thinking abt bellum v hard. (fyi there are 1658 words under this cut)

there's not a lot of concrete stuff to think abt but there ideas. he's kind of already won by the time link shows up on the scene. he's not really actively antagonizing the world of the ocean king, he mostly just has the ghost ship to go around collecting prey for him while he has the yook and anouki turned against each other and seems to have infested the different temples and whatever with monsters to delay any opposition. is he the one who destroyed the cobble kingdom? they're meant to be supporters of the ocean king so i think we can guess that bellum is the one who tried to eradicate them.

maybe he was the one who... mind controlled? or otherwise meddled with the yook to keep them from checking out the ice temple and keeping the anouki occupied with dealing with them. (tbh theres some untapped potential in the relationship between the yook and anouki) he doesn't really do anything to the gorons but maybe he doesn't see them as a worthwhile threat since they see the crimsonine as more of an artifact and not something they should really do anything with, and link has to pass a test to even be allowed to go to the temple. the cobble kingdom is already destroyed, and it can be assumed that he mightve mimicked their engineering based on eox being the hostile boss of the last temple and turning into sand, suggesting a relationship to bellum, and maybe that he's trying to hide the fact that he's the one fucking with everyone. i'm not even sure if characters (besides the main group) even know that bellum exists until link's quest is more known.

taking a note from the manga, where bellum says something along the lines of feelings of love and friendship creating more worthwhile life force for him, so taking that into account with stuff in the game suggests that he maybe doesnt make his presence well-known to avoid something like a mass panic or a persistent fear in people, which could downplay positive emotions that makes their life forces more worth taking to him along with other worthwhile forces maybe being ones connected to divine power (like his taking of tetra and seeming desperation to keep her specifically, since she's most likely a descendant of hylia's mortal form), so he likely is very hands-off with how he's affected the world in order to preserve the value of his prey, somehow. idk why he turns people into statues maybe its a preservation method. maybe hes saving tetra for some reason or maybe trying to bait link in as well. maybe he wants to grab link, too, but failed to catch him the first time and resorted to allowing him to go down the path of dismantling bellum's work all so that bellum can try and capture him himself.

the spirits he does manage to capture and left alive and instead just sealed away within their temples, which i believe is because spirits and gods and whatever in loz can't really die unless they explicitly permanently become mortal (hylia) and can only really be sealed away temporarily in some form, mostly due to a lot of them being a sort of representation of some part of the world (i like to imagine that demise is the god or whatever who created monsters, he's the father of monsters and opposes hylia due to the way her favored creatures [hylians ig] attack and kill monsters and he wants the world to be habitable and safe only for his creations)

it's probably safe to say that the ghost ship (like. the whole thing) was created by bellum, and in some form is perhaps some kind of living being, hence why bellum is capable of effectively possessing it the way he does, since it's an extension of himself like the boss monsters, it just maybe takes parts from some existing ships, or maybe it's not alive and bellum is capable of creating large structures like that he is compatible with.

bellum himself turns to sand when he is defeated, as well as most of the other boss monsters, but the cubus sisters (who certainly have a relationship with bellum due to having the same eyes and being connected to the ghost ship) do not turn into sand, which makes me think that bellum didn't actually create them; maybe they're corpses or something being remotely puppeted by bellum.

bellum is clearly made up of the sand of hours, a crystallization of life force, and oshus is said to have used those sands to create the phantom hourglass, and the sands are also mentioned to have been created from the force gems connected back to oshus himself, so bellum was probably created from those force gems and therefore those sands of hours at some point somehow (i enjoy the idea that oshus was the one who created bellum; with oshus being our main source of info on bellum, i think it'd be interesting if he was the one who originally made bellum but obscures this fact by just talking about how he 'appeared' and whatnot).

bellum seems to have a weird sort of... inverted? perverted? ability to create life (perhaps a sort of parallel to the one we can assume the ocean king has if we assume that he created the three spirits as well as bellum maybe) but only in a hivemind or derivative sort of way, only able to create things that follow simple commands and when he possesses something else he takes it over. (i like to take him in a more biological or physiological way rather than magical, when he is removed so is the control, but there might be little remnants, but his influence is gone. i take bellumbeck aftereffects to be terrible sickness rather than others going with the idea of taking on some bellum-like traits or residual controls. the things bellum creates can only follow simple rules unless he is directly in control therefore he can use it as he wishes, but if he takes control of something he did not create, it's a bit more of a battle, he has to contend with that other being's subconscious or whatnot and has no effect unless he is physically connected. his control is more limited and ends up incorporating some of the hosts' subconscious desires with some guiding from bellum himself to achieve a favorable outcome.)

with the world of the ocean king being a sort of parallel/separate world to link n tetra's great sea, it's interesting that the ghost ship can be physically present outside the world in which it was created. definitely there can be contact between different worlds in loz (like hyrule and the dark world/lorule in alttp/albw and a little bit with termina if you take that as a literal place and a little bit with koholint and then the twili realm and whatever i'm missing) but it's interesting to see bellum as a villain capable of (in some way) contact and interact within other worlds and drag inhabitants of those other worlds into his own (oshus can send people out of his world, so i assume he can also bring them in, maybe that's how link gets in despite falling off of the ghost ship, unless somehow the ghost ship is still within the world of the ocean king but is also present in the great sea but the area around it is a fragment of whatever part of the world of the ocean king its in superimposed over the great sea... idk) so it's interesting that bellum could bc considered a villain able to tamper with or at least interact with world boundaries to let things in and out, maybe it's something that he is only capable of with whatever power he's attained by the start of the game.

whatever relationship he may have to oshus and the other spirits is not at all a part of the game, but at the same time we don't learn a whole lot about them anyways. there's also stuff with the chief of the golden frogs as another ally of oshus, but i imagine bellum didn't bother with him because he has no relation to the spirits' locations and the pure metals, and zuaz was left alone perhaps because his location is secret, while astrid and kayo were maybe found due to living on a more populated island (more prey for bellum to go after, more people to know about astrid and kayo). a lot of the monsters in the dungeons were probably already there, while the bosses were specifically made to protect what was hidden there, or maybe the bosses came first and their presences attracted other monsters.

i think bellum created the two monsters you fight overseas on the spot; they existed specifically to try and kill link because at those two times (link going to get the final spirit and link going to get the first pure metal) bellum suddenly panics and decides to try and eliminate link at the cost of the loss of a possible worthwhile piece of prey. bellum was probably also the one to begin the rumor of the ghost ship; i imagine he can take a sort of human form the same way oshus can, and spent a bit of time after defeating oshus and creating the ghost ship integrating him within some pirate crew and using them to grow and spread the rumor of the ghost ship, eventaully leading them towards it and taking them has his first victims (and along the way taking the time to foster good relationships with them in the hopes that their positive emotions and feelings would make them more worthwhile prey, back to the manga snippet idea of feelings of friendship and love [and probably positive emotions in general] being another form of better life force).

bellum's cool

love talk

+ pairings: eren yeager + (fem) reader

+ genres and warnings: it’s not important that eren is a tattoo artist i just wanted to share bc i gave him tattoos here :’), fluff i think, smut/nsfw content, if you see a hint of eremin then no you don’t </2

+ word count: almost 2k, sickening innit luv

+ notes: yeah, still thinking about eren speaking german during sex bc he’s losing his mind hehe. i suppose this is the… softer version. might post another one later, who knows. and yes, i did almost name this pussy talk. 

Unbeknownst to him, Eren Jaeger speaks three languages.

The first two are obvious, but English is his preferred language; the one you’ll find him speaking most often. It only makes sense, seeing as it’s what the overwhelming majority of people, media, and signs spew at him.

The second is more reserved; something you might assume given his name, but not know for sure unless you asked, or stuck around long enough to catch him rambling excitedly to Armin in German, with broken slang phrases of English interspersed. It’s fascinating—cute, moreover—the way he stumbles back and forth between both tongues; and the difference in tone between them. You’re not sure if your own bias is peeking through, but you’re certain Eren and Armin both sound a little… meaner in German; more sarcastic, at the very least—and you wouldn’t be surprised to find out they were talking shit the whole time.

Though, there is a special, reserved intonation to his mother tongue that shows itself when Eren’s around you. It doesn’t seem to be by choice—gone beyond comprehension that he’s forced to revert to grunted expressions and curses in a language foreign to his surroundings. You assume them to be curses; you never can confirm, and Eren seems to not even be aware of his switching in the heat of the moment, can never quite recall what he was saying to you.

There are times when he’s reduced to mere sounds, no comprehensible words between the hundreds of thousands he knows—only guttural moans, and breathy sighs, and he seems to not even be able to understand himself. You have to admit, it’s a bit of an ego boost to be able to fuck your boyfriend stupid in two languages.

And at first glance, Eren doesn’t seem like the type of guy to know about anything outside of himself. He doesn’t seem like the full-sleeve, three ear piercing, tattoo artist kinda kid; but Eren Jaeger speaks the language of pictures, of symbols, of images, that he is able to decipher and give meaning to upon creation. He’s got a penchant for art, and a vision bigger than himself, so it’s only right that he takes his knowledge and applies it in its most permanent form. The tattoos are more than a hobby for him—they’re an extension of himself, his art, his language; and his body is the only canvas fit enough to capture them.

So, here, with Eren laying on his back, chest exposed, arms bent for his hands to rest against your waist, you get to see the culmination of all the words and all the pictures, from all the languages he’s deemed important enough to find a place on his skin.

“Do all of your tattoos have a meaning?” you question, reaching your hand up to trace over the delicate waves that ride along his right collarbone.

“No,” Eren winces when you move—just enough of him to feel an ounce of friction inside of you, but not enough to give him what he wants. He wiggles himself a bit, desperate for something, “Not at all.”

It makes you chuckle, with a sort of disbelief, at both his words and his actions, “You get things tattooed on your body that don’t mean anything to you?”

Eren lets out a shaky breath, followed with a boyish smile. He blinks at you slowly, lids fluttering and hands gripping tightly at your body, “Learned that not everything has to have a deep meaning to want to keep it around,” he tells you, right palm moving to venture over your tummy, and up your sides, “Somethings you just love.”

You don’t miss the lilt in his voice on the word ‘love,’ but you play it off, rolling your eyes at his deliberately sweet affections, and then, gently, your hips, “Pretty poetic for something with no meaning.”

“Yeah, well, Armin taught me that,” Eren grits, hands fastening themselves at your hips again.

“You talk about Armin a lot when we’re in bed you know,” you taunt him, moving your fingers to trace over more of the tattoos that litter his right shoulder, “Something I should know about?”

Eren shivers at the feeling—of your fingertips on his skin, and what he swears was an intentional clench around him, “You don’t seem to mind.”

