#would have been really technologically inept

[mythicalmagical-monkeyman]

Tv: *recording an episode of a show for Mei and MK to watch later* Macaque: *sees it's recording, so he takes out a gun and shoots it* Mei: WHAT THE HELL DUDE!? Macaque: It was recording, it was watching our every move Mei: NO IT WASN'T!! MK: *blinks* WHERE THE FUCK DID YOU GET A GUN FROM!!?? --Elsewhere-- Pigsy: *scratching his head* Now where did I put my gun?

[mf-headcannontap]

MARVEL Headcannon #6:

Everyone knows how Steve (and probably Bucky, let's be real) are technologically inept, right? Well, you know who else would also be technologically inept? Thor and Loki, but not for the reasons you think.

See Steve (and Bucky, but maybe he has some tech training as the WS, I can't see HYDRA not teaching him how to hack, so really just trivial things such as using social media might confuse him) has the problem of literally jumping forward in time. Thor and Loki would have the exact opposite problem.

Asgard is like this super advanced place that has literal magic and stuff. It's more than safe to assume that despite keeping older aesthetic, they are a highly advanced civilization that is a perfect blend of traditional and innovative technology. The technology of the 21st century here on earth would probably be something that predates them on Asgard, like how telegrams predate everyone currently alive.

So, while Steve is coming forward in time, Thor and Loki are going back in time technology-wise. And that's why they struggle. It would be like if teens today tried to figure out how to use a telegram (or a phone booth/rotary phone) when they are so used to touchscreen.

Loki is a very adaptable person and is the literal God of Fake-It-Till-You-Make-It, and Bucky has been trained (conditioned) to observe and learn (hence the staring problem) so those two are better at hiding their confusion with technology, but Steve and Thor? Yeah, those two visibly struggle.

The four of them have a "support group" of sorts, where they're just trying to figure tech out. Honorable group members include Carol Danvers and Peter Quill, who are alien tech whizzes, and yet are still stuck using 80's tech Earth-wise.

[peach-and-bugs]

Prompt based on the Lottie nsfw list...lottie finding out their partner is pregnant and just worshipping the fuck out of them

update: Chapter 1 is up!

imma just write my thought on this for now just bc I love this and wanna giggle and kick my feet over it, but if you want a longer fic like this PLEASE LET ME KNOW! because once I finish more of my requests I would LOVE to write a longer fic or a series of oneshots with this because I personally really enjoy pregnancy fics (a prime example is my series Baby Steps with Madam Satan/Lilith from Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) NSFW headcanons under the cut 💚 (18+, Minors DNI, you will be blocked)

But oh my god, she'd be thrilled! I'm assuming this was something you'd planned together and had been working toward, so there and been building excitement for a while now, but to finally have the confirmation would be like a godsend to her. She'd almost immediately start crying and kissing you all over because she just can't contain herself. Her brain would be going a hundred miles an hour as she starts making a mental list of everything she needs to do for you and she'd immediately want you to take off work, whether you work in the compound or do something else.

however, she gets extremely clingy with the news and it could become overbearing very quickly. She wants to do everything for you because you've taken on the job of bringing a new life into the world after all! Why should you need to do anything else? Of course, it's all just from her excitement rather than thinking you're incapable of caring for yourself. She knows that you're capable and that's what she loves about you. But even after a conversation about letting you do things for yourself, expect her to still try and do everything. She's just less instant about it now.

she's reading every parenting and pregnancy book she can find. I mentioned it a tiny bit before, but Lottie seems like more of the type to gravitate to reading for self-education than looking on the internet, because let's face it, she's completely technologically inept. She often ends your evenings cuddled up in bed with you pressed at her side, her fingers lazily tracing circles over your belly as she reads her book with her glasses on. She'll periodically hem and haw out loud over the text and read aloud facts or questions to you to get an active second opinion. The only issue is that she asks these questions when you are half or almost entirely asleep, so meaningful conversation is very trivial by then.

-💚-

Now, if you thought Lot was all over you before, you've got a whole other thing coming, and it only gets more intense the farther along you are. She can't explain it, but something about knowing you're carrying life everywhere you go, but specifically a life that's connected to the both of you, is so beautiful and extraordinary, and she feels this need to thank you for it in any way that she can.

Her drive goes way up when she starts being able to see the symptoms, which you make fun of her for because there's nothing sexy whatsoever about holding your hair back when you're sick. well, nothing sexy about you, because Lottie is just so good at taking care of you. She keeps your hair out of your face, brushing loose bits from your forehead and rubbing your back as she murmured soothing praises. But back to the point-

She loves the changes in your body no matter how you might feel about them because they're all signs that you're doing something so mesmerizing before her eyes. Honestly, at first, she feels bad for getting so aroused by something wouldn't have expected to have an effect on her and eventually, she confides in you on that, concerned that her increasing sexual attraction and drive stems from something negative. You of course assure her that it's completely natural, and while not as common in women, is a completely normal biological response for a partner to have.

With her need to please so high, she's practically begging you to let her eat you out almost nightly. She was always more aroused in the evenings, but this is a whole new level. her hands linger and wander far more than they did before and she almost throws a temper tantrum when you tell her you don't want to have sex. of course, she respects that, no questions asked, but she does pout till you give her something else to occupy her attention. It's quite cute honestly.

When you are in the mood though, she's extra eager to please, if that's even possible at this point. Her hands are always on you (or in you if you prefer). There can't be a moment where she's not touching you. The whole time, while her mouth is free she's murmuring honey-sweet words of praise and admiration, sinking every feeling she possibly can into how she pleases you because in her mind, making sure that you're pleasured to the fullest while carrying her life is the highest thanks she can give.

She's kissing you everywhere, craving the taste of your skin almost constantly. She's fully devout to you like a saint is devout to her god. In her eyes, you are her ultimate god, her muse, and her master all in one, and she will do absolutely anything it takes to be told that she's done a good job and you're pleased with her.

[cantsayidont]

So, to the extremely limited extent I still care, the question THE ACOLYTE raises is, "Were the Jedi ever actually cool?" The prequels and THE CLONE WARS make clear that by the time of the Clone Wars, they're in pretty grim shape as an order: morally bankrupt, willfully oblivious, self-deluded zealots whose determination to leverage their apparently diminishing power (which even for masters doesn't seem to rise much above the level of parlor tricks) to maintain their privileged political position eventually precipitates their transformation from poor diplomats and inept cops into incompetent military officers, leading a cadre of child soldiers and an army of manufactured slaves in a war that probably wouldn't have happened at all if the Jedi Council's go-to response to any crisis weren't "self-defeating coverup." Yoda and Obi-Wan, who in the original movies come across as wise and basically kindly, if conflicted and somewhat manipulative, emerge in the prequels, TCW, and the awful OBI-WAN KENOBI show as truly contemptible — Yoda a cackling war criminal, Obi-Wan a dupe and a coward — while the sequels and THE MANDALORIAN emphasize that Luke Skywalker's determination to repeat the exact same mistakes almost immediately plunges the galaxy back into fascism. As Hal Holbrook says in ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

THE ACOLYTE is set a century before that, but it goes out of its way to present the Jedi Order in exactly the same ways: kidnapping children; a culture of emotional abuse in the name of religious and martial discipline; a focus on really incompetent police work; constant coverups and political ass-covering; and really very little personal/supernatural power in the context of the general level of technology. The Jedi are not wise, they're not clever, they're not competent, and it's hard to see what they're good for except maybe as a symbol to people who've never actually encountered them.

In a franchise more complex and grown-up than STAR WARS is usually willing to be, that might be interesting, and the books and comics have occasionally grappled with these points with somewhat more nuance, but the onscreen canon since 1999 has been pretty emphatic that the Jedi are a blight on the galaxy. It's hard not to come away from this stuff feeling like everyone else would be better off if there were no Force-users of any kind, which I assume is not the intent. It's like if all canon Marvel and DC superhero characters were like the "heroes" of THE BOYS or BRATPACK all the time.

[teslacoils-and-hubris]

If in the modern age, what tf2 characters do you think would use tiktok? Sorry im trying to think of an epic question but thats all i can imagine

don't apologize because i clearly had too much fun with this

scout without a doubt. im Not on tiktok so all i know about it from watching commentary youtubers talk about shit i dont care about in the background while i do other stuff, but he would absolutely get sucked into that weird NPC trend. I can see him watching it for hours, then deciding he'd be suuuuper popular if he did it. He does get super popular but its only because people make a game of getting him to break character which is super easy and happens constantly. he's constantly getting into fights with people and is only popular because he becomes this big punching bag laughing stock. Scout of course has no idea about this and thinks he's Finally Made It as an influencer until admin finds out he's been livestreaming from the base and has him shot live on stream and has all traces of his account scrubbed (though some people still got screen recordings) and it becomes this sort of internet true crime obsession for years.

I think Pyro downloaded it to play with filters and got sad when they didn't work on the gas mask. i could see them having a 'does it burn' type channel where the ending clip no matter what it started with or how small it was is always a massive inferno with their thumbs up in the corner and people go wild for it

I think medic would have fun doing tiktok dances and pretending to be a real doctor while telling people that actually *extremely dangerous health hazard* is not only completely safe but really good for you actually!! doing surgery on yourself is all a part of healthy curiosity and totally safe to remove your own heart for fun and profit!

i don't think any of the others would be on tiktok. heavy has a facebook but its all just minion memes and pictures of his guns and hasn't been updated in like 5 years. Spy and Sniper don't touch social media with a ten foot pole. Spy for spy reasons and sniper is a technologically inept hermit who has never had anything fancier than a nokia.

[amarriageoftrueminds]

What do you think about Howard Stark? Describe his character please. This character seems multi-faceted. Sometimes in the series Agent Carter he was shown as “stupid”, but if he really was like that, how would he have achieved all this...

