#syrian lit

[soracities]

Maram al-Massri, from A Red Cherry on a White-Tiled Floor (trans. Khaled Mattawa) [ID'd]

[faaun]

procrastination is starting to have its consequences finally

[hogsnout]

Comrades Murdoc, Russell, 2D, and Noodle 🫡

[probablyasocialecologist]

Israel, pound for pound, is the best investment the US has ever made. Israel is the purest expression of Western power, combining militarism, imperialism, settler colonialism, counterinsurgency, occupation, racism, instilling ideological defeat, huge profitable war-making and hi-tech development into a manticore of destruction, death, and mayhem. From Israel’s victory in the 1948-1949 war, US planners saw the country as a regional military power that could contain Arab military and political ambitions. Amidst France’s imperial sunset in the Arab region, the country aligned with Israel – trying to deliver a blow to Nasserist Egypt through the 1956 Tripartite Aggression with Britain and Israel, and armoring Zionism for its successful 1967 war against radical Arab nationalism in the frontline states. Green-lit by the US, the war left the Syrian Ba’athist fusion of Arab nationalism and Marxist-Leninism in shambles and slammed the Nasserist national development project. Israel also became a useful assassin, eliminating Arab radical luminaries from Mehdi Ben Barka to Ghassan Kanafani. From 1970 onwards, US military aid into Israel turned the country into a unique asset: an offshore arms factory; a regional irritant to Arab peace, stability, and popular regional development; a destructive gyro of world-wide counterinsurgency; a black hole drawing in regional surpluses and devoting them to endless defensive and offensive armament, away from social-popular welfare spending and non-military development. Uniquely, the US allowed Israel to keep the military aid partially within the country, slowly and steadily building up a massive military industrial capacity. Meanwhile, US-based capital inflows accelerated, taking advantage of Israel’s highly educated workforce in the defense sector, resting upon super-exploiting the Palestinian colonial underclass in other sectors. In return, Israel armed reactionary forces world-wide: from Argentina to Brazil to Chile, helping evade Congressional restrictions on arms shipments to the Nicaraguan Contras and advanced armaments to the South African apartheid regime. On a world scale, Israel has protected the political architecture of global capitalism. And its US domestic adjunct, the Anti-Defamation League, presaged wider Zionist capitalist investment in repression by carrying out wide-ranging spying on anti-racist, anti-Zionist, Arab-American and anti-apartheid movements.

[whencyclopedia]

Ptolemaic Dynasty

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Macedonian royal family that ruled Ptolemaic Egypt from 323 to 30 BCE. It was founded by Ptolemy I, a general and successor of Alexander the Great. They built Alexandria, including the Lighthouse of Alexandria and the Great Library of Alexandria. The dynasty ended when Rome conquered Egypt in the reign of Cleopatra VII.

The dynasty presented themselves as both Greek kings and Egyptian pharaohs. They never assimilated into Egyptian culture, and their reign began a process of Greek immigration and acculturation in Egypt. The dynasty practiced incestuous marriage, with most rulers marrying close relatives.

The Ptolemaic Empire expanded rapidly before civil wars, territorial losses, and natural disasters weakened it in the 2nd century BCE. The final generations of Ptolemies were reliant on the Roman Republic for military support.

Origins

The Ptolemaic dynasty was founded by Ptolemy I (336-282 BCE), son of Macedonian nobles Lagos and Arsinoe. Ptolemy was one of Alexander's somatophylakes, trusted bodyguards and generals. The dynasty later encouraged a myth that Ptolemy was really the illegitimate son of Philip II of Macedon (r. 359-336 BCE), making him Alexander the Great's half-brother.

Ptolemy was present during Alexander's conquest of Egypt (332 BCE), which was under the oppressive rule of the Achaemenid Empire. Alexander was welcomed by the Egyptian people and proclaimed pharaoh in Memphis. He made offerings to the Egyptian gods, demonstrating his desire to uphold Egyptian tradition, a policy that the Ptolemies would imitate. He also founded Alexandria, a classical Greek city on the coast of Egypt.

visited the oracle of Ammon. But perhaps more significant for the future was Alexander's assumption of the religious titles and honors of the Egyptian king, especially upholding the kingship's linkage to the god Ptah, which ensured the lasting support of his priesthood, a significant factor that continued into the time of Cleopatra.

(Chauveau, chapter 2)

The death of Alexander the Great in Babylon in 323 BCE created a dispute over who would inherit his empire. His half-brother Philip Arrhidaeus was eventually named king, and Alexander and Roxanne's son Alexander IV of Macedon became co-ruler after his birth. Perdiccas took the role of regent, making him effectively its ruler. Alexander's generals, called the Diadochi (lit. "successors" in Greek), became satraps of its provinces. Ptolemy was made satrap of Egypt, the wealthiest and most desirable province.

The Diadochi, including Ptolemy, Seleucus I Nicator, Lysimachus, Crateros, and Antipater, resisted Perdiccas' attempts to control them. In 321 BCE, Ptolemy stole Alexander's mummified body from Perdiccas, who was attempting to bring it back to Macedon. Ptolemy buried Alexander in Memphis, later moving the body to Alexandria, to strengthen his connection to Alexander's legacy. This theft escalated the tension between Ptolemy and Perdiccas, who unsuccessfully attempted to invade Egypt and was killed by his own mutinying troops.

Ptolemy I Soter

Marie-Lan Nguyen (Public Domain)

Philip Arrhidaeus was murdered in 317 BCE, followed by Alexander IV in 310 BCE. The Diadochi finally proclaimed themselves autonomous kings in 306 BCE. This act formally established the Ptolemaic dynasty, which ruled for another 300 years. The Wars of the Diadochi and their descendants fighting over territory resulted in the Syrian Wars (274-168 BCE) fought between the Ptolemies and the Seleucid Empire. Ptolemy I conquered Cyprus, Cyrene, Coele-Syria, and Phoenicia, forming the basis of the Ptolemaic Empire.

