#anyway. wanted to highlight this lawsuit

[trans-axolotl]

PA DOC Sued for Discriminating Against Person with Disabilities: The Right to AAC in Prison

there was a recent press release from Disability Rights PA about current litigation happening in PA that is trying to ensure that John Topper, a man with Huntington's disease, can access an Augmentative/Alternative Communication device while incarcerated.

Currently, the DOC is denying him all access to any communication aids, forcing him to "communicate by typing notes on a tablet and passing it back and forth with the person he is attempting to communicate with. This tablet breaks frequently, and prison staff regularly prevent him from bringing the tablet with him everywhere in the prison...After returning from the hospital, the DOC denied him a working communication aid for ten days. As a result, he was only able to communicate with psychiatry staff via thumbs up and down gestures."

this has dramatically impacted Topper's wellbeing: " 'This has been such an emotional and mental struggle for me daily. Day-to-day routines are very hard without a means of effective communication and I have to struggle to have my daily needs met,' said John Topper, the plaintiff in the case. "

Topper cannot access healthcare, daily programming, or stay in contact with his family members. Prison staff refuse to provide any forms of communication aids for daily interactions, making it difficult and sometimes impossible for Topper to request things like toothpaste, toilet paper, or other daily needs. This is cruel, harmful punishment that highlights the types of carceral violence that disabled people face while incarcerated.

This lawsuit is suing to get Topper daily and continuous access to an AAC text to speech device. His counsel already bought him this device and the prison has it available, and yet they refuse to give it to him for pointless and arbitrary reasons. They've told Topper he has to choose between a wheelchair accessible cell and a cell with an outlet, they've told him that they were making his current tablet accessible but then said the only accessible adaptation they could add was a screen-reader, which his does not need, and have threatened and taken away his current tablet many times. The cruelty is the point.

It's vital as disabled people that we have solidarity with those most targeted by the state, and that we fight for our comrades currently incarcerated. Prisons are disabling and prisons target disabled people: we need to fight to make sure our comrades can get their needs met, and we need to fight to free them all!

keep an eye on Disability Rights PA and Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project for updates about Topper's case and for any steps the public can take to support him. I've reached out to ask about how to send letters to him/info for his commissary fund; I will update this post when I get more information.

disability justice means free them all!!

[blueishspace]

Hero, Villain God 23

(Prev) (Next) (First)

*Scar's pov*

The day is so close, too close, you checked everything multiple times, you asked Cub to check everything multiple times, you have never been this focused before. The association called you to tell you to relax, they have never done that ever... But you can't, It's not only your reputation on the line but it's Grian's too.

You want to make sure the invites are sent to the right people but Cub tells you he has already done that... You asked him if he was sure, he told you to sleep... you should probably do it but everytime you try the anxiety kicks in and you can't drit off.

In the end you do go outside to fight crime since It's your job and is also strangely relaxing but you still think about it, you can't help it, It's the first time something like this has happened and you don't know how things will go... It's scary. What if they don't like Cuteguy? He can be sarcastic but he's a good guy, he doesn't deserve to be hated if things go wrong. What if they stop liking you? You haven't worked this hard for this to be how you get fired.

You also make sure to check that It's not going to last too long, you don't want to talk for that long, short and funny you can do easily but long? That's just making it easy for the dyslexia to make you say something bad and Grian doesn't seem like the one to talk a lot about himself ... In general the less the two of you have to talk to the crowd the better....Cub must understand, surely, Cuteguy's inaguration needs to be perfect and nothing and you mean nothing can go wrong.

You will make sure of it.

*Grian's pov*

You can't wait for everything to go wrong, if Grumbot is as smart as you think he is, which is likely considering you are the perfect judge of character you know, then this is going to be fun.

You...well, you really don't think you could have lasted all that time doing nothing...much less give a speech, what would you even say?

"Thank you"? That's boring and weird.

"I would like to thank my parents and friends"? Too cliché and also weird in this context.

You will make sure nobody dies of course, that would be a pretty bad thing and also potential for a lawsuit but you'll definitely make a scene out of it otherwise...

In other news, Hotguy is scarce, you rarely see him in the building...which is weird considering how eye-catching is the color combination of neon blue and highlighter orange. The stress of organizing must be getting to him because his eyebags are pretty dark.

He runs back and forth a bunch and you do feel kinda guilty about planning to mess it up but at the same time... Well...uhh...You don't really have a justification actually, you just think this will be better. You'll make sure It's not going to go too wrong.

Eventually you decide to force him to calm down, you know that all this preparation will be useless anyway and his stress is somehow having the novel and unexpected effect of making you stressed with what can only be described as the emotional version of osmosis... Also known as empathy, a word which you totally did not forget.

And so plan, you lure him in with his favourite maple syrup and once he is distracted you force him to sit down.

"Hotguy"

"G-Grian? Why-"

"You have been doing too much... everything, you need to do less"

"But-"

"No buts"

"..."

"It's my inauguration and you have already done enough...do you think the association is going to rely on you alone to plan?"

"But-"

"What did I say about buts?"

The urge to make a joke there was so so strong but you stayed silent.

"..."

"Listen, I appreciate it Scar but all this moving around is making me very antsy... You also look like you need sleep desperately."

He fidgets in response, It's kinda pathetic really.

"Oh I'm sorry-"

"Don't apologize"

He shuts his mouth immediately.. at least he's good at listening. Hopefully this intervention will work at...well, intervening.

"Ok!"

"So, you better stay here and relax Scar... before I force you to do so."

He looks worried about that, he goes red from worry which you didn't know was possible.

"But- right, no buts...sorr- I mean not sorry!"

"... Understood?"

"Understood."

He's still red, you are a bit confused by that but you decide to not question and leave him to do the resting.

[glamorous-egoist]

A lot to unpack in Ep 7 of The Pitt!

My boy kept his scrubs clean another hour, spoilers under the cut.

Mel!!!! I absolutely love love love her character and her with Dr. Langdon? I love it. These two have such a great relationship, and I need them to be best friends and keep working together as mentor and mentee. I love the exchange in the ambulance bay where he said he learned a lot from her, I really appreciate the mutual respect they have for each other. I want it to continue. Anyway I love Mel.

Whitaker, my guy another hour in clean scrubs, but I think having a second heart attack patient really helped. Again having Langdon walk him through it seemed to help him out. Also Robby and Whitaker with the sandwich HA!

Langdon is growing on me. He’s a good doctor even if he fumbles a bit, but I really like the mentor role he’s taken with Mel and how he was able to help Whitaker out too. Just appreciate the guy.

Javadi and Mohan with the beauty influencer patient, I loved how you saw Javadi’s age with the whole TikTok exchange which was a nice touch. Meanwhile Mohan needing to find her confidence, and ultimately likely being right is great but Robby was an ass. Plain and simple.

Santos. I’m not touching that, she’s really pissing me off. On top of it, they’ve made her so unlikable I can’t root for her even if it explains WHY she’s the way she is. I’m just not touching it. Like great job you’ve made her unlikeable to the point I can’t root for her writers, and that is not sarcasm.

Minu, the Nepalese woman, was pushed! Her exchange with the guy who saved her was so sweet, I was in feels over that, especially when she gave him the bracelet the whole thing was a sweet moment in an overall chaotic day. The question is who did it? (The streets, aka Reddit, thinks it may be the angry guy in chairs, that would be a plot twist!).