You smile at him, enjoying the contortions of his face when you run your hands down his chest, palms pressed lightly against his pelvic bone. Eren bends a knee, but does he best to remain still, and you can’t help but to chuckle. He looks pretty when he’s trying his best.

“I’m greedy,” you tell him, raising your hips, and pausing in your words as you slowly lower yourself back on to him.

“Trust me,” Eren scoffs, a façade to cover up his reddening cheeks and shaky thighs, “I know.”

He tries to move his hips up, desperate for something more; for you to fucking move, but, you keep your hips perfectly still. Instead, you reach your arms behind you, and onto Eren’s thighs, cementing them to the bed. He groans, his hands sliding down to your own thighs, fingertips digging into your flesh.

“And you called me greedy,” you huff, amused, as Eren rolls his eyes beneath you. When you’re sure he’s not going to move, you bring your arms back around, palms splayed on his stomach, “Relax. This is what you asked for, isn’t it?”

“Honestly, in an ideal world, this would be happening when I was playing COD, not when I was already impossibly hard with morning wood. And with a lot less teasing on your part.”

You have to laugh—genuinely giggle—at Eren’s blunt honesty. He’s unintentionally charming; another linguistic skill he seems unaware that he’s proficient in. You can tell he doesn’t understand the source of your amusement, but the look in his eyes, the twinkle in his irises lets you know he’s too far gone to even care.

“Call it a lesson in self-control,” you say, moving your hands to his sides in time with a shallow grind of your hips, “Besides, I’m admiring you.”

Eren keeps his hands anchored on your thighs, shivering at sensitivity of his dick coupled with your hands stroking over his pecs, “Lesson fucking learning—babe, fuck, please—”

“Shh—not yet,” you coo, and reach to pull his arms off of you, leaving you with room to admire his sleeve. You take pity on him, holding his right wrist with both of your hands, before slowly beginning to bounce on him.

Eren squirms, his free hand reaching to grab at the flesh of your ass, eyes blinking open to watch his cock be buried inside of you. The relief is instant—for the both of you—immediate groans and shallow profanities slipping past your lips as you build a steady pace to ride him.

“Tell—tell me what this one means,” you question slowly, keeping your right hand around his wrist, but using your left to point to the tattoo; a stylized line art of crossed wings.

“Some shit about freedom,” Eren grunts, fingers twitching, “Fuck, babe—more, please, I’ll—”

Eren cuts himself off with a whine, and you hiss yourself, lifting your body all the way to the tip, before lowering yourself again at an agonizingly slow pace. At this rate, you can feel everything; every vein on his shaft, every twitch of his cock. You feel Eren deep inside of you, even see where the bulge outlines your tummy.

You still yourself for just a second, catching your breath, anchoring yourself on Eren. You’re pretty far gone yourself, but you want more; for yourself, and for him. You do your best to stay coherent, slowly grinding atop of him, questioning him about another tattoo on his arm, ignoring the way his palm grips at your bicep. It’s a small one, with detailed Japanese characters that you can’t understand, but appreciate anyway; it’s one of your favorites, and you ask Eren about its meaning, clenching yourself around him as punctuation to your question.  

Eren sucks air between his teeth, left hand pulling back to run his fingers through his hair, a grunted word in German falling from his lips. You smirk, but let him try to answer you.

“I don’t fucken’ know,” Eren grumbles, head thrashing from side to side, “It’s really fucken’ hard to remember anything—shit—like this. S’fucking torture.”

“Hm,” you hum, not satisfied; eager for more of Eren’s love language, “Tell me something in German, instead, then.”

But Eren can only babble beneath you; sounds incoherent in either language—reduced to desperate whines and grabby hands at your thighs, waist, boobs—anything. You lean forward, letting go of Eren’s tattooed wrist, and reaching to ghost your fingers over his lips.

“Come on, Eren, you’re usually so good at it when we do this,” you taunt him, words coated in sweetness that distract you from keeping up your pace, “Just want you to talk pretty to me. Tell me something, baby.”

Eren’s eyes travel from your fingertips, up your arm, neck, and to your face. When he meets your gaze something shifts; eyes heavy with want, and bitter with dissatisfaction.

So, he reaches for your extended hand, laces your fingers together, “Something like what?”

You wrap your fingers around his, then do the same with your left hand, “Anything.”

“Anything?”

“Yeah,” you affirm with a smile, finally satisfied.

Eren grunts, bending his right knee for leverage before he flips you over, hands still intertwined, but now pinned over your head, harshly pressed into the pillows below. He buries his head into the crook of your neck; licking a stripe along your collarbone, where you’d teased him minutes before. Then up, up, up, your neck to the shell of your ear, retreating downwards to suck on the skin just beneath your ear, nipping with pointed teeth.

Eren keeps his weight on you, the length of his cock sliding over your slick folds while he bites angry, red blotches into your skin—a kind of impermanent tattoo of his own making on your body. The friction is good, but not enough, and you wonder if Eren intends on teasing you as long as you’d done to him; but, he breathes heavy breaths up your neck again, before mumbling a series of foreign syllables into your ear.

He hovers over your face, satisfied by the daze in your eyes; the slight openness of your mouth. It’s you who looks dumbstruck now, a foreigner to his ministrations; and for once, he’s in control with his second tongue.

“What—what does that mean?” you finally ask, squeezing your eyes briefly when Eren teases the tip just past your entrance.

Eren chuckles, airy, gritty, and cocky all at once. He pushes his cock inside of you, balls deep, only to pull out almost all the way, before leaning forward just slightly, so that his bottom lip grazes over yours.

“It means I love you,” he whispers, hips bucking forward, “Try to remember that, ‘cause I swear I’m gonna fuck you stupid, baby.”

how sawamura, miyuki, yuki, and kuramochi text (friends + s/os)

will most likely do a part 2 with more boys at a later date! these got freakishly long because i am, at my core, a very mad. also might revisit as i get re-familiar with the characters, i just had this idea floating around in my head. also the way these got pro

sawamura eijun

no matter who he texts, it’s always extremely extra. not only does he always give more information than you asked for – ex. if you text him wya? he will give you a play by play of his entire route or something

 he also uses tons of emoticons. and yes I do mean emoticons, baby boy has a flip phone. ifhe does eventually get a smart phone, then this boy overuses tf out of emojis. he’s the sort of person that sees someone use a combination of emojis he likes and then tries to copy them, but uses it completely incorrectly, but its v cute.

if you send him a meme, he will respond with an unnecessary amount of hahas. 

when he’s texting his lil bae, they’re always on his mind so he ofc texts them every thought that comes to his mind! when he sees something that reminds him of you, he won’t hesitate to share it with you. 

if you have been together for a long time, then we will definitely text you words of affirmation and be very honest/blunt about how he feels about you. he’s also always sure to ask you about your day - and he seriously cares. but i still i feel like with a s/o he would prefer facetime to texting just because he likes to see you :)

overall, a very adorable texter and his enthusiasm is just as contagious when texting as it is in person. he’s kind of clueless so he doesn’t pick up on subtext. so be blunt, just like he will be with you~

kuromochi youichi

my bias might be showing here, but I feel like he is one of the most well-adjusted boys in terms of being ready for a serious relationship tbh (at least post-high school). i mean we all saw that he regularly corresponded with wakana wish that were me lmao

i think he would most often use proper capitalization, but not to the point where he uses a period after every text

would send his friends news articles about his favorite fighting games where u like gaming or not

a meme fiend in general. the sort of person who uses reaction images of people he knows. (if you’re dating, he would still have a stash of funny pics/screenshots of you on ft, but he’d ofc only use them with you <3). his convos with his friends are rarely serious

 i don’t think he’d be the type to text haha out loud, but he does use LOL on occasion. with close friends/his lil bae he might send a voice memo of him laughing hysterically if you send him something REALLY funny. ugh my annoying king <3

unlike eijun he’s the king of being perceptive / picking up subtext. 

similarly, i do think he’s pretty reliable, but for friends i feel like he might make a lil bit of a stink lmao. like lets say a friend wants him to pick something up for them, he might play like he won’t do it then miraculously shows up with the requested item. its giving tsundere vibes on the low.

with his partner: i feel like he would use emojis when he’s trying to be ~cute~. i think with a established partner he’d be pretty flirty still but he’s v much whipped for his partner so its way more mushy than it would be early in the relationship.

yes your name has hearts/stars in his phone. mans is a SAP for you

his love language is more quality time imo, so I think he values time spent with you over texting time. so a lot of your texts might be asking you to come over to hang out / get a meal or vice versa

like eijun he wants to hear about YOU, and is very supportive and good at advice when he wants to be. he can be goofy but this is how he shows you he cares/sees you as more than a friend

he’s a blushy/shy boy with his s/o esp early in the relationship, so he might be hesitant or nervous to say “i love you” or anything like that outright, but you know anyway, which just makes the times when he does outright say it that much sweeter.

miyuki kazuya

i mean it goes without saying that this man is snarky. he’s not a meme king himself but he enjoys when people send them to him and will usually play off the meme to make his own jokes.

i feel like he also likes deep-fried memes or the very abstract, post-modern memes. miyuki is good at making other people laugh, but he has a generally very-off brand humor and the things that make him cackle hardest are either at someone else’s expense (very similar to kuramochi, so they bond a lot over that) or just indiscernible without access to a huge layer of context/background

saves the reaction photos kuramochi sends him, but doesn’t usually use them. but seeing an ugly pic of eijun yelling never fails to make him grin LMAO

i think he also texts A LOT about baseball, even more so than these other baseball dummies. texts his teammates a lot of articles he reads or clips from games/cool plays. this is mostly about texts, but in terms of social media I think miyuki uses twitter/instagram the most especially for baseball related reasons, while kuramochi uses snapchat the most. 

he probably texts a lot about baseball as well, both seriously and playfully

i can see him using hahas and LOLs in equal measure, but he would also utilize the haha reaction if he had an iphone. this boy does value his wit so he would definitely have commentary about any memes or jokes he’s sent

you won’t win a joke war against him, he will definitely one-up whatever you send him with either a one-liner or another joke. how tf does he do it?

definitely ignores people/conversations if he really wants to - but ofc he never does that to his BAE

if miyuki give you a dry one-line response...he’s not interested at all or he’s feeling frustrated about something else. but when he’s really happy? he will text his friends all the time and spam them! i see him as someone who enjoys texting when he has the attention span/state of mind for it. and when he’s texting his s/o his texting gets even more ~flavorful~

wit his lil bae: i don’t think miyuki would switch it up much w his s/o. is probably even more teasing with you over text than he is with his friends, which is saying something.