Short Answer:

L o n g Answer:

The basis of the assertion that Howard Stark is smart is this idea of him as a genius inventor, right? Well, I can't speak to the comics, but the MCU's versions of the Starks aren't, actually, inventors. They're thieves. They are your standard billionaire tycoons who hire the actually-inventive people, of lower SEC, take the intellectual and intellectual property credit for whatever they invent, (do 12% of the work?), and then rake in the cash and acclaim. (And if said invention doesn't work, or proves disastrously dangerous in an unanticipated way, well, that's other peoples' fault). Basically, the problem is: Because we know Howard is a liar and a thief [see below], and rich enough to have scientists working under him and to be able to cover up his crimes, any time Howard claims to have invented something we have to take that with a massive pinch of salt. Which means (if we're engaging in good faith critical thinking, here) that we should also approach any claims of genius with a similar level of skepticism.

.

CATFA:

So, from the beginning, what do we have in CATFA that "shows" Howard being a genius?

Prototype Hovercar / gravitic reversion technology, that immediately fails. (No proof that that was Howard's invention and not an SEI -- a Stark-Employee's Invention. Either way, Howard would be taking credit for it. If it was Howards invention... then he's inept, because it immediately fails. And Howard is doing what Tony does; putting on a big show to the public to show off how great he is. That's a grifter's move, not a scientist's.)

The vitaray tube (which Stark is in charge of, and flipping the switches on... but he is also surrounded by technicians and other scientists, including Erskine. How do we know it wasn't one of them who invented all this and Stark is just taking credit because they're his employee and that's his go-to move? Him being a wealthy industrialist provides an instant explanation for him being involved, even if he never personally lifted a finger. But the Army's "number one weapons contractor" has no reason to be there as an inventor, because nothing they're working on is a weapon?? In fact, since Erskine has created a version of the serum which requires vitaradiation, isn't it most likely it was he who designed the vitaray tube without which this version of serum would be much less effective? Just because Stark is in the room with the vitaray tube, and in charge of operating it, that doesn't prove he invented it.)

Stark saying "speaking modestly, I'm the best mechanical engineer in this country..." (Which is still a tell not a show, but I think we can take him being a mechanical engineer as true because if it was false the other characters would know... However, it is still not impossible that this is Musk-esque, 'delulu billionaire calling himself XYZ because he can pay people not to contradict him' syndrome. Calling himself the best is typical Stark hubris, and we have seen nothing yet to support it.)

"...but I don't know what's inside this thing or how it works." (Which would seem to undermine any claims to genius. However, if him being flummoxed is because Zola has the tesseract to study whereas Stark doesn't, then this rare moment of admitted ignorance doesn't actually contradict the idea that Stark is a smart guy!!)

Possibly a transponder, which also immediately fails because it's not bullet proof. (When Steve queries it, ignoring Peggy, Howard merely says "it's been tested more than you, pal." Which doesn't prove that it has been / that he's telling the truth, but if he is then that only proves that he know that particular design has been tested, not that he invented it, and/or he is touchy about skepticism because he sees it as his -- whether it is or not. Oof this is confusing. 😵)

Howard diving for cover when Peggy, throwing a tantrum, fires a gun at Steve while he's holding a vibranium shield (Despite what Tony tries to claim, that shield is not Howard's discovery, that's Wakanda's. How did Howard get hold of that vibranium, legally? why doesn't he want Steve picking up that shield? is it basic greed? why is he ducking for cover? is it because he doesn't know the vibranium will protect them, or because he doesn't trust Peggy's aim, or both? if the former, why does the man taking credit for the vibranium shield, who was just talking about its properties, not act as if he knows its properties??)

a cut to Steve having a new suit design after talking to Howard about it (but Steve himself says those were his ideas -- perhaps they were even Bucky's ideas, since he was the one urging Steve to keep "the outfit." And Howard is surrounded by other scientists. We have no way to say which one of them came up with Steve's technical suit, including Howard.)

A magnetic anti-tank bomb used by Jacques Dernier (again, we don't know who came up with that; could've been Dernier himself. Nothing in the movie actually shows or tells us it's SSR tech. So we could assume it's SSR tech, but we don't know. And even if it was, that doesn't make it Therefore Stark's invention. Even if he says it is, which he doesn't. 🤦‍♀️)

Steve's booby-trapped harley davidsons (Again: we don't know for sure those are SSR tech / Hydra are shown on motorcycles so it could be another stolen design / We do know Stark would take credit either way. Tony having his own fancy samurai chopper in his garage in the present-day also doesn't prove it, either. He could just like harleys?? To me the biggest piece of 'evidence' that these might be Stark originals is how flashy they are? 🤔 And/or the way Steve tosses them aside like trash LOLOL. 😂)

Howard finding the dropped tesseract / having technology which could detect the tesseract (This is coming straight after the Valkyrie raid and/or Zola's capture, so it could be that Zola and Red Skull, himself a scientist, had invented something to detect that gamma radiation, and Howard just purloined it. It's not impossible that Howard invented something to do this job... but that's just not what's shown. You could also see this scene as evidence of navigational talent by the guys actually piloting the ship, not a sign of Howard's competence, for example! Even if they found the tesseract because of re-tracing the Valkyrie's flight path exactly, that could've been accomplished because of Hydra records from the base, not because of Howard's genius. We just don't know. 🤷‍♀️ Howard being present while something clever may (or may not) be happening isn't proof he's responsible for it.)

TL;DR: CATFA writers are BAD at showing genius instead of telling.

sidenote: all of CATFA + deleted scenes included, Stark was actually a dick to Steve. Repeatedly sneered at him -- to his face, behind his back, and in front of his boss -- and questioned his intelligence and competence, despite being baffled by the same things as him. This idea of him and Steve as friends is a retcon, to try and bolster the Stark mythos, just as with Peggy's whole career leapfrogging off being 'Cap's Girl,' she says. Steve and Stark in CATFA were barely civil. (You can see they started this retcon post Avengers 1, because in that movie Steve has a bitch-face on the second he hears the name 'Stark' from Fury, criticises Howard's actions with the Tesseract, and dislikes his son Tony on sight.)

. So are there any inventions we can definitely say are Howard's?

Agent Carter:

Has been declared non-canon (most of it can't be, if you consider the timeline is impossible). And tbh Anon, to do a deep dive on Howard I'd have to re-watch the Agent Carter show, and (to borrow an earthy phrase of my father's) I'd rather put my dick in a vice. 😬 But for argument's sake / from memory we have:

1) Howard claiming Steve as one of his accomplishments (not, for example, Steve's own? or Abraham Erskine's? Which is funny, cuz in CATFA Howard was being nice-ish to Steve's face, but then talking shit about him behind his back. Before handing over Steve's shield / discussing suit designs with him, Stark was busy sneering to one of his lackeys that he bets Steve didn't notice a certain property of the tesseract tech… the tech which Steve himself had captured for them, without getting blown up like Howard does, even despite being shot at. So how's about you show some gratitude, Howard? Or some basic professional courtesy? Ah, but that would mean giving other people credit...)

2) Finished Hovercar (Still breaks down. Stark is shown working on it when it breaks down, though? An improved version using a '62 Chevy Corvette appears in AOS… but who knows who was responsible for those improvements. It's credited to Stark, by Stark, but what does that prove??)

3) Midnight Oil. (Not proven as Stark's invention, merely taken from Stark's lab, and from the vault underneath his mansion. Could've been one of his underling's inventions and he'd still say it was his. In fact, when asked "you invented a poison gas?" he says "No! Well, not intentionally." But, interestingly, then goes off on a tangent without confirming that it was he, himself, that discovered it. I'm reading a book about Operation Paperclip currently, and this reminds me of the way Nazis talked about their discoveries... if it was something bad, it was never them personally who did it. IMO, this is nevertheless the closest to painting Stark as a plausible 'inventor' we ever come. Not the genius who thinks of things, but the wealthy opportunist who accidentally blunders across things while researching unrelated things in his lab... things which may or may not have been invented by someone else. We have Howard claiming he severed ties with the US Army after this. But he's fine for the psychochemical gas to be handed over to a US alphabet agency... co-founded by a US Army Colonel. How is this severing ties??)

4) Stark Heat Vest (made of an alloy, insert [who in the Stark Labs really invented it? we don't know!! disclaimer] Which transforms into a suicide vest when you lock it. Another example of one of "Howard's" inventions being dangerous ill-conceived.)

5) Constrictor (a back massager which causes involuntary muscle contraction to the point of breaking bones. Another fuck up. Again, it's stored in Howard's property -- his yacht, The Heartbreak -- and credited to him, but is it really his tho? And if it is, that's not an accomplishment.)

6) Blitzkrieg Button (not actually an invention, but a container for the last vial of Steve's blood. So: a. Stark will canonically LIE and claim to have invented a thing, b. that doesn't even exist, c. to cover up the fact that he's a thief, meaning: d. Stark is genuinely talented at creating 'fake' inventions?? e. Stark wants Steve's blood to make money. (They tried to frame this as Peggy being tired of compromising her principles for him. LOLOL 😭 What principles?? She doesn't take Steve's blood off Stark, she lets him take it!)

7) Electroshocker (Ohhhh, this from the guy who knew what was being done to Bucky -- ie. being electroshocked?? And no one can work out what the purpose of this device is?? Do I have to draw a diagram of why this is suspicious??)

8) Camera pen (Hardly unique to Stark, but once again: just because he owns the rights, doesn't make it his invention, even if he says it is. And he uses it to take indecent pictures of women without their knowledge or consent. JFC...)

