#11/3/2021

[goatsghost]

robin (2021) #5

something i just realized about the “you were my robin” / “we were the best” little moments between dick and damian is that damian’s already fourteen by this point, it’s been so long since they had their batman-and-robin dynamic, but it was still such an important time in their lives!!! they keep bringing it up and i love it!!

[txxxciii]

Yk NSR games made me kinda hate Liu Kang (it's too complicated to explain).

For me, I prefer his movie versions better (especially Ludi Lin's Liu since he's a whole new take on the character and I dig that)

[gobbluthbutagirl]

packing for my trip this week and i’m like when was the last time i actually went on a vacation that involved a flight…well it was 19 years ago. and 19 years ago i was 7 so i’m sure i was only minimally involved in the packing process

[bepenikki]

some cute gamzee art <33

[xaviergalatis]

Listen/download: Xavier Galatis - XYZ FULL ALBUM by ✿Xavier Galatis

[mirasmirages]

🛡 valnori!!!! go wild with it

🛡 Hurt protecting someone they love

"Absolutely ridiculous!"

Val sat sprawled across an armchair in the living room while Coach Falkner paced the floor muttering.

"There's no way she won't win. It's rigged!"

On the couch next to the chair, Cara lay with her head in Eli's lap. Neither of them looked particularly worried, but Val knew they all felt it.

Tomorrow their dance crew were going to compete in the regional talent show, and they had a good chance of winning. At least, they had had a good chance of winning until it was announced that one of the other contestants was Norina, a young singer whose career was just taking off.

"She doesn't need this. She's already famous! And the prize money will mean nothing to her! Not like it would for us."

Val poked Cara with her foot. They were all exhausted after today's rehearsal, and Val wanted to go to bed. Coach could go on for hours if no one stopped him, but Val did not want to be the one to do it. Cara gave her a look, and the two had a short but fierce conversation solely through their eyebrows.

Defeated, Val sighed. "So, what are we going to do about it? We can't exactly stop her from competing, so what, do we drop out? Or do we go for second place?"

It would suck to only get second, but they had worked for this for so long, dropping out would be even worse.

Coach Falkner stopped talking and narrowed his eyes at her, and Val braced for getting chewed out.

"That," he said, "is exactly what we'll do."

Wait... what?

"We're... going for second?"

"We're going to stop her from competing," Coach Falkner said. "Since you volunteered, Val, you will find her tomorrow before the show and convince her."

"Wait, no-" Val protested, straightening up. There was no way that was going to work, she was a dancer, not a talker!

"Now that's settled, off to bed with you." Coach made a shooing motion towards them. "Cara, stay for a minute, I need a word."

*

Sneaking into Norina's dressing room was easier than Val had thought it would be. She had imagined sneaking past guards, or picking locks, but when she got there, she could just walk straight in.

The fact that Norina got a dressing room all to herself was ridiculous. The rest of them had to make do with sharing the general backstage area, working around each other while warming up, but apparently that wasn't good enough for the little celebrity. No, she had to have her own mirrors, and her own clothing rack, and her own snack table. Val snatched a bag of chips and sat down in the makeup chair to wait for Norina to come to the room.

She finished the chips before anyone came, and then walked a round of the room, stroking her fingers over the ridiculous costume Norina had brought. Norina was known for her opulent outfits, shiny long dresses that covered the stage and hair that was probably in fashion hundreds of years ago. The dress she had brought today was blue and green and had a kind of crunchy sheen to it.

Maybe Val had come too early. She had been early on purpose, since she hadn't wanted people to be here already, but this waiting was incredibly frustrating. She just needed a minute alone with Norina so she could tell her to drop out, and then she could go back to her crew.

She dragged the makeup chair over to the snack table and resigned herself to wait until someone came. Coach Falkner was going to be pissed if she didn't succeed in her mission, and while she had her doubts about how possible it was, she had to at least try.