like talking with you just by nature of you being his partner. prob prefers texts to facetime because text kinda allows for maximum snark

he LIVES for you guys’ witty back and forth 

if he’s traveling for work or something, will definitely relish in you guys binge texting a tv show or something but just making funny commentary (or he’ll just send you funny commentary to get a reaction)

 he can dish it and he’s also not a super sensitive guy so he can take it tenfold from you as well. nothing y’all wouldn’t be used to when talking in person!

sometimes when texting him you’ll want to beat his a*s because he can be so cheeky but its endearing in a way. he definitely adds emojis to the end of his more annoying messages to give it that loveable vibe (and it works ofc, we love u miyuki)

he’s kinda clingy on the low so i think he’d prefer a partner that’s more open with their affection via text than he is. he would live for your random ilys or whatver throughout the day. also would not mind at all if you updated him on your actions throughout the day or sent him snaps - might not be able to respond to everything, but will react and appreciate it. very likely to make jokes about whatever you’re doing.

would also apologize over text. he’s not always used to apologizing can be awkward about it, so text makes it easier for him.

he would use emojis w you in a joking/ironic way. would absolute use those dumb but genius emoji combinations

yuki tetsuya

i’m literally cracking up thinking about texting him. he is one of my ultimate baes but im sorry i just know he texts dry asf. but its part of his charm!

has a flip phone. either never upgrades or gets the chunkiest most basic android if he is forced to

the thing is this man thinks that he is infusing all his texts with, like, tajin level seasoning, when in reality its pepper

uses punctuation. always. exclamation marks are used sparingly to express excitement.

but i can’t get the image out of my head of an upset tetsuya texting you a simple angry emoji (or the angry emoticon >:( LOL) if he’s reeeeeeally mad. but its v cute i can’t take him seriously. i just want to give him a hug <3

 but you know what he is so PASSIONATE about whatever he’s talking about that his passion bleeds into his text through sheer quantity of words and depth of thought. ultimately, all his conversations end up being extremely flavorful in terms of content. he is surprisingly good at having deep conversations over text.

he’s better at holding conversations with more extroverted personalities, truthfully.

he’s another one who sends random things to people when he thinks about them. miyuki of course gets so many texts/thoughts about shogi. if you get a random haiku, poem, or quote from testu, that means you’re blessed enough to be in his inner circle! he definitely thought of you when he read it and and wants you to respond!

with bae: he doesn’t really change up his texting style tbh, but he has a stronger outward reaction to what YOU text in response.

definitely the type to smile almost imperceptibly at his phone as he texts you, even if you send him something like “hey i’m at the store, want anything?”

he’s not great as verbal affection early in the relationship, so you’ll have to discern his love/affection. however baby boy is NOT afraid to just straight up say he loves you, he does it all the time and early.

he’s KNOWN for being reliable and responsible, so he will be at your beck and call when he’s able to for anything you need, but his heart is also warmed by the thought of you reciprocating that care. if your texts show him you’re thinking of him just like he does too. he’s very gentle and sweet, and checks up on you when he’s able to see if you need anything at all.

he might be reliable, but that doesn’t mean that he’s the quickest guy to respond to texts. he’s a busy guy, and he doesn’t think about his phone all the time, but he will always get back to you (bae does not play when it comes to completing things).

if they came up with a shogi game for gamepidgeon and tetsu had an iphone, your phone probably would be spammed with requests for games lol.

this is my first time doing headcanons like this so please let me know what you think or give me tips on how to improve! I really enjoying thinking about it so I hope to do more in the future <3

I brought up hanyang type 88 here and i said i’d explain, so here I am!!

okay so first off here’s a bunch of likely useful context about girls frontline. There is this feature in the game called digimind upgrade, or mod 3, where certain t-dolls can be upgraded past the normal maximum levels and stats, and at the same time gaining whole new abilities and also a new design. Basically a reinvention. There are like hundreds of playable characters in the game, and only a fraction will get mod 3s, typically the ‘main characters’ who are relevant to the major ongoing plot.

two things about getting a doll who has the ability to do digimind upgrade, to actually do that. One, is that it can be very costly in terms of in-game materials. like, maybe i just played the game wrong but I would have to grind for weeks in order to amass the materials to upgrade just one doll to mod 3. So even though by now there are dozens upon dozens of dolls who are capable of this feature, i’ve only actually done so with like, less than one dozen. A normal player probably has to be picky.

secondly, and this is the big one, every t-doll’s mod 3 comes with story cutscenes that become available for you to view upon upgrading them. Personally, i think most of the only worthwhile mod 3 stories are the ones that are associated with the actual major characters of the main story, especially since their upgrades actually happen in-canon and their mod 3 stories fill in blanks or otherwise expand upon the regular story chapters.

for the t-dolls who aren’t major characters that get digimind upgrades, their associated stories tend to follow a very basic pattern. They’re feeling like they are falling behind other T-Dolls in abilities or are otherwise experiencing a drop in confidence in their abilities, but then find the resolve in them to either change themselves or stand by an aspect of themselves, and this leads them to heading to the lab to get upgraded. obviously theres some nuances here and there depending on the character, but a lot of them, from what i saw, follow this basic pattern.

hanyang type 88 has a mod 3 but i certainly never wanted to see it. Firstly, using the feature at all takes up resources are kinda precious so i wasn’t just gonna use it on anyone. Secondly, she is just one of many one-off t-dolls that basically dont ever show up in any actual main story cutscenes or even funny events. Thirdly... you saw what she looked like in the linked post, i was in no rush to make use of her.

That being said, even if you don’t ever upgrade a t-doll, simply having them in your possession allows you to at least view the first of four parts of their mod 3 story, which nets you a small amount of those materials needed to see the rest (its a pretty fiendish system, huh o_O). I was lacking in some materials to upgrade a doll i cared about, so i just mucked around, eventually happened upon type88 again and decided that instead of just immediately feeding her to the furnace, I’d watch the first chapter of her mod 3 story. I watched it, it made me just curious enough to look further, and well. ...I got into it. Exactly what I got into, i shall now just elaborate and summarise the whole thing in my own way! Warning, it’s long!

(disclosure: my summary will bias towards my own preferred interpretation whenever any aspect is somewhat vague.)

The story starts with type 88, or as she is called by others in griffin base, Ai, working her shift in the base’s cafe, because what else would she be doing.

i hate looking at her! Anyway, its just a pleasant peaceful day and Ai is taking the logistic person, kalina’s order when suddenly in the middle of a conversation, Ai freezes in place and starts making worrying sounds.

kalina here and the t-dolls present in the cafe are concerned, and talk about how Type88 has actually been crashing like this more and more frequently lately, yet has not reported any of this to the maintenance crew despite the advice of her friends. They try rebooting her on the spot, but it has an even more concerning effect, because she starts erratically acting like she doesn’t recognise the others, and talks about how she is a maid in “Jiangcheng Cafe”. Afraid that her neural cloud (her mind) has been scrambled, they put her to sleep and bring her to the repair bay.

Its in the repair bay where they explain exactly what is wrong with type88. She is a fairly old doll, and her processing capacity has been severally clogged up for a long time. Her internal memory is overflowing because many large sections of her mind is filled with very large encrypted files (memories that she stored away). she is likely to keep crashing and possibly even cease functioning entirely one day if those encrypted files are not deleted, but nobody is really keen on just deleting parts of her mind without her consent. For now, kalina just opts to try and decrypt the files and see what they are.

And from here, we watch type88 memories from her perspective. Sort of. Kind of. It gets complicated later but for now, we view the first memory of her life, not as a combat t-doll type88, but...

...as 59898, a doll designed to be what is basically a ‘crash test dummy’ for testing artillery technology in a research station. With a purpose like this, 59898 has an (ostensibly) rudimentary AI. Her learning ability is intended to be used to better aid the results of their testing, but she also knows how to understand and even imitate specific human gestures in order to better respond to instructions or conversation, even though she herself has no voice module to speak with. She is assigned to assist one specific person.

first off, i was pretty shocked right off the bat that this story above so many others actually has unique assets to it. The above two sprites don’t show up anywhere else in the game, i don’t think. Secondly, this woman’s name is only ever spelled with those white squares, so I’m stuck with having to just calling her ‘the pilot’, as dry as that sounds... I just don’t want to type out weird characters every time, or call her ‘triple cube’...

Anyway, so 59898 is assigned to help this woman in testing artillery tech (stuff like mechs and tanks). I should mention really quick that in the game’s story, during this point of time is when world war iii is happening, but that’s just a backdrop for robots to eventually gain more prominence. Anyway, we move on to the second memory, where some time has already passed. At the beginning of this memory, the pilot is visibly depressed, which 59898 takes note of.

Her ‘comfort mode’ consists of patting the pilot on the head, who while surprised, actually is grateful. She feels comfortable enough to talk about her worries aloud to the doll, mentioning how she is a war refugee and has to make a living in the research base because she can’t go back to her home in china, at least not before making enough money for a very expensive and exclusive train ticket. She continues to talk at length to the doll...

...not that the test doll is capable of responding to anything she says. The pilot insists that she’s happy just to have someone listen to her though, since she feels like she can’t really express her feelings to any other person on the base. Despite that-

That aside, the pilot says that referring to 59898 by her serial number all the time feels a bit weird, so she decides to give the doll a name. (I sure wish the story would give this woman a name too, other than ‘three white squares’ but oh well...)

She talks more with Jiangcheng Ai, or just Ai, after that, asking her if she’d like a change of clothes sometime, like some casual clothes, or an old maid outfit from an old cafe job she used to have (I guess they had to throw in any explanation for that outfit somehow) Point is, more and more time passes.

As time passes though, and we go into the third memory, the pilot brings up complaints to her superiors about how the more recent testings, becoming more increasingly intense and frequent, are putting a great strain on Ai, and even repairs can only help maintain her chassis so much. She insists on wanting to take Ai’s place in the testing, but they refuse because, well, Ai’s entire purpose is to take the strain of these tests so that the human pilot doesn’t have to, and the doll is just a tool there to pave the way for the pilot to eventually take over the mech in action

The next time Ai wakes up from her most recent repairs, the pilot is there to greet her, and Ai can tell straight away that she’s unhappy and tries to comfort her again. The pilot is not surprised at this and talks about how this is how Ai has been since they first met. She goes on to say how all the other people on the base don’t know her half as well as Ai does. Ai tries to understand and determine what the pilot’s intentions with saying all this is, but she cannot do so and can only listen while offering ‘executing - affirmative nod’.

The pilot talks about how once the war is over, she’d like to take Ai back home with her, where they could go to all sorts of gatherings, and the pilot would introduce Ai to her friends.

Ai reviews her personal data, confirming that she has no owners or obligations other than the pilot, so she executes another affirmative nod, and the pilot says this:

As Ai tries and fails to further determine this, something bad happens! if you’ve read this far, i’m sure you’ve already guess what happens next...

