#but it's also reaffirming our humanity

[soryualeksi]

Talk of child death cw.

[4dbeingguide]

11 tips from a master manifestor.

y’all have been loving my first post and it’s really encouraged me to come back. this time i have 11 tips for you! i would’ve really appreciated a post like this when i was a beginner so i’ve decided to make it for those who may also be starting with their journey. actually it doesn’t matter where you are on this road, this is supposed to help everybody, including master manifestors (yes, sometimes doubts cross our minds, we just know how to deal with them)!

there is a lot of repetition as there are some concepts i want to emphasize on. excuse any grammar errors. let’s get straight to it!

stop giving a fuck about the 3D. that is absolute (as in, don’t check it, don’t wait for anything from it, don’t let it get to you). just stop. i have a post over here that will really help you in doing so (and no, it isn’t me cursing at you while ordering you to stop. it’s me having a discussion with you and listening to your doubts while refuting them and i also back it up with scientific sources).

acknowledge that you already are a master manifestor. you’re already where you need to be. don’t let the illusion that is the 3D tell you otherwise!

if you see a piece of manifestation advice that rubs you the wrong way then simply act as if it’s false and doesn’t apply to your reality. you make the rules.

speaking of rules, make yourself some manifesting rules that dictate that manifesting is effortless and instant for you. don’t settle for less.

keep a success story list (and yes, you can put stuff that you’ve assumed that hasn’t appeared in the 3D since the 4D is the only reality) so that you can use it to reaffirm your belief in the law if you ever doubt it.

never seek approval from the 3D for ANYTHING. it is an ILLUSION. your 4D/mind/assumptions are the OBJECTIVE reality. this also applies to the state of waiting and wanting. why do you want to wait for the approval of an illusion? and what are you wanting when it’s already here?

the 3D is not your enemy and it is impossible for the 3D to reject your manifestation. the bitch is inanimate lmao. have you ever walked in front of a mirror and had it tell you “i’m not gonna reflect right now”? i’m sure the answer is no. the 3D works the same way. it EXISTS to reflect our assumptions. that’s its entire purpose. it is nothing but an illusory perception of our 4D. it actually obeys you down to a T. i was gonna say it’s your pet but pets are actually alive and autonomous, the 3D isn’t. the 3D just an inanimate illusion. your business is in the 4D. that’s where you live.

you don’t need a technique. to manifest, all you have to do is assume you have it or enter the state of having it. techniques simply exist to help you do so (that’s why we affirm/visualize/etc. that we have it) but you can do it directly. that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use them. do what feels most natural to you. do what is the most efficient when it comes to making you fulfilled (not what gives it to you fastest in the 3D. remember, it’s an illusion).

you shouldn’t care if the 3D will give it to you or not. the 3D is an illusion, remember? a simple way to get yourself to put your eyes on the 4D is saying something to the effect of “this 3D/physical world isn’t real/is an illusion, the 4D/mind is the only true reality, i live in the 4D and thus all my affairs are there and not in the 3D and this is what the 4D is saying: (insert manifestation)”. seriously, all your affairs are in the 4D. you’re 4 dimensional.

when doubts persist, reading rants and banging pots and pans might help sometimes but sometimes you just have to sit down with yourself and have an internal dialogue. you’re human (probably 🤔 just in case you’re manifesting otherwise as you read this, and yes it IS possible). hear what your doubts have to say in full (don’t buy it though) and debunk them calmly and civilly.

limits don’t exist. imagination is the only reality. if you can imagine it then it can happen unless you say it can’t.

if you liked this post, make sure to check out my post here!!! in it i elaborate on how to deal with doubts. have an amazing day 🫶

[orshii]

Did I cross the line?

➼Author: orshii

➼Pairing: Kim Hongjoong x female reader

➼Word count: 4 k

➼Summary: On Valentine's Day in Paris, a romantic trip with your boyfriend, takes a painful turn when unresolved feelings about his ex-girlfriend, who was once your best friend, resurface. Despite the love between you, the past threatens to tear you apart. Through heartfelt conversations, you confront your insecurities and reaffirm your commitment, realizing that to move forward, you must leave the past behind.

➼A/N: Well...here I am again with a Hongjoong drabble, and this little something was born because of Billie Eilish's new song. And it was completely inspired by it, so please please, listen to the song and pay attention to the lyrics so you will understand the story more. I just love it, it's such a beautiful song and I can't get it out of my mind...just as well Hongjoong haha...Anyway, I am not sure this is what I wanted, but this happened so enjoy! Byee...--also, sorry for any mistakes :'(... (divider)

Things fall apart, and time breaks your heart, but it also heals your soul, allowing you to feel like a normal human on this chaotic Earth. It's much harder when you're alone, but if you find someone who is always by your side and supports you unconditionally, you become unstoppable. Nothing can come your way when they are next to you and cheering for you on the side to chase your dreams. When you find the mate of your soul, you think nothing can stop you from now on.

Except... sometimes, despite everything, you grow farther apart because of a tiny reason, turning what was once promising into something that couldn’t bloom or burn with passion.

This is the reason why I am crying in a hotel room in Paris, the city of love on Valentine’s Day, with my heart broken into thousands of pieces. How ironic life can be. It's the day of love and I'm in the city of love, yet I never felt more disappointed in love ever. The broken pieces of my heart are cutting me from the inside, I want to scream from the pain, but I have never been quieter in my life, my voice got lost between the sharp pieces of my heart.

Our trip to the city of love started like a cliché straight from a romantic movie. We decided with my boyfriend, Hongjoong, that we were going to travel to Paris for a little break, as we both needed it, we were overwhelmed with work, and we barely saw each other. And Valentine's Day was a perfect excuse for both of us, to celebrate our love, that just started to bloom. Our relationship began six months ago, and it was a maze until we finally understood each other and found our way through the dark, complicated labyrinth of each other's hearts.

We wandered around the city with our hands interlaced, never letting go for even a minute. We felt locked together, forever. Throughout the day we visited a lot of museums and the typical sights of Paris, that being the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower. When the both of us were on top of the Eiffel Tower, the wind was so strong up there, that we could barely see the city down there. The air was chilly, as it was mid-winter. The clouds were gone, and the snow had already melted away, leaving behind only the cold.

I stared at Hongjoong, my hair in my face, giggling as he took pictures of me. The photos came out blurry but full of happiness. The sun that slowly approached its lowest spread an orange blanket over the city, lighting it with all shades of orange. I looked next to me, where Hongjoong was smiling. I saw him in slow-motion, as he was looking down at the orange city, the sun's beams lighting his beautifully shaped face, his jawline sharp, his cheekbones high, his eyes in the shape of a crescent moon as he was smiling. The wind blew very slightly on his brown hair alongside his elegant black clothes.

And his smile... that was why I fell in love with him so deeply that I couldn't escape. His smile was so perfect and wide, full of humanity, with sincerity that immediately caught me off-guard because I didn't believe in the fact, that perfect humans on this Earth existed. But as soon as I saw him, I knew it was just a lie, because with time every human being finds their perfect mate for their soul, no matter if someone sees them as imperfect. For you, they are always going to be perfect.

After coming down from the tower, we wanted to do one last thing: put a padlock on the famous bridge where people place padlocks to symbolize their love, as the saying goes, 'Lasts until forever'. And as it was Valentine's Day and we were in the city of love, to make it cheesier we bought a red padlock to put it on the bridge.

"So did you enjoy yourself today?" Hongjoong asked looking at me with his adoringly beautiful smile, as we were walking towards the bridge.

"This was the happiest day of my life Hongjoong." I looked at him with loving eyes, tears almost appearing in my eyes as I was very overwhelmed by the fact of how much I loved him. "Thank you."

"Come here, my little bun." He pulled me by my hand that was interlaced with his and hugged me strongly I felt like he might break my bones, as we were at the end of the bridge. He pecked the top of my head and slowly separated from me, leaving little distance between us, just to cup my face into his warm hand. Chills ran through my body as I felt his warm hand on my cold and red face, he immediately warmed me up with only one slight touch.

"I love to see you happy." He said his voice a little childish as he was saying it adorably. He tugged my hair behind my air. "I'm happy if you are too."

"You are too cheesy, what happened to you?" I looked at him suspiciously.

He chuckled at that. "You happened; I can't help it." He slowly leaned closer to me and slightly pecked my lips with his. Then he looked at me and smiled like I was the only human being on Earth.

"So, it's my fault?" I whispered onto his lips, that still hovered over mine.

"Yes, it is." His eyes were on my lips, as he whispered the words sweetly.

Then he closed the distance again between our lips and kissed me more passionately, putting his heart into the kiss, giving it to me so I could keep it safely in my imaginary safe made out of unbreakable metal, but sometimes that metal can get infected and it can crack and that hurts. As I kissed him back my lips slowly moving against his, the world was gone around us, and I did the same with my heart, giving it to him, so he could keep my heart wherever he wanted to. I hoped our hearts belonged to the other and no one else.

"Let's put that silly padlock on." He said as we separated from the kiss, caressing my cold cheeks.

I just nodded and took his hand to lead him through the bridge's middle.

"It's nice to be back in here." He said as we were looking around, observing the padlocks people already left there.

"Have you been here before?" I asked him surprised with a frown.