Collins, while I expected the miscarriage, I didn’t expect it to soon. Is she finishing the shift? Also her exchange with Robby, what in the ever loving fuck happened between those two?!?! Like I need to know because it’s clearly not something they’re over so please more? I love her defense of Mohan, I think she was right to stand up for her, Robby you’re an ass.

Finally, that brings us to Robby. I’m going to jail, not collecting my $200, holy shit that was all Carter. I have never seen him be more Carter until this moment, like angry, annoyed, agitated that was all Carter coming through and I lost it. Though I will say while no one deserved that, Gloria did, I’ll fight her and I’m not a doctor. It really highlights the issue hospitals are facing so I really love that it’s a mainstream conversation, but Christ Robby leave the damn staff alone. If I disappear the lawsuit got me y’all, but you need to understand I was raised on ER, Carter was my first real tv crush, like I know my man!

Honorable mentions this episode? Our frequent flyers causing chaos, Dana saving Whitaker because good lord Myrna! Mel and the older patient abandoned by her daughter and finally waiting to see if the parents of the deceased teen make the right choice.

Anyway see you next week?

[findme-at1am]

You know this post?

Here's the Feb 20th Update:

Just some highlights of both (KSL.com) articles posted in a way I understood. As well as some AG comments that obviously show the prioritization of Trump's executive order over the CDC:

(FIRST SCREENSHOT IS A REFRESHER)

They don't want to enforce the Biden administrations laws in case Trumpy gets mad. A broken up Trump going through Biden's shit and throwing it out rn let him have his breakdown in front of grown adults who can do nothing apparently.

So no doctors excuses or medications, I can only imagine the accusations parents would get if allowed protection for healthcare across state lines what that would entail... Wow thanks definitely handled Derek Brown /s.

TW: Transphobia Below

It is stopping needs for children/teens, everyone knows this right? During puberty usually is the most distressing time for someones who's trans... You're profiling trans teens now... And they want to sit back and watch Trump bulldoze everything in weeks that it took years to fight for. Keep in mind this shit is against adding Biden's "Final Rule" under federal funding, but there's states who haven't entered yet or-

Dems on the fence who are cowards until pushed. So especially if your state isn't involved, get them so.

We push so hard they pull back enough to fully drop it (letting Trump cuck these Generals by allowing anything the president "says as law" therefore letting all said laws of his term be easily reversible afterwards) and force them to distance themselves and lose the pressure to deny all funds through this lawsuit.

Or they actually push it and exercise the checks and balances they oh so willingly want to hand over to this dictator while making sure Dems have a chance to fight this tooth and nail.

Even if your state isn't included it is just as important they see we include trans people in healthcare/disability rights. Especially remember to include the trans children that are going to be targeted just as they're figuring themselves out with this added pressure from the government and little protections until then.

Here's a call (can be used ofc for emails) script for the 504 lawsuit:

Until this case is dropped there's a fight in hiding until they "decide" to bring it up again. That's a double edged sword, maybe 2 years? 1? When Trump's done? When he starts losing? We're ready and they know that now there's pushback when they want to start it. Until Trump is out of office though some of these bastards may not lift a finger..

So let's mess up their most recent plans. Time for Dems to react rather than resurrect something Republicans are sitting on comfortably anyway because of Trumpy so..

WHAT YOU CAN DO FURTHER!

• (Russian-Ukraine Assistance) Light the fire under their asses. Your AG better hear something along the lines of "Our long lasting allies in NATO and those of the EU deserve to know why the President decided to sit and spin on Putin, our long time enemy. Then said president lies about who's not committing to peace negotiations while giving Ukraine an ultimatum that any respectable president would laugh at."

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-appears-contradict-white-house-says-elon-musk-charge-doge-2025-02-20/

• (DOGE) And while you're at it you can put your efforts into specifically the coup Musk has taken over with DOGE by contacting your respective House/Senate Representatives and easily explaining why you don't want faulty AI and 20-25 year olds with no knowledge of critical fundamental systems to overlook your private information and why said reps. should start speaking for the people that voted them there.

• AI is censoring words in the Education Departments Civil Rights Cases and has only lifted the pause on disabled cases but not any involving terms such as "inequality" affecting POC and the trans community.

• Or Continue Nailing RFK Jr.'s Coffin by pushing Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana (a pro-vax DOCTOR) to take a stand in the Senate for Democracy and use his chair of the health committee to have RFK Jr. explain his opposition to vaccines. Here's where to email him if you're from Louisiana:

Or get Contact Info for your Senator to push for an explanation for such differing "opinions" over facts here regarding RFK Jr's nomination or ANY OF THE TOPICS ABOVE.

It's a start to a war of many battles. Keep up the momentum! Add ways your state can resist against bills and policies as well! Scripts even!

#NoKings

[effygiraffetalks]

Revisited: 10 Year Anniversary of 'EFFY' Coming

2013 was an interesting time for me. A lawsuit was threatened and I had to change my name, so I figured -- why not rebrand my career entirely. The new name I chose at the time was simply EFFY, which I have noticed I still have an artist page with a few songs still under that name.

Before 2013, you all know I was heavily doing pop, edm, club tracks. That was really my brand since 2009 -- so to switch it up I decided to try releasing a hip hop album. The first single, which was released September 25, 2013, was titled Nothin' But A Hoe (Radio Edit titled Nothin' But A).

The song was a shock to many. It maintained the raunchy lyrics I've always had throughout my career, but really highlighted a brand new me. To be honest, I absolutely loved the song. I feel like it would have done well if I hadn't changed my name. It was the lowest performing song of my career. I had built a brand with my old name, so starting fresh proved to be difficult -- especially with the complete genre change / rebrand.

Following Nothin' But A Hoe, I wasted no time. I released the second single, Better Than Before. The song was another I absolutely loved. It really should've been the first single as it sounded like the PERFECT return single.

The song was my first rap song, and it was honestly another that didn't do very well. So my team and I were pretty nervous about the direction we were moving in. There was a lot of talk over if we should just scrap the project. We even wondered if I should go back to making pop songs instead. Though my third single gave us all hope.

Made of Money was the third single from the album. The song did shockingly well compared to the other two singles. It gave us all hope.

It did so well I even included it on The Greatest, my greatest hits album. I thought the first two singles were better, but this one really has some fun lyrics. I enjoyed it. We ended up releasing a song titled They're Watching for Halloween 2013. It was a pop song and a test. We wanted to see if the pop song would gain more traction vs. the hip hop direction.

We noticed it did, so we ended up really rushing the release and put our efforts into Out of this World which proved to be a true success.

EFFY is no longer available on streaming for a few reasons. One being, I didn't like the album. My label kind threw whatever on there just to rush it out. Another reason was my collaborator Jamiya, who was featured on two songs on the album, didn't get along with me. We got into a fight and I'd rather she not gain royalties for the songs.

Anyway, just thought I'd share!! The 10th Anniversary of EFFY is coming this year and honestly I'm proud of the singles we did put out. I'm glad the era also inspired me to continue pop music.