At that exact moment, a warning goes out and the research base is being attacked by nebulous enemy forces. With no time to talk anymore, both the pilot and Ai head out into their first real fight.

They spend a good long while repelling enemy forces, working well together and apparently using all sorts of wacky anime weaponry like beam blades and whatever ‘retrograde evasion’ is!

obviously though, you already know this isn’t going to end well for them... When the pilot takes a breather, Ai moves to protect her, but at a critical moment, a sudden high-speed projectile comes her way. In the next instance there’s a crash, and we move onto another memory. Where its all fire and debris, and Ai can’t move.

^ this text box actually repeats several times, indicating that she is repeating her scan for life signs over and over. She gets an internal warning from her systems (differentiated with red text) that she has insufficient power and it warns her to immediately cease ineffective operations. [Unable to detect owner life signs] repeats again.

At this point, uuuuh, its a little stupid actually? because two humans show up, reusing generic ‘bad guy’ sprites from other events that don’t match the current environment and situation at all (one is in a suit and the other is in casual clothes). but the reason they’re here is to provide exposition out loud about what happened. It looked like the human’s mech took a hit for the doll and was blown to bits, though they talk about how that doesn’t make any sense.

Ai at this point tries to execute a bunch of different actions like hugging [target not found] and screaming [no relevant module] but they all fail, and her internal systems tell her that her power is running out and she will cease to function in 30 seconds.

So in those last 30 seconds, Ai decides to quickly review her internal files. the damage she took has corrupted her memories and she doesn’t have the time to properly go through them, so she executes a ‘simulated processed records’, which basically mean she’s just filling the blanks of those memories herself with simulations.

And I have to say. I was decently into and enjoying this little story so far, but its this part that’s the reason i became forced to make this stupid giant post. the first ‘memory’ loads up, and we see the pilot.

Different ‘memories’ of the days spent with the pilot are loaded back to back, each are very short and only last a few lines. Across these files, the two of them talk comfortably with each other, Ai is invited to go get coffee with her, the pilot talks about how going alone is boring and would rather spend time with Ai, Ai saying back with her own words that she always likes spending time with her, etc etc etc.

And then finally, she loads one last ‘memory’, from earlier that same day, before the explosion and the fighting.

and she shuts down.

i passed by this scene the first time all calm, but an hour or so later when I was in the bathroom replacing shampoo bottles, i started thinking about it and I literally started sobbing. And then again later that night when i was in bed. I hate this game!!

so that’s the ‘end’ of that, and the next scene opens, once again in griffin base’s cafe, except...

Ai is sporting a brand new (ugly) look. She says she’d like to take kalina’s order but she was just leaving on other business, as she likes keeping herself busy with all sorts of work around the base ever since she got upgraded into a gundam gajinka. and after she leaves, kalina talks with the other dolls about how Ai used to have some cache issues because her neutral cloud was too full, but upgrading into this new chassis easily fixed that and even allowed her to make use of her old locked away abilities.

Because of the way this scene in the cafe opens up exactly like the very first one at the beginning, it makes me believe that this final scene is also a simulated ‘memory’, that is, Ai filling in the blanks of her corrupted memories with what she wishes to be reality. And i feel confident in believing that because after the scene fades to black, we see more of her internal system monologue.

She (the system) says that the priority execution is to preserve those encrypted memory logs. She does so, and the neural cloud upgrade is complete with confirmation of no loss files. With no risk of deletion in this new form, she executes the command to unlock the encrypted memories. And finally...

[spiderbread dies]

i still wouldn’t use her in gameplay because i can’t stand looking at her design but  i told you all i eat up robot with feelings stuff and this is like prime example of exactly that... and if i didn’t make this post, i think my own neutral cloud’s cache would be at risk of overflowing x_X!

I wanted to get your perspective because you ship it and most of us have bias against it. Do you think Bell loves Echo as much as Clarke? I think he’s in love with her but does he love her as much or will he possibly discover in s5 that he doesn’t love her as much???Not trying to cheapen becho’s loving relationship, just wanted your thoughts.

Nonny -  you did not ask for part of the below to bean essay on Why Becho Are In Love Goddammit, so I apologise to you bc I knowyou said it in the ask. But to everyone else I’m not sorry because I loved writingit all and I WANTED TO GET IT OFF MY CHEST OKAY.

Good evening Nonny, and thank you for your interesting andwell-constructed ask. Judging by some of the rhetoric I’ve seen over the pastfew days, there’s a very real risk of people throwing up in their mouths overwhat follows so I hope everyone remembers to floss and brush afterwards.  Look after your tooth enamel kids, it can’tbe replaced.

So. Let’s begin.

I very much agree with you: Bellamy and Echo are in lovewith one another.

WAIT – HOLD YOUR SICKBAGS – THERE’S MORE.

Not only are Bellamy and Echo in love with one another butit is explicit between them.  That’sright friends, I am 100% sure that Bellamy and Echo have done that. No not that, although yes also that and lots of times upside down andprobably sideways too. No I mean they’ve done the Big ILU.

Why do I think that? A number of reasons but let’s startwith the storytelling.

If I were to construct a story in which one of myprotagonists falls back to Earth and immediately falls into conflict with arelative, another protagonist, let’s say a beloved sister, I would want thatconflict to mean something.  In fact, I’dwant it to mean the most.  And if that conflict was related to a romanticrelationship that one of these protagonists had, I would want all of those relationshipsto have high stakes so that I could really milk all the emotional impact of thechoices these protagonists make.

You know what doesn’t have high stakes? Lukewarmquasi-relationships in which nobody – or only one person - is truly invested.

And you know, if I were to really go to town on thisbrother-sister YOU CAN’T DATE [X] BECAUSE [REASONS] storyline, I may alsoconsider echoing a previous relationship that the other sibling had, which hadsimilarly high stakes and over which the two siblings nearly destroyed eachother.

See, I’ve seen the argument that Echo is a lot more intoBellamy that he is into her, and from a character perspective there’s a slimpossibility I’d buy it if it weren’t for the fact that we know that the show is setting up some kind of conflict betweenthe Blakes – in which Bellamy needs to actually give a personal shit about hisrelationship with Echo - or a complication between Bellamy and Echo thatultimately splits them up, which, again, requires Bellamy to feel that loss ifit if there’s to be any point to it at all.

And if, for example, I was also planning to break out an arcfor a character who hadn’t really had one before, for whom the audience hasonly really viewed through the prism of the protagonist POV, I would want that character’s relationshipwith my protagonist to reach its peak before I take her solo. Echoliterally breaking free of the chains of being something to Bellamy?  Howvery meta.

So, from that narrative start point, if the show wants toconvince me that Bellamy and Echo’s relationship doesn’t have very high stakesfor them both, it’s going to have to work quite hard.

Which it does not.

Of course we all have our own personal experiences whichshape our perception of what “love” and “not in love” looks like.  But for me? Bellamy and Echo in 501 is whatpeople in love look like.  By which Imean physical and emotional intimacy, touching, eye contact, openness, synchronicityof movement, comfort, understanding, tenderness and, most importantly,communication.

Because what struck me about their introduction to us as acouple is that clearly, this is not the first time Bellamy and Echo havediscussed what their relationship means. This wasn’t, we’re going to the ground, don’t you think we ought to talkabout what we even are?  This was: youknow that thing we talked about?  Willthat change now we’re going to the ground? I’m scared. (and my babies, youshould be)

All of which, by the way is 100% the way loving, emotionallyopen stable long-term relationships work, or should do.  Defining yourselves as a unit and constantlyadapting to the changing dynamic is a thing that happens in long-termrelationships. It’s a sign of confidence, not a lack of it. Which kiiiiiind ofleads me back to what I was saying in my original post about multishipping, inthat the point of Bellamy being in a relationship at all is the show punchingus with BELLAMY IS HAPPY, BELLAMY IS STABLE, BELLAMY IS IN LOVE, ALL OF THIS ISABOUT TO BLOW UP IN HIS FACE.

So, now that everyone has emptied their stomachs I’m goingto move on to Bellarke, and s5.

I’m going to find this hard to extrapolate, and I may needto revisit this after the Bellarke reunion because I feel Becho very much atmand Bellarke seems a bit…idk abstract?  ButI know when I see them reunite I’ll want to break through space and time and physically make them smoosh their preciousfaces together.

Ahem.

So, you’ll have noticed that I spent a great deal of timeabove pointing out how Bellamy and Echo’s relationship looks like a normalloving long-term relationship. Now Bellarke, Bellarke is not that, not yet. Butthe thing is, it doesn’t matter. What Bellarke has is what I’d describe ascosmic. I don’t think it would matter where they were in the world, or whatsituation they were in, if they knew the other was alive they’d gravitatetowards each other.  They’d always seekeach other out. In many ways, I don’t think they’re even conscious of it, orcan help it very much.  It’s like a pullneither of them can resist, a presence that never leaves.

And the thing is, that while that is a very romantic idea andfrankly electric to watch on screen, it’s also quite scary. Their dependence oneach other and need for each other is life-affirming, yes.  But it is also TERRIFYING for them both.Losing each other, or even the thought of losing each other, has driven themhalf mad in the past and pushed them to do crazy things.

Whereas Becho – and I mean this in a good way -  is very muchabout choice. No, they didn’t choose to be stranded in space together, but theychose to forgive each other, put their animosity aside.  They chose to do whatever it was they did(headcanon time: war stories and mythology, sparring and trig lessons) thatmade them bond.  They chose their relationshipframework. They chose love.  And I like that.  

It’s mundane, but its life-affirming too in its own way andit is every bit as valid as Bellarke’s crashing-through-the-universenot-talking-about-it shitshow.

(Incidentally, this is one of the reasons I’m so in lovewith the time jump and Bellarke being separate but OK – breaking them out ofthe spiral they were in, and giving them enough joy in their lives to let themmake active choices about who they are to each other).

But I do thinkBellamy’s love for Echo is very context dependent.  Did you ever have a friend that was a part ofyour life during a certain time? Those friends can be some of the most intense,meaningful relationships you have.  Butwhen you move out of your shared context, you drift apart. I think that is whatcould happen with Bellamy and Echo.  Ithink that being back on Earth could bring all of the reasons for theiroriginal antagonism back to the surface. They could find it hard to reclaimtheir dynamic with the ghosts of who they used to be  - Clarke, Octavia and Azgeda – real andpresent and in front of them.

I think the stories they chose to tell themselves about eachother and their lives on earth (stories like “my sister will forgive you”), thestories that made the love they built possible, could start to dissolve as the realityof Earth sets in.

PREDICTION TIME: In short, I think the Bellamy we see inspace will not be the Bellamy we have by the end of the season.  And that Bellamy won’t be able to love Echoin the way Space!Bellamy could, and I don’t think Earth!Echo will be able tolove Earth!Bellamy in that way either.