Suddenly his expression changed, as we stopped in the middle of the bridge, people around us walking and smiling, the sky had already gone dark, and only the street lights showed the way.

"Well…yes." He scratched the back of his head, averting my eyes.

"I didn't know, when?" He acted strange all of a sudden and I didn’t know why.

"Last year—with… Hana." He slowly looked up, to see my reaction.

I gulped and my heart started to race quickly as I heard her name. I really wanted to stay calm it wasn't the time to argue again as he knew it was an uncomfortable topic between us.

I nodded barely visible. "I see…" I looked down on my hands. "And did you like—were here?" My voice came out strange, it lost its power as I pointed at the padlocks.

"Y—yes," Hongjoong said noticing as my expression changed very quickly. He stepped closer to me to hold my hands. I just looked down at our hands and then at the padlocks. "But it was in the past and you know it, Y/N. I want to do this with you." He reached his hands towards my face, but before he could touch it, I stopped him.

"Well, I don't want to anymore." My voice came out serious, my face looked hurt and disappointed. I stepped back, putting distance between us.

"C'mon, Y/N. You can't be serious." He stepped closer to me and I stepped back again on that. He scoffed at that. "Why can't you put it all behind you? It was a long time ago."

"Because she's everywhere I go, Hongjoong, anything I do with you has to do something with her." Tears started to well up in my eyes.

"It's not, you just made it up here," He pointed at his temple."…because you can't get over it, Y/N." He seemed upset as his voice got more serious.

I scoffed at that in disbelief. "So, now you think I'm crazy?"

It is very unpredictable how everything can change from heaven to hell.

"No, you are not crazy, but you definitely can't let go of the past and be in the present…with me." Hongjoong said running his fingers through his brown short hair.

"What can I do, when all the time I see her face, everywhere." I lifted my arms helplessly. "In our daily life, in our home…in your eyes." One tear slowly escaped my left eye.

"When will you understand she is nothing to me now?" He stepped closer to me, disappointment showing on his face. "When will you understand you are my everything? That I love you and no one else." His voice got lower, weaker.

"I know that you love me, you don't need to remind me like it's an obligation." I looked at him already feeling so far away from him.

Hongjoong scoffed at that. "What are you talking about?"

"You always sound like you have to assure me you love me." I looked down at the ground, where our shadows melted into each other. I just wanted to hide from him. "I am sure you love me. But…it's just a feeling I can't shake."

"You have no idea what are you talking about. Can't you get that you are my fucking world Y/N?" I felt as he stared at me with deadly eyes, growing more furious.

Stressed, I ran my fingers through my hair, tears streaming down my face. "But you aren't mine," I barely said out loud, knowing he could hear me.

I couldn't see his expression as he stood there in silence for a moment.

"You think so?" he asked, his voice calmer.

I just nodded, unable to look up.

He chuckled and came closer to me, his breath close to my face. "So, let's make it fair, then. Shall we?" His voice was like a threat. Then he grabbed the padlock from my hand and threw it away into the water. I stared at him, my eyes wide in shock. "I wanted to make you happy, to do cheesy things like this. But if you can't understand, let's just stop."

"I never wanted to fight," I mumbled.

"But we always do, Y/N." He lifted his eyebrows as he looked at me, disappointed. "It wasn't like this before."

"What do you mean?" I asked him, confused.

"I mean, when we started, it was nice. We were happy, no arguing. But you kept looking into my past and everything changed." He looked into my eyes, tired of the arguments.

"Because she was always there in the back of my mind." I sniffled and wiped away a tear.

"She isn't now. But you can't see it." He shook his head slightly. 

"Honestly…I don't know if I can be with someone who can't let go of the past…" I snapped my head up at that, his face was nothing but serious without any emotions. My heart started to race more quickly than before.

"Hongjoong…" I stepped closer to him with regret on my face.

"No." Now he was the one who stepped back, and my heart started to crack. "I am tired of this, you have to let go of our past and be present completely, not only with half of your heart." He said those words like it was venom and it flew right into my lungs poisoning it so I couldn't breathe anymore.

"We will talk when you finally manage to do that." He put his hands into his pockets and just passed by me like we suddenly became two strangers, leaving me there on the bridge where we could've locked our love forever, he left me with a heart suddenly broken into millions of pieces.

Did I cross the line?

The thing is Hana was Hongjoong's ex-girlfriend and my best friend.

My best friend and Hongjoong got together three years ago and broke up last summer. And it wasn't particularly because of me, well I played a little part in that as well, but they just always argued about little annoying things and I was the one who reconciled them. I'm not sure when it happened, but the more I was hanging out with my best friend and her boyfriend the more I felt something wasn't right. I started to feel something towards Hongjoong and I knew it wasn’t right so I quickly buried it deep down into my soul, so no one would know it.

I watched them through these years when they were arguing and when they hated each other, but they always made up at the end of the day and everyone was happy.

Not until one day, Hongjoong found out Hana cheated on him. That day was a disaster because the more time I spent with Hongjoong, the closer I grew to him. I considered him a friend and liked him. I could talk about things with him, that I didn’t even tell my best friend. It was hard to take sides, to be honest, it was cruel of my best friend but at the same time she was my best friend and I needed to be by her side. She was crying on my shoulder even though she fucked all of this up. Slowly, Hongjoong walked out of our lives, and it didn't feel right for some reason. Not seeing him every day, not knowing what he was doing, made my heart ache for some reason and I was so confused.

Not until July.

We accidentally ended up at the same event connected to our work and started talking. We talked, but like we just met, like we didn't know each other before like Hana didn't even exist. I felt guilty of course but sometimes people have to be selfish, for their own sake. We had a deep connection with Hongjoong and I didn't want to let it go. I just couldn't.

From then on, we grew closer to each other, and got to know each other. And one night, Hana saw us, of course, I didn't tell her about Hongjoong, that we were talking. And of course, the universe loved us and Hana saw us exactly that summer night when Hongjoong kissed me for the first time. When he kissed me, I felt like I was finally complete, like I found the missing piece of my lost soul. But when I saw Hana's face, my soul immediately burnt into specks of dust.

Until then, all I could see was her face when he saw us, the hatred in her eyes, that I could understand. I haven't see her since then, but she lives in my head rent-free. I hated myself because this was the cruelest thing a best friend could do. But I stayed selfish and chose Hongjoong because he made me happy and made me feel alive.

And now I fucked up everything because I can't get through our past. What happened is happened, but when he touches me all I can think of is how she felt, I always compare myself to her.

As I was standing on the bridge and trying to somehow organize my thoughts, I just started to walk in the city that was full of couples and happy people. The city was alive, restaurants were open, and people were celebrating, and laughing together. Yet, I was there walking past them with my eyes crying out, slowly losing myself in the dark. When I passed by a lucky charm seller, the old lady beckoned me to go there. I frowned as I slowly approached her.

"My daughter, you look sad, did somebody break your heart?" She asked me putting his hands on my shoulders.

I nodded tears appearing in my eyes again. "But… it was my fault…so I deserve it." My voice came out weak.

"No one deserves a broken heart, sweet girl." She slowly wiped off my tears. "These lucky charms will tell you what to do, I am sure." She pointed at the little papers with green trefoils on them.

I just shrugged, I didn't believe in these things, but at least I could make someone happy by buying one. I chose one randomly and paid for it, thanking the lady.

"And don’t forget, sometimes before loving someone else, we have to learn how to love and how to receive it." She smiled at me and let me keep going.

I put the lucky charm in my pocket, not even bothering to read it, and walked forward without any destination. All I could think about was Hongjoong and how much I fucked up. It was a perfect day…why did I have to fuck it up? As I walked next to the river my palm was itching in my pocket so I stopped to read the paper. I slowly opened the decorated paper.

"I fell in love with you because you loved me when I couldn't love myself.

 And then you realize it was all real."

I read the lines with my heart slowly warming up and pumping quicker. I never believed in things like these, but these lines hit me hard in the chest just so I could realize how stupid I was, how stupid I was to think Hongjoong didn't love me. I mentally face-palmed myself and tried to stop myself from jumping straight into the cold river and turned around just to run back to our hotel, hoping Hongjoong was going to be there.

Hongjoong wasn't there and he will never come back. He will never come back, because I made myself believe he had anything to do with Hana and that he always compared me to her. But the truth is I compared myself to her and it made my brain a fool, so I believed every cruel thing it whispered to me.

I collapsed on the bed, hugged myself and here I was, crying my soul out with a broken heart, on Valentine's Day, in the city of love.

Hours or just minutes passed by, and I lost track of time when I heard the door closing. I opened my eyes quickly; I was facing the door to our room laying on my right side. Hongjoong slowly stepped inside and took off his winter coat his eyes on me the whole time. I couldn't tell what was he thinking.

I sat up as he approached me and sat on the bed, just to cup my cried-out face into his, now cold, hands.

He leaned his forehead against mine as he whispered. "Oh, my little bun. You make my heart break, seeing you like this."

Probably I looked like hell, my eyes red, my cheeks puffy, my make-up smashed from crying. 

I slowly held his wrists that cupped my face. "Hongjoong I—" Tears found their way out again; I didn't understand how I hadn't dried out by now. I started to sob.

"I'm sorry, my love, I shouldn't have talked to you like that." He hugged me, his fingers running through my hair, trying to calm me down.