The door opened half-way through her third tiny bag of chips.

Val had seen pictures and a few film clips of Norina on stage, done up in her costumes and makeup, but right now, she was wearing her hair in rollers and had barely any makeup on. She had a cup from Val's favorite milkshake place, which she dropped in the trash can the moment the door closed behind her.

"Hey!"

Norina startled as her eyes flew to Val.

"Who are you?"

"Did you just throw out a full milkshake? Those are expensive!"

"Did you touch anything?" Norina ran to the costume rack and ran her hands down the dress, probably looking for some kind of sabotage she wouldn't find, because Val was using more honest tactics than that. "No one should be in this room!"

Val rolled her eyes. "Calm down, princess, I didn't mess with your stuff. Seriously, though, why would you buy a milkshake just to throw it out? Was it for a picture? Did they sponsor you?" Val got up and picked the milkshake out of the trash to see if it could be salvaged. Cara would laugh at her for eating out of the trash, but come on. It was from Rainbow House!

"It was a gift," Norina said, grimacing as she watched Val. "It's very sweet of them, but I can't have dairy before a performance."

Val gave the milkshake a lick and frowned. It was almost bitter. "What flavor is this?"

"Chocolate, I assumed."

"That's boring. You should try their butter-rum milkshake, it's way better than this."

"I ... okay? Who are you, again?"

"I'm Val." Val stood and did a turn, letting Norina see the back of her sweatshirt. "I'm on The Kestrel Crew. We were gonna win this show, until you showed up."

"Okay ..." Norina said, looking unsure. "What are you doing here? No one were supposed to be in here."

"They should lock the doors if they didn't want people to come in," Val shrugged, and put her hands in her pockets, pretending not to be as awkward as she felt. "Anyway, I'm here to tell you to drop out of the show. It's not fair that you show up with your fame and your money and steal the show."

"That's not fair," Norina said. "I have just as much right to be here as anyone else."

"Do you, though? You don't even live here. You have a record deal and modeling jobs. I saw you in a hair dye ad on TV. People know who you are, and when you win, it won't be because you're good, it'll be because you're famous."

Val had expected Norina to be angry, or at least arrogant enough to not care, but instead, she looked almost hurt.

"I think you should leave," she said. "I need to do my makeup. Good luck on your performance."

"Yeah, whatever. We both know who will win," Val muttered and left.

*

The talent show had started, and Val was backstage, stretching as she waited for it to be their turn. On the other side of the room, Norina looked like a peacock in her shiny green and blue costume.

Coach Falkner had been surprisingly unbothered when Val told him she failed to get Norina to drop out, and Val wasn't sure if that was because he realized she had no chance to begin with, or because he was saving his fury for later. Probably the latter.

Cara dropped down next to Val and started working on her side splits, as if they weren't already perfect.

"Show-off," Val whispered.

Cara laughed and bent her foot up behind her head. 

"I can't believe she's still here," Cara whispered, glancing over at Norina. "She must be feeling terrible about now."

Val looked over to where Norina looked just fine. Nervous, maybe? Or guilty, as she should. But Val hadn't been that mean. "Why would she?"

"I gave her a milkshake on the way in," Cara explained. "Pretended to be a fan fawning over her. It was full of laxatives, and they should be kicking in at any moment now."

So that was why the milkshake had tasted funny. Val was feeling pretty miffed about not being let in on the plan. "I thought I was supposed to make her drop out."

Cara rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right, because we all thought that was gonna work. You were the distraction. We had to do something that would actually work."

"Well, she didn't drink it, so I guess we both failed."

"What do you mean she didn't drink it?" Cara actually looked kind of shocked.

"She doesn't drink dairy before she's gonna sing. Maybe she's lactose intolerant."

"Shit."

Cara got up to talk to Coach, and okay, yeah, that was the fury Val had expected. He wasn't shouting, not with so many people around, but Val could feel it radiating off him all the way to where she was sitting.