Continue reading...

[lesbianboyfriend]

can i ask for lesbian book recommendations 🥹🕺

yeassss ofc my love <3

erm and obligatory disclaimer for any who might read that i don’t think “queer” or “lesbian” is a necessarily coherent category of books or adequate descriptor for a novel which is why i’ve also provided the actual genres here (sorted into which ever one i felt best fit) and descriptions. and these books have much more going on than just being about lesbians. however all books are undeniably awesomer with lesbians so yayyyyy

FANTASY:

-the salt grows heavy by cassandra khaw: fantasy horror; murderous mermaid and plague doctor come across a cult of children (could be read as not lesbians bc one character is nonbinary but i choose to read as. lesbians)

-the empress of salt and fortune by nghi vo: political fantasy; monk unravels the tale of exiled empress’ rise to power

-when the the tigers came down the mountain by nghi vo: political fantasy; monk unwinds the tale of a tiger and her scholar lover to prevent other tigers from eating them (stand alone sequel to empress of salt and fortune)

-ship of smoke and steel by django wexler: ya fantasy; girl has to steal a ghost ship to save her sister’s life

-the mermaid, the witch, and the sea by maggie tokuda-hall: ya fantasy; pirate falls in love with one of the ship’s hostages, a girl being sent to an arranged marriage against her will

-tremontaine created by ellen kushner: political fantasy; there’s a lot going on in this one okay just trust me that it’s really good esp if you love political intrigue (this was released serially and is easiest to acquire an electronic version)

-the deep by rivers solomon: fantasy/spec fic; African slave women thrown overboard gave birth to mermaid-esque descendants. one holds these traumatic memories for her whole people and must grapple with that pressure

-wild beauty by anna-marie mclemore: ya magical realism/fantasy; a family of women who can create flowers and whose lovers always tragically vanish fight to keep their land and to unravel the mystery of a strange boy who appeared

-siren queen by nghi vo: historical magical realism/fantasy; girl’s rise to stardom amidst the monsters of hollywood back in the days of the studio system

-gideon the ninth by tamsyn muir: sff; um. how to explain briefly. gideon wants nothing more than to leave the ninth house, but her nemesis harrowhark needs her sword skills to pass the emperors trial and become immortal. sure. (caleb i know you’ve read this just adding for any other viewers yayyy)

HORROR:

-white is for witching by helen oyeyemi: horror fantasy/magical realism; a house with women in its walls calls to miranda silver while the people she leaves behind struggle to make sense of what happened to her

-plain bad heroines by emily a. danforth: historical horror; when filming a movie about the macabre history of a boarding school, its past starts to become the reality for the stars and author of the novel it’s based on

LITFIC:

-girl woman other: contemporary litfic; the intersecting stories of Black british women told in verse

-nightwood: classic literary; i feel like i can’t describe this one well but nora and jenny are obsessed with robin, whose penchant for wandering and inability to commit drives them crazy. toxic dyke drama at its best

-the thirty names of night: lit fic; transmasc syrian american unravels the history of artist laila z who encountered the same rare bird his mother saw right before her death and realizes their pasts are intertwined

-under the udala trees: historical lit fic; coming of age set against the backdrop of civil war in Nigeria, two girls from different ethnic communities fall in love

-everyone in this room will someday be dead: contemporary lit fic; that moment when your ocd lands you a job at the catholic church even though you’re an atheist and also your relationship is falling apart

-stone butch blues: historical lit fic; butch lesbian realizing and grappling with her identity throughout the 40s-70s

-the color purple: classic lit fic; story of two sisters separated in their youth—one is forced into an abusive marriage and falls in love with her husbands mistress, wondering what became of her sister

-oranges are not the only fruit: semi-autobiography with slight fantasy elements; exploring growing up lesbian in a deeply religious pentecostal sect

SCI-FI:

-the weight of the stars: ya sf romance; aspiring astronaut is forced into friendship with a girl who waits on the roof every night for radio signals from her mother in space

-the seep: sci-fi/spec fic; what if aliens invaded and formed a hive mind of everyone and also your girlfriend turned into a baby again. wouldn’t that be fucked up

-the stars are legion: political science fiction; an awakes with no memory amid a group of people calling themself her family who claim she is the only one who can save their world

-not your sidekick: ya sci-fi; superheroes are real and they fucking suck

SHORT STORIES:

-sarahland: contemporary/spec fic short story collection; various stories about people named sarah

[alatismeni-theitsa]

This video made me homesick ?? 😢💓 As a Greek, my culture includes Orthodoxy since it's our ethnoreligion, and suddenly I feel that I have so much in common with so many people around the world!

I was also excited because some of the Christian communities shown here are ancient, and have persisted despite centuries-long prosecutions and pressures! (When talking about the "first" and the "ancient" Christianity we're talking about Orthodoxy or dogmas linked to Orthodoxy.)

I'm referring to the era before the Western European colonization. It was when people came to it freely and what we today call "Catholicism" wasn't what they came into. The Christians in these areas were culturally linked more to the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) and to the Orthodox creed.

Christianity's home is the Middle East. Starting from Jerusalem, it spread to the whole Levant region. Assyrian, Lebanese, Syrian, Jordanian, and Armenian people came to Christianity in large numbers from the 1st century already. Antioch has been a stronghold of Christianity, and a producer of the brightest Orthodox minds.

The West Arabian Peninsula (Hejaz region) held the majority of Christian Arabs. Christians lived around Mecca and Yathrib before the advent of Islam. One of the earliest Christian church buildings ever, known as Jubail Church, is located in Saudi Arabia and it was built around the 4th century.