I slowly lifted my head from his chest. "No, you were right, Hongjoong." Words could finally leave my mouth. "I was living in the past, that hurt me, but at the same time healed me…you healed me. I was so broken, but you managed to glue together the pieces of me. But this Hana thing just hunted me and I couldn't run away it’s like she cursed me just so I could feel his revenge." I looked down at my hands sniffing.

Then I looked into his eyes and the mate of my soul looked at me like I was the most vulnerable creature on Earth. And that was the moment I got reassured about everything.

"I'm so sorry for making you feel like it was all your fault when it was just my fucked-up mind. You are my everything Hongjoong, and I couldn't spend even a minute without you in my life. Please, don't leave me…" My tears flew down my cheeks endlessly.

He sighed and slowly reached for my hands, holding them like a treasure. "You are a fool if you think it is an obligation for me to say I love you. I say it because I mean it with all my heart, and to let you know that Hana is in the past you know I never really loved her. Not like I love you. You are my partner in life, my future and I never want to let you go." He wiped my tears away as his eyes watered and a little teardrop escaped his eye. I immediately wiped it away, not wanting to see him cry because of me. Ever.

"I love you so-so much!" I whispered weakly as I cupped his face.

"I love you endlessly, bun." He smiled at me adoringly, his smile that cured everything inside me and his lips on mine that slowly put the broken pieces of my heart into its place, my heart being whole again, in one piece, just so I could give it to him, into his hands to do whatever he wanted to it, because I just belonged to him and he belonged to me.

He kissed me slowly, like never before, his soft lips moving along mine leaving a sweet taste behind. I slowly crawled into his lap, straddling his thighs. His hands found their place on my waist like they belonged there and squeezed it like he never wanted to let me go. Our kiss got more hotter as I parted my lips letting his tongue inside, discovering every hidden place of my mouth, like he wanted to taste every inch of me. My hands crawled into his hair squeezing it as a moan left his mouth. His hands slowly got their way under my clothes, running his fingers up and down my back, like he couldn't get enough of me.

"You are so beautiful, Y/N." He whispered onto my lips between hot kisses. He looked at me like he couldn't believe his eyes. "You are my beautiful girl." His lips traced over mine as he firmly bit my lower lip.

I chuckled at that, as he quickly flipped us over and he hovered above me, supporting himself with his hands on both sides of my head and he just looked at me. I got impatient and quickly lifted my head so I could kiss him, but he pushed me back to the bed and kissed me harshly, my body felt hot, and I felt like I could burn alive.

Everywhere he touched me burned my skin down to my bones. But I didn’t care because I knew he was the love of my life, that one person who was always beside me and supported me no matter what. The past needs to be locked in the past and the present needs to be lived just so I can build a strong future alongside the emotions I feel, alongside Hongjoong, now, on Valentine's Day and in the city of love, Paris.

[miukki960]

I'm gonna make this post before I go in the tag and see ANY God or Diew slander, because for me the conflict this episode not only made sense, but was necessary for their relationship to move forward.

The seed was planted long ago when God first found the picture of Diew and Dr. Asshole, and at first God handled it rationally (as expected of our Green Flag King). But the longer the situation went unresolved, the more doubt and insecurity began to creep in until it all came to a head in this episode, because all God needed was honesty and openness from Diew, but Diew has learned from past conditioning to lock those parts of himself away and only show a surface level of his personality and self.

I found that God's argument with Diew, while definitely escalated by emotion and insecurity, was justified at its core. We've learned throughout this story that God's main love language is Quality Time, and that most often is fulfilled by God genuinely enjoying doing anything and everything with the people he loves, so long as they are having a good time. But his conversation with Dr. Asshole put the idea in his mind that Diew has simply been going with the flow and doing whatever God suggested in order to make him feel good, that he hasn't actually enjoyed their time together. And while we as an audience know that's false, the idea is one of God's worst fears and most devastating nightmares.

But he loves Diew and doesn't want to believe it's true, so he gives him multiple chances to prove him wrong. And when Diew continues to reply with lies and deflection, it unfortunately proves him right. Because while the context is a bit off and there is definitely a misunderstanding at play, at the end of the day Diew isn't being honest and isn't trusting God enough to open up and show him the deeper, more emotional parts of himself. So God comes to the only conclusion he can see, that even if Diew is no longer in love with Dr. Asshole, their love was deeper and more meaningful than what he has with God now.

But don't get me wrong! Even though Diew was choosing the wrong dialog options during his argument with God, he was also justified in choosing to keep his secrets and emotions hidden. What God doesn't know is that Diew HAS opened up before, bared his heart and soul to someone he thought he loved and trusted, and what was he rewarded with? Disinterest, deflection, shame. As someone with major anxieties related to human interaction, you only have to burn him once to teach him to never play with fire again. And Dr. Asshole burned him deeply on multiple occasions.

No amount of kindness and sweetness and love from God was gonna convince him to play with fire again. In fact, it was reaffirming. Much like what we have been seeing with Wan towards Beer, I'm sure Diew sees how good and wonderful God is and is absolutely terrified to fuck it up. But just like Wan, his defense became his biggest downfall.

At the end of the day, rather than focusing on what happened, we should instead focus on why it happened and how the characters are going to grow from it. And we can see that how through the characters actions during the last few minutes of the episode. We see Diew, who's defense is to isolate, actively reaching out to God multiple times in multiple ways, ready to explain and open up and heal. And we see God going through the more nasty, volatile parts of his emotions alone, so he doesn't hurt Diew while he's in the wrong headspace, but also doesn't bottle the bad things to explode later.

I think what gets me the most is that in their very last conversation before the end of the episode, Diew was asking for togetherness and God was asking for space, and they were both upset on many levels, but they were still speaking to each other with love in their tone and words.

[ironunderstands]

My reaction (or rather rebuttal) to this amazing theory by Lalody’s lore; and how I think it exposes a problem with theory making in general

Now disclaimer, I would like to start off by saying that this is not an attack on the creator of this video in the slightest. This is a very well researched and thought out theory and I 100% understand why she came to the conclusions she did, even if admittedly I believe they are a bit of a stretch. I also am not here to debunk anything, lore is not my speciality or something I really care about in general, and admittedly I’m not very well versed in it even if I know the basics.

Rather, this post is going to be discussing this theory from a thematic/charaterization perspective, and why I think it’s wrong because of that- as well as how it exposes problems with theory making in general.

This is going to be mostly a stream of consciousness-style rant, and although I recommend you watch that video before reading this (both because it’s a) very good, and b) obviously relevant to the conversation), I’m going to be speaking very generally about the content in it, so you don’t necessarily have to watch it.

Alright, on with my major problem with this theory: ie, never in a million goddamn years would it make THEMATICALLY make for our dear Veritas Ratio to willingly become an aeon

His whole character is about being human and humanity man

Ratio, in essence, is the most human character in Honkai Star Rail, and I don’t mean that literally, as there’s reason to believe he isn’t.

Rather, him (as well as Aventurine and Acheron) are characters that embody the human spirit/what it means to be human.

I could talk about them at length later, but in Ratio’s case, the story makes a point that despite how remarkable his life and achievements are, he is still at his core, human, mundane, and not unique in the face of the universe- that is what makes him INTERESTING.

He objectively has amazing accomplishments- ones which by far qualify him to be a member of the Genius Society- Lalody mentions it herself (and thank god for that).

However, every step Ratio takes, he reaffirms his humanity and mundanity- LITERALLY

He calls himself a Mundanite constantly- hell he made a whole secret society of them, he believes that any person, fool or genius is capable of living their life to the fullest, and he dedicates his time trying to help them rather than chasing the stars himself. Ratio is very self aware, admitting he’s not good with people and can be rather abrasive, admitting he knows how he comes off to others, but refusing to change despite that because that’s who he is. His opening a chest voiceline has him saying that he accepts the material offer it values- like any man would. Never in Ratio’s life has he distanced himself or put himself above others, and the quest introducing him is called the MUNDANE and the Divine for a reason.

At his core, Ratio is no different from any other person and that’s what makes his objective exceptionality meaningful. He’s a character that smacks you in the face with how even the average person can achieve great things in live- that creativity and intelligence aren’t limited to Geniuses- aren’t limited to those acknowledged by Nous, by the divine.

Hell, that’s something I ripped straight out of his first character story because at his core this is who Ratio IS

He is a rejection of the divine- not an embrace of it

To make Ratio an Aeon would take everything he stands for away, and be a direct spit in the face to how inspiring he is both in universe and for the players.

Making a character whose whole thing is saying “you do not need to be extraordinary to do great things,” and then going “hah psych he’s a god actually and this is unachiveable for normal people, just like every other genius- you know, the people he stands against!” would just suck. It would suck. I don’t have more intelligent words for this other than saying that doing THAT would suck ass.

It’s not that Ratio couldn’t become an Aeon, it’s that he would never WANT to be one. It would be the most tragic thing ever to do to him, and would hurt him in every way possible to do so. Tearing him away from the thing he cares about the most, from what defines him as a person would be worse than killing him off in my opinion, and in universe he would hate that more too.

There’s several reasons why he doesn’t like the Genius Society, and their disconnect from humanity is one of them. Hell, when Screwllum invited him to work together, Ratio instead of centering the project in aeons, chooses to focus on people instead. Screwllum likens them to both ends of the spectrum- with himself and the rest of the Genius’s exploring Divinity, and Ratio Humanity- or rather Mediocrity.