"What did he say?" Val asked when Cara returned, looking much less confident than she had been just a minute before.

Cara shrugged. "Something about a plan B?"

"What's plan B?"

"I don't know. I thought this was plan B."

When it was Norina's turn to perform, Val went to watch from the side of the stage. A hush went over the room as the lights adjusted, making Norina's dress sparkle like the ocean at night, and she began so sing.

"Tanto tempo fa, un uccello fatale di nome Chromaggia." 

She was just standing there at the front of the stage, and yet everyone in the audience was paying attention. Even backstage, a lot of the performers had come to listen. It wasn't the style of music Val would choose to listen to, but even she could admit, Norina's voice was impressive.

"Incrociò in volo la freccia di un arciere lungo le coste di lava."

"Crap." Cara came up beside Val. "She's good."

"Yeah."

"I was hoping she wouldn't sound like that live. There's no way she won't win."

"Yeah."

"Coach will be pissed."

"Yeah." Val turned to see what Coach Falkner thought of Norina's performance, but couldn't find him right away. Looking around, she found him by the rigging system, doing something Val couldn't see. She frowned, and gasped when she realized. Coach Falkner was loosening one of the ropes. Val followed the rope with her eyes. It led to the lighting rig right above Norina's head.

The lights moved, and Val had no time to think. She ran out on stage and pushed Norina to the ground, landing on top of her. A second later, she heard the rig fall to the ground.

There were screams, gasps, people rushing to the stage. Val paid them no mind. She grabbed Norina's thighs through her dress and followed her legs down to her feet.

"Oh, good," she said, feeling weirdly light-headed. "You're okay."

"Val, you--" Norina's voice was shaky, her eyes wide with shock. "Your legs--"

Val frowned in confusion, and turned to see what Norina was staring at. 

"Oh, shit." Both her feet were trapped under the rig, and there was blood. She hadn't felt it right away, too worried about Norina, but now, the pain crashed over her in one big wave. Like seasickness. She turned back and planted her face against Norina's stomach. "I don't feel good," she said, and passed out.

*

When Val was eight, she started taking dance lessons at Coach Falkner's studio, along with a few other kids at the orphanage she lived at. It was clear from the start that she had talent, but her attendance was spotty, since the orphanage workers didn't see it as a high priority to get her there on time. When she was ten, Coach took things into his own hands, and became her foster parent, and later, her adoptive dad.

He was her coach first, and her dad last, but still, he had been the only adult in her life that had really cared about her in some way. So when the cops showed up at the hospital to ask about what had happened, she hadn't known what to say. She lied and said she couldn't remember.

What would happen now? No one had visited Val in the hospital--at least not while she was awake--so she didn't know what was going on with the crew. Was Coach mad at her? How mad would he be? Would he let her come home when she was discharged from the hospital?

She had one broken ankle that had needed surgery, and a hairline fracture in the other. She wouldn't be able to walk for weeks, let alone dance. Even if Coach wasn't pissed about Val ruining his murder attempt, she would still be useless as a dancer. And honestly, even if she had been perfectly fine, would she want to go back, knowing what Coach was capable of? Did this change things? It wasn't like she had believed he was a good man, but ... murder was at another level.

She watched bad daytime TV while her mind ran in circles without getting anywhere. It didn't take long before she started to feel like she was going a little insane. Bad enough that no one was visiting her, but couldn't they at least have dropped off her phone?

A couple days in, she was finally, finally distracted from her thoughts by a knock on the door.

"Yes?" she said when the person waited for a reply. Maybe it was Cara? Probably not Coach, Coach wouldn't knock.

With a huge bouquet of flowers in her hands, Norina came into the room. No fancy costume this time, just her hair in braids and the kind of makeup that didn't look like makeup but probably was makeup.

"Hi," Norina said. She glanced around the empty room. With no flowers or cards or anything, it was clear she was the first to visit. "I wanted to thank you. You saved my life."