[the-firebird69]

I'm going to file this lawsuit and it's against Dan and it's for impersonating me too but really he was attacking her son up there and I'm going to file a lawsuit against him in Port Charlotte today no Monday and it's regarding the incident a lot of people are saying it we should assume for it because he's done it to other people there and physical violence is not welcome at the facility and we want to point out that our son is stuck there it's not doing well because of these idiotic people in the stupid treatment he's getting and it will highlight that and it needs to be because people are not listening to what he's saying what he's saying this is dog s*** if I was going to hide under I mean we have to do all this work anyways but they're making my life miserable and they're heating up every single aspect of things because they're sending orders through me what if it was your life and they're sending orders through you or if you were in command or somebody or something and they're sending orders through this guy isn't embarrassing or something so I'm starting to think of it differently Frank Castle Hardcastle says that these imps have to die and they're non-stop orders on this crap through our son they're they're so dumb and so guttural that they can't see that it's wrong and that they're all dying and he's right we have to stop them now others are using them and it's Mac and others to get stuff and we have to stop them and he's saying and I do agree and our son is just saying you have to stand up to these passive aggressive stupid bullies here it should have been first but they need to be oppressed here and repressed and depowered all sorts of things that people are not doing so we have some sort of strange idea about it so we're going after them and we're going to sue them we're going to take their stuff and money here until they leave

Bitol and Goddess Wife

We here at Walmart called the police after they came by and said look there's a vagrant here we need to removed is that the police just came by and said yeah they just looked at him and he's still sitting there and he won't move and we requested that he moved I'm going to file trust no trespass if he doesn't but we would rather have you remove him or get him to leave I said we don't do that work anymore and it said because we're not supposed to say okay I'd like to write a no trespass it says you have to come in and file it said no he's trust fussing now and we told him we can't be on our property so the cop came down they filed with no trespass on that a****** and other cops were there and they arrested and Mike afterwards and it was John has Aaron Mike and arrested him and said you're an idiot and it's on file there's no trespass against him if they see him the employees call right away so you know he's there for trouble and he's been doing things dressing up as a girl and yelling at people inciting people against you and we see that he's an idiot and he tried to be the employee the other day and they told him you're not employed here we need you to leave so he became a bomb in seconds and we are going to arrest him all the time but we do see what you're saying he needs to leave and he needs to stay out and he needs to have no trust orders no trespass orders written on him constantly all over the place and he needs to be arrested and he needs to be incarcerated forever but that's what we're doing

Walmart employees

[princessamericachavez]

I think a lot about every time 911 shows us Eddie understanding a little more about Buck in real time... 

(after cut because this got long but bare with me)

Like, the first season should be the most obvious, with the earthquake eps and the next one showing Eddie’s surprise/reaction to Buck’s immediate unconditional support when it comes to Christopher. You can literally see something click for him in Stuck, first when Buck clears Chris spending the day with them with Bobby, then when he introduces Carla to them. 

But then you have new and interesting glimpses at moments when Eddie found another piece of Buck’s puzzle. In Kids Today, for example, we see that Eddie’s approach to Buck’s “sulking” is rather closed off, almost cold, and it’s one of the very first time we hear him mention his father’s toxic masculinity preachings... but when Hen points out that Buck doesn’t have much outside of work, you can literally SEE the second it clicks in for Eddie. Not that Buck doesn’t have anyone, but that he doesn’t know he does. That he doesn’t understand. Which is why he brings Christopher over. Not to teach a lesson, but to show him he’s wrong and he has people who love him regardless.

While the whole lawsuit arc was probably illuminating, for me the real highlight when it comes to Eddie understanding Buck a little bit better is in the famous kitchen scene. Before they get all flirty with the sexual tension... we see Buck ask if maybe Eddie is still angry at him, if maybe Eddie wanted to fight/hurt him, and while Eddie pokes fun of Buck making this about himself, I think it’s a very big moment when he realizes how deep the self-loathing runs, that Buck cannot just accept the fact that he was forgiven, that he still things that Eddie wanted to/would under any circumstances hurt him. So he makes a point to say “I wouldn’t do that”, matter of factly (even if he later has to sidestep it with a joke because this is pre-therapy Eddie after all). 

Which of course later leads to The One That Got Away and Buck’s traumas shining through his relationship with Red and you can see how adamant Eddie is that no, Buck is not being left behind and no he isn’t losing the 118 family, and he’s annoyed when the others aren’t as quick to reassure him. But this is all part of Eddie-understanding-Buck-arc in s3 (remember the post-embolism thing i mentioned above). Which, of course, later becomes a punch in What’s Next? when Abby is back and Eddie sees real time one of the people who’ve filled Buck with abandonment and scars. Buck who, at this point, fyi, Eddie has already chosen as the person he trusts most to look after his son in case he dies.

Anyway, s4 is short but there’s treasures like What’s Your Grievance and Buck Begins, in which Eddie very clearly sees the roots of Buck’s pain and is already quick to validate his feelings and offer him a shoulder and space to vent. This Eddie is far more prepared than his counterpart at the beginning of s3 to see and understand Buck and offer his support openly. Which is what leads to the shooting and, more importantly, Buck once again acting like he’s expendable. And, because Eddie’s had this whole journey so far, he’s at a place where he can see better than the other characters that Buck doesn’t think himself invincible, he thinks himself disposable. But you can see the confusion in his face when Buck says it the first time, the moment —again— when he processes this new and painful information about his best friend. And he, once again, takes action with words of affirmation to show Buck that, again, he’s wrong. 

Now, by s5 Buck and Eddie know each other pretty well so there’s fewer surprises on Eddie’s side (s5, after all, it’s Buck’s turn to go through the journey of truly seeing Eddie’s scars and pain and being there for him) but I think about Home And Away, and how Eddie needs to do a double-take after he jokes that Chimney will not forgive Buck. Because it’s a joke, it’s meant to be, but the hurt in Buck’s eyes is so clear —because, again, he thinks himself easily discarded as soon as he screws up once— that he looks genuinely shocked that he has to clarify the joke in the first place. S5 keeps telling us Eddie already sees Buck, in little things like recognizing how Buck wants to fix things and how he might struggle with lack of control when he can’t help. 

Then s6 doubles down on the idea that Eddie already knows Buck so deeply, “it’s clearly bothering you”, knowing the happiness convention call was hard on him and teaming up with Chim to cheer Buck and Hen, picking up on his changes in habits and the fact that he might be hiding something, not joining the schedule to check on him after the lightning, being the one who offers the right space for Buck to open up... and then there’s the cemetery scene and there’s another DING moment when a new piece falls and Eddie realizes that Buck has changed, how could he not, and he’s now trying to catch up with whatever is wrong or new. And even then, he knows Buck enough to reassure him that he doesn’t need to pretend for anyone else’s sake. 

Anyway, I don’t know where I’m going with this, except for the fact that I love the journey these two have gone through and how we’ve gotten to see on screen (rather than just assume or be told) the moments that have slowly morphed Eddie’s perception of Buck from the cocky kid from day 1 to the rather hurt and vulnerable and open hearted man he truly is. 

[rainbowsky]

I had an ask response up about this yesterday but I removed it because ultimately it's unclear exactly what is happening, or why.

I have seen a lot of claims from motos that are untrue, and unsubstantiated assumptions from them that they're using to attack turtles. Of course, this is nothing new.

However, it is true that for a long time turtles have been dominating over motos in fan support.

I have a whole post in my drafts about some theories I have relating to fandom rivalries and the behavior of GG and DD's teams, but it's hard to say whether I'll ever finish it. My enthusiasm for the topic waxes and wanes rather wildly from week to week.

