#Youth Opinion

[bonefall]

i found a god awful doc about this one person (who, too, is a god awful being) trying to reason why mudClaw would be a bad leader. I'ma try to find the doc but meanwhile I'll submit this because someone could have the link, I'll need your honest thought about it bcs why are we defending oneWhiker now

Anon, buddy, I'm gonna have to sit you down and gently discourage you from casually calling random human people "god awful beings" in my inbox like this. Not when you're just talking about relatively basic media analysis. That isn't ok or normal.

I hope that when I speak harshly, it's coming from a place of condemning hurtful actions and the tangible harm that they cause. I don't appreciate people trying to get me to directly beef with other people directly by requesting I break down their individual posts or analysis documents (when I ask for people to share links, it's so I can see and prepare to counter the ideas because they usually "float downstream" if they get popular); but in a second ask, you linked this document and there's nothing harmful in it. In fact, it's got a far more neutral tone than I'd take if I was writing an analysis about Mudclaw.

If you couldn't tell the difference between a document like this and one that contains active abuse apologia rhetoric, I would be filled with concern. But I don't think you read it. I think you maybe skimmed it and stopped reading, or just heard the title.

Because this document literally says this;

and your takeaway, something you felt so strongly about that you came to me hoping I'd validate it, was "Why Are We Defending Onewhisker Now."

Art is a tool we can use to explore our own biases, and teach us something about ourselves. That overwhelming sense of anger and disgust that you probably felt when you saw "Mudclaw Would Be A Bad Leader" made you jump to an emotional conclusion and you assumed something that was not said. I know the feeling. You might have had a reactionary impulse.

You are not a bad person for doing that-- you're human. You can grow.

Why did it upset you this much, though? Is there something very personal about this that set you off? ...are you spending a lot of time in spaces online that keep you angry? These are questions for you to reflect with.

I do not know the owner of this document or "what they've done," if anything, so I will not link it, because their Discord is at the bottom of the doc. If they are truly a "god awful being", please do not engage, just block and move on. Nothing is accomplished by following around 'A Bad Guy' and boosting their cat takes.

But something VERY bad WOULD be accomplished if I indulged an anon for a situation I know nothing about and unwittingly became part of a harassment campaign. How do I know that you've got good intentions?

I usually just delete unsolicited links to docs and videos that are 'fightbaiting' like this-- trying to get me to beef publicly with a 3rd person. But I've seen more of these than usual lately so I would like to try and cool it down.

[gyaruogutz]

Providing more context to my post from yesterday;

If you don’t fully support people in con-abusive relationships and don’t allow THEM to deal with THEIR relationship in the way that THEY BOTH HAVE SAID THAT THEY WISH TO, get off my page full stop.

If you disregard what people ACTUALLY INVOLVED in con-abusive relationships have said about their own situations and how they’d like them to be handled, get off my page, full stop.

If y’all are getting so worked up about ONE con-abuse relationship on my dash, over a callout post that BOTH PEOPLE INVOLVED have said shows only one, falsely-painted side of the story, you’re extremely lucky I haven’t posted about my relationship with my lovely girlfriend on my main.

Y’all are so annoying. Leave those kids alone.

[angel-hawthorne]

No, you're seeing the consequences of adults actively choosing to hit children. Every damn time someone bitches and moans about people not being "disciplined", they're quick to blame those who don’t spank for a laundry list of societal ills. Their genius idea is to hit kids even more instead of addressing the root problems. A lot of these youngsters have received a "good ol fashioned beating" once or more than that, and it still didn't do anything.

"I'm not saying you should abuse [children], but..." stop right there, that's exactly what you're suggesting. What exactly do you mean by proper discipline? Or as this person ever so wonderfully puts it "good ol slap on the wrist"? Ah, it's occasionally hitting the young when they say or do things that offends your fragile sensibilities. Adults in positions of power often get away with pulling all manner of fuckshit stunts under the guise of “discipline”. At this point, y'all sound no different from the domineering religious men who think hitting their wives will make them behave aka "Christian Domestic Discipline". Y'all didn't turn out fine at all. Just grew up to be violent bullies and/or enablers.