Christianity in Africa first arrived in Egypt in approximately 50 AD. By the end of the 2nd century it had reached the region around Carthage. In the 4th century, it arrived to modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea (the Aksumite empire), and the region was one of the first in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion. The Nubian kingdoms of Nobatia, Makuria and Alodia followed two centuries later. From the late 5th and early 6th century, the region included several Christian Berber kingdoms.

This is the chant, in Arabic (with subs in many languages). There's a Greek version too but on youtube I only found the singing version (lit. "ψαλτοτράγουδο"):

[socially-awkward-skeleton]

All Along the Watchtower (Chapter 5)

Pairing: Captain John Price x Fem!OC (3rd person POV)

Word count: 3.1 K

Warnings: Minors DNI - descriptions of torture, misogyny, threats of violence, morally gray characters, swearing, smoking, mentions of human trafficking

Summary: Flashback #2 - after finding the women and children in the terrorist outpost, Rory's skills with interrogation and torture are put to use on their captor

A/N: Rory Sinclair is a dual citizen (both Canada and the UK) who's been living in the UK since she was 14. She is 28 at the time of this fic, Price is 32. This series is set in 2017 before the events of the first MW game. Rory's thoughts are bold and italicized, other italics are used for emphasis

[Read on AO3]

2016 - Syrian Outpost 

The soldiers remained in silence as they sat outside the room where Walker interrogated the target. Muffled sounds of groans coming from the other side of the door drifted in to invade the hush that had fallen over the siege forces. Sat on a table, on the other side of the room across from the door, Rory had already stripped the tac vest from her shoulders in order to catch her breath. The sight of all those faces in the dock facility below had caused her stomach to twist and ache. Her head hanging low, chin pressed to her chest, she rubbed at the back of her neck trying to relieve the tension that built there. 

Andrew looked over at her, watching her hands start to tremble and he slipped the pack of cigarettes from his pocket. Pulling one out for her, he lit it and nudged her with his elbow to get her attention. “Hey, take this.”

Her gaze fell to the trail of smoke that began to lift from the tip and she happily accepted, bringing the cigarette to her lips and taking a long, deep drag of it. Enough to make her head spin and her lungs feel like they were filled with ash.

“Thanks.”

“A pleasure.”

Moments later, Officer Walker entered the room where the soldiers waited, the door creaking behind him as he let out a heavy sigh. Worn out, he wiped the sweat from his brow with the collar of his shirt, exposing armpits now darkened by sweaty halos from his hard work. Wiping his hands of the blood that had collected on them on the front of his shirt, he added to the red already splattered there. “Fucker ain't breaking,” he groaned, looking over at two of the soldiers in the corner of the room. Beefy and brawnier than the rest, Walker gave them a wry grin. “Hey Turbo, Lazer, either of you have experience in breaking someone?”

The two soldiers shook their heads in unison, still lost for words after having witnessed what they’d seen in storage.

Andrew nudged Rory's side again, whispering to her. “Go on then.” He tipped his head towards Walker. “You do.”

“Andy, no,” she said with a glare.

But her Lieutenant would never leave it at that. He’d seen her do it more times than she would ever care to admit. He encouraged it, carrying her preferred tools with him just in case. He was the one who had given her the name ‘Lamb’ and it had stuck because he knew what really lay below the surface. 

“Sinclair does,” Lieutenant Owen spoke up.

Walker’s grin dropped, his brow furrowing as he looked over at Rory. “Little miss humanitarian over there, really?”

She huffed out a laugh, blowing cigarette smoke up towards the ceiling. “Oh, don't worry, sir. I only save the bleeding heart act for the innocent.”

Walker looked her up and down, not really believing it. Cracking a smile, he shook his head. “Hey, I'm all for equality, sweetheart. If you really think you can do a better job than me –”

“She can, sir,” Andrew was quick to add.

“Andy,” Rory hissed.

“You're bloody good at it, don't deny it.” His icy stare froze her, looking at her as if he saw through her. One of the only ones to see behind the mask. 

Pushing a hand through her hair before hopping off the table, her boots landed with a heavy thump on the concrete below, the weight of the world and the responsibility just handed to her dragging her down.

Her Lieutenant was quick to pull out a set of brass knuckles and a plastic bag from his vest pocket, looking up at her with a small smile as if offering a gift. “For you, Sergeant.” 

Rory nodded, taking them from him and stuffing them into her back pocket before taking another drag from her cigarette and moving closer to the door by Walker.

“Go on, sweetheart,” Walker leaned down towards her, chuckling, the sarcasm practically dripping off his words, “Show that bastard exactly what girl power looks like, huh?”

She scowled, swallowing heavily as her hand twitched. Her throat always got dry moments before she’d have to face down her opponent – and that’s what they were – interrogations weren’t a battle, they were a game of chess. Digging into their heads, convincing them to play the way she wanted them to, finding their weak spot and then attacking it directly. Finding the pressure point and pushing down on it until they couldn’t take it anymore. That’s where most people failed to be successful. With unassuming Rory Sinclair, on the other hand – soft on the outside, hardly a threat – when left alone in a room with her, it was the last place any enemy would want to be. 

Before she could walk any further, Walker grabbed her arm and his amber eyes tried to read her sneer. “You really think you can handle this?”

Her mouth twisted into a sickly grin as she bit down on her tongue to stop her from spitting venom, jaw clenched tight as she tilted her head away to blow out smoke. “Yes, sir.”

“I wanna know where the weapons are and who he's working with. I don't want any sappy bullshit about the cargo, you hear me?”

The stink of his sweat clung to him, mixing with the cheap aftershave he wore, and it made her stomach twist more as he crept further into her personal space. 

“Understood.”

Giving her arm a quick squeeze, he couldn’t help but keep up with the patronizing tone and smile. “I'm counting on ya, honey.”

Rory flinched, rage burning down the length of her spine like a wildfire. All that anger that swelled within her at the sight of those women and children boiled just under the skin and behind her eyes. Taking another breath, dragging her teeth over her lip and tasting bitter hatred on her tongue, she headed into the room.