"Oh, um. I wasn't really thinking," Val said, feeling awkward. After all, she was on Coach's crew. Even if she hadn't known what he was going to do, she still felt weird being thanked. "I mean--not that I regret it. I just ... I didn't know he was going to do that."

Norina put the flowers on the bedside table and sat in the chair next to the bed. "It still doesn't feel real," she said. "I just ... I don't understand. Why would he do something like that?"

Val sighed. "I knew he was going to be mad when I couldn't make you drop out. But not like this."

"This was all to win the competition?" Norina's voice was small.

"Not even that." Val frowned. "Wait, we didn't win, right? What happened after I passed out?"

"No one won," Norina said. "They cancelled the rest of the show and called the police."

"Yeah. So if he did it to win, it was a shit plan."

"I suppose it was." Norina chewed on her lower lip. "I'm sorry you got hurt."

"Oh, this?" Val shrugged with a grin. "Barely a scratch."

"No, it isn't. You're a dancer. Getting hurt could mean the end of your career." Norina reached into the flower bouquet and took out a card that she handed to Val. "My parents want to thank you for what you did too. If you need anything, if there's anything we can do to help, give us a call."

Val opened the card to find a generic get well message and a phone number. "Anything?"

Norina gave her a suspicious look. "Within reason, but yes. Anything related to your recovery and to getting your career back on track."

That was incredibly generous. Val wasn't sure she trusted it. She pouted. "So no lifetime supply of milkshakes from Rainbow House?"

"Is that really what you want?"

"I told you, their butter-rum is really good."

Norina rolled her eyes and pulled the card from Val's hands, wrote something down, and gave it back. "Text me when you're out of the hospital, and I'll buy you a milkshake."

"Will you have one too?"

"We'll make it a day I'm not performing."

[shinigami-striker]

[3 Years Ago] Rift Apart Released | Tuesday, 06.11.24

Anyone playing the latest Ratchet & Clank game so far? It's 2024, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is still one of Insomniac Games' best titles developed and it's available now on both PC and PS5!

[poterimagici]

Francesco è in cerca di uno spirito affine.

Volevo fare la Rockstar 1.09

[thatlioninthecorner]

Hey, look at that, I’m not dead! This is the rest of the Inktober 2021 prompts that I finally finished and what better time to post them exactly a year later 🙃

I lost all motivation to finish anything last year sooooo yeah. I wanted to post this just cuz I felt bad about not finishing the rest of it lol. Better late than never I guess.

With that said, I’m not going to do Inktober this year as I’ve started college now and am busy with schoolwork 😭 But I do want to try posting more of my other artwork.

[trader-sg112]

 بوينغ تواجه غرامة جنائية وتوافق على الإقرار بالذنب في حادثي تحطم طائرتين

قالت الحكومة الأمريكية في ملف قدمته لمحكمة إن بوينغ اتفقت مع وزارة العدل على إنهاء تحقيق تجريه الوزارة عبر الإقرار بالذنب في تهمة جنائية بالتآمر للاحتيال تتعلق بحادثي تحطم طائرتين 737 ماكس تسببا في سقوط مئات القتلى.

الإقرار، الذي قدمت السلطات ملفاً بشأنه في ساعة متأخرة من مساء أمس الأحد ولا يزال يتطلب موافقة قاض اتحادي، سيجعل صانع الطائرات مداناً بتهمة جنائية. وقالت وزارة العدل في الملف الذي قدمته إلى محكمة اتحادية في تكساس، وبه نظرة عامة على اتفاق من حيث المبدأ بهذا الصدد، إن بوينغ ستدفع أيضاً غرامة جنائية قدرها 243.6 مليون دولار.

تتعلق التهمة بحادثي تحطم طائرتين من طراز 737 ماكس في إندونيسيا وإثيوبيا في غضون خمسة أشهر في عامي 2018 و2019، مما أسفر عن مقتل 346 شخصا ودفع عائلات الضحايا إلى المطالبة بمحاكمة بوينغ.

