#btw those two examples all happened in america | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jupitercl0uds · 11 months

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please for the love of god talk to me about fonts. please i’m so serious i need to get infodumped at about this

this is mostly technical stuff but then again i am obviously an artist so i might bring up more artsy stuff

also this is going off the top of my head so some aspects may be inaccurate!!! particularly the stuff about pre-digital fonts!!!

while fonts have kinda existed as long as writing, they really started to properly exist around the time of the printing press, in the 1400s. then, in the victorian era, they invented the typewriter. these obviously had plenty of benefits to society as a whole, but i'm kinda gonna just. overlook that. cause it doesnt really matter here.

while the printing press didn't really have 1 font, typewriters did have a standard font, as i'm sure youre aware. in america (and plenty of other countries), this was american typewriter, which you can still use today!

fun fact: there's a good change your favourite font predates digital fonts!!! some examples are times new roman, papyrus and (as i said earlier) american typewriter

in the 80s, paste up, a long tedious process where you would have to cut out and paste everything onto a grid by hand, was rendered obsolete, because of the growing use of home computers. 3 companies (apple, microsoft and adobe) play a giant role in everything because capitalism.

while apple was the most popular at first, you probably already know that microsoft would then dominate the market, offering alongside itself all those wonderful little microsoft office programs i know so well. all of these companies had a big design rivalry, and like most rivalries of that kind, they've definitely died down a bit by now. don't get me wrong, they're still competitors, so they're still gonna have their discrepancies, but microsoft and apple aren't design companies, so they're kinda just. eh.

they also had SO MANY BAD THINGS about them. did you know that arial shouldn't exist? oh and by the way, i HATE arial. its so ugly. its an eyesore. same with helvetica, though i think i prefer arial.

arial was created specifically to imitate the ever-successful helvetica, which is why the two fonts look so similar. you see, apple owned the rights to helvetica and microsoft wanted it for themself, so, they commissioned a very very similar font instead. i believe there was a legal issue over here in europe that never happened in the usa, because if you can create the same product in a different way in the usa, you can get the same patent. the same rule does not apply in the eu. there are differences between helvetica and arial, but they are predominantly in the way they're drawn. i dont have my graphic design program installed right now, so i cant give a good visual demonstration, but i'll try to explain.

basically, in vector graphics, there's always multiple ways to create the same image. for example, if i want to make a circle, i can use 4 rounded vertices or i could use 5 and still get the same image.

anyway, this is what microsoft did for the majority of the letters, with a few exceptions, such as capital G. also i believe the kerning and spacing is slightly different??? btw, kerning is like complicated spacing. it's specifically the space between 2 characters rather than the entire body of text.

then theres the file formats.

it's important to know the difference between bitmap and vector. if you draw, you're probably using bitmap, if you design, you're probably using vector. in adobe terms, photoshop is bitmap while illustrator is vector.

bitmap is typically easier and more standard for general images, for example when a vector image is exported as an image, all the most common image files (png, gif, jpg, hell even webp*) are bitmap.

*i hate webp files a lot.

however, vector can give you a more crisp image in a more lightweight manor. whats more, no matter how large you make your bitmap image, when you zoom in enough, you will eventually start to see the pixels. that isn't the case for vector graphics, because it specifically stores the instructions for how to make an image rather than the actual image itself.

so, when everyone's been using bitmap fonts and then suddenly adobe come out with these amazing new otf files, which use vector over bitmap, everyone wants in. the main issue?

what is always adobe's biggest problem? that's right,

CORPORATE GREED 🎉🎉🎉

adobe paywalled otf files, so what did apple and microsoft do? apple created ttf files, which is basically the same thing as an otf file, and also gave them to microsoft for completely free. this then pressured adobe into releasing otf files to the public, too. funnily enough, while both file formats are commonly used, it's probably more likely that you use TTF files in your everyday life.

while i have more to say (because i ALWAYS have more to say), that's all i can at the moment. as i said, fonts have a very rich history and that's only the tip of the iceberg!!!

#spouting to the void #fonts #god bless my autism

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analytically · 2 years

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Literally all your post says is “immigrants have special privileges that native born Americans don’t have.” Oh they have more upward mobility? They do better economically? Cool, I hope all their wealth is seized and given to me.

Then you use the pilgrims and Indians as an example? Okay. This land used to have people who lived in teepees and practiced shamanism as the majority. Then, the pilgrims immigrated over, who lived in houses and practiced Protestantism. Guess what happened next? The immigrants replaced what the natives. No more teepees and shamanism, it was all houses and Protestantism. It didn’t end well for the red Indians, btw. Telling me that I am analogous to a red Indian, and the latinx cartels are like the pilgrims, it does NOT make me want to accept more immigrants.

And the Sweden thing is a matter of public record

(context 1, 2, 3)

if you have a lower income than some immigrant, they will most likely be contributing more to the government in taxes than you. that's not quite seizing their wealth; I think total wealth redistribution is a bad idea, but that's not mutually exclusive with immigration. It’s also not true that doing better economically is always caused by “special privileges”; one theory for why kids of immigrants have more upward mobility is that their families push them to do well in school and study hard so they can have a better life in the US. (also the people I was referring to who do better economically are native-born Americans with citizenship whose parents are immigrants; my thesis is that immigration doesn’t have long-term negative effects.)

I agree with you that cultural destruction and persecution of the Native Americans was wrong, although i doubt it will repeat itself (note that there have been many dozens of millions of immigrants since the pilgrims, and houses and protestantism are still going strong).

But what I was trying to get at are that most Americans are the descendants of immigrants, which is why I have a hard time understanding your point about Americans making America what it is. If immigrants become "Americans" in your eyes after a generation or two, then presumably it's fine to let more people in? If not, can you explain why the current immigration situation is different than the other periods of sustained immigration in the 19th and early 20th centuries? (Or do you think the US would've been better off without those?)

you mention "Latinx cartels" as a concern. I support in most cases immigration restrictions for violent criminals and deporting non-citizens who commit violent crimes; the vast majority of immigrants (as well as a vast majority of Latinos) are not cartel members. I also was not trying to make an analogy between current nonindigenous Americans and pre-1607 indigenous Americans; sorry if that was unclear.

#Anon #askbox #politics #immigration #immigration anon #nonsense

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kimyoonmiauthor · 3 years

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How to defeat transphobes quickly.

Phase I: Transphobia was created by the Patriarchy, like misogyny was.

The main two books to do this with is:

The Creation of Patriarchy by Gerda Lerner

Caliban and the Witch: Women, the Body and Primitive Accumulation by Silvia Federici.

And this is dead easy to support.

See transphobe’s heads explode. You see, if you haven’t read my profile I majored in Anthropology and concentrated it in systems. That’s sexism, ableism, anti-LGBTQIA, etc. Granted, I was interested in it in kindergarten after getting bullied and getting insufficient answers.

So limited land and men’s need for prestige caused men to try to find reasons to try to take land from women. But in order to define what women were, they needed to create a strict binary. In order to create a strict binary, they had to throw out the existing trans people. (Who, BTW, existed pre-Christian times.)

With needing to own land, then you need someone to work the land. This is where the ableism comes in. Who will inherit the land? Men, but you need to prove your fragile male virility. And will disabled people do who may not be able to work the land? NO. And can you allow your descendants to show they are gay? Eff no. I mean, you need to show off your big D--- and show the equipment work by *gasp* making sure your children reproduce so you have a legacy. --;;

That’s trans down. That’s the disciplining of women. That’s the disciplining of LGB. And then intersex. Obviously you, great patriarchal male is going to called someone intersex “disabled.” And now disabled.

OK. Racism, comes also from land owning. You have to look at Moors and Mongols for that one. OMG, it’s more misogyny. Can’t have women having those dirty Moor or Mongol babies.

BTW, I’m not saying that the systems act the same CURRENTLY, but I am saying the root of the problem is exactly the same. Stupid ass male fragility And Boy do I have historical examples.

The history of anti-LGBTQIA and anti-women are tied CLOSELY in history. The downfall of one always comes with the downfall of the other. Should we start listing historical events?

Korea: Imjin War--Downfall of women and LGBTQIA

Early Christianity was disciplined: Downfall of women and LGBTQIA

China: (every time they’ve done it historically and in contemporary times.) Discipline women and LGBTQIA

Imperialism spread the hatred into other regions... Notably India, Australia, New Zealand, and the Americas. What happened? Europeans disciplined women and LGBTQIA.

The binary was made to suppress women, but in doing so, they also suppressed everyone else.

What happens is either the transphobe gets so upset they block you, because they realize on some level the root of their hate has the same origin as hating trans people (and everyone who doesn’t own vast tracks of land they plan to give to super privileged sons)... thus they are hating themselves, or they go into a ranty fest trying to attack you, because they can’t attack two cishet white women on their theses that are widely accepted by academia.

Phase II: You’re being Eurocentric Racist.

Also, you can all them racist since they refuse to recognize third genders from other locales. Such as: Indonesia, Bugis, India, Thailand, Angola, Kenya, Plain Indians, etc.

If they start with “But clothes” you can ask them the difference between a robe and a dress. All the dictionaries say a dress is what a woman wears. There is no difference. And Hula skirts, sarongs, kilts, etc are skirts.

Heels were invented for horseback riding, so men should be wearing them.

And pants are for horseback riding.

Lace was originally a prestige item for men.

Eyeliner were the original sunglasses.

So anything women have worn, men have too. Calling out my PoC transphobes. This works well when you point out such notions came from white imperialism. Usually you can find third genders in their country of origin and argue about how much transphobes hate their definition of gender.

Phase III: The Biological Argument. I think this is easy. Scientific American, Nature, the DSM VI, Psychology Today, Anthropology, don’t back them. As soon as you point out there are XXY humans and humans who don’t have their expressed gender by chromosomes, they start flipping out and sputtering. They don’t have much left because the reputable magazines have turned against them.

They might pull out the “Disability” argument and “the majority”

Then you ask them what if the person is born with both? Which also happens. Persistent Müllerian duct syndrome. What are they,then they pull out the chromosome argument... Swyer syndrome Klinefelter syndrome and present to them the weird world of biology that doesn’t care for human rules. Culture exists to create rules about nature that nature always overturns. One less Chromosome: nature is like, sure-- let’s try that. Turner syndrome.

When they get to “They should not exist” in their argument you hit them with the Eugenics questions. Do you support Hitler? Hitler’s Germany who supported positions like sterilization... https://www.jstor.org/stable/4397988 Phase IV: Their feminism is behind and dates to the 1960′s Second wave White feminism.

At this point since they can’t argue about statistics... say the whole bathroom argument: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/politics/stats-show-assaults-dont-happen-in-bathrooms/275-126572739

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/06/health/trans-teens-bathroom-policies-sexual-assault-study/index.html

Also numbers from RAINN: https://www.rainn.org/articles/lgbtq-survivors-sexual-violence

Or the Sports argument: https://www.aclu.org/news/lgbtq-rights/four-myths-about-trans-athletes-debunked/

And then hit them with: Is this the biggest concern that feminists have?

They will try to hit you with, “You don’t care about women” argument. And this is where you hit them really hard. Argue along the lines their feminism is out of date, is filled with ignorance about the creation of the Patriarchy they are trying to dismantle, and only dates from the 1960′s, and so who doesn’t care about women, you or them? Women moved on, you can argue. There was Third wave feminism: Which argued for the inclusion of LGBT, intersectionality and PoCs. Also lead by black women, including Black transwomen. Stonewall was started by black trans women and black lesbians TOGETHER. So are they saying the activism that black women did was irrelevant and they prefer white feminism and global impacts?

There is Fourth wave feminism, which included masculine fragility, Asking about how to talk through flexibility for boys which would solve a lot of the issues from the binary they are so paranoid about coming from trans people, rather than directing it towards the aggressors and solving the problems with masculine fragility in the first place.

Arguing this will make them really upset, because by this point, no arguments are left. They can’t name call you, you’ve laid out facts about their transphobia supporting the Patriarchy, and said their feminism is behind, and that their statistical basis is wrong. They got nowhere to go except try to find ways to attack you, such as “you weren’t listening to me at all.” or personal attacks, in which case.... Phase VII: Psychology. The last bit you should know is most transphobes don’t seem to have hobbies outside of social media. And they are looking for peer adulation, so don’t care abut correct facts. Most of them on twitter are unemployed, come off slightly antisocial, and don’t seem to have other social skills. A lot of them, flip out when you disappear for a few seconds, a few hours, go off and do a job. And the ones that defend She-who-should-not-be-named, don’t seem to be familiar with any of her work or writings. So ask them the following: Do you have a job? Don’t you have hobbies? You don’t have face to face people you can talk to that like you? And a lot of them will go poof, the other percentage will accuse you of not having the same, in which case you can assert you do, and they should work on that and if they need help, you know that therapy is available to help with such things. And I haven’t found a single one *yet* that can fire back. The amount of posts and retweets, etc is always screaming they don’t do anything else besides social media. They don’t have better things to do. They want peer approval and attention, so shine a light on their weakness. Asserting you have time outside of social media works.

