and "The Truth About The Online Safety Act! (We were all wrong apparently)"

DISCLAIMER OVER!!!

Now, on to my list!!

1. Get familiar with not only the Bill of Rights, but all 27 Amendments, Civil Rights, Constitution Protections, Criminal Justice Rights, and your Human Rights. Research exactly how KOSA, the Screen Act, COPPA 2.0 and other acts like it infringe on your unalienable rights.

Here is a post with links to them

2. Research the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and who profits from it.

My Sources

3. Research which platforms are using or planning to use AI in the future and also research their parent companies and/or share holders. YouTube, Twitter / X, Spotify, Reddit, and Discord are testing / launching AI age verification technology. Other sites like Dailymotion, TikTok, Threads, Instagram, etc. have announced plans to follow suit.

YouTube is owned by Google / Alphabet Inc.

Twitter / X is owned by xAI (and Elon Musk)

Spotify's biggest shareholders and the ones who hold the most voting power is Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon

Reddit is owned by Advance Publications Inc. Their primary shareholders are the Newhouse family who are New York billionaires

Discord is owned by Discord Inc. and that company is a private one with its money relying on investors, but it has been acquired by Microsoft.

4. Share your (fact-checked) findings with the general public. I said this in my previous posts, but it is very crucial. Keeping this only on Tumblr and Reddit will not garner public support quick enough. The general population needs to be aware of what's happening, and most importantly, why they should side against it. We are literally saying "no" to a policy called the Kids Online Safety Act! That will make people turn their heads in confusion and concern. We need to tell them why it's not about helping to protect children, but to monitor internet users to the detriment of our online safety.

Research and share the many times social media, companies, and organizations have been given concrete evidence of predators and dangerous content in their communities and them refusing to do anything about it. Show the many tools these companies have in place and what these tools are supposed to do. Show that these platforms, companies, and organizations already have the power to protect children AND adults, men AND women AND non-binary, straight AND Lgbtq+, but they simply choose not to. We aren't denying that safety on the internet is an issue that needs addressing, but we need to emphasize how an AI that tracks what we look at online to estimates our ages and demands our private info if it suspects we're underage due to the stuff we look at won't stop dangerous content and dangerous people from hurting children (or adults)!

Social Media, Companies, and Organizations Have the Tools to Protect People... They Just Choose Not To

Research and share how these AI systems are inaccurate and not perfect. A lot of anti-AI focus is on how wonky AI art is or on how ChatGPT gives you funny responses, creepy responses, or just flat out gives you false information. But I strongly encourage you to research the development of AI age verification systems and/or find verified posts of users being falsely flagged. Here's a funny one to help you get started:

'I create fake IDs of your MP so you can get round Online Safety Act' (2025): https://metro.co.uk/2025/08/04/i-create-fake-ids-mp-can-get-round-online-safety-act-23822600/ PLEASE DON'T USE THIS SITE OR ANY SITE TO MAKE A FAKE ID. THAT'S FRAUD AND YOU CAN GO TO JAIL!!! Still funny tho.

Research and share the numerous times YouTube, Twitter / X, Discord, Reddit, Spotify (and other platforms like Tea) have suffered data breaches or reports of account takeovers. Show that even if by some miracle these AI age verification systems are state of the art and 100% accurate, hackers can still get a hold of your information.

Data Breaches and Data Tracking

Who should I tell?

Thank you for making it to the end! This will be my last post for while. But, thank you for all the likes and reblogs!

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SOURCES ON WHO PROFITS FROM THE KIDS ONLINE SAFETY ACT

Kids Online Safety Act

Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA): https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/119/s1748/text/is

Carnegie UK's link to the Kids Online Safety Act

How Carnegie's Blood Money Bought British Law: The Online Safety Act Exposed: https://alimcforever.substack.com/p/how-carnegies-blood-money-bought Here is their webpage: https://carnegieuk.org/online-harms-resource-page/ Here is the proposal: https://carnegieuk.org/blog/internet-harm-reduction-a-proposal/ Here is the regulation: https://regulation.org.uk/library/2019-Carnegie-Internet-Harm-Reduction.pdf Here is the statutory duty of care and regulator: https://carnegieuk.org/publication/online-harm-reduction-a-statutory-duty-of-care-and-regulator/ "Who is Behind the Online Safety Act?" by Cyber Waffle (YouTube Video) "The Truth About the Online Safety Act (we were all wrong apparently)" by Cyber Waffle (YouTube Video)

OFCOM's Role in the Kids Online Safety Act

Online safety – what is Ofcom's role, and what does is mean for you?: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/online-safety/illegal-and-harmful-content/online-safety-ofcom-role-and-what-it-means-for-you

William Perrin

William Perrin OBE: https://indigotrust.org.uk/about-us/williamperrin/ William Perrin - Family Online Safety Institute: https://fosi.org/people/william-perrin/

Yoti

Yoti – written evidence (DRG0012): https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/40287/pdf/

FYI, Yoti's co-founder and CEO, Robin Tombs, also co-founded Gamesys and has invested in multiple tech companies like GoBubble which teaches online safety and digital citizenship.