وربما يهدد الإقرار بالذنب قدرة الشركة على إبرام عقود حكومية مربحة مع جهات منها وزارة الدفاع الأمريكية (البنتاغون) وإدارة الطيران والفضاء الأمريكية (ناسا)، لكنها قد تسعى إلى الحصول على إعفاءات. 

تعرضت بوينغ للملاحقة الجنائية بعد أن وجدت وزارة العدل في مايو أن الشركة لم تلتزم بتسويات جرت في عام 2021 متعلقة بالحادثين. غير أن الإقرار بالذنب يجنب بوينغ محاكمة كان من شأنها إثارة جدل واسع وتعريض العديد من قرارات الشركة التي سبقت تحطم الطائرتين لتدقيق عام أكبر.

كما أنه سيسهل على الشركة، التي سيكون لديها رئيس تنفيذي جديد في وقت لاحق من هذا العام، محاولة المضي قدما في سعيها للحصول على الموافقة على خطتها للاستحواذ على شركة سبيريت إيروسيستمز.

وأكد متحدث باسم بوينغ أنها "توصلت مع وزارة العدل إلى اتفاق من حيث المبدأ على شروط إنهاء (القضية)". ووفقا للملف المقدم للمحكمة، وافقت الشركة كذلك على استثمار ما لا يقل عن 455 مليون دولار على مدى السنوات الثلاث المقبلة لتعزيز برامجها المتعلقة بالسلامة.

[radio-4-is-static]

洗脳 / Brain Washing [Anti Anti Mix] | RADWIMPS

[redgoldsparks]

My very last comic for The Nib! End of an era! Transcription below the cut. instagram / patreon / portfolio / etsy / my book / redbubble

The first event I went to with GENDER QUEER was in NYC in 2019 at the Javits Center.

So many of the people who came to my signing were librarians, and so many of them said the same thing: "I know exactly who I want to give this to!" Maia: "Thank you for helping readers find my book!" While working on the book, I was genuinely unsure if anyone outside of my family and close friends would read it. But the early support of librarians and two American Library Association awards helped sell two print runs in first year.

Since then, GENDER QUEER been published in 8 languages, with more on the way: Spanish, Czech, Polish, French, Italian, Norwegian, Portugese and Dutch.

It has also been the most banned book in the United States for the past two years. The American Library Association has tracked an astronomical increase in book challenges over the past few years. Most of these challenges are to books with diverse characters and LGBTQ themes. These challenges are coming unevenly across the US, in a pattern that mirrors the legislative attacks on LGBTQ people. The Brooklyn Public Library offered free eCards to anyone in the US aged 13-21, in an effort to make banned books more available to young readers. A teacher in Norman, Oklahoma gave her students the QR code for the free eCard and lost her job. Summer Boismeir is now working for the Brooklyn Public Library. Hoopla and Libby/Overdrive, apps used to access digital library books, are now banned in Mississippi to anyone under 18. Some libraries won’t allow anyone under 18 to get any kind of library card without parental permission. When librarians in Jamestown, Michigan refused to remove GENDER QUEER and several other books, the citizens of the town voted down the library’s funding in the fall 2022 election. Without funding, the library is due to close in mid-2024. My first event since covid hit was the American Library Association conference in June 2022 in Washington, DC. Once again, the librarians in my signing line all had similar stories for me: “Your book was challenged in our district" "It was returned to the shelf!" "It was removed from the shelf..." "It was moved to the adult section."