9) Photonic Amplifier (usual insert [who in the Stark Labs really invented it? we don't know!! disclaimer] problem. The sheer number of things he's crediting himself with inventing, by the way, is actually more of an indication that he's probably just taking credit from someone else. If they'd only said he invented one or two things...)

10) Gamma Cannon (insert [who in the Stark Labs really invented it? we don't know!! disclaimer] problem; Howard sends the specs code for it for it via telegram, but that doesn't prove he invented it. Oyvey. He does take time out to try and come up with a name for the rift-generator tho... which he stole.)

11) Jitterbug (insert [who in the Stark Labs really invented it? we don't know!! disclaimer] problem, Stark's Butler knowing the codes to use it still doesn't prove Stark invented it.)

12) Nitramene (Quote from the show: "Howard is working on a formula for molecular nitramene [...] Supposedly, it has its roots in his work with vita radiation." a. What do you mean "supposedly?" (Word doing a lot of heavy lifting there). b. What do you mean "with" vitaradiation? Not on? c. What work? Genuinely. Erskine is the one who invented serum that requires vitaradiation, not Stark. Nothing in CATFA credits Stark with coming up with that idea, not even Stark himself, and there is no pre-Steve vitaradiation-related invention mentioned to account for why Stark would know about/be working on it already. (Could the hovercar perhaps be vitaradiation related somehow? But even then, that doesn't prove it's Stark's expertise.) The person actually most-likely to know about radiation other than Erskine would be Zola, the tesseract guy, whom they conveniently do not mention. d. So this is a second-hand account?

13) And when you say "Howard" is working on it, do you mean Howard, or Howard's employees?

14) "My formula for molecular nitramene. Technically, we're not even sure it works, but, well, let's face it… I invented it, so it works" Now, unless Howard has suddenly started using 'they' pronouns or the Royal We, mid-sentence, notice the switcheroo there? One second it's Howard's formula, but as soon as doubt is introduced it's "we" who aren't sure about it. Who's this mysterious we, Howard? I thought you just said it was your formula?? How could the guy who invented it not know if it works? Notice how it's only his alone if he's taking credit, rather than blame, and how he's hedging -- giving himself a get-out-of-jail-free excuse, in advance -- in case it doesn't work? And it's Edwin Jarvis, a Butler, who knows how to neutralise it, "render it inert with a solution of sodium hydrogen carbonate and acetate." Does that 'prove' Edwin Jarvis is a genius inventor? No, of course not. It's just supposed to prove that he... merely... works with... a genius inventor. 😳 AND GUESS WHO SHOWS UP in connection with Nitramene?

15) Anton Vanko, the man Howard stole the arc reactor design from, as revealed in Iron Man 2, and whom Howard had deported and reduced to penury so he could do that. That's The invention that basically made Stark Industries!

16) And Anton Vanko is also, coincidentally, linked to this other huge invention Howard is crediting as his own? And it's he who knows that Nitramene emits vitaradiation? If Howard is the so-called vitaradiation expert... why isn't it Howard telling Peggy that?)

Even if they had showed a hundred inventions of Howard's in AC, the fact that they also establish him as a greedy, unscrupulous liar, and a thief of industrial secrets, makes any other "true" claims suspect. TL;DR: AC writers are BAD at showing genius instead of telling.

.

Sidenote: I've commented before how AC is basically inept writers furiously trying to retcon the shitty writing of Peggy in CATFA and make out like they wrote a good female character, when they didn't (largely by stealing all Bucky's traits and giving them to her. As if that's what the issue was.)

But there's also a disquieting disparity between Howard Stark in CATFA and AC that I never noticed before.

In CATFA, he's referred to as a "weapons contractor."

And yet none of the technology he's connected to in CATFA is actually a weapon. (With the possible exception of the flamethrowers on the Harley WLAs. Putting magnets on a pre-existing tank bomb doesn't count, IMO).

But by the time of AC, only a year later, we're hearing about these hideous inventions Stark claims he created (and claims to regret) which were used in the war. There's a direct throughline from his fascination with the tesseract to the Hydra-guns Steve was so appalled to find in SHIELD's arsenal in Avengers 1, just like what Bucky and the Howlies were forced to make in Zola's POW camp (which violates the Geneva Conventions, btw).

And yet, during the war, Steve somehow saw none of these devices of Stark's. And there was no hint of Stark's thievery back then, either.

...Isn't that odd??

Was the guy who sneered at Steve behind his back, perhaps, also hiding other things from him as well?

.

Iron Man 2:

Other than stealing from Anton Vanko, we have Howard building into the design of the Stark Expo the secret to an unknown element (I think Tony tried to get it named Badassium) he claims he discovered. (Seriously, guys, pick a fucking lane, is Howard a weapons contractor industrialist, a mechanical engineer, a geneticist, or a chemist, which is it?) Hypothetically, if Nitramene was actually Anton Vanko's discovery, and he also invented the arc reactor, isn't there a much greater likelihood that it was he who discovered the arc-reactor-saving unknown element? (And the reason Vanko's son doesn't know would even be the same reason why Howard's son doesn't know: because the technology to synthesise that element hadn't been created yet.) Once again, we only have Howard The Thief's word for it that Badassium was his discovery, in the movie where we find out he steals other peoples' ideas and takes the credit. I'll take that with a huge pinch of salt.

.

Elsewhere:

There's a serial pattern with Iron Man villains where they're basically just Tony but with protagonist-centered-morality declaring whatever Tony does only bad if it's bad guys doing it. And Tony and Howard are cut from the same cloth. So Obadiah Stane? That's Howard. (How much more powerful that story would've been if they went there!) Anton Vanko? That's Howard's demon. Justin Hammer? Doing exactly what Howard did -- ripping off someone else's work, including his own employee's, and selling it to the US military. (We even have the like-for-like moment where Justin Hammer tries to do a showy demonstration of "his" invention, and it goes disastrously wrong... because he doesn't actually understand what it is he's trying to pass off as his own. So he has to hire someone who does -- ie. Anton Vanko.) Why are we supposed to see all these people as villains and dilettantes, not geniuses, but not Howard Stark for doing the same thing? It's just protagonist-centered morality. Even Wernher von Braun, who is alluded to in IM3. They try to paint him as a "starry-eyed" scientist who just wanted to do space travel uwu 🥺 (Definitely not because of Walt Disney making movies with him at all honestly!!) In fact, von Braun was a high-ranking Nazi in the SS. He was nominated for SS membership by Heinrich Himmler. He was decorated by Hitler himself (you can see in photos of him wearing a golden badge on his tie... that's from Hitler). He was in charge of his own concentration camp (Mittelwerk Nordhausen-Dora) full of slaves supplied by the SS, at a rent of 3 marks per day, and created to build V-2 rockets, in an underground bunker just like Camp Lehigh had. (Krausberg and the Valkyrie base in CATFA could've been lifted straight from his story!) 20,000+ people died in Nordhausen-Dora. And von Braun went personally to Buchenwald concentration camp (after penning a cheery letter about it), which was only 50 miles away, to hand-pick skilled slaves to build a lab for himself. And then, despite all this, he was sent to the US under Operation Paperclip. And the guys that worked with him on rockets? That's what Howard did with Zola. Zola is the von Braun to his Walt Disney.

.

Ant Man

And then there is the twin example of Hank Pym and Mitchell Carson. In What If...? when Hank Pym and Howard Stark are co-founding SHIELD (but not Peggy), there are no Nazis in it (this is also a consequence of Steve and Bucky still being around to nip that in the bud.) But in Ant Man, Hank Pym is shown confronting his colleagues about unethical behaviour (that being: a Hydra agent stealing his inventions), and leaving SHIELDra in protest... But Howard Stark (surprise surprise!) is happy to stay. And, obviously, has no problem with stealing other peoples' ideas. Which is what Mitchell Carson, the Hydra agent, does.

.

Endgame

Flashforward, and Stark is wandering round a "quasi-fascistic" (his own son's words!!!) black site, looking for his buddy "Arnie" (Arnim Zola, the Nazi rocket scientist who also tortured American POWS and utilised them as slave labour till they could be worked to death and replaced: "...use up what strength they have left, Doctor. There are always more workers.") And letting this random Tony Potts guy wander off with the suitcase containing the tesseract. And he is shown doing this, right next to the computer that will be housing Zola's brain, in the future:

.

What If...?

The mecha ('Hydra stomper') suits shown as Howard's in What If...? were actually Zola's creation in CATFA, not Howards. Even the writers will steal other peoples' ideas to give them to Howard! (Even A.I. is first shown in connection with Zola, not Tony). In regards to his general character, here's a meta about how Howard definitely knew about what was being done to Bucky in the main timeline / CACW. (Mr Professional Thief has WS serum in his trunk, which he apparently got after "a quick stop ... at the Pentagon." And AC proves he would steal even from his own 'side' to try and make money off serum. That to me makes it obvious why Hydra killed him: because he's a greedy thief, not because he's anti-Hydra. He was fleeing with his loot to the Bahamas, at Christmas...) Here's a meta about how What If...? s2 confirmed that he knew. And here's meta on how What If...? s2 SHOWED that Howard would have no problems using Bucky exactly the same way Hydra did (while dehumanizing him. As long as it's convenient.) .

Conclusion

So, Anon... you say Stark is multifaceted. I'd say, sure he is. He is, after all, a bastard on many levels. (Absolutely valid writing decision. Simultaneously claiming he isn't, though? That's a nonsense writing choice.) You say he couldn't achieve what he achieved if he wasn't smart. I'd say: sure he's smart! Canonically, he has a talent for lying and charming and stealing, (not only lying but lying convincingly to professional liars, whose job it is to detect liars), abusing/exploiting women, kinda slut-shaming women (how many names has he dropped? what was the purpose of his fondue comment?), abusing his position of power to destroy his victims, and to cover up his crimes, taking credit for other peoples' work, ignoring human suffering when it suits him, and collaborating with Nazis. And of course, the most important thing: putting on a show! But none of those things takes a genius... 😕

[vegitoswife-archive]

A/N: New indefinite fic project since, based on the last poll, a lot of people liked the idea of it! Certain parts may be chronological (which will be specified if so) but will in general be disconnected. Some parts may be lengthy, others short. It really depends on the prompt of them and what I can think up!