The metal door shut tight behind her with a heavy clank and she stopped and stared at Al Ghulam bound to a chair before her. Blood dripped down his face, his eye swollen and puffy on one side, encapsulating his socket in purple flesh. His fancy clothes had been stained with blood along with his teeth as he smiled at her, a long trail of red saliva dripping from his lip.

“Is this the American way? They send in the woman to do the job of men?”

Ignoring Abdullah was all too easy as she kept walking forward, exhaling smoke from her nostrils before her fingers curled around the cigarette dangling from her lips to take another drag.

“Hal taelam madha 'afeal bialnisa' mithlaka?” <In Arabic: Do you know what I do to women like you? >

Rory stretched her neck from side to side, feeling the tension pop and release. Unfazed by his threats, used to the inane ramblings of bound men. Every single one of them seemed to resort back to threatening her womanhood. Using feeble attempts at scaring her by trying to make her feel small or inadequate. It was the sign of a weak will. 

She cracked a half grin from around her cigarette “Lal taelam madha faealt bialrijal mithlaka?” <in Arabic: Do you know what I've done to men like you?>

Al Ghulam chuckled at her response, spitting blood out on the floor between his feet. “You speak Arabic?” 

Her eyes narrowed and she drew closer, one sure and steady step at a time, watching his eyes widen and the sweat start to form on his brow. A foggy cloud of smoke curtaining her features before leaning forward with a darkened stare. “Do you know?” Her voice was low and ominous, her question anything but a casual threat – it was a warning.

He shook his head, staring up at her, mouth kept tightly shut. He still had fight in him, but she had patience.  

“Now’s as good a time as any to find out, eh?” She stood in front of him, hands on her hips. “Where are the weapons, and who are you working with?”

“I already told your CIA, I don't know.”

He was lying and she knew it. “Where are the weapons and who are you working with,” she repeated in the same calm, cool tone of voice.

“Are you deaf?”

Grabbing him by the face with one hand, digging her nails into his cheeks as she grabbed his jaw, Rory pulled the cigarette from her mouth with the other and pressed the burning end of it to his cheek. Twisting it against his skin as it sizzled like sausages in a frying pan, holding it there even as his screams echoed through the room. Spittle flying out from between gritted teeth as he seethed, staring at her with the same burning hatred she felt for him. 

“Where are the weapons?” She looked down at him, continuing to hold the cigarette there even as he struggled against it.

“Fuck you,” he spat, squirming under her.

She cocked her brow, impressed somewhat by the fact he wasn’t willing to give in quite so easy. He wasn’t quite as passive as she had thought. Slipping the cigarette back between her lips she stood up straight and pulled the plastic bag from her back pocket, circling Al Ghulam the way a predator would around its singled out prey. 

As she stood behind his back, his body went rigid. The natural fear response that took over when someone was being followed from behind, the one that made a person start walking a little faster while alone at night, the one pricks like him enjoyed making women feel. Rustling the plastic bag in her hands as she held it out taut, she noticed every little fidget he made, the little shiver that shook down his back. “Are you scared?”

“Never.”

Another lie. 

Rory quickly moved forward, bringing the bag down over his head and gripping back on it tight enough to hear the screeching sound of stretched plastic as it constricted against his mouth and nose, the squeak dampening his scream. 

His fingers squeezed at the armrests as he gasped for air, his mouth working against the plastic as he fought to breathe, his feet kicking out slightly. She held on just a little longer, just enough to bring him right up to the edge where he feared she might kill him, and then pulled the bag away, waiting for him to catch his breath before asking her questions once again.

“Where are the weapons?”

“You fucking whore. I'll kill you. Think you scare me? I can hunt you down and set twenty men on you.” 

She pulled the cigarette from her mouth and leaned down towards him, her head resting near his, exhaling smoke into his face. “You should know, it’s quite easy to tell that while you may call the Middle East home now, you weren’t raised here. The way you dress, the way you speak…it’s clear you were raised in the West, went to good schools…” Glancing down at his hand, she smirked as she noticed the gold band on his finger. “And that’s no class ring. What poor woman got stuck with you for a husband?”

Al Ghulam went to speak, and she stopped him by shoving her thumb into the pressure point of his shoulder. “Before you even think about threatening me, I know you spend an awful lot of time traveling between here and Dubai. That’s where she lives, right? Keeping her hidden away from the unspeakable things you do.” She tilted her head as she pondered on the reason. “Perhaps you’re embarrassed. Doesn’t much matter to me.” She squeezed a little tighter and his body convulsed involuntarily. “I can find her, bring along my trusty rifle, and add another notch to the barrel.” His breath hitched in his throat and she released her thumb. “Take a moment to think on that, eh?” 

Rory patted his shoulder and then wrapped the bag around his head once more, twisting the plastic in her hands so it gripped his face tighter. Staring out into the middle distance of the room, she held the plastic bag over his head long enough that his nails began to bend and crack against the metal armrests he was tied to as he struggled, a horrible wheezing noise escaping him like a balloon slowly deflating until she finally released the bag from his face, placing her hand on his shoulder and squeezing the pressure point there tightly once again. “I can do this all day. I’m not so sure you can. So, before I have to become a little more convincing…Where are the weapons and who are you working with?”

His breathing was becoming more strained, each breath heavier and harder to take. Near his breaking point, it wouldn’t take very long now, she just needed to tip him a little bit further. She hadn’t even broken a sweat yet in her quest to prove how far she was willing to go, and it was becoming clear to her that with Al Ghulam she wouldn’t even have to go as far as she had in the past. She could smell it on him.

“I’m going to kill you myself. I’ll slit your throat and watch you bleed,” his words spilled from his trembling lips.