Anyway, one of the many fascinating activities fandoms engage in are comment wars. Fandoms will go into posts of significance to their favorite and mass-comment messages they want to see highlighted and mass-like comments of fellow fandom members, so that at a glance it's clear their fandom is dominant.

Ever since Weibo Night turtles have been engaging heavily in this (more heavily than usual), to what I view as the extreme embarrassment of motos. Turtles have dominated the comments on every post on DD's and on YBO's accounts, to where you have to scroll to find any comment from a moto.

The post where this activity was mostly focused initially was the automated post announcing DD's award. It was actually a lot more extreme earlier than it is now. It seems motos are busy trying to counteract that and some of the moto comments have risen quite a bit from where they were over the past few days (but are still far below the turtle ones).

(Incidentally, turtles made a respectable showing in GG's post as well, but shrimps are vastly more organized and active than motos, so turtles haven't dominated there).

I should also add that it's commonplace for fandoms to use emoji featuring their fandom colors. Turtles aren't doing anything unusual by posting colored emoji.

(Although I think bringing GG's name into these threads is unwise, and this is fairly common behavior among turtles).

As for the calls under the lawsuit update post for 'managing the comments of posts' - most of that isn't targeted at turtles. Unfortunately DD antis are very active in all posts related to him, and YBO/Yuehua hasn't been great at managing that and removing those comments quick enough. (There were also calls from turtles in that thread for YBO/Yuehua to deal with those, just FYI.)

Although it's true that there have also been some complaints about turtle comments, especially about GG's name being seen in the comments of posts (to a lot of motos, GG represents 'the enemy' because motos are at constant war with shrimps).

Bottom line: like I said it's really hard to know for sure what's going on - or why - so we should just wait and see how things unfold in the coming days.

SDOC finale is coming up on the 20th, and surely most of us can remember the shocking events that occurred during last SDOC finale (ugly fights between motos and turtles at the event). My hope is that everyone keeps a cool head and refrains from embarrassing DD this year by acting like a bunch of wild animals, but I won't hold my breath...

If some comments are being blocked (unclear at this point), it's possible it's related to spam reports, it's possible it's related to the platform itself, or it's possible YBO is trying to cool things down in the lead-up to the event. We just don't know, and we're highly unlikely to ever get an accurate answer. No point in stressing over it.

In any case - as Vic said, this is not what we're here for. Especially not to bring solo fan hate and Twitter drama to our quiet space here and get as stirred up as people over there about it. We should all be staying in our lane.

If solos want to be dicks, let them. If we're blocking and ignoring them, it can't reach us or affect us.

Some of you might find my Fandom Survival Guide helpful. This post also has relevant information, as well as a list of other posts about dealing with toxic people in fandom.

fandom thoughts & are cpfs really gonna get banned from yibo related comment sections? 📝

i may regret publishing this cause it will, like it always does, attract the wrong sort but whatever. i don’t really care. for someone who has been here for a good number of years, i have really learned to pick my battles especially fandom-wise. i can tell you that every week, there will always be some kind of trouble going on with fans and you will be exhausted if you obsess over each one of them. i have said before that if there is anything that will drive me out of stanning the boys, it’s the toxic fandom — so that’s why i mostly steer clear. hence, having this small space for myself on tumblr.

the fandom disagreements, whether that’s within cpfs, so/o vs cpfs, so/o vs other so/os and we somehow get dragged is always gonna be there. and it’s not really unique to our fandom. the question tho is why you are here? is it to participate in fan wars or to consume content related to xz and wyb? is it to be famous and get followers? etc personally, i’m here for xz and wyb. the active fandom is a bonus. there are so many things i love about the cpf community, but my priority will always be xz and wyb + their career. i mostly get involved if the issue makes it on HS and if it’s to amplify something positive within the fandom.

lately, i’ve mildly spoke up about people accusing cpfs of buying likes cause it was all bs.

which leads us to the next topic of being banned..

i guess this is a “hot topic” in other platforms that love drama.

so for the past days, including weibo night, cpfs have been commenting en masse in comments section. for example, with yibo’s weibo night post and ybo’s recent post about bystander ep photos. what you will notice is the use of ❤️💛 💚 to highlight that we are cpfs. the same thing is done in xz & xzs post. the only reason why we are more visible in the top comments of yibo posts is because motos are disorganized. i said what i said. i see efforts for their coordination but cpfs are just more organized when it comes to doing likes and votes. xfx are so much better than us on this tho. they have lots of professional fans. omg i’m gonna get dragged for being a xfx lol but it’s the truth.

you must notice that the friction between cpfs and motos have been happening for a while now. going as far back as SDC 5 finals ( even before that actually ) and so on. this is why i’m not surprised that this stunt from cpfs triggered them again. ⚠️

the short answer is, no one is getting banned. what they can do tho, and that includes YBO is to report these comments as spam. and if you look at it, they do look like spam posts. if a user gets reported multiple times, then that is when the ban comes in. i don’t think they will be spending money on censoring certain emojis tho. i tried right now and you can still send it.

i have seen some conversations on wb among cpf, that the comments should not be like this. it should really be actual comments on what is being shared. that we should not include xz’s name or face. that’s what i like about the fandom, cause we can admit if we do something wrong or if we need to improve in some aspects. we don’t blame other people, which is what other fandoms love to do btw. it’s all they can do. lol.

and it doesn’t help that in yuehua’s recent post regarding yibo’s lawsuits, the top comment is about demanding to control the comments section of yibo related posts. so of course they will look into that. sadly, the group that the company will always appease are the solo fans. it is what it is.

so that’s basically what the issue is about.

i’m actually just observing at this point but it’s not where my focus is. i am personally excited about saturday and seeing captain yibo 💥 plus i have other interests and things happening irl. this is why i don’t get people who seem to only be in fandom to start fights or obsess over cpfs. can’t relate.

i’m not saying that we should ignore everything and pretend that things are perfect. the point is, do not obsess over every fandom drama. also, look at things from cpf side before so/os. people usually come to me, sending me things that so/os say and my question is why the hell are you reading their posts? why are you in there? let’s stay on our lane. they are so/os, of course they will be biased. and don’t expect me to be always up in arms about stuff like this. my energy for over reacting is primarily for cpns and not fandom wars & drama.

lastly, being a cpf is not for the glass hearted. if you are weak-willed, this is is not for you. or maybe it is and this is the fandom that will build you up. i hope more and more people will find that perfect balance in participating in this fandom. that we set and implement boundaries — i know it’s especially hard for the new ones — when you are bombarded with the negativity. it’s not all that. there is so much more positive things to gain in being a cpf if you know where to look 🫶🏼

[qqueenofhades]

I've been hearing some deeply worrying things about 4 surveillance/censorship bills: https:// www.badinternetbills .com/

From what I've been able to gather online, these bills (the Kids Online Safety Act, EARN IT Act, STOP CSAM Act and RESTRICT Act) all proclaims to be about protecting children online, but the evidence I've seen from various articles highlights that they all share the same serious flaws of being too overly broad and vague, with various stipulations and elements that would actually not only fail to protect children, but also outright lead to incredibly invasive censorship.

There's even been an explicit admission from far right wing groups like the Heritage Foundation and the Family Research Council that they actively plan to use the first bill (and likely the others) to silence LGBT media online.

They outright stated as such here:

https:// www.heritage.org /gender/commentary/how-big-tech-turns-kids-trans

https:// twitter.com /ButNotTheCity/status/1661560827164471296

The first two are supported by a religious fundamentalist group who used to go by Morality in Media.