TAGLIST: @carnal-lnstinct / @yeowangies / @enayru (Like this post to be added to my tag list!)

Part 1 - Spending Time Together

CW(s): None.

★ VEGITO

-Despite how much he loved to train and exercise, you two actually got a lot of opportunities to hang around one another. Unfortunately, Vegito wasn’t really…used to it that much.

-All of Goku’s past friends very rarely sought him out for his company, his and Vegeta’s children all had their own lives, and he refused to go near Bulma or Chi Chi if he could help it, so he adapted to being alone virtually 24/7. Until you came along into his life, of course.

-He tried to hide it underneath his cocky and playful demeanor, but his fondness of you was incredibly obvious with how he sought out your company almost every day. You found it a little cute, but it additionally took on a different meaning when you learned that the chances of him being truly lonely were incredibly high. Too high. Even if he brushed off the questions, you could tell by the look in his eyes that he wasn’t the happiest. Overall, it would likely do you both some good if you spent time getting to know one another better.

If you’re a practicing marital artist or someone who simply likes fighting, bonding with him over either or will be easy. Vegito would even be thrilled to spar with you, and see just how you’d fare against him.

If you have absolutely no combat experience, you could still have some engaging conversations with him over his own love of it. Being a Saiyan, he’s quite literally built for it. Vegito would easily get wrapped up in discussing his techniques and style, whether you understood the terminology or not, that he’d basically ramble with an enthusiastic shine to his eyes. It’s endearing.

-Outside of fighting-related activities, both of you would spend a lot of downtime in the comfort of your home. You have your own hobbies that you could try introducing to Vegito, but there’s a moderate chance depending on what they are that he either won’t understand them much or will think they’re a bit strange. Goku’s hobbies were very construction-based (the Son family’s home needed regular upkeep) and Vegeta…didn’t have hardly any hobbies at all, so Vegito wasn’t exactly dealt a deck of cards that helped him view the world outside the lens of a recluse. He was admittedly technology-inept on top of it.

-Don’t get him wrong, he likes to join you in doing things you find personal enjoyment in regardless of how weird or pointless they might come across as to him, but you’ll have to expect Vegito to be somewhat awkward with them…initially anyway. For example, he’s not going to be the best at playing a video game with you at first, but you’ll be surprised at how fast he can learn the ropes.

-If you’re an avid movie watcher, one activity you can always fall back onto with Vegito is sitting down on the couch and showing him the films you either like or think he’d get a kick out of. Especially those of the horror genre. He would be very amused in getting to see what typical things Earthlings define “horror” as being.

★ GOGETA

-If he’s not training, then chances are he’s with you.

-He honestly doesn’t really try to hide how much he likes being around you. He wouldn’t show it much on his face as he’s the stoic type, but if you ask him if he enjoys your company he’ll bluntly answer with something like “Yeah. Wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.”

-He doesn’t talk to Goku’s past friends hardly ever, and he overall is a very reserved person. Being alone frankly doesn’t bother Gogeta much, but with you, the realization that ‘hey having someone else around is actually kind of nice’ lit up like a light switch had been flipped on. On certain days, he might even act like a puppy in a way. Just…following you around or just observing you quietly with a rather soft look.

-He’d like to learn about your hobbies, but if they’re tied to social media, he’ll definitely be staying out of them. He really values his privacy. If you’re into them: the only video games he’d ever be remotely interested in are puzzle games (especially the innovative types), but since those usually aren’t multiplayer you can’t count on him to play anything with you unless you catch him on a real good day & he feels like humoring you.

-Sure, it’s easy to discuss matters related to fighting with him, but you’ll find that he’s surprisingly very introspective; if not philosophical. There’s a lot on Earth and out in the cosmos that’s either barely known or utterly unknown. It’s not an uncommon thing to find the mysteries of life and existence itself engaging, and despite being one of the most powerful beings in the universe who has personally dealt with supernatural things, the same goes for Gogeta. His nature as a fusion already throws what’s accepted as “natural life” into disarray.

-It might be cliché, but he would greatly enjoy settling down with you somewhere quiet at night to stargaze or the like and chat with you about your own feelings about a variety of things. You can be a ‘deep thinker’ too or the sort who maintains a simplistic view of life, it won’t matter. He just wants to put in true effort to understand you, like how you do with him.

-Something else you may find surprising is that Gogeta does like to read. Have any books? You could lend one or more to him (don’t worry he’ll take good care of them) and see if they catch his interest. After he potentially finishes them, you could have discussions with him over them. Maybe he’ll have the same opinions as you, maybe not, or maybe you both could have fun ripping into the terrible story or characters.

-In general, your time with Gogeta will primarily be you both enjoying one another’s presence. Unless he feels up to talking, he’s content to merely sit or lie in silence with you. He doesn’t care for small talk, and definitely doesn’t need it to remain keen on sticking around you if you both aren’t doing anything at the moment. Expect most days to be relatively chill.

[17magpiesinatrenchcoat]

TELL US YOUR PK HEADCANONS!!! (if you wanna)

Oh HELL yeah

I’ve already said a bunch of these on ig… but you guys get to have more 😈😈

putting a cut here bc it’s fuckin long lol 💀💀

My fan name for him is Astennu!! Means god of the moon.. and WL’s name is Faraway :D

pan/polygamous: ]

autistic ofc bc I love projecting he's very bad at masking too, he's good at keeping up one specific persona (typical cold ruler mask..) but as soon as someone doesn't act the exact way he expects them to do he doesn't know how to react, and the mask slips, very practiced and good but only in very specific circumstances, another reason why he's so antisocial

he is good at heart and has strong morals, but they're usually overpowered by fear, so he usually just does what's easiest instead of what's right, even though it hurts him more in the long run

he doesn't give a shit about gender, everyone just started calling him a guy and he was like "ok lol"

likes singing and is quite good at it too!! (or. in the case of my au, he was before his voice got messed up)

NO spacial awareness whatsoever, always gets lost in thought, constantly bumping into shit, , he has a bunch of gnarly scars just from that

his godly powers are too much for his mortal-ish body, he regularly gets sick bevause of them, and it was even worse before he used most of them to create hallownest, he was basically permanently in pain lol LOSER

he can't control his glow, so it betrays his emotions a lot (and he can accidentally flashbang people when he feels really strong emotions)

refuses to be vulnerable at all. pushes everyone away, somewhat consciously too, believing himself to be a burden and that they'd be better off without him

drinks literally nothing but coffee {or the hallownest equivalent to it anyway)

very bad memory (projecting again)

he doesn't know how to interact with. people. much less be a parent. he's a terrible parent LOL he tries but he's just not good at it whatsoever

kind of a shitty immune system due to his powers making him sick so often, another reason he's reclusive

ameteur painter (he doesn't understand it much but it makes lurien really happy so)

his special interest is just. inventing intricate technology in general, he completely hyper focuses on it and would spend literal days doing it if it wasn't for wl dragging him out of his workshop LOL

EXTREMELY deadpan and can be very rude without realising it

Stuff always gets stuck in his horns and he usually doesn’t notice until it gets pointed out (which usually take hours bc wl and lurien think it’s funny lol)

Literally does not know how to make connections with people whatsoever every connection he has made has been accidental

dating both lurien and wl obviously 🫶🫶🫶(wl is also dating dryya but I haven’t put much thought into that one yet I should) the gods do not care for monogamy

Hmm.. for his relationships with some of the other characters..

realising that I have not fleshed out his relationship with wl really omg what’s wrong with me I need to fix that ☹️☹️ but uh here’s the other characters for now lol

him and lurien are both deranged autism buddies <33 lurien does not take any form of authority seriously at all, and doesn’t like taking orders (pathological demand avoidance, autistic thing, pretty sure I have it lol) and so.. he never like. acted like pk was a god. he just treated him like a normal person. and pk had no clue how to react to that so he could not keep up his mask around lurien at all.. so eventually they ended up realising they have common interests and ended up becoming friends.. and later.. hmmm?? they are both incredibly awkward and socially inept lol so it took way longer to happen then it should 💀

but yeah they have a very funky dynamic LOL they can talk for hours about their common interests <3 and hmm.. their dynamic is basically this

He never thought that much of herrah other than being vaguely scared of her;; but she fucking hated him LOL she thought he was an inept cowardly moron

but.. the more time she spent as queen, she grew to understand him a lot more as she felt how much that role and pressure could tear someone down

She still doesn’t like him that much, but she understands why he is the way he is now, and tries to be nicer bevause she knows how it feels

He and monomon have a very weird relationship.. they’re kinda friends but also kinda fucking hate each other LOL;; like;; theyre really fucking mean and hostile to each other but it’s not really genuine, it’s more out of habit than anything, and they do care about each other and look out for each other, it’s just sort of the manifestation of them both being emotionally inept assholes who don’t know how to communicate, so they sorta take it out on each other, but neither of them mind, they know neither of them actually mean it

so yeah sorta like;; idk weird ass friendship where they both pretend to hate each other to vent at how shit the world is but they both know neither of them mean it bevause the anger isn’t directed at each other at all, and it’s kinda become a game between them who can come up with the most ridiculous insults LOL

Uhhh I guess that’s it lol!! Yeah I said there was a lot 💀 if you have any questions or more headcanon ideas for me… well you know where to find me 💜💜