Threats of violence were a common thing, it always shifted from demeaning her to the threats of taking her life. More a benefit to their own ego, an attempt to make themselves feel strong, holding on to some semblance of the image they thought they were supposed to have while she broke them. 

“Very well.” Moving to stand in front of him once more, watching him huff back on his rasping breaths, Rory tossed her nearly spent cigarette on the floor, stomping it out with her boot before grabbing the brass knuckles from her back pocket and slipping them onto her fingers. Clenching her hand into a fist, she appreciated the weight as her thumb ran over the solid metal accessory, feeling each dent and groove she had made in it on the bones of her adversaries. Staring at Al Ghulam with dead eyes, her breathing was perfectly relaxed, her heart rate holding steady. “Once I’m done here with you, I’ll be making my way to Dubai, there might be just enough left of you for your wife to mourn.”

“No, please.” His eyes bugged from his head as he slumped forward in his seat, a defeated man. “ Fuck . I’ll tell you.”

“I’m listening.”

The door creaked open once more and Rory stepped out of the room without a speck of blood on her or a drop of sweat, she was perfectly relaxed as she slipped the brass knuckles from her hand and placed them back into her pocket. Her slow, heavy footsteps on the concrete was enough to cause the eyes of every soldier to lift and stare. They had all heard

the muffled yelling and the long stretches of silence from inside the room, and their reactions to her entrance were all the same – confusion. At a loss for just what the hell she had done in that room. 

All except Andrew. Giving her a smirk, the cigarette between his lips lifted up into the curled corner of his mouth as he looked over at her. He knew exactly how it would play out. It was always the same. 

The little ‘ Lamb ’ had teeth.

Rory walked right past Walker as if he didn’t even exist, and he grabbed her arm, his eyes flaring at her. “What happened in there?” Looking her up and down, he waited expectantly for an answer. Expecting some story about how she tried but just couldn’t break him. How batting her eyelashes at a terrorist and a human trafficker just wouldn’t work for whatever reason. How a big, strong man would have to go in there and finish what he had started, and she had failed to deliver on.

Her hazel eyes bore into him, her mouth drawn in a tight, straight line as she reported Al Ghulam’s confession. “There was a swap made, a trade deal. Lives bartered for the weapons.”

“With who?” He got into her face, but she never flinched. “Who’s he working with?”

“Not the insurgents.” She shook her head. “A PMC. Independant . European . Weapons are on their way into enemy hands as we speak,” she said with a defeated sigh, knowing all too well the lives of civilians and soldiers alike would be taken soon. Yet more casualties of war. Numbers turned into statistics to be reported on the nightly news in a minute long segment, if they even really mattered to most anymore. 

“Motherfucker,” Walker spat, pacing back and forth, muttering under his breath.

“The lives we found downstairs, they’re only half of what there was.” She broke his train of thought and he looked at her with disinterest. “They’re the rest of the payment for another shipment that’s coming.”

Turning on his heel, he met her with his furrowed brow. “When?”

“Two days' time. Your intel was either too late or too early.”

“Good.” Walker scratched at his stubble as he continued to pace. “Good, we can work with that.” He tipped his head and gave her a slimy grin. “I don’t know what you did in there, sweetheart, but I might just have to make you a returning member of my roster.”

Biting down on her molars, Rory grimaced at the thought of having to work another mission with the CIA officer and his less than respectful attitude towards her. “My pleasure,” she said as her pained expression shifted into a scowl and she moved to sit with her Lieutenant once more. 

Andrew’s smirk had become a wry grin at this point, enjoying the faces of every other soldier in there including Walker’s. The look of people taken completely off guard by the fact someone like Rory could break a man faster than some brazen, fast-talking American with little scruples. 

“You look like you need a fag, Sinclair.”

“Do I ever,” she huffed. 

“You didn’t even need the knuckles this time, did you?” Andrew lowered his voice, leaning in towards her as he passed her the cigarette that had been burning between his lips. 

She snatched it from him and brought the cigarette to her mouth, taking a long drag. Shaking her head, Rory passed the brass knuckles back to him, dragging her hands up and down her thighs as she took a seat on the table beside him once again.  

He chuckled dryly and slipped them back into the pocket of his vest. “That’s our Lamb.” His grin grew wider, until teeth began to show. “I knew you had it in you.”

[zaranthropy]

I've been looking at Suzumi star pages (particularly the arabic ones) and getting some Symbolism Revelations™ this evening that people may enjoy as food for thought.

Starting with the most lore-related one, Benny's name is often theorized to come from Benetnasch, the first star in the Big Dipper constellation. What nobody tells you however is that benny's star is originally called Alkaid, "the leader". Benetnasch comes from banaatunna'ash (Arabic; "بنات نع��", "the mourning maidens" lit. "Daughters of the bier") and is the arabic name of the big dipper constellation. A bier is a stand on which a corpse, coffin, or casket containing a corpse is placed to lie in state or to be carried to the grave. This relates to the original myth of Banaatunna'ash.

for the Bedouins of the Syrian desert, the Daughters of Nash accuse al-Jaday, i.e. Polaris, to have killed their father. But al-Farqadân [Ursa Minor] deem that the killer is not al-Jaday but Suhayl, and interpose between them and the North star. That is the reason why they are called al Hawâjzîn, “the Interposers”: they prevent the daughters from slaking their thirst for vengeance, and condemn them to turn indefinitely around the Pole.

From Our Arabic Heritage in the Celestial Vault.

Why this is interesting is because not only is Benny depicted to be the "leader" of the Suzumi collective– in the same constellation's naming origins (which influenced the names of Alkaid and Benetnasch), not only is Suzumi as a whole a being who seeks to sate their bloodlust for vengeance on Tsubakura, there also exists a Hamal among Alkaid's two companion stars, the other two mourning maidens.