That’s also why me and my Screwllum loving friend believe that in “The Mundane and the Divine,” Ratio is the Mundane and Screwllum the Divine, so to make both of them divine would ruin that dichotomy, and the whole opposites thing he currently has going on with Screwllum, Ruan Mei, and the Genius Society in general.

If he’s an aeon- if he’s divine too, then who is left to be the mundane?

2) Why is he stealing Ruan Mei’s and Acheron’s nachos

If any of our playable characters are going to become an Aeon, it’s her for obvious reasons. From a meta perspective, pulling that same shit twice or robbing Ruan Mei of the plot line she deserves and slapping it onto Ratio is cheap and stupid, especially considering he’s her narrative foil which only again goes to prove that it wouldn’t make sense for him.

As for Acheron, the reason I mention her is because the only Aeon I can actually see Ratio becoming is the Existence- who a) probably already exists b) finding them is her storyline anyways, and if anyone is going to become them, it will be her c) although I absolutely believe Ratio’s personal philosophy is incredibly similar to Acherons, they’d actually have to interact on screen once before it would make sense for that to happen.

Either way, the theory itself is an interesting premise, but there are far better characters to ascribe it to, which leads into my final point.

3) Why the hell would the writers do this?

Just because they can doesn’t mean they should, and from a thematic and character perspective, I have already gone over why if they care to actually do his character justice, they would never ever consider making Ratio an aeon, unless it’s against his will or something.

Which is why I think this video is actually an exemplar of the problem with theory making in all fandoms now a days- ie; people don’t actually stop to consider whether their theories make sense in the story.

And I don’t mean logically. Honestly I’m going to call this the Game Theory Effect because they do it better than anyone- just because something can happen in a story doesn’t mean it should.

The writers could make Ratio an Aeon, they could go “oops it was all a dream” again in Penacony and local astrophysicists could theorize on how I managed to throw a brick at my computer at light speed. They could do literally anything and justify it in the process because HSR is a work of fiction, but that does not mean the story itself would be good.

This is more of a criticism of how people approach storytelling in general, seeing media only for their plots and not for their themes, which is frustrating beyond words, because at least in my opinion, the most interesting parts of stories are their themes. Also, I feel that when debunking theories, people should focus less about the logic behind them, and more about whether they would actually make sense or not to be involved.

Moreover, Lalody’s video raises some very interesting ideas, and it’s caused me to think of a storyline involving similar elements- but in an opposite direction.

What if Ratio was initially Divine- but willingly became Mundane. Maybe it wasn’t willing and he was forced to be this way, but either way, it would make far more sense- and be far more interesting- if we see him reject divinity rather than embracing it.

It’s no secret Ratio’s lore is sort of a black hole at the moment, which is half the reason why so many crazy theories about him exist- we barely know anything about the guy personally. However, I’d liked to see it filled in a way that doesn’t completely demolish his current character, or who he literally is currently, as I rather like Ratio in his present form, and a bait and switch might actually drive me a bit nuts, just saying.

There’s plenty of speculation to be had, especially considering that one Cosmodyssey occurrence that haunts my every waking hour game please explain, but I’d like the hsr community to move away from the “Ratio is super special and extraordinary” direction, because what makes him interesting is the fact that he ISN’T

[jesncin]

Re: the whole Si Spurrier Bi/Pan Johnstantine debacle thing

For context, Spurrier (the writer of the current Hellblazer run) explicitly had John self identify as pansexual in narration despite John being canonically bisexual. The cover of the issue (I believe this was the artist's intention, but can't confirm) also evoked the bi flag colors in its colorscheme. When asked about this on twidder, Spurrier doubled down (paraphrasing: "John shouldn't have any queer label, he's bad representation"), deleted tweets, and just left fans in a mess.

My tldr take: John Constantine is bisexual. Spurrier didn't and doesn't know the difference between bi and pan, mixed them up and spouted respectability nonsense to cover himself. He's an old man who doesn't fyuck with gay people, simply. I don't think he has deep seated hatred for the bi community or anything. He made a mistake (still a bad one) and didn't apologize for it. Shame this is the author spearheading such a prominent queer character.

The long take:

I see a lot of people bringing up modern media that reaffirms John's bisexuality but I believe it's important to look at the historical context.

John Constantine in his original Vertigo Hellblazer run was an inherently counter-culture character. A working class guy growing up in the punk scene, aligning himself with queer people, explicitly ACAB, a rebuttal to the classic Superhero tropes, etc. It's only fitting that Constantine's bisexuality was revealed in a similarly counter-culture manner. Under guest writer John Smith (and artist Sean Phillips and colorist Tom Zuiko), John just casually mentions having "the odd boyfriend" in passing narration about his struggles with commitment. This may not seem like a big deal with today's standards, but it's important to recognize that this issue came out in 1992. Hellblazer already had a handful of queer characters at this point and suddenly after years of queer coding, the main character just reveals his bisexuality in passing.

So that's the historical context in our comics world, how about within the canon of Hellblazer? Well, John was born in 1953 in Liverpool, meaning he was a teen in the 60s, formed and toured with Mucous Membrane all over the UK but mostly London during the 70s (as a young man in his 20s). When we cross reference that with what's going on in the UK queer scene at this time, it's no wonder why John is presumed to be bisexual.

[From Stonewall UK]

In the same article, Stonewall mentions that the term "pansexual" became popular in the 90s. While this aligns with when issue #51 reveals Constantine's "odd boyfriend" comment, it's clear that the term "bisexual" would be the term Constantine grew up with during his formative years. While this distinction might seem unnecessary or even arbitrary to some people, these identities do matter in their nuance and historical context. Identities and histories are not interchangeable after all. With all this context in mind, to me, John Constantine will always be bisexual.

To Spurrier's comment on "John Constantine shouldn't have any label anyway, he's bad representation/role model for any identity" (paraphrasing, I know he probably said this in a defensive moment since if he truly believed this then he wouldn't have explicitly had Constantine refer to himself as pansexual in Dead in America #7), I think using respectability in defense of a character as counter-culture as Constantine is a demonstrable example of Missing The Dang Point.

[from Nerdist article written by Jules Greene]

Spurrier, the gays like John Constantine especially in his og Hellblazer run because he wasn't a walking Pride ad. We like that he's a mess. We like that he's working class. We like that he's messed up and painfully human. If you don't understand that about Constantine, then you fundamentally misunderstand why people find him so appealing to begin with.

[magicpotatothoughts]

SVSSS | The absolute GENIUS meanings behind the name Shen Yuan 沈垣

Ok so most of us already know the meaning of SY 'cause it's in the appendix of the official translation books but I was today years old when I realised just how much meaning MXTX embedded into this name. *spoilers ahead*

Level 1 Meta

Official translation of the word Yuan垣 means wall. But not just any wall, a wall that surrounds something else. It would be specifically used to describe city wall 城垣 or garden fence 花垣 would use this character. This is incredibly fitting for Shen Yuan because his whole story arc is his battle between his logical conscience for survival and his compassionate gut instinct to protect LBH, in other words, to surround and to shield LBH from harm. But this wall of protection functioned against Bingqiu psychologically because SY kept on making decisions without talking to LBH and decided a lot of things on his own. SVSSS is a novel about achieving that balance, to allow both partners to take agency and face life side by side.

Level 2 Meta

Normally, surnames don't have any meaning. Shen沈 is largely used as a name for things/people buttttttt it can also mean liquid or to pour. Guess what, Luo Binghe 洛冰河 means Luo frozen river. So it could be interpreted that Shen Yuan's entire job in the novel is to make LBH achieve his final crybaby form by getting the frozen river Luo to melt, to "pour".

Also, SY made himself melt as well in a way, his internalized homophobia potential toxic masculinity as well as his need to maintain a cool composure were also things he needed to overcome. We finally see him cry for real in the 3rd book, right after LBH scolds him out of anger and worry. Our protagonist learns to break his own walls down and show emotionally vulnerable parts of himself to LBH.

Level 3 Meta

Chinese characters are made up of radicals, meaning more complicated looking characters are made up of simpler characters (radicals) that give clues to their meaning and pronunciation.

Shen沈 is made up of the radicals:

氵 [ shuǐ ] water 💦

冘 [ yín ] can mean to move on OR doubtful of something/someone

The water radical氵💦 occurs in all three characters in Luo Binghe 洛冰河. This can mean that Shen has influence on Luo Binghe's development and overall life. It also reaffirms their compatibility as as couple. I mean let’s be honest, SQQ cries inwardly and LBH cries outwardly, they are both crybabies.

yín冘 perfect describes the base functionality of SY's character; he has a strong survival instinct but is also extremely doubtful of everyone's intentions, especially LBH's.

Yuan垣 is made up of the radicals:

土 [ tǔ ] soil, earth; items made of earth 🌎

亘 [ gèn ] to extend across (dimension/space), through; from 🚀

I find it so fucking funny that MXTX took the tǔ土 soil radical seriously and literally just had SY zombie-himself out of the dirt after 5 years. But it's also really poetic that it once again goes perfectly with LBH's name; the river and earth go hand-in-hand. no wonder LBH asked for Shizun's hand in marriage. 😳😳😳

gèn亘 perfectly describes SY as a transmigrator, someone who travelled across dimension and space. But also SY is really the ultimate sightseer of SVSSS, casually crossing between the human realm and demon realm while also going on road trips with SQH. It's honestly so fucking mint. But I'm here to point out to you how Xin Mo 心魔 LBH's sword (heart demon) is how LBH travels across dimension/space for the majority of the book.