[iceskatingmobsters]

been working on my own headcanon timeline of owv's early years, so have a little bit about hornfels:

hornfels is just as adventurous and mischievous as slate and feldspar are when they're hatchlings, but is much less bombastic about it. despite their insatiable curiosity (or perhaps because of it) they're a pretty quiet kid. consequently, they're warned to stay well away from Danger Trio's wilder schemes and spends most of their time around the older hatchlings and the adults as a result. you know the quiet kid who was labelled as "mature for their age" but was kinda socially inept? that's hornfels. they don't have anything against the other members of their cohort, though; slate scares the shit out of them but they think slate is stupid smart, gossan seems funny and cool, and they are enthralled by feldspar's reckless curiosty. but they don't wanna get in trouble, because they're responsible or whatever. don't worry about the burns on their hands, they definitely got too close to a campfire and they definitely weren't messing around near the ghost matter patch again. for sure learned the first time not to be anywhere near the ghost matter patch.

they join in for as many shenanigans as they secretly can, anyways. those three are onto something, even if none of them -- including hornfels -- know exactly what, yet.

the old archivist/museum curator, gravel, sees a bit of themself in hornfels and takes them under their wing. gravel is of the firm belief that remembering the past and holding to tradition is what keeps the hearthians and their culture alive -- every archaic item from their past, every story has a lesson to be learned and is worthwhile to keep and remember. that isn't to say that they refuse to move on with the times, that would be a different sort of stupid, but to ignore the lessons of the past is, at best, idiocy, and at worst, deadly. needless to say they kinda hate the "space program" because the whole village knows what happens to people who stray too close to the geysers.

hornfels kinda loves the space program, which is a fucking problem. they start out as an occasional consultant -- they're easy to find most clear nights with a telescope, anyways, so they're Danger Trio's best source for questions about potential space travel who will actually give them the time of day, as long as it's out of gravel's earshot. and then it became hornfels seeking the others out, asking about their progress, offering their own ideas and advice and theories and and and...

here's the thing. hornfels likes archival work and history work, they do. they took gravel's stance that every moment deserves to be remembered and learned from to heart. but space calls to them in a language they can't ignore -- the call of endless discovery, of new technology and flora and fauna, and not just studying the stars on clear nights but being out there, with them, and maybe even finding other people out there in the great expanse if they're lucky. hornfels thinks they will be. there's a couple odd skeletons in those ruins in the mountains and with the expansiveness tektite described, there's no way those were the only ones of their kind out there.

hornfels stakes their claim on a spot as a member of ventures, proper, after feldspar blows themself up the first time (unfair of them to think that way, on second thought, that accident wasn't really anyone's fault) under the condition of utmost secrecy. which is fine! they'd snuck out to cause trouble with the others when they were really young, and the other three have been working in relative secrecy ever since the first barrel they threw into a geyser and got really serious about the whole thing. they're a lot more flippant about it than hornfels, is, though, because getting caught just means less resources and tighter works schedules, for them. for hornfels, not so much -- despite their disagreements on risk-taking and the price of progress, hornfels deeply respects and cares for gravel, and going behind their back like this is necessary and painful. they'll lose a lot more than a week in the hatchling cabin if they're well and truly caught. they want to tell gravel! they're going to, eventually. they're just gonna wait until they've got something physical and successful to show for all of ventures' hard work to bolster their case.

they don't get the chance. gravel dies a few short months before ventures is ready for their first launch, when things are getting really hard to hide. it's a silver lining, to not have to scramble so hard to hide their involvement in gravel's least favorite project in the village, but hornfels is crushed under the weight of what was left unsaid.

they find themself preoccupied with a new project, too. gravel left behind a veritable mountain of unsorted donations of old hearthian paraphernalia that they never got around to putting on display -- truth is, most of the stuff they kept isn't really worthy of display. it's too busted up, usually, or not particularly noteworthy. hornfels had offered to help sort it all, time and time again, but gravel had always refused them, saying it was their responsibility and they shouldn't have put it off for so long. they aren't here to refuse hornfels, anymore, and the pile seems insurmountable. gravel believed that every object given to them had a story and a lesson, and hornfels believes it, but they don't believe everything has to be kept pristine and behind glass to take what you need from it. it feels wrong, to throw away gravel's collected bits and bobs, but hornfels doesn't have much of a choice.

they step away from ventures for a week and a half, to sort through the old donation pile, and their guilt and grief along with it. when they come back, museum more organized than it's ever been, the grief isn't easier, but it's quiet enough they can focus on other things.

feldspar launches a month after that and comes back with a singed rocking chair. hornfels had cleared a space out for an entire ship, outside the museum, but a rocking chair is just fine, because it came back with gossan's ideas for new safety protocols, slate's plans for the next ship, and feldspar's wonder at what they saw, out there in the cosmos. hornfels learns what they need to, preserves what they can, and gets ready for what's next.

[quietlyimplode]

leave everything but your bones behind

Whumptober 2022: day 5 - Every Whumpee’s Needs

Warnings: medical procedures or medical talk/seizures

Word Count: 1.6k (gif not mine)

Summary: Natasha becomes unwell and only the Red Room can fix her. The choice is die or go back to the very place that made her.

A/N: in which we find out what’s wrong with Natasha, forgive my medical speak, it’s not my first language. Or second (suspend medical realities for a little bit).

Main Masterlist

Whumptober Masterlist

———-

Natasha hates it here.

She hates that they’re going to know just how fucked she is. She can’t hide it now.

She’s going to have to tell them about Irina, and Sana.

They’ve got her blood.

They’re going to do scans.

They’re going to know.

She wishes she could disappear.

Her attention wavers and she sees Bruce standing at the door talking to the doctor that was in before.

Tony joins them and there seems to be an argument. She’s too tired to read their lips, instead she closes her eyes and sighs internally.

Clint, Tony and Bruce are the only ones that have read her whole file.

Tony because he’s a nosy prick with all the technology and no boundaries, Bruce because of the mission in Bolivia and Clint, well that was a gift; and he knew it was too.

The three men know the workings of her body, the simple changes that make her different and now, the stranger of a doctor will too.

There’s a reason she doesn’t get sick, why she churns through medication quickly, why little cuts; not matter how deep, will heal without scars.

There’s nanites in her blood.

There’s still Red Room poison in her, but up until this point it’s saved her, kept her alive.

Like all her memories, it’s not something she could ever get rid of. It’s part of her.

The doctor looks over to where she sits, then back to Bruce, anger on her face as she says something.

It’s got Clint on alert, and clearly it’s nothing good. He squeezes her hand in reassurance.

She’s not above killing the doctor, Natasha thinks, fists clenching unconsciously, if it would eliminate another person knowing all of her.

Clint might even agree.

Her teeth bite hard into her cheeks.

She’s not running because she knows what this might be.

Death.

The beginning of the end.

She feels it, the dread that washes over her.

Pain spikes as she shivers to cover the flinch.

The headache is dulled comparatively to the morning but the day of tests has been exhausting. More emotionally than anything else.

She can feel her mind slipping.

Clint hasn’t left her side and keeps his hand in hers; even when she tries to pull away. Maybe because he thinks she’ll pull out her IV.

She won’t.

If anyone can fix her, the three people arguing outside her room can.

.

Tony paces.

Bruce is steady.

The doctor frowns.

“What do you mean?”

Tony feels anger, restlessness and thoroughly inept; but he pushes it down, trying to get his head around what her blood work and scans have revealed.

He read her file, but seeing the way it works, the way it’s affecting her makes it real.

Her past is a horror story, to him maybe, to her, it’s real life, and now the horrors are back.

Like they ever really left her alone.

Natasha looks up from her chair in the room and they make eye contact through the door. Tony tries to hold it but she closes her eyes instead.

His anger boils at the unfairness of what he knows.

“Her nanites are failing, they’re dying,” Bruce explains in layman’s terms; trying to make sure they’re all on the same wavelength.

The doctor refers to her pages and nods.

“Why now?” Tony understands most things but he’s not a doctor, this is all so far out of his comfort level of knowledge.

“They’re old,” the doctor says bluntly.

“She wasn’t supposed to live this long.”

They’re all silent in that realisation that the upgrades that came with being a Black Widow meant that they didn’t expect them to live past a certain age.

Bruce crosses his arms, face gaunt with a twinge of green around the ears.

Ignoring it, Tony continues.

“So they’re in her blood?”

He doesn’t understand. If the nanites make up everything, in her blood for repair, healing, he’s sure there can be a simple fix.

“Give her a blood transfusion,” he rationalises.

The doctor shakes her head.

“It doesn’t work that way.”

Bruce is the one to explain further.

“It doesn’t treat the cause,” he says, slowly. “They’re in her, everywhere, even if we gave her a blood transfusion, they’d still be with her, and if we try and get rid of them, her body will shut down, she’s lived to long with it, to not live without it.”

The doctor hands Tony her scans to further the point. There’s grey and blacked parts, and she points to all the places the nanites are.

Everywhere.

Infecting every part of her.

The doctor looks to Natasha.

“Do you know anyone from her past? Anyone that could have programmed the nanites? That could essentially preform a system upgrade?”

Tony understands that, like a computer.

He appreciates the analogy.

“We can do it then?” he asks hopefully. He preforms system upgrades all the time. How different can this be?

“What, you’re experts on nanorobotics and molecular homeostasis?” the doctor shakes her head.

“Not yet,” he says fiercely. For her he will. How hard can it be?

The doctor sighs, a loud heaving of breath.

“I don’t doubt you’d both, but it’s a specialised field, specialised fields…”

Tony scoffs and gestures to the tower. He can do it, he knows he can.

“I’m not saying you can’t..”

