#PREVENT WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS

[drdemonprince]

I don't think I have it in me to be an abolitionist because I read that horrible story about the trans teen murdered in South Carolina and my knee jerk reaction is, those people should rot in jail, ideally forever, or worse. No matter how I look at it I can't make myself okay with the idea that you should be allowed to steal someone's life in such a horrible way and then just go back to enjoying your life. Some stuff is just too over the top evil.

You can have whatever emotions you want about that person's murderous actions, but the reality is that the carceral justice system is one of the largest sources of physical, emotional, and sexual torment for transgender people on this planet.

Transgender people are ten times more likely to be assaulted by a fellow inmate and five times more likely to be assaulted by a corrections officer, according to a National Center for Transgender Equality Report.

Within the prison system, transgender people are frequently denied gender-affirming medical care, and housed in populations that do not match their identity, which increases their odds of being beaten and sexually assaulted.

The alternative to being incorrectly housed with the wrong gendered population is that transgender people are also frequently held in solitary confinement instead, often for far longer periods on average than their non-transgender peers, contributing to them experiencing suicide ideation, self harm, acute physiological distress, a shrunk hippocampus, muscculoskeletal pain, chronic condition flare-ups, heart disease, reduced muscle tone, and numerous other proven effects of solitary confinement.

The prison system is also one of the largest sites of completely unmitigated COVID spread, among other illnesses, with over 640,000 cases being directly linked to prison exposure, according to the COVID prison project.

We know that number is rampantly under-estimated because prisoners, especially trans ones, are frequently denied medical care. And even basic, essential physical care. Just last year a 27-year-old Black man named Lason Butler was found dead in his cell, having perished of dehydration. He had been kept in a cell without running water for two weeks, where he rapidly lost 40 pounds before perishing. His body was covered in rat bites.

This kind of treatment is unacceptable for anyone, no matter who they are and what they have done, and I shouldn't have to explicitly connect the dots for you, but I will. One in six transgender people has been to prison, according to Lambda Legal. One in every TWO Black transgender people has been to prison. One in five Black men go to prison in America.

THIS is the fate you are consigning all these people to when you say that prisons must exist because there are really really bad people out in the world. We should all know by not that this is not how the carceral justice system works. Hate crime laws are under-utilized, according to Pro Publica, and result in few convictions. The people who commit transphobic acts of violence tend to be given softer sentences than the prisoners who resemble their victims.

We must always remember that the violent tools of the prison system will be used not against the people that we personally consider to be the most "deserving" of punishment, but rather against whomever the state considers to be its enemy or to be a disposable person.

You are not in control of the prison system and you cannot ensure it will be benevolent. You are not the police, the judge, the jury, or the corrections officers. By and large, the people who are in these roles are racist, transphobic, ableist, and victim-blaming, and they will use the power and violence of the system to terrorize people in poverty, Black people, trans people, "mad" people, intellectually disabled people, women, and everyone else that you might wish to protect from harm with a system of "punishment." Nevermind that incaraceration doesn't prevent future harm anyway.

You can't argue for incarceration as the tool of your revenge fantasies, you have to argue for it as the tool that it actually is. The purpose of a system is what it does. And the prison system's purpose has never been to protect or avenge vulnerable trans people. It has always been to beat them, sexually assault them, forcibly detransition them, render them unemployable, disconnect them from all community, neglect them, and unperson them.

[lucysarah-c]

“It’s the only extra shirt I got here,” Levi’s voice returned to its natural stiffness as he handed her a V-neck long sleeve grey t-shirt.

“Thanks,” she said with a shy smile while accepting it. Levi nodded as he drank from his canteen. Once she was dressed, he offered her some water, which she accepted.

Exhaustion washed over them as they lay down. His eyes focused on the ceiling, his arms bent behind his head. She lay on her side, watching him.

“What?” Levi's fierce eyes looked askance at her as she admired his side profile.

Her humming negative reply was all he got at first, and then, “Was it… was it enough for you?”

He turned his head to his left. “I came, didn’t I?”

His bluntness was sometimes a blessing and sometimes not. She pouted at the idea. “But… we didn’t…”

“I said we wouldn’t,” Levi quickly picked up the meaning behind her lack of conviction and rushed to reply. “Besides, even if you wanted to, I wouldn’t have gotten my dick in. You’re in your fertile days.”

The knowledge of that affirmation eluded her completely, to the point that she didn’t even know what to inquire about first. She also felt extremely tired as she scooted closer to his frame. Levi took the hint and embraced her with one arm as she rested her head on his chest.

Humming again, this time affirmatively, she somehow understood his point. .. she believed.

“That’s scary…” she whispered after a few minutes, and his attention returned to her.

“What?”

“I don’t know if I’ll do it,” the words had no meaning to Levi, who was trying hard to follow her train of thought as she rambled. “I feel my legs tremble.”

Silence, as if she could hear the gears of his head working to comprehend. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“About jumping,” she said casually.

“Huh?” he insisted, slightly raising up to hover over his left arm to have a better look at her face.

They were both confused—him because he didn’t even fathom what she was talking about, and her because she couldn’t believe that someone as street-smart as Levi didn’t know about it.

“That…” she started her explanation, slightly ashamed like a kid afraid of answering a classroom question wrong. First confidently, then doubts sank in. “That you have to jump ten times after it, so… so you don’t get pregnant?”

Confusion, then realization. Levi’s frowning face as he tried to process what she had just said turned into his normal stoic one, and then he bit his bottom lip. His chest began to shake as he inhaled rapidly through his nose. He began to chuckle, and when his weight fell back onto the mat, he was loudly laughing.