Ultimately, Yuan垣 highlights the importance of finding a home in the people you love. Bingqiu both enjoy that sightseeing lifestyle but the book constantly has important relationship developments, smexy times and domestic Bingqiu set in the Bamboo House. Ultimately, no matter how far you travel, run or chase, you cannot get away from your problems. You need to extend and make effort in understanding and communicating with your SO 🚀 and work on feeling grounded 🌎 in your relationship together.

MXTX you freaking genius I-

[arirovi]

“The Girl Who Loves Smiles” is an evocative and provocative chapter, which “shows” before “tells.”

I think most of the reactions I saw about the chapter reflected that.

From the first moment, the chapter was evoking memories of the plot and the characters in us and with great ease. We all wanted it to be about Ochako, because the title alluded to her and consequently, also to Toga, and it was (but not in the way i'd expected).

On a personal level, I was hoping for a more direct and concrete resolution on them. I wanted to know if Toga is still alive or not. Find out if Ochako knows anything about her current state and how she is facing the end of her own battle.

Would the chapter present a final confrontation between the two?

Looking back, I think expectations played tricks on me again, but that's because, as a human being, I look for patterns everywhere. The pace of resolution of the previous two chapters had been just what I expected from this last one: a direct and concrete resolution, both for Todoroki facing Touya with his family, and for Izuku facing Spinner.

The change of narrative pace in this chapter, I think, affected many of us quite drastically and I have the feeling that this abrupt and unexpected change was put there with the intention of provoking us, but not in the sense of making us anxious (for the idea that there is not enough time to tie up all the loose ends), nor addressing the typical revenge speech of those who like a certain ship (we all know which one).

I think it was intended to evoke Ochako's motivation as a hero and provoke a real emotional connection with her in her process to endure that weight (at this particular moment).

The first time the chapter shows us Ochako, she is literally and figuratively silent (her mouth is covered), as they talk about Shoto, Kacchan, and Izuku's central role in the war. Of course, she was also a part of it, so why isn't she also included for her merits? And so, the first hint that someone is feeling pain appears in the form of an sfx, which is evocative of his own battle with Toga. The way of showing this, in white, invites us to remember what she did almost by force (since there are no flash backs), rather than focusing on the present plot.

Then she disappears from the scene for a moment and what are we supposed to do with these seemingly inconsequential pages? While I was glad to see how things improved on a social level; how Kacchan, Edgeshot, and the rest were inching forward, I was still bothered by why now?, when there's a bigger part about Ochako to address? Then Ochako returns to being the focal point and her first words are in response to what a civilian said, reaffirming what we already know: that everything is going better. However, just as she appears falsely cheerful, we as readers are forced to place our attention on these distractions instead of the pain (like Ochako did to).

It's frustrating and it's painful that everything seems to move so fast but in slow motion at the same time, that everything feels so superficial and mundane, when there is something more important that should be happening under the surface. And why does everyone seem so optimistic so quickly? Where is the feeling of the aftermath of something so terrible? The guilt? The trauma? The emotional resolution?

The thing is, we've been provoked to feel like Ochako all along. The narrative, so far, shows us what Ochako wants to see, the day-to-day life that Ochako struggles to experience, because it's what she supposes she should do and feel about it no matter what (and us with her).

And then, Tsuyu comes to tell us other thing that we were already shown before: Ochako is not responding, but not only to the most obvious thing, the text message, but to her surroundings and not to her friends either.

Now is when the “telling” becomes the center of everything: Ochako directly explains to us why she was not included in the group of heroes, her companions, who gained admirers (there were no recordings). She tells us, like an echo while reaffirming it to herself, that everything is improving, that the city looks like before, that it is time to be optimistic and positive because the war is over. She reminds us that he has been hiding his own pain because she loves seeing people smile, since that is a sign that they are happy moving forward.

However, even though she is saying it, she does not remember any smile of her classmates in particular (the words are on a black background) and instead, the only smile she remembers is Toga's, but whose image is tinged with the pain of his battle scar (which at the same time represents special, intimate connection with her).

In a few pages, all the evocation and provocation increase in a crescendo until reaching the point of no return. Ochako can no longer suppress the truth and neither can we: that the one smile she apparently couldn't save weighs more on her than all the other smiles she can see day after day.

It is a very intimate chapter, which seeks to incite a feeling of empathy and vulnerability with the character.

I don't know about you, but I felt very vulnerable too while watching her break down.

With this slow and almost artificial, forced rhythm, I felt that she invited me to live this repressed pain with her and to hope that, somehow, there is a kinder way out that does justice to everything she is having to endure.

And yeah, i hope the next chapter goes well.

[codenamesazanka]

it's quite masterful how we get the 'Deku's a murderer and Society has learned no lesson' out of the way in the first half so the lasting impression is that Spinner is a hypocritical fanatical criminal. Well, I guess he always has been! That's true. But it's also true that Society is crap here too - the man saying he's glad Shigaraki has been 'exterminated', THE OLD LADY, and Heroes already looking for the next threat. It's the framing that's key, then.

We go from Spinner saying Shigaraki laughed about destruction -> the horizon at Deika -> Shigaraki was his spokesperson -> Shigaraki gave him a dream and purpose -> Shigaraki was his Hero -> Shigaraki was a gamer -> Shigaraki was his first friend.

Starting off with Shigaraki the Villain, and turning into Shigaraki the Hero, then Shigaraki the Person. Plus we have Spinner's crying peaking at the 'friend' bit, so both he and Shigaraki are humanized as the outside world via TV documentary resolutely decides to deny Shigaraki this.

But then Deku comes to reaffirm that friendship - And here is where things starts to shift. Shigaraki also thought of Spinner as a friend... so why couldn't Spinner have done something to save him? If they were friends, Spinner should've helped. Why didn't Spinner act? And thus the blame is part Spinner's for being an unthinking coward, for not being strong enough to resist the momentum.

(There is truth to this too, but I have to wonder - what could he have done? He's in a cave with AFO, getting his own feelings taken advantage of, utterly confused by the changes Shigaraki's going through; while Heroes have shown they're not an option of help - how could they, when they killed Twice and wants to kill Shigaraki, and at the moment is building something called SKY COFFIN DEATH ARENA. Here is Spinner with such limited options, but he should've, could've saved Shigaraki, somehow.)

While Spinner is stewing in this guilt, the TV document gives its last line: "Right now, a second or third Shigaraki Tomura or AFO could be holding their breath/waiting to strike. We must turn our attention to the next threat." We're talking threats again, we talking being on guard for the next big Villain, we're talking as if Shigaraki Tomura and AFO just happens - there's no idea of prevention, the Villain already has it in their mind to attack and is just waiting, like a predator stalking a prey... Setting the tone for Spinner's next scene: he'll be writing a book that will immortalize Shigaraki and the League, and it'll be about how they lived to destroy.

(Like, this makes sense. Of course Spinner's book will be about that destruction, because that destruction is an important element to the friendship: Shigaraki was the first person to become Spinner's friend, to reach through the miasma of oppression and hopelessness, to offer to destroy injustice and give him a purpose and a dream. But the very thing that rightfully endeared Shigaraki to Spinner is what the outside world is currently condemning, and uncaring to understand the reason. This book will only feed into the world's current perceptions. It will not help at all.)

So after reaching that emotional peak, we then descend: Spinner thinks he couldn't save his Hero → documentary line about watching out for the next threat -> Spinner saying he'll write a book that will remind the world Shigaraki and the League lived to destroy -> Spinner reacting angrily at Deku's simple suggestion of making the book a comic (can't he see it's actually encouragement? can't he see it's lighthearted?) -> Spinner's last line being him hypocritically calling the Hero kid who defeated him an anti-heteromorph insult.

And meanwhile, if you can even still remember Deku not denying he's a murderer, Deku's last line here is that he won't forget Shigaraki for the rest of his life. Compassionate. Determined. Noble. (That he showed the world the killing of Shigaraki Tomura so that people can say "I’m so glad he was exterminated!"? That's distant from him, literally - that was the first page, and this is the 11th page.)

This flow is utterly fascinating. It's really is.

[taviamoth]

🟢 Senior Hamas leader Osama Hamdan at Hamas’ press conference today, March 5th 2024:

—

We are at the doors of the blessed month of Ramadan, and with this Nazi aggression against our people continuing for the 151st day, despite the scale of killing, massacres, and genocide, and the pain of displacement, hunger, and thirst, this Nazi enemy has not achieved any of its aggressive goals.

The image of the erosion of the defeated entity and its war pillars internally is increasingly deteriorating and growing, while the image of our people's steadfastness, patience, strength, and the bravery of our resistance is firm, rooted, and determined to be victorious.

We send our greetings, pride, and honor to our people in the Gaza Strip, who continue their legendary epic of patience and sacrifice. We also send peace and greetings to the victorious Al-Qassam Brigades, the fighting Saraya Al-Quds, and the men of the Palestinian resistance on the land of Gaza of glory, who continue with all strength, capability, will, and determination to forge a legacy of glory for our people and our nation.