I won’t make a value judgement because all love is valid. Ithink Bellamy will love Clarke with the same intensity – even if they neverbecame romantic - until one or both of them are on a funeral pyre. But I thinkhe’s more than capable of loving someone else fully at the same time and for itto mean something. Love is not a finite pool.

Is One or the Other Actually More Harmful?

*THIS BLOG GOT RIDICULOUS WITH ALL THE DIRECTIONS I WENT. I ADVISE TO NOT READ SOBER. OR AT ALL* First, I am going to pick apart the prompt a little. I do realize my blog posts tend to ask questions more than answer them, let alone even fully address them, but this week's chapters and last weeks discussion had my mind going in several directions. 

“...others argue a difference is based on the ethics of persuading someone to do something that is either in line with or against their own self-interests.” I think how we weigh the debate between propaganda and persuasion -- and how we define our perspectives on the matter -- should start with how we define or think if ‘self interest’ The basic definition of self-interest is: 1

: a concern for one's own advantage and well-being

acted out of self-interest and fear

2

: one's own interest or advantage

self-interest requires that we be generous in foreign aid

But why? I spent perhaps far too much time on the Merriam Webster dictionary rabbit holes and I am quite stumped as to how *we* define or think of self-interest. I then took a more theoretical approach to self interest and...that was a strange rabbit hole and finally, centered my thoughts from a religious angle [being I am a member of an organized religion] The dictionary links and “see also”’s seem to suggest that self-interest is not inherently defined as personal --but as the wellbeing and benefit of others -- but naturally “self” interest in our very individualist US society, we identify our personal selves with the definition. This has me thinking, would collective societies identify “self-interest” for the benefit of others outside of themselves? Perhaps this is why charity is so emphasized in western societies, the US for example. I am going to pick on my own religion and research I have done for muse: Just for reference/context & not terribly important as far as the point of the post* *I am a practicing Mormon who researches  gender constructs in the church and  I focus on post WWII North American Mormon culture, policy and “teachings”. The “natural man” concept is something I have a difficult time agreeing with or seeing eye to eye with. But I disagree with a lot of what religion “says” on quite a few things. But, to highlight my own hypocrisy and bias, the Mormon view of “the natural man” is a lot less annoying and problematic. As a side note, I think Islam has it “right” with the concept of “natural man” and I lean more toward that area of thought. As “pseudo Buddhist” as I like to think I am and aspire to be, I feel even Buddhist theology on the state of the natural man a little empty sometimes. I’m also kind of a combative asshole who can find a problem with just about anything* My three younger children just came racing in from school so I completely lost my train of thought Perhaps my point of “natural man” was to highlight how individualistic our society can be. The one universalist teaching of al Christian denominations is in Jesus Christ, His divinity and Saviorhood. This is the utmost core of Mormon theology as well, but -- like everything else -- we have to get weird with that too and it still differs from other mainstream Christian religions. Because the natural state of man is [supposedly] self interested with pleasure and only in it for ones own gain is why the concept of charity is so emphasized; it’s good to do for others, as Christ does for *us* and helps us be closer to Him -- kinda thing. Charity for others saves us. And the resulting benefit of charity is our own personal gain. But even the concept of charity and good works is riddled with self interest and personal gain. Charity gets YOU into “heaven” and what goes around, comes around kind of thing. In western society -- even in religious -- the concept of do unto others emphasises personal benefit. This is something I leaned is quite unique within wester culture and is a direct result of our individualist society. I spent some time backpacking Italy as a teenager and this was my first experience with this sort of thing. Charity being heroized in my youth until I left home (to be fair, my mother is crazy and took things really far…) and emphasis on charity and good works

 for others was embarrassing for Italians. It was “just what you do”. Italy may not be the greatest example of a collective society , since it has its classic overall traits of individualistic values, but the betterment of others for the sake of those others left a distinct impression on me as a 17 year old. I am not trying to suggest we lack individuals in the states with those kind of qualities. From a religious person's perspective who has almost no strong relationships with other religious people, atheists tend to have the most honorable notions of self-interest on others behalf because they have nothing to gain, other than just doing the right thing. So, all my rambling, gets to my point -- how does propaganda and persuasion encourage self interest and gain? Both Propaganda and Persuasion are centered on communicating a message to an audience. But, it depends on how you look at it: I think the difference between persuasion and propaganda lies within who receives the benefit in the end. And I also think the lines are too blurred and detailed gray to fully distinguish  persuasion from propaganda if we were going by definitions alone. With of course, the exception of distinguishing between two extremes, IE - we can determine by definition the difference between Al Qaeda recruitment videos and Sarah Mcllaughlin ASPCA commercials (though both are almost equally miserable to behold) I would think the knowledge of distinguishing the two would lie most on experience. But, don’t quote me on that latter comment. I’m sure that could be torn apart in five seconds. 

Propaganda: The benefit of peddled propaganda is for the ultimate gain of those who created the propaganda message and their targeted agenda. Persuasion: The benefit lies on behalf of the individual or individuals who are on the receiving end of the persuasive message. With that in mind, is perhaps not the definitions between the two terms that are problematic and up for debate, but what *we* consider to be propaganda or persuasive messages. Nazi Germany is the all too perfect example of direct propaganda and personal gain (albeit, a bit cliche for me to bring up, given I am giving such a surgaced synopsis) being the goal was for Hitler (amongst so many other things) to create an elite class of Aryian genetics and assume power of all of Eastern and Western Europe. What is taught less than the mainstream genocidal politics of the Third Reich, was how extremely gendered it was. Women had progressional and educational rights stripped rom them under Hitlers rule and propaganda centered on the role of wife and mother was heavily thrown at women and young girls. You can’t create a master race without birth. And men cannot tend to their duties if they are distracted by a problematic home life, of course. 

The NRA is another classic case of propagandist messages. The NRA has donor and investment ties to right wing and “conservative” media outlets, politicians and donors. Back when I was in International Relations, I had to watch hours of Taliban and Al-Qaeda recruitment videos and the scare tactics and enactments of fear centered language are nearly identical to the methods of NRA messages. The benefactors for the aforementioned were the ones propagating the message: the NRA get’s more money and political influence by membership numbers and political affiliations, Nazi Germany was dangerously close to eradicating the Jewish population and the systematic propoganda ensured his place of power until outside forces destroyed his carefully constructed regime. Where does it blurry? I think religion is the perfect example of the blurred lines between propaganda and influence. Behold, the The Proclamation of the Family. A Mormon document that has had a resoundingly strong presence in my religion since 1995, when it was first printed and presented to *us* Mormons, VIA the Salt Lake City pulpit. 

And I fucking hate this document so fucking much and so should you! Though it has never been presented as doctrine, revelation or ever considered canon -- it has never even been submitted to the quorum of the 12 and First Presidency for vote to be considered doctrine, revelation or official church canon. And THAT'S because it’s NOT! It’s a homophobic and patriarchal document that details the divinity of the family order by affirming romanticist, heteronormative gender roles. I mean preside? What is this, the 12th century? The ideal family structure is centered on a man and woman in the home? Oh WHAT.EV.ER. Furthermore, the FP was originally filed as an amicus brief in solidarity with Hawaii’s rejection of its first same sex marriage suit in 199(3?2?) one of those years. I always get them mixed up. Chieko N. Okazaki , the church’s then General Relief Society President (and one of the most badass women, ever) was always open with her disagreements with its wording, its place in the church’s narrative and how it was presented to the church’s worldwide membership. This stupid document is so prominent in my religions culture and practice, people have no idea it’s complete and utter lack of theological and doctrinal weight and how contradictory it is to Mormonism’s core religious tenets. I know people who can quote this bullshit better than they can Christ’s sermon on the mount! Ya know, teaching that actually does some good in this universe. But...is it propaganda or influence? Well...it could be argued as both, on the surface anyway. The church is famous for not even having to excommunicate members because it is hemorrhaging members in the US who remove their names from the church’s records or fall through the cracks of inactivity because of the church’s exclusionary views on heteronormative family structure and sexist, patriarchal centered gender roles. And by reinforcing the traditional unit of family theoretically, it has its hold on more membership numbers. But oddly...or not so oddly, if you’re a Mormon who is actually on the inside of this institution and not a complete idiot...the church is losing members in countries that are more conservative. Countries that are more liberal with less negative emphasis and stereotypes centered on matters such as LGBTQ, gender, “modesty” and nudity, interfaith marriages, abortion etc, the church performs far better, though membership numbers pale in comparison to the states and Central and South America, retention rate and activity is statistically higher than its North American counterpart. With the exception of particular countries were colonialist rule and tribal relations still HEAVILY influence culture and local politics. Nigeria, for instance, falls in that line but the church outshines the states as far as retention rate of members. I don’t think this all points to positive reasons, but that’s another Oprah show. IE, the church doesn’t actually get much benefit from the Family Proclamation. Aside from it’s image...which I mean, lets face it, isn’t that great. At best, it is vastly short sided, damaging,  yet wellmeaning persuasian. And you have to look at the church’s theology as a whole to understand the initiative behind the FP. The church’s theology is actually, quite collective and centered on social unity and family harmony. Family is important for societal and individualistic reasons that are too numerous to count. It is a religion that --theoretically anyway, not always in local practice and a quick google search on court settlements is proof-- holds accountability to those who mistreat their spouses and children. But the church has refused to not live in a romanticist gender role bubble since the first World War and is only now acknowledging LGBTQIA members that shouldn’t be driven from the flock (telling someone they can and should change their fundamental authentic selves because Christ loves them IS driving from the flock) and the Family Proclamation is losing weight for so many reasons. Except in places it’s not. Mormons in Migrant communities in Asia, North Africa and the Middle East hardly ever noticed its presence because local ward and branch membership (that’s “congregation” in Mormon language) is up to 80% women. The fuck do they need a document telling them about the importance of a man presiding in the home, when the run the show at church and at home anyway? Paaaaasssssss….. But in more patriarchal and tribal centered countries, the Family Proclamation is actually considered to be quite progressive because it is the first actually printed document that outlines notions of equality and presiding with love and women’s “roles” being declared equally important. While Googling, I found a rather humorous “redacted” version of the Family Proclamation and I just love it on so many levels. But to highlight, I think this redacted version highlights the true intent of the family proclamation’s message at time and what the church would have said if it wasn’t on some legal, anti gay marriage agenda. This is what I take from Mormon theology concerning family unity. This is what I feel the ultimate goal of persuasion is meant to have in a religious organization. Mormon Obsessions with Media Campaigns and Those STUPID Lesson Video Tapes To stay on the Mormon train (I know you're all sick of it, I apologize) The church has had its share of actual propaganda, in form of something called Mormonads that ran from the 90′s through early 2000′s. And its benefit was strictly directed at the church’s carefully constructed obsession with image and to keep all those little Mormon kids in their place. Why? Mormon kids who keep their place go on missions (I did not, I was off fucking around and following bands which will remain unnamed before I got married -- in the temple -- and started having children)  Mormon kids who go on missions recruit others for baptism and strong membership keeps the church’s credibility over its members. But what makes its media campaigns so distinct propagandist in nature, is the scare and shame tactics it uses in order to keep young adults on the Mormon path. Scare tactics that are born not from religious theology, but conservative and political cultural origins. *I’m not even going to detail any of it. I feel I have been a broken record about colonialism, hierarchy, supremacy and patriarchy but so much of the churches structure in the US are built on those things. It’s so annoying. I’m making myself annoyed.* Some of course would argue on the same grounds as the FP, that the Mormonad campaign  was centered on persuasion -- meant to keep kids from falling into dangerous activities and lifestyles...absolutely no one benefited. Or did they? Fear can be a persuasive and effective tactic and I have spent hundreds of hours interviewing ex Mormons who have mixed feelings about the church’s ad campaigns of the 80’s and 90’s. “It kept me from doing things I would have probably regretted had I not had that influence”. But there is still an element of begroaning and regret for having felt controlled concerning individual decision making. As someone who left the church in my teenage years -- due to circumstances, not so much disagreement with the church -- this does hold an element of weight when it comes to persuasion for the sake of safety and straight and narrow. I was not someone who paid any mind to the Mormonad campaigns, even when I was a gung-ho active youth and there is room for argument that I am still paying consequences of bad decisions made in my youth and early twenties. But I also had so much fun and valuable life lessons. So would that not be just “real life”? Had I not learned all the “lessons” of progressions and “bettering myself” that the Mormonads tried to hammer into Mormon youth by practicing my own agency? So, are these Mormonads truly propaganda or persuasion? And where on the richter scale would it all fall more fittingly under? I had labeled the Mormonads as strictly propaganda earlier, but now I am not so sure, now I am asking different questions and making different distinctions. Which is difficult to do, considering the “gray areas” I fee this all falls under. Is propaganda inherently good, and propaganda inherently negative? Who actually benefits the most from either, and do most companies or organizations actually benefit as well as they hope with release of their message campaigns? Can targeted persuasion be as harmful as propaganda campaigns? These are the things I am considering.

