#which is just ableist

[reasonsforhope]

Btw, if you really just Need A Job (tm)

I'd really recommend looking into care work

Care work here is specifically being a home care aid, a care aid or assistant at any kind of residential home.

This for usually for elderly or disabled adults - and those are the ones that tend to be most entry level, from what I've seen, but also for mental health, addiction recovery etc. (With the obvious caveat that some of these jobs will be more emotionally intense than others)

I'm so serious about this guys. I was applying to jobs in care work for just three weeks, starting a couple days before Christmas, and in that time I got three interviews, two jobs offers, and five additional interview requests

Care work needs people CONSTANTLY

because it's a huge sector but very hard for them to keep staff long-term. Partly because it can be high burn-out, and there's definitely toxic places out there you should watch out for. And partly because a lot of people think care work is beneath them

AND they ACTUALLY MEAN IT when they say they're entry level. Because it's so hard for them to get staff that a lot of them will advertise super aggressively that they will train you themselves. A lot of them will straight up pay for your CPR and First Aid certifications, once they hire you, too (and you can get a leg up on applications by getting a CPR/First Aid certification for like. $30 to $80, at least in the US). They also accept experience taking care of elderly/disabled/etc. family members as real experience

Like, obviously don't do it if you hate taking care of people, but if you're open to it, it's probably by far your best shot of getting hired rn, statistically

(eta: Genuinely disclaimer that it can be super taxing emotionally and large portions of the industry are indeed fucked, and def don't take a job in this field if you're gonna be an asshole to the people you're caring for, but sometimes you just need whatever job you can get.)

Seriously, though, the first time I applied for a care work job (in October 2023, yes short timeline, like I said there's some toxic workplaces etc. out there), I applied to like ten or fifteen jobs over the course of a week or so. Within three weeks, I was working.

(And they did provide all of the training, fwiw)

If you need a job and no one is hiring, seriously consider looking into it

[bonefall]

I personally like Thunder's prosthetic. Explained it to my friend (who does use a mobility device, a cane and wheelchair, and listens to me rant and infodump about BB) and they agreed, it's important to know that not every person needs what someone wants to give them. It's another example of "bad ableist person does a thing that hurts a disabled person because they are bad and ableist".

Clear Sky got Jagged Peak killed and would have killed Sunlit Frost! He would absolutely force his disabled son to be "normal" and present it like a privilege. "I wouldn't do this for anyone else, it's special, why don't you want to be helped?"

Thunder Storm should toss it in Clear Sky's face. (I would say toss it into the river but we do not pollute waterways in this house)

Thank you for telling me this, and tell your friend I'm thanking them too! If they have anything else to add please forward what they have to say

Since BB!DOTC tackles some of the heaviest topics in the entire series because its canon equivalent is so dark, I think very carefully about what I do here and how I show it. I take feedback on its sensitive aspects very seriously. If I'm understanding the criticism properly, it's that I should avoid stigmatizing prosthetics by making sure Thunder Storm's not the only one with it-- which he's not! And I'll add even more.

I don't want to avoid something only because it's uncomfortable if the topic is important, and my portrayal is respectful. Ableism IS uncomfortable! There are some situations where a prosthetic is not wanted! I think the rejection of this particular one is both a good opportunity to show a type of ableism and ALSO is very fitting for the characters.

In BB!Clear Sky's mind, the villain, he's fixing an old mistake. He can't admit that he got Jagged Peak killed or take REAL accountability for it (though he will, occasionally, apologize insincerely), but deep in his bones, he knows what he did was cruel. He'll never tell anyone this because he doesn't really cognate it himself, but Thunder Storm NEEDS to take his gift.

If Thunder doesn't take it, it blows a hole in his newest story. You see, throwing Jagged Peak out was All That Could Have Been Done back then. It was a Tragedy and he simply Made A Hard Choice. He regrets it very much, But You Have To Understand.

