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tamamatango · 3 months

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“Keroro Gunsgo To The Polls”: The Possible Behind-the-Scenes of the Ad-nime Short Nobody Expected

A much less existentially depressing display of political campaign buffoonery.

Here’s yet another unplanned post from me. The other long-form ones I was talking about before I keep putting off because of work and also another pretty ambitious project I’m putting together taking my attention—I don’t know how or when to talk about it here juuuuust yet, but it exists in public and some of you already know what it is/have seen it, so stay tuned perhaps.

As you can see from the video link/photo, this post is a writeup about a surprise video apparently commissioned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government that uses the Keroro characters to encourage young people to go out and vote in the upcoming elections for the Governor of Tokyo. It came out about a week ago, but I initially glossed over it because…well, I thought it wasn’t new. After all, the copyright DOES attribute the copyright to 2014 and it looks very similar to the Flash anime at first glance, so…this must be a reupload from the 2014 Tokyo gubernatorial election or something, right?

Upon looking more deeply into it, no. There’s no record of this ever existing before this week, and it was later confirmed to be new via social media channels. Which means this is technically a brand new piece of animated Keroro content, which I pledged I would report on. So here I am. Whoopee.

This post is going to be about the short from a production standpoint, primarily. I’m not going to spend time on the plot (if you want to call it that lol), as it was already pretty succinctly summarized by this post here by @unfo11owmelol , and I can say it’s more or less accurate, so thank you! I will make a comment in that the Dororo ranting about plastic thing seems to just be a running gag he has now—he was always an environmentalist of course, but his hatred of plastic specifically is kind of new; it was even a major punchline in this month’s manga chapter. In fact, this short has the manga’s quirks written all over it. It’s almost as if Yoshizaki himself was heavily involved in it. Oh wait, he was. But we’ll get to that.

The Context

As previously mentioned, this short was commissioned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and posted exclusively to their YouTube channel. This is where I was going to have a few sentences about how it was literally exclusively on the YouTube channel because none of the official social media accounts posted about it, but as I was writing the last 40% of the post, Keroro PR and one of the Tokyo government accounts finally mentioned it. So give a pat on the back to ol’ Kirb’s amazing procrastination abilities. Anyways, for the whole week before they finally decided to acknowledge its existence, it literally just dropped on YouTube with no warning and the only reason anybody on social media knew about it is because people whose YT feeds it popped up on were like hey what the fuck is this.

“What the fuck is this” is a pretty good question. While the fact that it’s about the gubernatorial election specifically isn’t directly mentioned in the video, it was pretty obvious given the timing, as it’s set to occur on July 7. I am not the most knowledgeable about Japanese politics as a whole, but this year’s race for governor is apparently particularly competitive, with over 50 candidates running. Here’s a short article giving a rundown of the race so far. The top issue is unsurprisingly the low birthrate, which has been causing panic over the fate of Japan’s economy for a considerably long time now. That’s why the government is very concerned that the voter disparity is incredibly polarizing, with young people voting much less than the elderly.

Well, what better way to fix low youth vote turnout than with anime? After all, the Zillenials want nothing more than to obsess over fictional characters while the world crumbles around them into inevitable disrepair I’m not projecting at all. The irony here is that, when the anime was originally in its prime at least, Keroro’s target audience was elementary schoolers. Indeed, the short definitely has the aura of a PSA they’d show to children, but obviously children are not voting. There’s even a point in the video where Tamama says going to the polling place is an opportunity to visit your childhood school, which is a statement more relatable to young adults. I guess at this point the main audience for Keroro really is considered to be the people who grew up with it in their child/teen years—unless the actual new anime gets a primetime kids’ TV slot, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

Considering this is the most viewed PSA about the election on their YouTube channel by far, I guess it worked to an extent? It’s currently hovering just under 20k views, which isn’t really too much in the grand scheme. But now that it’s been officially shared on social media, perhaps that’ll give it a boost. Will most of these viewers actually go out to vote is the question…

Production staff peculiarities

As with any animated Keroro content following the end of the Flash anime—which until the new show airs has basically just been this, the new project announcement trailer, and some anti-piracy ad they were doing in movie theaters that they ironically scrubbed from the internet—BN Pictures is credited as the animation studio (though the studio Sugarless Factory assisted; they pretty much exclusively do production assistance for various projects). This is interesting because it looks completely unlike anything they’ve ever done. Unless I’m missing something, none of the anime they’ve produced before have been done in a similar Flash-like style.

Now, as we Internet addicts all know, Flash has been officially dead for a few years now. However, it might still be used very rarely in lowkey web animations like this, although a friend who knows more about anime production than I do told me even those are more commonly made using Live2D now. The credits for this short are very…short, but the director and a couple of other animators worked on a particular Flash-animated series called Oshiri Kajiri Mushi (“Bottom Biting Bug”) that first aired on the TV channel NHK in 2012. I’m guessing these staff are freelance, as that show was produced by the studio Kinema Citrus (a team founded by ex-members of Production I.G and Bones), and were possibly brought on to this short because they had experience with the software. If it is animated using something like Live2D, the experience still applies, as it’s apparently more similar to Flash than something more commonly used in anime like Clip Studio Paint. The director also has 3D CG credits and there is a credit here for “motion” that includes his name, so maybe a little of that was used as well. (Wouldn’t be able to tell myself—most experience I have with 3D animation is a one semester Maya course I took in high school lol).

Curiously, despite the potentially similar animation software and very similar artstyle + color palette, none of the animation staff, as far as I can tell, worked on the 2014 Flash anime. That is, except for…Mine Yoshizaki.

On all animated Keroro media, Yoshizaki’s primary official credit is “original creator,” of course. As the series creator, he would of course participate to a degree in most things related to the 2004 series, doing stuff like sitting in on some writing and recording sessions, contributing ideas/concept art here and there, and so on. There’s actually a Newtype article from around the announcement of the first movie I dug up that was officially translated into English, in which Yoshizaki talks about the pressure of being in that role. Most mangaka interviews I’ve seen about their involvement in their works’ anime adaptations are pretty overwhelmingly positive, but he was definitely more mixed. This might be a post for another day, since I have some speculations about his relationship to the anime as a whole. Damn, I need to stop coming up with essay ideas that are probably too big for my pea brain.

Anyway, Yoshizaki was quite a bit more involved in the 2014 series. He served as one of two people responsible for series composition (scriptwriting), though that could be because the Flash anime was a much more direct adaptation of the manga than the original anime, which might as well have been an entirely different series. IIRC, some episodes of Flash were literally 1:1 with the manga’s script…so I guess that counts as writing the anime too lol. He also storyboarded a few episodes and wrote the opening theme song’s lyrics. The next Keroro animation after that was the anti-piracy theater ad in 2021, which he storyboarded for. But you’ll notice with all the credits we’ve discussed so far that he was never involved with the animation proper past the storyboarding stage…until now!

Not only was Yoshizaki credited as original creator as usual, he also did directorial supervision, storyboarding, and was a key animator—the only key animator, in fact! I know it’s just a five-minute short, but the Flash series’s episodes were even shorter than that and had multiple key animators per episode, so this is kind of a big deal. It also might explain why the character designs look just a little bit more on-model to the manga designs than Flash’s did, even though they look almost identical at a cursory glance. It’s easiest to tell by looking at the less-rounded head shapes, plus a few minor details like Tamama’s eye highlights and the bridge of Kururu’s glasses. I am very normal, how could you tell?

So yeah, this makes this short the most Yoshizaki has ever been involved with the actual animation process. I can’t say it gives him the most additional credits, as it’s tied with the Flash series for three extra, but it’s something!

Closing out the staff section, some notes about the cast. As you might expect, the usual actors reprise their roles. Most notably, Mamiko Noto is back to play Mois for what I believe (unless I’m missing a random collab or something) is her first time in the role in ten years, and she pretty much didn’t miss a beat! In addition to Fuyuki and Natsumi’s VAs playing them recently at the Keroro expo, that’s three additional voices besides the Keroro Platoon’s that presumably are still going to be able to return for the new anime.

Otherwise, the platoon sounds pretty much like they did in the anniversary trailer and various other small projects like the anti-piracy ad and Tales of the Rays collab from last year (they each had multiple spoken lines there). Keroro sounds a tad deeper; Tamama has some of the Jibanyan nasal now; Giroro didn’t really talk much but sounds mostly the same; Dororo is also a bit deeper and sounds kinda awkward but I think that’s less the voice direction and more Yoshizaki possibly wrote the dialogue and he speaks more assertively in the manga lol; Kururu sounds literally the exact same because Koyasu is a magic man.

Made in [Insert Year]?? (Ft. A lesson in trademarking)

I mentioned this at the beginning of this post, but for a solid few days, I really thought this video was just an ancient (2014 feels ancient now anyway) reupload. After all, the copyright string says 2014, and only media produced during the Flash series era has that copyright year, so I brushed it off. Here, let me show you all the anime copyright strings per the current anime portal:

There’s no 2004 date on the TV series’s copyright, probably because it covers the entire series from 2004–2011, plus now 2024 onward (and possibly the anti-piracy ad from 2021 as well), and also most anime-branded merch and things. But when the show was airing proper, it was attributed to 2004 (you can see this in the opening credits of any season). The 2006–2010 dates are for each individual movie. And there’s the 2014 copyright that’s the exact same as the video’s, though here it is for the Flash anime, as there’s pictures of it on the anime portal site. As an aside, before 2015, Sunrise was listed instead of BNP. At some point all anime rights got retroactively transferred from Sunrise Inc. to BNP—not sure how or when exactly that occurred. For the movies, there were slight shakeups in the production committee as well (you can see my new project trailer analysis for more on that kind of stuff).

As you can see, copyright strings for the series are attributed to the year each individual “product” came out in, for the most part. But now we know that this ad is brand new. So…does this mean this political ad is counted as part of the Flash anime? They obviously didn’t plan to include this specific video ten years ago (unless Kadokawa bought out an oracle or something, wouldn’t surprise me). Maybe they left the door open to more episodes of the Flash anime proper, but that isn’t what this was advertised as.

Well, I have a theory. A theory that might be totally wrong, but a theory nonetheless. Let’s go on a massive tangent about the Japanese trademark system! (Disclaimer: I have no formal training in the legal field. I just have really weird research hobbies.)

I’m going to focus on two basic principles here. First, once trademarks in Japan are officially registered, they are active for ten years before the copyright applicant must reapply to renew ownership of the trademark for another ten years. Second, trademarks have to be filed under certain classifications that basically tell the JPO (Japan Patent Office) what goods and/or services the applicant plans to use the trademark for. This means that sometimes the same trademark will be filed multiple times for different use classes. The classifications are each given a two digit class number, which is further subdivided into five-character group code(s).

You can actually search through all public patents yourself on J-PlatPat, and the site is machine translated into English (though you still have to type the copyright you’re looking for in Japanese). Let’s take a look at the three different filings for ケロロ軍曹 (just the name of the series itself, not the logo).

I’m on my phone so I couldn’t fit the entire window, but the important information is here. Kadokawa Corporation is the filer for all of these, though Yoshizaki’s name is probably also on whatever application documents they sent, which aren’t viewable. The three versions of the trademark were filed on different dates about a year apart. You’ll see that class 16 is there twice. For the first filing, it was class 16 and multiple group codes designating different kinds of goods (class 28 also contains goods-related things); the second filing covers a single group code protecting “printed matter” (presumably this was to cover any physical distributions of the manga).

I’m going to take a closer look at the third filing, which was officially registered in 2004. Class 09 covers a shitload of different goods and services, like way too many to list. What I’m thinking is that the first set of goods trademarks filed in 2001 was just to cover the kind of stuff they’d attach to issues of Shonen Ace and volume releases as giveaways—paper goods, board game-type items, and toys/dolls are all covered under it. Then in 2003, in preparation for the inevitable merchandise and collaboration dump the anime would lead to, they opened the floodgates to literally any Material Thing they could think to cover. Like, I’m pretty sure we never got any Keroro-branded egg candlers, fire alarms, or “cigar lighters for automobiles”, but might as well cover all your bases. Wouldn’t want the local fire department handing out emergency gear with your cartoon frog on it without permission, you know.

Included among these materials are some items that might be a bit more relevant to our case here. There’s a number of clauses related to physical and digital film, photography, and other media: “CD-ROM and DVD and other recording media, electronic publications, downloadable music, downloadable image[s]”. Now, while this doesn’t cover “animation” specifically, it can possibly be stretched to fit that definition. This is especially because, in Japanese, the term the MTL output as “images” is actually eizou, which can refer to both images and video.

So, the version of the trademark registered for the brand in 2004 likely covers certain media-related things. There are other classes that include the word “animation” specifically, but it’s possible that those classes weren’t classified the same way back then as they are now, and maybe anything film-related could’ve been interpreted by the law to include animation. Nowadays, though there are specific classifications for animation, specifically “animation available for download.” This subgroup actually happens to fall under class 09, though other classes contain similar items as well, such as class 41. You can search classes by number or keyword if you’re curious about this.

As I pointed out before I presented this data, all of these particular filings are for specifically ケロロ軍曹, not ケロロ. If ケロロ is to be used in isolation, it would have to be specified as such in the registration data, because what’s actually stopping someone else from coming along and trademarking just ケロロ? Now, remember the name of the Flash anime? That’s right—ケロロ. Just “Keroro”, not “Keroro Gunso.” Incidentally, this video is actually not formally titled under ケロロ軍曹 (despite what the thumbnail says). The only name in the title of the actual video is ケロロ.

So here is my theory. Maybe it’s a hypothetical, but I’m going to treat it like it’s concrete for argument’s sake. In 2014, to prepare for the Flash anime and related branding, Kadokawa filed for the trademark ケロロ—individually, without 軍曹. Because it was the 2010s at that point, it’s possible that downloadable animation was more specifically defined in the group codes filed for, even though the Flash anime did air on TV (again, the strategy to this is about covering as many potential use cases as possible for maximum copyright protection). Maybe it was under class 09, maybe it was another class, or even more than one. For whatever reason, the trademark is not publicly available. But because of what kind of animation/video/whatever that specific trademark covers, this little election video is covered under that 2014 trademark.

You might recall how I said trademarks have to be renewed every ten years. Incidentally, it just so happens that 2014 was ten years ago. Most likely, the (secret?) trademark was recently renewed so that stuff like this would be allowed to be made and can continue to be made in the future, independently from “Keroro Gunso” as defined by the 2004-verse and the manga proper. And because 2014 is the original filing year of that trademark, that is the year that is displayed with this project, even if the trademark was renewed in 2024, or some other recent year. By the way, all the ケロロ軍曹 trademarks I covered were also renewed this decade, so Kadokawa can keep on doing whatever exactly they were doing with those. There’s probably even more hidden-from-public-view trademarks, who knows, there’s a thousand potential asterisks here but you get the picture.

Fascinating, isn’t it? As I said, it’s possible that I’m just talking out of my ass and all of this is either way more simple or way more complicated than I’m making it out to be, in which case I just wasted multiple paragraphs of your time. But hey, at least it was a fun lesson, right? I’m not the only one interested in this, right? RIGHT?!?!?!