And the first three bills have massive bipartisan support, with EARN IT and STOP CSAM already on the calendar to be heard in the Senate, and significant celebrity support for the first bill.

IIRC, SESTA/FOSTA also had similar results akin to KOSA, and that turned out to be a disaster.

...I can't help but be extremely worried, because any reaction to these bills has been lukewarm and lacking, with barely any significant pushback.

Basically yeah, this is what I mean when I say that regulating social media is currently almost impossible in a useful and productive way. Both left and right will talk about "protecting children online," which in my opinion is a bullshit metric anyway because it's a) so wildly unspecific and b) usually means OH NO A CHILD MIGHT SEE TITTIES moral panic, rather than actually addressing the violent extremist/far right/Nazi/other types of terrorist content that is far more of a threat. The right wing wants to use it to demonize LGBTQ content, because that's their goal with literally everything right now. The left is caught between a rock and a hard place where they want to regulate and/or punish Big Tech for all that casual democracy-destroying-for-profit that they've been doing, but haven't figured out how to apply that effectively, get it passed, or otherwise achieve the desired results. So they end up signing onto these vague "Protect The Children" acts which are extremely vulnerable to being manipulated by bad actors (and are often deliberately designed by said bad actors in the first place) to look like they're addressing the problem. Which they're not. They're not getting at the tech oligarchs who actually control these platforms, they're not putting in meaningful safeguards, they're just thinking that requiring individuals to submit age verification for porn sites or whatever is somehow going to fix this. Which. It will not.

The good news here is that every few years there's a lot of alarm about some bill that's going to Break The Internet As We Know It, and while we obviously need to pay attention to those and keep abreast of what's going on, that has not actually happened yet and even fucking nightmare-city SCOTUS recently declined to dismantle or otherwise significantly overhaul Section 230, which would have opened the door to all kinds of micromanaging/policing/bad-faith lawsuits from people who scream about "Free Speech!!!" and then want to destroy it for everyone who is not them. So yes, obviously, continue to exercise your rights, contact your representatives, make sure people know what is at stake etc -- but there are good people working on this, such as the Wikipedia foundation and others, who have been battling literal DECADES of attacks on the open web and have been in this fight for the long haul. They'll be in it for this one too, so if you're exceptionally worried, I would advise you to look into foundations/organizations working on this. They have a whole lot of structure and experience, I'm sure they would welcome volunteers, and you can join the effort that's already underway, rather than trying to reinvent the wheel and build an opposition movement from scratch. So yeah.

[samueldays]

Do you have a sauce on progs being anti-bodycam? The only objection I recall was that cops being investigated for malfeasance were being allowed to review THEIR OWN footage before they had to give testimony, which is ripe for abuse.

ACLU's current proposal for how bodycams should be restricted. Countless restrictions each of which might be defensible on its own, but the sum gives me the very strong impression they've decided they don't want this (unless it can be used for the criminals).

A lot of it is dictating when the cop should turn bodycam on and turn bodycam off, which is a failure waiting to happen.

Some highlights:

A law enforcement officer who is wearing a body camera shall notify the subject(s) of the recording that they are being recorded by a body camera as close to the inception of the encounter as is reasonably possible.

Arguably unenforceable in crowded areas, unless you play games with the definition of "subject". (The ACLU plays games with the definition of "subject" in the footnotes, saying it shall not include people who only "incidentally" appear in the recording.) And including this with the next point,

Body cameras shall not be used surreptitiously.

This is arguably contrary to the basic idea of cops having bodycams. They should be always-on while the cop is on duty and the cop doesn't get access to tinker with the device. It should be publicly announced and made common knowledge in a bodycam state (or other jurisdiction) that "Cops Are Recording" as a default fact about cops, so it can't be used surreptitiously.

But the ACLU decides to shoot their nominal cause in the foot by trying to micromanage when the cop is supposed to turn the bodycam on and turn the bodycam off, and this inevitably gives the cop more wiggle room to turn it on and off for his own purposes.

When interacting with an apparent crime victim, a law enforcement officer shall, as soon as practicable, ask the apparent crime victim, if the apparent crime victim wants the officer to discontinue use of the officer’s body camera. If the apparent crime victim responds affirmatively, the law enforcement officer shall immediately discontinue use of the body camera

There's a hell of a lot riding on that "as soon as practicable" clause, and a hell of a lot of exploit room for having a criminal feign victimhood to get the camera turned off and cover their buddies.

Body cameras shall not be used to gather intelligence information based on First Amendment protected speech, associations, or religion, or to record activity that is unrelated to a response to a call for service or a law enforcement or investigative encounter between a law enforcement officer and a member of the public.

No. Just have the fucking things recording by default. It turns on when the cop signs in and it turns off when the cop signs out, maybe tied to the Hours Worked at the precinct to disincentivize fudging. Then restrict access to the footage, instead of demanding the cop constantly second-guess himself and the review court about when to turn it on and turn it off.

I repeat: Giving the cop full control over his own bodycam is a failure mode waiting to happen. The ACLU is smart enough to know this. The fact that they're demanding it anyway suggests to me they want messy grounds for lawsuits.

Law enforcement officers shall not activate a body camera while on the grounds of any public, private or parochial elementary or secondary school, except when responding to an imminent threat to life or health.

Given that this is ten pages of legalese, I am not inclined to give them benefit of the doubt for the obvious loophole of "the cop activates the camera before entering the grounds".

No body camera shall be equipped with, or have its video footage or other data subjected to, facial recognition or any other form of biometric analysis.

That middle clause is dumb and doesn't belong here.

Should any law enforcement officer, employee, or agent fail to adhere to the recording or retention requirements contained in this chapter [...] (2) A rebuttable evidentiary presumption shall be adopted in favor of criminal defendants who reasonably assert that exculpatory evidence was destroyed or not captured; and (3) A rebuttable evidentiary presumption shall be adopted on behalf of civil plaintiffs suing the government, a law enforcement agency and/or law enforcement officers for damages based on police misconduct who reasonably assert that evidence supporting their claim was destroyed or not captured.

This is a sort of final clause which would be reasonable and good with always-on or at least strongly on-by-default bodycams where it takes unusual effort for the cop to interfere with his own bodycam in any way.

In a bill where the ACLU is demanding the cop turn his own bodycam off for this, turn it on for that, turn it off again for the other, turn it on except as specified in section (2)(j)(iv), turn it off if he is requested by such-and-such unless there are exigent circumstances, notwithstanding the previous it shall be turned on as specified in subsection F-yourmother, and make sure to constantly notify people in the middle of everything else you're doing, et cetera, et fucking cetera, -- it's practically guaranteed the cop will violate it.

I expect police departments reading a bill like this would just be like "No. Hell no."

[numberonecatwinner]

https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/22/23465042/elon-musk-tesla-ceo-compensation-trial-full-transcript

The transcripts of Musk on trial are pretty funny, but here are a couple highlights.

1. Musk’s claim that he is not a conventional CEO who runs the business side of things, but rather a boygenius engineer who personally designs the rockets, cars, etc. himself, an absurd lie:

A: Yes. I was running SpaceX. I should say the CEO role at SpaceX and also at Tesla, it’s less about the CEO but, rather, that I am the one driving the technology. So at SpaceX, it’s really that I am responsible for the engineering of the rockets; and at Tesla, for the technology, you know, in the car that makes it successful. So CEO is often viewed as somewhat of a business-focused role, but in reality, my role is much more that of an engineer developing technology and just making sure that we develop breakthrough technologies and that we have a team of incredible engineers who can achieve those goals. And it is my experience that great engineers will only work for a great engineer, and so I — that is what I — that is my first duty, not that of CEO.