Over and over I said: "Thank you. Thank you for working so hard to keep my book in your library. I’m sorry you had to defend it, but thank you for trying, even if it didn't work." We are at a crossroads of freedom of speech and censorship. The future of libraries, both publicly funded and in schools, are at stake. This is massively impacting the daily lives of librarians, teachers, students, booksellers, and authors around the country. In May 2023, I read an article from the Washington Post analyzing nearly 1000 of the book challenges from the 2021-2022 school year. I was literally on route to a festival to talk about book bans when I read a startling statistic. 60% of the 1000 book challenges were submitted by just 11 people. One man alone was responsible for 92 challenges. These 11 people seem to have made submitting copy-cat book challenges their full-time hobby and their opinions are having an outsized ripple effect across the nation. WE NEED TO MAKE THE VOICES SUPPORTING DIVERSE BOOKS AND OPPOSING BOOK BANS EVEN LOUDER. If you are able too, show up for your library and school board meetings when book challenges are debated. Send supportive comments and emails about the Pride book display and Drag Queen story hours. If you see a display you like– for Banned Book Week, AAPI Month, Black History Month, Disability Awareness Month, Jewish holidays, Trans Day of Remembrance– compliment a librarian! Make sure they feel the love stronger than the hate <3

Maia Kobabe, 2023

The Nib

[fatliberation]

they have a point though. you wouldn't need everyone to accommodate you if you just lost weight, but you're too lazy to stick to a healthy diet and exercise. it's that simple. I'd like to see you back up your claims, but you have no proof. you have got to stop lying to yourselves and face the facts

Must I go through this again? Fine. FINE. You guys are working my nerves today. You want to talk about facing the facts? Let's face the fucking facts.

In 2022, the US market cap of the weight loss industry was $75 billion [1, 3]. In 2021, the global market cap of the weight loss industry was estimated at $224.27 billion [2]. 

In 2020, the market shrunk by about 25%, but rebounded and then some since then [1, 3] By 2030, the global weight loss industry is expected to be valued at $405.4 billion [2]. If diets really worked, this industry would fall overnight. 

1. LaRosa, J. March 10, 2022. "U.S. Weight Loss Market Shrinks by 25% in 2020 with Pandemic, but Rebounds in 2021." Market Research Blog. 2. Staff. February 09, 2023. "[Latest] Global Weight Loss and Weight Management Market Size/Share Worth." Facts and Factors Research. 3. LaRosa, J. March 27, 2023. "U.S. Weight Loss Market Partially Recovers from the Pandemic." Market Research Blog.

Over 50 years of research conclusively demonstrates that virtually everyone who intentionally loses weight by manipulating their eating and exercise habits will regain the weight they lost within 3-5 years. And 75% will actually regain more weight than they lost [4].

4. Mann, T., Tomiyama, A.J., Westling, E., Lew, A.M., Samuels, B., Chatman, J. (2007). "Medicare’s Search For Effective Obesity Treatments: Diets Are Not The Answer." The American Psychologist, 62, 220-233. U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 2007.

The annual odds of a fat person attaining a so-called “normal” weight and maintaining that for 5 years is approximately 1 in 1000 [5].

5. Fildes, A., Charlton, J., Rudisill, C., Littlejohns, P., Prevost, A.T., & Gulliford, M.C. (2015). “Probability of an Obese Person Attaining Normal Body Weight: Cohort Study Using Electronic Health Records.” American Journal of Public Health, July 16, 2015: e1–e6.

Doctors became so desperate that they resorted to amputating parts of the digestive tract (bariatric surgery) in the hopes that it might finally result in long-term weight-loss. Except that doesn’t work either. [6] And it turns out it causes death [7],  addiction [8], malnutrition [9], and suicide [7].

6. Magro, Daniéla Oliviera, et al. “Long-Term Weight Regain after Gastric Bypass: A 5-Year Prospective Study - Obesity Surgery.” SpringerLink, 8 Apr. 2008. 7. Omalu, Bennet I, et al. “Death Rates and Causes of Death After Bariatric Surgery for Pennsylvania Residents, 1995 to 2004.” Jama Network, 1 Oct. 2007.  8. King, Wendy C., et al. “Prevalence of Alcohol Use Disorders Before and After Bariatric Surgery.” Jama Network, 20 June 2012.  9. Gletsu-Miller, Nana, and Breanne N. Wright. “Mineral Malnutrition Following Bariatric Surgery.” Advances In Nutrition: An International Review Journal, Sept. 2013.