But that’s what he’s hearing.

“To save her, we will,” he says defensively.

“I understand, you might, but it just won’t be in time,” the doctor tells him.

“You might kill her.”

Sighing, the doctor rubs her face, tucks all the paperwork under her arms and looks to Bruce.

“Find someone who was there, find someone who understands now and they might be able to reverse it.”

Appealing to Tony, she tries to tell him as it is. He can’t save her. Not this time.

“She’s going to die before you figure it out, tailor it to her, and figure out what works for her.”

“I’ll figure it out,” Tony says fiercely, anger on his face.

“Tony…”

But he pushes past her, entering Natasha’s room, welcome or not, unwilling to hear more.

Bruce wears a face of acceptance and the doctor appreciates his calm. It’s ironic given his reputation.

“Do you want me to tell her?” he asks.

Someone has to. Maybe Natasha can tell them who they can contact.

The doctor looks to Bruce and then Tony who’s sitting on his computer, that’s appeared from nowhere.

“I think we should,” she decides, “I want to run a few more tests.”

Bruce nods.

“What other tests?”

“Maybe a PET scan. It might tell us where the nanites are attacking, what’s been damaged, if anything, find a way to slow it down.”

She starts to walk away, and appeals to him one last time.

“Bruce; find someone who can help, anyone, this isn’t going away, and we don’t have the current technology. Convince Tony. We’ll do what we can, and I suspect that Natasha will trust you more, ask her, she might know more than she’s letting on.”

.

Natasha feels it coming, she doesn’t have time to alert Clint.

She’s gone and back and none the wiser of time that’s passed, except wide eyes looking at her saying her name.

“Mmok,” she tells him, wishing she could take the worry away.

“Do you want some water?” he asks, holding up a straw.

The disorientation on waking has her vision blurred, but as it’s cleared she sees Tony on his laptop in the corner.

“Hey,” he acknowledges, and although he covers it, she can see she scared him.

“You had another one, but this time we caught it.”

He points to the EEG that Natasha is still attached too.

“They’re going to do a PET scan, which isn’t as fun as what it sounds,” he continues.

“Your body is trying to kill you,” he says bluntly.

Overwhelmed, Natasha falls silent.

Her head hurts, it’s thumping and she’s so tired.

“Go’way”

Clint glares.

“They want me to find someone from Russia to fix you,” he starts, “they think I can’t.”

It’s like it’s a personal assault on his intelligence.

“But I don’t know everything,” he turns his screen around, and Natasha is assaulted with an image of her own body.

From what she can see, the Nanites are everywhere, but not integrating like they usually are.

They’re stationary, moving slow.

“Tell me the story of Irina,” he asks.

She doesn’t know where he’s got the name from.

“It’s this, or Russians,” he threatens.

Clint frowns.

Her head hurts so much.

“Wrong,” she bites out, sitting up a little straighter, taking a deep breath, pushing all pain down.

“Sana,” she sighs.

“Sana is the one you want to look up.”

This all costs. Spilling her secrets, talking, knowing that he won’t find anything, that she’ll have to say it.

“Sana, got sick. Seized. We tried to hide her. Hide when it happened. But they knew. Punished us. Took her. We thought. We thought they’d kill her. Like Irina. Defective, they said. But. They didn’t. They fixed her. She came back. Not sick.”

Clint squeezes her hand.

“So it can be done,” concludes Tony.

“That was then,” Natasha replies.

She closes her eyes.

“Go away Tony,” but it’s not unkind.

He leaves, with Clint following behind.

Natasha trusts that he’ll fill her in on everything they’ve found, or not found.

She closes her eyes and forces herself to sleep.

.

[blazingdarkness]

blazer goes to see a horror movie in theaters on purpose for the first time

I saw M3gan tonight!  I really liked it!  And then I rambled extensively about it in my discord nook!  And now I’m throwing all that on tumblr with very little editing because I feel like I should say more things on here!

spoilers, natch.

I guess my main opinion of m3gan is like I went into it being like 'either they're going to do basically this set of things with the premise, or they're going to try to do those things and blunder them, or they're not going to do them and it'll be a ton of wasted potential (or secret fourth option they're going to do something crazy innovative I guess)' and I was right!  they pretty much did the things I expected and did not blunder them there should be a black or outline-only star emoji so that you can combine them with regular stars to do ratings along with a half-filled one I will use moons instead

aesthetics 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 so on the one hand they did the thing I was excited for, which was the combination of creepy doll imagery with robot stuff, and it worked really well!!  a lot of stuff like a doll moving unnaturally and jerking around and stuff is just straightforwardly transferable to an android, and I thought it was great.  half a moon taken off for the fact that m3gan was honestly like not that uncanny valley before the last like, ~15m or so, and I'm not sure whether she was supposed to be; I just honestly thought she was really cute and pretty.  maybe I just watch too many doll customizing videos, or maybe that was in fact supposed to be the impression

spooks 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 I feel like the hypothetical version of this which was not a horror movie is maybe better than what we got, but I'm not sure and I'm biased by not being a spooks person.  I did have to peek through my fingers a couple times, but the amount of runtime spent on spooks was like, barely any and at no point did I want to walk out or anything, which I'd thought would maybe happen.  for the most part the spooks were very silly and a little schlocky (affectionate).  I'm definitely glad I looked up a content warnings thing like 30s before the movie started that rated the movie according to various criteria; knowing exactly how many people are going to die was very helpful for me

(a friend here asked whether there were jumpscares)

jumpscares 🌕🌗🌑🌑🌑 there were a small handful of them.  one scene really heavily built up a jumpscare for like 45s only for the actual jumpscare to be very minor and not very scary if you really really hate jumpscares it might be too many; there are some, but they're like ~well-telegraphed and the actual thing is usually not that scary I only-one-really hate jumpscares ((would-not-play-fnaf level)) and I was pretty okay with them

social commentary 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑 it didn't blow my mind or really change any of my opinions but neither was it inept or annoyingly preachy.  it was pretty obviously doing a thing with technology as a replacement for parenthood that maybe I would have stronger opinions about if I were ever going to be a parent, and I would say it executed on that decently well

more (including concrete ending spoilers) below

lsoh 🌑🌑🌑🌑🌑 it should have been lsoh.  m3gan kills the head of the company and another employee and nearly kills another two and it's very clear they aren't going to market.  they kill the one dollbody and yay, the day is saved!  ((except oooOOOooo maybe it isn't, because she hooked into the alexalike and that still exists oooOOOooo))  but she shoulda been bigger than hula-hoops goshdarnit.  explicitly.  in those words

ai x-risk 🌗🌑🌑🌑🌑 it's doing a lot with 'technology sure is a spook, innit' (again, without coming across as too preachy), but [points at previous rating category]

characters 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 I thought gemma and cady were really compelling and interesting people making reasonable mistakes and having problems that made sense for them.  I really liked cady's anger issues and the one big tantrum she had; it felt really human.  gemma as a neurodivergent person who was thrust into being her niece's guardian was great; she was making a lot of mistakes but you weren't for the most part going 'oh my god gemma no wtf'.  I really liked the two main coworkers and I'm glad they didn't die

acting 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 pretty fantastic stuff!  lot of subtlety going on; lots of good goofs when goofs were called for

explorations of personhood 🌕🌗🌑🌑🌑 so if there was one thing that I hoped it was going to delve into that it instead blundered, it was this one, but I guess I'll call it more of an inaccuracy (in the chess sense) than a proper blunder?  maybe??  hm. I would pretty solidly call m3gan a person, in terms of things we see her character doing, and there's definitely a ton of gemma like - I can't imagine that I'm supposed to have any other takeaway than that gemma is being cruelly dismissive of her.  like it's not subtle, but then it doesn't go anywhere??  m3gan just keeps murdering people, so she's the bad guy and we gotta kill her I think it would be a better movie if like - hm okay let's dig into some concrete examples here

•   m3gan asks about death, so she can better comfort cady about her parents, and also asks whether she'll someday die; gemma completely dismisses her and never answers •   gemma repeatedly "m3gan, turn off"s her in order to avoid having conversations and answering reasonable questions •   we get like, lingering contemplative shots of m3gan in response to these that clearly don't imply her questions as just being manipulative

so there's a major lack of resolution here.  I probably would have thrown some lines into the climax about this, maybe after m3gan declares herself to be her own primary user it's really easy to shut down with a 'cool motive still murder'!  it wouldn't have to take that long!