Robin Tombs investment portfolio | PitchBook: https://pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/268720-30#investments GoBubble | Reviews 2025: Features, Price, Alternatives: https://edtechimpact.com/products/gobubble/

Illuminate Tech

Their website: https://www.illuminatetech.co.uk/ "The Truth About the Online Safety Act! (we were all wrong apparently)" by Cyber Waffle (YouTube Video)

Spotify Co-Founder Investments in AI Military Technology

Spotify faces boycott calls over CEO's investment in AI military startup (2025): https://www.middleeasteye.net/trending/spotify-faces-boycott-calls-over-ceos-investment-defence-startup Spotify boycott: Artists leave 'garbage hole' platform after CEO invests in AI weapons (2025): https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2025-07-31/spotifys-ceo-owns-an-ai-weapons-company-some-musicians-say-its-time-to-leave

Verrif

Brief of Amici Curiae (2024): https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/23/23-1122/326510/20240920161551554_23-1122%20Amicus%20Brief.pdf

Microsoft

Microsoft announces $3.3 billion investment in Wisconsin to spur artificial intelligence innovation and economic growth (2024): https://news.microsoft.com/source/2024/05/08/microsoft-announces-3-3-billion-investment-in-wisconsin-to-spur-artificial-intelligence-innovation-and-economic-growth/ Microsoft's $80B Investmemt in AI Data Centers: the Digital Backbone for a Multimodal World (2025): https://www.datacenters.com/news/microsoft-s-80b-investment-in-ai-data-centers-the-digital-backbone-for-a-multimodal-world

Google / Alphabet Inc.

Google's AI age verification is now hitting search (2025): https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/google-s-ai-age-verification-is-now-hitting-search/ar-AA1Kz6CP

xAI

Everything You Need to Know About xAI, the Company Behind Grok (2025): https://builtin.com/artificial-intelligence/what-is-xai

How To Educate Yourself Against AI Age Verification (KOSA / OSA)

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WHO SHOULD I TELL ABOUT THE KIDS ONLINE SAFETY ACT???

First and foremost, contact any senators who you know opposes these laws. The more political officials oppose this, the more likely our governments will repeal it. Please do background checks on them. If people find that the leading senator(s) opposing these laws is a confirmed predator, the media will eat us alive!!!

Contact and tell everyone you know about these new laws. Not just your online friends, but your family, your local businesses, your teacher, your professor, your co-workers at work, your boss. Don't harass them, be polite and tell them exactly what these acts do and how it can affect them. And if they agree that it's bad, great! Tell them to spread the word further!

Offer different alternatives to these laws. Put a parental lock on your child's account, put a parental lock on your child's device, filter sites from your router

Print flyers opposing these laws along with summaries of what's happening, what these laws mean, and why people should oppose it (again, we are saying "no" to something called the Kids Online Safety Act. We are going to need to use every strong argument we have)

Don't have a printer? Create a public presentation!!!If you're favorite content creator is streaming, ask them if they know about the Online Safety Act and AI age verification (remember, it's not just YouTube being regulated, but the entire internet) in their chat. Please don't harass them!!! You will be blocked. Even if they say, "Yeah, I heard about it." Someone in their audience probably didn't

How To Educate Yourself Against AI Age Verification (KOSA / OSA)

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WHO PROFITS FROM KIDS ONLINE SAFETY ACT?

DISCLAIMER!!!

Most of these PDFs and articles I got from using Duck Duck Go and after only seven days of research. If anyone else has any new information or I got something wrong, please share it!

Also, most of what I found out about Carnegie comes from Ali McForever's article, "How Carnegie's Blood Money Bought British Law: The Online Safety Act Exposed". You can read her investigation in full here:

How Carnegie's Blood Money Bought British Law: The Online Safety Act Exposed: https://alimcforever.substack.com/p/how-carnegies-blood-money-bought

And most of what I found out about Yoti and Illuminate Tech comes from Cyber Waffle's videos, "Who is Behind the Online Safety Act?" and "The Truth About The Online Safety Act! (We were all wrong apparently)"

DISCLAIMER OVER!!!

Who profits from the Online Safety Act / Kids Online Safety Act?

Carnegie UK - According to Ali McForever, the Online Safety Act was conceptualized by Carnegie UK. It is basically a trust and charity, and if you don't know what a trust is, it's a legal entity that holds and manages assets for a person or an organization. It's a way for rich people and businesses to avoid paying taxes while also investing money in business and government. Carnegie has a habit of backing research that financially benefits them and in 2019, they funded the research going into the harms of the internet and drafted an outline about the measures that can be taken for online safety. These findings were written by Lorna Woods (college professor) and William Perrin (Carnegie Trustee and former founder of OFCOM).

The research pretty much concludes that due to the dangers the internet poses, a sort of "regulator" guided by the UK government will be required to keep users safe.

OFCOM - William Perrin is a co-author of the entire Internet Harm Reduction research investigation. In it, the proposal cites OFCOM as the favored social media "regulator". William Perrin was also one of OFCOM's original founders… and now he's currently a trustee of Carnegie… But what is OFCOM? It is a government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, internet, telecommunications, and postal services in the UK. It's basically in charge of monitoring and protecting TV broadcasts, the radio, etc. When the Online Safety Act became law, this company became in charge of making "sure regulated services take appropriate steps to protect their users."

William Perrin - You might be curious who William Perrin is specifically. Like I previously mentioned, William Perrin is credited for co-authoring the concept of the Online Safety Act. He was also a founder of OFCOM, Online Harms Network, a Carnegie Trustee, and an Indigo Trustee.

Yoti - This is a tech company that operates on age verification services to estimate identity, age, and sign documents online. If you live in the UK and you gave your selfie or ID, this the company that verified you. The UK government entrusted this company for their verification checks and in section 3 of their written evidence to parliament it cites Carnegie Trust as one of their "constructively critical friends". How sweet…

Now, Cyber Waffle said he has no definitive proof for this claim, so take what I'm about to say next with a HUGE grain of salt, but he believes Carnegie is one of Yoti's major financial backers. However, since it's a trust, it's private and their money won't show up in financial investment trackers like crunchbase.com.