Her disbelief at seeing him genuinely laugh for the first time was mixed with offense. ‘What’s so damn funny?’

Levi kept trying to control his reaction, stopping momentarily, but then he remembered it and laughed again. Covering his eyes with his forearm, he insisted on forming a sentence, but it was just too hilarious somehow.

“Let me get this straight,” he chuckled, “you thought that jumping ten times, not nine, it has to be ten, would magically prevent you from getting pregnant?”

At this point, she was heavily offended. “Well yes!” Her enthusiastic affirmation only made him more entertained.

“That’s the dumbest shit I’ve ever heard,” his declaration between chuckles made her pout heavily at him, feeling the embarrassment quickly washing over her. “If it was that simple, brat, I wouldn’t have been born.”

His hand ran through his features as he calmed down, slightly shaking his head with closed eyes as he processed the idea. “God, how fucking bad are surface bastards that women have the energy to be jumping around after getting fucked?”

“Well, that was my question! Because I’m tired!” she complained loudly, feeling she finally had a fair point in this conversation.

To her surprise, Levi rolled to his side and grabbed her face. Her resistance due to her petty anger was pointless because he easily held her. Both hands on each side of her head, he then planted a kiss on her forehead.

“You’re so fucking stupid,” his whisper was fully covered in a thin layer of tenderness.

The pout on her features didn’t cease as his fingers ran down the side of her face; it felt insulting that he was looking at her with such appreciation after laughing in her face. His knuckles caressed her cheekbone so gently.

“Who told you that shit?”

“The girls in the barracks always talk about it,” she confessed, hoping that common knowledge among her companions would erase her ignorance.

“I’ll pull out and we’ll count days, that’s what we will do,” Levi explained.

Probably my favourite scene ever from Holy Ground.

Link to my masterlist and my other works if you feel like checking them out.

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[blackpearlblast]

Lamont Hunter is a death row survivor who was falsely convicted and later got his name clearly, allowed to walk free after 18 years but with no compensation for the time unjustly taken from him. He has a knee injury that prevents him from being able to work to support himself. He needs help with rent in order to stay housed. This Juneteenth, consider showing Lamont Hunter support and help him celebrate his first year of freedom by helping him cover his rent and other bills.

He also speaks about the dangers of wrongful convictions and the criminal legal system in a podcast interview which you can listen to or read the transcript of in this link.

[ghoulsbounty]

can you make a fic abt baby billy and like being one of his wives or like when he's on the run from tiff idrk depends on what you want to do

A Fall From Grace

Uncle Baby Billy Freeman x Fem!Reader

Summary: Baby Billy comes seeking comfort, and you are always willing to shoulder the burden.

Warnings: smut (18+), backshot, cum eating (kinda), p in v, alluding to an affair, mentions of religious beliefs relating to the show, angst, alcohol, smoking, emotional hurt/comfort, reader pining for baby billy, dejection.

Word Count: 1.7K

A/N: Anon and anon, thank you for requesting that I write for this emotionally stunted baby man. I love him, I love the show, and the world needs Baby Billy fics! This is set before he is with Tiff (because I love her.) I’d love to know what you all think to this, and feel free to send me more requests 💌

You longed to utter the words, to express disbelief at finding yourself in this familiar game of cat and mouse once more. But honesty was a luxury you couldn't afford, not when your conscience was already weighed down by a litany of sins. Each lie added to the burden, and you couldn't bear to heap more upon your soul.

There was a time, not so long ago, you walked the path of life with a sense of purpose and righteousness. Like any devout believer, you diligently carried out God's will, spreading His word among the neighbours of Pumpkintown. But then, on a scorching summer's day, destiny led you through Freeman's Gap, where you found yourself standing at his doorstep. From that moment, everything changed.

Baby Billy, with his irresistible charm and captivating façade, swiftly drew you into his intricate web of deception. His presence cast a shadow over your once-virtuous existence, blurring the boundaries between right and wrong. In his company, your convictions faltered, and the very essence of your faith began to erode. Slowly but surely, he transformed you from a devout Christian into a mere echo of your former self.

No matter how many times you had promised yourself that this would be the last time, that you wouldn't let it happen again, it all amounted to more lies to add to the growing list. When he reappeared in your life after an eighteen-month absence, you were poised to slam the door shut in his face. But he possessed a silver tongue that could persuade the sun to set twice.

So here you were, pressed face down against the mattress, your skin glistening with sweat as he drove into you from behind. This was your preferred position; it prevented him from gazing at you with adoration, as if you were the centre of his universe, while he consumed every inch of your being. It made it easier to bear his departure after he was done with you, when he didn't linger. The ache in your chest always remained, but your time with Baby Billy had made you realize that you were nothing if not resilient.

Your gaze lingered on the half-empty bottle of gin perched on the bedside table. It was his customary offering, always referred to as your favourite. Whether it truly held that distinction was a matter of uncertainty, but you always accepted it. Flowers and chocolate might have softened the edges of your encounters with him, but they could never dull the sharp pang of inevitable loss you’d feel when he returned to whichever-number wife he was on.

"I'll accept the bottle, but not the intent," you would murmur each time he presented it, extending the gesture like an olive branch. His eyes would gleam with anticipation, tinged with a hint of apprehension, as he waited to be welcomed in. How many lies had you accumulated by now?

More than you cared to count. This self-proclaimed righteous man of God would lead you to the depths of hell itself if it meant avoiding solitude, and you would willingly follow. That was the truth.