Okay, I’m just about done here, but I’m going to tell you something plot twisty. Do you know what actually first clued me in to the fact that this was not made in 2014 before it was confirmed to be the case? Not the upload date. Not the fact that nobody ever talked about it prior to a week ago. Not even all the probably useless copyright shit I just spent a whole other post’s worth of words on.

It was this part of the video:

See, in this screenshot, if you look really closely, you’ll notice that Kururu is using an iPhone parody with three cameras. The first iPhones with three cameras were released in 2019. Therefore, this could not have been made in 2014. This stupid detail is what it took to get me to think about this video for more than thirty seconds.

Thank you, Kururu’s crippling iPhone addiction.

So yeah, go out and vote or whatever, wherever you guys are. Otherwise you’ll have to look Mois in the eyes and tell her no, and that will make her very sad, and she might blow up the planet as consequence. Not that the planet isn’t already being destroyed. Any of my fellow Americans want to join me for a screaming session following the last few days of federal fuckery? I’ll bring chocolate-covered pretzels to snack on and we’ll write the names of corporate lobbyists on them, it’ll be fun.

#keroro gunso #sgt frog #sgt keroro #video #infodump #why did I write this #I’m not okay

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hjohn3 · 3 months

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The “Loveless Landslide”

Labour’s Conditional Win

Source: Automatic Knowledge

By Honest John

IT WAS a landslide all right, but was it a “loveless” one, a phrase heard almost instantly amongst predominantly right wing commentators following Labour’s huge General Election win last Thursday? On first analysis, that assessment would seem fair. With a 172 seat majority, Labour achieved one of the biggest electoral wins in U.K. history on 4th July, beaten only by the National Government’s win in 1931 and Labour’s own totemic triumph in 1997. The Conservatives tumbled to their lowest number of seats in the party’s history and the SNP was banished once again to its Highland fastnessess, a shadow of its former self, as Labour secured revenge for the humiliation of 2015. However this position of unassailable political power was achieved with less than 34% of the vote and on a less than 60% turnout. This enabled Labour’s critics on both left and right to establish an immediate de-legitimising narrative, pointing out the result bore out the lack of enthusiasm for Labour encountered on the doorstep, and claiming that Labour’s inability to even meet the 40% threshold, normally achieved as a minimum vote share by the winning party, was due either to Labour timidity in its policy offer, or deep voter antipathy to Keir Starmer and his team. But how fair is this instant, and partisan, analysis?

The result certainly demonstrated the brutality of the First Past The Post (FPTP) electoral system. This system, which has so often favoured the Conservatives, this time virtually destroyed them, thanks to the entry of Reform U.K. as a viable voting option on the right, and a carefully targeted Liberal Democrat campaign, aimed at knocking down as much of the southern “blue wall” as possible. Any democrat however should feel queasy at an outcome that saw Reform win 5 seats with four million votes and the Liberal Democrats win 72 (the highest Liberal seat haul since 1923) on 3.5m. If a party’s vote is evenly distributed in decent numbers across the U.K. constituencies, then huge majorities under FPTP are possible. Right wing commentators were noticeably silent on the drawbacks of FPTP in the 1980s when Margaret Thatcher won three figure majorities in 1983 and 1987 when the left of centre vote was split between Labour and the Social Democratic/Liberal Alliance. The democratic case for Proportional Representation is strong, but it is hard to take the new Tory converts to the cause seriously.

There are counter arguments to the “loveless” account. The truth of the matter is that two party politics, despite the long-stated contention to the contrary, has not existed for some time in the U.K. This began with the rise of the revival of the Liberals first in their Alliance incarnation with the Labour breakaway Social Democratic Party, and then after merger with the SDP, as the Liberal Democrats. The “Lib Dems” quickly became a viable voting alternative for voters on both the left and the right, and Britain has effectively had at least three-party politics for over forty years. From the 2000s onwards, the growth of nationalist sentiment in the U.K. has seen the dominance of Scottish politics by the Scottish National Party and a solid presence of the nationalist Plaid Cmyru in Wales. It has also seen the emergence of the Farage vehicles, UKIP, the Brexit Party and, most significantly in this election, Reform U.K. , indicating the lure of English nationalism to many voters. Therefore, in many constituencies, contests have been between three, four or even five, viable voting options. When Labour’s self-inflicted woes over Gaza and imposed candidates that resulted in the generation of effective independent challenges (most notably Jeremy Corbyn in Islington North), is added into the mix, the situation became even more complicated.

Therefore, in these circumstances, a vote percentage of 33.7% can actually be viewed as a good score, given the number of alternative options for voters to choose. Into this situation should be factored tactical voting. The Conservatives lost 224 seats, their most calamitous reduction in Parliamentary representation in one fell swoop in the party’s history. This spoke to a determination of voters across the country to unseat Conservative MPs. The 61 Liberal Democrat gains were achieved exclusively at the expense of the Tories, as were the seats won by Reform; Labour’s losses were solely to leftist independents or the Greens, who advised the electorate in those seats it was “safe” not to vote Labour as the Conservatives were doomed. The Liberal Democrat surge in the south which has propelled the Tories into political oblivion, was a big factor in the size of the Labour majority; paradoxically the phenomenon also suppressed Labour vote share.

The real takeaway of the 2024 General Election is not that of a grudging and conditional Labour win. Rather, the election demonstrated the determination of the voters to rid the country of the Conservatives after 14 years of dysfunction, broken promises, social vandalism and unwanted right wing ideological experiments masquerading as solutions. The anti-Tory coalition that swept the party away knew full well, whoever they voted for, that the government which would replace that of the Conservatives would be a Labour one. In the case of the Liberals, this acceptance was explicit; in the case of Reform implicit, but that does not make the outcome democratically illegitimate; on the contrary over 76% of those who voted got pretty much exactly what they wanted.

Of course 2024 is not the ringing endorsement of 1945 when the country united behind Labour in order to see the Beveridge proposals implemented; it does not match 1964 (also derided as an unenthusiastic win) when Harold Wilson secured over 44% of the vote, and it does not match the hope and expectation of 1997 (although enthusiasm for Blair has been much exaggerated in retrospect). However, I do believe most of that anti-Tory coalition will have listened to Keir Starmer’s speech outside Downing Street, not with fist-pumping excitement certainly, but perhaps with quiet hope - hope that, in the New Labour phrase, things can indeed only get better, and hope is a precious, if conditional, commodity after the waste and multiple betrayals of the Tory years.

7th July 2024

#british politics #labour election win #General election 2024 #new Labour government #keir starmer #destruction of the Tories #Conservative defeat #liberal democrats #reform uk

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shigure · 2 years

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politics readmore. talking about conservates that aren't [solely] racist fundies

if you actually listen to what conservatives say, and value (besides racism both implicit and overt), it's not a mystery why they think the way they do. they want their labor to be valued, and paid fairly. this is something anyone wants. the thing is, they believe that under socialism, their labor will be exploited without compensation to take care of people that just don't want to work. regardless of whether that's true - or which financial system it best describes - doesn't the idea suck? i'd hate that too.

furthermore, they understand that more and more of the country is voting democratic, and that they are a minority. the thing is, this doesn't make them wonder if they're wrong, because they believe most of the population is stupid. many republicans are boomers saying "kids these days," and many younger republicans are the "kids" in question trying desperately not to seem stupid like the rest of their generation. i remember being a teenager and doing horrible things in the name of being mature, because i was terrified of being disrespected and not taken seriously by adults i valued and respected. if those adults had been conservative, it's entirely possible that i would've adopted a sneering mindset, to ingratiate myself to them. maybe you wouldn't have done that. but i might have. and many people have done so. even if they're their twenties, they still value the wisdom of their family, and they disregard ideas that their family tells them are stupid.

if you go on reddit's front page, maybe 40% of the content you'll see right away is depicting people as stupid. "mildly infuriating," "am i the asshole," "petty revenge," "kids are fucking stupid," "insane parents," so on and so forth. all of these have communities built around humiliating the people posted there, with varying degrees of intensity. on subreddits like aita, you get upvotes for being snappy enough in your response, and the highest upvoted comment in the replies is given an award.

this is not, in itself, conservative propaganda. in fact, many people participating are leftists, and there are many subreddits like r/therightcantmeme that are explicitly leftist in nature, and are built around public humiliation. i don't associate this behavior exclusively with being liberal or conservative, but i don't consider it apolitical either. rather, i think it fosters a growing misanthropy within us - one that's been a part of western culture since before America even existed, but is being fed by the internet like mold on a rotting apple.

how many people do you know that have been the target of widespread online humilation? who have been the day's top idiot on the front page? i don't know anyone who has personally (and i'm grateful for that, because the long term psychological effects of that are absolutely devastating and i wouldn't wish them on anybody) and you likely know very few such people, if anyone at all. out of the people you meet, almost none are catastrophically stupid or rude enough to catch the internet's attention.

but 1% of the population is still a lot of people. if you've been conditioned to believe that that 1% represents a high percentage of society (ever heard the phrase "imagine how stupid the average person is - 50% of the population is dumber than that"?), why would you be surprised that over 50% of the country is "voting like idiots"? if you genuinely believe most people around you are so stupid they're a danger to others, why would you value their opinions, or let them tell you you're wrong about anything? hell, why would you want them to be allowed to vote at all, whether they're ex-convicts or just regular "dangerous idiots"? you comfort yourself that you're a bastion of rationality. it keeps you sane within your fear.

this misanthropy is a major part of the internet feedback loop. you're engaged by seeking negativity, and you're rewarded for being cruel in a funny way as a response. and by funding and perpetuating it, those with greater financial and political sway are able to keep a frothing, terrified base that's willing to tread the path of religious fundamentalism to protect themselves and their loved ones from what they perceive to be the greater danger.

it's part of why i hate the way many people mock conservatives. not that i pity the conservatives in question, but i know "information" (witty tweets) is being shared under the premise of enlightening people and making them rethink their positions... it's just an excuse to laugh at them and feel better about yourself. some ex-conservatives DID rethink their positions from those witty one liners, and i commend them for it, because god knows if someone mocked me for my beliefs i would just get defensive. you're not really trying to help.

the average reddit liberal has a lot of fun saying "you can't actually believe the cheeto in the white house wanted to help you. he literally made his ex partners get abortions" or whatever in the same tone that another person would use to tell me i can't possibly believe there's more than two genders. there's a difference. one is factually correct, and the other is a biological essentialist with a less-than-eighth-grade understanding of biology. but that doesn't mean it's much better.

idk. no point ranting about reddit on a different social media platform really. just. cool joke dude, you really owned them. now try saying something empathetic and kind or whatever

#it's not wrong to want to be safe and valued and compensated. that in itself is not a problem.#AVERAGE DOG OPINION

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90363462 · 2 years

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Republicans, Fear the Young

Nov. 19, 2022Seventy percent of the younger electorate in Pennsylvania voted for John Fetterman.Quinn Glabicki/Reuters

By John Della Volpe

Mr. Della Volpe is the director of polling at the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics.

Stressed and sickened by thoughts of their rights and democracy slipping away, young Americans across gender, racial, geographic and education lines banded together last week to help save the Democrats from what many foresaw as a sizable midterm defeat. If the elections had been decided by voters 45 and older, Republicans would have won the House by an even greater margin and likely taken the Senate. But thanks to young voters (especially the 18-to-29 age group, which had the second-highest turnout in midterm elections in almost 30 years, according to early estimates from Tufts University), Democrats retained the Senate, showing that an alliance of Gen Z and millennial voters answered history’s call to defend democracy. The majority of them rejected the big lie. They possess the turbulent, kinetic energy that withstands red waves. They will propel Democrats’ progressive agenda forward if the party seizes the moment.

In 2018, young voters were key to Nancy Pelosi regaining the speaker’s gavel. In 2020, millennials and members of Gen Z were instrumental in moving Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin into Joe Biden’s column, thus relegating Donald Trump to a one-term presidency. Winning one election might be an accident. Two, an anomaly. Three in a row proves that earning the support of the Gen Z-millennial alliance is essential to winning elections in our current era.

While Gen Z and millennial voters tend to vote Democratic, the preference is most pronounced in voters under 30. Consider some of the recent exit polls: In Arizona, the incumbent Democratic senator Mark Kelly won 76 percent of the 18-to-29-year-old vote, while the election denier Republican Blake Masters received just 20 percent, according to a CNN exit poll. In Pennsylvania, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a Democrat, dominated the youth vote, receiving 70 percent, compared with the 28 percent Dr. Mehmet Oz, a Republican, received. And in Nevada, the incumbent Democratic senator Catherine Cortez Masto earned re-election against the Republican Adam Laxalt, thanks in no small part to her effort among young voters, whom she won resoundingly: Sixty-four percent, compared to Laxalt’s 31 percent.

This union of Gen Z and millennial voters will account for nearly 40 percent of votes in the next presidential election, according to estimates from the Center for American Progress. Republicans ignore this voting bloc at their peril. Even among white voters — the traditional Republican base — the youngest are slipping away to support Democrats. While midterm estimates show that the majority of whites over 30 years old voted Republican, 58 percent of whites under 30 voted for Democratic House candidates.

This is perhaps not surprising given how out of touch with young people party stalwarts such as Senator Ted Cruz can sometimes seem. Mr. Cruz, potentially provoking millions of voters following Mr. Biden’s student loan forgiveness announcement, said: “If you are that slacker barista who wasted seven years in college studying completely useless things, now has loans and can’t get a job, Joe Biden just gave you 20 grand.”

Democrats who court the youth vote fully will likely outperform their competitors in 2024. Now is the time to listen more intently, see beyond the top-line polling data and better understand the values and vision of this still emerging voting bloc intent on saving the America they believe is under threat.

As the salience of the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization illustrates, young voters, both Democratic and Republican, are exceedingly concerned about rights — not just their own. A defining attribute of young Americans today is the degree to which they stand up and fight for those even more vulnerable than they are. Roughly four months before the Supreme Court overturned nearly 50 years of precedent on abortion, preserving individual rights and freedoms overpowered more than a dozen other midterm-year issues such as climate change and criminal justice reform, according to a national surveyof likely voters ages 17 to 34 that my firm, SocialSphere, conducted for Snapchat.

Similarly, according to the fall 2022 Harvard Youth Poll, a national survey I oversee for the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics, 59 percent of young Americans believe their rights are under attack and 73 percent are troubled that the rights of others are threatened. Defending and expanding fundamental rights must be a cornerstone of the Democrats’ 2024 program. As the right for women to control their bodies animated younger voters in red states and blue, so too could a campaign for the right to inherit a healthy planet, to feel safe in school, to receive quality education, health care and an economy of opportunity.

As the 2022 post-mortems evolve into 2024 strategy, Mr. Biden and Democrats would also be well served to invest more in relational organizing, which enables young Americans to share with their peers the many campaign promises the president successfully delivered. Breaking through the algorithmic bubble of the uninterested is a complex challenge for political operatives. Our research shows that the more closely younger Americans follow politics, the more likely they are to approve of Mr. Biden’s job performance. As Victor Shi, a U.C.L.A. junior and Mr. Biden’s youngest convention delegate in 2020, reminded me, “the messenger matters, and it’s much easier for a young person to listen if it comes from their peer.”