But now? Now? Well, behold. Look at what he's accomplished since the tragic death of his little brother. His cats are well-fed, cared for, and stable enough to make such incredible advancements. If only Jagged Peak had been able to hold on longer, if only he could be here now, I could fix him.

Just like I can (MAKE YOU JUST LIKE ME) fix you.

"Everything I've ever done is for Jagged Peak. For Fluttering Wing. For you." Thunder Sky is SPECIAL, but if he rejects any gift, tries to turn down the "privileges" offered to him, in an instant that becomes ungratefulness and arrogance. He both forces him to be special, and then leverages it against him if it's rejected. "Spoiled brat, doesn't appreciate what I've worked so hard to give him."

It all goes back to him and his own guilt. He can NEVER be wrong. He can't accept his family doesn't have to be "normal" or reflect his own ability. He won't see himself as a bully, let alone a murderer. It was never about his son's comfort or finding out what Thunder Storm wants or needs, it was about his own ego.

...All that said I'm still taking feedback if there's anything else I should keep in mind, or if anyone has a counter point, especially if you also have experience here.

(In the interest of having a link trail for posterity, here's the critique/call for feedback this is in response to)

[d1sc01nf3rn0]

I'm seeing a lot of people with neurodivergency, specially under the autism spectrum say that "Laios is annoying, never shuts up, is insensitive, and I can't stand him"; and the irony is not lost on me lmao.

[aromacaque]

you want to analyze a cartoon that is something children can watch? ok here's the first and most important lesson ever.

have you ever heard of "suspension of disbelief?"

ok. next step. do you know what an unreliable narrator is and can you separate the character's perspective and opinions from the writers? because i promise you that the beliefs of the main character do not always reflect the writers and the point of analyzing media is to dissect that.

[momett]

the fight for accessibility doesn't begin and end with making a space accessible for people with sensory issues. making a space accessible for abled people with AU/HD is not the end-all-be-all of disability rights.

i'm not saying this is a bad thing. i have autism and greatly benefit from stimming being normalized and having dedicated low-sensory spaces.

but how am i supposed to access those benefits when your building has a staircase up to the front door and no ramp access? if i can't even get my proverbial, or literal, foot in the door, what use does you being sensory sensitive have to me, or the wider disabled community?

claiming your space is "accessible" when you don't even have the bare essentials to make your space accessible to a wheelchair user isn't accessibility. it's virtue signaling.

[soullessjack]

Also just since my one jack-psychosis post made its rounds i’d love to add on these things for extra salt in the wound:

-> “jack smiles, so happy to be so needed, so loved.”

-> “they’ll never want to be friends again.” [“and that’s important to you?”] “they raised me. taught me to be who i am.”

[swordsonnet]

sorry but saying that the accessibility needs of mentally disabled people are just preferences or about "comfort" is blatantly incorrect. if i can't enter a building because the bright lights and loud noises would send me into a meltdown, then i can't enter the building, and that's not less important than me not being able to enter a building because it's not wheelchair accessible. if you genuinely think that mentally disabled people aren't really struggling, and that it's okay to mock their very real concerns, then that just shows that you've been refusing to listen to their experiences. do better or shut the fuck up.

[familyabolisher]

i’m not saying it doesn’t ever happen but i’d be willing to bet that a substantial number of people making those “you can’t make a post about anything on here without someone jumping out at you to complain that you forgot to account for [x] hyperspecific experience” posts are reacting badly to having people challenge ableist assumptions going into whatever they said lol

[captain-lovelace]