"Haven't lost you now, have I?" His voice snapped you out of your trance, his hips grinding against your backside with a fervour that seemed desperate to anchor you to him.

Clutching the sheets tightly, your knuckles turned white as you shook your head. "I'm here, Baby Billy."

He chuckled, his hands gripping the flesh of your hips as he pulled back slightly before thrusting back in with force. Your walls tightened around him, drawing out the most obscene moans from his lips as he maintained an unfaltering rhythm.

"You're always here for Baby Billy," he remarked with a hint of satisfaction. "You're a good girl."

The words ignited a surge of conflicting emotions within you, sending sparks flying through your mind. Somewhere deep within, a wire seemed to short circuit, and you found yourself instinctively grinding your hips back against him, matching his movements.

"Damn," he sighed, his voice heavy with gratification, as one hand dropped to your front. His fingers traced along your wet folds until he found the sensitive bundle of nerves, eliciting a high-pitched wail from your lips. "Well, if that ain't the prettiest thing I've ever heard."

His other hand released your hip, fingers tangling in your hair as he pulled you against his sticky chest. The new position drove him deeper, your head leaning back against his shoulder in the crook of his neck as he slowed to a heavy grind. His fingers continued their expert ministrations on your clit, tracing familiar circles, while his other hand left your hair to grab harshly at your breast, pinching your nipple just as he knew you liked.

"Let me see you now," he panted. You hadn't realized you'd squeezed your eyes shut until he slapped your clit with an open palm, causing you to flinch against him, and when you opened them, he was looking down at you with those hazel eyes that sucked you in every time. "There she is. Tell Baby Billy what you want from him."

He always did this, despite your attempts to bury your face into the mattress to hide from what you were doing with him. He always found a way to make you look at him, to confront your demons and tell him what you desired most from him. It was as if he couldn't let you come out of this unscathed, regardless of his claims that he needed you right there with him.

He didn't truly need you, not in the sense of wanting you for anything more than warming his cock and easing the burden of the life he had created for himself. You were a distraction from the suffering he had caused, never once caring for your own.

You wished you could refuse him. In every other aspect of your life, you were strong, but when it came to Baby Billy Freeman, your resolve wavered with just one look. Perhaps it was the underlying desperation he always seemed to exude, making you feel sorry for him, as if you were providing a service by temporarily alleviating his misery. Eventually, you stopped trying to make sense of it, allowing it to happen and taking from it what you wanted, what you needed.

"I want to cum," you breathed against the skin of his neck, then remembered what he always liked to hear. "Please, Baby Billy."

The familiar tightening in your stomach signalled your impending climax, and he seemed to sense it too, his movements growing more urgent as your walls fluttered around him, drawing him deeper with each thrust. His fingers worked faster against your clit, pushing you closer to the edge. Your eyes rolled back as your orgasm ripped through you, your body convulsing against his as you cried out into the silence of the bedroom.

He grunted, continuing to thrust into you through your orgasm, your walls milking him as you pulsed around him. Your body went limp as the last surge of electricity shot through you, and he tossed you back onto the mattress to reach his own release. A few more thrusts, then you felt the tell-tale stutter of his hips before he withdrew completely, leaving your pussy feeling empty and used. The sound of your juices squelching around him filled the room as he used them to pleasure himself, pumping once, twice before finally cumming hard onto your ass with a shout of release.

You laid there, your sweaty face pressed against the sticky cotton sheet as you slowly grounded yourself back to reality. He panted above you, running a finger over the curves of your ass, scooping his release from you before bringing it to your mouth. You accepted it, your tongue swirling around his finger, lips closing around him as you sucked the salty mixture and swallowed it down. It was a habit he enjoyed, claiming that if he couldn't cum inside you, he at least wanted to ensure you received what he was giving in some way. It had become a routine you found yourself needing more than you cared to admit.

He withdrew his finger, delivering a sharp slap to your ass before rising from the bed. The mattress groaned with his movement, and you lay still as he carried out his next habitual task. Moments later, he returned, a lit cigarette between his lips and a wet cloth in his hand as he gently cleaned off the evidence of his release from your behind before tossing it onto the bedside table with a wet thwack. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he leaned over you with an arm resting on the mattress. You turned onto your back underneath him, running your fingers over his forearm as he looked down at you.

"Don't look at me like that," you said, tracing patterns through the hair on his arm.

"Like what, angel?" he asked, his voice tinged with amusement as he brought the cigarette to your lips. You took a drag before he reclaimed it, exhaling slowly as your eyes met his.

"Like you might love me," you whispered.

He chuckled, briefly glancing away before returning his gaze to you. "Maybe I do."

Once, you believed you loved him, back when you were still innocent to the manipulative games he played and your part in it all. But that belief didn't last long; you soon learned to shut it out, along with the company of men who weren't him.

"Right girl, wrong time," he had once told you, but you quickly learned that the right time would never come.

For Baby Billy, love wasn't in the equation. It soon became clear that he merely enjoyed the possession of you. You were like an old toy to him, tossed aside until he desired to play with you again. Your emotions, your needs, they were secondary to his whims, serving only to satisfy his fleeting desires.

Baby Billy Freeman didn't love you, he loved having you.

He would depart soon, leaving you with uncertainty about when you would see him again. Yet, deep down, you knew he would return. He always did, seeking refuge in your presence to distract himself from the harsh realities of his life. And you would be there for him, as you always were.

Because unfortunately, somewhere along the way of Baby Billy using you like a drug, you had become addicted yourself.

[unforth]

Friendly reminder that the reason that felonies don't disqualify someone from running for office is that if they did, that would massively incentivize jailing and convicting political enemies to remove them from the pool of potential elected officials.