He thinks that if we can prove that Carnegie Trust directly benefits from the Online Safety Act because the company that runs the AI age verifications is invested by them, that might get the legislation repealed.

Right now, Cyber Waffle is working on a video that investigates Yoti and it's involvement in the government.

Illuminate Tech - A research and advisory firm that focuses on Online Safety. George Billinge is a CEO of the company and is all for the Online Safety Act. In is his article, "Everything the right - and the left - are getting wrong about the Online Safety Act", he says "I helped draft Ofcom's regulatory guidance setting out how platforms should comply with the act's requirements on age verification."

Spotify's co-founder - Daniel Ek, Spotify's co-founder has invested €600 million in AI military weapons and became an AI military company's chairman. The company is called Helsing. Both he and Martin Lorentzon have a lot of sway in the Swedish government. He had nothing to do with the drafting or financial backing of the Online Safety Act (at least as far as I can tell), but he does have investments in AI.

In the US, companies like Microsoft, Google / Alphabet Inc., and xAI have a motive to see more AI and have supported this new act.

Veriff - Veriff is another AI age verification company. This company is mentioned in the US Supreme Court documents discussing third party AI age verification options back in September 2024. I don't know if Veriff's technology is what the social media platforms are using/testing right now in the US. Here is the court document in full if you want to read it.

Microsoft - Has invested billions of dollars into AI technology advancement and AI data centers.

Google / Alphabet Inc. - Alphabet Inc. has already invested billions in AI training and innovation. Also, the AI age verification is now being added to your Google search bar. If you're still using Google, be careful what you search! There are reports of AI age verification not only being on social media sites and once any account tied to your Gmail gets flagged, your entire Gmail account gets parental locked. It will be very annoying if you have to make whole new Gmail accounts if you falsely get flagged. In the Online Safety Act policy, it explicitly lists search engines for internet regulation as well.

xAI - xAI is the company that owns Twitter / X and is responsible for Twitter's AI assistant, Grok being added to the site.

Sources On Who Profits From the Kids Online Safety Act

How To Educate Yourself Against AI Age Verification (KOSA / OSA)

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ANTI-SPOTIFY AI BOYCOTT SURVIVAL KIT

Attention everyone!!! While we are all rightfully upset that YouTube is implementing an AI age verification system, it is not the only site doing this. Other sites like Reddit, Twitter / X, Spotify, etc. are doing the same. And as more days pass, more sites that we love using will follow. One day, Tumblr will be forced to use an AI age verification system. That will be a dark day, indeed. But for the sake of this post, I'll be focusing on how you can boycott Spotify until this is over. I am warning you, if you're planning to boycott Spotify or are intrigued by the idea, you'll need to be prepared to be in it for the long haul. We are talking potentially weeks, months, years, and maybe forever. Boycotting does not last one day; it needs to be big enough and last long enough for the companies to realize that they made a mistake. The Civil Rights Bus Boycott didn't last one day; it took a little over a year (381 days) before there was change. If you are ready to boycott AI age-using platforms, and potentially the government, then I put together a list of alternatives you can use while you boycott Spotify.

Before we begin, I'll answer this question: Have any podcast platforms been hit?

Popular podcasting platforms like Buzzsprout, Libsyn, Transistor, Simplecast, Speaker, and Acast have not made any public announcement saying they'll use AI age verification. But keep your eyes peeled for any announcements or suspicious updated terms of service.

Spotify Alternatives

1. Soundiiz (and SSDs or HDDs)

These are not music platforms, but rather a way for you to transfer your playlists from one service to another. Soundiiz does have an AI tool, but that's more geared toward making playlists for you "based on your tastes". I'd still be wary of it, though. If you want something more reliable, I recommend using SSDs or HDDs for transferring your Spotify playlists.

2. MediaMonkey

I'd like to thank @grubcats for bringing this site to my attention! MediaMonkey is a program for Windows and Android where you can store and play your transferred songs and playlists. The reviews I've seen so far are positive.

3. SoundCloud

Users must be 18 years or older in the United States and 16 in the UK to make an account on this site. If you're younger than that (13 is the minimum age), you'll need parental permission. According to the official Account Policy, if they "receive reports" that a user is underage, they'll remove the account and notify the owner. The owner must "provide us evidence that they are over 18 or they have parental permission". This doesn't automatically mean "hand over your ID!", but it's pretty vague and somewhat fishy.

4. Beatsource

This music streaming service is catered to DJ music and DJ artists, and also a way to contact and hire them. From what I can tell, it doesn't use AI age verification. However, I'm getting conflicting results on whether its parent company, Beatport, is using an AI age verification. Its TOS policy doesn't mention it.

5. Pandora

Do you guys remember Pandora? It was essentially Spotify before Spotify was a thing, and it was basically a personalized radio. Pandora analyzes the music you listen to to give you a more personalized playlist using an AI program. It's not using an AI age verification yet, though.

6. CDs???

I know I definitely sound like an old man now, and this only pertains to people who still have playable CDs and a working old CD player lying around. But if you're feeling extra nostalgic? That might be it.

Bonus suggestion - Rhythm Games

Rhythm games, especially the bigger ones, have a whole library of songs you can play. And most have a replay feature, so you can play the music without having to break your fingers doing a hard level. Some of my personal favorite rhythm games off the top of my head are:

Deemo (it's a series)

Muse Dash

Geometry Dash (Geometry Dash Lite is the free version)

Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage

If you guys have any Rhythm Game suggestions, please list them in your reblogs or comments! We need as many good suggestions as possible!