The movement has worked seriously and persistently to reach an agreement to stop the aggression, intensify the entry of aid and relief, and return our people to the areas they were displaced from, especially in the north, and for the complete withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip.

Over the past two days, the movement's vision and stance on the proposal presented to us by our Egyptian and Qatari mediator brothers at the end of last week have been submitted. We affirmed our conditions for a ceasefire, complete withdrawal from the Strip, return of the displaced to their areas, especially to the north, and provision of adequate aid, relief, and reconstruction.

We dealt with the proposals of our brothers in Egypt and Qatar with a high spirit of positivity and flexibility at all stages of the negotiations. However, Netanyahu continues to evade and shirk his responsibilities before his public, for personal political calculations, revealing his fear and terror of his political future and the post-war stage.

We reaffirm that we will not allow the negotiation process to be open-ended with the continuation of the aggression and the war of starvation against our people, nor to serve as a cover for the continuation of more crimes against unarmed civilians, or to buy time to proceed with the genocide against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

Any prisoner exchange will not take place before securing all the conditions of the resistance, and negotiations will not continue without a prospect.

Any flexibility shown by the movement in the negotiation process to stop the zionist aggression, out of concern for our people's blood and their great sacrifices, is matched by a readiness and determination to continue all forms of struggle and resistance, in defense of our people, our land, our constants, and our sanctities, at the heart of which are Al-Quds and the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.

On the 151st day, the zionist war machine, supported by the U.S. administration, has not stopped committing genocide, ethnic cleansing, displacement, starvation, dehydration, and horrific massacres against unarmed civilians and innocents in the Gaza Strip.

All the slogans of humanity, freedom, and justice, which the U.S. administration, who is a partner with this occupation in its crimes and aggression against our people, sings about, have fallen. It has exposed all the hesitant and negligent positions on breaking the unjust siege on the Gaza Strip, relieving its people, healing their wounds, supporting their steadfastness, and putting an end to this continuous zionist crime and aggression.

The tragic situation experienced by the citizens and displaced people in all governorates of the Gaza Strip remains catastrophic and cannot be described or summarized in words.

Disease, hunger, and thirst are now claiming the lives of thousands of our people in the Gaza Strip daily, especially among children, women, and the elderly, as all hospitals are out of service, and sufficient relief and medical supplies fail to reach them.

We confirm to the zionists and the United States that what they failed to impose on the battlefield will not be taken through political machinations, no matter the forms of trickery and pressure they employ. This resistance will remain faithful to the sacrifices, keen on accumulating its outcomes and building upon them until the occupation is defeated.

The war of starvation waged by the occupation for more than five months, especially against civilians in the Gaza and Northern governorates, has forced citizens seeking sustenance for their children to risk their lives and fall into the killing traps set by the fascist occupation.

The complete cutoff of water in the Gaza and Northern governorates increases the suffering of citizens from thirst, due to the unavailability of drinking water and the lack of even non-potable water, due to the occupation's continuous bombing of wells and water stations, and the absence of fuel needed for water extraction.

The continuation of the occupation's war of starvation against our people, targeting aid convoys, and committing massacres against the citizens gathered around them, is a clear insistence by this criminal entity to proceed with the war of genocide and ethnic cleansing, a blatant challenge and disregard for all international laws and humanitarian norms, and for the resolutions of the International Court of Justice.

The occupation at the Al-Nablusi roundabout, which claimed 118 martyrs and hundreds of wounded, who gathered at dawn in anticipation of securing sustenance for hungry children, only to be shot down by the bullets and shells of the Nazi occupation army's vehicles, in a savage crime that is shamefully horrific, followed by a brazen zionist narrative of what happened, disclaiming the crime with utmost arrogance and disdain.

The statement issued by the United Nations Security Council, which was subjected to American pressures and amendments, to finally express "concern" about Al-Nablusi massacre, does not rise up to the level of the crime, and proves once again the impotence that has struck the most important tool of international security in the face of the genocide against our people in the Gaza Strip.

The aid that has been airdropped from several countries is appreciated, but it only meets a tiny fraction of the needs of the people amid the catastrophe in Gaza.

We call on all countries and governments that support the rights of our people and their just cause to find more effective ways to deliver aid, emphasizing the need to open the crossings for its entry by land, to ensure its safe and orderly arrival to its beneficiaries, and to maintain the dignity of Palestinian citizens, with a focus on delivering it to the north where famine is worsening.

The U.S. administration and President Biden personally remain a full partner with the zionist occupation in the genocide our people in the Gaza Strip are subjected to, bearing political, legal, moral, and humanitarian responsibility for the outcomes and repercussions of this aggression. Dropping some relief aid will not cleanse their image stained with the blood of our people.

We say to Biden and the U.S. administration: The most important thing is to stop supplying the Nazi zionist army with weapons, shells, and missiles that rain down on our unarmed people..and that you stop raising your hands to use your veto in the face of the entire world...to give the occupation cover to continue the genocidal crimes against our people.

We call on our Arab and Islamic countries to take practical and serious action to stop the genocide our people are subjected to, and to work seriously on the immediate implementation of the decision of the Arab Islamic summit on November 11 of last year, which emphasized breaking the zionist siege.

We call on the peoples of our Arab and Islamic nation to continue all forms of solidarity, support, and backing for the Palestinian people and our people in the Gaza Strip, and to continue to go out in wide public activities and demonstrations condemning the crimes of the occupation and its aggression, and pressuring governments to take effective and strong positions against the entity.

We renew the call to the peoples of our nation through which the food convoys to the zionist entity pass, to immediately act to prevent their passage, as the minimal form of solidarity with Gaza is to make the criminal realize the dire consequences of his siege on our people.

We call on the international community to effectively press for the full opening of the crossings, end the siege, and allow the entry of aid convoys in sufficient quantities to all areas of the Gaza Strip, especially to Gaza and North Gaza governorates, ensuring these aids reach our besieged people and end their humanitarian suffering.

We demand the activation of the role of international relief institutions, especially UNRWA, to facilitate and organize the entry and distribution of aid, in a way that preserves the dignity of our people.

We call on all governments and institutions in our Arab Islamic nation to use the blessed month of Ramadan as an opportunity to seriously work and press by all means to establish land, sea, and air bridges, and introduce relief aid and field hospitals to all areas of the Gaza Strip, to prevent the continuation of the war of starvation and genocide against more than two million Palestinians.

During the month of Ramadan, we call for intensifying all forms of financial, moral, humanitarian, and charitable support to heal the wounds of our people in the Gaza Strip, support families, the sick, and the wounded, and adopt charitable projects that support their steadfastness in the face of zionist aggression.

We call on all Arab Islamic governments and institutions during the month of Ramadan to work towards partnering in supporting the resistance in Gaza, just as the resistance and fighters in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq are doing.

[via RNN]

[kp777]

By Olivia Rosane

Common Dreams

Aug. 13, 2024

"You supported sending more U.S.-made bombs being used to commit war crimes... How can you say you are for respecting international human rights laws?" Tlaib asked.

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib had harsh words for Secretary of State Antony Blinken as he attempted to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions while enabling what many experts consider to be Israel's genocide in Gaza.

"The United States reaffirms our steadfast commitment to respecting international humanitarian law and mitigating suffering in armed conflict," Blinken wrote on social media Monday. "We call on others to do the same."

Tlaib responded early Tuesday, "Is this a joke?"

"You supported sending more U.S.-made bombs being used to commit war crimes," Tlaib continued. "The government of Israel bombed hospitals, schools, and tents full of displaced Palestinians. How can you say you are for respecting international human rights laws?"

Tlaib also shared a link to an Amnesty International USA report from April finding that U.S. weapons sent to Israel had been used in violation of both international and U.S. law and calling for an "immediate suspension" of weapons transfers to the country.

The U.S. is Israel's leading arms supplier, providing it with 69% of its weapons imports between 2019 and 2023. This has continued in the wake of Israel's war on Gaza, which began on October 7, 2023 in response to Hamas' deadly attack on southern Israel.

The Geneva Conventions of 1949 enshrine protections for vulnerable populations during armed conflict, including wounded soldiers and first responders, prisoners of war, and civilians. They include prohibitions on torture and the targeting of hospitals, and mandate that occupying powers provide food and medical supplies to civilian populations. Despite this, Israel has made it so difficult to get supplies into Gaza that famine has spread across the territory. Reports emerged last week that Palestinians in Israeli custody were subjected to systematic abuse, including rape. And Israel has routinely used U.S. weapons to target civilian areas and infrastructure in Gaza.

"The rest of the world has spent the last 10 months defending international humanitarian law from us."

Days before Blinken's remarks commemorating the conventions, the Biden administration approved $3.5 billion in new military funds to Israel, as well as new weapons shipments. Hours later, Israel reportedly used U.S.-made weapons to target the al-Tabin school in Gaza, killing around 100 people, including at least 11 children.

"Few people have done more to make the Geneva Conventions a dead letter," author Hari Kunzru wrote in response to Blinken's 75th anniversary commemoration message.

Beyond Gaza, the U.S. under President Joe Biden has also refused to state whether or not the Fourth Geneva Convention protecting civilians in armed conflict and occupied territories applies to Israeli treatment of Palestinians in the West Bank. In particular, it has not acknowledged that the convention would prohibit Israeli settlements in the territory altogether.