As frustrating as it is that Convict Trump can still run for office, this is an important and necessary part of ensuring that the rule of law is separate from the US political process and if you're advocating for it to change please take three minutes to think about what the Republicans would do right now if they thought they could disqualify the evil left with felony convictions.

I hate Convict Trump but this is not a rule we should be changing.

If he wins he can have fun serving from prison - or, more likely, immediately play his dictator card and excuse himself. And thats terrible but becoming more like him will never fix what's wrong with the US. We must stand in opposition to what he represents at every moment and in every way, not embrace his fascism to protect ourselves from it. And even with it over turned he'll always be Convict Trump.

Preventing the weaponization of the law as a political tool is a major pillar of democracy, one that is already fucked to hell in the US given how its been weaponized already to create prison slavery, remove voting rights, etc. The last thing we need is to weaken it more. Even for the people we hate.

Convict Trump. Hehehe.

[lurkingshan]

10 Things I Love About Oppan

I have been tracking Ossan no pantsu ga nandatte ii janai ka aka Don't Care for an Old Man's Underwear aka Oppan in my weekly Japanese QL Corner posts, but this show is so good that I need to give it a full tribute now that the entire thing is available with English subs courtesy of @isaksbestpillow. You can find everything you need to watch here.

This is easily one of my favorite dramas of the year, and it had such a great cast of awesome characters and a story chock full of fantastic themes. This is a show that encourages us not to get desensitized to the world around us, to always challenge ourselves to learn and grow and update how we think about others and the culture we live in, and to prioritize personal happiness over conformity. I love it so much and I want to talk about why, because I hope more of you will, too! @twig-tea wrote a great spoiler free pitch for the show here; this one is not spoiler free in the hopes that those of you who like a bit more info will be further enticed to give it a try. On to the list!

This is a story about a middle-aged cishet man who realizes he has damaged his relationships and sets out to change to do right by his family

There are so few stories of genuinely great fathers in media, and I found something so healing in watching a dad try so hard to do his best. Just the very fact that Makoto cares that he has hurt his family and is willing to put in work to change sets him apart, both in media and in real life.

An unconventional friendship is the heart of the story—and it changes both the characters' lives

Our core relationship begins when Daichi prevents Makoto from falling down a set of neighborhood steps, and the two strike up a surprising friendship when Daichi proves open to listening to Makoto as he struggles to figure out where he went wrong with his family. Daichi is kind and warm-hearted but also firm in his convictions, and his wisdom is exactly what Makoto needs to start updating himself.

Daichi is a gay character who’s allowed to be a whole human—he is not here just to be a magical queer mentor for Makoto

And before you worry that Daichi is a Manic Pixie Dream Gay here only to support Makoto, let me assure you that he also has a story, and it’s more complex than you might initially expect. Daichi has a lot of confidence when it comes to helping other people solve their own problems, but we eventually learn that he's not so assured about his own struggles. Daichi has other relationships that matter aside from his bond with Makoto and his family and he gets his own character arc in which Makoto is able to support him in return. They have a mutual bond that changes both of them for the better.

It takes a gentle and thoughtful approach to figuring yourself out, and encourages us to be kind to others experiencing things we don't understand 

There are so many characters in this show whose stories highlight this theme, but it is perhaps most evident in the story of Kakeru, Makoto's son, grappling with his identity and gender presentation. This show will surprise you again and again with how open and thoughtful it is about questions of identity and preference, and it constantly reinforces that we shouldn't assume we know everything about others and how they will react to our truths--if we give people a chance to know us, they might be more kind and supportive than we think.

This story sincerely believes that doing what makes you happy is always the right choice

And they make it clear over and over again: your personal happiness matters more than any societal constructs or cultural norms. Letting go of what people outside of their family think is what heals the Okitas and helps them find their love and trust for one another again.

Relatedly, it gets fandom in a way few dramas do

Makoto's wife, Mika, is a kpop stan, and his daughter, Moe, is a yaoi mangaka. One of the best parts of the show is Makoto coming to understand and appreciate their fandom and learn to respect the joy it gives them, and in turn, the whole family.

Everyone has the chance to redeem themselves

Regardless of what they have done in the past, every character in this story has a chance to redeem themselves and earn trust and respect back--and earn is the operative word there. This show doesn't demand perfection, but it absolutely demands that you care when you harm others and earnestly try to do better, and we see many characters take that journey. This is further underlined by a character in the story who does not put in that effort to try, and consequently is not forgiven or brought into the family fold. So satisfying.

Every character and every relationship matters

I was constantly amazed by how attentive this show is to every single relationship, not just the big family ones, or even just Makoto and Daichi. Makoto also goes out of his way to get to know Daichi's boyfriend Madoka, his coworkers, and Moe and Kakeru's friends, and we see connections form and deepen between so many side characters in this story. It really cares about all its characters as whole people.

And while it's doing all of this important thematic work and making us cry on the regular, it also manages to be very fucking funny! 

This show is hilarious, which may surprise you given all the heavy thematic work it's doing. But the writing has a deft touch and it manages to explore all these themes with a lot of humor. Watching Makoto learn new things and blunder his way through connecting with others is truly a delight.

And it caps off all of this with a great story about having the courage to love in the face of bigotry and a beautiful gay wedding

Perhaps the biggest spoiler here: we get a gay wedding! I was so surprised and thrilled to see Daichi and Madoka decide to marry--and not without some stumbles--and bring the Okita family so fully into their joy. What a beautiful way to end a gorgeous show. I will miss all of these people dearly.