[rollercoasterwords]

ok i know it's just a silly little fanfiction on the silly little internet but at this point i have seen a few different people discussing crimson rivers james + the possibility of him going back into the arena in a way that just feels...kind of casually ableist?? so. some thoughts:

if your first reaction when considering the possibility of james going back into the arena is anything along the lines of "nooo omg he would die so quickly/he wouldn't stand a chance/he'd be dead in a second because of his leg" please! please. please just pause and think for a moment about why that is your first response and how that is informing your speculation that it couldn't possibly be him, because we know pov characters won't die and of course james would die if he went back into the arena with a physical disability. here are some things to consider -

when you talk about things like "disadvantages," think about where you're drawing the line. in the first games, we saw that evan was taller than regulus and better built for climbing trees. he had an advantage that regulus did not have. peter was certain that he was going to die, because he wasn't as strong as some of the other tributes. vanity was physically "disadvantaged" when compared to...pretty much everyone else. both of them outlived tributes like avery and mulciber. clearly, physical disadvantages don't always matter the way you might think when it comes to who lives or dies.

think about what assumptions you're relying on and what lines you're drawing in your own thinking when it comes to disability. yes, james needs a cane. he also gets triggered by bugs. regulus can't fucking shower. regulus gets triggered by the smell and taste and sometimes even the sight of blood (if i'm remembering correctly?). sirius has dissociative amnesia. like. nobody who has been through the arena has come out the other side without some kind of issue, and all of those issues could affect them in different ways that could put them at a disadvantage if they go back into the arena. pause and consider why you might be responding to james's leg differently than you are to sirius's dissasociation, or regulus's panic attacks. what narratives about physical disability have you internalized?

consider that we have actually already seen disability addressed in the first arena! james needs glasses to see. many people don't consider needing glasses a disability, because the accomodations needed for those who wear glasses are widely available, and because it is so common + normalized that those who wear glasses don't face much (or any) stigma in their day to day lives. but regardless of how you'd define poor eyesight and where you'd draw that line, it is undeniably a physical disadvantage that james needs a physical accomodation to address in order to put him on a "level playing field" with anyone who has 20/20 vision. and how was it addressed? super-fancy high-tech contact! bam. clearly, the hallow does take disability into account in some ways, because they want to make sure they have an interesting game. so again, where's the assumption coming from that james's leg would put him at like...an egregious and impossible disadvantage?

i think it's completely valid to have discussions about disability and to talk about the reality of how a physical disability like james's might affect him in the arena. but i also think that discussion should be dissecting and pushing back against societal ableism surrounding physical disability, and saying shit like "oh he'd die so quickly bc of his leg" is...not doing that. so. just some food for thought!

[aurumacadicus]

“Sorry, English isn’t my first language” Well it’s mine and I still suck at it so like. You’re doing way better than me lmao

[odessastone]

I would honestly rather nobody talked about Symweaver at all than have to deal with Twitter’s “ew he’s GAY” and “Symmetra can’t fall in love, she’s autistic” (?!?) takes

[rookflower]

seems like you all enjoy my rambles! great. anyways it kinda sucks how few deaths in avos and tbc felt narratively satisfying. i think it's kind of a given that deaths will seem less cool when they are given to long-running characters without much room for buildup of their death, or nothing background characters being killed off-screen to reduce numbers rather than being written specifically to die like they were in the first arc etc but stilllll

[proudfreakmetarusonniku]

convinced that people who are convinced rei was meant to be creepy havent actually watched evangelion bc that can be debunked by like. watching the show. like rei isn’t framed as creepy she's framed as tragic. her circumstances are portrayed as frightening because they’re like. child abuse. but rei herself is framed as a traumatised child who’s unhealthy coping mechanisms like literally every other one of the children. like literally everything creepy Around her is not creepy bc of her it’s creepy because it’s clearly a sign of severe trauma and not because rei in and of herself is in any way wrong or creepy (hell, she's probably the major character who does the least amount of fucked up shit, along with asuka) because her upbringing is.

[decompose1]

im sorry i think people are weirder about tone tags than they need to be it does not take rocket science to figure them out most people will tell you if asked i literally JUST googled a few and the meaning was right there easily google-able. IDK LIKE you're welcome to not like them but i feel like the million posts about them not making sense is disingenuous and this ALWAYS HAPPENS when people try to make accessibility things. just say u dont like them and move on!!!! there is no need to be weird to autistic people who work differently from you!!

[serfuzzypushover]

homestucj