You hit them once, and it makes you, the adult, feel powerful. Getting that temporary feel-good rush of being in control. That's all it ever does - grant temporary compliance and relief. What will you do then if that one time with the initial amount of physical force doesn't work? Amp up the dosage (pain intensity) until you achieve that same feel-good high? If that keeps up, then these consequences will result: child goes no contact in the future, end up with a # of mental health issues, the child dies from their injuries (or removed from custody if they survive), and the caregiver gets slapped with legal repercussions. No pun intended. In extreme cases, the child will kill their parents/guardians for their own safety when there's no other alternatives.

Funny how it’s only the adults who care about splitting hairs over differences. A child’s brain doesn’t know, nor does it give a shit about “differences” you adults arbitrate. Their brains don’t stop to think “it’s only a smacking, so turn off your fight/flight/fawn/freeze response and halt the cortisol production”.

"Let me tell you, we only did it once." I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but your sample size of 1 anecdote does not trump decades worth of empirical evidence. Correlation doesn't imply causation. Plenty of children got that "one time deal", and they learned to repeat the same behaviors without getting caught. Last time I checked, discipline isn't something you DO to people. Just because you were raised to believe that assault is okay, doesn't mean others feel the same way. I'd recommend looking up survivorship bias and appeal to tradition fallacy.

This non-parent thanks you for coming to my Parenting Opinion Ted Talk.

[momo-de-avis]

LISBON, July 28 (Reuters) - Portugal's famed street artist, Bordalo II, has broken into a Lisbon venue where Pope Francis will celebrate a mass next week and rolled out a huge carpet of oversized banknotes to criticise how much the state has spent on the event. Francis will travel to Lisbon from Aug. 2-6 to attend the World Youth Day global gathering of young Catholics, which is expected to bring together hundreds of thousands of pilgrims. Bordalo II, known for his political art pieces often made from garbage, shared pictures and videos of the carpet, featuring humongous 500-euro ($551) notes, being rolled out down the venue's stairs on Thursday in a protest he described as the "walk of shame". "At the time when many people are fighting to keep their homes, their work and their dignity, millions worth of public funds have been invested to sponsor the (papal) tour," the artist, whose real name is Artur Bordalo, wrote on Instagram. Official estimates in January showed the event would cost 161 million euros, to be paid by the government, the Catholic Church, the city council of Lisbon and nearby Loures. A number of public figures and politicians have criticised the Portuguese state for its share of the expenditure, which the government put at 30 million euros in January, as millions of Portuguese face galloping inflation. Earlier this year, heavy criticism forced the Lisbon city council to cut planned spending on an altar for Francis to celebrate a mass to 2.9 million euros from over 5 million euros. Asked about Bordalo II's carpet, Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas told reporters the artist used his voice to express his concerns and that such protests were normal for these events.

[vimbry]

omg wait yeah a notif tag about the "isopods are cringe" thing just reminded me: you ever see that post on here with an addition where someone shyly tagged it with, "I know possums are "out" but-" what do you mean out they're an animal 😭 don't let people who twist themselves up trying to be unauthentically different to stay on trend make you insecure, none of this matters

[justinspoliticalcorner]