[relicsongmel]

Thinking about Iris' very open disdain for spirit channeling and how it seemingly contradicts many other elements of her character.

Let me explain—Iris prior to the end of BttT is a woman who only knows facades, covering up the truth, and only presenting herself exactly as she wants others to see her. We see this over and over again throughout the course of the story: she hides her real identity while dating Phoenix, she does damage control for Dahlia and Godot to help them avoid blame for their crimes, and she is extremely selective about which information she chooses to disclose to specific people depending on whatever role she finds herself playing in that moment (daughter, girlfriend, accomplice, etc). Her demeanor as a whole is also rather meek and unassuming, and she's shown to be exceptionally kind; she expresses favorable opinions on most everyone she meets, even those continuously treated poorly by other characters (like Larry) or those that have objectively done reprehensible things (like Dahlia).

All of this stands in stark contrast to her saying in no uncertain terms that she hates spirit channeling:

This stands out to me because it is one of very few things that Iris is completely forthright honest about in the early portion of this case. After spending all day avoiding Phoenix and now carefully dodging his questions towards her in hopes of preventing the truth of her deception from coming out (all of this while actively avoiding her responsibilities at the Inner Temple because of Larry's "blackmail" letter which also threatened to expose her "secret"), why is this the one bit of truth she chooses to divulge here? Or rather: why is this the one thing she seemingly cannot lie about?

Obviously the answer lies in Iris' past and the permanent damage that was done to her and her family due to the politics of the Fey clan, with the Kurain Channeling Technique at the root, and the DL-6 incident as the event that brought everything to ruin. Iris bore witness to her mother Morgan losing the title of Master of Kurain due to her inferior powers and the despair that caused her, then three years later saw her aunt Misty who, despite purportedly being so much better than her mother, made a mistake while channeling that led to an innocent man's conviction, disgracing the Fey name and causing her to flee the village in shame. With this in mind, it makes sense that Iris would feel so strongly about spiritual powers doing more harm than good; after all, she has firsthand experience of the damage that can be done to the women that have it.

But what of the women that don't have it—namely, Iris herself? What happens to a spirit medium, born of the Fey bloodline, daughter of the then-master of her channeling school, when she's shown to not have any spiritual powers? I'm of the opinion that Iris' hatred is not only a product of what she's seen happen to her mother and aunt, but also very closely tied to what is, essentially, her earliest failure in life—after all, what good is a medium who can't channel? Fey women are raised to believe that their worth is linked to how well they can perform the service of their clan, which is the same reason why Maya beats herself up for failing to channel Mia in Turnabout Goodbyes and Pearl does the same with Dahlia later in this case. In a sense, Iris' hatred of spirit channeling is an externalization of her own self-hatred—unlike Dahlia, who mainly copes by lashing out and seeking revenge on those who wrong her, Iris is far too gentle and loving to lay blame on any one person. But all that repressed guilt and anger still has to go somewhere—and it manifests through this one small crack in her otherwise flawless facade. The one thing she cannot bring herself to find beauty in no matter how much she tries. The one thing that should have given her purpose but didn't—leaving her no choice but to mold herself beyond recognition over and over into roles that aren't truly her own, but at the very least give her meaning where she was denied it before.

And knowing her? She probably hates that flaw more than anything.

[fortanuvasyama]

I finally managed to pin down what exactly was eating at me after reading that whole bit of Jason Gets Mindfucked (aka Batman 138)

so Bruce's (or Zur Batman, or however you might interpret that slippery divide between Zur and Bruce) whole reason to give Jason a new flavor of ptsd-on-crack is to prevent him from killing again, right? Like he explicitly says "This is the only way," when he's speaking to Jason.

and when he goes on to explain it further....

Bruce says he's doing this to make him a better person. That this is the best way to make Jason stop doing what he wants and force him to live a 'normal' life.

And Bruce is saying that in his eyes, what Jason is now experiencing isn't a punishment.

Bruce calls this a gift. This is Bruce saving Jason from himself. This is how Jason will get a chance at a meaningful life. Bruce has decided that anything Jason chooses is wrong, and he is going to correct it.

Even if it means Jason is left unable to move.

Even if it means Jason is left unable to defend himself.

Even if it means Jason is left alone.

And if this 'failsafe' can really, truly, wholly stop someone from killing....

Why isn't Batman putting this in every single one of his Rogues?

Bruce apparently has the key to ending all of the Gotham rogues' murderous escapades, so wouldn't it make sense to put this in the heads of every single one of them? Of every single convicted criminal who has ever killed another human being?

If this isn't a punishment, if this is a way to truly reform a criminal permanently... why only Jason?

[elfwreck]

Hello!

I'm not sure if this is a bit odd to ask, but I saw your post about living in rural arkansas as a teen- and the note at the end about gun rights, and how rifles are different than handguns in that legislation and all-

do you have any sources you could link so I can look into that more? I live in rural Kentucky so hunting is very ingrained into just how me and my family and our neighbors live. (also a poor county- I didn't actually know other cities had kids pay for their lunch because I was so used to everyone in my county getting a free lunch- it seems like such a basic thing).

I've never heard anyone mention not banning hunting rifles when they talk about banning guns-

The gun bans being asked for are assault rifles and semi-automatic pistols. Rapid-fire guns intended for military use against multiple human targets - not hunting rifles at all, and not the kinds of pistols that are good for self-defense. (...Not that pistols are good for self-defense in general. Shotguns are good for self-defense. Nobody's trying to ban shotguns.)