Conclusion: Personal attacks? Report them.

That said, if people are going to hate, they are going to hate anyway. But at least inform them their hate comes from something they don’t own: Vast tracts of land to be passed down to mostly white cishet abled men. Hate is so uncreative and generally has the same origin. If we could only cure male fragility.

The reason they hate is because hate feels like control, but as the old saying goes, hate can consume you. And the more that you try to feel control through hate, the more you try to find you lose control, and thus hate more. And then you come back to hating yourself and your own in spectacular fashion. Hate also tries to punch at the weakest people because it is not brave. Can’t punch at men? Punch at trans people. Usually transphobes try to bait people in order to exhaust them. In which case, bait them back to let them spout their full transphobia. Don’t be transphobic, just set the trap, so you can hit that report button and let the platform ban them. I did say I read the Art of War several times and Machiavelli’s The Prince several times.

#trans #transphobes

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iamanartichoke · 3 years

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I started to reblog this post on my dash, but then I ended up writing a long ass reply bc apparently I care about the how shitty the school system in America is? Which was news to me, but regardless, by the time I finished I didn't want to reblog it anymore bc it had strayed from the point of the post and was mostly just me yelling into the void -

- but, I mean, I wrote it and everything and now I have to do something with it, so, well, have a random brain dump about the US school system.

This isn't even a fandom post, smh.

___

I mean, obligatory 'I used to be a K-12 teacher' and kids are fucking messy. Like. When I was a teacher, kids weren't allowed to eat in the classroom and I would still be pulling empty chip bags and candy wrappers and half-eaten dum-dums and drink bottles from kids' desks every single day. And the gum, my god. They really will stick that shit anywhere and everywhere. These were high schoolers, not kindergarteners. I can't imagine what it would be like if eating was allowed.

So, I mean, "no eating/drinking in class" is a reasonable rule.

I get the spirit of the OP and absolutely agree with it, btw. Kids aren't animals and aren't robots, either, and the strictest teachers take reasonable rules and use them to be power-tripping assholes to kids and that's not okay.

I just think that "kids should be allowed to eat/drink in class" isn't exactly the conversation we need to be having here because it's not the real issue. The conversation we need to be having is, why does the structure of our school system lend itself so easily to reasonable rules being unreasonably enforced?

For example, why is the kid hungry in the first place? Bc their day is ridiculously long; the first bell was at 7:30am and they had a slice of pizza for lunch at 10am and the day isn't over until 3:30pm. That's an eight-hour day; an adult on an eight-hour shift gets two 15 minute breaks and a 30 minute break for lunch (assuming their work place follows the law, which is another conversation). Kids get 25 minutes, 15 of which are spent standing in the food line, and 4 minutes between classes, all of which are spent getting from one class to the next without being penalized for walking in late. Bathroom? Good luck. Snack break? Pfft.

And the power-tripping teacher who treats that hungry kid like an animal by refusing to let them go to the bathroom or eat a snack? Here's a not-so-secret from the inside: teachers who are in it for love of the profession are rare. Most of them feel powerless against admin, parents, the school board, the state. They can't even create their own curriculum anymore bc it's all "collaborative" and "meeting the standards" and all that matters are test scores and the test scores are skewed data that doesn't actually matter and the teachers know that but they can't do anything about it. The pay is abysmal, the benefits might as well be nonexistent, the unpaid work builds and builds, and there's never any pencils. The kids are the only people they have any say over, and they abuse that power in order to feel important bc their jobs fucking suck and when you're a teacher, 80% of your life is spent on your job, so your life probably fucking sucks, too.

All of which is to say, teachers shouldn't be treating kids like animals or robots, but kids shouldn't be hungry in class in the first place. The structure of the school day needs a complete overhaul to allow for flexibility and meeting the needs of growing human beings.

And in order for that to happen, the entire system needs to be redesigned. Teacher pay needs a huge increase in order to attract people who love the profession but also want to make a comfortable living. The budget needs to be redone so teachers aren't constantly paying for materials and classroom decor with their own money. The curriculum and the standards need to be re-evaluated. Standardized testing needs to cease to exist. Teachers need to be allowed to be creative and fluid in their lesson plans; they need to be allowed to teach things that matter. Get rid of those shitty ass desks and chairs and invest in something less permanently damaging to one's joints and posture. Get some more fucking windows in those god-awful buildings.

"Teachers should let kids eat/drink in class" is a solution to the illusion of the problem. The rule is a symptom of the overall broken design. So how do we fix that?

#i may or may not have been holding onto this general grievance since 2017 #which is when i quit teaching bc i couldn't take it anymore #so ... yep #the charlotte lennox diaries #random not fandom

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alixanonymous · 4 years

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How A Demon Commissions An Angel ~ A Daminette FanFic ~ Chapter 4: A Plan In Progress

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Date: November 3, 2021 5:00 P.M.

Subject: I Accept Your Terms

Dear Ms. Dupain-Cheng,

I do not delude myself into thinking we will be able to magically solve each other’s problems but it does seem as though we both lack certain qualities the other does not. If you’re offering the chance for me to stay where I am, I would be a fool not to take it and I am not a fool. If I can also help fix your unfortunate situation, I will do so.

Let me know where we go from here.

- Damian W.

From the phone of Marinette Dupain-Cheng:

The Ladyblog

A Retraction Of An Earlier Article Nov 4 2021

I’ve decided to take down an earlier article entitled “MDC Stole My Best Friend’s Designs!” following contact from the legal team of Jagged Stone. It was wrong of me to make accusations without proof and I will endeavor to provide evidence to back any claims I make on this blog in the future.

- Alya Cesaire, Creator of the Ladyblog

Chat Name: Aunt Penny

Aunt Penny: Are you sure you don’t want us to pursue any further action Marinette? That statement hardly seemed sincere and was not nearly sufficient considering all she’s claimed. We can help you know.

Me: It’s fine Aunt Penny. Anything else wouldn’t be worth the trouble. It’s not her fault anyway.

Aunt Penny: You know I don’t agree with that but okay, if you’re sure. Just remember the lawsuits have already been drafted.

Aunt Penny: By the way, Jagged’s suit was a real hit at the charity dinner. Not that we ever had a doubt. Have you been thinking about creating a new website?

Me: That’s great to hear. I’ll think about it, okay?

Aunt Penny: That’s good.

Chat Name: Alya

Alya: Girl, I know what you’re thinking but just because I had to post that statement doesn’t mean Lila’s lying. She just can’t release any proof because she wants to do the right thing and keep MDC’s identity a secret. She’s being the bigger person!

Me: She always is.

Alya: Don’t be like that! Please Marinette. Stop letting your jealousy cloud your judgement.

Chat Name: Uncle Jagged

Uncle Jagged: Pens told me that you dont want to sue i get it, lawsuits are totally not rock n’ roll but feeding that liar and her friends to fang is always an option!!!

Me: No, Uncle Jagged.

Uncle Jagged: fine…

Uncle Jagged: i got so much applause for your suit at the stuffy dinner btw.

Uncle Jagged: of course I told them all that my talented young niece made it.

Uncle Jagged: even had a billionaire’s son begging for a referral but dont worry i turned him down for you

Me: What?! Why?!

Uncle Jagged: trust me, Mari, he was totally not rock n’ roll. not rock n’ roll at all! just rude

Chat Name: Adrien

Adrien: Hey Marinette, did you see the apology on the Ladyblog?

Me: You mean the retraction?

Adrien: Well, yes.

Adrien: Look, Marinette, you’re not going to do anything else right? She took it down.

Me: She took it down because “she had no proof” not because she knows Lila lied. She’s still convinced even after Jagged’s legal team got involved although we both know the truth.

Adrien: I'm sorry.

Adrien: Even my father feels bad, he knows how much rumors like that could damage an artist’s reputation especially without proof.

Adrien: But he’s still convinced Lila’s someone I need to associate with and if you try to expose her again it’s going to be like every other time and I don’t want things to get worse for you.

Adrien: I’m sorry Mari.

Adrien: I just can’t help you while my father’s still on her side.

Google Search History:

Gotham Charity Dinner 2021 Photos

Patricide but for uncles

What is it called when someone kills their uncle?

How to know if a friendship is toxic

From:[email protected]

To:[email protected]

Date:November 5, 2021 5:05 P.M.

Subject: The Plan

Hey Damian!

Sorry for the delay in responding. I don’t know if you saw but MDC had a bit of a problem to deal with yesterday. So here’s how I see it. Our plan has two parts: the commission for your brothers and then us trying to help each other out with our people problems.

For the commission: You already gave me the measurements which I’m trusting are up to standard since I’m not flying to America any time soon. Next I need to know exactly what you want me to make for each of your brothers: Grayson, Todd, and Drake, the measurements say are their names right? Then I need to know who you think wants a sweater and who wants a jacket and your ideas for the design. I’ll draw up some designs based on the information and send them to you for approval with an estimate of the cost. (Normally I’d also send a non-disclosure agreement beforehand too but considering how this all started I’m guessing you’re not going to give me your real name for the paperwork, are you?) After they’re approved I’ll need you to deposit half the sum in my account (Information attached) and I’ll use it to buy the materials.

If I can get all of this done in the next week or so, it should leave me about a month to finish the pieces before sending them out (An address will not be optional fyi). Sounds good??

For the other part of our plan: the way I could see it going is when one of us has a problem we could use the other person for sort of a different perspective. It’s like in those cartoons when the character has those two little people on their shoulders, do you know what I’m talking about? One’s good, the other’s bad and they’re both telling the person to do different things. Not that you’re bad I mean and not that I just assumed that of the two of us you’d be the bad one… I’m not saying any of this right. I just mean it like I said before, I could learn a thing or time from someone who isn’t too concerned with pleasing everybody. (I didn’t mean that as an insult by the way. I actually find it kind of admirable.)

So, here’s an example of a situation I could use your opinion on: today I started to wonder if one of my friendships is no longer healthy anymore. I have this friend who is the only other person in our class that knows Lila’s lying. At first he convinced me that her lies weren’t hurting anybody and that as long as we both knew the truth then it didn’t matter what anybody else thought. Eventually, we both realized that that was no longer the case when she almost got me expelled, but by then she had convinced his father that I was a bad influence on him. So now he’s forced to play nice and keep her happy to please his father.

It’s hard because even though I know he knows she’s lying, he can’t tell anyone else so no one believes me when I try to tell them. Now she’s made good on her promise to turn everyone against me and so I have to deal with all her antics by myself while she stands by his side with the rest of the class. I know he’s in a bad position but it still doesn’t make me feel better when he texts me asking if I’m okay after something happens while at the same time whenever we’re with other people, he keeps his distance so she doesn’t report him to his father.

I guess I’m just tired of trying to make him feel better all the time. However, whenever I think about ending our friendship, I feel guilty because it’s really not his fault. His father wouldn’t hesitate to pull him from school and then we couldn’t be friends anyway. I feel like a good friend would stick by his side. I don’t know. What do you think, Damian?

I guess that’s just how I see this going then. I rant about whatever I’m having to deal with and you tell me if you agree with how I’m handling it and vice versa. You mention some type of incident with a classmate right? Do you want an outside opinion of that or has your family’s sufficed? Or is there anything else you could use some advice on? I guess we’re just making this up as we go. I mean I suppose there aren’t any rules about relationships that started with one person trying to blackmail the other, right? :P

Hope to hear from you soon! Love,

Marinette

P.S. If this is going to work, you can’t just ignore me when I call you out on being (for lack of a better word) snobbish, Mr. Postscript.

Hello, it’s me again. I just spent like an hour working on chapter nine so my headache’s making itself know again but I wanted to at least post a chapter today. Thank you to anyone who’s been reblogging, liking, or replying to these! It makes the unenjoyable task of reposting worth it! More chapters soon!

Master List

#MariBat #Daminette #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Damian Wayne #FanFic

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painted-crow · 4 years

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Hello. Can I ask you to give an example of your bird primary analizing and thinking, and changing it's mind and rethinking it's system about something? When you'll have time of course.

Overwork

I used to fall into the trap of glorifying overwork.