Evidence suggests that repeatedly losing and gaining weight is linked to cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes and altered immune function [10].

10. Tomiyama, A Janet, et al. “Long‐term Effects of Dieting: Is Weight Loss Related to Health?” Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 6 July 2017.

Prescribed weight loss is the leading predictor of eating disorders [11].

11. Patton, GC, et al. “Onset of Adolescent Eating Disorders: Population Based Cohort Study over 3 Years.” BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), 20 Mar. 1999.

The idea that “obesity” is unhealthy and can cause or exacerbate illnesses is a biased misrepresentation of the scientific literature that is informed more by bigotry than credible science [12]. 

12. Medvedyuk, Stella, et al. “Ideology, Obesity and the Social Determinants of Health: A Critical Analysis of the Obesity and Health Relationship” Taylor & Francis Online, 7 June 2017.

“Obesity” has no proven causative role in the onset of any chronic condition [13, 14] and its appearance may be a protective response to the onset of numerous chronic conditions generated from currently unknown causes [15, 16, 17, 18].

13. Kahn, BB, and JS Flier. “Obesity and Insulin Resistance.” The Journal of Clinical Investigation, Aug. 2000. 14. Cofield, Stacey S, et al. “Use of Causal Language in Observational Studies of Obesity and Nutrition.” Obesity Facts, 3 Dec. 2010.  15. Lavie, Carl J, et al. “Obesity and Cardiovascular Disease: Risk Factor, Paradox, and Impact of Weight Loss.” Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 26 May 2009.  16. Uretsky, Seth, et al. “Obesity Paradox in Patients with Hypertension and Coronary Artery Disease.” The American Journal of Medicine, Oct. 2007.  17. Mullen, John T, et al. “The Obesity Paradox: Body Mass Index and Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Nonbariatric General Surgery.” Annals of Surgery, July 2005. 18. Tseng, Chin-Hsiao. “Obesity Paradox: Differential Effects on Cancer and Noncancer Mortality in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.” Atherosclerosis, Jan. 2013.

Fatness was associated with only 1/3 the associated deaths that previous research estimated and being “overweight” conferred no increased risk at all, and may even be a protective factor against all-causes mortality relative to lower weight categories [19].

19. Flegal, Katherine M. “The Obesity Wars and the Education of a Researcher: A Personal Account.” Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases, 15 June 2021.

Studies have observed that about 30% of so-called “normal weight” people are “unhealthy” whereas about 50% of so-called “overweight” people are “healthy”. Thus, using the BMI as an indicator of health results in the misclassification of some 75 million people in the United States alone [20]. 

20. Rey-López, JP, et al. “The Prevalence of Metabolically Healthy Obesity: A Systematic Review and Critical Evaluation of the Definitions Used.” Obesity Reviews : An Official Journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity, 15 Oct. 2014.

While epidemiologists use BMI to calculate national obesity rates (nearly 35% for adults and 18% for kids), the distinctions can be arbitrary. In 1998, the National Institutes of Health lowered the overweight threshold from 27.8 to 25—branding roughly 29 million Americans as fat overnight—to match international guidelines. But critics noted that those guidelines were drafted in part by the International Obesity Task Force, whose two principal funders were companies making weight loss drugs [21].

21. Butler, Kiera. “Why BMI Is a Big Fat Scam.” Mother Jones, 25 Aug. 2014. 

Body size is largely determined by genetics [22].

22. Wardle, J. Carnell, C. Haworth, R. Plomin. “Evidence for a strong genetic influence on childhood adiposity despite the force of the obesogenic environment” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Vol. 87, No. 2, Pages 398-404, February 2008.