Like all voters, young Americans stay engaged when they recognize the tangible difference their votes can make. By never losing sight of the threat to our democracy and focusing on concrete deliverables such as an assault weapons ban, a pathway to citizenship for DACA recipients, investments in child care and more affordable housing, Democrats can continue to attract and galvanize this critical part of their evolving base.

Many of the young men and women who voted for Democrats this fall have a complicated relationship with America. They have been told of our exceptionalism but rarely experienced it themselves or seen our nation united. Their brightest political memories are when the powerful protect and defend the vulnerable — like the day in 2015, a zoomer told me recently, when President Barack Obama and then-Vice President Biden lit the White House in rainbow L.G.B.T.Q. Pride colors in honor of the Supreme Court recognizing same-sex marriage. In the eyes of many young voters, this is how America meets its destiny: when the passion of the grass roots melds with the power of institutions to forge progress. As political analysts methodically review the numbers after an election for the ages, anyone interested in the winning formula for 2024 should closely examine those between the ages of 18 and 39.

Mr. Della Volpe (@dellavolpe) is the director of polling at the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics and has overseen its youth poll since 2000. He is the author of “Fight: How Gen Z Is Channeling Their Fear and Passion to Save America.”

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And here’s our email: [email protected].

Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.

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boricuacherry-blog · 4 months

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"There is nothing you can do to get past Black skin. I don't care how educated you are, how good you are at what you do - you'll never have the same contacts or opportunities, you'll never be seen as equal to whites," says Clarence Thomas, who is ironically married to a white woman. Thomas says the motive of white liberals is to disrupt Black life - to assuage the white guilt of those who would never willingly cede power, all in service to some supremacist status quo. He prefers the directness of Southern racism to the subtlety of northern condescension. There is, as one writer said, a "fatalism born of the lived experience of racism and the heavily manned edifice of white ignorance" - a desire for the transparency in open hostility to the obfuscation of sanctimony, the rattlesnake to the water moccasin. Sometimes you want the subtext to just be made text.

Thomas was raised in isolated coastal Georgia in a one-room cottage with a single mom and spoke in the local dialect, Geechee. But soon unable to care for the children, his grandfather took them in. "He meant to control every aspect of our lives," writes Thomas in My Grandfather's Son, a book in which his Grandfather is painted as both a looming "dark behemoth" and "the greatest man I have ever known" in a single strand of text.

"He never praised us, just as he never hugged us," Thomas wrote. After a brief and defining experience in Black Catholic elementary school, Thomas went on a tour of white institutions. He was one of only two Black children in his high-school seminary. His wife Ginni grew up in a lakeside home the Omaha-Herald once called a resort residence.

In the spring of 1986, Clarence was a 37-year-old divorced single father and one of D.C.'s most eligible bachelors according to Jet magazine. He was also the head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

A few weeks later, Thomas and Ginni fell in love after watching Short Circuit, a movie about a military robot who gains sentience, flees its Army pursuers, and wins freedom from its government minders by building a decoy of itself.

who was given, according to Pulitzer Prize winner and Holy Cross classmate Edward P. Jones,* to using language that "would have reduced other people to tears." An acquaintance from Yale remembers him carrying porn in the back pocket of his overalls and offering detailed descriptions of X-rated movies he had seen in downtown New Haven. The proprietor of Graffiti, a video store then near Dupont Circle could describe the kind of movies that attracted Thomas.

On the day George H.W. Bush nominated him, Clarence Thomas gave a brief speech of acceptable. "Only in America," he said.

With Ginni Thomas,

"I kind of zone out when it comes to legal issues," also confessed Ginni. In their 40-foot Prevost motor coach, she and Clarence would talk about anything but. He enjoyed showing off his used motor home while wearing his custom yacht polo which was customarily gifted to guests on Harlan Crow's luxury vacations. Corey Robin, in his book The Enigma of Clarence Thomas, wrote that Thomas's position that white plans to improve Black life are poisonous seemed incongruous with his close friendship to Harlan Crow.

Thomas quotes W.E.B. Du Bois and Frederick Douglass and draws frequently on his own painful childhood, and yet he comes, almost all of the time, to conclusions amenable to Harlan Crow.

"Do nothing with us," Douglass had said. But, according to others, Thomas did do something - he sided overwhelmingly with states that were actively working to destroy Black voting blocs. He did not, in fact, share Crow's worldview, but had instead melded a mix of black nationalism and originalism sufficient to build a decoy.

Clarence Thomas will be the longest-serving justice in American history.

Although some might argue precedent can cloud the context of the Constitution, as Sonia Sotomayor herself said in 2009, "I don't judge on the basis of ideology," and that is the supposed groundwork on which prior lawmaking was based. Thomas seemed to care the least about the constraints of precedence when he allegedly sided with the carceral state.

The role is one of impartiality, and over the course of his career, Thomas has recused himself for cases involving Jamal [a relative]'s college and workplace. He has never however, despite much criticism, recused himself regarding anything involving Ginni.

#clarence thomas #ginni thomas #article #thinkpiece #interesting

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mediocre-daydreams · 2 years

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steve rogers x residential flirt!reader with “i have to get something off my chest” “is it your shirt? please say it’s your shirt” + flustered steve please!! 💕💕

i've never written for steve before and i haven't read many steve fics, so this one was a bit of a challenge! hopefully it fits his character <3

is it hot in here?

pairing: steve rogers x avenger! reader

summary: steve rogers thinks you're trying to get under his skin when in reality, you're trying to flirt. (like, really unsubtly.) it's not until he has you pinned to the mat that he realizes it.

warnings: swearing, a couple innuendos, bad flirting from reader and flustered! steve, basically just fluff and sexual tension with a little bit of insecurity from reader and steve about how the other feels (because they're both dumb little shits)

w/c: 2.3k

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

mama rogers raised steve to be a gentleman. what she didn’t do, though, was raise steve with the knowledge of how to handle beautiful women throwing themselves at him.

once he got through the first few levels and onto the avengers’ living area, he was mostly safe from preening tech workers and lower-level agents. the male shield trainees thought they were slick when they checked out america’s ass, but steve wasn’t blind.

well, maybe he was a little blind.

amongst his plethora of admirers was you, fellow avenger and the bane of steve’s existence. he liked the man he’d been before he met you: collected, confident, and if he did say so himself, suave. with you around, though, he’d been reduced to 40s pre-serum steve; no, even worse. he was a jittery, overthinking, bumbling—

“hey handsome,” you simpered, walking two fingers down his forearm as you passed by. he shuddered at the smell of your shampoo.

“h-hi,” he stumbled, cheeks fiery.

“careful there, cap. your face looks almost as red as your shield.” you patted him on the arm reassuringly. (it did not do much to calm him down.) “anyways, are we still on for that training sesh?”

steve glanced down to his wrist and checked the digital watch stark had given him. “we’ve still got 15 minutes,” he stated dumbly.

“perfect. we can do some stretching. wanna help me out?” you batted your eyelashes dramatically, hoping that steve would catch the hint. the poor man was either completely oblivious or absolutely stupid. you’d asked for bucky and natasha’s opinions. bucky voted oblivious and natasha voted stupid.

“well, i- i’m not very good at aerobics, but i could ask natasha to come down if you’d-”

“no, that’s okay. thank you though.” your smile faltered, and if it weren’t for the way steve was staring at you intensely, as he usually did. your voice pitched back to normal in seconds.

“well, see you down there, big boy.” you spun on your heel and steve could swear that you walked away from him much faster than your usual gait, as if you wanted to get away from him. he sighed, rubbing his forehead in frustration.

you played so many games with him, and he couldn’t decipher you. he prided himself on being the capitan of the team, somebody who brought people together and led effectively because of his understanding of everybody’s strengths and weaknesses. that had been his entire identity before he met you. all of a sudden, you seemed to flit between the gaps of each avenger’s neatly organized identity, knocking down their corners until their walls came down like dominoes. and you were trying to do the same to him.

he walked slowly to the gym, still pondering your place among the team. it wasn’t that you’d knocked down his teammates’ walls for the worse, but you’d made them more unpredictable, spontaneous, adventurous—steve didn’t know what to do with any of that. he was a military man; straight lines and sharp movements.

the first thing he saw when walking into the gym was you conveniently in the downward dog position. you peeked between your legs and saw steve who was trying his best to look unphased. you counted that as a minor victory. so you did have some impact on him after all.

“steve!” you bounded over. “so, i was thinking we could spar first, since natasha and bucky were planning on using the ring later. then we could cool down with cardio?”

he smiled—yes, a real smile—in agreement. he wanted to do weight training. but you’d looked at him so sweetly and you hadn’t made fun of him that time, so for once, steve felt like he could breathe around you. oh boy, did you make him sweat.

he soon realized you were good at making him sweat in more ways that one. no, not that way! steve was absolutely and thoroughly a gentleman.

steve’d thought to go easy on you and he was deadly mistaken. within minutes, you had him pinned to the ground as you hovered triumphantly over his face, laughing as he gaped at you in surprise. you’d poked his cheek and leaned down to whisper in his ear, “is that really the best you can do?”

that was it for steve. damn darn the flutter in his chest at the idea of pinning you against his chest, or on the floor, or against a wall, or-

gentlemanly thoughts, steve.

he’d barely broken a sweat but relished the reversal of the roles—he was back in charge and this time, you were the flushed, panting mess. “you really want it, sweetheart?” he taunted, adjusting the wrap over his fists.

you grinned. “show me what you’ve got. i like it rough.”

steve froze. you took the opportunity to sprung forward, catching him off guard. you feigned a punch, and as he leaned forward to block it, you jumped to his side and he stumbled forward from the momentum of his missed punch.

this was the game you two played. steve was six feet something of pure muscle and super soldier serum. you had none of those enhancements, and you were less than twice his size. while steve resorted to brute force and classic sparring methods, you had to be a little more creative. you weaved and breezed through his attacks, placing hits whenever you could, and never let yourself fall into a pattern.

patterns were how you lost. you were admittedly much smaller than the other avengers, and the only way you were able to keep up was never letting anybody read you, inside or outside the ring. with steve… it was a little harder.

you’d put distance between you and him as you heaved to catch your breath, still determined to take him down for a second time. steve’d finally shown signs of physical exertion, and you were proud as you admired noticed his shirt beginning to dampen and the shine of his forehead.

“tired yet?” steve smirked, finally finding the upper ground. sure, he turned to putty at your words. but you were too busy trying to catch up to hurl your usual taunts and jabs.

“i could do this all day.” you threw his words back at him with a big grin, raising your fists to eye level and bouncing on the heels of your foot just like steve would always do as a kid. he chuckled to himself before launching his body at you, prepared to tackle you to the ground—you were smaller, off guard, and tired. it’d be an easy win.

he landed hard on his chest. there was no body under him; he hadn’t pinned anyone. where were you?

steve felt you sneak a firm kick to his side as he scrambled to his feet. you’d lept out of the way once again. that was it, though. steve finally had a read on you. you were unpredictable. that was your pattern. you didn’t fight traditionally, in the way that steve had been taught. you were lighter on your feet, a faster thinker, and a more cautious attacker.

he saw you launch yourself from the ropes, your fist barreling towards his chin, and instead of blocking your attack as he normally would, he simply dodged. your fist never made impact, and to stop yourself from faceplanting, you grabbed steve’s wifebeater with one fist to try and steady yourself. steve didn’t have time to push you off before you dragged him down with you. his body slammed into yours.

“you’re crushing me!” a muffled voice came from underneath him. “get off me!” steve felt you wiggle in an unsuccessful attempt to free yourself. he lifted the majority of his weight off you, but grabbed your wrists before you could escape and pinned them down at your sides.

you wanted to kiss smack the smug expression off his pretty face.

“told you i wouldn’t go easy on you.” steve poked you in the cheek to return the favor from your last match. you groaned.

“you’re still- you’re very close right now,” you laughed breathlessly. your eyes darted around. “a-and you’re still on top of me.”

steve’s eyes widened before a cocky laugh escaped him. you could feel the movement in his chest and he shook his head, eyes still trained on yours. “it’s just- you’re flustered, aren’t you?”

you glared at him. “no, i’m not!” thrashing once more, you demanded that he release you from his prison. “i will kick you in the-”

steve released you immediately.

you sat up and shook the tension from your muscles. steve seemed to have retreated into his old, shy self. you were a little disappointed. this had been the only time steve seemed to have reciprocated your interest, and it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. maybe he’d only used it as a ruse to distract you during your match.

you begun unwrapping your hands with unusual wordlessness. steve looked you up and down before sighing loudly, sitting himself down right across from you.

“i have to get something off my chest,” he confessed, refusing to make eye contact.

you drew from the dwindling reserve of flirty comebacks that you still had. “oh yeah? is it your shirt? because i’d be more than happy to take that off for you,” you laughed. you cringed. both you and steve could tell it was entirely fake.

steve wasn’t quite sure what had prompted such a drastic change in attitude. you were usually raucous and bold; you had been just an hour ago. now, you looked dejected and insecure.

while steve normally would’ve fainted on the spot at your comment, the captain side of him took over. he delicately slid his large hand under your chin with more grace than you had expected possible from a hulking soldier. he raised your head until you were forced to meet his eye.

“are you okay?” there was genuine concern on his face.

after all these months of unreciprocated flirting, unsubtle hints, and practically screamed professions of your love, the only time he’d ever let you in was the time when you finally had nothing to say.

you let out a heavy breath you hadn’t realized you’d been holding and took an equally deep inhale, trying desperately to soothe your pounding heart. you prayed steve couldn’t hear it.

“yeah, i just,” you squeaked, “sorry! i’m just a little… overexerted. from sparring.” there wasn’t even any suggestiveness in your wording. now steve was really beginning to worry.

“earlier, uh, i said i needed to get something off my chest. not my shirt!” he blurted in clarification. “i just wanted to say that i- well, i-” steve hesitated before pulling his hands away from your face and using them to cover his own.

“i like you, steve,” you let slip. you clapped a hand over your mouth in mortification. “oh shit, i- no, fuck, i know you don’t like swearing- holy… uh, holy moly.” you slammed the heel of your palm against your head. “i’m sorry! i didn’t mean to ruin things. i probably should’ve backed off, i know.” you laughed, angry at yourself.

“i should’ve respected your feelings, steve, and i’m so sorry. i just kept pushing it because god, i really like you, and it was selfish of me to make you feel so uncomfortable, and i don’t want to ruin the dynamic of the team just because i was too immature to-”

steve cut you off with a forceful kiss, slamming his lips into yours. the two of you froze, neither of your lips moving, until steve pulled away in horror.

“i’m so, so sorry,” he panicked. “i didn’t even ask, i just-”

you pulled him in again; this time, you were softer, less rushed. you were sweaty and steve was overheating and you probably smelled terrible, but you would’ve been content sitting on the sparring ring’s mat for hours despite all the questionable bodily fluids it had probably seen for hours, if it meant steve wouldn’t stop kissing you.

it was with reluctance that you pulled away. unfortunately, you did not have the lung capacity of a super soldier. “so, did you know this whole time?” you examined his face in disbelief.

“did i know what?”