The various communities I belonged to as a teenager had this tendency to hold exhaustion as a status symbol. The general base of the idea was that if you were really dedicated and pushed yourself to your limits (read: long, long past your limits) then you could accomplish incredible things. It's usually flavored with individualistic ideals of achievement, and holds a very specific type of goal in high regard. It's also very American.

As a teenager, I really wanted to be an entrepreneur. I was going to start a startup, code some kind of app that would do something pretty basic in a really well designed way, and everyone would end up using it. I hyperfocus on things I'm interested in, and I thought if I could harness that, I might be able to have a stable income doing something cool and inventive.

This isn't an inherently bad idea. It's just that the startup world, the tech world, the local culture in my area, and the national culture of America all send a very focused message that working yourself to burnout is very cool and dedicated and great.

I'm not entirely sure how I came to challenge that. Partly it was experience. When I was 18, I took a full college class load alongside an internship (with a company that had a toxic culture... it was exhausting on its own tbh) and ended up unable to focus during class and too tired to get anything done while at home. I ended up dropping one or two of my classes (I can't remember; possibly one of them was that one with the online professor who went MIA so it was effectively dropped for me).

Then I wound up learning a working knowledge of PHP and doing 75% of the semester's work for one of the classes I kept... all in four days. I passed the class. In fact, my professor knew what I was doing and why (he was one of the few people who suggested that maybe I shouldn't be burning the candle at both ends like that), and although I'd carefully calculated how much I needed to do in order to pass and done that, he fudged it somehow and gave me an A.

But I think a large part of what changed my mind was my mom trying to tell me that what I was doing was batshit insane. I don't know if she ever challenged me directly on this point (possibly she did and I brushed it off because: teenager) but every time I decided to step back from what I was doing and cool down, she supported me. She wouldn't let me beat myself up for not achieving ridiculous goals. She reminded me that I always think I'm doing worse than I actually am; I'm very self-critical and have a long track record of perfectionism.

Eventually I think the tipping point was figuring out that sometimes depression keeps me from doing stuff, and that I can't just smash my way through by brute force when I'm already burned out. I can't blame myself for not being able to do what all the other burned-out college students seem to be doing all the time, because actually they were all doing exactly the same thing I was.

And I think eventually I extrapolated this to: "...maybe you don't need to wait until you're deeply depressed and burned out before you stop blaming yourself for having limits or pinning your self worth on productivity?"

Really. No shit, Sherlock.

Note

This is an example that actually took years before I recognized it and changed it. The cultural prevalence made it very hard to identify and articulate, which is why it hung around unchallenged for so long. I'd like to be able to give less extreme examples, but the thing is that I don't really remember them! I have a very shitty memory for certain categories of things, and "stuff I decided wasn't true" is one of them. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Plus, more minor parts of your system, the parts that change most, are kind of invisible to you until they come up (because you're either exposed to relevant information that's reminding you of them, or you're making a decision that involves that belief) and you're actively thinking about them. They're always there, your active memory just doesn't really have, like... object permanence for them lol.

Or if you do remember, then a lot of the time the change isn't very dramatic.

Oh. I just thought of an example of this, actually.

A less extreme example, about pollution

You know how people are like "drinking straws specifically are evil! Save the turtles! Outlaw plastic straws!" And at first I was like, huh, if this is that big of a deal then maybe they have a point.

But then I started to feel like it's a weirdly narrow thing to focus on. If you have the activation energy to campaign against drinking straws, why not instead campaign against the fact that many American cities have very limited recycling programs?

When I lived in an apartment, if I wanted to recycle trash, I had to put it in my car and drive it across town to the recycling plant. Doing means I have to drive my car and add whatever pollution it's putting out into the air. You're trading one type of pollution for another, and it's a cost to me in time and money. Eventually I just gave up and threw away anything that wasn't big enough to merit the effort.

And then I learned that actually, most pollution comes from corporations, and the focus on consumers is probably just to distract us from regulating industrial waste properly by making us feel guilty, and also to get us to buy "eco friendly" products like metal drinking straws (which, btw, take more energy to manufacture and break down a lot more slowly even than plastic).

So, sure. Ditch your drinking straws if you want, definitely don't buy those shower soaps with the stupid plastic microbeads in them, but don't get distracted shaming each other for tiny things when we have bigger fish to fry.

This is how most system changes go down: "I thought about some stuff and learned some stuff and changed my mind." It's not usually a big deal. Sometimes it is, but this low-level stuff is way more common and you don't even usually notice it as it's happening.

#ravenclaw primary #sortinghatchats #paint speaks #asks

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queensgaybeach1d · 5 years

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So I just saw your post of Louis with dogs! Which is totally adorable btw. But in that post you mentioned that you don't think the Bruce is El's dog. Could you explain why? Who's is he? And how did you come to that conclusion?

Hi Little Cinnamon Bun,

Thank you for your compliments about my masterpost of Louis with puppies/dogs. He is one of the cutest human beings with animals❤

I indeed said I think Bruce is not Eleanors dog at all. I think Bruce might be Louis’ (and Harry’s) dog, but I do not know that for sure. Let me first show you a few pictures and tell you a few things about Bruce and other dogs.

I just like to say that in 2012 ‘Louis bought Eleanor’ a dog too, at least that is what many Elouno shipper think. Some people say that it was Eleanors family dog, however there was even an article on the internet about it being 'Louis and Eleanors dog.’ She was named Pepper. I always thought that was shady. Anyway, Pepper had multiple pictures with Eleanor.

Link to article: https://www.sweetyhigh.com/read/one-direction-dogs

Suddenly she was gone. No one heard about her for months and it became years. That is pretty odd.

On 28 october 2015 Eleanor posted a picture of her and Bruce, stating he was 2 years young. Which means he was bron on 28 October 2013. She posted the first picture of Bruce on 20 August 2014.

She did not post about him before that. She posted about Bruce around the time she and Louis “broke up.” This is why I think Bruce was bought with a purpose. I am coming back on this later, my love.

I am going to tell you a bit about Bruces history. He was bought by Louis. I believe Eleano posted a picture of him in early 2014. That is why people believe he was bought around Christmas time 2013. Keep this in mind please.

Do you remember at the very beginning we thought Clifford’s was Danielle’s? He was born in America and it looked like Danielle was taking care of him with her other dog (the brown one) so people just assumed Clifford was hers. There was even a time when antis thought Danielle and Louis has a dog, Clifford, together. They were all happy, until it was confirmed Clifford is Louis’. We only found out Clifford was actually Louis’ when he and Danielle ‘broke up’. Clifford was linked to Danielle and Louis. If you would see Clifford you would see Danielle automatically too.

The whole “celebs taking a dog” is basically a way to get attention too. For example,do you remember Loki? Liam and Danielle Peazers dog? It is the same story. When a couple breaks up the dog is a way to link tgem together. Now, we have seen 'Louis bought Bruce for Eleanor’. When they broke up countless headlines came out a few months later. “Louis Tomlinsons ex Eleanor Calder walking dog in Park UK.” When celeb couples take a dog together, it automatically becomes a new thing, almost as serious as a kid. When a couples takes a dog their relationship is quite serious. That is the thing they are trying to show us with 'Elouno’. When a relationship is serious there are rumors about engagements, wedding and kids. This is how you can see that a small indication can lead to huge effects. Remember Hatchi? Zayn and Perries dog? Same story, love. They took the dog because they needed to let the world see that it was a 'serious’ relationship. In 2013 their fake engagement happened, Liam was not too happy about that one.

Clifford and Bruce have always been another way of pairing Louis and Eleanor together. For example, when one of Louis’ sisters post a story of Bruce and Clifford the fans know exactly that Eleanor is there too, even without seeing her. They automatically know so. That is also another way of stunting, Bruce has been labeled as 'eleanors dog’ for all these years, that is how fans know exactly that Louis and Eleanor 'are together’.

All of these things have to do with stunting. Clifford and Bruce are both stunt dogs. They use them for stunts. That is why I think Bruce is just a link to Louis and Eleanor. In the previous lines you could have seen that 'Louis bought Eleanor’ Bruce as a gift. That is also a way of marketing, the headline in a magazine.

Now, stay with me please, it is getting even more odd. In 2013, an article came out about Louis’ beautiful mother, Jay, buying him a dog called Bruce. So the dog was Bruce, his mother bought him Bruce.

So this is why I always thought Bruce was Louis’ and not Eleanors at all. She just uses him as a stunt dog and for her blog. The purpose of those tons of pictures and videos of Bruce on Eleanors social media is to link him fully to Eleanor. So the next time you would see Bruce, you would say “Oh he is Eleanors dog”. Louis would never give anyone a dog his own mother bought for him, he loves her a lot. So Louis and Eleanor did not buy the dog together, however elouno shippers claim they did. Bruce has always been Louis’ dog from the start, more about this later, my love.

They tell two different stories (Bruce is Louis’ and Bruce is Eleanors), just like how Louis and Eleanor 'met’. This is why I think it is another marketing strategy. They can not plan it out, that is always their downfall, my love. Louis bought Clifford and not Eleanor.

There was also a sort of book about 1D and their tour life. In that book Louis mentioned that he has a dog called Bruce. It is very bad quality, but it is the last question (in black).

Louis also had a picture of baby Bruce in his home. The Bear in the background is Louis’ sisters bear. You can also see his shoes in the picture, I think. Oh, I almost forgot to add this. Eleanor never had a picture of Bruce when he was younger. She only posted a throwback picture, but she never posted a picture of Bruce with her when he was a little pupper. Louis did, so if it would be her dog, why did she not post any picture of him? Why did she post the pictures that late? All of this does not make sense, my love. It is definitely Louis’ dog and he bought it himself or got it from his lovely mother. A gift like that is precious, so I will never believe he just gave him away like that. Eleanor is no one to Louis, so he definitely did not give her his dog, my love. Link to a small video: https://twitter.com/happiIeeds/status/621774850219094017?s=20

I forgot to add an important detail. Now the question is "Was Elounor 2.0 meant to happen?" Well I think at first she was not, then things changed. I think the possibility of her coming back had always been there, but at first she was not going to do it. Then things changed and Eleanor needed promo too.

Thank you for your question, my sweetheart. I do not know if I would ever have made this post if you did not ask for it so politely. Thank you so much and thank you for being so polite and kind. If there is anything wrong, please send it to me. My memory is not that great at times. I hope you will have a gorgeous day, my loves!!❤🌺

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kob131 · 4 years

Text

https://xenodweeb.tumblr.com/post/625501428616675328/whelp-you-cant-shame-me-for-trying-but-youd

Whelp, you can’t shame me for trying, but you’d rather continue doubling down on bitching about people being mean about your precious abusive company and licking Mile’s boots on your high horse while defending incest ships and pushing someone to contemplate suicide over criticizing a character death in a cartoon and then claim there’s nothing wrong enough about that to change.

https://twitter.com/KOB13x/status/1278244097732550656

So how about this time, you DON'T overwork the creator and fuck them over?

Cool so you’re just being a shittier version of me then?

You know, considering that your points against me are ‘fake suicide attempt’ and ‘incest ship’ while mine was ‘fundamental disrespect for people’s way of life’ and ‘blatant hypocrisy.’

Kob, You’ll never be better than me because I don’t literally claim I regret what I did one post and then dismiss what I did the next and I tried to back off and try to seek for some level of actual humanity within you, something you clearly don’t have while you decided to go “U-Uh, yeah, but you did the same thing in the past so it’s cool when I do it to u.” (Nice doubling down with that homophobia BTW)

Quote: “ All without remorse, something I showed by stopping when it happened. (Even as the parent thread shows- I never tried to get them to kill themselves.)”

Showed. I rerated it back then but now i honestly I do not care because it doesn’t fucking matter as you showed.

BTW That wasn’t a ‘you did too!’ thing. It was a ‘Clearly you being bisexual means nothing here’. Also nice job saying that I’ll never be better than you the literally dehumanize me. Also also- You called a lesbian a psycho for not being perfect. I literally chose that example because I knew you were gonna pull that card so great job implying you’re a homophobe considering your statement was far more offensive.

I don’t fucking use shit from years ago against them as sick gotchas, then get mad because people are joking about how you’re basically “cancelling” them while also playing the victim when the same is done to you.

Except you literally responded to me with that. ( Didn’t you push someone to attempting suicide because they were critical of Pyrrha’s death? / #I GOT NOTICED BY THE PEDOPHILLIC SHIP APOLOGIST / #MISTER 'IT'S EPHEBOPHILIA ACTUALLY )

Ps, what the fuck is this bullshit

You DO disparage people for their political beliefs, you do it all the fucking time with RWDE, don’t lie you gaslighting sack of shit.

