#cautionary tales.

[bronzeplates]

The weight of your own actions can get heavy...

[rebeccathenaturalist]

This, by the way, is the opposite of the situation I posted about yesterday, which was a case of misidentification by accident. I don't like the idea of anyone suffering through a serious envenomation (although this seems to be a case of someone who is not an especially nice person), even if they did basically bring it on themselves. But it does highlight a really nasty streak of arrogance toward parts of nature that really deserve extra respect because of the dangers they pose. I am already not enamored of the practice of breeding and selling herps with all the carelessness of a carnival goldfish stand, but the "hey, look what I got!!!" braggadocio shown by some venomous reptile keepers is the end result of an attitude that these animals are just living, breathing collectibles to be traded and shown off.

When we approach the rest of nature with respect instead of commodification, it completely changes the bedrock upon which our interactions with other beings and our shared environment occurs. The good news is that we can change our approach for the better any time--and hopefully before we find ourselves in such dire straits as this guy.

[bethanydelleman]

I had tears pouring down my cheeks while I was driving home this morning because I listened to a podcast about the Radium Girls and how hard they fought to hold their employer to account for poisoning them, even though they knew they would die regardless, because they wanted to protect the workers who came after them. Even though their community called them liars and they were in horrible pain, they fought. And then the host started talking about how the Manhattan Project used knowledge gained from the Radium Girls to protect their workers and how the ghosts of those girls and women protected people going forward...

And it made me think of all the ghosts, unnamed and unknown, who in their death protect us: the ghosts of the Titanic, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, the Quebec Bridge, and so many others. Disasters that made us change laws and protect people, not just because they were horrific but because survivors and survivors families demanded that we change; kept screaming and fighting and pushing until someone listened and something was fixed.

What a debt we owe.

[ao3-crack]

(x)

[snoweylily]

The King Cobra is a cannibal, the only snake species to eat other snakes, and frequently observes their prey's daily activities before waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

The only animal it fears is the mongoose, which can withstand its lethal bites and is resistant to the cobra's poison. Mongooses often bait snakes just to devour them whole.

[daily-sifloop]

Kisses!!! Please!!!!!! They deserve it

day 11: behind the scenes

[the-knight-of-the-stars]

BBC Merlin writers really said "I'm going to tell a story like the tales of old, about fate and magic and about the tragedy of just how powerless humans are against destiny. Not great magic, nor will, nor love are enough against a fate set in stone by a higher power." And honestly I respect that.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

The girls are plottinggggg

[First] Prev <–-> Next

[shaylogic]

I think about this a lot

[moliathh]

the scorpion and the frog

[cathyartie]

Carmilla (1872) in a nutshell

[valtsv]

whenever people say shit like "your parents weren't always boring they were young and dumb too once" i have to laugh because. yeah i know. my mom has photos of her and her friends at the club looking wasted off their faces and my dad used to tell me about how he and his friends did diy drugs by the lake and described in graphic detail how one of his friends almost died from it. this didn't stop me from growing up into a guy who partakes in substances btw.

[nightswatchdisbandmentera]

What makes the legend of the last hero stand out among the more prominent messianic figures in the story is its ‘every man’ sort of feel. The Prince That Was Promised can only ever be royal - since the existing requirement is to be born of Aerys and Rhaella’s line, who ruled as king and queen. Azor Ahai is interpreted in story as being related to a king. Yet the last hero was just some guy. His tale has been passed down across millennia, but he himself remains anonymous. We don’t know what family or region he came from. He may have been low born or high born, it doesn’t really matter. And what’s most interesting is how GRRM chooses to parallel his story in the published material. Waymar Royce, Bloodraven, Coldhands, Sam Tarly, Bran Stark, and Jon Snow all serve as narrative mirrors for the last hero. But there’s are quite a few differences. Waymar Royce is a highborn lord, but Jon and Bloodraven are bastards. Jon Snow is the typical fantasy warrior, yet Sam and Bran are GRRM’s deconstructions of what it looks like when a boy who doesn’t fit the chivalric ideal of knighthood gets to be the hero. Jon and Bran are also especially noteworthy because they are at the heart of one GRRM’s core thesis statements:

 “I have a tender spot in my heart for cripples and bastards and broken things.”

So as a propaganda piece, I'd imagine that repeating this tale goes a long way. Imagine you're some unassuming kid from Flea Bottom. You'll never be the promised prince because you're not related to the king. It's a bit hard to be Azor Ahai because where in seven hells will you get dragon eggs, and how will you attain the magic required to bring them to life? But then you COULD be the last hero. Regardless of who your parents are and what type of blood you've got, you too can gather all your friends and go on a hero's journey. And isn't that what children's dreams are made of?

[divorcedwife]

i still think bg3 is very fun, has great combat and a mostly ok story (dark urge is really good) but i would have loved to see a version of this where larian didn't bend to demands of players so much. audiences don't even know what they want, much less what's good for the story. why don't they listen to me instead : someone who thinks they should make every character twice as mean. maybe five times

[s0up-arts]

painting practice ft. my layer sins