Healthy lifestyle habits are associated with a significant decrease in mortality regardless of baseline body mass index [23].  

23. Matheson, Eric M, et al. “Healthy Lifestyle Habits and Mortality in Overweight and Obese Individuals.” Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine : JABFM, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 25 Feb. 2012.

Weight stigma itself is deadly. Research shows that weight-based discrimination increases risk of death by 60% [24].

24. Sutin, Angela R., et al. “Weight Discrimination and Risk of Mortality .” Association for Psychological Science, 25 Sept. 2015.

Fat stigma in the medical establishment [25] and society at large arguably [26] kills more fat people than fat does [27, 28, 29].

25. Puhl, Rebecca, and Kelly D. Bronwell. “Bias, Discrimination, and Obesity.” Obesity Research, 6 Sept. 2012. 26. Engber, Daniel. “Glutton Intolerance: What If a War on Obesity Only Makes the Problem Worse?” Slate, 5 Oct. 2009.  27. Teachman, B. A., Gapinski, K. D., Brownell, K. D., Rawlins, M., & Jeyaram, S. (2003). Demonstrations of implicit anti-fat bias: The impact of providing causal information and evoking empathy. Health Psychology, 22(1), 68–78. 28. Chastain, Ragen. “So My Doctor Tried to Kill Me.” Dances With Fat, 15 Dec. 2009. 29. Sutin, Angelina R, Yannick Stephan, and Antonio Terraciano. “Weight Discrimination and Risk of Mortality.” Psychological Science, 26 Nov. 2015.

There's my "proof." Where is yours?

[damianbugs]

i got an ao3 comment a while ago saying how it was "uncomfortable" and "out of character" for bruce to use terms of endearment and nicknames towards his kids in fics. which proves to me that some people have truly rotted minds, but also that you've never picked up a batman comic. so, here are some nice panels that show it is very much in character.

sweetheart:

Batman (1940) #452

honey:

Batman (1940) #318 & Batman/Grendel (1993) #2

little one:

Batman and Robin (2011) #22

lad:

Detective Comics (1937) #573 & #574

chum:

Detective Comics (1937) #570 & Superman Annual (1985) #11

good boy:

Robin & Batman (2021) #3

[xaviergalatis]

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Grist:

Within weeks, the nation will deploy 9,000 people to begin restoring landscapes, erecting solar panels, and taking other steps to help guide the country toward a cleaner, greener future.

The first of those workers were inducted into the American Climate Corps on Tuesday during a virtual event from the White House. Their swearing-in marks another step forward for the Biden administration’s ambitious climate agenda. The program, which President Joe Biden announced within days of taking office in 2021, is a modern version of the Climate Conservation Corps, the New Deal-era project that put 3 million men to work planting trees and building national parks.

During the ceremony, the inaugural members of the corps promised to work “on behalf of our nation and planet, its people, and all its species, for the better future we hold within our sight.” 

The American Climate Corps was among the first things Biden announced as president, but it took a while to secure funding and get started. More than 20,000 young people are expected to join during the program’s first year, according to the White House, with new openings appearing on the American Climate Corps job site in the months ahead. The pay varies depending on the location and experience required, with open positions ranging from around $11 to $28 an hour.

The administration is promoting the corps as a way for young people to jump-start green careers. In April, the White House announced a partnership with TradesFutures, a nonprofit construction company, a sign that the program might help fill the country’s shortage of skilled workers who can help electrify everything. The White House will also place members in so-called “energy communities” like former coal-mining towns to help with environmental remediation and other projects.

“Whether it’s managing forests in the Pacific Northwest, deploying clean energy across the Southwest, or promoting sustainable farming practices throughout the heartland, the president’s American Climate Corps is providing thousands of young Americans with the skills and experience to advance a more sustainable, just tomorrow,” White House climate advisor Ali Zaidi said in a press release on Tuesday.