If you are musically adept, you can also make music of your own and share it with others. Heck, write songs protesting AI age verification, KOSA, etc., if you want to, and post them everywhere! It's your voice and your right to use that voice!

The biggest thing in this list and on this post, however, is to get the attention of big creators, politicians, and courts. If you want this boycott to end faster, we need to spread the word around. A one-day protest and a petition against YouTube specifically won't change anything. If you want change, you'll need to message the senators (don't harass or spam them!!!). If you want change, you'll need to share this in non-English speaking spaces; people outside America probably don't know this is happening. If you want change, you'll need to let your friends and family know about this, your local businesses, your teacher, your college professor, your boss, your mayor (don't harass or spam them!!!). If you want change, you'll need to protest and demonstrate publicly and openly. Don't do anything dangerous!!! Educate yourselves and the general public on KOSA, the Screen Act, COPPA 2.0, and similar acts like it, why we oppose it, and why they should oppose it too. Tell them who wants these laws passed, who this benefits from them, and tell them why. Offer easier and safer solutions to KOSA.

"If you oppose the Kids Online Safety Act, you don't want children to be safe!" "No. It's up to the parents to monitor what their children are listening to, not trillion-dollar companies and governments."

"You're just upset you won't be able to listen to NSFW music." "No. We all have varied musical tastes. I should not have to constantly listen to "adult-sounding" songs to avoid Spotify flagging me as a child or worry while I'm listening to "child-sounding" songs for Spotify to flag me as a child."

"What's so bad about giving Spotify or other platforms your ID or selfie?" "If Spotify gets hacked, my ID might get stolen. Have you ever heard of the Tea Incident? The incident happened this year involving an app called Tea. It was supposed to be a women's-only dating app and safe space where women helped give dating advice to other women, including tips on whether a guy was giving red flags, and you needed to give your personal information if you wanted to register. Unfortunately, on July 25th, the app suffered a security breach, which exposed 13,000 selfies and photo identification documents used for account verification. It also exposed over 1.1 million private direct messages between users, with a lot of them leaked all over 4Chan and Twitter.

“But that was Tea. Spotify's security is much better!” "While there hasn't been a massive data breach so far, users have reported unauthorized access and account takeovers. The site also suffered an outage this year, but the company denies any hacking. And with the company happily touting that it's requiring its users to hand over personal information, it only gives hackers a bigger incentive.” Here's an article talking about the outage: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/spotify-down-not-working-downdetector/

"What happens if Spotify's AI believes you're a minor?" "If Spotify's AI system suspects you're under the minimum age of 13, it will deactivate and eventually delete your account."

"If it's not for the children, who does it benefit?" "AI corporations, Online verification companies, and politicians who want the government to monitor internet users.”

"Are there other sites doing this, or just Spotify?" "So far, YouTube, Spotify, Reddit, Twitter / X, and Discord are implementing AI age verification systems on their platforms. Dailymotion, TikTok, BlueSky, LinkedIn, Threads, and Instagram are planning to use AI age verification systems in the near future. If nothing is done about this, more social media companies will be forced to do the same."

I implore all who read this:

Please boycott Spotify for more than a day. Be prepared to boycott for years

Please cancel whatever subscriptions you have

Please boycott other sites that are using AI age verification (be vigilant, do research)

Review-bomb any app that uses or plans to use AI Age verification, as well as their parent companies (for example, the people who hold the most significant ownership over Spotify and have the most voting power are its co-founders, Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon)

Please convince more people to boycott Spotify and other sites

Please spread the word beyond Tumblr and Reddit. Translate your anti-Spotify AI and anti-KOSA posts and post them on non-English speaking sites or forums

Please educate yourself and the people around you. This is not just a violation of our online freedom. This is a violation of our right to privacy and our right to free speech. This is a violation of our First and Ninth Amendment rights. Again, research and tell people about KOSA, the Screen Act, and COPPA 2.0. These are the laws that are making Spotify do this

Please look up and spread awareness about Spotify's and other platforms’ data breaches, not just online, but with the general public as well. Show that these platforms are not ready to house your government information.

And please contact senators you know who oppose these laws and might help repeal them. Don't harass them, please, and do background checks on them. I don't want this movement to go up in flames because a senator who opposes this law is a confirmed predator.

THE FASTER WE END THESE LAWS, THE FASTER WE'LL GET TO USE SPOTIFY AGAIN

[quartzlantern]

ANTI-TWITTER / X AI BOYCOTT SURVIVAL KIT

Attention everyone!!! While we are all rightfully upset that YouTube is implementing an AI age verification system, it is not the only site doing this. Other sites like Reddit, Twitter / X, Spotify, etc. are doing the same. And as more days pass, more sites that we love using will follow. One day, Tumblr will be forced to use an AI age verification system. That will be a dark day, indeed. But for the sake of this post, I'll be focusing on how you can boycott Twitter / X (if you weren't already after Elon Musk bought it) until this is over. I am warning you, if you're planning to boycott Twitter or are intrigued by the idea, you'll need to be prepared to be in it for the long haul. We are talking potentially weeks, months, years, and maybe forever. Boycotting does not last one day; it needs to be big enough and last long enough for the companies to realize that they made a mistake. The Civil Rights Bus Boycott didn't last one day; it took a little over a year (381 days) before there was change. If you are ready to boycott AI age-using platforms, and potentially the government, then I put together a list of alternatives you can use while you boycott Twitter / X.

Twitter / X Alternatives

1. Tumblr

Clipper revolution rise!!!

2. Mastodon

Mastodon is a free and open-source software platform for decentralized social networking with microblogging features similar to Twitter. And recently prohibited AI model training.