“that i had been flirting with you. for the past few months. did you, y’know, pick up on all of it? or did you guess? or did somebody tell you? or did you not know at all?”

steve’s cheeks darkened one more shade, as they almost always did when talking to you. “i don’t know if i can say all of it… i’m not quite caught up on that aspect of modern lingo.”

you snorted, using the back of your hand to wipe the sweat from your forehead in a very unladylike manner. “so, how did you end up taking me down? because-”

through the door burst bucky and natasha in the middle of a heated argument. they stopped when they saw the two of you chatting nonchalantly on the floor, still in very close proximity to each other and still very sweaty. natasha raised an eyebrow at you. you shook your head furiously.

“how’s it shakin’, bacon?” bucky broke the silence. you squinted at him.

“where did you learn that?”

“irrelevant. so, did you guys like, kiss already? ‘cause i can come back if you’re planning on using this room for other physical activities.” bucky deflected.

“it was very… chaste,” steve coughed.

natasha looked at you pointedly and stabbed a finger to her chest, then pointed to you. me. you. tonight. spill.

she and bucky turned to each other with wicked grins. before you could get out a word, they were back out the glass doors and waving through them. you and steve were puzzled. when the lock clicked and natasha and bucky high fived each other, sauntering away, you had your question answered for you.

you couldn’t say you were complaining.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

marvel masterlist | main masterlist

taglist: (comment to be added!)

@im-a-slut-for-fluff @bambamwolf87 @yourallihave

#steve rogers #steve x reader #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x y/n #steve rogers x avenger! reader #steve rogers fic #steve rogers fluff #steve rogers x reader fluff

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1ddotdhq · 4 years

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🚨 Fri Aug 28🚨

!!!!!!!LIAM’S ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!

Reading both the Sun and the Daily Mail’s version of events is a headache and a massive web of contradictions, but it’s all we have to go off of, because no one else decided to chime in today, including Liam himself!

On August 27, 2020, The Sun reported Liam’s engagement to *mumbles number between 19 and 20 here* year old Maya Henry after two years of dating. This number is brought to you by the same source that says Maya was 20 years old. According to People, the first year was secret! The Sun did publish pap pics from 8/26 with what was reported to be a £3 million engagement ring on her finger. The fandom’s reaction has been mixed at best, though largely, an air of confusion prevails, followed quickly by anger and frustration. And just like that, we have returned to a hostile fandom environment with a LOT of differing opinions which have drawn lines in the sand.

And then, of course, Liam went live. This happened at around 8 pm BST, and he spent 20 minutes talking about his upcoming show because,oh, also, the LP Show is in ONE day! What else did he have to say? Well, he talked a bit about his haunted house, doing more food challenges, premiering new songs on Saturday (!!!), Harry’s nipples (???), the way he pronounces ‘adore’, the Umbrella Academy, COVID life and how he keeps his depression at bay (love u, bud), and he sang a bit of Watermelon Sugar, while promising that Saturday’s show is the culmination of a lot of hard work, and he hopes it goes well. I do, too! The comments on the live, however, only seemed to want one pesky question answered: is he actually engaged?? For what it’s worth, Liam ignored everything related to this topic, and did not once mention his girlfriend/fiancee. Thanks for that, Liam!

We at 1 dee discourse inc. gave it a day, but, despite Liam’s conspicuous evasion of the subject in his live, this very much seems to be the route that Liam - or, rather, his team - are taking, as his rep seems to have confirmed the engagement with The Sun so! Don’t shoot the messenger! However, as we are still in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, they seem to be headed for a lengthy engagement - or at least that’s the hope. My piece of advice to them would be: don’t try to break the social distancing guidelines with a wedding, you crazy kids!

( Intern’s note: Honestly, if you have something mean to say about Maya, please don’t put it in my notes - she’s nineteen years old, and I don’t want to hear it.)

Let’s see...what else happened today? OH YEAH, Louis put out a brand new merch line!!! Okay, guys, my bank account is not going to survive this. Lyric Drop 1, as this collection is called, dropped on the 28th of August (today, as it so happens!).There were also rainbow face mural T-shirts and hoodies, as well as - get this, guys!! - a crop top hoodie! Anyways, the Lyric Drop line seems to mean that each collection will be inspired from different lyrics in Walls. This one is the “You’re Written In My DNA” Collection, which showcases a green and red double helix on top of a...fence? It’s DNA inside a cage? Behind a wall? (I actually really like that last one, so that’s what we’re going with!)

Well, at least it isn’t called the “DNA test” line, but it is pretty funny, considering...everything. This begs the question, though, of what lyric they will adapt next! I personally vote for “come so far from Princess Park” or “singing something poppy on the same four chords” or “it’s a solo song, and it’s only for the brave”. Regardless, I am curious as to how they’re going to design some of these lines, AND I think that “the Princess Park line” sounds like a super cute name for merch!

I think I should not have been surprised by this drop, given that he was seen meeting with a designer about merch a month ago (but not, as we thought, his twin brother, the head of UMG), but. I was still surprised. Soooo...does anyone want to help an Intern out and buy me the DNA tank top or an oversized hoodie of his eyes?? ~This is a joke I’m not actually asking you to buy me merch.~

Because Louis and Harry always have to be #twinning, there was an unusual development about Harry’s merch, as well. HSHQ might pick a legal fight with Forever 21 for, uh, *double checks* putting the phrase “Treat People With Kindness” on a hoodie. Harry did actually trademark that phrase in the UK, the US, and the EU in 2019, so he may have a legal case? Let’s get this square - as Louis would say - Forever 21 sucks. They suck, and they’re almost bankrupt, so this did not seem to be a smart move on their end. If it were me, though, I would urge HSHQ to recognize the fact that similar merch is being sold at a much lower cost, which seems to make it more accessible to fans - who are more than willing to buy it!

Zayn is zayning? I think that’s how you use that word. It has been noted that he has been more visible (for him) on social media, lately, so that might hint at a new project he might have coming out, which absolutely could be the case! In the same vein, Icarus Falls was re-released on all major streaming platforms with two more tracks: Dusk ‘Til Dawn and Still Got Time. This brings the tracklist to a total of 29 tracks and the length of the album to almost 1 hour and 40 minutes!! That’s crazy!!! Even crazier, the album has now surpassed 1.1 billion streams on Spotify! Go Zayn!

Meanwhile, a former Syco (or psycho, as I like to call them) artist confirmed the label’s dissolution while shading the fuck out of them. The Wikipedia was quickly changed to more accurately reflect the situation. It now reads: “...the record label [was] founded by British LOUIS TOMLINSON SUPREMACY…”. Also, if you change your Google settings to Spanish and Google ‘Harry Styles’, you’ll be informed that he’s been married to Louis Tomlinson since 2019. Happy anniversary, boys!

#aug 28 2020 #harry #louis #zayn #liam #and E is on her way back #so maybe we can see Clifford again!!#i didn't know i missed the dog content until it was gone #so what kind of day has it been?#song rec of the day #is Moral of the Story #by an artist named Ashe #and she has this version with this one dude name Niall Horan?#idk if uve heard of him before #also also #thank u to my friend #for tuning into liams live for me!

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dhaaruni · 3 years

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I think what I really hate about leftist messaging is the complete lack of understanding of how humans work. Like, yes, student debt should be cancelled, and college should be free, but the way to get there isn't to yell on the internet at some 40-year-old who's given up a lot to pay their student loans and is frustrated (unjustifiably or not) that other people won't have to go through that.

Yeah, and moreover only like 32% of the country even has a Bachelor's Degree and our demographic still completely dominates the media and discourse. Free college is well and good but so many people can't or just don't want to go to college because academia just isn't for them but still want to be able to feed their families and take care of their kids.

Someone put it like this and it really clicked with me: a white guy who makes $50,000 as a bricklayer votes like a white guy who owns a plumbing company and makes $200,000 a year and not like the white male adjunct professor who makes $50,000 a year, who votes like a white male software engineer who makes $200,000 a year, and that's all education polarization. Like, for white people, everything else held constant, (sexuality, gender, etc.) education is the deciding factor, more so than income. The fact that Democrats represent like 90% of the districts where the average income is over $100,000 should tell you that!!

Like, that's also why people like Tammy Baldwin and Sherrod Brown, Democratic senators in red states (Hillary lost Wisconsin and Biden won it by like 20,000 votes, it's NOT a blue state) who serve alongside a Republican senator, run on bread-and-butter economic issues like strengthening unions and increasing the minimum wage and lowering drug prices, and don't talk about abortion beyond saying they're pro-choice and almost never talk about immigration. Wisconsin and Ohio are thousands of miles from Mexico but talking about immigration still makes them lose voters! This excerpt from the latest David Shor article made things click for me:

A white person in Wisconsin or Ohio who votes for Baldwin and Brown, especially when they don't vote for Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, votes for Baldwin and Brown because they make THEIR life better, and when Democrats seem to be prioritizing people that aren't them, they go, "I should vote for Republicans since at least they care about my identity as a white person and don't make me the butt of the joke all the time." This isn't me condoning voting Republican since obviously poor Black women overwhelmingly vote Democrat despite generally facing more censure than white people, this is me saying that's the mindset you need to understand in order statewide elections in states that are >80% white, which again, Democrats have to do so we don't end up with 40 Senate seats and 150 House seats by 2025.

(And no, the answer is not for Democrats to stick to their guns and lose elections.)

#answered #anonymous #politics

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coochiequeens · 2 years

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Just great. Not only do women have less roles in movies but now they will have to compete again men in award categories

The Independent Spirit Awards were the latest Hollywood voting body to go genderless with its awards, announcing on Aug. 23 that the best lead actress and best supporting actress awards were being retired forever.

Instead, there will be only “best lead performance” and “best supporting performance” awards handed out to a gender-diverse pool of 10 nominees in film and scripted series categories at the ceremony, scheduled for March 4, 2023.

To make up for the two eliminated categories, a new category, honoring a “breakthrough performance in film,” was added — for a total of seven total acting awards presented, down from eight previously.

This move follows similar ones made previously by the Grammys (which went genderless in 2012) and the Gotham Awards, which made a similar move in 2021.

“It’s something we’ve been discussing for a while,” says Josh Welsh, president of Film Independent, which mounts the Independent Spirit Awards. “It’s come up over the last two years as something for us to consider, both at the staff level and the board level.”

Welsh says the reasons for the decision are twofold. First, Film Independent sees acting as no different from the various other disciplines that contribute to filmmaking. “For almost 40 years at The Spirit Awards,” he says, “we have recognized writers, directors, producers, cinematographers and editors very well without any reference to their gender. … Why aren’t we evaluating actors just on the basis of their craft, like every other award category that we’re giving out? It just seems like it’s reflective of the cultural moment that we’re in.”

Secondly, the new categories offer a more inclusive space for gender-nonconforming nominees. “The non-binary population really has no place at an awards show,” Welsh says. “You’re required to choose if you want to be identified as male or female. The Spirit Awards are a welcoming, inclusive ceremony. It’s about freedom of expression. And if people can’t freely express who they are and we’re requiring to come to the show and identify in a way that they’re not comfortable with, that just seems plainly wrong.”

Welsh acknowledges concerns were raised internally about the elimination of the female categories — a move that could be construed as running counterintuitively to the post-MeToo and Time’s Up Hollywood landscape.

“That was certainly discussed,” he says. “And there’s a very legitimate concern that Hollywood is obviously not a level playing field when it comes to women in the industry. … But I don’t think the way to address that problem is by holding on to sort of antiquated award categories. I don’t think that’s the solution.”

For Kirsten Schaffer, CEO of Women in Film, a group that since 1973 “advocates for and advances the careers of women working in the screen industries,” the genderless awards show trend is something to applaud.

“The work of Women in Film, particularly in the last few years, has been to advance women and gender nonconforming people in the industry. And so this is definitely a way to do that,” Schaffer says. “All of the actors who identify as non-binary or don’t fall cleanly into a gendered category now have an opportunity.”

“I applaud them for trying something new,” she continues. “Sometimes I think the thing that’s going to level the playing field for women is to change the dynamics around gender. So that if we all moved in direction of gender nonconformity or nonbinary-ism, maybe then we wouldn’t have such a problem.”

Like the Gotham Awards, the Independent Spirit Awards are chosen by committee, meaning winners are chosen internally and can be adjusted to avoid a lopsided number of, say, male-identifying winners in any given year.

Schaffer says she’ll be observing the results carefully to see how the rules change plays out. “It’s important to ask the questions and have the conversations and I think it’s also important to keep an eye on it,” she says. “If it ultimately hurts women, then I hope that they’ll readjust.”

As for the Academy Awards — which are voted on by a body of over 10,000 members — in a recent media scrum, new Academy CEO Bill Kramer said the organization is “conducting due diligence” on gender neutrality, “but there’s no plan right now to activate that.”

Women may represent half of the global population in real life, but fictional film worlds get by with just a third.

The latest It’s a Man’s (Celluloid) World report from San Diego State’s Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film has found that men outnumbered women onscreen by a factor of 2 to 1 in 2021. This proportion held steady across the shares of lone protagonists (31 percent), major characters (35 percent) and all speaking characters (34 percent), with less than 3 points of deviation from the year before.

“Despite the major disruptions in the film business over the last couple of years, onscreen gender ratios have remained relatively stable,” Martha Lauzen, the Center’s executive director, said in a statement.

Women may represent half of the global population in real life, but fictional film worlds get by with just a third.

Seven percent of the films sampled — the 100 highest-grossing movies in the U.S., according to Box Office Mojo — featured more female than male characters, and 8 percent achieved gender parity. The remaining 85 percent of movies released last year were majority male.

More than half (57.6 percent) of 2021’s major female characters were white, down from nearly three-quarters (74.4 percent) the year before. Black women represented 16.4 percent of major female characters (up from 13.2 percent in 2020), but the increase in BIPOC representation was mainly boosted by Latinas (12.8 percent) and Asian women (10 percent), who each had a 5.7 percent share of the pie in 2020. (There were no major MENA female characters in film last year, and 0.4 percent of major female characters were Native American.)

The study notes that if Latino- and Asian-centered movies like Encanto, In the Heights, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Minari are excluded from the analysis, the share of Latinas and Asian women as major characters falls to their 2020 levels (5.3 percent and 6.7 percent, respectively).

“These findings suggest that the increases in Latinas and Asian and Asian American females in major roles are largely due to their presence in a handful of films,” said Lauzen, “rather than their integration in a wide variety of films.”

It’s a Man’s (Celluloid) World also qualitatively analyzed character portrayals, finding that women featured onscreen tended to be younger than men. Their character goals tended to revolve around personal life and their relationship status was more likely to be identified than male characters, who were more likely to have work-related goals and an identifiable occupation. The report also conducted the same analysis on a sampling containing every film that appeared on the Digital Entertainment Group’s weekly Watched at Home Top 20 list in 2021.

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#Women in hollywood #Why don’t the trans non-binary whatever’s have their own award shows?

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robertreich · 4 years

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The Real Choice: Social Control or Social Investment

Some societies center on social control, others on social investment. Social-control societies put substantial resources into police, prisons, surveillance, immigration enforcement, and the military. Their purpose is to utilize fear, punishment, and violence to divide people and keep the status quo in place — perpetuating the systemic oppression of Black and brown people, and benefiting no one but wealthy elites. Social-investment societies put more resources into healthcare, education, affordable housing, jobless benefits, and children. Their purpose is to free people from the risks and anxieties of daily life and give everyone a fair shot at making it. Donald Trump epitomizes the former. He calls himself the “law and order” president. He even wants to sic the military on Americans protesting horrific police killings.