Fantastic Beasts: Every Controversy The Harry Potter Spin-Off Has Caused https://youtu.be/pMawrh7AjKM The Fantastic Beasts motion picture collection has in fact been related to various disputes, as well as additionally right below’s each of them. In 1997, J.K. Rowling offered site visitors to the Wizarding World with Harry Potter as well as additionally the Philosopher’s Stone, the extremely initially in a collection of 7 tales. The magazines notified the story of “the boy who lived” as well as additionally the darkest wizard of all, Lord Voldemort, going over topics like oppression, power as well as additionally abuse, loss, bias, as well as additionally enjoy. The Harry Potter stories have actually been matched with the play Harry Potter as well as additionally the Cursed Child as well as additionally the in-universe publications Fantastic Beasts as well as additionally Where to Find Them as well as additionally Quidditch Through the Ages. The Harry Potter collection made the dive to the cinema in between 2001 as well as additionally 2011, with the last publication, Harry Potter as well as additionally the Deathly Hallows, being divided right into 2 movies. Fans went back to the Wizarding World in 2016 with the launch of the motion picture adjustment of Fantastic Beasts as well as additionally Where To Find Them, created by Rowling as well as additionally guided by David Yates (that additionally guided the last 4 Harry Potter movies). The movie complied with magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) as he employed the aid of muggle Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler) to pursue some left enchanting animals. Meanwhile, a weird dark pressure terrified New York City, as well as additionally dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald was thought to be behind all of it. Fantastic Beasts as well as additionally Where To Find Them obtained favorable testimonials, yet it wasn’t also gotten as the Harry Potter movies. Still, it sufficed to give way for a follow up – Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald – and also possibly 3 even more movies. Fantastic Beasts 2 was slammed for its story, which was as well concentrated on establishing future follows up, and also ended up being the lowest-grossing movie of the Wizarding World. The movie was associated with debate throughout pre-production when Johnny Depp was cast as Grindelwald, which didn’t aid its efficiency with visitors and also in package workplace. However, Depp’s spreading hasn’t been the only debate around Fantastic Beasts, which have in fact placed a huge enigma over the future of the collection. Here’s every debate Fantastic Beasts has actually created. Johnny Depp’s participation in the Fantastic Beasts collection was the very first movie’s huge shock. Near completion of the movie, Newt revealed Percival Graves (Colin Farrell) as Grindelwald in camouflage, that was later on nabbed. Depp’s participation in Fantastic Beasts 2 was validated in November 2016, yet already, Depp was currently associated with debate as a result of his separation from Amber Heard, with followers transforming their backs at him as well as additionally articulating their dispute with Warner Bros’ casting choice. Johnny Depp as well as additionally Amber Heard obtained wed in 2015, as well as additionally the last applied for separation in 2016, acquiring a short-term limiting order as well as additionally proclaiming he had actually been “verbally and physically abusive” throughout their connection. That, in addition to his ticket office charm not being what it when was in addition to his acting capabilities, motivated followers to ask for a recast. David Yates and also J.K. Rowling protected their spreading selection, and also while Heard and also Depp got to a negotiation in August 2016, the debate didn’t finish there, and also followers remained to share their dispute. The Depp/Heard debate isn’t totally over yet, with followers still taking sides, much more so after the launch of audio recordings which purportedly affirm Depp’s insurance claims of Heard being violent to him. What’s without a doubt is that Depp’s appeal has actually reduced in the last few years, also prior to his (extremely public) separation, and also as he has actually been validated to repeat his function as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts 3, visitors could not be that thinking about the movie collection any longer. Johnny Depp isn’t the only actors participant to be associated with debate concerning their hostile habits behind the scenes. Ezra Miller, that has actually played Credence Barebone in both Fantastic Beasts movies, was just recently in the center of debate when a video clip of them choking a follower was shared on social networks. In it, Miller is seen speaking with a female outside a club, where she seems joking around while making foolish “fight” relocates in the direction of the star. Miller can be listened to asking “did you wish to deal with?” while opting for her neck, banging her on what seems a wagon behind her, as well as additionally after that taking her down. The video clip is extremely brief as well as additionally finishes right after she’s required to the ground, as the individual shooting as well as additionally those around it mosted likely to her help. It’s still unidentified specifically what took place, though a pal of the follower included shared that the female “amusingly tested him to a battle”, which Miller took as well seriously. Miller was apparently accompanied out of the club’s facilities, yet not prior to he spewed on a bartender as well as additionally among the female’s buddies. However, an eyewitness clarified that Miller was faced by some over-eager followers, amongst those the female in the video clip, and also he wound up shedding his mood. Still, that doesn’t excuse their fierce response, and also while Miller’s group has actually been silently taking care of it, followers fasted to share their frustration and also temper over what took place. Miller is readied to repeat their function as Credence in Fantastic Beasts 3, yet as neither theyneither Warner Bros. share any kind of kind of declaration concerning the case, it will undoubtedly impact the target market’sresponse to Miller’s go back to the movie collection. The most recent debate bordering the Wizarding World are J.K. Rowling’s anti-trans remarks. The debate around Rowling’s remarks started in 2018, when she suched as a tweet that described trans ladies as “men in dresses”. Her group clarified that it was a mishap, outcome of a “awkward and also middle-aged moment”. In December 2019, Rowling tweeted her support for Maya Forstater, a British tax expert whose employer decided not to renew her contract after she expressed her views on transgender people on Twitter. LGBTQ organization GLAAD asked to have an off-the-record conversation with her, which was reportedly denied by her publicist, and also many Twitter users asked her to educate herself on the topic. Rowling’s anti-trans comments didn’t stop there, and in June 2020 she received more backlash after sharing an article that used the phrase “people who menstruate”, which she criticized. Rowling expanded on that tweet with a thread where she wrote that “if sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction. If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased”. Although she added that she “knows and loves trans people” and respects their rights “to live any way that feels authentic and comfortable to them”, she insisted that she doesn’t believe that it’s “hate to speak the truth”. Daniel Radcliffe, Eddie Redmayne, Emma Watson, and other actors from the Wizarding World shared their assistance to the trans community, with Evanna Lynch defending Rowling but not her anti-trans sights. Redmayne’s statement drew a lot of attention as he was very direct and also clear on his disagreement with Rowling’s remarks, and also while he’s additionally confirmed to return for Fantastic Beasts 3, it’s unclear if the controversy around Rowling’s comments will affect the movie, including Redmayne’s involvement. It doesn’t aid either that Warner Bros. released a disappointing statement and also also Rowling’s lengthy post on the matter wasn’t any kind of good. All these different issues have cast a big shadow over the Fantastic Beasts film series, and also as production on Fantastic Beasts 3 had to be put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, it remains to be seen if the studio’s plans will change somehow, whether by not having Rowling involved anymore, some of the actors dropping out, or cancelling the project – though it’s also very possible that Warner will just brush everything off and also additionally move on with its methods. https://videofeed.tv/movies-upcoming-releases-trailers/justice-league-the-snyder-cuts-biggest-improvement-will-be-feature-a-darker-superman-o-cyborg/

Fourth Circuit Confronts Issues of Race and Policing

2020 has so far seen several court opinions addressing racial discrimination in criminal cases in one way or another. A majority of the U.S. Supreme Court in Ramos v. Louisiana, 590 U.S. ___ (2020), struck down Louisiana’s practice of allowing non-unanimous jury verdicts, pointing to the law’s racist origins (Emily Coward blogged about the decision here). In State v. Bennett, ___ N.C. ___, 843 S.E.2d 222 (June 5, 2020) and State v. Hobbs, ___ N.C. ___, 841 S.E.2d 492 (May 1, 2020), the North Carolina Supreme Court sent back Batson claims for merits hearings at the trial court (before those decisions, Emily discussed the cases in part here). In State v. Copley, 374 N.C. 224 (April 3, 2020), the N.C. Supreme Court grappled with the issue of race in closing argument (Emily also wrote about the Court of Appeals opinion in that case here). Additionally, the court recently ruled in favor of two capital defendants in the Racial Justice Act litigation. See State v. Ramseur, ___ N.C. ___, 843 S.E.2d 106 (June 5, 2020) (holding repeal of RJA was unconstitutional as an ex post facto violation and granting evidentiary hearing on the merits of claims) and State v. Burke, ___ N.C. ___, 843 S.E.2d 246 (June 5, 2020) (same).