In recent months, LGBTQ+ rights have faced significant setbacks in many countries, with populist and authoritarian governments passing draconian laws curtailing LGBTQ+ rights. Countries as varied as Uganda, Ghana, Iraq, Russia, Hungary, and the United States, among others, have sought to limit the fundamental freedoms of expression, association, and assembly of LGBTQ+ individuals. They have done so by suggesting that the mere existence of LGBTQ+ people in the public sphere poses a threat to children, misusing the rhetoric of protecting children to restrict fundamental human rights. This tired and offensive stereotype is damaging to the LGBTQ+ community, who are demonized in the public imagination and deprived of basic human rights. It also harms all children, who are deliberately kept in the dark about essential topics in the world around them, ranging from family diversity to current events to comprehensive sexuality education. But most of all, these laws harm LGBTQ+ children, who are made to feel alone and kept from seeing how they might flourish as they grow up. Many of the laws that pretend to protect children are downright draconian.  [...] LGBTQ+ children have the same needs for safety, privacy, health, education, and a sense of belonging as other children do, and governments are consistently failing them. What would law and policy look like if we prioritized the needs of all children? One guiding principle from international human rights law is a concern for the best interest of the child – and not only cisgender, heterosexual children but LGBTQ+ children as well. Viewed through that more holistic lens, many recent laws and policies are insufficient and discriminatory at best. LGBTQ+ children deserve the same rights and opportunities as their cisgender, heterosexual counterparts. Governments should safeguard their well-being with inclusive curricula, resources and support, and access to quality health care. By acknowledging and supporting LGBTQ+ children, we can dismantle discriminatory attitudes and foster a more inclusive society for all children to have access to thoughtful care that meets their needs.

Ryan Thoreson for The Advocate on how anti-LGBTQ+ extremists' demonization of the LGBTQ+ community based on the faulty premise of "protecting children" hurts children (06.28.2024).

Ryan Thoreson wrote a piece in The Advocate that anti-LGBTQ+ policies enacted on the faulty basis of “protecting children" do lots of actual harm to children.

[trickerys-domain]

So I just got a chance to listen to the Dev Q&A (thank you Ghil Dirthalen!).

Was anyone else extremely annoyed and disappointed by the answer regarding City vs Dalish Elf Rook?

Like that 'things are different in Northern Thedas when it comes to elves' comes across as such a lazy lore excuse for 'we didn't want backlash for restricting races to factions' considering from every other peice DA media released, we know that's not true. The dalish and city elves are very much seperate cultures and factions on their own.

It would be like saying orzammar and surface dwarves are 'basically the same' in northern thedas

[the-cryptographer]

I see the idea sometimes that Fenris thinks Merrill is sweet and childish, but also foolish and naive and not realising the trouble her blood magic will get her and everyone into. Basically with this sense of bafflement that a blood mage could be so nice. And I always do something of a double take because... this is how Varric and Hawke and Isabela see Merrill. This is not how *Fenris* sees Merrill. And, frankly, he has no reason to see her this way to begin with. (Although I will admit, I do not think Fenris is entirely above entertaining this infantilising rhetoric when he thinks it will hurt her, as he does in the banter that follows her act 2 quest.)

Number one. Fenris already *knows* blood mages can be sweet. Fenris spent his formative years around blood mages, engrossing himself in their struggles, empathising with their work, fighting Danarius's battles for him. He is perfectly aware that they can be charming and loveable, cannot bring himself to disagree when Danarius says Fenris once found something worthy of his affection in a blood mage. I would say that Fenris clearly considers the fact that blood mages can be sweet as the larger part of the damned problem. They're sweet, and that sweetness tricks you into overlooking the fact that they're ambitious unrepentant murderers, with powers to mess with your mind and body in ways nobody without magic can. And they will do so if either greed or desperation pushes them to it, whichever comes first. Which may not be universally true, but is all definitely true of Merrill, as it was for the people he knew in Tevinter.

Number two. Fenris isn't going to think Merrill is sweet because she is not sweet to him. Don't get me wrong, Merrill can be very sweet. She is frequently very sweet with Hawke and Isabela and Aveline. But she is not sweet with *Fenris*. Her interactions with Fenris consist of: acting like Fenris is pitiful for not knowing about the Dalish, telling Fenris he's dropping the ball by not caring more about the elves in the alienage or the history of her people, telling Fenris he'd look much prettier if he smiled more often, etc. Merrill is not sweet to Fenris.

I will say, Merrill is often *good* to Fenris. As much as they fight, as much animosity as he shows her, as much as he refuses to return the favour, she never lets it become a reason to jeopardise his safety from his pursuers or his standing with Hawke (which is the major foundation for that safety), or equivocate on his right to be free and freely express all his opinions no matter how distasteful she finds them. And I do think it's possible that he might someday feel safe enough around her to appreciate that goodness in her.