The daughters of the bier, i.e. the mourning maidens, are the three stars of the handle of the Big Dipper, Alkaid, Mizar, and Alioth; while the four stars of the bowl, Megrez, Phecda, Merak, and Dubhe, are the bier.

From Medieval Islamic Astronomy.

Considering how Hamee often refers to themself as a maiden, this could point to a potential explanation as to why they do this.

Moving onto Hamee's star, Hamal – the current name of the star – (arabic; "حَمْل") refers to a little year-old lamb originally and not the ram as one may envision when looking at its relationship to Aries, this was an interpertation later introduced by the Greek. The star itself also is originally called "the horns of the lamb", specifically in reference to the tiny nubs you'd see on the head of a first-year fat tailed sheep, and is a similar case as with Benetnasch [name of constellation becomes the name of star because "wah arabic complicated" or something]. This exact type of sheep is also the one that would've been there for Jesus times if biblical allegories are your thing (parable of the lost sheep comes to mind). Also, in modern usage, the star is called "the headbutter/the headstrong", (Arabic; الناطح), so do with that what you will.

Arde has to have had the coolest one by far methinks, as Aldebaran is the only Suzumi star name that doesn't originally belong to a constellation and retains its original Arabic form plus it's the one with the most well-rounded mythology and cultural significance that just so happens to fit Arde well. To start, let's talk about the constellation right next to Aldebaran. Al-Thuriyya (Pleiades) has to be THE most famous constellation in Arab star mythology, being also related to Suhail (remember that guy?), and is also the reason of the name Aldebaran (Arabic; الدِبَران (full historical name; "الهادي الدِبَران")), meaning "The Follower" or "The Pursuing One", being given to the star right on its northwestern side.

According to an Arab legend from some point in the 7th century, Aldebaran was a poor and destitute person, while Al-Thuriyya was a beautiful and young girl. She impressed Aldebaran, so he decided to propose to her. He wanted someone to accompany him to the engagement ceremony, but he did not find anyone. So he went to the moon and asked him to try as much as he could to marry him to her, and the moon complied and went to her. But she refused, and after the moon pressed her, she said: “What should I do with this runt who has no money?”. The moon returned and told Aldebaran what had happened, but Aldebaran insisted on marrying her. He only owned sheep, so he took them all to Al-Thuriyya so that she would agree to marry him. The twenty sheep that Aldebaran led to the Pleiades are what came to be called “The Hyades,” which became the name of a star cluster that appears close to Aldebaran in the sky. The two stars near Aldebaran are his dogs, which he took with him and the sheep. As such, Aldebaran began to guide (follow) the Pleiades in the sky forever, along with his sheep, guiding them wherever they went. Thus, Aldebaran became a symbol of loyalty, while the Pleiades became a symbol of treachery. This loyalty was even mentioned in some Arabic proverbs: “More loyal than Al-Hadi (Al-Hadi Al-Dabran (Aldebaran)) and more treacherous than Al-Thuriyya (the Pleiades).”

Aldebaran also takes onto some mythology of its own as well, being a star whose rising is known to signal the beginning of the harshest periods of summer– Aldebaran became a star of ill omen to the Arabs of ancient times, even earning its own threatening rhymed prose;

اذا طلع الدبران, توقدت الحزان, وكرهت النيران, واستعرت الذبان, ويبست الغدران, ورمت بأنفسها حيث شاءت الصبيان.

When Aldebaran [the Follower] rises, the rugged lands abounding in jagged rocks burn, the fires are hated, the flies spread like fire, the pools of water left by torrents dry up, and the young children throw themselves wherever they desire.

From When the Follower Rises.

Seeing as Arde is the Suzumi who often keeps Hamee in check, holding them on a proverbial leash, them being "the follower" makes a lot of sense when you consider their canonical position (as one who herds sheep (Hamee) while following the leader (Benny)). They also share similarities with Benetnasch, having two lesser stars associated with them (the "dogs") and being the brightest star of their respective constellations. Hamee is the only one who only has one lesser star, poor hambone.

Tl;dr I'm just sharing my silly region-locked star lore for everyone else to enjoy 😊 hope this unlocks as much Suzumi headcanons in your brain as it did mine

[chai-af]

chanukah !!

chanukah is coming up! it’s a jewish holiday (can be seen spelled several different ways such as “hanukkah”) that commemorates jewish resistance to assimilation.

in the second century bce, judea, the land where jewish people’s ancestors resided, were subjected to pressure from the greeks to accept their culture and beliefs (during this period, judea was ruled by the seleucids, which are the syrian-greeks).

you may have not heard of antiochus IV, the successor of alexander the great, who conquered judea (along with syria and egypt). while alexander allowed the people under his control to continue observing their religious traditions, antiochus was much more oppressive. he massacred jews and prohibited the practice of judaism, as well as requiring the sacrifice of pigs at the holy temple (pigs aren’t kosher and therefore it is sacrilegious to sacrifice them).

a jewish army led by judah the maccabee revolted against the assimilation of hellenistic jews and the oppression of the seleucid greek government. they miraculously defeated the seleucid army and drove them off the land. jews reclaimed the holy temple in jerusalem and “rededicated” it (as it was desecrated by the seleucids). the word chanukah means “dedication” because of this event.

it is said that when the jewish people went to light the temple’s menorah, they only find one cruse of olive oil that was untouched by the seleucids. thus, they let the menorah with that one-day supply and it lasted for eight days. this story gives reasoning as to why we light our chanukah candle on the chanukiah (a 9-branched menorah)* every night for eight nights. it’s also why chanukah is also known as the festival of lights.

so today, other than lighting the candles, we also eat foods that are fried in oil such as latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly donuts). another popular tradition is to play with the dreidel, which is a (typically wooden) four-sided spinning top, with a hebrew letter on each side (נ‎, ג‎, ה‎, ש‎; nun, gimel, hey, and shin). each letter represents an action that the spinner has to do. it’s sort of a gambling game and typically uses chocolate gelt (those chocolate coins covered in gold foil) as currency.