The NRA is invested in convincing hunting-rifle owners and pistol owners that the various proposed weapons bans are aimed at them, and not at the tiny number of people who want the ability to shoot up a whole bar or classroom in under a minute.

The NRA has also fought hard against any kind of gun safety requirements.

Bill from last year to ban/restrict assault rifles:

https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/25/text

The gun safety bill Biden recently signed:

Doesn't ban any weapons. Puts restrictions on who can get weapons - people convicted of most types of domestic partner violence will not be allowed to buy guns. It makes it harder for people under 21 to buy guns. It closes some loopholes about selling guns, so sellers will need to be registered and licensed. Sets up new funding for gun crisis intervention.

Doesn't do anything to restrict hunting, other than possibly adding to the bureaucracy for people under 21 getting new guns.

Most people in urban areas are oblivious to hunting as a Real Thing that People Actually Do For Good Reasons, rather than a kind of cruel sporting event. They are vaguely aware that hunting rifles are not assault rifles, are not semi-automatics, but only as an abstract concept. Might or might not be able to tell a hunting rifle apart from a semi-automatic if they saw them. (I am not sure I could; I am very much not a gun person.) (I have shot one gun, once in my life. It was loud and hurt my hand and I had no interest in doing it again.)

I don't know how much I think we need to ban or restrict certain weapons. I am absolutely certain we need to keep certain weapons out of the hands of certain people, because the current system of "I guess 10-year-olds should all get training on what to do if some teacher's ex-boyfriend decides to shoot up the school" is ridiculous.

Given how hard it is to identify the "certain people" who should damn well NOT have access to automatic weapons, I'm okay with "it gets harder for anyone to get them," because I don't see how heavy assault rifles are a "but I neeeeed it this weekend!" kind of thing. (Not sure I see that hunting rifles are a "need it now" kind of thing, either; seems like those are a hefty enough purchase that the buyer should be doing some planning in advance. So filing for it like you would for car registration - another expensive piece of tech that kills people if you use it wrong - shouldn't be too big a burden.)

The idiots who include hunting rifles in their talk about banning guns - I won't say there aren't any; all sorts of politics gets plenty of idiots - have no idea how those guns actually get used. And the people writing actual policies and trying to get the laws changed are not those idiots.

The "ban guns" movement has two main parts:

Remove general access to guns that can kill a dozen people in under a minute, and

Remove gun access from specific people who have a history of getting angry and violent, especially those who have a history of shooting other people when they're angry and violent.

Side note: Some of us want that second point to include cops. That faction is getting nowhere.

None of it is trying to remove access to hunting rifles or reduce the amount of hunting in places that need it. (Basically, all of the South; I am near San Francisco and nobody anywhere near me "needs" to hunt; I don't care what they do with hunting rights in the greater SF Bay Area).

The focus is on preventing gun violence, not preventing gun use. And that means restricting access to guns that have no purpose other than anti-human violence, and restricting access to all guns from people who are likely to use them as weapons instead of tools.

[lunarmoves]

I blame you for the dca au i suddenly thought up becuz of ur Sebastian solace roblogging spree

HAHAHAHA YESSS!!!!!! but fr, sebastian is so sun-coded?? its wild. like, you can totally imagine sun in his place.

sun solace, convicted of murdering 9 people, gets scooped up by fazco to undergo experimentation when he was innocent in the first place. he's angry, deeply angry, when he realizes what has been done to him. his body has changed--elongated into something so foreign and- and unsightly (he's terrifying, he realizes. he's terrifying and hideous and so inhuman). and fazco just up and discards him like he was nothing once they've researched him completely... so he has his revenge--unleashes other experiments at the fazco underwater blacksite, and causes utter havoc. people are killed. he doesn't care. he just wants to get out--but he knows what he's become and he needs to find a way to reverse the changes that have been done on his body

but... then fazco starts sending in these prisoners to collect the crystal powering the facility (i need to note here that i don't rly know/rmb why urbanshade wants the crystal or what it does, im making stuff up). sun knows that the crystal must not be found or he'll never manage to escape this damn place. so.... he plays nice. because he knows he can manipulate these prisoners to help him.

he greets them all with a demure smile and clasped hands. he makes himself seem as small as possible--as non-threatening. he's their friend in his hellish place, he tells them, makes them believe. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

the prisoners--the expendables--don't care much for him. he knows most of them just see him as another monster. still, he offers them items to help them on their journey in exchange for data they've collected. and when they die to one of the experiments he released in the first place? well... it's no skin off his scaly nose.

ohhh but then... you arrive. and you're different.

you look at him in a way he can't place at first. cautious, sure, but there's something else to your expression that's different compared to the expendables before you. he ignores it and continues with his routine. act nice. be your friend in this hellish place. manipulate you into giving him all your data. use you until you inevitably die.

except... you don't die. you keep coming back to his shop to purchase his items. and still, you look at him with that strange gaze. you linger in his shop and make conversation with him. he doesn't remember the last time he spoke to someone like this. it's been... years. something twists up inside him.

you don't flinch or run when you grab items off his thick golden tail. you don't get discouraged when he's sarcastic with you or makes fun of you when you return to his shop out of breath from running from the angler. you don't... (he swallows thickly) you don't look at him in disgust or hate. you're... curious, he realizes one day. curious and unfrightened by him. oh this won't do at all, he thinks. but he doesn't say anything to you.