Turning to policing, the Court of Appeals recently weighed in on civil liability and the police, with a divided panel finding excessive force claims against the officer could proceed and affirming the trial court. See Bartley v. City of High Point, ___ N.C. App. ___, ___ S.E.2d ___ (July 7, 2020). Although the case did not involve allegations of racial bias, it focused on immunity issues that are common in such cases. At the Fourth Circuit, two recent decisions directly addressed issues of race and policing. The first case involved the denial of qualified immunity for officers involved in the fatal shooting of a black suspect; the second dealt with warrantless pedestrian stops. Both cases raise interesting and relevant concerns in the conversation on racial justice and police reform. The excessive force case is Estate of Wayne A. Jones v. City of Martinsburg, 961 F.3d 661 (June 9, 2020) and the warrantless stop case is U.S. v. Curry, ___ F.3d ___, 2020 WL 3980362 (July 15, 2020) (en banc). Today’s post examines the excessive force decision.

The Decision in Estate of Wayne A. Jones v. City of Martinsburg. In Jones, the Fourth Circuit reversed a grant of summary judgment and dismissal in a case stemming from five officers shooting an allegedly secured and incapacitated man in West Virginia. Jones, the decedent, was a 51-year old homeless black man with schizophrenia, initially stopped by police for walking in the road instead of on the sidewalk. (I summarized the facts in detail last week here.) Simply put, the encounter quickly escalated, and Jones was assaulted and eventually placed in a choke hold on the ground. While Jones was being held down, other officers tased, kicked, and cursed him. The officer holding Jones down “felt ‘like a scratch on [his] hand’” and few seconds later felt a “sharp poke in [his] side.” The officer stated that he saw a knife in Jones’ right hand and announced its presence to the other four officers. Jones was released from the chokehold and all the officers backed up to around five feet away. Jones was face down on the ground laying on his right side and not moving. He did not respond in any way to commands to drop his weapon. After five seconds, officers fired 22 rounds into Jones, killing him. A small fixed blade knife was found in Jones’ right sleeve. Officers could be heard discussing their need to get their story together in response to the shooting. One officer called it a “cluster.”

The decedent’s estate sued for civil rights violations based on excessive force under the Fourth Amendment (among other claims). The district court dismissed the case twice before this appeal and the Fourth Circuit reversed each time. On remand from the second appeal, the district court found that the officers were protected by qualified immunity and again dismissed the case. The Fourth Circuit again reversed, finding that the law was clearly established at the time of the shooting that officers may not use deadly force on a secured or incapacitated person. The court found that the plaintiff credibly alleged that Jones was either secured and under control of the officers at the time of the shooting or that Jones was already incapacitated at the time of the shooting (or both), so that he was no longer a threat (despite being armed with the knife). The case was remanded for trial against the individual officers.

Judge Floyd wrote the unanimous opinion, joined by Chief Judge Gregory and Judge Thacker. The court placed the case within the national context of protests over law enforcement tactics. The language used by the court is striking:

Wayne Jones was killed just over one year before the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown would once again draw national scrutiny to police shootings of black people in the United States. Seven years later, we are asked to decide whether it was clearly established that five officers could not shoot a man 22 times as he lay motionless on the ground. Although we recognize that our police officers are often asked to make split-second decisions, we expect them to do so with respect for the dignity and worth of black lives. Before the ink dried on this opinion, the FBI opened an investigation into yet another death of a black man at the hands of police, this time George Floyd in Minneapolis. This has to stop. To award qualified immunity at the summary judgment stage in this case would signal absolute immunity for fear-based use of deadly force, which we cannot accept. Jones slip op. at 20.

Those are powerful words from a federal appellate court, echoing calls for policing reforms that are being heard in the streets of communities across the nation.

Qualified Immunity. The case highlights the barrier that the doctrine of qualified immunity presents for people seeking relief for harms suffered at the hands of the police. Qualified immunity is a court-created and court-administered doctrine. It protects officers from civil liability unless they violate clearly established law—there must be a clear constitutional right that was violated, and the manner in which the right was violated must be clearly illegal. See Pierson v. Ray, 386 U.S. 547 (1967). What counts as “clearly established” is litigated a lot and isn’t always intuitive. See, e.g., Haze v. Harrison, 961 F.3d 654 (4th Cir. 2020) (finding the right of pretrial detainee to be free from unreasonable searches of his legal mail not clearly established). Critics of the doctrine argue it should be abolished for a number of reasons—it imposes too-high of a burden for plaintiffs trying to prove police misconduct, it fails to adequately hold police accountable for wrongdoing, and fails to deter such misconduct—among other critiques. See, e.g., Joanna Schwartz, The Case Against Qualified Immunity, 93 Notre Dame L. Rev. 1797, 1814 (Aug. 2018); see also Ziglar v. Abbasi, 582 U.S. ___, 137 S.Ct. 1843 (2017) (Thomas, J., dissenting) (arguing for repeal of qualified immunity on originalist grounds).

A Legislative Fix? Many had hoped that the U.S. Supreme Court would take a qualified immunity case last term and take a closer look at its application. That did not happen—the Court declined review in all eight petitions on the issue it considered this summer. While there is therefore no doctrinal shift on qualified immunity to report, the topic has entered mainstream consciousness in a big way. Various proposals to reform the doctrine are being debated and discussed in the U.S. Congress (although the future of any bill is far from certain) and in state legislatures, as well as in the media (see, e.g., here and here).

Qualified, but not Absolute. The Jones opinion signals that even without revision, the Fourth Circuit (which has jurisdiction to hear lawsuits involving violations of federal constitutional rights arising in North Carolina) will closely scrutinize claims of qualified immunity and will not allow the doctrine to transform into “absolute immunity.” To be sure, the plaintiff in Jones still must prove its case at trial. But other recent Fourth Circuit decisions send a similar message, denying officers qualified immunity in cases involving claims of apparently unjustified police shootings. See Ray v. Roan, 948 F.3d 222 (Jan. 2020) (shooting of a leashed dog at a residence); Betton v. Belue, 942 F.3d 184 (Nov. 2019) (unannounced entry and shooting in residence). The Jones opinion recognizes that policing is difficult and often dangerous work, but it warns officers that the court will not tolerate “fear-based” policing that fails to respect “the dignity and worth of black lives.”

Final Word. Curry, the other case on warrantless stops from the Fourth Circuit referenced above, is another important decision in the area of police reform and racial justice (as well as for Fourth Amendment jurisprudence). While the holding of the case deals with exigent circumstances and pedestrian stops, there’s robust discussion among members of the court on the role of so-called “predictive” or “hot spot” policing practices and the racial justice implications thereof for residents living in high-crime areas. I may cover it in detail soon (and will summarize it as a part of the July Fourth Circuit case summaries). It’s a massive 99-page set of opinions decided 9-6 in favor of the defendant with 4 separate opinions concurring with the majority and two dissents. The court was divided, and not just on the Fourth Amendment issues. It’s worth reading if you have a chance.

The post Fourth Circuit Confronts Issues of Race and Policing appeared first on North Carolina Criminal Law.

Fourth Circuit Confronts Issues of Race and Policing published first on https://immigrationlawyerto.tumblr.com/

10 online marketing strategies to make you a unicorn [infographic]

Everyone who knows me knows I’m obsessed with unicorns – not just the magical beasts you’ll often find hanging out near rainbows but marketing unicorns.

What’s a marketing unicorn, you ask? It’s one of those magical campaigns that’s so effective it performs in the top 1-3% of all marketing campaigns.

Marketing unicorns are so special that, even though they’re rare, they end up delivering almost half of the value of your overall marketing efforts. For example, here on the WordStream blog, our top 50 articles drive as much traffic as thousands of others (the marketing donkeys) combined. I call it the Unicorn Marketing Power Law.

This is why it’s so key, as a marketer or business owner, to find your own unicorns and make the most of them. There are unicorns in every corner of the online marketing world – unicorn ads, unicorn blog posts, unicorn webinars, unicorn emails.

These are the campaigns with exceptional click-through rates, conversion rates, open rates, and engagement rates.

So if you find a unicorn, CLONE IT! An idea or piece of creative that does well in one online marketing channel is bound to do well in your other marketing channels as well. As I’m always fond of saying, you have to go all in on your unicorns.

I’ve spent a lot of time experimenting with different online marketing strategies this year. Below you’ll find the best of the best – my top 10 favorite online marketing strategies that create and exploit unicorns to give you the best possible bang for your buck.

Check it out and share – I’ll provide a little more detail into each of the 10 strategies, which include strategies for SEO, PPC, content marketing, social media marketing, remarketing, and more, below.

My 10 Most Unicorn-Worthy Online Marketing Strategies

#1. Aim for super-high organic click-through rates

Does organic CTR matter? YES! Now more than ever! If you want to compete in the new SEO reality, you’ve got to raise your click-through rates and other engagement factors. Here’s our process:

Find content with average or below-expected CTR for its rank

Ditch boring titles and test emotional, relatable headlines that promise value

Improve intent match to reduce bounce rate and pogo-sticking

Bonus: Data indicates raising CTR can move up your rank!

#2. Aim for super-high ad click-through rates

CTR isn’t just important for SEO (duh). It’s also incredibly important for paid ads, because ads with high engagement rates get better placements at a lower cost per click on Google AdWords, Facebook Ads, Twitter Ads and pretty much every platform. Here’s what you need to know about raising your ad CTR:

Tactics like Dynamic Keyword Insertion are boring and don’t create unicorn ads

Ads with the highest CTR focus on four key emotions: anger, disgust, affirmation, and fear

Bonus: High CTR ads usually have high conversion rates too!

#3. Forget everything you know about conversion rate optimization

Sorry to burst your CRO bubble, but the classic A/B test is a fairy tale – too often, we get super excited about early leads, but they tend to disappear over time. Either the test hadn’t reached statistical significance, or people were responding to novelty, but the effect didn’t last.

Here are a few more CRO truth bombs for you:

Aggressive CRO often increases lead quantity but reduces lead quality

To really move the needle, change your offer to something truly irresistible

Brand familiarity has a massive effect on conversions – so try remarketing!

#4. Remarketing is great … but try Super Remarketing!

Maybe you’ve noticed (ha) that in the current online marketing landscape, it’s harder and harder to get your content noticed. The competition is insanely fierce! That means everyone’s attention is spread thin. But all hope is not lost, aspiring unicorns!

With a smart social ad strategy you can promote your content to the perfect audience for pennies

Use social media remarketing to increase engagement by 2X to 3X

Then step it up with Super Remarketing: the awesome combination of remarketing, demographics, behaviors, and high-engagement content

#5. Hack RLSA for a Unicorn Surge of Leads

Regular old, plain-flavor RLSA is kind of a shell game: You’re basically cherry-picking your cheapest leads from a larger pool. Yes, you save money, but your lead volume is greatly reduced! Most people don’t want that, right? We want more leads AND lower costs.