and like it's clear with the setup that this sort of ties into gemma not being socially competent in a parenting role and therefore throwing herself into what she's good at (robot toy stuff) to try and supplement her skills (but doing so in a way that prevents her from doing any attempted parenting) and it just would have been cool to see her grapple with the opportunity to have had two daughters; it feels like some balls were dropped here this is the part that most makes me want to glowf it in order to fix the potential

motifs / setup and payoff / cheer factor 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑 yfip apparently I really don't like integer ratings that aren't 5 or 0.  anyways •   the coaster was definitely set up as a motif and like, it had some payoff but ehn I think I need just a little more of it.  ((there was a thing where cady keeps putting glasses right on the table even though there's a coaster right there and gemma asks her to put it on one, and it's supposed to be like 'man, this kid Just had her parents die and you care about coasters??'.  and then later during a particularly heavy conversation cady doesn't use one and gemma doesn't say anything and it's Growth.  (and then also later gemma is fighting m3gan and smashessplashes her with a glass of water on that same table)))  idk I guess I gained some appreciation for it typing this up and it's not like I fucking hate subtlety ((although I do fucking hate subtlety <3)) but I just want like, a hint more out of it •   bruce.  I love bruce and I cheered when his two chekhov's guns fired in the climax

viewing experience 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 eels and I were the only people in the theater and it was great.  kind of sad because I thought this was a good movie!  more people should see it!  but personally convenient (edit: apparently my mom thinks this is because of the specific theater (and it being at 5:30 on a wednesday) and probably not too reflective of this movie's success)

fuck 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 this pg13 movie's One use of fuck was pretty good

the thing with the therapist and bakugan 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑 needs more followthrough.  man the therapist was such a dick to start with, and then came back to say a decently sensible thing later and that seemed to be pretty much it??  also like.  the thing with gemma's collectibles was very a way (in a way that I thought was very good), but also like, what of it? :think: I think the way I would have done it is - so what happens is that gemma has a bunch of collectible toys and cady wants to play with them, and gemma is like 'they're collectibles, not for playing with' and then a super judgey therapist comes to observe the two of them, and after some snotty and pointed comments on the part of the therapist gemma busts open her in-box bakugan, with a knife, clearly very uncomfortably and desperately and for the approval of this therapist and also like, just trying to be a good guardian and then there's some stuff about like, clearly the toy Does Something Cool but because of pressure from the therapist gemma and cady just kind of roll it around like a regular ball, and gemma is clearly just trying really hard the whole time to be chill it was really good!  but what of it!! I think the thing I want is like, if somewhere near the end gemma talks to cady about her collection, and cady shows an interest not just in them as toys but as pieces of history and design and they bond about it; I think there was some good groundwork laid for that although admittedly I'm not sure where you'd piece it in

also like.  I was very :packpackkillkill: (in a way intended by the movie) that like.  ms therapist you would not be acting like this if gemma collected rare vases or some shit!  just because they're shaped like toys doesn't mean she's being evil by having her niece wait one (1) day until she can get some actual toys for her.  jeegus.

gorls.  gedner. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 ran into some pronoun ambiguity trouble typing the initial therapist paragraph and realized just how female-dense this movie is.  I don't think it passes the reverse bechdel test.  the following ranking is really subjective but I think you have to go out to the . . . fiiifth to maybe eighth most important character before you hit a guy?  depending on how you count it?  but it feels very natural, like I said I only just noticed it.  and none of it was sexualized or arbitrary or hashtag girlboss or pandering. and yet it's obviously not a Girl Movie even though I would say that dealing with being female is probably pretty central, nearly as much so as parenthood and technology and stuff, although I have Not Yet Unpacked That

sfx and visual design 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 it's really good!!  I've updated now and I think m3gan looks exactly as uncanny valley as she's supposed to, and she absolutely looks like a real physical android; there has to have been a ton of practical effects and I would totally watch a 20m video going into behind-the-scenes technical stuff to see the exact mix of puppetry and pingpongball acting and raw cgi.  her costumes are also gorgeous and there are a lot of really little things that work super well.  in particular I want to call out her charging station, which is just a spot she sits at on a window seat in cady's room that has a few light strips running across it; it works perfectly to convey what it is and give her a place to watch over cady while she sleeps and to look pensive or to creepily look out the window or whatever.  it's just really subtle mostly-beneath-notice design where the competence shines through in how little you need to think about it

goofs 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑 it was pretty funny!  one article I saw calls it a creepy comedy rather than a funny horror and that seems decently accurate to me; I was at times guffawing and all of them were on purpose instead of at-but-not-with the movie

miscellaneous 🌗🌗🌗🌗🌗 •   the singing voice for m3gan was reallyreally pretty; I liked it a lot •   I would totally watch this movie again and hopeintend to own it on dvd •   there's so much on my glowfic plate but I'm making eyes and filing it away for later.  bigger-than-hulahoops delilah!m3gan and the one unit who's an ancora alt coming to you in 2025 •   oh another thing I really liked was the way all the robot stuff gave them an in to use a bunch of haunting imagery.  like I touched on this in the aesthetics section but there was also a really cool thing where she hooked into gemma's alexalike and had the lights flickering along with her freakouts and stuff it was great

[pirateshaven]

Hey, thanks so much for your awesome blog! I haven’t pirated anything since LimeWire lol & im trying to break away from Spotify, but I am technologically inept so I thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask: what is your favourite music manager for your computer/phone that is compatible with the music you pirate? Since iTunes library doesn’t exist anymore ): I am honestly so dumb when it comes to computers and have no idea where to start, there are so many media managers out there. Just curious if you have an opinion. Cheers!

Hey, sorry it took a while to get to this ask! We talked a bit and apparently none of us uses a music manager program on our computers (Windows or Linux). If we need to adjust metadata we just do it the old fashioned way with the file explorer and we just use Groove Music (the new default Windows player), Windows Media Player (which you can still get btw), or VLC to play it.

That being said, none of us own any Apple products, so if you own some, you might want to look elsewhere for some tips.

Maybe it's time to give some of these media managers a shot. We recently found a version of Imagine Dragons' new album where the uploader had put their username in every song title. Maybe changing that would have been easier with a media manager. We've heard good things about Clementine, MusicBee, and MediaMonkey, so we’ll give them a try. Check back here in a couple weeks and we'll post an update on which ones we prefer, or if we found something better we didn’t mention here.

For Android phones there are plenty of options, but our favorite music player app is Pulsar Pro. It has lots of customization and metadata editing tools built in. The free version is fine (no ads!), but it lacks some of the UI customization and, more importantly, the EQ, so good thing you can find the paid version for free 🏴‍☠️. However, after using a pirated version for over two years we did end up paying for it because it really is a good app.

Thanks for the ask, and happy pirating!

[onlyseokmins]

Your header looks great on my phone. However, I've been really fortunate not to have issues with Tumblr on mobile thus far. Sometimes I really want to make headers, icons etc for my own blog but, I feel too technologically inept 💀

Their Japanese releases are just >>>>>> (I've realised quite a few groups really go all in when it comes to their Japanese music and, Seventeen is one of them.) I've been fortunate enough to feel a similar bond with other groups but, Seventeen does hold a special place in my heart (incase that was somehow unclear lmao.) Which other groups do you stan and/or like, if you don't mind me asking?

Thank you, thank you. I'm inclined to say the same about you with regards to your taste in Seventeen men. I see you have a fondness for buff men if the SeokCheol enthusiasm and that one reblog of Shownu are anything to go by 💀😂

aw tysm <3 i do take pride in making headers haha i am sure you could make some pretty ones!! I, and a whole bunch of others, would be happy to make you some as well :3

you are so right, so many groups go super hard on japanese releases and I think it's bc the reception and appreciation always seems really good in Japan and we get to benefit from it lol. oh, and besides caratland - i jump around from bts, blackpink, exo, skz, got7, monsta x, ateez, nct, txt, twice, le sserafim, day6, sf9, and tbz just off the top of my head lol there's so many - hbu?

haha i dare admit that buff men with soft(er) personalities are definitely my weakness ajskdfjs

[gatekeeperwatchman]

Opinion

Opinion—everybody has an opinion, facts notwithstanding. Well, I have mine too, and I think my opinion is factual. I’m sure of it.

Let me begin by saying, President Trump, if he hasn’t done anything else, has provided this country with a marvelous gift. We must only open our eyes and see it. Then, we must do something about it. He has shown us the depth and extent of our ignorance and lack of rational thinking. We elected him to office.

Again, the tired old outcry, “Wake up America”, wake the hell up! Open your eyes and your minds before it is too late. This is no light matter. Our nation and our democracy are in deep, serious trouble. Figuratively speaking, “the sky is beginning to fall” upon us, politically, economically, and ecologically. This is not a Republican or Democratic matter. This is a matter affecting all of us. Really! Believe it! Open your eyes before it is too late.

President Donald John Trump is one of, if not the most, inept, incompetent, and ignorant presidents in the history of our nation! Believe it! It’s a fact, easily seen by almost anyone willing to stop, look, and think with an open mind.

It’s not as if the position and responsibilities of the President of our country are as simple as that of the Mayor of some town or city somewhere or a large business down the street. Our great nation is the largest most powerful and most prosperous empire in the history of the world—the history of civilization, that we have been going downhill for the past forty years notwithstanding. Our great nation consists only of 5% of the world’s population. Yet we collectively possess 41.6% of the world’s total wealth and consume an estimated 25% of the world’s productivity (standard of living). If the entire world enjoyed the same level standard of living as we do, there would not be enough to go around. Just think about that. In past years before today’s technology, instant communication, etc., we could get away with that. How long do you think this condition can continue to exist today? How long can our poor continue to be rich relative to our poorer neighbors? Think of China with a population of 1.3 billion as compared to our 330 million and their relative level of poverty.

But I digress. The position of President of the United States of America under our Constitution, the richest, most powerful nation in the history of civilization, is the most responsible in existence and is not available to just anybody. It is so responsible, every move he (or she) makes; every word he or speaks must be measured, controlled, truthful, and responsible as to cause and effect. He must be capable to envisage any strategy through to the end, even before he begins. He must be educated, knowledgeable, wise, and emotionally stable—a leader. Donald Trump is not that person in any way, shape, or form. To the contrary, unfortunately, it is proven fact and obvious to anyone who will look with an open mind, that he is intellectually lazy, unsatisfactorily educated, and emotionally unstable. Just as bad, if not worse, his is a one-man show. He is not a leader. He lacks any semblance of leadership skills or integrity. In just three years, this nation has become increasingly divided. Almost, if not all, major positions within his areas of responsibility have turned over more than once and/or are temporary. This is neither leadership nor good management. Also, he is not trustworthy. He is tantamount to loose cannon. He does not serve this nation. He serves only himself. As President of the United States of America, he must go. 