Tlaib and Kunzru were not the only people to criticize Blinken for his statement.

"Irony is dead," wrote human rights lawyer Mai El-Sadany. "If the U.S. cared anything for the Geneva Conventions, it would not be choosing active complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity every day for the last 10 months."

Rutgers Law professor Adil Haque observed, "The rest of the world has spent the last 10 months defending international humanitarian law from us."

Qasim Rashid, also a human rights lawyer, said, "An actual commitment to respecting international humanitarian law would mean you stop funding [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu as he commits genocide of Palestinians."

Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project policy director Josh Ruebner responded to a separate message that Blinken had posted on the State Department website.

"Nope, Secretary Blinken," Ruebner wrote on social media. "You don't get to praise the Geneva Conventions when you're rushing weapons to Israel to enable it to violate almost every single clause in the convention as it continues to inflict genocidal violence against Palestinians in Gaza."

[angel-of-the-moons]

V .......

Vampire! Anselm x Reader thots™ up in this bitch

Some NSFW shit under the cut, enjoy the random brainrot I just got

Big mansion with heavily tinted windows, private jets with black out curtains, yachts they ride to see meteor showers together.

They have those big extravagant parties, nobody thinks anything of it. All they're doing is picking through their "associates" to see who is the one they need the least and pull them to a dark corner and drink their fill..... Or they bring in somebody who siphoned funds into their own accounts from their estate.... Makes a spectacle of draining him dry as a warning--

V!Anselm totally gets a hard on when he sees you covered in blood I don't make the rules

Even if y'all have been together for centuries or one year, the man is still a horny little shithead for you, and being alive for so long has definitely allowed his kink list to be exponentially longer than most since being exposed to the Internet.

Sometimes during those public feedings of the stupid little fuck-ups who steal from him, Anselm will ravage the shit outta you in the middle of the party (unless you're not into it, that is, you are his Queen of The Night and he would never disrespect you and make you uncomfortable, the man would rip out his own fangs, first)

Really likes it when you decide to seduce™ him. Pour a glass of wine/blood down your body and he will be on his knees to lap it all up.

Would also un-ironically dress as Dracula for Halloween-themed parties/balls.

"What? It's thanks to Bram Stoker so many people now only believe us to be pure fiction, giving us leeway to exist in the public eye. Why not honor his character? What? Yes, yes, I know he was based on Vlad Țepeș, I was there--"

"Believe it or not, I think I have a cousin who is descended from the real count... I should invite them to one of our parties."

"Why am I not surprised?"

Would totally shoot glares at you if you make him to the "Bleh bleh bleh" thing from Hotel Transylvania, but would do it just to make you laugh. Your voice is like the most addicting thing he could ever have as an immortal.

Despite being an immortal vampire, he has those scars from an assassination attempt; exposing him to the sun and permanently damaging him.

If anything, surviving the sun only served to empower his image more. A powerful man who survived the dreaded sunlight; came out scarred and killed his would-be assassins himself.

V!Anselm will occasionally hold his arm under a beam of sunlight to intimidate those in his business meetings.

He'd feel bad about it later, however, but only in private with you once you expressed your concern as you let him feed from you to replenish his strength. You always do that when he goes "overboard" as you put it; the closeness and intimacy of letting him feed from you instead of a blood bag or some useless employee helped soothe and reassure you that he was all right.

And speaking of feeding from you... It almost always winds up with him inside of you or vice versa in some way... Feeding from one another is one of the most intimate acts a loving couple could do; drinking each other's essence just reaffirms the bonds between you.

And if you guys have a little brood? Oh, the man is unstoppable.

If any children you have are half-vampire because you haven't been turned yet? If they're unharmed by the sun? A testament to the Vogelweide name; his lineage will live on no matter what.

However, if you're still human, Anselm will insist on turning you. Especially when he discovered that someone tried to wound him by attempting to slip something like poison into one of your meals. (Vampires have better senses, Anselm could smell the tainted food even if you couldn't. You never did find out exactly what happened to that guy...)

[rainroses45]

A Beating Heart

ཐིཋྀ⋆description: To love a spirit is to love everything but life itself, so when dean falls in love with you he falls into your casket (inspired by corpse bride) Dean x f.reader

ཐིཋྀ⋆a/n: guys i think im in love with dean also sam BUT DEAAN..anywho my english professor bailed so i wrote this out of ze boredom hope you enjoy (NOT EDITED)

ཐིཋྀ⋆song inspired: tequila and whiskey and Suffocation

ཐིཋྀ⋆warnings: umm death mention, skeleton, all that death and spirit stuff

Like any unloved thing, i don’t know if I’m real without a sinners touch. I don’t believe he would have seen me as one to love but rather one to tear apart.

My heart may not beat but I still feel it ache for his words. His simple words of “I do,” could calm the spirits around me and see his light.

His brother didn’t understand, the twisted relationship we had. He saw me as a another hunt. I was not his love. I want not to be his wife. I was a translucent window that glimmered under the pomegranates reflection. One. Two. Three. He was mine.

“Why do you look so sad, my dear?” His voice rang through the grove. The gentle wisps of the wind blowed my veil over my face.

“The night is still young Dean, you should return back to your brother.” I whispered. My face was still hidden from his view, but he could still see my eyes shimmer in the moonlight. A liquid so far fetch that it stained my cheeks like glitter.

The ring felt heavy on my finger. It felt like a chain that only I could break - yet he is the one with the key. A pity truly, if only I would have left and never returned to this corrupted world.

“My love, what do you speak about?” He walked over to me, getting down on one knee - a sight i wish to never see again- and brushed the veil over my head.

My eyes could not lie. What about us? What about all the broken happy ever afters? What about our love? I was a spirit. He was a human. I could not live for him and he could not die for me.

“We can’t marry.” The words sound strong yet my bones shake under the truth. “You must burn my body and forget about me.”

“No..no,” he looks at me with disbelief. “I refuse to believe you wish for me to rid you of this world…of this love…of this marriage.”

“It is true my- it is true Dean,” I corrected myself, whole heartily believing this was for the best.

“Look me in the eyes and tell me the truth Y/n,” he grabbed my chin gently raising it to meet his eyes. Oh how I learned every shades of color his eyes presented, when I perish this world I hope to be wrapped under his gaze and nothing more than a hint of hazel to haunt me.

“You know I would haunt this plains with my weeping calls of love for you, but I cannot trap you under the same curse I have endured all these years.” I place my shaking hand on his cheek. His warm skin and the cold breeze felt the same. It was only the emotion that changed, after all I was dead.

“I will die with you,” he stands up abruptly. “I will hang myself where the very man left you and declare my heart as yours-“

“NO!” I reach forward grabbing his hand before he left. “You mustn’t kill yourself over me.”

“That is the only way we can be together,” Dean smiles as he holds both my hands in his. “I’m willing to die for you, and you are willing to do the same for me.”

I shake my head as tears begin to stain my cheeks, “no, I will die for my sake of being free and to give you the chance of love.” He looks at me confused. “Don’t you understand Dean, I’m hurting more here!” I yell, “trapped in this limbo of needing true love and a stupid ring to fulfill this curse, but it’s never enough…it’s never enough.” I whispered my last statement as I look down at my hands. The ring was leaving small burn marks on my hand, little signs of the destruction it will cause.

“I won’t burn your body.” He reaffirms, “I’m not destroying the woman I love, the woman I would give my own life for.”

“Then you leave me no choice.” My eyes began to darken their once ghostly white color turned black. Crows escaped the woods with a heeding call to death. The earth awoken at the call of its roots, simmering in the internal flame of hell.

“Don’t do this Y/n,” he tried to walk towards me but was quickly pushed back with an invisible force. “Sweetheart please, you can’t do this.” He grunted trying to break free.

“If I touch a burning candle I can feel no pain,” silent whispers begin to chant as the world began to spin. “In the ice or in the sun, it’s all the same.”

“What are you doing?!” Dean yelled as a circled flame appeared in the middle of the forest.

“Yet I feel my heart is aching; thou it doesn’t beat, it’s breaking,” the crisp voices began to sing louder as the wind brushed my hair from my face.

“Doing something I should have done before,” I cry out to him as I push myself into the fire. “I’m sorry.” I say, a casket began to rise from the ground, a crack in the land of salty seas pooled beneath my feet.

“And the pain here that I feel, try and tell me it’s not real.” The voices echoed through Dean’s head, the sound of the screaming voices scattered his thoughts.

The casket opened revealing a skeleton wearing a tattered wedding dress. Each end of the dress began to burn at the salty taste of my tears. I was left to die, enslaved by my lonely husband, and murdered by the end of the nights howls.

“Please Y/n don’t do this, I beg you please.” He tried pulling away, his body pressed against an oak tree. “I need you.” He didn’t know that his tears fueled the flames, fueled the chanting of within the graveyard of Romeos and Juliets.

I smiled kindly at him as tears blinded my view. Finally, without another thought I said the finale line, “I know that I am dead; yet it seems that I still have some tears to shed.”

And with that a light blinded dean, and the force that once trapped him, faded away with the fire. He ran towards where I once stood and saw nothing but flutters of blue butterflies.