He has created an unaccountable army of federal agents who go into cities like Portland, Oregon -- without showing their identities -- and assault innocent Americans. Trump is the culmination of forty years of increasing social control in the United States and decreasing social investment – a trend which, given the deep-seated history of racism in the United States, falls disproportionately on Black people, indigeneous people, and people of color. Spending on policing in the United States has almost tripled, from $42.3 billion in 1977 to $114.5 billion in 2017. America now locks away 2.2 million people in prisons and jails. That’s a 500 percent increase from 40 years ago. The nation now has the largest incarcerated population in the world. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has exploded. More people are now in ICE detention than ever in its history. Total military spending in the U.S. has soared from $437 billion in 2003 to $935.8 billion this fiscal year. The more societies spend on social controls, the less they have left for social investment. More police means fewer social services. American taxpayers spend $107.5 billion more on police than on public housing. More prisons means fewer dollars for education. In fact, America is now spending more money on prisons than on public schools. Fifteen states now spend $27,000 more per person in prison than they do per student. As spending on controls has increased, spending on public assistance has shrunk. Fewer people are receiving food stamps. Outlays for public health have declined. America can't even seem to find money to extend unemployment benefits during this pandemic. Societies that skimp on social investment end up spending more on social controls that perpetuate violence and oppression. This trend is a deep-seated part of our history. The United States began as a control society. Slavery – America’s original sin – depended on the harshest conceivable controls. Jim Crow and redlining continued that legacy. But in the decades following World War II, the nation began inching toward social investment – the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, the Fair Housing Act, and substantial investments in health and education. Then America swung backward to social control. Since Richard Nixon declared a “war on drugs,” four times as many people have been arrested for possessing drugs as for selling them.

Of those arrested for possession, half have been charged with possessing cannabis for their own use. Nixon’s strategy had a devastating effect on Black people that is still felt today: a Black person is nearly 4 times more likely to be arrested for cannabis possession than a white person, even though they use it at similar rates.

Bill Clinton put 88,000 additional police on the streets and got Congress to mandate life sentences for people convicted of a felony after two or more prior convictions, including drug offenses.

This so-called “three strikes you’re out” law was replicated by many states, and, yet again, disproportionately impacted Black Americans. In California, for instance, Black people were 12 times more likely than white people to be incarcerated under three-strikes laws, until the state reformed the law in 2012. Clinton also “reformed” welfare into a restrictive program that does little for families in poverty today.

Why did America swing back to social control? Part of the answer has to do with widening inequality. As the middle class collapsed and the ranks of the poor grew, those in power viewed social controls as cheaper than social investment, which would require additional taxes and a massive redistribution of both wealth and power. Meanwhile, politicians whose power depends on maintaining the status quo, used racism – from Nixon’s “law and order” and Reagan’s “welfare queens” to Trump’s blatantly racist rhetoric – to deflect the anxieties of an increasingly overwhelmed white working class. It’s the same old strategy. So long as racial animosity exists, the poor and working class won’t join together to topple the system that keeps so many Americans in poverty, and Black Americans oppressed. The last weeks of protests and demonstrations have exposed what’s always been true: social controls are both deadly and unsustainable. They require more and more oppressive means of terrorizing communities and they drain resources that would ensure Black people not only survive, but thrive.

This moment calls on us to relinquish social control and ramp up our commitment to social investment.

It’s time we invest in affordable housing and education, not tear gas, batons, and state-sanctioned murder. It’s time we invest in keeping children fed and out of poverty, not putting their parents behind bars. It’s time to defund the police, and invest in communities. We have no time to waste.

#video #videos #Trump #defundthepolice

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ladyc0312 · 4 years

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A Jikook Guide to RunBTS: 20-29

I’ll be totally honest here - I was kind of worried when I took this on that looking closely would end up convincing me that I was just seeing things through shipper goggles. And, sure, there are moments that have had their significance overplayed because all of the guys are touchy. But overall, I've ended up being even more convinced there's at the very least something unique about this relationship!

FYI - I started putting these notes together a few months ago, so my memory about certain episodes has grown a little hazy. In the interest of not needing to rewatch these episodes for a third time, I’ve decided that if I don’t remember much about the episode, it must not have been that memorable, and that’s reflected in the (totally subjective) rating.

Thanks so much to everyone who shared moments I’d missed last time around - please continue to do so!

Ep 20 "The Taste of Korea" (Ep: 4 / KM: 2)

The one with Tae’s squirrel plate and JK’s sticky sweet potatoes

01:45 - Jimin stands super close to JK

12:55 - Jimin laughs particularly hard at JK's glazed sweet potatoes sticking to the plate

13:15 - JM and JK lock eyes as they joke about the sweet potatoes. Then Jimin continues laughing at JK's antics even when they start going on a bit too long

15:05 - Jimin is the only one to laugh when JK makes another joke about the sweet potatoes

17:44 - JM is the only one paying enough attention to laugh with JK at Jin's comments on the sweet potatoes

Ep 21 "Board Game Competition" (Ep: 1 / KM: 1)

The one I recall almost nothing about beyond that the room was ugly (and maybe in Chicago?)

12:44 - JK has moved next to Jimin during the cut. JK pats JM on the shoulder and starts to say something about him, but gets cut off.

12:54 - JK compliments Jimin's card-dealing

15:46 - JK tries unsuccessfully to get JM's attention so he can advise him what color to pick

Ep 22 "Hangawi Festival" (Ep: 3 / KM: 3)

The one where the members wear hanbok to make food and play games

3:18 - When Suga comments that JK is good enough to be a songpyeon artist after retirement, Jimin says JK has a lot to do after retirement since JK told him he wanted to run a BBQ place.

7:01 - Jimin leans in close to JK and asks him to vote for his songpyeon (weirdly, hearts pop up on the screen when he does). Despite his desire to win, Jimin cheers loudly and puts his arm around JK when JK's songpyeon gets the first vote. He keeps his arm around him the entire time the voting is happening and as they start announcing the votes. 7:45 - When the other members go over to look at the dishes, JM and JK stay behind together. 21:00 - After watching Jimin spin in fascination, JK tells everyone that Jimin used to be a dancer (no idea why he says that like it's new info for anyone lol) 29:11 - JM and JK walk off together BEHIND 2:58 - JM and JK look over all the songpyeon together and Jimin compliments JK's 3:55 - more footage of the super long amount of time JM had his arm around JK

Ep 23 "Pet Friends" (Ep: 5 / KM: 1)

The one where adorable boys play with adorable dogs

5:16 - Jimin seems to find JK's joke about eating dog treats as snacks hilarious and adorable 18:01 - JK and JM address each other when bragging about their dogs and have a moment of just looking at each other 19:50 - Jimin smiles when JK enters with his dog and the captions feel the need to clarify that it's a "brother-like smile"

Ep 24 "BTS vs. Zombies" (Ep: 4 / KM: 0)

The one where BTS (minus JK) is too afraid of zombies to complete any tasks

None

Ep 25 "Game King" (Ep: 2 / KM: 3)

The one that reminds us video games are more fun to play that to watch people play (but it’s super fun to watch Jimin dance while water is poured over him)

1:36 - JK walks over and puts his arm around Jimin when they get put on the same team. He does the same to Jin after and there are much better jikook moments in this ep, but including it for the sake of completionism 22:32 - JM sits right up next to JK and is kind of touchy when they pick a punishment. 22:56 - When the producer asks what song Jimin should dance to while getting water poured on his head, JK requests "'Blood Sweat and Tears,' a sexy one" and then gets shy and rubs at his ear. 23:32 - Jimin has his arm around JK when saying goodbye. 23:52 - When Jimin says he's nervous to dance, JK asks them to play the music loud. They're all staring at Jimin when he dances while getting soaked (because how could you not?), but JK's face at 24:16 after he gives JM a once-over is pretty great. And I think it's JK who yells "so hot!" at 24:23. He's also the only one still clapping at 24:43.

Ep 26 "Secret Agent" (Ep: 3 / KM: 1)

The one where the boys wear tuxedos and drive go-karts

15:19 - Jimin comments that JK will like the laser part of the course. 17:38 - JK taps JM on the shoulder to indicate something. 24:30 - JM proudly tells JK that he heard he scored the highest (even though that is a. not true and b. would be bad for Jimin's team). BEHIND 0:15 - Jimin reaches over to pat JK's stomach even though Jin is the one who messed up.

Ep 27 "Welcome to Your First MT Part 1" (Ep: 4 / KM: 3)

The ones where BTS play games, sing karaoke, and have a BBQ

6:22 - Jimin points out that they shouldn't make things harder for JK's team and imitates JK's confused big eyes. 7:48 - Jimin is playing the nonsensical answers game and is doing well until they ask what JK's favorite color is and Jimin immediately says yellow. Then, looks over at JK with an embarrassed smile. 13:55 - Jimin loses again with JK involved and, after, keeps looking at him and sings something I don't recognize. 19:22 - When Jimin has to do the nonsense game again, JK cheers him on with a "Jimin fighting!" even though they're on opposing teams. 20:50 - When Jimin has to drink lemon juice, JK volunteers that Jimin will be good at that since he likes sour things. He then repeats that fact another two times. 24:30 - Not super shippy, but the sound effect JK makes for Jimin's die toss is pretty great. 24:44 - When JK argues that Jimin's team should get less time, Jimin looks at him and acts cute so JK laughs and stops arguing. 28:18 - When Jimin gets an answer wrong in a funny way, JK says "this is is how he makes the show awesome." BEHIND 0:58 - Jimin complains that the shirts with JK's face on them make Jungkook look "too cute."

Ep 28 "Welcome to Your First MT Part 2" (Ep: 4 / KM: 1)

6:50 - Jimin doesn't even glance at J-Hope when he makes a comment to him while JK is singing

Ep 29 "...Be Each Other's Stylist" (Ep: 4 / KM: 4)

The one where the guys all dress each other

10:18 - Jimin says he wants to try Jungkook's clothes because he thinks he might look great in them. This whole scene, JK seems kind of nervous and keeps hovering near Jimin - it's especially apparent at 10:45

13:25 - When he gets picked to be styled by Jimin, JK celebrates, calls JM Jimini-ssi, and clasps his hand. 16:36 - Not a shippy moment per se, but the look on JK's face when Jimin holds up the pink shirt he's considering dressing him in is pretty great. 17:14 - Jikook keep joking around with each other about the pink shirt while the others are introducing their styles. JK swats at JM with the prop rose at 17:45 as part of this. 21:19 - While the guys are getting changed, Jimin calls everyone's attention to how he's dressed JK and gets them to compliment how good it looks. Then, V comments that it's the boyfriend look and Jimin says he wanted it to look great. 23:21 - JK trails his eyes up Jimin's body as JM poses. 23:27 - This starts the sequence of JK modeling Jimin's clothes, which involves a lot of laughing and looks plus JK imitating Jimin's hair sweep. At 23:54, JM calls JK Jungkook-ssi and says he looks even better than he thought. JK immediately stops posing and gets shy and earnest as he asks "really?" and says thank you. Then he takes JM's hand and holds it a few seconds and his entire face lights up. (This isn't a moment I'd given a lot of thought to before, but watching it now, I actually think I'd put it on my "moments that highlight how differently JM and JK interact with each other than with anyone else" list) 29:10 - While doing his model walk, JK imitates JM's hair sweep again and then does a piece of JM's choreo from "Save Me." JM cracks up the whole time and they do a bro-hug when JK is done. 33:00 JM and JK crack up together in the middle of the final poses. BEHIND 5:29 - As they get changed, JM and JK joke about the fit of the pants JM is trying on. 6:58 - JM and JK decide that JK should change into the outfit JM originally picked out. JK does and then starts imitating JM, which makes JM laugh and playfully smack him. They keep talking and at 7:40 JM briefly touches JM's back. 9:10 - J-Hope says that Jimin said before the episode that he wanted to dress JK. JM corrects him that he said Tae.

#jikook #kookmin #run bts #jikook guide to run bts

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arcticdementor · 3 years

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Other possible Holocausts: why pro-lifers are lying to us, and why thats a good thing

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Ive had a running argument over the past few years that the raw lack of anti-abortion terrorist action proves no one really thinks abortion is murder, ie. intentional 1st degree murder of a life equal to yours or mine.

Ive always gotten pushback to quote WillyWang:

The "revealed preference" of those that oppose abortion but don't firebomb clinics and kill doctors? It won't help, you'll be made an example of in the negative sense, and civilized norms are more important than a useless symbolic point. One clinic destroyed won't end abortion, after all.

From which this Effort-post got its Genesis:

Would you say the same about those who participated in the french resistance or Warsaw Ghetto rising to Nazi Germany?

Everyone of those claims applies there: they were likely to be made examples of, they were damaging civilized norms, and any given action had relatively little to no impact.

Yet the same people who insist abortion is murder, and thus that America is committing a holocaust, yet denounce any of the people who employed violence against abortion doctors or clinics, and can’t distance themselves fast enough from any call for violence... none of those people apply the same logic to the first holocaust. None of them say the frenchmen who bombed german police stations where dangerous terrorists who deserved their executions, none of them denounce the Warsaw ghetto rising as an attack on civilization.

…

If anti-abortion advocated genuinely believed a fetus was a equivalent human life to yours or mine or the little kids they see walk to school, and that this was an ongoing holocaust of American Children at a scale possibly 10x or more what was done to the jews... they wouldn’t need to come up with ad hoc reasons why they don’t resort to violence, their mind would be screaming at them to take bloody vengeance 24/7 in righteous outrage, demanding that oceans of blood and fire be unleashed that it might wash clean the horror, that nuclear fire would be be an acceptable emergency shut off to end such wanton and cruel slaughter... and if thinking through all the logic they concluded that no violence wouldn’t help and they must pursue some peaceful negotiation to stop the slaughter, then their minds recoil and call themselves cowards and the moment of coming to that conclusion would be an ongoing trauma they’d carry with them for the rest of their life, even if they knew they were 100% right. They would meet the “pro-choice” and barely be able to conceal their desire to see them dead or imprisoned... they would meet women who had had abortions and scream bloody murder at them and tell them they deserve the death penalty, the way many of the same people react when presented with women who’d murdered their children, but after their children had left the womb.

The people who were jailed for assassinating abortionists, or fire-bombing clinics would be folk heroes lionized in songs and crowd funded hagiographic documentaries and folk traditions, like John Brown, or John Wilkes Booth, or Louis Reil, or Saco and Vancety, or Huey Newton, or Malcolm X, or David Koresh, or Levoy Finecolm... or hell even just Jesse James, or Killdozer.

Americans abort on average 1 million plus babies a year... that means if abortion is murder and those are human lives, then the 50 years since Roe vs.Wade has been a worse crime than the holocaust, slavery, or the crimes of Stalin, and we’d have to consult a historian to see if they were worse than Mao (on a per capita basis, certainly)...

This would be the worse crime ever commited, the greatest mass slaughter ever perpetrated in human history, and 50 years later our society would remain committed to repeating it in the next 50 years.