Disparage. Noun. ‘regard or represent as being of little worth’. I have never disparaged anyone for their political beliefs or even the blatant lying you pull. I never say you are worthless or inherently worse for those. Maybe your ACTIONS, which are separate from political beliefs, but not your beliefs.

If you don’t want to be called a bigot, don’t preach about how we should just give people who disagree with our political beliefs huggie wuggies because we don’t want to hurt the fee fees of people who still believe viruses that have killed hundreds of thousands is considered a hoax, see masks that help against said virus are oppressive, claim free health care is still considered communism in certain countries and/or continue to whiteknight for the police despite constant fucking acts of vile police brutality, you parasite fuck.

Not pictured: anything to do with bigotry.

Pictured: Disparaging people for their political beliefs.

Also pictured: Assuming shit about me.

Just as I am fine with people not wearing masks as a choice, I’m fine with businesses and companies denying people for not wearing masks. I respect their freedom.

I never said to respect people who believe the Coronavirus is a hoax. Very different from portraying them as inferior people though.

My issue with free health care is that politicians lie about it a fuckton and America is fundamentally against something like free health care due to our focus on individualism while a free health care system on average would hold everyone countable for the health of others.

And I haven’t whiteknighted the police. In fact, in the Eric Garner case, i publicly say that the police fucked up. (https://kob131.tumblr.com/post/620292630957473792/what-were-your-thoughts-on-the-eric-garner-case)

So congrats on that.

Just admit you want to pretend marginalized people don’t exist so they can’t threaten your “Centrist” safe space and go back to beating off to Ruby being fucked by her uncle and harrassing people who diss your shitty internet anime and rot, you literal piece of shit.

You say as I openly uphold that race, sexuality and gender don’t fucking matter. You know this because the post you’re screenshotting from has me outright state the similarities between us (our mental condition, race and gender) is superficial.

You say as I have publicly exploded on Nazis.

You say as I gag at incest hentai and manga.

You say as you openly do WORSE than what i did to JSWV so clearly you don’t think it’s harassment.

Then again, even after my friends have been suicide baited, my reputation dragged through the mud (at least two of my followers thought I was a Nazi before actually talking to me), I have been suicide baited despite openly saying I was suicidal, being told I’m a shit person in every conceivable way- I still don’t pull this shit. So way to go proving what I said before.

Also your a nazi for sympathizing with literal nazis over the marginalised, fuck you.

You say as my one interaction with a Nazi was to effectively tell them to fuck themselves with a white hot dildo and the point you are referring to (That Hitler was a normal person like anyone else so people should watch out) only works if I think Nazis are BAD.

Then again, you’re a coward who knew they couldn’t respond to the post in full and couldn’t let people see the full thing so you blocked me and took screenshots to refer to two points and then lie throughout the rest.

Just like I said- You do not understand me in the slightest. Nor are we alike in any meaningful capacity. Even the fact that you blocked me is proof of that, considering I am adamant in not blocking people or even turning off Anon despite the shit I get because of it.

You weren’t looking for humanity or anything like that, as my post repeatedly showed you failing to connect to m. You were trying to avoid the fact that you fucked yourself into a corner and changed the subject to salvage yourself. Evident by the fact that the stuff that shows how NOT alike we are was cut for your post.

Get it through your thick skull- We are not alike. You are, however, alike to the delusion you have of me.

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a-little-slice-of-fandom · 4 years

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Hi! I wanted to thank you for making me know Derry Girls! I always thought of Irish culture as such an interesting culture, and I'm so glad to learn about it (so now I have another TV series to bingewatch ahahaha). However, if it doesn't come as an offense, what else would you recommend to see about Ireland? I'm sorry if I made some mistakes, I'm not a native English speaker! Thank you again!

Hi anon! Firstly, please don’t apologise for your English because it’s really good!

Secondly, like I mentioned before, the problem with Irish based media is that there isn’t a lot of it (in comparison to American or English media) and what there is can often be changed in a way that’s much more palatable to these audiences. Generally, people in the UK don’t really want to watch a film about how horribly the Irish suffered, and Americans don’t like acknowledging the fact they weren’t the nicest to Irish people a lot of the time. Titanic is a good example. They make the experiences of those Irish people in steerage look so much fun in comparison to the experience in the stuffy first class...although that film does redeem itself when they show the third class, Irish (and Italian!) passengers purposefully locked below decks to drown. It’s sort of a middle ground between reality and rose-tinted glasses. If you haven’t given titanic a watch then go for it...but I wouldn’t say it’s overwhelmingly Irish. Good film though.

ALSO yes, the titanic was built in Belfast but I just would like to point out that it was absolutely fine when it left Belfast. Built by the Irish, sunk by the English. All I’m saying 🤷🏻‍♀️

I know this isn’t a TV show or a film, but I would highly recommend that anyone who is in any way interested in Irish history to read Under The Hawthorn Tree by Marita Conlon McKenna, which is about three young children trying to survive the Irish famine during the 1840s. While it is mainly taught to those just starting high school (or middle school in America) and the language is very easy to read...it is such a hard hitting book. I cried when I first read it when I was like nine and I still cry when I reread it. But it’s the reality of what happened during the famine. There’s no sugarcoating of the events that took place. However, you don’t need any prior knowledge of what’s going on to understand the book. It explains everything in a very natural way, and I think it’s the most accessible of Irish historical works.

There’s also two sequels to Under The Hawthorn Tree, called Wildflower Girl and Fields of Home. The second one follows one of the characters from Hawthorn Tree going to America and there experiences there, and it’s an amazing follow up to Hawthorn Tree. While I do think that the portrayal of America is slightly sugarcoated in Wildflower Girl (theres not much xenophobia...which there should have been) but the portrayal of journey to get to America? It’s harrowing. This is probably one of the best presentations of the famine ships (or coffin ships, as they were called) that you can get and you will understand the horrors of those ships. Fields of Home is just alright. I don’t think it’s as good as the first two because it doesn’t feel as focused on one singular thing and in all honesty, I didn’t enjoy reading this as a child and I’m still sort of on the fence with it now. But Hawthorn Tree and Wildflower Girl are two must reads!

As for films, I’d recommend Michael Collins from 1996. Its a film that takes a look at how Michael Collins helped to create the Irish Free State and the Irish civil war (not the troubles, that comes later). It also shows brutality of the Black and Tans (a section of the police force*) that went on in Ireland during this time period, as the police in Ireland tried to crackdown on the IRA. It’s a really good film, although sometimes it does sacrifice historical accuracy for Hollywood conventions. However...it might be a bit confusing if you don’t have prior knowledge of Ireland. Give it a try, but if you do end up a bit confused then I get it.

* Btw that name refers to the colour of their uniform. It’s not a racist term.

The Secret of Kells is an amazing animated film that you should totally watch. It’s all about the Book of Kells, a really important book in Irish history. It’s set in 9th century Ireland against the background of Viking invasions. I won’t say anymore about this one, please just go and watch it. Also the music is so amazing in that film, and it makes great use of traditional Irish instruments like the pipes and the bodhran. I’ve heard the animation company who made it referred to as the Irish Studio Ghibli and I definitely agree with that. They have a really distinctive style and it’s just,,,beautiful. This one is probably the most...celebratory. It really loves Ireland and it shows. There’s also Song of the Sea by the same company, which is another amazing celebration of Irish culture, this time concentrating on Celtic mythology. Also I think the main character might be mute? I can’t remember but I think she is. It’s another fantastic animation and I’d definitely recommend it.

Now I have to recommend the film Brooklyn because one of the actresses in it is actually from my town in Northern Ireland! Brooklyn was based off a book by the same name and both versions of the story have gotten really good reviews. It is a romance story (which usually isn’t my cup of tea) that follows a young Irish girl called Eilis (pronounced Ay-lish, for anyone wondering!) who has immigrated to America and the experiences she has there. Plus, it’s set in 1951, which isn’t usually a period of Irish history you see discussed. Normal People is something I see a lot of people recommending as well. It’s a book (written by Sally Rooney who is like 24 which is amazing!) but it’s also recently been adapted into a TV show which is getting good reviews. Again, it’s a romance story and I know a lot of people outside of Ireland can’t understand why people like it so much (it is a straight, cis white romance)...but it’s a generally good representation Irish romance and modern Ireland as a whole, including some class divide stuff. The books of these are quite an easy reads as well. So yeah, while I wouldn’t say Brooklyn or Normal People will teach you much about Irish history or Irish mythology...it does show a lot of the family life stuff. Normal People includes things like Trinity College and Gaelic football in the background, which are like quintessential Irish things. If you have the time, I’d give them a watch or a read.

Lastly, I’ve heard good things about the Netflix shows Rebellion (which concentrates on the Easter Rising of 1916) and The Irishman...but I haven’t watched either of these shows so I cannot vouch for how good or how accurate they are.

I hope this list helps!

#anon #ask #anonymous ask #anonymous #anon ask #ask answered

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caranfindel · 5 years

Text

Recap/review 15.02: “Raising Hell”

THEN: Sam shot God! Welcome to the end. Demon!Jack. Last week's non-scary ghosts or spirits or whatever. Strangely missing from the "Then:" Sam's godhole vision. It's actually a very short "Then." Maybe the episode itself is so good, so crammed full of wonderful things, that the "Then" had to be kept brief to make room for all of it.

Or then again, maybe not.

Now. We're still in Harlan, Kansas. A woman holding a scarf over her nose and mouth sneaks into the forbidden zone, and is startled by a neighbor. Or "neighbor." She's seen Close Encounters and knows the benzene story is fake (but if it was true, lady, I don't think that scarf would save you). And yet she's apparently never seen a horror movie, because the fact that her "neighbor" is silently and creepily staring at her doesn't raise any alarm bells. He stabs her a few times and then smokes out into an old-timey ghost who says "Disembowel. D-I-S-E-M-B-O-W-E-L. Disembowel." Well. Okay. She certainly doesn't look disemboweled, but I'll take your word for it. I mean, you spelled it and everything.

Title card. (BTW, you need to check out this very through breakdown of everything you're missing in the title card. It's fantastic.)

Nighttime. Harlan High School. Sam is large and in charge, but the people are restless. And apparently there are "hunters in the zone." Sam gets everyone's attention and tells them the EPA will be here tomorrow (a lie) and they need to stay out of the zone (the truth) and is adorably befuddled when he asks if there are any questions and everyone raises their hand. He's wearing a huge chain around his neck and, unfortunately, has gone back to the undershirt.

[[MORE]]

The zone. Dean and Belphagar. Dean's EMF meter is going crazy, and Belphagar says there are spirits about (are they ghosts? souls? spirits?) but they don't like him so they skedaddled. (Do we believe that?) Dean can't believe he's working with a demon again, and Belphagar can't believe he's working with a hunter, and it's the classic buddy comedy all over again. Except it's not a comedy and they're not buddies. (Do I miss Metatron?) He reminds us that his rationale for working with hunters is that he liked Hell the way it was. (Do we believe that?)

There's a fiery blast at the zone border, and even though Dean was facing it and Belphagar was facing in the other direction, Belphagar is the one who points it out and says "escape attempt, eleven o'clock." The bad guys can't cross the barrier, but rock salt can, which is convenient. Dean blasts a spirit away, who I believe is the same one from the "Then" but I can't be bothered to confirm and is relieved that the warding still works. Belphagar expositions that it won't last forever, and these ghosts/spirits/whatever are more dangerous than average. For example, the ghost Dean just shot was Francis Tumbelty, aka Jack the Ripper.

(Sidebar: Okay, I did actually rewind and use closed-captioning to confirm what Jack said, because what I heard was Francis Tomelty. And here's how my brain works: I can't remember my kid's phone number, I can't remember my license plate number, I can't remember to call the guy to fix the garage door opener, but I do remember that musician Sting's first wife was named Frances Tomelty. That's how useless my brain is. But Wikipedia confirms that Francis Tumbelty is, in fact, a Jack the Ripper suspect.)

I know, Dean, I feel the same way.

High school. It's daylight now. The citizens are still restless, someone's wife is "missing," the benzene story is wearing thin (sidebar: I'm still using captions, and they misspelled benzene,) and people are plotting an escape.