* why are they 9 branches when we light the candles for eight night? because the ninth candle is in the middle and known as the shamash, or the heper candle. it is the candle that is lit first and used to light the other candle. each night’s new candle is added from right to left, while we light them from left to right.

sources:

https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/102911/jewish/What-Is-Hanukkah.htm

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/hannukah

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/history-of-hanukkah#:~:text=Hanukkah%2C%20which%20means%20%E2%80%9Cdedication%2C,Temple's%20candelabrum%20for%20one%20day.

hope those who celebrate have a happy chanukah, and happy holidays to the rest of you lovely people <3

[noelcollection]

Check out this remarkable work of scholarship on Jewish burial customs! 

The author, Johann Nicolai, was a Professor of Antiquities at the University of Tübingen in Tübingen, Germany. He went about 300 miles away to the Leiden-based academic printer Hendrik Teeringh to have his scholarship on “sepulchris hebraeorum” (lit. “On Jewish graves”) published. This book was no small feat. It is typographically complex with Roman, Italic, and Gothic fonts as well as Greek, Hebrew, Syrian, Coptic, and Arabic characters. Additionally, the work features delicate inline woodcut illustrations and metal plate engravings. 

Examples of inline woodcut illustrations.

Engravings of the royal graveyard of the ancient kings of Judah and the tomb of the prophet Samuel.

Sampling of the typographical variety found in this book.

Images from: Nicolai, Johann. Libri IV. De sepulchris hebraeorum. Leiden: Hendrik Teeringh, 1706. Catalog record: https://bit.ly/3qJ2QQ6

[soracities]

Maram al-Massri, from A Red Cherry on a White-Tiled Floor (trans. Khaled Mattawa) [ID'd]

[aflamethatneverdies]

Israel, pound for pound, is the best investment the US has ever made. Israel is the purest expression of Western power, combining militarism, imperialism, settler colonialism, counterinsurgency, occupation, racism, instilling ideological defeat, huge profitable war-making and hi-tech development into a manticore of destruction, death, and mayhem. From Israel’s victory in the 1948-1949 war, US planners saw the country as a regional military power that could contain Arab military and political ambitions. Amidst France’s imperial sunset in the Arab region, the country aligned with Israel – trying to deliver a blow to Nasserist Egypt through the 1956 Tripartite Aggression with Britain and Israel, and armoring Zionism for its successful 1967 war against radical Arab nationalism in the frontline states. Green-lit by the US, the war left the Syrian Ba’athist fusion of Arab nationalism and Marxist-Leninism in shambles and slammed the Nasserist national development project. Israel also became a useful assassin, eliminating Arab radical luminaries from Mehdi Ben Barka to Ghassan Kanafani.  From 1970 onwards, US military aid into Israel turned the country into a unique asset: an offshore arms factory; a regional irritant to Arab peace, stability, and popular regional development; a destructive gyro of world-wide counterinsurgency; a black hole drawing in regional surpluses and devoting them to endless defensive and offensive armament, away from social-popular welfare spending and non-military development. Uniquely, the US allowed Israel to keep the military aid partially within the country, slowly and steadily building up a massive military industrial capacity. Meanwhile, US-based capital inflows accelerated, taking advantage of Israel’s highly educated workforce in the defense sector, resting upon super-exploiting the Palestinian colonial underclass in other sectors. In return, Israel armed reactionary forces world-wide: from Argentina to Brazil to Chile, helping evade Congressional restrictions on arms shipments to the Nicaraguan Contras and advanced armaments to the South African apartheid regime. On a world scale, Israel has protected the political architecture of global capitalism. And its US domestic adjunct, the Anti-Defamation League, presaged wider Zionist capitalist investment in repression by carrying out wide-ranging spying on anti-racist, anti-Zionist, Arab-American and anti-apartheid movements.  Throughout this period, the US-Israeli ‘Special Relationship’ grew ever-more-intimate as relentless imperial proxy warfare and sanctions – from Libya to Lebanon – tarnished developmentalism, degraded republican aspirations, and often evaporated regional Marxism. Class inequalities widened as the Gulf, Egypt, and Lebanon became nodes of regional and global accumulation. The Israeli option for boosting world-wide accumulation through wars on republicanism and revolution served the US ruling class well. The ‘peace process,’ known as Oslo, imposed after the fall of the USSR and the encirclement of Ba’athist Iraq, sought neo-colonial neoliberalism under military occupation in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip as part of the post-Soviet attempt to crystallize ‘the end of history’ through neutralizing or evaporating remaining sources of friction or strategic obstacles to the US project.  Incoming Palestinian diaspora capital alongside a corrupt Palestinian Authority (PA) was the US’s junior partner in the state-building agenda. Israeli capital became a seamless transnational component of the US’s globalization project, with large elements in burgeoning hi-tech counterinsurgency. 

[cowplant-pizza]

15 questions for 15 mutuals

Thank you so much @tinysimmer, @deehya, @sojutrait, @sashima and @lucidicer for the tagging me!!

are you named after anyone? i dont think so! jessica is a really common name in the uk!

when was the last time you cried? uuuuh gosh. the other day i was extremely stressed about money and i had a breakdown to my mum about it

do you have kids? no and no ty

do you use sarcasm a lot? honestly i think i do? but i’m currently going through an autism diagnosis and so i’m like.. have i been using it or understanding it correctly or...?

what sports do you play/have you played? i literally hate sports. i had extreme hatred for PE during school because they were very unsupportive of me skipping it because of my fibro (which wasnt diagnosed at the time) and it just put an overall sour taste in my mouth about sports. however, i do enjoy recreational swimming. and the sports i did play with my friends were fun including badminton and dancing 

what’s the first thing you notice about other people? their overall vibe and if they’re friendly or not

eye colour? blue

scary movies or happy endings? horror movies are my fave type of movie, but i also love a happy ending that makes me happy cry

any special talents? i make earrings, and people say im “talented” for doing that but honestly i’m just trying to get by lol...