3. Diaspora

Diaspora is a privacy-aware, open-sourced, non-profit browser. A few years ago, there was a huge controversy surrounding the site when a basic hacker was able to breach its security. Again, this was a few years ago, and I don't know if it still has the security flaw, but I'd stay away from it for now.

4. Behance

Behance is a social media platform owned by Adobe, catering to artists. There is NSFW on the site, so beware. Adobe itself has AI generation tools, but restricted to adult users.

5. WordPress

While WordPress doesn't have a built-in AI age verification system, I will warn you that WordPress does offer a plugin version. I don't know if this is meant to be a beta test of some sort, but I'd avoid using it and the site if you can.

6. Artstation

Since this site requires users over eighteen to register and use, I think it will take a little longer for the government to justify forcing Artstation to use an AI age verification system. It's not meant for kids, so kids shouldn't be using it. Instead, Artstation relies on moderators to flag content as mature. Two years ago, I heard the site banned AI from its contest, but I don't know about their policy on AI art as a whole, and if they're still allowing it on the platform.

7. Twitch

I know I already have this listed in my YouTube Survival Kit, but quite a few Twitter users are also Twitch users and stream there. I suggest you turn on your notifications if you don't want to miss a stream.

Why aren't other sites on this list?

Social media sites like BlueSky, LinkedIn, Threads, as well as its parent company, Instagram, are exploring AI-powered age verification systems.

The biggest thing in this list and on this post, however, is to get the attention of big creators, politicians, and courts. If you want this boycott to end faster, we need to spread the word around. A one-day protest and a petition against YouTube specifically won't change anything. If you want change, you'll need to message the senators (don't harass or spam them!!!). If you want change, you'll need to share this in non-English speaking spaces; people outside America probably don't know this is happening. If you want change, you'll need to let your friends and family know about this, your local businesses, your teacher, your college professor, your boss, your mayor (don't harass or spam them!!!). If you want change, you'll need to protest and demonstrate publicly and openly. Don't do anything dangerous!!! Educate yourselves and the general public on KOSA, the Screen Act, COPPA 2.0, and similar acts like it, why we oppose it, and why they should oppose it too. Tell them who wants these laws passed, who this benefits from them, and tell them why. Offer easier and safer solutions to KOSA.

"If you oppose the Kids Online Safety Act, you don't want children to be safe!" "No. It's up to the parents to monitor what their children are looking at, not trillion-dollar companies and governments."

"You're just upset you won't be able to look at NSFW content." "No. We all have varied search habits. I should not have to constantly watch an adult-content Twitter user to avoid Twitter flagging me as a child, or worry while I'm watching a family-friendly Twitter user, that Twitter will flag me as a child."

"What's so bad about giving Twitter or other platforms your ID or selfie?" "If Twitter gets hacked, my ID might get stolen. Have you ever heard of the Tea Incident? It happened this year involving an app called Tea. It was supposed to be a women-only safe space dating app where women helped give dating advice to other women, including tips on whether a guy was giving red flags, and you needed to give your personal information if you wanted to register. Unfortunately, on July 25th, the app suffered a security breach, which exposed 13,000 selfies and photo identification documents used for account verification. It also exposed over 1.1 million private direct messages between users, with a lot of them being leaked all over 4Chan and Twitter, funnily enough."

“But that was Tea. Twitter's security is much better!” "In 2018, a bug in Twitter's code exposed user passwords. In 2020, a cache issue potentially exposed email addresses, phone numbers, and credit card details. In January 2023, a database of over 200 million Twitter users was leaked to the public. One of those users happened to be Trump Jr. While many of us might not care about him, this ultimately proves my point. If Twitter is unable to protect the president's son, how do you expect me to believe it'll protect me? Plus, AI is far from perfect. How am I supposed to trust that it's AI won't register me as a child or incorrectly register a child as an adult?” Here's a history of Twitter's data breaches if you were wondering: https://firewalltimes.com/twitter-data-breach-timeline/

"If it's not for the children, who does it benefit?" "AI corporations, Online verification companies, and politicians who want the government to monitor internet users.”

"Are there other sites doing this, or just Twitter?" "So far, YouTube, Spotify, Reddit, Twitter / X, and Discord are implementing AI age verification systems on their platforms. Dailymotion, TikTok, BlueSky, LinkedIn, Threads, and Instagram are planning to use AI age verification systems in the near future. If nothing is done about this, more social media companies will be forced to do the same."

I implore all who read this:

Please boycott Twitter for more than a day. Be prepared to boycott for years

Please cancel whatever subscriptions you have

Please boycott other sites that are using AI age verification (be vigilant, do research)

Review-bomb any app that uses or plans to use AI Age verification, as well as their parent companies (for example, Twitter is owned by xAI, Reddit is owned by Advance Publications, etc.)

Research which parent companies own which platforms, so you know what to avoid. Google Classroom, for example, is also owned by Google (shocker) and is planning to introduce AI age verification as well

Please convince more people to boycott Twitter and other sites

Please spread the word beyond Tumblr and Reddit. Translate your anti-Twitter AI and anti-KOSA posts and post them on non-English speaking sites or forums

Please educate yourself and the people around you. This is not just a violation of our online freedom. This is a violation of our right to privacy and our right to free speech. This is a violation of our First and Ninth Amendment rights. Again, research and tell people about KOSA, the Screen Act, and COPPA 2.0. Elon owns the xAI parent company and has a vested interest in seeing more AI on Twitter. Please look up and spread awareness about xAI. If you ever wondered where Twitter's AI assistant Grok came from, now you know.

Please look up and spread awareness about Twitter and other platforms’ data breaches, not just online, but with the general public as well. Show that these platforms are not ready to house your government information.