Musk is the consummate “ideas guy”. He would do things like hire the costume designer from Star Trek to create mock ups of how the space suits should look, and then cycle through teams of materials scientists and other engineers hoping to find someone who could make the design functional. I’m sure in his mind this constitutes “driving the technology”, when in reality none of the actual work was done by Musk and in fact his contribution -- insisting that engineers figure out a way to make a costume work as a functional spacesuit -- is asinine.

2. Musk tries to claim that he is not bound by the consent decree because he agreed to it under duress, and he is a Very Smart Boy who understands the law:

Q. And am I correct that the consent decree that you entered into with the SEC provided that you would not “take any action or permit to be made any public statement denying, directly or indirectly, any allegation in the complaint or creating the impression that the complaint is without factual basis.” Do you recall that as one of the obligations in the consent decree? A. The consent decree was made under duress, so I believe that — Q. I — we can get to that. I just want to know whether you recall that as an obligation. A. An agreement made under duress is not valid as a foundation of law. Q. Okay. Can you tell me whether you know — are you trained as a lawyer? A. I have some familiarity with the legal system. Q. I suspected that might be the answer. You know, once upon a time, you could read the law and become a lawyer. Even in Delaware, it was not so long ago that you didn’t actually need a law degree. So maybe you’re on your way. A. I mean, if you’re in enough lawsuits, you learn a — you pick up a few things along the way. Q. There you go. Well, putting aside the lack of bar admission, anyway, perhaps legal training is there, but the bar admission isn’t, I just want to know whether you’re aware of this obligation. I don’t really want to hear about what you think about it. I just want to understand whether you’re aware of the obligation, yes or no. A. Yes.

Exchanges like these are littered throughout the transcript, and it’s so fascinating to see Musk have to respond to people who are actually empowered to push back against his grandiose nonsense. He’s so clearly unprepared for it. He’s on the stand in court and he’s trying to offer up his opinions of laws, US regulatory agencies, the history of electric cars, and whatever else pops into his head as if it’s important and relevant to the proceedings. And these lawyers -- and at one point the judge -- have to remind him that actually, his opinions aren’t the most important ones in the room right now.

He’s been so rich for so long, he lives in a world that contorts itself to his preferences and struggles in a situation where things won’t warp for him. No wonder he thinks we’re all living in a simulation. It’d be hard not to fall into solipsism if that was your lived experience.

[cosmojjong]

alright, I gotta know. please explain to me all the ways cube has tried to ruin pentagon. I don't want to live ignorantly, thinking they're just another incompetent company (bc honestly find me a GOOD entertainment agency that treats all their artists fairly, protects them, promotes them regularly, loves them and feeds them 3 square meals a day. doesn't exist.)

you're very right, there's no company like that, and it's a shame even to this day.

and, well, let's see. i'm a bit tired so i'm going with things off the top of my head. i feel like the company has just... very blatantly threatened them different times behind the scenes. especially judging by some words the members have shared. it's always felt like they kind of made pentagon feel like THEY were lacking. like THEY needed to do something to prove themselves. it's sad because the boys have been trying so hard all these years but they can only do so much with such a shitty promotion. first instance i can think of is when the demo eps were released. it all felt rushed (they were released too close to each other) and it was such a pity because demo_01 was the ep that gave them their self-produced title. i don't even know what the company was trying to do, people barely had the time to digest those songs that we got another ep. so like

1) their almost non-existent or badly handed promotion. i swear they just don't seem to know how to cherish and properly promote such a gem group like pentagon. it's so bad.

2) i feel like, over time, the opportunities to show what they're capable of that they were given were just not the right ones. sure, we got some nice content but cube literally do nothing to highlight their entire vocal line. everything that the public could perceive was because of their stage presence. every new fan that got into them, it was thanks to the group. the success and the appreciation of songs, it was thanks to their authenticity while making music. i genuinely believe the group owns maybe 20% (and i'm being kind here) of their success to that agency. being so vocally based they don't have much singing content people can go through, except for magazineho and those hardly updated cover playlists. they could give changgu the space to do covers but do they? no. i think some time in the past he implied that he wanted to upload more songs but that he wasn't allowed to. to be honest i think the company also has favoritisms towards certain members, but it may be just me. and i don't like how they may be pitted against one another (see: pentagon maker) when they love each other so much.

3) shine. before it got released ptg were most likely told that the song had to do well, otherwise they would've been disbanded. hui said shine was a blessing, the reason why pentagon could survive. it got progressively worse with idle debuting (and it's funny how their fans say that ptg are cube's favorites *giggles in i want to be that delusional*)

4) when the summer 2018 mess happened, their fancafe was a mess. kpop fans were spamming the general board with anything and everything. the company knew it and still kept it open for a good 3 to 4+ months. i remember this because they suddenly changed the rules, locked this and that, and i got demoted as well. many of us got demoted for doing nothing. their disorganization never fails to amaze me. so, anyways, there is no way cube didn't know about the rumors that were being made up about them. hell, they even used hui as the scapegoat. shinwon, jinho and hongseok were heavily targeted and the company just did nothing. they were bullied into not leaving the dorms. no lawsuit, no notice, no protection. had a shit ton of schedules to attend and to deal with.

5) all the hiatuses they put yanan through. and for what? yanan could understandbly leave for health reasons but at times it's felt like they were just punishing the guy for doing so. one time it was a miscommunication between the labels, but keeping him away for months to years? like are we serious? there are people who have never seen him with pentagon, and people who got to see him with them after more than a year. the formation changes are so bad too. people are never gonna memorize who's who if the company decides to 'oh yea you go to japan for three months bye' or 'you're staying in china for a year and no one will get an official notice cause we don't care' approximately every two months.

6) rtk. what the hell was that. i hate when ptg have anything to do with mnet to begin with. they were put on this show that just sucked the life out of them, where mnet just used them for clickbait and very obviously rigged it although it was clear they should've won. jinho had to enlist in a hurry, hui was only months away from enlisting and spent sleepless nights arranging songs for like three different projects. they were completely out of it. shinwon even said that at some point hyunggu was so exhausted and mentally worn out that it was impossible for them to talk to him. they even said they were in and out of the hospital because of body pains. still, the company kept them going until the end, even through pain and tears.

7) shall i add bad budgeting. like seriously i'd like to speak to a nevie and understand why they think ptg gets their group's money. have they seen some of ptg's packaging and some of the props for their photoshoots or mvs? my thumbs up album is literally one step away from falling apart because the material is just not good.

please know i don't like talking of such things as i don't want to sound like i am victimizing them. ptg are fun, charismatic, bright, cheerful, full-of-love people. they never ever complain and that's what stings. i'm just so done with the bad things they've had to endure. the boys have always acted like it's sunshine and rainbows and we've all have tried hard to see the good things in everything. we do even nowadays, but there's still a dark side to it.

i'm sure there must have been other instances of ptg being told that they could be disbanded if said thing doesn't sell well (which btw is ridiculous because pentagon have been outselling themselves every comeback). shall i remember anything i'll say it later on, i think i talked a lot for now, i'm so sorry. all i can do is hope that 2023 is REALLY their breakthrough year because i cannot see them in pain anymore. it just doesn't feel fair and i want them to be happy.