Let us clear up one matter right from the start—the argument that I, like others, am mad because I don’t like Donald Trump; I lost my vote; my opinion is “sour grapes”; and I just want to get rid of him because I lost. Hogwash—pure Hogwash! I have lived through thirteen presidents—Franklin Delano Roosevelt thru Donald John Trump, and have not one time advocated impeachment for reasons of “sour grapes”— ever! Donald John Trump, as President of the United States of America, is a threat to our country, to our people, and the whole world. I don’t give a damn about his sex life, his religion, his personality, or his looks—or, just now, his political party. What I do care about is his ability to lead our country through these perilous times; and, any way you choose to look at it, he doesn’t have it, evidenced by his performance over the past three years as well as his performance before he was elected (for those who want to get ahead of their preconceived opinions and look at his record—it’s all there if they will only put forth their effort to look).

Again, this is not a Democrat or Republican issue, our country is in jeopardy. This is a crisis. Donald Trump must go and go now. I warned you in the past but received no response. This is your life, your country, and, as a citizen, your responsibility. It is also the life of your children and grandchildren for all generations to come.

From: Steven P. Miller December 01, 2022 CEO/ Founder of Gatekeeper-Watchman International Groups, At @GatekeeperWatchman1 , @ParkermillerQ, @steven_p_miller; https://www.facebook.com/ https://www.instagram.com/ https://www.tumblr.com/ Jacksonville, Florida., Duval County, USA.;

GWIG, #GWIN, #GWINGO, #GatekeeperWatchman1, #Shebuel, #Melkizadeck, #Brainstormer, #Ephraim1, #IAM

[gatekeeper-watchman]

Opinion

Opinion—everybody has an opinion, facts notwithstanding. Well, I have mine too, and I think my opinion is factual. In fact, I’m sure of it.

Let me begin by saying, President Trump, if he hasn’t done anything else, has provided this country with a marvelous gift. We must only open our eyes and see it. Then, we must do something about it. He has shown us the depth and extent of our ignorance and lack of rational thinking. We elected him to office and you are contemplating hiring him again.

Again, the tired old outcry, “Wake up America”, wake the hell up! Open your eyes and your minds before it is too late. This is no light matter. Our nation and our democracy are in deep, serious trouble. Figuratively speaking, “the sky is beginning to fall” upon us, politically, economically, and ecologically. This is not a Republican or Democratic matter. This is a matter affecting all of us. Really! Believe it! Open your eyes before it is too late.

Ex-President Donald John Trump is one of, if not the most, inept, incompetent, and ignorant presidents in the history of our nation! Believe it! It’s a fact, easily seen by most anyone willing to stop, look, and think with an open mind.

It’s not as if the position and responsibilities of President of our country is as simple as that of the mayor of some town or city somewhere or a large business down the street. Our great nation is the largest most powerful and prosperous empire in the history of the world—the history of civilization, that we have been going downhill for the past forty years notwithstanding. Our great nation consists only of 5% of the world’s population. Yet we collectively possess 42 of the world’s total wealth and consume an estimated 25% of the world’s productivity (standard of living). If the entire world enjoyed the same level standard of living as we, there would not be enough to go around. Just think about that. In past years before today’s technology, instant communication, etc., we could get away with that. How long do you think this condition can continue to exist today? How long can our poor continue to be rich relative to our poorer neighbors? Think of China with a population of 1.3 billion as compared to our 330 million and their relative level of poverty.

But I digress. The position of President of the United States of America under our Constitution, the richest, most powerful nation in the history of civilization, is the most responsible position in existence and is not fillable by just anybody. It is so responsible, every move he (or she) makes; every word they speak must be measured, controlled, truthful, and responsible as to cause and effect. They must be capable to envisage any strategy through to the end, even before they begin. They must be educated, knowledgeable, wise, and emotionally stable—a leader.

Donald Trump is not that person in any way, shape, or form. To the contrary, unfortunately, it is proven fact and obvious to anyone who will look with an open mind, that he is intellectually lazy, unsatisfactorily educated, and emotionally unstable. Just as bad, if not worse, his is a one-man show. He is not a leader. He lacks any semblance of leadership skills or integrity. In just three years, this nation has become increasingly divided. Almost, if not all, major positions within his areas of responsibility have turned over more than once and/or are temporary. This is neither leadership nor good management. Also, he is not trustworthy. He is tantamount to a loose cannon. He does not now or never has served this nation. He serves only himself. As President of the United States of America, he must go.

Let us clear up one matter right from the start—the argument that I, like others, am mad because I don’t like Donald Trump; I lost my vote; my opinion is “sour grapes”; and I just want to get rid of him because I lost. Hogwash—pure Hogwash! I have lived through twelve presidents—Eisenhower thru Donald John Trump, and have not one-time advocated impeachment for reasons of “sour grapes”— ever! Donald John Trump, as President of the United States of America, is a threat to our country, to our people, and to the whole world. I don’t give a damn about his sex life, his religion, his personality, or his looks—or, just now, his political party. What I do care about is his ability to lead our country through these perilous times; and, any way you choose to look at it, he doesn’t have it, evidenced by his performance over his past years as well as his performance before he was elected (for those who want to get ahead of their preconceived opinions and look at his record—it’s all there, if they will only put forth their effort to look) and not be mentally lazy.

Again, this is not a Democrat or Republican issue, our country is in jeopardy. This is a crisis. Donald Trump must go and go now. I warned you in the past and received no response. This is your life, your country and, as a citizen, your responsibility. It is also the life of your children and grandchildren for all generations to come.

From: Steven P. Miller @ParkermillerQ, gatekeeperwatchman.org

Tap Pictures Always:

Founder of Gatekeeper-Watchman International Groups,

Thursday, May 30, 2024, Jacksonville, Florida., USA.

X ... @ParkermillerQ

#GWIG, #GWIN, #GWINGO, #Ephraim1, #IAM, #Sparkermiller, #Eldermiller1981

Thank you for sharing: Https://gatekeeperwatchman.org/post/751889961062744064/daily-devotionals-for-may-30-2024-proverbs-gods?

[daviddshiki]

The Adventures of David Dashiki-Stories of man African American Hero- Year of the Black Man...2024

No portion of humanity, no group of humanity has an abiding right, an everlasting right to oppress other sections or portions of humanity. - Marcus Garvey -Speech, The Handwriting Is on the Wall is on the Wall (1921)

Whatever we have attained, achieved or accomplished in this America, we have earned the hard way. We have had to fight for it inch by inch. Life for us ain't been no crystal stair. No need to list all of the vicious acts and attacks levied upon us. They are listed in the hearts, minds and souls of Black people. However, America is a land of opportunity. We can change all that was the past and start anew. For this reason , we read. It is important that we know the methods used to suppress our efforts and control our mind. Myths...All are myths which are attempts to encourage our young people to believe and surrender to the lie that there is no hope. We are too mentally agile to succumb to those falsehoods which are designed to make us feel impotent Here they are. Today we air them out and destroy the mind bending forever.

THE MYTHS- (First, we must ALL be in agreement that we must built an informed and literate team. With such a machine/ organization in place, we will with acumen and erudition refute the lies, tales and myths about our people. THESE are our liberation pages, our freedom files. These pages describe the brainwashing tactics which have as their purpose to keep us docile, weak, fearful, dormant and controlled. They are painful to write. However, if we do not know our enemy and its strategies, we can devise an ineffective plan to defeat them. WE have sought and petitioned the assistance of the federal government for relief to no avail. Yet, we now recognize fully that this is our battle to fight. We must see ourselves victorious. We must want to engage in the struggle to resurrect our person and our image.

*1 Black men are LAZY. REALLY? With more than two centuries of forced labor for which we have yet to be compensated and a daily schedule of sun-up to sunset, indolence is one of the myths about us that can readily dismiss. To call us slothful would even make God blush. *2. We are UNINTELLIGENT. Really? We have been legislated out of what has been renowned as the greatest school system in the world. We attend mostly low achieving, under-performing schools. From these schools, our government has deleted, removed extra-curricular activities which excite children about learning. The absence of scientific, technological supplies and materials are lacking to the degree that Black schools may be considered third world educational edifices. It is without a doubt that we can say that our schools. Black schools have been abandoned to the extent that we attend the most segregated system in the world, still. Yet, we rise . 3. Black men are CRIMINALS Really? There was the myth that there more Black men in jail than in college. That myth was rebuked when records indicated that Black in college far exceed their numbers in jail . Black men are out in the world doing great work and educating themselves for the future. 4. Black men are INEPT Really? Tyler Perry, Barack Obama, Malcolm X, Dr. Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, James Baldwin, Neil DeGrasse, Lonnie Johnson, Keith Black, Phillip Emeagwali. Jay-Z, Otis Boykin, Caleb Anderson, Robert F. Smith, Will Toms, Rohan Marley. This is the reason that we must read. When these myths are thrown at our feet, we can trample them vigorously. These brothers are not inept. They are listed among the most intelligent men on the planet. The only omission to their mention is their race. We must know them, promote them and believe that are part of a long history of intellect and they are but the tip. 5. Black men are INGOVERNABLE Really? It all started years when Dr. Martin Luther King demonstrated to the world how we must live and conduct ourselves even when there are abuses, attacks, assaults, brutalities, disorder, terrorism and murders. We have taken the blows. The myths which has been debunked is that we are out of control. This myth allows others to violate the law to maltreat us. We are the standard bearers for civility 6. Black men are DISLOYAL. Really ?WWII.. The Big One. This was our shining moment as we showed both our courage and our loyalty. We thought the world/America would change. However, the country has failed us. We never failed it. We shed blood but America has yet to honor our efforts. We are loyal. Many of our people paid the ultimate price. What greater loyalty can there be! There are some of dead who have yet to receive their honors for loss of life and dedication to our homeland. 7. Black men are trying to take what is ours Really? I mean, Really? When have Black men attempted to take anything that is yours? Who? What ? How ? Where ?