And please contact senators you know who oppose these laws and might help repeal them. Don't harass them, please, and do background checks on them. I don't want this movement to go up in flames because a senator who opposes these laws is a confirmed predator.

THE FASTER WE END THESE LAWS, THE FASTER WE'LL GET TO USE TWITTER AGAIN (although, I'm not sure why you'd want to)

[quartzlantern]

ANTI-YOUTUBE AI BOYCOTT SURVIVAL KIT

As the first Boycott Day comes to a close, many users will return to YouTube since this was officially supposed to be a 1-2 day boycott. However, if we want this boycott to work, we'll need to be prepared to stay off YouTube longer.

To quote the OP of the Reddit post, "If you're gonna boycott YouTube read this please",

"The point of this protest is to show we are not satisfied with using their product with this new change, so going crawling back to them after just one day won't hurt their feelings nor their pockets..."

These are harsh words, but they are true words. This boycott needs to last more than a day. We are talking potentially weeks, months, or years. Worst-case scenario, forever.

I understand why people want to return to the site, though. Since YouTube has such a monopoly on content creation, entertainment, and videos, not many people know of other alternatives. So, I put together a list of what you could do while you boycott YouTube in no particular order.

Free YouTube Alternatives

1. Vimeo

Vimeo is an American video hosting, sharing, and services provider with its headquarters based in New York City. As far as I can tell, it does not use AI age verification, but it does provide AI video tools for creators. I recommend watching it closely.

2. Twitch

This might feel like a no-brainer, but many YouTubers are also streamers and are live on Twitch. If I understand correctly, since Twitch is not for children under 13, it might take the government longer to force Twitch to use an AI verification system.

3. PeerTube

PeerTube is a free and open source, decentralized, ActivityPub federated video platform. It can use peer-to-peer technology to reduce the load on individual servers when videos get popular. Creators basically get to host their own servers and post their videos on them. It was made to be an alternative to YouTube, Dailymotion, and Vimeo.

4. Tubi

It's basically a free Netflix. It has a few movies and TV shows from other countries, but they are in their native language, and you'll need subtitles.

Why aren't other apps and/or websites on this list?

After some quick research, I learned that Dailymotion and TikTok are planning to use an AI age verification system as well.

Subscription-based YouTube Alternatives

This assumes you have money to spend.

1. Your favorite content creator's Patreon

Since YouTube has unfairly demonitized its creators many times in the past, some have looked for other ways to continue to make videos and keep a stable income. Many content creators have a Patreon and have their videos available, usually before they release them on YouTube and without YouTube's censorship.

2. Netflix

This is the most popular movie and TV show streaming service, and so far, it's not using AI age verification.

3. Amazon Video

The Amazon store itself has a large incentive to set up an age verification system, so underage kids don't max their parents' credit cards or buy something dangerous like knives. But as far as I'm aware, neither the main site nor Amazon Video is using AI to measure people's age.

4. Nebula

This site was founded by YouTubers as an alternative to YouTube. The website is a subscription-based service with its content leaning more toward the educational side. Its public stance on privacy is that it doesn't use personal user data to let ads target you better, and they don't give user information to third-party AI companies.

5. Max

I know Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon season 2 disappointed us, but please give the streaming service one more chance.

6. Hulu

Like Netflix and Max, Hulu's current age verification method is analyzing the provided birth dates and filters out adult content in Kids Profiles.

The biggest thing in this list and on this post, however, is to get the attention of big creators, politicians, and courts. If you want this boycott to end faster, we need to spread the word around. A one-day protest and a petition against YouTube specifically won't change anything. If you want change, you'll need to message the senators (don't harass or spam them!!!). If you want change, you'll need to share this in non-English speaking spaces; people outside America probably don't know this is happening. If you want change, you'll need to let your friends and family know about this, your local businesses, your teacher, your college professor, your boss, your mayor (don't harass or spam them!!!). If you want change, you'll need to protest and demonstrate publicly and openly. Don't do anything dangerous!!! Educate yourselves and the general public on KOSA, the Screen Act, COPPA 2.0, and similar acts like it, why we oppose it, and why they should oppose it too. Tell them who wants these laws passed, who this benefits from them, and tell them why. Offer easier and safer solutions to KOSA.

"If you oppose the Kids Online Safety Act, you don't want children to be safe!" "No. It's up to the parents to monitor what their children are watching, not trillion-dollar companies and governments."

"You're just upset you won't be able to look at NSFW content." "No. We all have varied watch habits. I should not have to constantly watch adult content to avoid YouTube flagging me as a child or worry while I'm watching cute pet videos for YouTube to flag me as a child."

"What's so bad about giving YouTube or other platforms your ID or selfie?" "If YouTube gets hacked, my ID might get stolen. YouTube has suffered multiple data breaches in the past, and the current AI already falsely flags creators all the time. How am I supposed to trust that its AI selfie system won't register me as a child or incorrectly register a child as an adult?"

"If it's not for the children, who does it benefit?" "AI corporations, Online verification companies, and politicians who want the government to monitor internet users.

"Are there other sites doing this, or just YouTube?" "So far, YouTube, Reddit, Twitter / X, and Discord are implementing AI age verification systems on their platforms. Dailymotion, TikTok, BlueSky, LinkedIn, Threads, and Instagram are planning to use AI age verification systems in the near future. If nothing is done about this, more social media companies will be forced to do the same."

I implore all who read this:

Please boycott YouTube for longer than a day

Please cancel your premium subscriptions

Please boycott other sites that are using AI age verification (be vigilant, do research)

Review-bomb any app that uses or plans to use AI Age verification, as well as their parent companies (for example, YouTube is owned by Google, Dailymotion is owned by Vivendi, and Canal+, etc.)