But in the meantime, no, he's just not going to be impressed by the fact that she manages to make herself look sweet and naive enough that the humans around them are going to overlook her ambitions or what she'll do to achieve them as a blood mage.

[revanchistsuperstar]

Speaking of GNC AF grandpas, I’d like everyone to meet mine.

The most bisexual sitter of all time, OG Gay Liberation activist and Unitarian Universalist Minister, Rev Randall Lee Gibson III.

Found this photo today while looking for a good one to put on a sign for our local Pride March this weekend.

Shout out to everyone else out there with bisexual and cunty grandpas.

And RIP Randy, you were a true original.

[shojoboy]

thinking about Princess Tutu again. 100% serious when I say that Ahiru's solo pas de deux scene was a level of badassery on par with Ashitaka pushing open that door in Princess Mononoke. absolutely hardcore

[tautozhone]

can argue to death with me about how age restrictions on youtube are necessary but i will be DAMNED before i say Hinds Hall deserved to be age restricted. average american child on youtube can listen to H*rbu D*rbu (censoring in hopes to avoid algorithm engagement with the song) which is IOF praising genocidal propaganda, and- big fucking shocker- its not age restricted. i’m 100% sure the only reason Hind’s Hall was restricted was to deliberately suppress and avoid the spread of the song.

[shilo-sumac]

am i cool. am i "hip with the kids"????? these are important questions

[fukia]

Why I like Dislestia

• The god and goddess theme is dripping with that type of old majestic drama that I love - think old flame film-noir in some ways, a look into the thousand-year lore of Alicorns and other demigod-races

• Forbidden love and foe-yay, the consequences of love between two powerful, ancient enemies

• Color coordination, they are both colorful in very different ways

• Besides the age gap with Fluttershy, the greater concern in essence I’d say is I really just don’t like how Fluttercord has always made Discord out to be juvenile - he’s a god of chaos, he’s ancient and a trickster, not a moron that needs babysitting

• It feels more, dare I say, harmonious, like he barely gives anything in Fluttercord besides trouble - but in Dislestia, he can give that sense of freedom and young-love Celestia may be missing in her life as royalty (especially in addition to being an immortal deity with no one able to keep up with her)

• Dislestia just presents his character with more dignity, in the little time we had of that, the Beauty-Beast thing with Fluttercord makes him seem like a young kid not fit for his powers like the Beast, that he doesn’t know how friendships work, when I much prefer the idea that he DOES know considering his skills in manipulation and conquest (he just refuses to or doesn’t care to)

• We needed so much more Dislestia scenes, my god more slow-burn development would’ve been fantastic :(

• Dislestia sounds like dyslexia and that’s the winning reason

ETA: all comes down to preference of course; Dislestia ultimately just follows Discord’s characterization and development a lot more consistently

[wizardofgore]

I largely agree with the sentiment of the original post but these tags are so evil. DONT talk about mitski like that. Ugly ass.

[ironicandpunny]

telling my father-in-law that I’ve been watching Star Trek: The Original Series (which he grew up with) was one of the best decisions of my life cause now I get to watch his face as I tell him my Gen Z takes on this old ass show.

Just yesterday, I told him I developed a favorite (it’s been a while since we last talked about the show and last time, I didn’t have one yet), and I watched like this knowing smile creep across his face as he says “Oh, yeah? Who?” I respond with three words; “It’s Bones, dude.” He only smiles wider, points at my wife and says “That’s what we always say, Bones is the best.”

And then I, being a young queer in the 2020’s, get to say “Yeah, he serves SO much cunt” (cause he does) and watch as my FIL’s grin just slowly slips off his face, as he tries to fathom what the fuck that could possibly mean

It’s been a real treat, a real ride, I’m having so much fun

[bunisher]

i love dex but i reallyyyyyy wish they hadn’t played into the tired ableistic trope of diagnosing him with bpd. especially considering you can’t even get properly diagnosed with personality disorders until 18 (at least in the US) and i think it would’ve been better if they left his diagnosis up to interpretation.