(it's nice, having someone to talk to. having a friend)

((he's just using you, he tells himself, to collect more data. he repeats it every time you brighten upon seeing him in his shop))

you speak to him as though he's your friend. you ask him questions about himself like you want to know more. he sees your gaze on his bandaged arm at times, but you never ask. you respect boundaries and know when not to pry. you never falter when peering up at his face. you're so... strange. it frightens him. he tells moon (pandemonium! moon, who was another experiment in fazco and can see you no matter where you hide. always trying to grab you or pry you from your hiding spots) to double down on preventing you from progressing further

he learns about your past--the reason why you were here in the first place. a wrongful conviction. the wrong place at the wrong time. just like him.

(and well. when he slips his own file on the desk in his shop for you to see and inevitably purchase... that's his own business)

suddenly, sun is unsure. to let you live, or let you die is the question constantly on his mind. to let you leave with the crystal, condemning him to a fate trapped underwater, or let you perish by his hands. he doesn't know anymore. things have gotten way more complicated than he had predicted.

he's... not even sure what he wants anymore. does he... does he want to be human again? when you look at him like that? like you don't mind how much he's changed or how terrifying he looks? he doesn't know.

his goals have been shaken.

and he blames you.

[jaskierx]

don’t let the news about how trump’s campaign is relatively unaffected by his convictions make you apathetic

every vote counts. every vote makes a difference. there will absolutely be voters who love trump but refuse to vote for a convicted criminal

yes the system is fucked and yes it’s wrong that this won’t prevent him from running and yes biden isn’t perfect but voting for biden is your only opportunity to prevent the entire world from having to deal with the damage caused by the president of the usa being a fascist

[delawaredetroit]

Aizawa was half right and half wrong here.

On one hand, Bakugou's personality problems far precede any involvement from Aizawa. On the other hand, it was Aizawa's responsibility to deal with Bakugou appropriately once he was in Aizawa's care. And he failed to do so. Though the civilians only care about the damage his attitude did to the perception of heroes. Bakugou actually should have been disciplined for he treatment of others - particularly Izuku and Shouto. So yeah, Aizawa should be taking responsibility for Bakugou's poor behavior in this context.

And he was right that the villain's misunderstood Bakugou's perspective and motivations and that prevented them from actually recruiting him. However, the rest is nonsense. There was no reason to defend Bakugou's behavior at the sports festival. Attempting to beat his unconscious classmate outside of a sanctioned match was not justifiable "because he has such strong convictions and ideals"

That being said, having this conversation while Bakugou was still unaccounted for and before there was any indication he was working with the League feels inappropriate. It shows how victim blaming their society truly is. In order to keep the illusion that everything is safe, if someone fails to be saved, then there is something wrong with them and maybe they are also to blame for their predicament.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Joan E Greve at The Guardian:

Just one month after making the historic choice to withdraw from the presidential race, Joe Biden took the stage at the Democratic national convention on Monday to deliver a reflective and optimistic address, urging the nation to elect Kamala Harris to protect American democracy. Looking back on his one and only presidential term, Biden reminded Americans that he took office just two weeks after the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, when the country was still in the early grips of the coronavirus pandemic. “Yet, I believe then and I believe now, that progress was and is possible. Justice is achievable, and our best days are not behind us. They’re before us,” Biden said. “With a grateful heart, I stand before you now on this August night to report that democracy has prevailed. Democracy has delivered, and now democracy must be preserved.”

Only a few weeks ago, Biden was expected to be on the convention stage this week to accept his party’s nomination for the second time. Instead, the speech came a month after Biden shocked the nation with his decision to not seek re-election. After weeks of mounting doubts about his ability to effectively campaign following a devastating debate performance, Biden announced that he would step aside. He immediately endorsed Harris.

[...]

On Monday, Biden described selecting Harris as his vice-president as “the best decision I made my whole career”, and he drew a sharp contrast between her and Donald Trump. Mocking Trump over his recent conviction on 34 felony counts, Biden said: “Violent crime has dropped to the lowest level of more than 50 years, and crime will keep coming down when we put a prosecutor in the Oval Office instead of a convicted felon.”

Biden landed other punches against Trump as well, attacking the Republican nominee for describing America as a “failing nation”. “When he talks about America being a failing nation, he says, we’re losing. He’s the loser. He’s dead wrong,” Biden said to loud cheers. Even as he promoted Harris’ candidacy, Biden took a victory lap of sorts to celebrate his own legislative achievements over his four years in office. He reminded viewers of the major bills he signed, including the bipartisan infrastructure law and the Inflation Reduction Act. “We’ve had one of the most extraordinary four years of progress ever, period,” Biden said. “Just think about it. Covid no longer controls our lives. We’ve gone from economic crisis to the strongest economy in the entire world.”

Still, Biden made a point to credit Harris with helping to deliver change. When discussing his administration’s efforts to lower prescription drug prices, Biden said, “Guess who cast the tie-breaking vote? Vice-president, soon-to-be-president, Kamala Harris.” And when audience members repeatedly broke out in chants of “Thank you, Joe,” the president responded, “Thank you, Kamala!”

The speech was not without its moments of conflict. One group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators displayed a banner reading, “Stop arming Israel!” Other convention attendees attempted to rip the banner away from them, and the lights were then dimmed over that section in the United Center. There appeared to be isolated shouts attacking Biden over his response to the war in Gaza, but those protesters were drowned out by the president’s supporters chanting, “We love Joe!” However, the president did not shy away from discussing the war in Gaza. Nodding to the pro-ceasefire protests unfolding in Chicago this week, Biden said: “A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides.” Of the recent ceasefire negotiations, Biden said, “We’re working around the clock, my secretary of state, [to] prevent a wider war, reunite hostages with their families and surge humanitarian, health and food assistance into Gaza now to end the civilian suffering of the Palestinian people and finally, finally, finally, deliver a ceasefire and end this war.”