Zone. Ghosts/spirits/whatever are gathering in one of the houses. Francis Tumbelty, who does not have a British accent (but it turns out he was born in Ireland but raised in America so okay, I guess someone did their research), informs the group that they were released from Hell by God himself. And all of these spirits know what hunters are. And Belphegar's name is actually Belphegor. Well. So much to learn tonight. Tumbelty says they need to gather the spirits who are still in hiding. And they can break the warding because "Warding is a door, doors have locks, locks have keys." Actually, the analogy I would have used is that warding is a lock but WHATEVER. Their plan is to "make it as ugly as possible for those who stand guard." Well, the ineffective spooky makeup will help.

Outside. Hunters are patrolling the perimeter. Civilians sneak out of the bushes and then walk right down the middle of the dang street. And then meet a couple of very unscary ghosts. Oh no, what will happen?

I don't know, because we cut back to the high school. They found the first woman's body, and Cas thinks they need to tell her family, and Sam's all, can't do that yet, people are gonna panic. They're interrupted by the arrival of Rowena, which was a surprise to me because I covered the guest star credits. Although it shouldn't have been a surprise, since Dean called her for help in the previous episode. (See how useless my brain is?) She pretends to be more interested in Cas than Sam but I'm not fooled.

Sam says "Remember a couple of years ago when we were trying to get rid of Amara," as if that's how the conversation would go, as if that's anything either of them would need to be reminded of. What he really would have said was "You know the soul bomb you made for Amara? We need another one of those."

WHATEVER.

They don't want to use it as a bomb, they just want a way to capture the ghosts. Rowena thinks it would be too difficult, but they're interrupted by someone who tells Sam they have "a situation."

Zone. The situation is that the two civilians are facing down Dean and Belphegor. And apparently they've been standing there long enough for Sam to actually show up at the zone, which is miles away from where he was. WHATEVER. Dean explains that the guy is married to the woman who was D-I-S-E-M-B-O-W-E-L-E-D earlier and came to look for her. (BTW, we're almost 10 minutes in, and this is the first scene with Sam and Dean together.) Sam, in his kind way, tells them they need to go back to the school. Then black goo drips out of their eyes and Dean realizes they're possessed. The whole standing-and-staring part didn't clue him in (WHATEVER) but now he gets it.

Bowlegs! Hair blowing in the breeze! Something for everyone!

Tumbelty appears and tells them if they don't open the warding, the spirits are going to kill these two civilian vessels. The civilians drop to the ground, groaning in pain, and I remember back when the guys would have let the spirits out in order to save two innocent people. Or at least would have been conflicted about it. (WHATEVER.)

However, some unexpected shots ring out, sprinkling the possessed civilians with... confetti? How festive. Tumbelty zaps out and the Winchesters and Belphegor turn to see none other than Arthur Ketch. Who is also a surprise to me. I guess that gig as an insurance agent didn't work out. Dean seems ridiculously annoyed to see him. Ridiculous considering that they were working together fairly recently. (WHATEVER.)

And now, since none of my regular download sources worked out and I'm forced to rewatch on the CW app, I'm sitting through commercials. Like a goddamn animal.

Back at the school. Ketch says he just happened to be in the area when they sent out the call for hunters. Dean's still not pleased. What is his problem? Am I forgetting something? Did they leave on bad terms? His gun, stolen from the BMoL, shoots iron flakes. Which somehow expels the spirit without hurting the vessel. He and Rowena reacquaint themselves, and she holds no hard feelings against him regarding the whole prisoner thing, since he let her escape. Well, you actually bought that escape, Rowena, but okay. There is an uncomfortable level of eyefucking, as least as far as the Winchesters are concerned.

Belphegor shows up and they have to explain to Ketch that Jack is dead and oh, Sam's face, when he says "dead." This is the first time this episode has made me feel anything. Well, anything good. And it turns out Ketch was actually contracted by "an attractive female demon" (seriously, that just means a demon in an attractive female vessel but WHATEVER) to kill Belphegor. Her name is Ardat and I guess she's gonna show up later. Yawn.

At least sad Sammy is good.

Reno? I laughed and said ha ha, I wonder if Amara is here and it turns out she is! (Because, again, I covered the guest stars.) She's getting a massage. Her maseusse is replaced by Chuck, who looks about 10-20 years younger than he did the last time we saw him. (Just for Men. Find it in the men's section.) She's annoyed with his presence. He's rambling. He liked the Game of Thrones ending, which I guess is supposed to signal what an awful hack of a storyteller he is. Or to warn us that we won't like the ending of our own Show. Or both.

High school. Poor Cas has to lie to Restless Citizen #3 that they're looking for the other missing citizens. "You said you'd keep us safe!" the guys says. That cuts deep, man. Meanwhile, Rowena has given Dean a shopping list. She asks him about Ketch, even though, as Dean points out, they've obviously met. "That was more of a torturer-torturee relationship. Fun, but I didn't really get to know him." But Dean doesn't want to play matchmaker, and says she shouldn't get involved with Ketch. "I mean, Sam is right here," he says. "Why don't you guys get off high center and do it?" (No, not really.)

Cas comes up behind Dean, all rumpled and sad and wanting a hug, and he apologizes for "dropping the puck." Dean doesn't want to hear it. He's so very angry, at Cas and at Chuck and at his life being one giant rat maze. Cas doesn't think their whole existence has been a lie, because even though they were in a maze, they were still living their lives in that maze. That's what life is. Chuck sets up the obstacles, but they still run their own obstacle course. Dean doesn't accept this.

It's interesting that Dean is the one who's taking the truth about Chuck so hard. Sam and Cas were the ones who had faith, and you'd think they'd be knocked harder by the realization that there was never a benevolent God. But on the other hand, Sam's so used to being manipulated by outside forces; this is nothing new to him. And Cas has already seen how the sausage is made. So they're both just, yeah, this is how it is, let's deal with it.

However. I'm not feeling the Dean-Cas conflict at all. I don't really care. And I suspect it's going to be a Big Deal. {sigh}

I’m definitely feeling angry Dean. So much.

Zone. Nighttime. Dean and Ketch are on patrol. I mean, I guess it makes sense to leave Chief Sam in charge at the school, but I'm tired of the guys being split up. Dean gives Ketch one of the giant chains they've been wearing, and says it's iron, to prevent possession. Wow, that would be a heavy chain. They talk about God and Rowena, and then Dean gets a text message. "Trouble. Two hunters haven't checked in." Uh oh!

Meat packing plant. Seriously? There is a meat packing plant in the middle of this residential area? So many chains hanging from the ceiling. I wonder what kind of cage flashbacks Sam would have in here. (And if you fic that, I'd like to be notified, please and thank you.) Dean and Ketch search the place and then it gets cold and then Ketch is hurled against a wall. Hard. Lizzie Borden appears, prepared to take an ax to Dean's head, but an electronically altered voice says "Stop! Get out!" She zaps out and we see the voice belongs to... Kevin???

Turns out when Chuck said he was sending Kevin to Heaven, he lied. Um. Why? What's the rationale for this? I mean, he did things to make a good story, but what was the purpose of sending Kevin to Hell and not letting the Winchesters (or anybody else) know? Dean promises they'll get him to Heaven, and Kevin accept this happily, because Kevin knows that Dean always takes care of him, as promised. (Ha.) Kevin can feel the wards weakening, but he doesn't know if the other spirits can detect it. And the other spirits are afraid of Kevin because he was personally cast down by God. Um. Okay. WHATEVER. But this tells Dean they can use him as a spy.

Reno. Chuck is flipping through channels, and he spends a couple of seconds watching a cooking show where the recipe involves tripe. Which is so meta, isn't it?

He's whiny. I'm over it. So is Amara. And she suddenly detects (WHATEVER) that he needs her for some reason. She can feel his own version of the godhole? She pokes at it and it hurts. "Something happened. You're not complete. You're not at full strength."

Zone. Sam doesn't think using Kevin is safe. Well, he's already dead, so. Belphegor shows up and they're all, your wards are failing and he's all, duh, I told you that was happening, I thought you heroes would have this wrapped up by now. (Are they really fading due to the nature of wards, or is this deliberate? Discuss.) And this spell was a one-time thing - he can't do it again. Because...? We'll never know, because neither brother asks. WHATEVER.

This conversation is like some people. Stupid but pretty.

Belphegor knows Kevin and calls him a "whiny millenial" and my goodness, he gets around a lot for a low-level grunt, doesn't he? He tells the guys that Kevin can't get into Heaven because once a soul is cast into Hell, Heaven can't take it. I am quite sure that Show has forgotten about John and Bobby, who both accomplished that very thing, and I'm shocked to find Show actually address this. Belphegor says God made an exception, and that isn't likely to happen again, since God doesn't like them any more. Oh no! The only way to fix this is if someone else takes over for God!

Reno. Chuck checks out his own godhole, which looks just like Sam's. He pokes at it and winces in pain.

Zone. Sam feels pain in his own godhole. Because they're connected! He lies that he's okay and it's getting better and Dean's all yeah, right.

Sam, for a professional liar, you are so bad at it.

Zone. Spirit meeting. They know the wards are fading. Tumbelty thinks they should attack at a weak point, rather than waiting for the whole thing to collapse. Kevin shows up. They all know him, and some fear him. But Tumbelty knows he's buds with the Winchesters. Because all these spirits know the Winchesters. You know, I can understand all the demons knowing who they are. That's justified. But every resident of Hell? I'm not feeling it. WHATEVER.

High school. More heavy flirting between Rowena and Ketch. Somehow Ketch knows something she doesn't know - that a jolt of electricity will fast-forward her spell. Can we just skip this part? It makes as much sense as the Rowena/Gabriel detour when they were trying to open the rift. They're interrupted by a call from Dean, who demands she hurry. Yes, please.

Zone. Rowena shows up with a bag and runs right into Tumbelty. Who knows her. Because they used to date. All this romance for Rowena, and Sam's still sitting alone at the high school. Come on, Ro. Climb that mountain. Tumbelty tells her they've got Kevin, and sends a message for the Winchesters to meet them at their spirit house. Ketch shows up behind him, with his iron confetti gun, and blasts him, but Tumbelty whacks him with a rock. However, Rowena escapes.

{Commercial time. Zombieland 2 looks good.}

TFW is finally all together. Rowena tells them about Kevin. Dean asks if she has the soulcatcher, and for some reason, Sam has a problem with the name soulcatcher. I suppose this was supposed to be humorous. She does, but she doesn't know if it will work.

Spirit house. Winchesters show up. Tumbelty says if they shut down the warding, he won't devour Kevin. They say no. Tumbelty sticks his hand into Kevin, and this takes a really really long time, but Rowena finally shows up with the crystal and catches all of their souls. Boy, it's a good time devouring Kevin's soul took so very, very long. Rowena tells them this crystal isn't as powerful as the earlier version, and can only gather a few souls at a time. In fact, some of the souls here got away. Oooh, I wonder who.

Kevin tells them about the plan to break through the warding at the weakest point. Jump to the weakest point. There are at least 100 spirits there, according to Belphegor, and more are coming. Dean brings his gun up when someone approaches, but it's only Ketch. Oh, good, he escaped safely from Tumbelty's clutches! How fortunate. It's odd that he's no longer wearing that huge iron chain, though.

Dean tries shooting at the spirits they can't see, but Belphegor tells him there are too many. So Rowena goes forth with her soulcatcher. She still seems to be on this side of the warding, which means she's able to drag the souls through the barrier. I wonder if it would have worked better if she'd gone past the barrier. Then Ketch backhands her because, SURPRISE SURPRISE, he's actually possessed. He drips black goo from his eyes, just to confirm, and picks up the soulcatcher. Dean tries to shoot him, but is conveniently out of ammo. Tumbelty!Ketch monologues and then Dean pulls out his handgun and shoots him and he... tosses the soulcatcher to Dean? Drops it horizontally? Somehow, the thing ends up flying into Dean's hand.

WHATEVER.

(Or did Ketch toss it to him once he was depossessed? Discuss.)

Rowena takes it back and sucks up the few visible souls, including Tumbelty's. Yay! Success! Is Ketch alive? Dunno!

Time jump. Ketch is alive, with only a wounded shoulder, and is being loaded into an ambulance. Cas tells Sam that he tried to heal him, but couldn't. "You're just tired," Sam says. "We all are." Oh, I don't think so, Sam. Dean apologizes to Ketch, and lets us know it was an iron bullet, which is why it expelled Tumbelty. Ketch and Rowena exchange a longing glance. Dean stares. Angrily, maybe? Angry that Mary's ex dared to look for love again? Angry that Rowena is flirting with someone else right in front of Sam? Angry that Ketch is such a wuss that he actually needs an ambulance, and medical treatment, for a mere bullet to the shoulder? Angry that he's stuck inside a Buckleming episode? All of the above? He and Rowena exchange an uncomfortable look.