If that does not demand violence, then nothing in human history ever has, no even defensive war has ever been justified, and only Jainists and Jehovah’s witnesses are morally acceptable actors. An extreme unexceedable pascifism we know the vast majority of anti-abortion advocates do not endorse, since they overwhelming supported or at-least did not conspicuously oppose the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (over a mere 3000 Americans dead, and a less than a years abortions worth of Iraqis killed by Saddam) and continue to conspicuously “Support our troops” troops that exist to carry out violence, despite their moral commitments saying they can apparently never in human history be justified.

When i say this proves “Pro-lifers” clearly do not believe a fetus is an equal human life, thats me being incredibly charitable. That is me extending a overwhelming large olive branch, that is me expressing a stupendous care and concern and sympathy and brotherly love to rival the best 19th century dinner host, the dearest of friends, a benevolent older sibling, a lover, a parent, a mother who on hearing the taped confession of her son to serial murder, doesn’t hesitate once before screaming “you monsters you’ve drugged and tortured him! What threats have you made to my grandchild! He would only say such things to save his daughter’s life!”

My claiming they are full of shit and lying to themselves, to you, and to me, is an expression of love and faith in my fellow man which until now I did not realized I possessed nor was capable of...

Because if I merely took them at their word? If I believed that they believed what they say they believe? They would be monsters.

Lets play a game called “Other Possible Holocausts”. Approximately 800,000 babies where aborted this year.

Lets imagine the US government has just announced that crime has gotten to cumbersome and that over the next 3 years it plans to execute every single one of the 2.4 million people in US prisons jails and Jeuvenile detention centres.

Lets imagine that to reform education, the US resolves to kill the bottom 1% of all 80 million students in the country based on an age adjusted standardized test every year.

Lets imagine hatred of the obese takes off, and a policy is passed to resolve America’s 30% obesity rate by the mass instituting of bounties on hunting and killing the obese... that every year 800,000 to 1.5 million tags will be issued for a fee to allow the hunting of the obese in return for monetary rewards on successful hunts and getting to keep the carcasses for meat base animal foods and the manufacture of fuel, or fat based household products. These bounty hunters become known a “whalers”.

Lets imagine the US announces its done with African Americans... if the problem hasn’t been solved since 1619, its not going to be... and so they’re going to genocide all 40 million African Americans at a rate of 2% a year, for the next 50 years.

Lets imagine opposing extremists get in charge and decide the racists rednecks have to go, and so they’ll be forming death squads to roam the South, Appalachia, and the rust belt, with the objective of killing 800,000 poor whites a year, “until the problem is solved”... with many happily stating 50 years of this would be acceptable, while others state it’d be perfectly fine to renew it another 50 years after that.

…

These are all American lives, and according to pro-lifers of equal moral value to the babies aborted every day, no better, no worse.

By saying this and by saying violence is not and cannot be justified to resist it, they are saying that their reactions to any one of the above eventualities would be to continue to live their lives as they have lived the past 50 years.

I do not know how to respond to that. Even if Abortion is truly murder of an ensouled equal human life... The Pro-choicers committing the murders don’t think it is... hell the Nazis murdered 6 million jews and a further 5 million undesirables, but they didn’t think of them as human, they thought they were monstrous and “life unworthy of life”, like a burning man begging you to shoot him so he doesn’t suffer or hurt his fellows... a mercy in a way.

Pro-lifers on the other hand claim these are equal viable human lives of equal status to yours or mine or perhaps even greater.... They’re Children.

And their reaction to the greatest mass slaughter in human history, the reaction of almost half the electorate, who regularly talk about the need to resist tyrrany and defend the weak (as both left and right in the US do, in their way), their reaction is to vote every 4 years, and have it perhaps not even be the #1 issue if the economy seems bad, they have the opportunity to vote for the first black president, or the Orangeman says something crude about Mexicans... they won’t be single issue voters even when it comes to the greatest crime ever committed in human history?

I refuse to believe it. Even I, cynical as I am, have to believe we are not that far gone, and the age of men has not come crashing down... i would believe the US capable of such a crime, but to believe that a double digit percentage of Americans could look at that, recognize the victims as their fellow humans,recognize their state and society as committing mass murder of their neighbours, future friends, and relatives...to recognize that they have a moral imperative to act on this... and then just go “welp them’s the breaks, gotta be civilized” because 9 people in black robes said it wasn’t murder?

Holy fuck. No that is not how people work, that is not how humans behave, I cannot accept that, and leftists who spent the summer rioting in response to fewer than a thousand police killings of black men a year, who remember the civil rights and anti-war movements, who kinda vaguely recall that they’re supposed to remember Huey Newton, or Saco and Vanseti, or those Rossen...something people... who like to imagine they’d have been abolitionists in the 19th century. They’re right to call bullshit.

They’re right to call the pro-lifers liars who don’t believe their own messaging, and instead just want to control women’s bodies, after a lie like that to their face, they’re right to treat them with scorn.

…

Pro-life is rescuable as a sentiment and an activist movement...

But not while it claims a Holocaust is going on and somehow magically no violence could ever be justified to resist it, thus lining up all the arguments that will allow the next holocaust to be committed without resistance.

There have been a double digit, perhaps even a triple digit number of mass murders and genocides in the hundreds of thousands or millions of people, since the 20th century. America is enabling its ally Saudi Arabia to commit one against the Yemenis right fucking now.

We need to be very fucking clear about what it is justified to do to members of a regime that commits such a crime, and what it is definitely justified to do to the immediate perpetrators of the murder. And That we will back violent resistance to such a horrible crime by the state even if it serves only to make the resister a martyr we’ll praise, or it degrades “civilization” (what civilization could remain in such a regime?), or it ultimately has no effect (it is on the survivor to try harder)... The major members of the House of Saud deserve the Gallows under international law for what they’re doing in Yemen , as do their American attaches and core enablers... and if that comes from a Judge in the Hauge or from a convoy of irregulars in pickup trucks, or from lone assassins who manage to get through to them, It is justice, and i will praise it.

What we cannot do is pretend that genocides and mass slaughter on unconscionable scales are occurring and then come up with excuses for why we should do nothing and anyone who does resist is a criminal. Or else those excuses will be the ones that allow the next real genocide in the west or on US soil to actually happen.

If there is a genocide or democide or whatever you want to call mass slaughter. You must recognize the justice the violent resistance to it, even if you personally do not participate, or you must admit you were lying about there being such a crime... to say otherwise, to say a state can commit such a crime and still retain its right to your loyalty, to say a people up to and including its victims must obey such a thing, a creature made of bureaucracy that has set its sights on massacring humans by the thousands if not millions... it is to side against the human race in a war of extermination.

And as someone whose pro-choice as they come, I’d much rather, if the pro-lifers really believe its murder, I’d much rather they start a bloody civil war, than for it to become the norm that that is ethically acceptable.

#kulakrevolt #reddit #the motte #food for thought

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snkpolls · 4 years

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SnK Episode 69 Poll Results (for Anime Only Watchers)

The poll closed with 85 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that these are the results for the Anime Only Watchers’ poll. If you wish to see the results for the Manga Readers’ poll, click here.

Anime only watchers, beware of spoilers if you venture over to the manga readers’ poll results.

RATE THE EPISODE 81 responses

Another episode with no negative ratings from respondents. MAPPA seems to be doing a fantastic job!

Loved it!

epic

WHICH MOMENT FROM THE PRESENT TIME WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 83 responses

It was relatively close for the top 2 choices that respondents picked, but the scene that caught the most eyes was Eren quickly escalating the conversation with Hange (30.1% of the vote). Right behind that scene was the conversation between the 104th about Eren and what to do about him moving forward. Distant favorites were Hange questioning Eren (14.5%), seeing Historia (9.6%) and the small Levi and Zeke crumb at the end of the episode.

Adult Eren was the best thing.

WHICH MOMENT FROM THE KIYOMI FLASHBACK WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 83 responses

The largest piece of the pie that was chosen (36.15) for the Kiyomi flashback was the moment where Historia agreed to inherit the Beast Titan only for Eren to passionately reject that plan. 24.1% of viewers most enjoyed the moment between Historia and Mikasa. At a tie, 15.7% either enjoyed Hange agonizing over sacrificing Historia, or Mikasa revealing the clan symbol tattooed to her wrist. A small handful most enjoyed seeing Kiyomi and Zeke meet in secret.

Pixis gigantic head. What was that all about?? Lol

WHICH MOMENT FROM THE RAILROAD FLASHBACK WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 83 responses

Nearly 40% of respondents were most thrilled with the moment where Eren confesses to his friends how important they are to him and the subsequent blushing. 22.9% enjoyed the moment prior to that where the 104th were debating on who’s best suited to inherit Eren’s titan. 21.7% enjoyed seeing Levi being visibly irritated about everyone’s height, and 10.8% enjoyed the background moment where Armin was chasing after Sasha.

I loved the train scene so so much!

MIKASA REVEALS THE AZUMABITO CLAN SYMBOL AS A TATTOO ON THE TOP OF HER WRIST. THIS IS A RETCON FROM SEASON 1 WHEN WIT REPLACED THE BRANDING WITH EMBROIDERY INSTEAD. THOUGH THE TATTOO IS WHAT’S FAITHFUL TO THE MANGA (MIKASA’S MANGA COUNTERPART HAS ALWAYS HAD THIS), WAS THIS A GOOD DECISION ON MAPPA’S PART? 81 responses

28.4% of respondents felt that the retcon wasn’t really a big deal, considering that the family symbol had already been alluded to previously in the series. 21.% didn’t care about this detail at all. 19.8% believe it’s a bit of a “yes and no” situation as both faithfulness to the source material and continuity are equally important to them. 12.3% supported the retcon in the name of faithfulness to the source material, and another 9.9% were supportive because they felt the embroidery was “lame and forgettable” anyway.

it was something useless that turned out to be important

We might get to know more about ackerman

HYPOTHETICALLY, IF ONE OF THE 104TH WERE TO INHERIT EREN’S TITAN POWER, WHO DO YOU THINK WOULD BE THE BEST OPTION? 82 responses

More than half of viewers feel that Jean is most suited to inherit the titan power from Eren. Trailing behind him, 22% feel that Mikasa would be the best candidate. 11% feel that Armin would be ideal (possibly due to him already having titan powers) and 8.5% felt that Sasha would have been the best candidate. Only a handful feel Connie is suited to the role.

WHICH “SHIPPY” MOMENT FROM THE EPISODE WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 81 responses

This episode had a lot to give in terms of endearing moments between the characters, so we asked which ones stood out most to you! 24.7% didn’t want to pick just one, and felt that all the “shippy” moments were equally good. 13.6% were swooning at the blushy glance between Eren and Mikasa. 9.9% most enjoyed Sasha and Connie’s increasingly awkward conversation about who’s the bigger idiot. 8.6% enjoyed the sweet moment between Historia and Mikasa, and another 8.6% enjoyed Jean heckling Eren over getting his hand-me-down, only to blush later at Eren’s confession. Relatively even amounts enjoyed all the other moments listed.

Let the shipping wars commence!!!

WHICH REVEAL WERE YOU MOST SHOCKED BY? 81 responses

The largest amount of respondents (38.3%) were most shocked by the revelation that Historia is now pregnant in the present time. 17.3% felt that Mikasa being the descendant of a shogun was the most shocking reveal. 14.8% had already been spoiled on all of these topics, and 8.6% found that Kiyomi’s alliance with Paradis was the most shocking revelation.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE REVEAL OF MIKASA’S ASIAN HERITAGE? 80 responses

The reveal of Mikasa’s asian roots comes with mixed opinions. 22.5% are enamored at the idea of “princess Mikasa.” 18.8% just feel happy that Mikasa is getting some importance and focus. 16.2% didn’t really think much about Mikasa’s asian heritage, but think the detail is kinda neat. 12.5% wish the series had done a better job of reminding the audience of the family symbol beforehand, and another 11.3% felt the opposite, stating that they knew this old plot point would be revisited again someday. 10% didn’t care about it at all.

IS EREN BEING TOO HARSH ON HANGE? 82 responses

Overall, the vast majority of respondents feel that Eren was much too harsh on Hange when they went to visit him in his cell. Though, 20.7% felt that he was justified in his anger toward them.

He could have talked nicely also

well yes as she came to have a friendly chat but he was technically in prison for wanting to protect his friends

Yea he did way to much

Yes and No...he was being a lil extra, but I don't know why Hange came to his prison cell heckling him like that

HANGE SEEMS TO THINK ERWIN CHOOSING THEM AS COMMANDER WAS A MISTAKE. DO YOU? 82 responses

The fandom shows almost unanimous support for Hange as the 14th Commander of the Survey Corps, with 91.5% stating that Erwin didn’t make a mistake in choosing them as his successor. A small handful feel that Hange wasn’t the best fit for the role.

I don't think there was a better option for Commander at the time of Erwin's death, but Hange isn't suited to the role (doesn't mean they won't try their best!)

Hange is definitely capable of leading, but I doubt that's a position they want to be in

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HISTORIA’S PREGNANCY? 80 responses

Historia’s pregnancy came as a huge shock to the fandom. It seems as though it’s hard to feel positively about it with the information we’ve been given so far. 30% solidify that thought by stating they feel just as miserable as Historia seems to look. 20% responded more light-heartedly and stated they just hope this was Ymir’s “big dick ghost energy” at work. 13.8% are certain there’s more to the pregnancy than meets the eye, wanting to wait for more information. 13.7% feel that regardless of the situation, Historia would inevitably have to produce an heir anyway, so it is what it is.

The harshest violence in this manga : putting a lesbian in a non wanted pregnancy.

My heart breaks for Historia. She looks absolutely miserable. Seeing her so happy in the flashback and then seeing her now makes me so sad. Girl deserves so much better :(

DO YOU THINK SHE’S IN LOVE WITH THE FARM BOY? 80 responses

A rather uniform opinion arrives here, with 87.5% stating that they believe Historia does not love the farm boy, in contrast to the 12.5% who do. Happy belated Valentine’s Day!

NILE STOOD UP FOR HISTORIA WHEN THE OTHER MP WAS DISPARAGING HER. THOUGHTS? 80 responses

Nile has consistently been portrayed positively throughout the series and him standing up for Historia is just another aspect of Nile’s portrayal. About a third of respondents stated that their respect for Nile increased substantially because of this. Another third noted that they thought it was a nice detail, but it didn’t really make them care more about him. Finally, another third or so said that they always liked him and appreciated more reasons to do so. A few were indifferent.

WHAT DO YOU THINK, IS THE WINE SUS? 81 responses

Aside from those who were already spoiled about future happenings, the vast majority of anime viewers think that there is definitely something off about the wine that Nicolo offered. 9.9% aren’t sure, and small handfuls either think it’s just a red herring or wish we would not have used the term “sus.”

DO YOU THINK HIZURU TRULY WANTS TO HELP PARADIS, OR ARE THEY JUST USING THEM FOR THEIR RESOURCES? 80 responses

55% of respondents feel that Hizuru is not being honest about wanting to help Paradis get out of their dire situation, instead only wanting to use them as a resource for their unique iceburst stones. 31.3% think that it’s half-and-half, they want to help, but also want something in return for that help. Absolutely no one felt that Hizuru’s primary motivation for coming to Paradis has to do with wanting to aid them.