On the DNC stage Monday night, President Joe Biden (D) gave a barnburner of a speech that detailed his achievements over his Presidency and his pre-Presidency tenure while passing the torch onto a new generation with VP Kamala Harris leading the Democratic ticket.

[agentrouka-blog]

I might be a square, but I’d prefer it in the books if Littlefinger and Ramsay are put on trial for their crimes with evidence (Jeyne could be there) and executed lawfully. That was one of my gripes with Battle of the Bastards, even though it was “poetic justice” for Ramsay to be killed by his own starving dogs. I also don’t think Stannis will be the one to do it. 🤷‍♀️

I agree 100%

I absolutely think that Littlefinger will be convicted in a trial and executed according to the law. Perhaps not for all of his crimes, but for one that they can legally prove. He will be outsmarted, but legally.

Ramsay, though, I think GRRM won't place in court. He would deserve it and it wouldn't be hard to sentence him to death the moment they get some testimony that it was him who slaughtered Rodrik Cassel's small besieging force and sacked Winterfell while his father was officially loyal to House Stark. Or, you know, the numerous cases of cruel murder. For precisely that reason, GRRM probably won't go that way. He'll likely have Ramsay felled by his own hubris in some way that's closer to Drogo dying of sepsis from a wound he refused to treat. The guy named his dogs after his murder victims. He won't be fed to them in a helpless state. He'll be the cause of his own demise in some way, probably leaving himself injured in a (human) hunt gone wrong, the dogs starving, used to the taste of human flesh, no one around or vwilling to prevent it. An ignomous, helpless, violent end he can't threaten or manipulate his way out of. Stripped of all pretense of power.

The show's mistake was not the dogs, it was thinking that cold-blooded murder was a good girlboss moment for Sansa.

[snarksalon]

In Defence of Tsuyu....

The Hospital scene is, I think, one of the most misinterpreted scenes in the series and it fuelled a lot of Tsuyu hate. The scene is written clumsily, but the underlying point that Tsuyu is making isn't naive. Tsuyu is commenting on the separation between law and morality and demonstrating that the two in many circumstances may not overlap.

In Hero Society, both heroes and Villains exert force over the general population. The distinction is that Heroes are authorised to do so by law and submit themselves to a regime of laws that designate when they are permitted to exercise their powers. Heroes effectively operate in a similar vein to cops, soldiers, et cetera. In Hero Society, Heroes form a branch of the criminal justice system, which is important to note. Restrictions on Cops, Lawyers and Judges exist to ensure that the rule of law is respected and maintained. Often, nebulous moral questions arise. Take for example a police officer who decides to obtain evidence illegally due to their own belief in the guilt of a defendant. Even if the defendant was guilty, the police officer has exercised substantial impropriety and interfered with the defendant's opportunity to receive a fair trial.

There are also instances where a breach of a legal rule is indicative of criminal conduct. Many might claim that it is morally correct for a parent to lie on the stand to prevent their child from being convicted as parents generally have a duty to protect their children. This does not negate that the conduct is criminal and misleads the court. Obviously, there is substantial nuance here, but the point is that Tsuyu is highlighting the fact that a disparity exists between moral and legal obligations.

In Hero Society, Villains disregard the law. Of course, laws exist on spectrums and Jaywalking cannot be equated to Robbery (I do agree that Tsuyu is making a massive false equivalence in the panel). I think Tsuyu saying this post Stain Arc, is a realistic reflection of how she would feel following Stain's ideology becoming widespread. The Stain arc, demonstrates that some heroes are corrupt and directly calls into question the commitments of Heroes to moral good. Tsuyu makes this statement at a time when public scrutiny against Heroes is ESPECIALLY high, and where the boundary between Heroes and Villains is being contested. Later in the story Tsuyu's position on the matter changes, but this perspective was not an unreasonable or ill-conceived conceptualisation of the distinction between Heroes and Villains.

It is also reasonable that Tsuyu advises against taking action. One failure of the Kamino arc is the lack of consequences. Yes, All Might loses his powers but I think letting all of those who go to rescue Bakugo get away unscathed seriously lowered the stakes of the story. Class 1-A are first-year students and are relatively untrained. Even if they are being evasive, they should struggle against the leadership of the League of Villains. Out of all of Hori's writing failures, Kamino has always stuck with me. The rescue group put on objectively terrible disguises and Bakugo manages to hold his own quite successfully.

It is easier to critique Tsuyu's words because of a lack of consequence. If a member of the team had died or been seriously injured, no one would have taken issue with her objections. I think Kamino was a missed opportunity to raise the stakes in the Manga and to build upon the ideas raised in Stain's Arc. This is why Tsuyu's words fall flat, and why her subsequent rant makes little sense.

This scene feels futile and pointless because there are NO consequences for their breach of the law. There isn't even a close call. Hori could have directly linked All Mights Demise to the rescue team messing up or being in the wrong place at the wrong time or generally being inexperienced. OBVIOUSLY, Tsuyu makes an incorrect equivalence but it is something which contains an interesting point and is completely mismanaged by Hori.

Tsuyu isn't wrong to criticise a decision made by her classmates, it is a decision that is reckless and could have endangered others. The rescue team knew nothing of the pro-heroes strategy to recover Bakugo and could have jeopardised that mission entirely. She also isn't wrong for reminding them that as Professional Heroes they are obliged to follow the law and may only use their powers when authorised. Though her delivery is blunt, and the equivalence is clunky (I blame Hori's writing here), she is making apt commentary on the limits of power.