Aftermath! Kevin doesn't want to stay in the zone and hang out with the guys. He knows he can't get into Heaven, so he's just gonna ghost around and wander the earth. Sam tells him this is a terrible way to exist, and Kevin points out that it's better than Hell. And Kevin and Sam give us what might be the motto for just this episode, or maybe for the entire season:

I'm sorry, Kevin. I wish there was some way to make this right.

Me too. But there isn't. And sometimes, you just gotta accept that.

Kevin tells the Winchesters he loves them (d'aw) and they don't say it back (aw) and Belphegor quite easily makes a little opening in the barrier. So easily, that it really makes you wonder why he has so little power to keep it going. Yep, it sure does. Kevin is gone. Sad waves.

Reno. Amara is hitting the road. Chuck isn't invited. And she knows he's too weak to do anything about it. He can't leave this world without her help, and she ain't helping.

Zone. We see dozens of glowing souls flitting about. The warding won't last long. We need a plan B. "How," asks Dean. How indeed.

So. When I watched this for the first time last night, I desperately wanted to fast forward through the scenes with the spirits in the house. And the Ketch/Rowena stuff. It wasn't any better on rewatch. Some of this episode was just the usual Buckleming nonsense - badly written, stupid things happen for stupid reasons, yada yada yada. But the Kevin plot... can we blame that on the Buckleming? Or was that a showrunner master plan? Either way, it's annoying. And probably pointless. The only good thing about this episode was the confirmation of the connection between Sam and Chuck. I noticed a distinct lack of excitement on my Tumblr feed, so maybe a lot of us feel the same way. If you haven't watched this one yet, my vote is: don't bother.

Please help me stay unspoiled, thanks!

#spn #recap #tv recaps #15.02 #spoilers

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letamreviews · 5 years

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Top of 2019

With 56 films watched and 27 favorited in 2019, I composed a list of my top. By pure happenstance, the list is almost an exact third (18) of the total films watched. Be aware that I don’t have as much to say about some of these because I took no notes after.

Because I’d be biased towards them, I don’t count the National Theatre Live plays.

Since the list is likely to be altered between now and the end of February (to accommodate for films missed), check the Lettboxd list later on to see an up to date listing, but be aware that it intentionally lacks the details provided here.

EDIT (01/04/20):

Woke up this morning religiously re-reading this and caught some grammar errors. It’s almost like staying consistently well-rested is actually beneficial. While I’m at it, Blind Rating (BR) is how worthwhile the film is watching “blind” (or knowing nothing). The scale is 1 (worth it) to 5 (you must). ‘Eh is essentially a 0.5.

1. Midsommar (USA)

Saw the original and Director's Cut in theatres and discussed them with a group immediately after both times. I’m somewhere between really liking it and loving it. Still unsure. Hell of an experience with a lot to notice, debate over, and pick up on during the second viewing. Don’t even get me started on the Christian/Dani matter. Dat tension, tho. Blind Rating: 4/5

2. Us (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with a group immediately after. I’m digging the allegories and the way (I think) it reflects on society. Dem reveals, tho. Blind Rating: 4/5

3. Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with a group immediately after. Two things probably play a huge hand in this not being atleast 3 spots lower: my demographic and the fact that her older self constantly reminded me of my grandma and a certain middle school teacher. Regardless, it’s an entertaining, interesting, and lively documentary with its many personalities on-screen all giving their take on matters along with Ms. Morrison herself. Glad they managed to finish and release this 1.25 months before her death. Blind Rating: 0/5

4. When They See Us (USA)

Saw on Netflix over the course of a month. Y’all, this one hurt too much to watch again any time soon. Admittedly, part of the reason why it hit me so hard is because I could easily have been one of them. Dat ending, tho. Don’t forget to watch the Oprah followup When They See Us Now after. You’ll ball (again). Blind Rating: 3/5

5. Parasite (South Korea)

Saw an advance screening in theatres and watched a live post-film Q&A. I really like it. This hit me in such a way that it’s one of three films I’m writing an essay on. Planing on watching it a second time soon so I can finish with a sense of accuracy. This isn’t one that I would recommend looking at images for. There are some that will spoil the experience of the second half. Seriously, block the “Parasite” tag from your feed if you can. Blind Rating: 3/5

6. Luce (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with a group immediately after. This was is so~ good as a thriller and especially in regards to being Black in America. Wanted to watch it a second time but never managed to squeeze it in before it left theatres. Dem performances, tho. Dat tension, yo. Dat score, bro. Blind Rating: 1/5

7. Them That Follow (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with someone immediately after. I love it. Blind Rating: 1/5

A drama influenced thriller about a religious and somewhat self-isolating community that's effectively blanketing a realistic romance. (snip) —Letterboxd review

8. The Souvenir (United Kingdom)

Saw in theatres (partially because so many movie peeps were shitting on it). I love it, but I didn't fucking love it. Was tempted to see it again, but didn’t get the chance. Dat ending, tho. While it was a movie peep telling me the whole plot that caused me to gain so much interest in it [Cabin in the Woods (2011) all over again, amiright?], I must say that the less you know the better. It’ll make for... a more immersive experience. Blind Rating: 3/5

9. After the Wedding (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with a group immediately after. I thought I really liked it, but I love it. This was a trip down unexpected lane, le'me tell ya. The trailer is a spoilerful lie, but the Landmark's description is very accurate. People's experiences will have a heavy hand in how they react to it and feel about certain characters. The way they made this feel like a constant thriller was excellently done. Dat cinematography, tho. Go in knowing nothing more than what the previous link provides. Blind Rating: 1/5

10. Joker (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with a group immediately after. I really like it. Blind Rating: 1/5

(slight spoilers)

This was difficult to watch at times, but hella captivating throughout. Arthur's reasoning is believable, his sanity is questionable, and his life is indeed one hell of a joke. Like watching an extreme example of what happens when people on the lower end lose access to social programs. This can very easily be taken as a commentary on mental illness kept unchecked. More than that, it's a story about a guy who accepts his "crazy" and transcends poverty, circumstance, and societal bullshit... at everyone else's expense. (snip) —Letterboxd review

11. Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with a group immediately after. I really like it. Captivating documentary in a very similar style to Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am, but with Mr. Davis never joining the “talking heads” (as people like to call it) and instead being heard as a constant narrator of his own biography. Regardless of how I feel about him on a personal level, this shit was a great watch and the ending hit hard. Still need to get his autobiography, though. There’s a nostalgic factor for me here since I was partially reminded of my grandpa while watching it. Blind Rating: 'eh

12. Queen & Slim (USA)

Saw in theatres and discussed with someone immediately after. Fuck yeah, I enjoyed this one. Dat soundtrack and cinematography, bruh? 👌🏿 The throwback soundtrack, main characters’ racial group, and fact that they went to New Orleans definitely play a hand in why this one’s not atleast 1 spot lower. Blind Rating: 1/5

13. Dwelling in the Fuchon Mountains (China)

Saw in theatres during festival and attended discussion days later. I really like it. Was long, but in a good way. Similar to Ash is Purest White (2018) in that I kept thinking "please end here," but would be glad it didn't later. It's beautifully slothy and has absurdly long tracking shots. The cinematography during walking conversations is notable. Dat trick, tho. Blind Rating: 'eh

14. A Girl Missing (Japan)

Saw in theatres during festival and discussed with a group immediately after. Bruh~, this is a hell of a personal trial. Didn’t expect it to go the places it did. Blind Rating: 1/5

15. Dutch Angle: Chas Gerretsen & Apocalypse Now (Netherlands)

Saw on MUBI on phone. I love it. This goes over his childhood (for 8 minutes), career paths, photography of 9/11/1973's Chilean coup d'etat, the 6 months he spent on-set photographing Apocalypse Now (1979), and him as a person. What I didn’t expect was how much he would get into the details of things happening during that film’s development. Along with those details are interesting photos presented excellently in a way that’s reminiscent of manga at times. I like the way the photos take center point and are treated like the foreground. It’s like the director and editor forced themselves to remain aware that the documentary was showcasing 15% of the total slides housed in the Nederlands Fotomuseum’s archives in Rotterdam and that most of his Apocalypse Now photos were never seen. Dat score, tho [Ex Machina (2014) vibes]. Blind Rating: 0/5

BTW, it had its official (Dutch national) release by EYE Filmmuseum on 12/19/19 in the Netherlands, so maybe it’ll come to the USA soon. 🤷🏿‍♂️ Forgot to mention it’s been added as a special feature to the 40th anniversary 4K blu-ray disc of Apocalypse Now: Final Cut (2019).

16. Receiver (Ireland)

Saw on MUBI on phone. I really like it. A very interesting short film in three odd segments. First was disturbing; second was about activism, protests, and politics; third was about the person I assume the film was made for. All compose what I took as a film about the importance of having reliable sound and hearing. Needs to be watched alone with good sound quality (for immersion). Blind Rating: 'eh

17. Bacurau (Brazil)

Saw in theatres during festival. I really like it. This was some Most Dangerous Game shit with a hell of an ending. The whole game is an allegory of civilized people's obsession with hunting wild animals for "sport". I really like the portrayal of history here and enjoyed the racial matters it lays bare. I can only imagine someone watching this without knowing a thing. Kinda wish I didn’t even read the description beforehand. Digging the soundtrack. Blind Rating: 1/5

18. Little Women (USA)

Saw on 35mm and discussed with others on separate occasions. I really like it. This was just warming and sad. I felt for the main characters and actually felt satisfied with the way it ended. Considering the type of film, there are handful of typical things for me to complain about. That being said, the movie earned its stars back. I mean, did you not see their attic performances? Shit was dope. Blind Rating: ‘eh

#2019 #top of #favorite films #i love it #i really like it #Ireland #Netherlands #Japan #China #Brazil #United Kingdom #USA

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schoe1995 · 5 years

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AVENGERS CAMPUS! ITS LITT!

Big news coming from Disney. July 18th, 2020 will be the grand opening of the new Avengers Campus! All major Disney park Social Media Sites released concept photos. And whoa...it looks stunning!

Check this out! This is what the “campus” looks like. It reminds me when they first introduced the Avengers building during the end of the first movie. If you ever been to Disney; they take so much time to make it so real. Like your part of the magic, or universe. There is going to be so much stuff going on; Spider-Man swinging over the campus, and there will be Black Widow and Captain America fighting against villain Traskmaster. Btw, the stunt team for the Black Widow movie are coordinating with Disney to make it super realistic.

They will also have several characters in their own zone. For example; Doctor Strange has The Sanctum. You’ll be able to feel all the magic he summons and surrounds himself. You’ll also have other zones for different characters that are part of The Avengers:)

As you can see, it looks so pretty! Also fun for the kids, fans, etc. the Avengers character photo opp. Here’s all that’s confirmed: Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther and the fearsome Dora Milaje, Captain Marvel, Black Widow, Doctor Strange, and Captain America, and Spider-Man. As soon as I saw Black Panther 🗣WAKANDA FOREVER🙅‍♂️

WEB-SLING! New Similator Ride featuring Spider-Man!

I’m a huge Spider-Man fan. Other than X-Men, but yeah. This ride is going to be revolutionary. So here is the scenario: Peter Parker the “civilian name” for Spider-Man invites us to his lab. Side note; Tom Holland will be voicing, which by the way that’s smart. I love how Tom Holland is portraying him. And is actually young! Anyways...so Peter is creating these “spider-bots” to help try fighting crime. Well true to Peter Parker’s personality...the spider bots go haywire. He asks for help and this is where the fun begins.

You’ll get into this vehicle and wear these 3D glasses. As soon as you do the traditional spider web shoot with hands, you’ll be able to help out The Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man catch these troublesome bots.

MERCHANDISE!

It’s not a complete Disney trip without getting several merchandise. My guess is that it’s going to be these two:

The spider lens goggles. It will be able to do 17 expressions and the web shooters look exactly like Spider man.

Remember those troublesome spider-bots that we helped Spider-Man with? Well we can get our very own. You can also customize the bots to whatever style you like. They’ll also be able to battle other spider bots! To make sure that these bots are contained, you might want to get a backpack to keep track.

If your a collector; definitely get the FUNKO pops. Disney will be releasing park exclusive ones for Avenger Campus. Take all my money guys😭😭😭

I can’t explain how excited I am about this. To be a superhero has been everybody’s dreams. With all this happening no wonder Disney is becoming a number one lead as well. July 18th, 2020...guess it’s going to be tons of new Avenger Recuits.