where were you born? staffordshire uk

what are your hobbies? making videos, reading, researching my latest hyperfixation

do you have any pets? yessss, my babies. oscar the cavapoochon, blue the daxipoo and daisy-mae the golden retriever. jynx and maya my cats. and basil my long haired syrian hamster is the newest addition. i got him 2 days ago!

how tall are you? 5″7 / 173cm

fave subject in school? i loved drama and english lit

dream job? not gonna go deep into detail here cause trauma but i want to work with animals. i wish i could go to one of the countries with a stray dog/cat problem and help them run a shelter.. but realistically.. sims youtuber

i’d love to know more about: @futurelabs @wooldawn  @qwertysims @ellcrze @softerhaze ​

[draslihanxfahri-bailey]

Hanukkah 2023

Hanukkah, or the Festival of Rededication, celebrates the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its defilement by the Syrian Greeks in 164 BCE. Although it is a late addition to the Jewish liturgical calendar, the eight-day festival of Hanukkah has become a beloved and joyous holiday. It is also known as the Festival of Lights and usually takes place in December, at the time of year when the days are shortest in the northern hemisphere. This year, Hanukkah starts on Thursday, December 7th, at sundown, and lasts until Friday, December 15th, at sundown.

This year, with it being Rhiannon's first Hanukkah, the Bailey's are gathering at Asli and Eli's home, along with Eli's family and any and all friends of theirs being more than welcomed to join the festivities.

Asli and her parents have a handful of menorahs, what with this year lighting her two favourite ones (a light blue with pomegranate motifs, one of the Seven Species of Judea, and a menorah inspired by the Holy Temple in Old Jerusalem, using wax candles for the pomegranate menorah and glass oil cups for the Jerusalem menorah) and "lighting" Alex's first menorah, inspired by rainbows. The menorah should have eight spots for candles — one for each night — and an extra ninth spot that is at a different elevation. This ninth spot is for the shamash, or helper candle, that is used to light the others.

On the first of Hanukkah’s eight nights, only two candles are placed in the Hanukkah menorah: the shamash, or “helper” candle, which has its own designated spot (usually in the center), and another candle that designates it is the first night. The first night’s candle is placed in the right-most spot. Each night, another candle is added so that on the eighth and final night of Hanukkah, all nine candles (the shamash plus eight others) are lit. To complete the ritual on all eight nights with one menorah, you will need a total of 44 candles per menorah. Most boxes of Hanukkah candles contain 45.

The candles are placed in the menorah from right to left (just as Hebrew is written from right to left), but are lit from left to right. The blessings are said before the candles are lit. In Ashkenazi communities, the shamash candle is the first one lit, and it is used to light the others, starting with the left-most one. (Think of it as lighting the candle representing the current night first.) In Sephardi communities, an extra candle — not part of the menorah — is used to light the candles that represent the nights, and then the shamash is lit last and the extra candle used for lighting is blown out. Aslihan personally performs the Sephardic way, connecting with the Sephardic/Mizrahi Turkish and Egyptian Jews and their traditions, whereas her parents do so the Ashkenazic way. Hanukkah candles are lit after sundown, when it is dark. But there is one exception. Since Hanukkah lasts for eight nights, the holiday will inevitably overlap with Shabbat at least once. Lighting a fire during Shabbat is forbidden according to Jewish law, so there are slight adjustments to Hanukkah candle lighting on both Friday and Saturday nights. According to Jewish law, the menorah should be lit before the Shabbat candles on Friday evening while it is still light out. As for Saturday night, the candles are lit after the sun goes down and Shabbat has ended, but there are differing opinions regarding whether the menorah should be lit before or after the havdalah rituals are completed. There is no consensus among Ashkenazi rabbis, and the most widespread Sephardic custom is to recite havdalah first.

Before lighting the candles (but after placing them in the menorah), it is traditional to recite three blessings on the first night and then two on every night thereafter.

Blessing #1

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלוֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִידְשָׁנו בְּמִצוֹתָיו וְצִיוָּנוּ לְהַדְלִיק נֵר שֶׁל חַנֻכָה Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tsivanu l’hadlik ner shel Hanukkah. Praised are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who made us holy through your commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah lights.

Blessing #2

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלוֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם שֶׁעָשָׂה נִסִּים לַאֲבוֹתֵינוּ בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה Baruch atah, Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, she-asah nisim la’avoteinu bayamim hahem bazman hazeh. Praised are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who performed wondrous deeds for our ancestors in those ancient days at this season.

Blessing #3: Shehechiyanu (First Night Only)

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלוֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם שֶׁהֶחֱיָּנוּ, וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיָּענוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה Baruch atah Adonai, elohenu melech ha’olam, shehecheyanu, v’kiyimanu, v’higiyanu lazman hazeh Praised are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who has given us life and sustained us and enabled us to reach this season.

The Bailey family typically follow candle lighting with traditional Hanukkah songs, playing dreidel, eating gelt or sufganiyot or latkes or bimuelos, or opening gifts, placing their menorahs at the windows to share the light with the world. Over the course of the eight nights, they ensure to spend time together, whether at Asli and Eli's or Richard and Jasmine's, while inviting any and all to come join their family. Chag Hanukkah Sameach and Happy Holidays!

All information and resources come from My Jewish Learning, particularly these two links: Hanukkah 101 and How to Light the Hanukkah Menorah. The scene comes from Hallmark's 2021 film Eight Gifts of Hanukkah.

[dougielombax]

Just leaving this and a few other articles here.

Feel free to reblog.

This one is admittedly a day late. But still.