CONNIE IS FURIOUS WITH EREN FOR HIS REACTION ON SASHA’S DEATH, AS WELL AS THE FACT THAT EREN DRAGGED THEM INTO THAT DANGEROUS SITUATION IN THE FIRST PLACE. DO YOU THINK HE WILL HOLD THIS GRUDGE FOREVER, OR EVENTUALLY FORGIVE EREN? 80 responses

Connie suffered a near breakdown in this episode, courtesy of Eren and Sasha’s death. As such, one wonders what’ll happen to their relationship afterwards. A plurality (43.8%) think that it’s really just up in the air and also depends on what Eren does moving forward. 22.5% believe that he won’t be able to forgive Eren, but will move past it in some sense. Finally, 20% simply think that this’ll forever remain something embedded in Connie’s view of Eren. A select few did state that they believe Connie will forgive Eren in time, however. A couple more were also spoiled about this development’s future.

When Hannes died, Eren laughed as well. This is probably just how Eren is.

Connie is right and he should say it. As far as forgiveness goes, i dont think Eren has passed the point of no return yet, but he's pretty damn close

CONNIE ALSO STATES, “THAT WASN’T EREN.” DO YOU THINK THAT THERE IS SOMETHING WEIRD GOING ON WITH EREN? 80 responses

Eren does not exactly appear to be as he was in his prior appearances and Connie states so. The respondents were rather split when attempting to figure out Eren. Just a little over a third thought this simply was the real Eren, but one who gave into his dark side. 27.5% weren’t sure, but did note that Eren was truly acting differently than usual. 15% thought that he might have been influenced by previous Titan shifters, while 10% believed that Zeke might have taken some control of him. A select few were either spoiled or simply had no clue.

Eren is finally standing up for himself and fighting

The pressure of trying to make the world a better place is driving him mad I guess

I go back and forth on this, because on one hand, yeah, this seems like a really drastic shift. But on the other hand, rewatching previous seasons and seening some of the impulsive/extreme shit he's done and said, his current behavior doesn't seem TOO out of the realm of possibility

MIKASA ARGUES THAT EREN’S ACTIONS WERE FOR THEIR SAKE AND THAT HE ONLY DRAGGED THEM INTO THE ATTACK ON LIBERIO BECAUSE HE TRUSTED THEM TO SURVIVE. JEAN, ON THE OTHER HAND, ARGUES THAT EREN IS NO LONGER THE PERSON THAT THEY KNEW AND DIDN’T CARE ABOUT THE RISK TO THEIR LIVES. WHO DO YOU AGREE WITH MORE? 80 responses

It would appear that the majority (65%) sides with Jean, thinking that Eren doesn’t really care about the lives of his friends any longer, in contrast to the 35% who believe that he still does and he was simply trusting them to survive the Liberio raid.

JEAN STATES THAT EREN IS “SUDDENLY ON BOARD WITH ZEKE’S PLAN,” AND THAT WHATEVER THEY TALKED ABOUT IS “SOMETHING ONLY THEY KNOW.” DO YOU THINK THAT EREN AND ZEKE HAVE THE SAME GOAL? 79 responses

There appears to be next to no consensus on what exactly is going on between Eren and Zeke and why they appear to be working together. 24.1%, the largest chunk of the pie, feel that Eren still doesn’t agree with Zeke’s plan, but is rather using him for his own goal. 4 more options came in at a tie. Aside from the 13.9% that have been spoiled, the others feel it’s either a mix of some of the options presented, or that the Yeagerbros have come up with a plan together that they intend to keep a secret, or aren’t sure how to answer and simply put “I don’t know.” 11.4% believe that Eren, left with no other options, has fully agreed to Zeke’s plan - but that Zeke’s true motives are still yet to be seen.

I’m excited to see all the reasons behind Eren’s sudden change and his true motives.

We need to find why eren acting like this and am i the only one who saw trouble coming because of him

IF EREN HAS ACTUALLY TURNED HIS BACK ON HIS FRIENDS, WILL MIKASA CONTINUE TO DEFEND HIS ACTIONS AND PROTECT HIM? 80 responses

Mikasa has shown unconditional loyalty throughout the series toward Eren, but are his current actions enough to shake that loyalty? 41.3% don’t seem to think so, believing that Mikasa will ultimately still support Eren in whatever his future actions may be. 32.5% think that she may continue to stick by him, but don’t want to say for sure. 26.3% feel certain that Mikasa would ultimately choose her other friends over Eren if push really came to shove.

ARMIN INSINUATES THAT SINCE PARADIS NOW HAS ACCESS TO SERUMS, THE MILITARY WILL TRY TO HAVE SOMEONE MORE “TRUSTWORTHY” EAT EREN TO TAKE HIS POWERS. DO YOU THINK HIS HUNCH IS RIGHT? 79 responses

Few, if any, militaries in the world tolerate insubordination and the Paradisian one is no exception. The majority (67.1%) believe the military will attempt to have Eren fed to a more trustworthy individual, in contrast to 10.1% who believe that they won’t. 22.8% simply aren’t sure.

WHAT DO YOU THINK WAS THE POINT IN THE FLASHBACKS THIS EPISODE? 80 responses

This episode’s flashback was received rather positively, but this series does not include any flashback for no reason and this one is probably no exception. The majority (60%) believe it’s there to showcase the glaring difference between Eren’s current and former demeanor. In contrast 35% think it’s there to reiterate the idea that Eren still loves and cares for his friends. A select few also noted that perhaps it’s there for exposition/angst or were simply unsure.

It just gets better; the flashbacks are definitely important to show Eren's progression and his seemingly contradictory actions, but I definitely feel like the emphasis on how much he cares for his friends is more important than it currently seems.

LOOKS LIKE WE’RE GOING BACK TO GABI AND FALCO NEXT WEEK. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT IT? 80 responses

Many are looking forward to seeing Gabi and Falco’s Bizarre Adventure, with 77.6% giving it a rating of 3 or higher. Are you a proud member of the Gabi Gang? Wow! Let us know!

Gabi sucks

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

People who spoil, dig a grave and crawl in it and die please

Awwwww why are Levi and Hange not included in the "shippy" moments? I like how Mappa balances out the heavy and light stuff and showed how different Eren is from before and how it makes people keep on thinking if he still really care for his friends, but the previous episodes have been better for me, maybe just because of the content. I did not really fell good seeing the scene of Eren and Hange. I think he couldn't be like that had Levi been there. Also, I think farmer boy is the real father. Isayama just didn't see the importance of revealing it and what with only 2 chapters remaining and people still really curious about it, this chance has come up.

Kind of slowish. I appreciate the big plot points, but I always want to see more of Levi.

Again, back to not knowing what the fuck is going on...so many flashbacks and plan details. Imma still watch tho !! Thanks MAPPA for the food <3

Eren is hot (lmao sry but he didnt really catch my interest UNTIL this episode)

Honestly loved it,like i loved every other episode,i just hope that no one else dies but i know they will

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 76 responses

Thanks again to everyone who participated!

#snk poll #snk polls #shingeki no kyojin #attack on titan #snk #aot #snk s4 #snk spoilers

10 notes · View notes

nat-20s · 4 years

Note

PROMPT! the first time the s1 archive gang hangs out outside of work (any variation of the group, doesn’t have to be All of them)

This is only the Archive Assistant sqaud, bc I’m sorry Jon, but no bosses allowed. Also it’s VERY silly and soft bc sometimes u just wanna write nice things u know

(also also fuck I lovecompletely missed that this said “first time” they hang out but uhh. I hope u like it anyway.)

Tim Stoker like to think that, sometimes, not to toot his own horn, but he can be something of a genius. When a cousin’s cousin had offered to let him use their cozy little cabin for a night or two in exchange for help with moving, he had been struck with what could only be humbly described as “inspiration of the most divine nature”. For, as nice as a Friday evening away from it all by himself sounds, it’s so much nicer for a Friday evening away from it all to serve as Archival Assistants Bonding Time™. Or well, more like Tim and Sasha, Who Are Already Best Friends Forever, Figure Out What Martin’s Deal Is, Because For A Guy So Chatty, He Sure Is Mysterious Time™, but that’s not nearly as catchy. Truly, his plan was brilliant, bringing two compatriots and an excessive amount of food and drink to a spot away from the prying eyes of the world and bosses, and feast in the openness and silliness that comes from having a great fucking time.

His plan, and his genius, were tragically derailed. While he knew on their drive up that the air was rapidly getting cooler, Tim couldn’t have even pretended to predict that an hour into their stay would bring a freak blizzard that means they’re snowed in for the next three days, which was 3 times longer than he had accounted on spending with his coworkers/friends. There was more than enough food to last them, and almost enough alcohol, but as Sasha so kindly put it:

“First you make us reenact the first scene of every bad teen slasher movie, now there’s a fucking white out. If we lose power, I’m telling you, there is absolutely going to be a murder.”

“Pfft, no way. The guy who owns this place is one of those weird ass prepper types, there’s a back up generator for the back up generator. And even if we did lose power, we’re all much more the “huddle for warmth under a shared blanket in front of the roaring fire” types than the “get panicked and stab someone in darkness” types, right? Back me up here, Marto.”

Martin, who at three shots in is both hilarious and mean, directs his response to Sasha. “in the event of a black-out I vote we kill Tim. I can take him down and you can finish the job.”

Sasha tips her cup at him, saying, “I like the way you think,” at the same time that Tim yells out, “Hey! Why am I the one dying?!”

Sasha tells him, “Duh. This whole thing was your idea, which makes you the Dr. Black* of this situation. Any good mansion murder mystery dictates the the host dies first. Then, in a moment of entirely unplanned synchronization, her and Martin start chanting, “Host dies first! Host dies first!”

“Okay, you know what? Fuck both of y’all, it’s not my fault that you’re both thoroughbred city slickers that can’t handle being in a cabin with plumbing and running water and electricity. Didn’t either of you go camping as kids?”

Sasha replies “No I’m far too pretty for that,” while Martin bursts out laughing. It takes about 20 seconds for him to settle down. Wiping away a tear, he elaborates, “Sorry, sorry, just. Can not imagine my mother on a camping trip. I mean, sure, she probably hoped at one point or another that I’d be lost in the woods as a child, or maybe even now, but I think that’s a bit different.”

Tim leans over the kitchen counter, placing his chin in his hands as he says, “Oh shit, Martin lore. Spill the deets.”

Sasha, who’s loyalties tend to sway towards whatever’s most interesting in the moment, piles on with, “You called her your mother, not your mum. That’s means she’s pretty much a right bastard, or a member of the aristocracy, which is just another term for right bastard but you got to grow up as a rich kid. Am I right?”

It’s clear the the two of them have made a grave mistake. All joviality flees Martin’s expression, and he shrinks down both his physical presence and his voice to something that could easily be overlooked if someone wasn’t paying attention. “Oh, um, well, I definitely didn’t grow up as a rich kid. And, it terms of the ‘right bastard’ thing, she’s not- er. That’s to say, she’s- she’s sick and. She’s doing the best she can, given, given everything.”

Martin pointedly looks at his hands while Tim and Sasha panickedly look at each other. They go to either side of him, and when he doesn’t flinch away, they each place a comforting hand on his shoulder. Tim immediately feels the itch to fill the heavy quiet, and he happens to know he has quite the talent for blazing on ahead after these kinds of moments. It’s how he’s survived basically party for the past decade. “Ooookay, I’m gonna go ahead and say that all depressing familial reveals shall be held off until at least the second night of being trapped. While Sasha may have irritatingly few skeletons in her closet in that regard-”

“I have Tory grandparents?”

“We all have Tory grandparents Sash, that’s absolutely nothing. As I was saying, while Sash’s family is boring and semi functional, you and me are gonna do some fuckin’ commiserating on our journey from work friends to friend friends. However, I’m going to have to be 40% drunker, go through a decently strong hangover, and then once again get hair of the dog drunk before I can even start to consider heading down that path. And in that spirit, I think it’s time to start up the drinking games. Truth or dare might end up a bit too heavy for our needs, but Never Have I Ever should suit us just fine. I know I’m gonna regret saying this considering Sasha is 100% going to target my ass, but I think we should establish that whoever puts all ten fingers down first has to chug the rest of the box wine.”

Sasha pipes up with, “Ugh, no, not drinking games, that’s such twenty-something bullshit. I expected better from you.”

“Hey, Martin is a twenty-something, so that still works fine actually-”

“Tim!”

“What?”

Martin’s directing wide, bordering on frantic, eyes at him, and Tim is almost certainly missing something, though he can’t for the life of him figure it out. Sasha’s head is bobbing slightly between the two of them, and shes apparently able to parse what Tim has not. “Oh! Martin, uh, I already know that you’re 2, and it’s cool.”

“Did..did Tim tell you or?”

Tim scoffs out an “I wouldn’t!” even though there’s a distinct possibility that, entirely on accident, he would, and Sasha makes a reassuring coo. “No, no, babe, nothing like that. It’s just that, uh, the Magnus Institute is kind of notorious for not doing any background checks pretty much ever, so when I get a new coworker, I..do it myself.”

Martin’s face blanches, and his eyes somehow get even wider. “Oh god, please don’t tell Jon or Elias, I know I don’t have the credentials, but I really need-”

“Woah, woah, I’m not gonna do that. First of all, archival assistant squad, we ride together we die together in a snowed in god forsaken log cabin, secondly, it’d be hypocritical as fuck if I got up your ass about qualifications. Not a single one of us is qualified for our jobs, not even Jon. Maybe especially not Jon. It’s like, raise your hand if you have a degree in library sciences. No one? Okay, cool, that’s not weird at all for an archive. Actually, maybe bring that up next time he gives you shit. He’ll be all like ‘bluh bluh, you didn’t document this spooky bullshit well enough, it’s not up to the High Standards here at Spooky Bullshit Emporium’ and you can be like ‘whatever buddy, you’re an English major, what do you fuckin’ know?’. It’ll be devastating. He’ll be devastated.”

Martin laughs in the manner of someone who knows that they shouldn’t be, and his shoulders relax into a lower position. “Why would you want me to devastate him? I thought you guys were friends?”

“We are, which is why we all collectively need to get back at Jon for acting like such a prick. He’s always been a bit temperamental, but I honestly don’t get what his deal is, especially with you. I mean, c’mon, you’re great, being mean to you is like kicking a puppy.”

“Thanks? I think?”

Tim pipes up with, “Oooo, since drinking games are apparently too childish for Sasha, what if instead we play ‘What’s Jon’s Deal Anyway, Featuring, Seriously, Why Target Martin, The Baby of The Archives’-”

“-That feels a bit reductive of who I am and I also I think I’m technically older than Jon?-”

“-Whoever comes up with the best explanation, and by best obviously I mean most entertaining, gets an all expense paid trip from the other two to one of the charity shops I know we all frequent.”

Sasha snorts, “Wow, a whole twenty quid, who could resist such temptation. But also, I’m in, I think I have a winner and I have a violent need to out-cardigan Jon.”

Martin’s relaxation is gone again, which Tim thinks need to be fixed through aggressively passing a glass of wine towards him. He takes it without protest, takes a long drink, and says, “This seems more like 3 am conversation than a 9 pm one.”