#disney life #disney blog #disney blogger #disney #disney world #disneyland #marvel #avengers #avengers campus #avengers assemble

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alkja · 5 years

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Well, here we come: Endgame review (spoilers galore)

Endgame is essentially two different movies for me: the one up until the last three minutes and the one that includes those last three minutes.

The first is a decent movie – riddled with stupid crap, plot holes and the occasional nonsense, but on the whole acceptable.

The second is a waterfall of crap that makes me seethe in anger.

If you liked that ending, I seriously discourage you from keeping on reading. Otherwise, let us discuss the good, the bad, the wtf and the “How dare you?”

THE “DID YOU EVEN TRY THINKING ABOUT THIS” DIVISION

Let’s start with the inevitable: time shenanigans equal inevitable fuckery. That is known.

The most egregious example being: Nebula kills her younger self and is apparently fine and dandy. What the shit? I don’t care if you killed her in 2023 (or whenever Endgame happens, I’m going with Infinity War happening in 2018 as released), if Nebula 2014 dies there is no Nebula 2015 and so on to eventually become Nebula 2023. Ergo, she should absolutely have died. Same with Thanos & Co. No matter where you do it, if you kill a past version of someone, there is no one to do the things they would have done in the future. Thanos 2014 dies, so there cannot be a Thanos from after that to do the Snap.

Which is not bad, go ahead and kill past versions of evil shits, but doing so changes the timeline. Period. Rodhey even proposed that and they had a long nerd out about why that would not be possible... and then they went and did that and pretended it didn’t count. That is so goddamn stupid.

Same with all the time travel.

I don’t care if you go and put the Infinity Stones back, because those stupid McGuffins are not the only thing that can mess the timeline. First of all, there is no one to use them anyway since Thanos died before he did the Snap, but we’re supposed to ignore that.

More to the point, in order to put the timeline to right, you have to put the Stones back after the future Avengers have stolen them. Fine, that puts them back in the timeline. However, that doesn’t erase the actions your slightly-past selves have taken trying to grab them. Which means, for example, that Loki fucking escaped with the Tesseract after Avengers 1, which is a MAJOR change.

Or, it should be. But apparently we’re supposed to ignore that because in the Dark World time Loki is in his cell, and wow. NO. If he escapes in Avengers 1 (with the Tesseract to boot), that leads to massive changes in Dark World and Ragnarok. For one thing, without the Tesseract, the Bifrost cannot be repaired. More essential to those plots, Loki should plainly not be there.

Putting the sceptre back also doesn’t erase the fact that Captain America said “Heil Hydra” to a Hydra agent (oh oh oh, such canny comic references!), who apparently never mentioned it again to anyone ever? Not even to his goddamn boss? So, did Sitwell legitimately think Steve was Hydra up until Winter Soldier? And yet come Winter Soldier he never thought to ask Steve “Wait, even if you’re not actually Hydra, you clearly knew about us for years, so why are you now so outraged like this is brand new information for you? Why did it take you this long to move against us and why are you doing it without much in the way of planning or allies? The hell did you do these past years?”

Hell, why did Sitwell – a prominent Hydra agent in SHIELD who would not raise any flags doing so – never approach Steve, Hydra agent to Hydra agent? No, he discovers that Captain America is apparently Hydra and just rolls with it. No “What the hell, sir?” call to Pierce, no secret handshake to Steve. For years. I can handwave him not saying anything to Rumlow and the rest of Strike, because if Steve is Hydra maintaining his deep cover with everyone is more important than anything (even if they were right there when he gave him the scepter, so what did he say to them?), but not mentioning it to Pierce? Cannot buy that. And not having any mention of that in Winter Soldier is pretty damn unbelievable.

The timeline was also changed by having future!Steve fight past!Steve. And no, it doesn’t matter that past!Steve thought it was Loki. It was still a change.

Not to mention, Loki could not have had a Peggy compass or known shit about Bucky, so it stands to reason it’s not Loki. So, what gives? What did past!Steve think it happened? Hell, come Winter Soldier what did he think about that time some guy who looked and fought like himself told him that Bucky was alive and lo and behold, here comes Buckaroo?

In essence, the Avengers fucked the timeline without lube but we’re supposed to pretend they didn’t.

To me, that is shit.

Mess with time all you like, but acknowledge you’re doing so. Either your plan goes off without a hitch (as if!), or the moment where everything goes inevitably to hell and there are changes - and here we are talking about major changes - you say fuck it, pull out all the stops and change away.

[Ok, I admit it, by that I mostly mean: pull out all the stops, take 5 minutes to explain to your past self you come from the future and tell him to get his ass in gear because Hydra is literally running the government and SHIELD and most importantly Bucky has been frozen, tortured and brainwashed for about 70 years, so get to it, save Bucky Bear save the world, and smash Nazis like the fucking Hulk. May the fic gods, as ever, be kinder to me than the canon ones.]

This “pretend nothing has changed even while we change important stuff that should logically have repercussions” approach only works if you think your audience has the reasoning capabilities of concussed goldfishes. Tony’s last bout of genius solving time travel on the fly deserved better than this.

(Also, good luck trying to sell me on any future conflict stakes when our heroes now have the capabilities of fucking going back in time and change things, even if you don’t want to admit it.)

In the “this is so dumb and nonsensical and wow look at those strings” camp, we also have the two Nebulas being connected. That is so stupid and clearly only there for the sake of plot you can literally see the writers going “Uhm... how can we make it so past!Thanos knows what the heroes are doing? What if we make it so past!Nebula gets the memories of future!Nebula from a galaxy away? How? Why? Because!”

Riveting.

About as riveting as the Thor stuff. Here you can see the writers desperately wracking their brain wondering “But how are we gonna have dumb jokes in a serious movies? Where will we go for cheap, juvenile humor? I know! Let’s make Thor a drunk idiot with a beer belly! Oh oh oh, what could be more funny than a parade of fat jokes, we’re comedic geniuses!”

Yawn. Also, offensive much? But really, everything about Thor spits in the face of his three movies long character arc (which was all about responsibility): dudes, do you even know the characters you’re writing about?

Speaking of desperation: no Steve and Bucky reunion post UnSnapping? Seriously? We have Tony and Peter - who have known each other for 5 minutes - tearfully embrace but no scene between two characters who have known each other all their lives and have been through massive shit in those lives? Marvel execs, we know that every time Steve and Bucky shared a scene The Dreadful Spectre of The GAY appeared and made your blood pressure rise but this is ridiculous.

Which is also why you get no cookie for The First Gay Character in the franchise: an unnamed character in a single blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scene, truly stellar representation. What made you believe this was a smart move?

That said, there are some good things in this movie.

THE “I DIDN’T NECESSARILY WANT THIS BUT I CAN ACCEPT YOU DID IT. ALSO, OUCH: MY HEART” DIVISION

First of all, Tony Stark.

Never thought I’d say that, because I’m the furthest thing from a Tony fan and spent all of Ultron and Civil War wanting to punch him. And Infinity War being indifferent to him.

But goddamn if I didn’t feel how goddamn much he adored Pepper and their daughter. Goddamn if I didn’t tear up at his heroic sacrifice, going out with the line that started it all (“I am Iron Man”- my heart), goddamn if I didn’t tear up at his goodbye with Pepper and then at his funeral.

For all his many, many faults – which I’m not gonna forget for a second – Tony went out exactly as he should be: a goddamn hero. With a heart big enough, strong enough to give himself up for everyone else even at the moment where he had everything he ever wished to have.

My hat’s off to him.

Never thought I’d ever say this, but I will miss him.

Other MVPs of Endgame: Clint Motherfucking Barton and Natasha “Love is NOT for Children” Romanoff. I know: Natasha, sure, but who would ever have guessed that about Clint? Prior to Endgame, he was just sort of there, not helped by Ultron and his sudden family in a farm.

Endgame managed to make me care about the family I loathed. How? I don’t know, but I am totally down for a Clint + Kate Bishop + Lila show, where everyone is a badass archer and they are all codenamed Hawkeye just because! I am also totally down for Clint’s badass reinvention (after, I’m guessing, mainlining all 7 seasons of Arrow), no matter how heartbreaking the reason or questionable the style choices.

And that Clintasha scene was pretty much worth the whole movie to me.

Because, first of all, that’s how you solve a problem like the Soul Stone: a willing sacrifice. (Which, btw, makes even more disgusting the fact that we are supposed to see this as equally worthy to Thanos murdering his daughter).

Second, because I am a total sucker for characters fighting about who gets to sacrifice themselves. Clint and Natasha beating the crap out of each other just like in Avengers 1 (just one of many delightful callbacks that pepper the movie), this time because they love each other too much to let the other be the one to die is everything.

Third, because it’s just a really good scene, based on one of the better relationships in the MCU. Even those not shipping Clintasha have no doubt that those two are extremely important to one another, and Renner and Johannson acted the hell out of it - just as they did every scene together, from their reunion post-yakuza slaughter, to the giddiness of flying a spaceship. I teared up like a baby at Nat’s sacrifice and I was right there with Clint hoping for a loophole that made it so we could get Nat back and was heartbroken anew when that did not come to pass.

But, again, the Black Widow went out just like she should have: a true hero, loving, strong and unafraid. The red in her ledger was wiped out once and for all.

The “Feels” subdivision

Scott Lang was an integral part of the solution. I mean, never before have we heard about time passing differently in the quantum realm – and in fact Janet Van Dyne aged the 30 years she spent in it, so more plot service crap – but who cares! Still, his desperate checking to see if his daughter was among the Snapped only to find his own name and running like hell to get to Cassie only to be suddenly confronted with a teenager and realizing he missed those 5 years with her and not caring because she was still there was absolutely perfect.

Speaking of families: I have already said it but Tony and Pepper and little Morgan were amazing.

Also, Thor and Frigga! Frigga was an egregious fridging to start with, so it was lovely seeing her again, but especially giving her a wonderful scene with her son that shows her intelligence and strength and exactly why she was Queen of Asgard. Not to mention being the one to restore Thor’s confidence and absolving him of his failures. Sometimes you just really, really need your mom. (Too bad about that stupid salad joke.)

Natasha and Steve. Just... Natasha and Steve being badly messed up by those 5 years post-Snap and yet being so supportive and understanding of each other. Really, after Winter Soldier, this was the best Natasha movie. And rightly so.

In general, the Avengers being not just a team but also friends, fucking finally. Sure, there is the whole “found family-baited” post going around, but memes aside, it is true that we never got to see those people acting like friends and not merely co-workers. Was that so difficult to do before the very last moment?

THE “IN HERE FOR THE HOLY SHIT QUOTIENT” DIVISION

A small but admirable moment for a villain that was otherwise pretty underwhelming no matter how much they tried passing him off as deep: Thanos having the smarts and the metaphorical stones to goddamn destroy the Infinity Stones. Better to accept never using them himself again than run the risk of someone stealing them and undo his work. He may be evil and incapable of properly understanding the concept of proportions (that whole: if you destroy half of the resources along with half of the people using said resources, you are just as screwed as before), but the guy is smart.

Carol was as amazing as she could be in a movie that by design could not be about her kicking Thanos’s ass up and down the whole galaxy but was necessarily the Last Hooray of the Old Guard. Her face seeing Fury among the Snapped, her entrance and towing a fucking spaceship, her pointing out that while the Avengers have been watching (with mixed results) over a single planet she was watching over a lot of them (likely with better results), her second entrance, her goddamn everything. Not as good as her solo movie but what could ever be?

Speaking of ladies, Valkyrie becoming a Literal Queen warms my heart. I have some doubts about Thor just up and leaving what remains of his people, even after everything (read: I don’t buy it, just like I don’t buy anything about Thor in this movie), but considering Heimdall is not around anymore, we can all agree he left them in excellent, badass hands. I want more.

Switching to metaphorical Valkyries... It was a fanservice-y, mostly unearned scene in a series that has historically been pretty low in female friendships or relationships, but goddamn if the optics of all the badass ladies of the MCU banding together weren’t made of FUCKYEAH! Give us a ladies-led movie, Marvel, you fucking cowards: DC is giving us the Birds of Prey (and Harley Quinn), what’s your excuse?

In that vein: Pepper donning an Iron Man armor! Basically everything I ever hoped for, so much so that for a moment I legitimately thought I had imagined it. Now that Tony is gone, let Pepper step up as Rescue or Iron Maiden or whatever, get her to mentor a bright intern named Riri Williams and we’re set to go for maximum awesomeness.