Please convince more people to boycott YouTube and other sites

Please spread the word beyond Tumblr and Reddit. Translate your anti-YouTube AI and anti-KOSA posts and post them on non-English speaking sites or forums

Please educate yourself and the people around you. This is not just a violation of our online freedom. This is a violation of our right to privacy and our right to free speech. This is a violation of our First and Ninth Amendment rights. Again, research and tell people about KOSA, the Screen Act, and COPPA 2.0. These are the laws that are making YouTube do this

And please contact senators you know who oppose these laws and might help repeal them. Don't harass them, please, and do background checks on them. I don't want this movement to go up in flames because a senator who opposes this law is a confirmed predator.

THE FASTER WE END THESE LAWS, THE FASTER WE'LL GET TO USE YOUTUBE AGAIN

[quartzlantern]

Stop YouTube AI Age Verification!!!

As of today, YouTube has implemented an AI that tracks what you watch to get an estimate of your age, ignoring the age you set when you created your account. If the system believes you're a child or teenager, YouTube will automatically activate the parental control settings on your account. The only way to reverse this is to prove you're an adult by providing YouTube with your government ID or a facial scan. It's not only YouTube; other sites like Spotify and Twitter / X are also using similar systems with Spotify deleting your account if you fail to give them your government ID.

This system claims to protect children from watching NSFW content, but many argue that the responsibility is on the parents, not trillion-dollar companies. YouTube also has YouTube Kids and other systems in place to keep kids from seeing adult content. There is some 18+ videos on the site, but YouTube is generally not the place where many people go to watch adult content anyway. This left many users concluding that this is an attempt to force as many users as possible to give up their personal information under the guise of "child protection". Another question that many have brought up was, "How good is YouTube's security?" If a data breach were to happen, anyone who gave over their IDs could be stolen.

Read this article, "YouTube backlash begins: 'Why is AI combing through every single video I watch?'" for more details on what YouTube users think and their concerns. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/08/50k-youtubers-rage-against-ai-spying-that-could-expose-identities/

While I support the boycotts and petition campaigns against YouTube's invasive practices, this is far from a YouTube issue. The US government is passing laws requiring these companies to implement these age verification systems. If they are successful, more and more sites like Tumblr, for instance, could be facing a similar problem, and our right to online autonomy and privacy will be gone. You can sign other petitions like "Stop Government Internet Censorship and ID Verification" and "Save Our Free and Open Internet: Stop the Dangerous Kids Online Safety Act!" on change.org (and I encourage that you do), but we need to do more if we are to maintain our digital freedom.

Please share this post around, make posts yourselves, review-bomb the YouTube app and any other site that has these systems in effect (Spotify and Twitter), or sign the petition posted above: "YouTube's AI Tracks Everything You Watch — Stop This Now". And I beg of you, do not use YouTube for the time being. If more people see and engage, the more noise we'll make. The more noise we make, the harder it is for the US government to ignore. If "Stop Killing Games" can be successful, who knows? Maybe we'll make a difference too.

[quartzlantern]

What are your opinions on the goddess Dione? I hear some people say that since her name means "she-Zeus" or that she's described as Zeus' female equivalent, her powers must be on par with him. Is that true? I have been trying to do some of my own research, but since she's such an obscure goddess, I couldn't find much.

Well, I haven't really thought about her before, but that the mythic Dione that we do have would be equal to Zeus because her name (presumably) is a female variant of Zeus' is kind of silly.

The mythic Dione is either an Okeanid or a (thirteenth) Titan (Hesiod for the former, the Bibliotheke, at least, for the latter), but parentage wouldn't necessarily say anything about divine power.

And, like.

Would it be interesting if the mythic Dione, the Dione worshipped next to Zeus in Dodona, might be the later survival of Mycenaean Diwia, the (presumably) female half of Diwe (Zeus)? Sure. I think it absolutely would be, simply because the survival in itself, even if reshaped so dramatically, would be interesting! We have only a rather limited number of Mycenaean deities we know did survive from Mycenaean times into Archaic and Classical Greece and beyond. But - that wouldn't say or mean anything in regards to our actual existent Dione's supposed powers.

[quartzlantern]

Do you think Hera was present to officiate Zeus' previous marriages to Metis and Themis since she is the goddess of marriage?

That would be kind of funny if that were true.

I'd say no!

Mostly because as far as I know from what little I've read of real-life ancient Greek weddings, they didn't exactly have someone officiating. And it seems even less likely the gods would have someone officiating, in my opinion. The wedding celebration itself might/would probably be making it official, on top of any potential declaration by the divine wedding couple, maybe?

So, was she present for the potential celebration? Most probably yes. But present to officiate? Don't think so.

[quartzlantern]

Does Poseidon's kingdom have a name like Olympus or Hades? Or is it just called 'the sea/ocean'?

It's just "the ocean" as far as I'm aware. Zeus' kingdom isn't named "Olympos" anyway, since his kingdom/share of the world is the sky. So it doesn't have a specific name any more than Poseidon's does, really! Olympos is a specific location, after all. :)

[quartzlantern]

Which part of Hades do you think Agamemnon (and Clytemnestra) ultimately ended up in? Tartarus, Asphodel, or Elysium?

Sorry if you answered this question before.

I haven't!

Mmm, well. Archaic-wise, Asphodel/the Underworld in general was for everyone when it comes to mortals. The only ones who specifically end up in Tartarus are the ones who either have fought against the gods or have specifically and massively pissed off the gods (like the Titans, Tityos, Tantalos and Sisyphus). You notice in the Odyssey, Agamemnon's just hanging about with the general Achaean heroes that are already dead.