Sasha gives an encouraging nudge, prompting another drink, and replies, “Yeah, well, I am not gonna make it to 3 am. I’ve got about an hour until the Alcohol Sleepiness sets in, and I know Tim will be right behind me.”

“Sashaaaaaa, you’re ruining my reputation as a young-at-heart, party-all-night kind of guy.”

“Babe, you’ve complained about your bones aching often enough that you’ve never had that reputation.”

“Surrounded by mean drunks, that’s what I am. I should be pitied.”

Martin shoots a glance towards Sasha, then replies, “You’d be more pitiable if this entire thing wasn’t, you know, entirely your own fault.”

Sasha nods sagely, “It’s true. If you were pitiable then maybe you wouldn’t have to die first.”

“You know what? I am uncomfortable with the energy that’s been created in this room, how about we divert some of that towards complaining about our bosses, as coworkers who are hanging out and having a good time and not bullying me are supposed to do.”

Sasha giggles slightly as she leans down and presses a kiss to Tim’s cheek. “Aw, sorry, Tim. I promise to double cross Martin when if becomes killing time.”

Tim melts a little, even as he’s replying, “Wait, when?” Martin takes another sip and says, “Whatever. I could take you both.”

How the hell are you supposed to resist a set up like that? With an over the top wink and cheesy grin, Tim says, “I bet you could, big guy.”

He’s expecting a slightly flustered reaction, maybe a higher pitched voice and a blush, if he’s lucky. He gets all of those things, but it’s Sasha saying, “Oh my god.” Martin only gives him a raised eyebrow and level stare, and Tim makes a mental note to reevaluate his dedication to only considering Martin in a strictly platonic fashion. Sasha continues talking, cutting through the..tension? with, “Okay, now I am uncomfortable with the energy that’s been created in this room. Tim, tell the studio audience what you think is up with Jon.”

Tim blinks, hard, gives a shake of his head, and says, “Oh, obviously the Jon we know is dead. His ‘promotion’ to Head Archivist was actually Elias killing him off and replacing him with a robot that has the command If: see Martin Then: be dick. Don’t worry Marto, now that Sasha is aware of the issue, she’ll surely be able to reprogram him.”

Sasha hums a bit, then says, “I buy it. I think my explanation’s better, but Elias does seem the “kill a dude and replace him” type. Like if I was gonna suspect any particular person of murder he’s in the top five.”

“Seriously? Elias? Somehow has middle manager vibes even though he’s the head honcho Elias? Mr. ‘I probably wore boat shoes and khaki shorts for the entirety of university’ Bouchard? Voted most likely to put a thin layer of mayo in between two pieces of white bread and claim it’s a sandwich Elias? The area man that’s almost certainly gone on record as saying that golf and networking are his favorite hobbies Elias? He’s far too boring to have committed a murder.”

Tim’s looking at Martin with shock and delight, and he knows Sasha is wearing the exact same expression. “More of this. Please describe more of the things that Elias is.”

“I mean, sure? Uhh, guy that would pay $80 for a dime bag because you told him it’s a premium strain. Person that ironically says things like “kids these days” and “the youths” and you know he’s talking about people well into their 30s. Genuinely believes that if you can afford a cell phone then you shouldn’t be complaining about being poor, because apparently a one time purchase of around a hundred bucks is the same as trying to pay monthly rent. Tells people to haul themselves up by their bootstraps. Thinks he got to where he was ‘without anybody’s handouts’ even though he’s had a trust fund since he was 15. Writes weekly editorials to the local newspaper complaining about the liberalization of media, and they’re like ‘sir, please stop submitting to us, we’re just trying to talk about Lisa’s gardening club’ because they can’t professionally tell him to fuck off. Thinks salt and pepper are the only spices one could ever possibly need, everything else is simply excessive. Somehow gay and homophobic. Like, yes, he’s taken a male lover, but he’s also seconds away from calling you a slur at any one time. Actually, no, that’s too interesting, and I refuse to believe he’s had a lover. Legally, he cannot have a lover, I’ve decided, so just gay and homophobic, both in theory alone. Has said that Boris Johnson is “a bit much, but really not so bad, and much better than any of the alternatives, really.” All of the cousins in his family banded together and officially got him banned from any sort of major holiday dinners. Basically every shitty boss you’ve ever had, especially if you’ve worked retail, rolled into one.”

Tim lets out a low whistle. “Damn, all right. Get fucked Elias.”

Sasha emphatically agrees, “Get fucked Elias.”

They all clink their glasses together, and then there’s a beat of silence before Martin says, “I’m pretty sure robots can’t get eye bags.”

Tim and Sasha let out a “huh” and “hmm?” respectively, so Martin elaborates. “You posited that Jon had been replaced with a robot. Pretty sure robots aren’t able to look that tired.”

Tim snaps. “Drat, you’ve pointed out the one flaw in my impeccable logic. So what d’you think is up with him? I know you don’t have the Before The Archives comparison, but I think you could provide a fresh perspective.”

“Oh, fuck, I don’t know. Two months ago, I might have had some choice words, but first off, you all genuinely got on, so it didn’t really make sense for him to be awful all the time, and secondly ever since the, um, worm thing, he’s actually been pretty nice? I haven’t heard any snide comments, and whenever I mess something up he’s a lot more, um, gentle about explaining what wrong. He actually complimented my work the other day so. I guess I think Jon’s deal was that he was stressed out and I was very nervous and not very good at my job and he picked up on that?”

“So you think he’s like a horse.”

“Explain.”

“He sensed your fear and he became skittish and irritable in kind.”

“Horses can sense fear?”

“Horses can sense everything.”

“That’s fucked up.”

“Right?”

“Guys, we’ve gone on like four different tangents in one conversation. Martin, I’m very glad to hear that Jon’s changed his behavior towards, because it means I don’t have to yell at him on your behalf, you’re getting to see the person that me and Tim both know who is actually pretty cool, and also mostly because it feeds perfectly into my winning theory.”

“What, you’ve got something better than Martin’s ‘accurate but boring’ reasoning or my ‘super cool but now that I think about it for .5 seconds actually kind of a bummer robot’ knowledge?”

Sasha’s incredibly self-assured when she says, “I sure fuckin’ do. Jon’s secretly been in love with Martin the whole time, and he’s been previously overcompensating by acting like he hates him.” which makes Tim choke on air and Martin emphatically reply, “Fuck off, he is not.”

“No, no, hear me out, I have, I have receipts, as the kids say. First point of evidence: Martin’s stupid hot, and there’s no way that Jon is straight, so obviously he’s not gonna be impervious to that.”

“What?”

“Oh come off it Martin, it’s just a fact. Like, me personally? I don’t even do the whole romance thing, but the first time I ever saw you I blacked out slightly and thought ‘Now there’s a man I could raise some ferrets with.’.”

“I, um, I, well. Is that...supposed to be a euphemism for something?”

“What? No, I’ve just always wanted ferrets, and asking someone to raise pets with you is like the height of romance, I’m pretty sure. Back me up here Tim.”

“On the ferret thing or the Martin hot thing?”

“Either? Both.”

“Aight. Yes, asking someone to raise ferrets with you is basically a marriage proposal if that someone is Sasha, and I hate to break it to you Martin, but you’re incredibly good-looking. We’re all incredibly good-looking, to the point where I think the only qualification for the archives staff is being a straight up hottie. OH! We should name the group chat “straight up hottie squad”. Anyway, yep, point for Sasha.”

“Not a point for Sasha, even if I believe you about about my, em, physical attractiveness,-”

“-Don’t have to put belief in a fact, Marto-”

“-that doesn’t mean anything. By that logic, he’s equally as likely to be in love with either of you, and my money would be on Sasha if it was anyone, because you’re clearly his favorite.”

“Ah, but that’s exactly why it isn’t me, but thank you for the transition into my second point which is: Jon is the kind of person that sees anything that might make him vulnerable and starts aggressively defending himself against it, and what’s more vulnerable than a crush? He’s not crushing on Tim, because Tim’s fucking great, but sometimes he’s also the walking, talking embodiment of sensory overload, and while I myself I love that, Jon clearly gets a bit overwhelmed by it at times. He’s not into me, because he knows better than that, and overall I’m pretty non-threatening to his whole thing, so of course he’s going to be the most relaxed around me. You, on the other hand, are single, hot, kind to animals and people alike, and make a great cup of tea. Incredibly crush worthy, thus incredibly threatening, thus Jon acting like That.”

“Hmm, this still seems like something that comes from watching one too many corny rom coms, and that’ s coming from someone who loves corny rom coms.”

“I also love corny rom coms, but that’s completely beside the point. Because, okay, sure, if Jon had just been a weird asshole to you, I wouldn’t be like ‘oh, yeah, that’s a classic case of covering for something’ but you’re right about him being nicer since the worm thing. So nice, in fact, I shall be bringing in Timothy as my star witness that’s going to blow this whole case wide open. Martin, you may not have heard how Jon has started to talk about you, but me and Tim sure have.”

“God, yeah. Like if we thought he wouldn’t shut up about you before-

“-which he wouldn’t-”

“it’s gotten way worse now.”

“I think the whole life threatening worm woman flipped a switch for him and now he’s all fuckin. ‘Oh, Martin should stay in the archives, let me give him the place that I sleep.”

“Oh, Martin, I don’t think he should go out on too many research trips anymore, I’d much prefer for him to be ~nice and close~”

“Oh, Martin, good lord, did you know that his tea is quite good? I’m think it might actually be the best I’ve ever had.”

“Oh, Martin, his work’s rather improved, don’t you think? It’s really quite impressive, especially considering all the stress he’s had to endure.”

“Oh, Martin, I just want him to take me into his big, strong arms and whisk me away from all of this.”

“He did not fucking say that last one.”

Sasha throws her arms up in the air. “He may as well have!”

Nodding sagely, Tim replies, “This whole thing holds water. I vote Sasha gets the shopping trip. Martin?”

Martin stares at his drink as if it has any ability to give him any sort of answers, then lets out a sigh with his entire body. “You know what? It’s probably nicer than whatever the fuck is the truth, so sure, why not? Let’s get Sasha her cardigans.”

Sasha lets out a whoop. “Hell yeah! Can’t wait for spree, assuming all three of us get out of this cabin alive.”

“Okay, nope, clearly Sasha needs another distraction. Got any suggestions, Martin?”

“Uh, wasn’t a karaoke machine part of the sales pitch for this place?”

“Martey babey, yes! I wouldn’t have thought you’d spring for that sort of thing!”

“If this were a public bar or something where I’d have to listen to drunk strangers and they’d have to listen to me, then no, I’d rather have my brain pulled through my nose a la mummification. But with only you guys and fourish drinks in? I’m down to clown.”

“Sash, you with us?”

“Dunno, what songs are there?”

Tim shrugs, and heads to the storage closet that contains all the various entertainment equipment. It takes a bit of searching, and a bit more digging, but he’s able to unearth the ancient portable karaoke machine. He also grabs some of the jigsaws, mostly on the thought that sometimes a bitch just wants to hang out with their friends and do a puzzle. Also because in light of the fact that they’re stuck inside with no sort of access to the outside world for two days longer than planned, there’s pretty much no way that they’re not going to reach a point where they all say fuck it let’s do a puzzle.

Plugging in the machine, it takes a solid several minutes to boot up, which is the perfect length of time to take it upon himself to take one for the team and chug the box wine himself, with Sasha and Martin chanting in the background. When he finishes, they cheer, and then Martin immediately shoves a glass of water for him to down as well, muttering something about how he wants him to be alive in the morning. Tim can tell he’s well inebriated by now, because the simple thoughtful gesture is enough to make him a little bit misty-eyed, and Sasha can attest to alcohol turning him into the world’s biggest sap. In order to avoid prevent himself from becoming the kind of person who says “I love you” in a gradually more sloppy repeat, he starts flipping through the discography of the now running machine. “Alright y’all, it looks like we got 80s songs or...80s songs. Ooo, they have the Grease 2 soundtrack.”

That gets him a well deserved “No!” from both parties, with Sasha adding on, “Not even if it was Grease 1. I’m putting an embargo on musical theater in general.”

“Oh come on, some musicals are better than other. Right, Marto?”

“I’m with Sasha on this one.”

“Boo. But fine, what do you want?”

Martin and Sasha glance at each other, and Tim’s amazed at how well the bonding night-turned-long-weekend has gone so far, considering they seem to have already mastered the art of silent communication. Martin speaks first, with, “They got Dolly Parton?”

The process of scrolling through individual letters to type is achingly slow, but luckily all he needs to get through is “DO” before she shows up. “They do.”

Sasha says, “Do they got 9 to 5, by Dolly Parton?”

Tim’s eyes light up with realization as he says, “They do,” and in a moment of spontaneous understanding, all three of them know that they’re not simply going to sing 9 to 5. No, they’re going to do a full blown music video for the benefit for nobody but themselves, because why the fuck not.

The next hour is spent in a very silly fashion. They figure out how to use the cabin’s layout to their advantage, assign various parts of the song to each person, and practice their inexpert choreography a few times with the song tinnily blasting from Sasha’s phone. The final result is hardly of professional quality, but it is of making them all giggle quality. It starts off in a relay like manner, each of them in a different area to coordinate with “Tumble of out bed and stumble to the kitchen” (Sasha on the couch), “Pour myself a cup of ambition”, (Tim at the coffemaker), and “Yawn and stretch and try to come to life” (Martin at the fridge), with them finally crowding around the karaoke machine together to scream sing the chorus. Despite their practice, they quickly go off key, and while they might end up with low points for accuracy, they get full marks on enthusiasm.

When the song ends, it takes them a few minutes to settle down into something less giddy. As they do, Sasha, out of breath, says, “Fuck me, I’m sleepy now. What the hell?”

Tim hums in affirmation. “Goddammit, I’m tired too. Let me guess, Martin, you’re young enough that you could go all night?”

“No? I’ve never pulled an all-nighter in my life. Actually, I know that it was supposed to be in case the power went out, but huddling together under a blanket in front of a fire sounds really nice? I mean, um, if you guys were down.”

Sasha leans her head against Martin’s shoulder and takes on the expression of a deeply content cat. “Mmm, I call Martin, he’s warm.”

“Absolutely not, I also want to leech Martin’s warmth. You good with being in the middle?”

Martin’s practically beaming, but his voice manages to almost fake being put upon. “I suppose it’s a sacrifice I could make.”

With Sasha already half asleep, Martin brings her over to the couch, while Tim gets them all set up. He manages to find the kind of big, fluffy blanket that all cabins should contain and wraps it around their shoulders. Luckily for them, the fireplace is gas lit and can be put on a timer. He sets it for 30 minutes, even though all three of them are going to be long passed out before them. Sasha is already softly snoring away, and Martin’s head keeps drifting down and snapping back up. Tim curls up against Martin’s other side, and even though all three of them are going to wake up with aching backs and worse heads, he thinks he really just might be a genius after all.

*Why is Mr. Boddy’s name Dr. Black in the UK. I hate that. Why would you not have the dumb joke of naming the victim “boddy”. Hey brits explain your crimes.

#anon #replies #nat fic #tma #martin blackwood #tim stoker #sasha james

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