Still, when talking about maximum awesomeness: CAP. WIELDING. MJOLNIR. We Italians don’t have the habit of reacting to movies out loud at the theatre, but you could hear the current of FUCKYEAH!!! coming from all the nerds in the room, and rightly so. Cap fighting with the shield in one hand and Mjolnir in the other was everything every superhero fan could ever have wished for in a movie distilled into the Crowning Moment of Awesome to top all CMOAs. (Too bad this gets incredibly undermined by that ending beacuse I refuse to believe that that guy could be worthy of a fucking shoehorn, much less Mjolnir.)

Thor dual-wielding Mjolnir and Stormbreaker deserves a mention too.

(This as long as we forget Mjolnir being taken away to the future at the start of Dark World makes gaping holes in Ultron e Ragnarok, because past!Thor wouldn’t have it anymore, but whatever LALALALALA what time logic?)

But the moment that threatened to bring down the house in cheers was the sight of all the Unsnapped returning followed by - finally - the call: AVENGERS ASSEMBLE! Every single person visibly restrained themselves from punching the air and shouting along. I think we all regret not doing so, dignity be damned.

So, leaving aside the truck-sized plot holes that are practically a given once you decide to muck around with time travel and the occasional plot-over-character-or-sense stupidity, all in all we have a rather solid movie full of badass moments and with occasionally meaningful emotional beats.

Not my favorite by a long shot, but a mostly fitting end to an insane project no one ever thought could possibly be achieved that ended up sweeping the world and fandom.

Too bad those last five minutes arrive to shit all over that, and incidentally all over a beloved character.

THE “ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME YOU GODDAMNED HACKS” DIVISION

Steve – I must suppose SERIOUSLY concussed during the battle to the point of brain damage beyond the repairing capabilities of the superserum – returns the Infinity Stones to the past and, while he’s at it, decides to abscond in the same past to live his life with Peggy, only returning as an old man to pass the shield to Sam.

Awwwwwwwwww... Steve and Peggy living their life together, so heartwarming...

Yeah, except once you think about it, then you want to use that shield to fucking brain the skrull that must be impersonating Steve Rogers.

Because, in order to buy this story, we have to believe that Steve “I don’t like bullies” Rogers, Steve “If I see a situation pointed south, I can't ignore it” Rogers, Steve “On va voir” Rogers, Steve “I can do this all day” Rogers deliberately chose to spend the rest of his fucking life doing exactly nothing, otherwise the timeline would have been SERIOUSLY rebooted.

A life of inaction, hiding the fact of his existence.

Sure, that totally sounds like the Steve Rogers we have been watching up until this point.

Instead of an ending about moving forward no matter what life throws at you, we got one about happiness being literally going backwards.

Because that’s a totally healthy message.

Hell, you decide to go the retirement route, I don’t even necessarily disagree with it. If, after all the trauma of Infinity War + the five years interlude + the shitstorm of Endgame, Steve decided to lay aside the shield for a while and try to make an actual, functional life for himself I would have been all for it. If nothing else, the guy could make do with a lot of therapy. Most crucially, not being Captain America would not mean quitting the fight: he could do just as much good as an artist, a politician, an opinion leader, an activist or what have you. All that is not gonna be possible in the past, because to mantain the timeline he cannot become anyone relevant in any way. Especially since he knows Hydra is still around and attracting notice would mean risking some of that attention coming from them. So no, absconding to the past means by necessity a life not fighting in any way, not doing anything of any particular importance whatsoever.

This is completely antithetical to everything that Steve Rogers, as he was shown up until now, stands for.

And we have yet to touch the morality of it all, or the lack thereof.

Lest I get accused of being a bitter Stucky shipper whose slash goggles cannot make her appreciate a Steggy ending, let me point out that I ship Steggy as much as Stucky and if anything I am a bitter Peggy Carter fangirl: Our Kick-Ass Lady of the No Holds Barred Beatdown unquestionably deserves better than this crap.

By which, I’m not even talking about how this ending shits all over the closure we got before and the entirety of the Agent Carter run, which both show that while Peggy unquestionably loved Steve, she mourned him for a while and then, as healthy people do, moved on to have a perfectly fulfilling life with a rewarding job and eventually a new love and family. I’m not even talking about how this takes her back the “Steve Rogers’ Love Interest” route, Betty Carver-style, instead of letting her be her own woman with her own story that may have started alongside Steve Rogers but then developed on her own terms. I’m not talking about how she was rewinded from a character in her own right to a “hero’s” prize.

I’m talking about how this supposed happy ending to slow dancing and snuggling is based on either Peggy being apparently also brain damaged to the point that, upon hearing that the organization she’s busting her ass to run is a Nazi cesspool, just rolls with it - which, I think we can all agree, is definitely not something our Agent Carter would ever in a million years do - or Steve merrily electing to spend something like 50 years lying like a motherfucker to the supposed love of his life about how the organization she’s busting her ass to run is a Nazi cesspool. True love, everyone!

Fuck you: Peggy Carter fucking deserved better than this.

This also leaving aside the fact that, in this happy ending, Steve knows that while he’s squirreled away in the woods dancing and doing decoupage, his supposed best friend is getting tortured to the point of complete dehumanization. But whatever, he’ll eventually be fine, no use doing anything about it. Oh, JFK got murdered? Nice shot, Buck! Oh, there goes Howard, a smooth operation, buddy: hope the brain-frying won’t be too bad, just hang on until 2014.

End of the line my goddamn ass.

Oh, and since no-one’s memories are rewritten, Bucky also conceivably knows all this. He knows that his supposed best friend voluntarily spent his life doing squat to save him.

Fuck you: Bucky Barnes fucking deserved better than this.

SO, TO RECAP: Steve Rogers is a selfish ass who chose a life of inaction, Peggy Carter is either his accomplice or a dupe and Bucky Barnes lost his best friend all over again. Coherent characterization got sacrificed for a theoretical feel-good moment that doesn’t stand up to the most cursory examination before being revealed as sheer horrifying fuckery.

Sure, Sam gets to be the new Captain America (which, don’t get me wrong: he totally deserves it and at this point he’s more worthy of it than the original), but that’s literally the only good thing in a mountain of shit dumped over characters that deserved much better.

I get that Evans wanted out, but there are ways to do it and then there are ways. Tony went out like a goddamn hero. So did Natasha.

Steve went out quitting - aka the one and only thing Steve Rogers would never ever do - and in addition what can only be called a bastard who shrugged off his best friend’s decades-long torture and quite likely spent his life lying to the woman he loves.

Fuck you: Steve Rogers fucking deserved better than this.

If there could be a worse impression to leave bowing out than this one, I’m honestly unable to imagine it (Well, beside making Steve Hydra for real: but considering that he spent his live blithely pretending they were not still around murdering, torturing and so on, that makes him a collaborationist at best and WOW, at this point it’s kinda splitting hairs, isn’t it?).

Coming into Endgame, I knew this was gonna be Cap’s last waltz and after spending years as a Steve Rogers fan I was dreading watching him die. Now, I wish he could have gone out with the heroism and dignity of Tony or Natasha instead of... whatever this was. I could have mourned him while celebrating him, instead of mourning what he used to be while despising what he was made to become.

This Steve Rogers fan, who spent years loving him while being annoyed and occasionally enraged by Tony Stark, left the theatre feeling deeply moved by Tony and quite honestly hating the guts of whatever was left of Steve. If someone told me this would happen I wouldn’t have believed them and yet here we are.

Personally, in order to actually enjoy the movie and especially to be able to retain any fondness whatsoever for one of my most beloved characters, those last five minutes are gonna join the entirety of Age of Ultron in the realm of “I recognise Marvel Studios have made a decision, but given that it's a stupid-ass decision, I've elected to ignore it”.

As far as I’m concerned, Endgame ended with Tony Stark’s funeral. A fitting tribute to the fallen hero who started it all, to the road that took us to this moment and all those characters who travelled it with us.

To the end of an era and hope for the next one.

#MCU #avengers endgame #not my steve rogers #endgame spoilers #steve rogers #tony stark #natasha romanoff #clint barton #review #rant #endgame wtf #epic fail

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tervacious · 5 years

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So here is atlasobscura, writing gender non-conforming people, mostly women, mostly lesbians, out of history and deciding to trans them all, en masse.

Excerpt about Nell Pickerel, aka Harry Allen: “This opportunity for reinvention seemed to be particularly available to people assigned female at birth who lived their lives as men. In an 1908 interview with The Seattle Sunday Times, Allen articulated his discomfort with his assigned sex. “I did not like to be a girl; did not feel like a girl, and never did look like a girl,” he said. “So it seemed impossible to make myself a girl and, sick at heart over the thought that I would be an outcast of the feminine gender, I conceived the idea of making myself a man.” Allen’s identity fascinated local papers, which cast it as part of the zeitgeist of the American frontier. One publication framed him among “the scum of the West” for his active career of saloon brawling, bootlegging, bronco busting, and horse stealing. The press gawked at his swagger, foul mouth, and penchant for hard drink. Allen found near-infinite possibility in men’s attire, and worked as a bartender, barber, and longshoreman.” Note there is no mention of her life as a seducer of women. She was absolutely famous/infamous for this, with all kinds of drama attached to her for it, but somehow this article manages to not mention a crucial part of this person’s life. We have no idea how, in the modern era, this woman would see herself. Would she be a trans-identified female? Would she be butch? We do know, she was a lesbian, and this article erases her. So does Wikipedia, btw, and people have the audacity to claim you are “deadnaming” her if you use her female name or quote the papers of the time. She did prefer the name Harry Allen, and apparently did use male pronouns, but a good half of the butches I’ve known have used male names/nicknames and male pronouns and were still not trans.

The article makes a good point about male crossdressers, in that a woman dressing as a man stood a good chance of surviving on the frontier with advantages, better pay, access to better jobs, etc., whereas a man dressing as a woman usually did not have better chances in terms of money and access. Except then the article skips over the fact that historically, most men (not all) who crossdressed were gay, and a solid percentage of them were prostitutes. Boys and men wearing women’s clothing were often mentioned in the context of prostitution (obviously boys were victims of the sex trade and were usually foreign or people of color, and the odds of surviving to adulthood was not high). Every male person mentioned and retroactively transed in this article was gay, every one of them were in relationships with men, often one after the other. Gay men went west in well documented numbers-- there’s a reason San Francisco was a gay Mecca by the turn of the last century. And crossdressing was always part of that culture.

There have always been people who hid out as the opposite sex. In a violently sexist culture it is logical that women would disguise themselves as men to be free, regardless of their sexual orientation. It is logical lesbians would disguise themselves as men. It’s no accident Nell Pickerel was known to be a woman, for example-- it’s not because the papers of the time were busily OUTING her and DEADNAMING her and MISGENDERING her. She was a woman, she candidly discussed being a woman (if we are to believe the notoriously unreliable papers of the day), and discussed how that didn’t work out for her. But to extrapolate trans identity, in the modern sense, from this is bizarre.

Even more interestingly, the upshot of this article makes no sense: “As the West changed, so too did its apparent prevalence of non-conforming dress, which could not coexist with settled, civilized America. “As the frontier closed and the Wild West disappeared, these people who found a life there, found validation there, also disappeared from our history,” Boag says.”

Listen, if there had been a trans identity of any kind on the western frontier it wouldn’t have just magically disappeared. That’s not how things work. Gay men and lesbians didn’t disappear. Crossdressing didn’t stop. Bisexuals continued to be bisexual. In cultures with what we now call “third gender roles”, those continued on as well. Because none of these things were “trans”.

People really don’t want to admit that modern gender ideology is MODERN, and it is a completely ahistorical creation. Gender variance is normal because gender is not a concrete thing. “Third gender” roles are normal. They almost always involved two requirements to exist: extreme patriarchy AND acceptance of homosexuality as natural and inate-- in other words, as something that can’t be changed so you have to find a tidy slot to fit it in to your society.

In the modern era something new happened to create the genderist ideology we see today-- for-profit medicine was the first, followed by technology and technical knowledge and the experience of the last eighty years in plastic surgery. I’m convinced the modern trans movement is entirely a creation of those factors, combined with post modernist bullshit taking over academia. And post modernism has been one of the most insidious capitalist ideologies to appear in recent times. It is brilliant, really, it makes everything unreal and immaterial, it makes people stop thinking clearly, it muddies the waters and pretends everything is up for debate, that there is no history, no concrete science, and no expertise. Add a dash of social media, and you’ve got the modern trans ideology, conveniently built upon the exact same social mores that forced lesbians to live short, violent, unhappy lives, like Nell Pickerel did, and forced women generally to deny their real selves in order to get the bare minimum of freedom.

Bad job, atlasobscura. But congrats, you scored Faux Woke Points with some hipster brocialist somewhere.

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