I was gone. I was free. I was loved. As pieces of me left with the lady of the night. A ring stayed there, with the words I wish I could have said.

I love you.

[queerly-autistic]

The idea that part of the reason Our Flag Means Death was cancelled is because it wasn't an awards contender is not only bullshit (it's already been nominated for several, including a prestigious Peabody Award, and Max continues to run a FYC for the show as we speak), but it's also extremely damaging because it hinges the survival of queer stories (and stories that centre other underrepresented groups) on them being exceptional. NEWSFLASH: most tv shows don't get nominated for or win awards! That's why awards are such a big thing - it singles you out as the best of the best. If only Emmy-nominated shows get to be safe from cancellation, then say goodbye to 99.99% of shows. But we're not saying goodbye to 99.99% of shows, are we? And that's because this is an impossible standard that is overwhelmingly (and unfairly) applied to shows like Our Flag Means Death or Rap Sh!t or A League Of Their Own - shows that centre stories that don't fall into safe white cisheteronormative standards.

We're right back to reaffirming that old idea: that we have to be twice as good as our non-marginalised counterparts to get half the recognition. It's damaging because we as queer people deserve to have meh, entirely mid, heck, even shit, media that features our stories. There are hundreds, no, thousands, of entirely mediocre stories out there for white cisallohet abled people that get recommissioned season after season, despite never even coming close to award nominations or critical and audience acclaim, and yet they'll cut down extremely popular, critically acclaimed shows centring marginalised stories and then go 'we had to cancel them, they weren't awards contenders'.

I personally think Our Flag Means Death is awards-worthy (and it has been nominated for awards), but y'know what? Even if it wasn't, we're allowed to have a little gay pirate romcom that doesn't win awards!

I'm fucking tired of having to be exceptional. It's exhausting. You set us an impossible bar, and then, when we get close to reaching it, you go 'oopsie daisy' and kick it even higher up. We can never, ever be good enough. And them using this rationalisation as a reason for cancelling shows like Our Flag Means Death just serves to reinforce this endless game of exceptionalism that we have to play in order to earn the scraps of humanity they're willing to give us.

[talonabraxas]

Daily Adorations

It is important for a magician to feel a link with the divine source of the universe every single day. In our modern society, human beings can easily become detached from that which is spiritual. In order to reaffirm our awareness of ourselves as beings who are a part of a greater Divine Self, it is important to make a ritual gesture confirming a link between the Eternal and ourselves. This Eternal Self is readily symbolized by the luminary of sol, the sun; the symbol of both Light and Life on Earth. (Self Initiation into the Golden Dawn Tradition, C. Cicero, T. S. Cicero)

LIBER RESH VEL HELIOS

Daily Adorations by Aleister Crowley Greet the Sun at dawn (or upon rising), facing East.

Say in a loud voice:

Hail unto Thee who art Ra in Thy rising, Even unto Thee who art Ra in Thy strength, Who travellest over the Heavens in Thy Bark At the Uprising of the Sun. Tahuti sandeth in His splendour at the prow And Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm. Hail unto Thee from the Abodes of Night!

Also at Noon, greet the Sun, facing South.

Say in a loud voice:

Hail unto Thee who art Ahathoor in Thy triumphing, even unto Thee who art Ahathoor in Thy beauty, who travellest over the heavens in thy bark at the Mid-course of the Sun. Tahuti standeth in His splendour at the prow, and Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm. Hail unto Thee from the Abodes of Morning!

Also, at Sunset, greet the Sun, facing West.

Say in a loud voice:

Hail unto Thee who art Tum in Thy setting, even unto Thee who art Tum in Thy joy, who travellest over the Heavens in Thy bark at the Down-going of the Sun. Tahuti standeth in His splendour at the prow, and Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm. Hail unto Thee from the Abodes of Day!

Lastly, at Midnight (or when going to bed), greet the Sun, facing North. Say in a loud voice:

Hail unto thee who art Khephra in Thy hiding, even unto Thee who art Khephra in Thy silence, who travellest over the heavens in Thy bark at the Midnight Hour of the Sun. Tahuti standeth in His splendour at the prow, and Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm. Hail unto Thee from the Abodes of Evening!

It is important to give your grade sign (or Sign of the Enterer) before or during each adoration and to give the Sign or Silence, along with a stamp of your foot, after each adoration.

[matan4il]

Daily update post:

I have to start this one with the sad news that the hero who saved others by stopping the terrorist yesterday, despite being stabbed in several places (including in the neck), has passed away. His name was Uri Moyal, he was 51 years old, he leaves behind a wife and three kids. Yesterday, the number of wounded was still not fully clear, today it's confirmed that in addition to Uri, the terrorist managed to injure 2 more people. In the pic below you can see Uri holding up a lifetime achievement award. At his funeral today, his daughter Sapir mourned him: "Thank you for being a dad, who was also a teacher for life. There is no one who knew you and didn't fall in love with you."

The German press has reported (so far I've only managed to find this English source) that this week, the antisemitic, genocidal slogan "From the river to the sea" has been found painted in Arabic on the site of the 1972 kidnapping and massacre of 11 Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists. I'll point out that recently, the grandson of one of the murdered athletes was attacked (he had several bones in his face broken) in Berlin by an Arab anti-Israel activist.

A terrorist attack was prevented from happening, when two Palestinians, carrying a big knife and a sword, were arrested on their way to a Jewish community in the middle of the night. They're currently being questioned.

After Canada and Sweden, now Australia has also announced that it will renew its funding of UNRWA. I may sound like a broken record, but this is morally broken. They KNOW that UN agency is complicit in countless crimes of helping anti-Jewish hate and violence, the IDF evidence uncovered thanks to the war are just the tip of the iceberg when we're actually talking about decades of complicity, and resuming the funding without any changes, without even an investigation into this being completed, means these countries don't even care about looking as if they care about Jewish and Israeli lives. It's beyond ccontemptible. So. Canada, Sweden and now Australia, whenever these countries' heads tell you that they care about human rights, know that this includes, "but not for Jews."

And because I mentioned the long, long complicity of UNRWA (and many in charge of or dealing with it), here's the CEO of the NGO UN Watch explaining it better than most can, because they have been working for years on calling attention to the wrongdoing of UNRWA:

There's this common lie spread by the anti-Israel crowd, that everything was just peachy between Jews and Muslim in the Middle East, until Zionism came along. This is a blatant erasure of repeated discrimination, persecution, forced conversions, expulsions and massacres perpetrated against Jews living in Muslim majority countries for centuries. The ethnic cleansing of the entire Middle East of Jews (other than in Israel) is only the climax of that long history of antisemitism under Muslim rule, exactly like the Holocaust is just the climax of the long history of antisemitism under Christian European rule. And yesterday, I came across another reminder.

I was listening to an interview with Rabbi Abraham Cooper, an American rabbi, about the discrimination he had recently suffered during a trip to Saudi Arabia. I'd read the headlines, but hearing him tell it in his own words (in amazing Hebrew, might I add) really drove it home. He was heading a US delegation meant to inspect the state of religious freedom in Saudi Arabia, when he gets a phone call from the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, telling him that the Saudis have laws which must be respected, and which dictate that no one but "the members of our religion" (meaning, Muslims) can walk around publicly displaying signs of their religious identity. In other words, Rabbi Cooper was told to remove his kippah (the head cover religious Jews wear). Rabbi Cooper asked the official on the phone, whether he was sure, and tried arguing against this decision. When the demand was reaffirmed, Rabbi Cooper responded that he wouldn't take off his kippah for the Soviets decades ago, and he wouldn't be taking it off for the Saudis, either. That meant he had to leave, and so the delegation had to end its visit. This isn't a small incident of anti-Jewish discrimination in the 1930's, in an Arab country where no one would even bat an eye at that. This is a Saudi official, speaking to an American Jew, in 2024, during an official visit, meant to check the state of religious freedom in that country, while Saudi Arabia is doing its best to present a more tolerant, modern and progressive image for the world. And this still happened. There is a long tradition of antisemitism in the Middle East, it doesn't simply disappear even when Jews were forced to, and the attempts to deny it with the excuse of "But Zionism!" are antisemitic, too.

This is Hadar Gadol.

He's an Israeli author, a practitioner of alternative medicine, and as a reservist, he serves as a casualty officer (an army official who lets a family know that their loved one was killed in combat, in Israel a casualty officer also continues to work with and support the family after the initial notification, kind of like a social worker appointed by the army). In January, IDF soldier Mark Kononovich was killed. A few weeks ago, as party of taking care of the family, Hadar took Mark's dad Alex on a tour of the last army post where Mark and the friends who died with him had slept. In the middle of that, Hadar got a heart attack. Alex happens to be a doctor, he recognized the signs, administered some first aid, and made sure Hadar would be taken to the hospital to receive the treatment he needed. This is Hadar after being released from the hospital, visiting Alex to thank him (you can also see Mark's younger brother in the pic):

During this visit, Alex told Hadar, "You took our case as very close to you, you felt it like we do, very close to the heart." I have no doubt their bond is gonna be there for years to come. Hadar is actually not the first Israeli casualty officer I've heard of, who collapsed and was in need of hospitalization since Oct 7, just the latest. I think that in a way says something about how acutely Israelis feel the pain of the massacre, whether we personally lost someone or not.

(for all of my updates and ask replies regarding Israel, click here)