[prettyboybuckley]

I have had many OTPs over the years, but none have given me the 'soulmate vibes' like Buck and Eddie (and in extension of Eddie, Christopher) do

Not in a "there is one person you're destined to be with" way, but in "there was a hole in my heart and when you walked into my life it accomodated to fit you in perfectly" way

Buck and Eddie are exactly what the other needs. And sure, other ships have that too - they ground each other, but...

Evan "love me anyway" Buckley has found a person who loves him unconditionally - besides Maddie. Despite how little he thinks he's worth, despite the mistakes he's made (I feel like it isn't highlighted enough how little time was between the lawsuit and the well). He's the person Eddie trusts most with his son in the whole world.

And Eddie found a real partner, someone who offers instead of demands, who supports him without judgement or wanting something back. Who has the same priorities as he does - because we all know Buck would choose Christopher over Eddie in a heartbeat.

And those are just a few things, because there are so so many more

It's a love that seems so unlikely when you look at the two of them separately, but together?

They're soulmates in a way that is like looking at a puzzle and the last piece doesn't seem to fit.

But then you try and it slots in perfectly and it's not clear if the piece changed or the puzzle changed or if it was a perfect fit all along.

And then the picture is complete.

[sunnyrosewritesstuff]

Also because I am still so obsessed, any commentary from Thirty Minutes To Change Your Life!!!!

Please 💜

And finally hitting the other one. 🤣I'll try not to comment on the whole fic, but I'll definitely hit the highlights. This one is becoming surprisingly popular again, so I'm glad to get the chance to talk about it.

Okay, commentary below the cut and has been bolded to not get confused with the actual fic.

So first thing I think I should point out...this was my first fic entirely from Thorin's POV! I usually prefer Bilbo because I connect with Bilbo more, but writing awkward, misunderstanding Thorin was too much fun to pass up!

When Dwalin had the bright idea to open up a throwing axe bar right out of university, Thorin thought he was crazy. Never mind the level of lawsuits and liabilities he was opening himself up to by mixing axes and alcohol, but he wanted to put it at the base of the mountains to get cross traffic from Ered Luin and Hobbiton. Both were small towns with an equal amount of tourist traps. Hobbiton with their gardens and food-related festivals; Ered Luin, high enough for skiing and snowboarding. 

I had just visited my first axe bar at this point, and had so much fun but immediately thought of Dwalin.

Thorin leaned against the bar top to where he could watch the axe stations as he waited. Dwalin was relatively busy for a weeknight, but Thorin could afford to stay out late. Dis was taking the boys skiing this weekend, and he did not have to go into the office the next day. 

As he was absently sweeping the room with his gaze, he caught the eyes of a little button-nosed blonde sitting with another man at a table next to the bar. A “hobbit” from the look of him which was a slang term those in Ered Luin made for the people living in Hobbiton.

I really couldn't resist. 😆

He was pretty though, and most likely younger as gray hadn’t quite taken to him like it had Thorin. Still, it had been longer than he would have liked since he had last dated, and she had been a bore.

I love bi!Thorin. In fact, I HC him that way in most fics I just rarely get the chance to show it off.

He shot the hobbit a smile that had the other man ducking his head in embarrassment. Thorin mentally shrugged. Oh well, they were probably on a date anyways, and Thorin had just made an ass of himself.

“Oh, is that so COUSIN BILBO!” 

Siggy is the best wing man. I hope everyone caught that Bilbo had been checking Thorin out since he walked in.

Thorin chuckled and took a drink of his beer for courage. He’s learned that asking people out at bars takes a bit of strategy. Going for the nonchalant play, he decided to walk by their table until he found a point in their conversation where he could jump in. It works well for him most of the time. Only this time, he heard something that nearly had him stop cold.

Okay, this. This conversation right here is the whole reason why I chose to write this fic. I had one of those Character A/B prompt starters stuck in my head, and it was "Character A overheard a conversation from Character B and completely misread the situation". Sounded like perfect Bagginshield material to me.

“You say this every year! You’re not going to jump, Bilbo.” The cousin groaned.

“Nope. You won’t change my mind this time, Siggy. I’ve got nothing to lose. I’m doing it this time.”

They wouldn’t be...there’s no way they would be talking about that so casually in a bar. Suddenly, all thoughts of hitting on the man went out the window as Thorin was riveted listening to more and making sure he wasn’t hearing what he thought he was hearing.

“Bilbo, I love you, but you’re not going to do it.” The cousin scoffed.

“Do you know I’ve promised myself every year since Mom died that this year will be different? I can’t keep living like this, Sig! I’ve just...I need to do this.”

“NO!” Thorin roared, spinning around.

Both men jumped in their seats staring at Thorin warily. Smooth, that was real smooth. 

“What I mean to say is I couldn’t help overhearing and just...give me thirty minutes. Thirty minutes to change your life.”

And there you go, this was the entire section that I based an entire fic on. It wasn't until after I had finished writing that I realized with a sensitive topic like suicide, I didn't want people to think that a) I was trying to make light/make a joke out of it or b) be super scared that this fic was going to have some hard edges to it. Because it really was meant to be a fun fic of misunderstandings, but I liked that Thorin was the kind of guy that when he did hear something that sounded like this he was going to try and help. So the disclaimer was born!!

“Well, you are off to a marvelous start.” The hobbit lamented.

But what do I make them talk about now?? Was literal thoughts in my head. It seemed to work out well.

Thorin chuckled. “Give me a break. This isn’t exactly a conversation I expected to have when I woke up this morning.”

This is funny when you realize Bilbo isn't really talking about suicide.

“My little brother got leukemia back in our teens. I remember that helpless feeling well.”

“Yes!” Bilbo agreed. “Helpless. That’s a good word for it. I could never explain to my family why I couldn’t stay in the house when she became bed-ridden. Did your brother…?”

To kill Frerin or not...the struggle in any modern AU...

“He’s fine.” Thorin assured with a smile. “Little idiot is backpacking through the Mistys right now. I told him I would pay his way, but he said ‘this is a journey that must be savored and experienced naturally’ and then proceeds to send me selfies from every dance club he manages to worm his way into.”

And I chose to not. 😆

Alright skipping down a little ways...

Thorin was most assuredly careful. He had carefully picked out his blue button-up and black slacks. He had carefully combed his hair and trimmed his beard, and more importantly he had carefully applied just the right amount of cologne. The whole time he had to remind himself that this wasn’t a date. It couldn’t be a date, ever. That would be the definition of ‘fucked up’.  So, he tried to convince himself that he was just trying to make a good impression all the while sinking deeper and deeper into the pit of self-revulsion.

Yeah, in my head I didn't plan this part out very well and I was like "please don't let Thorin come across creepy..." Because the whole point was he was initially attracted to Bilbo. He wants this to be a date. But he also really thinks Bilbo in going through a hard time, and it's not exactly the best point to jump into a relationship. So there's this back and forth between, I like him and I want to be a really good friend to him.

“You’re here.” Thorin declared.

Bilbo couldn’t even get another word in before Thorin had him wrapped up in a hug. The smaller man froze with a soft ‘oh’, and then ever so hesitantly returned the embrace.