Here’s how to use RLSA to get both, AKA Operation Unicorn Surge:

To reduce cost per lead AND increase volume in competitive markets, try Super RLSA!

Bias people toward your brand by using social ads to dramatically increase the size of your cookie pool

#6. Get your Facebook organic reach back

Newsflash, Facebook organic reach sucks. In fact, we recently discovered it’s even worse than we thought!!

The good news is, you can recover your reach! Here’s how:

Use preferred audience targeting to target organic posts like ads

Use Larry’s Unicorn Detector Pyramid Scheme

Invite people who like your content to follow your page

Post video content for way higher engagement rates – the key to organic reach

#7. Outsmart your competition!

Try these brilliant competitive advertising strategies:

Target users whose interests include your competitors

Disrupt your competitors’ videos with YouTube ads

Use your competitors’ brand names to keyword target your Gmail Ads

Download and target your competitors’ Twitter followers

#8. Use social ads to make an impression on influencers

Not a big name yet? No problem!

Here are some crazy awesome ways to use social ads to fool people into thinking you’re a big deal:

Build awareness of your personal brand by targeting ads at specific employees and specific companies

Write an awesome guest post for an influencer, then promote and amplify so it makes a splash

Tag your fave influencer and do an engagement campaign

Become a trending story on LinkedIn Pulse

#9. Learn how to REALLY run a Twitter lead generation campaign

Forget Twitter’s advice for running lead gen campaigns – it’s totally wrong! Do this instead:

Twitter Lead Generation Cards look too much like ads and charge you for useless engagements

Never use automatic bidding – it’s a trap

Instead, use funny images, emoji, advanced targeting options and don’t forget conversion tracking!

#10. Master the art of Medium publishing

There are insanely good reasons to republish your content on Medium – like reaching a much bigger audience with minimal effort. Here’s how to make the most of the Medium platform:

Don’t just republish your post – make it go hot! Include a powerful image immediately after the headline

Promote your post – if you get 200 hearts in a day, your article will trend and pageviews will skyrocket

Follow people who engage with your content to build your audience

That’s it – my absolute favorite online marketing strategies right now. Now go and find your own unicorns!

This article was originally published on Larry’s Wordstream blog. It is reprinted with permission.

from Search Engine Watch https://searchenginewatch.com/2017/01/05/10-online-marketing-strategies-to-make-you-a-unicorn-infographic/

Fourth Circuit Confronts Issues of Race and Policing

2020 has so far seen several court opinions addressing racial discrimination in criminal cases in one way or another. A majority of the U.S. Supreme Court in Ramos v. Louisiana, 590 U.S. ___ (2020), struck down Louisiana’s practice of allowing non-unanimous jury verdicts, pointing to the law’s racist origins (Emily Coward blogged about the decision here). In State v. Bennett, ___ N.C. ___, 843 S.E.2d 222 (June 5, 2020) and State v. Hobbs, ___ N.C. ___, 841 S.E.2d 492 (May 1, 2020), the North Carolina Supreme Court sent back Batson claims for merits hearings at the trial court (before those decisions, Emily discussed the cases in part here). In State v. Copley, 374 N.C. 224 (April 3, 2020), the N.C. Supreme Court grappled with the issue of race in closing argument (Emily also wrote about the Court of Appeals opinion in that case here). Additionally, the court recently ruled in favor of two capital defendants in the Racial Justice Act litigation. See State v. Ramseur, ___ N.C. ___, 843 S.E.2d 106 (June 5, 2020) (holding repeal of RJA was unconstitutional as an ex post facto violation and granting evidentiary hearing on the merits of claims) and State v. Burke, ___ N.C. ___, 843 S.E.2d 246 (June 5, 2020) (same).

Turning to policing, the Court of Appeals recently weighed in on civil liability and the police, with a divided panel finding excessive force claims against the officer could proceed and affirming the trial court. See Bartley v. City of High Point, ___ N.C. App. ___, ___ S.E.2d ___ (July 7, 2020). Although the case did not involve allegations of racial bias, it focused on immunity issues that are common in such cases. At the Fourth Circuit, two recent decisions directly addressed issues of race and policing. The first case involved the denial of qualified immunity for officers involved in the fatal shooting of a black suspect; the second dealt with warrantless pedestrian stops. Both cases raise interesting and relevant concerns in the conversation on racial justice and police reform. The excessive force case is Estate of Wayne A. Jones v. City of Martinsburg, 961 F.3d 661 (June 9, 2020) and the warrantless stop case is U.S. v. Curry, ___ F.3d ___, 2020 WL 3980362 (July 15, 2020) (en banc). Today’s post examines the excessive force decision.

The Decision in Estate of Wayne A. Jones v. City of Martinsburg. In Jones, the Fourth Circuit reversed a grant of summary judgment and dismissal in a case stemming from five officers shooting an allegedly secured and incapacitated man in West Virginia. Jones, the decedent, was a 51-year old homeless black man with schizophrenia, initially stopped by police for walking in the road instead of on the sidewalk. (I summarized the facts in detail last week here.) Simply put, the encounter quickly escalated, and Jones was assaulted and eventually placed in a choke hold on the ground. While Jones was being held down, other officers tased, kicked, and cursed him. The officer holding Jones down “felt ‘like a scratch on [his] hand’” and few seconds later felt a “sharp poke in [his] side.” The officer stated that he saw a knife in Jones’ right hand and announced its presence to the other four officers. Jones was released from the chokehold and all the officers backed up to around five feet away. Jones was face down on the ground laying on his right side and not moving. He did not respond in any way to commands to drop his weapon. After five seconds, officers fired 22 rounds into Jones, killing him. A small fixed blade knife was found in Jones’ right sleeve. Officers could be heard discussing their need to get their story together in response to the shooting. One officer called it a “cluster.”

The decedent’s estate sued for civil rights violations based on excessive force under the Fourth Amendment (among other claims). The district court dismissed the case twice before this appeal and the Fourth Circuit reversed each time. On remand from the second appeal, the district court found that the officers were protected by qualified immunity and again dismissed the case. The Fourth Circuit again reversed, finding that the law was clearly established at the time of the shooting that officers may not use deadly force on a secured or incapacitated person. The court found that the plaintiff credibly alleged that Jones was either secured and under control of the officers at the time of the shooting or that Jones was already incapacitated at the time of the shooting (or both), so that he was no longer a threat (despite being armed with the knife). The case was remanded for trial against the individual officers.

Judge Floyd wrote the unanimous opinion, joined by Chief Judge Gregory and Judge Thacker. The court placed the case within the national context of protests over law enforcement tactics. The language used by the court is striking:

Wayne Jones was killed just over one year before the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown would once again draw national scrutiny to police shootings of black people in the United States. Seven years later, we are asked to decide whether it was clearly established that five officers could not shoot a man 22 times as he lay motionless on the ground. Although we recognize that our police officers are often asked to make split-second decisions, we expect them to do so with respect for the dignity and worth of black lives. Before the ink dried on this opinion, the FBI opened an investigation into yet another death of a black man at the hands of police, this time George Floyd in Minneapolis. This has to stop. To award qualified immunity at the summary judgment stage in this case would signal absolute immunity for fear-based use of deadly force, which we cannot accept. Jones slip op. at 20.

Those are powerful words from a federal appellate court, echoing calls for policing reforms that are being heard in the streets of communities across the nation.

Qualified Immunity. The case highlights the barrier that the doctrine of qualified immunity presents for people seeking relief for harms suffered at the hands of the police. Qualified immunity is a court-created and court-administered doctrine. It protects officers from civil liability unless they violate clearly established law—there must be a clear constitutional right that was violated, and the manner in which the right was violated must be clearly illegal. See Pierson v. Ray, 386 U.S. 547 (1967). What counts as “clearly established” is litigated a lot and isn’t always intuitive. See, e.g., Haze v. Harrison, 961 F.3d 654 (4th Cir. 2020) (finding the right of pretrial detainee to be free from unreasonable searches of his legal mail not clearly established). Critics of the doctrine argue it should be abolished for a number of reasons—it imposes too-high of a burden for plaintiffs trying to prove police misconduct, it fails to adequately hold police accountable for wrongdoing, and fails deter such misconduct—among other critiques. See, e.g., Joanna Schwartz, The Case Against Qualified Immunity, 93 Notre Dame L. Rev. 1797, 1814 (Aug. 2018); see also Ziglar v. Abbasi, 582 U.S. ___, 137 S.Ct. 1843 (2017) (Thomas, J., dissenting) (arguing for repeal of qualified immunity on originalist grounds).

A Legislative Fix? Many had hoped that the U.S. Supreme Court would take a qualified immunity case last term and take a closer look at its application. That did not happen—the Court declined review in all eight petitions on the issue it considered this summer. While there is therefore no doctrinal shift on qualified immunity to report, the topic has entered mainstream consciousness in a big way. Various proposals to reform the doctrine are being debated and discussed in the U.S. Congress (although the future of any bill is far from certain) and in state legislatures, as well as in the media (see, e.g., here and here).

Qualified, but not Absolute. The Jones opinion signals that even without revision, the Fourth Circuit (which has jurisdiction to hear lawsuits involving violations of federal constitutional rights arising in North Carolina) will closely scrutinize claims of qualified immunity and will not allow the doctrine to transform into “absolute immunity.” To be sure, the plaintiff in Jones still must prove its case at trial. But other recent Fourth Circuit decisions send a similar message, denying officers qualified immunity in cases involving claims of apparently unjustified police shootings. See Ray v. Roan, 948 F.3d 222 (Jan. 2020) (shooting of a leashed dog at a residence); Betton v. Belue, 942 F.3d 184 (Nov. 2019) (unannounced entry and shooting in residence). The Jones opinion recognizes that policing is difficult and often dangerous work, but it warns officers that the court will not tolerate “fear-based” policing that fails to respect “the dignity and worth of black lives.”

Final Word. Curry, the other case on warrantless stops from the Fourth Circuit referenced above, is another important decision in the area of police reform and racial justice (as well as for Fourth Amendment jurisprudence). While the holding of the case deals with exigent circumstances and pedestrian stops, there’s robust discussion among members of the court on the role of so-called “predictive” or “hot spot” policing practices and the racial justice implications thereof for residents living in high-crime areas. I may cover it in detail soon (and will summarize it as a part of the July Fourth Circuit case summaries). It’s a massive 99-page set of opinions decided 9-6 in favor of the defendant with 4 separate opinions concurring with the majority and two dissents. The court was divided, and not just on the Fourth Amendment issues. It’s worth reading if you have a chance.

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