In Works and Days, Hesiod specifically sets aside the Blessed Isles for the heroes of the Trojan War - those who didn't die in it go there without dying at all, even - which is a different tack than the Iliad/Odyssey takes (aside from Menelaos, who specifically gets to go on to a paradisical afterlife without having to die to get there), presumably because of the philosophical? aim of those particular epics.

Later on (only by the philosophers? or was it a general idea? I'm unsure on this), you get the concept of those who have done wrong will be punished, in Tartaros or otherwise, at least for a while. I basically ignore this, especially for myth-era characters, no matter who they are, leaning more on the various archaic concepts.

So "at worst", by the more severe logic of archaic construction of the Underworld, Agamemnon and Klytaimnestra would end up in Asphodel (like basically everyone else). But if we go by Hesiod's logic (which is still archaic, mind), at least Agamemnon would be in the Blessed Isles.

The question is more about Klytaimnestra, and, extended, all the women attached to the heroes/big names of Trojan war or myth era in general. Do their wives and daughters get to come with husbands, brothers, sons? Are they included in the sense of the heroic afterlife or not? If only, at the very simplest level, because it'd be less "like life" if they weren't there, or do they get to come along on their own merits?

You could of course go hard-line and decide "no, they aren't", but I usually default to "yes, they are", in general. because I'm a sap. Especially for the Trojan War-related characters, for several reasons!

[quartzlantern]

Do you have any headcanons of Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, and Hestia's relationship with their mother Rhea?

Not many specific ones, aside from that it's generally okay? Even if it certainly could have been awkward, especially early on.

But, thinking about it, you could do quite a few things with Hera's situation of having Oceanus and Tethys as foster parents. She's the only one of the siblings noted to have such an arrangement, despite not being the youngest (in actuality or after the rearranged "birth order" when the five are regurgitated). Sure, it could mean nothing in terms of Hera's relationship to Rhea, but it could also mean it was, and still is, awkward and contentious.

Like, to be sure, the thing is with this that the Iliad is working from a different theogony than Hesiod's Theogony, something that is usually ignored but paints up a quite different early setting (and in general). You have Zeus and Hera sneaking around having a secret relationship their parents disagree with, you have Aphrodite as Zeus and Dione's daughter. (Incidentally, this is why Zeus could/would have "given her away" to Hephaistos to lead to the issue of him complaining about wanting the price of the bridal gifts back for the tale the bard sings of the golden net incident in the Odyssey. Zeus is Aphrodite's father here and, much like with Persephone, has all the right to marry her off. It becomes more awkward if you go with the more "standard" version of Aphrodite growing from the "foam" from and around Uranus' genitals in the water.)

That aside, I always usually imagine Zeus and Rhea have a rather good relationship. She might not have been able to be there much/at all as he grew up, but he's her baby, the one she managed to save and who then saved her other children (and, if you want to acknowledge that in such a manner, saved her from her husband), and is a good king (he is. I won't even say "fight me" about it because if you disagree, just don't come here to argue about it, I don't care).

Hestia and Rhea's relationship I think is good too? I just don't see much of a reason for it not to be. Like, maybe some of the younger ones (like Poseidon...) might be blaming their mother at least a little for not (being able to) stopping their father from swallowing them, but Hestia knows it was a complete surprise, at least.

I guess, if you take inspiration from the syncretism of Rhea-Cybele and Cybele's ecstatic rites/celebrations, you could use that as a complicating factor. Are her children comfortable with this? Who is, who isn't? Gives a neat connection between Rhea(-Cybele) and her grandson Dionysos' later ecstatic celebrations and the myth where she helps him. Considering he seeks help because Hera inflicted him with madness, I figure that might introduce some tension between mother and daughter even if there wasn't any before that!

Going back to more specific what I headcanon, for Poseidon and Rhea I sort of imagine that, while he loves his mother, he does blame her somewhat, and it all ties into him not trusting (others much in general, women in specific, leaning on his own strength, etc). They don't have a bad relationship, but there are issues underneath that might cause tension even if they never bloom out into anything realized?

Hades and Demeter probably has a generally okay/good relationship with their mother, too? I don't think/remember if I ever decided on anything specific there while writing Six Little Lights (where Rhea's relationship with her children is the whole thing).

[quartzlantern]

Do you think Zeus had any hand in raising his demigod children? Teaching them stuff, giving them gifts, hanging out with them, etc? Or do you think he just left that to their mothers and adoptive fathers and only came into their lives when they became adults?

Mostly, I think it was the latter. (Apollo is, by all accounts, an unusually involved parent when it comes to his mortal children!) Probably because they usually don't need help until then, aside from initial assistance either with the mothers, or aside from them, to make sure they're cared for.

Of course, the absence doesn't mean one can't add in involvement (which I do, though usually more for the divine children), but if you look at the myths, any gods' mortal children are usually left to their own devices as soon as they have been assured caretakers, until they're adults and might go on to Do Stuff (which, only a minority of them did. There is a lot of what we would call demigods that are merely a name for a city/place that they founded, and they didn't have any exciting lives like, say, Theseus and Herakles).

I don't think that necessarily has to do with "lack of care", more an illustration of the divide between mortals and gods, that are yet there even when/if a god goes to have Relations with a mortal woman or a nymph (including nymphs since their children with gods are most usually mortal and thus human/demigods).

Buuut I could see Zeus go down in secret? Just to observe? He does have a number of mortal sons he calls his most favoured, and maybe those would be the ones he might have visited to watch them, at times, as they grew up?