If I'm Bilbo, I'm thinking that Thorin is the most awkward hot guy ever, and little does he know...he's completely and totally right. Good news, awkward and shy works for Bilbo.

Bungee jumping. Bilbo had been talking about bungee jumping. Heat burst to Thorin’s face and he contemplated the quickest escape route.

And finally the reveal! I'm still grinning ear to ear reading this scene, but I definitely was writing this scene.

Bilbo’s brows furrowed at Thorin’s words, and it was rather unfortunate to the taller man that Bilbo was a quick study. His eyes suddenly widened.

“Jumping…” He murmured under his breath. “Did you think…?”

Thorin gave him the most pitiful look imaginable, and Bilbo couldn’t take it another second longer. He laughed. He laughed long and hard while Thorin hid his face in his hands. In fact, Bilbo’s was so tickled that his laugh changed from the rich and musical sound he had come to enjoy to a maniacal, wheezing bark that had most of the restaurant looking at them. Thorin had already drained his wine as he mentally calculated how many years it would take before he could show his face in Bombur’s again.

HA HA HA HA HA!! Do I enjoy torturing my characters? Yes, yes I do. This is certainly a date neither would have forgotten no matter which way things turned out.

“Perhaps, we can start over? I’m Thorin Durin, an idiot who listens in on parts of cute men’s conversations and jumps to the worst possible conclusion.”

Relief appeared in Bilbo’s face as he accepted the handshake enthusiastically. “I’m Bilbo Baggins. I find overconfidence and endearing idiocy very attractive, although I would advise you to choose your words more carefully. I knew someone once who seemed to think ‘jump’ was an automatic cry for help.”

Impromptu line that seemed to somehow be everyone's favorite. 🤣 My sister proofread this fic for me and asked me at this point if I was sure I didn't want to change the name to 'Jump'.

Thorin couldn’t help laughing which got Bilbo started up again as well. It took them forever to actually order any food, and yet it was the best date of Thorin’s life. Looking back years later, both men agreed it was the moment they fell in love with the other although they wouldn’t admit such a thing to each other or in the privacy of their own thoughts for many months after. In fact, their initial meeting was never brought up again. When asked how they met, it was simply ‘in Dwalin’s bar’. Thorin’s own family didn’t know his shame…well until the night of his and Bilbo’s wedding.

“So, I said, ‘what? He’s straight?’ And this great brooding idiot goes ‘no, suicidal’.”

MAN! Thorin was so close to getting away with it. But this is what best friends are for. I really enjoyed wrapping it up with their wedding. Even though this was a cute little world, I didn't see myself revisiting it for a sequel and so I wanted to show off all the scenes I wanted out of it.

The crowd erupted into laughter as Thorin listened to his best man’s speech warring between how to dispose of Dwalin’s body and resignation to the jokes he will be privy to at every holiday on both sides for the rest of his life. Bilbo, his wonderful, perceptive husband, lay his head on Thorin’s shoulder with a soft chuckle.

“I know, Dearheart, but think of it this way: those thirty minutes were truly life changing. For both of us.”

As Thorin turned his head to the man he wouldn’t be able to live without, he caught Bilbo’s lips in a quick kiss. He agreed completely and besotted. Best ‘jump’ he ever made.

Aww, aren't they precious? 🥰 I had such a blast reliving this experience. It is funny that Razzy's two favorite fics of mine have been the last day of my Birthday Plot Bunnies so I'm glad they made good birthday gifts! 😂 We'll have to see if Ghost of a Chance becomes a new favorite...👀

[vimbry-moved]

edit: they didn’t actually do anything, this time,sorry about phrasing this this like a recent development! moominco, however, do have a strong history of handing out C&Ds and even lawsuits towards people for unauthorised use of their characters, including a charity fanzine. I take none of this sentiment back, but apologies for misinfo!

do the 80 year olds working for moomincharacters have nothing better to do than threaten funny teens on the internet every few years. the consistency with which they’ve broken out the no-no messages over the history of their company, man. they’ve got nothing going on? no tight schedule huh. nothing to budget, market, sort out during an international crisis. they have time for this? anyway here’s some unrelated paragraphs from a 2015 YLE article that I just happen to want to talk about now. it’s doesn’t highlight their hypocrisy in throwing their weight around after small fry “offenders” and acting simpering around the big people with counter-sue money who’ll bring bad publicity to their brand.

“When Finnish-born NHL hockey player Antti Raanta wore a Moomin-inspired goalie mask during the NHL season's opening game on Monday night where the Rangers shut out the San Jose Sharks 4-0 , the company that holds the copyright to artist Tove Jansson's Moomin's characters contacted the Swedish artist who painted Raanta's mask

“The Moomins are Tove Jansson’s creation and they are copyrighted. The artist who painted the mask did not ask for permission,” said Roleff Kråkström, Managing Director of Moomin Characters Oy Ltd.    “We’re not going to take a stand on the artistic merit of the painting, but it does break a few of our brand guidelines,” said Kråkström, adding that Jansson (1914-2001) was very exact about the Moomins and where they could appear.However, Kråkström says the company will not forbid Raanta to use the Moomin mask and wishes him only the best for the season

“We don’t want to inconvenience Antti Raanta's season in any way or cause illwill among fans. We hope that Raanta and the Rangers win the Stanley Cup this year and after the season we would love to have the mask for our collection," said Kråkström.“

[coochiequeens]

A transgender female prisoner says she repeatedly begged not to be housed with a convicted rapist, but was forced to share a bunk with him anyway — and then got raped within 24 hours, according to a new federal lawsuit filed against the Michigan Department of Corrections.

The lawsuit alleges that multiple MDOC staff members ignored the inmate's pleas for help, accused her of lying, and mocked and laughed at her as her bunkmate called her a "faggot" while other inmates taunted her. After her attack, one officer was half asleep when she went to her for help while another two prison officers were watching movies on a computer, the suit states. The Free Press does not generally name victims of sexual assault.

"The fact is — prisoners have a Constitutional right to be protected from sexual abuse. And it is not good enough that a guard or a staff member can just laugh off someone’s request for help. These are people's lives that we're talking about," said the plaintiff's attorney, Nakisha Chaney, who believes this suit highlights a pervasive problem in the prison system: the sexual assault of inmates, particularly the marginalized.

"Prison rape and sexual assault are still a very prevalent part of prison culture. And there are particular populations that are especially at risk — the young, the transgender. They are prey," Chaney said, arguing the MDOC ignored its own policies designed to protect these groups from such harm.

"I’ve been litigating prison cases for about 10 years. And there is just a level of impunity. The MDOC put the right policies in place. They say all the right things, but what happens on the ground level?" Chaney said, adding far too many rapes still occur. "We want the DOC to take this seriously ... on the ground level."

She stressed: “The MDOC failed to follow its own policies, clear national guidelines, and the housing plan that applied to our client. As a result, our client was raped.”

MDOC spokesman Chris Gautz declined comment, citing agency policy not to discuss pending litigation.

According to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Detroit, the plaintiff is a male-to-female transgender woman — which means the inmate was born a male, but now identifies as a female. She has what is known as gender dysphoria, which is “a clinically significant distress or impairment related to a strong desire to be of another gender, which may include a desire to change primary or secondary sex characteristics.”.......see rest of article

This is why feminists want third spaces available, to protect women and other vulnerable people. Now watch as the gender cult uses this story to undermine the rights of women in prison although there is more than just one story of TIMs attacking women in prison.