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edoro · 1 year

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one of the things that i am getting really tired of that i specifically keep seeing in survivor communities is the idea that ‘triggering’ is like, a moral judgment to cast on a thing or action or person

as if it’s not an incredibly subjective and personal concept in the first place? as if there’s a Universal Concept Of What Is Objectively Triggering For All People Under All Circumstances? as if everyone has the exact same reaction to being triggered?

(under a cut for discussion of this especially wrt communities for survivors of csa that i’m part of)

like... idk man. i saw people saying The Courage To Heal is a bad resource “because it’s insanely triggering” which like yeah it’s certainly quite old and in some respects probably very outdated and it’s not gonna work for every survivor as a resource, and it does contain quite a lot of personal accounts of abuse and trauma and issues springing from that, but what’s incredibly triggering for one person is going to feel like a glass of cool water to someone who’s been crawling for 20 miles through the desert to a different person.

or like - “my partner did this, am i allowed to be triggered (and therefore the action was objectively wrong and bad and inappropriate) or am i being too sensitive?” i see variations on this ALL the time on r/cptsd and r/adultsurvivors and like... My Guys... My Fellows... are we REALLY unable to arrive at “you’re allowed to have been triggered by it but that doesn’t necessarily mean the exact specific action was in and of itself inherently wrong and bad and your partner should feel bad for having done it”? is that seriously beyond us?

or the constant stream of “HOW could ANYONE ever LIKE (media property) (kink) (type of fiction), when it’s SO TRIGGERING?? why do people MAKE this, don’t they KNOW that some people have TRAUMA???” yes and some people with trauma are fucking starving for representations of that trauma including ones you think are bad. including ones you think are disrespectful or messy or glorifying or sexualizing or romanticizing. please. oh my god. not everyone has your exact personal emotions and your exact personal emotions are not The Only Correct Ones.

(also love to see the constant stream of “how could anyone like media involving this topic, don’t they know it’s TRIGGERING??” juxtaposed against the forty-seven daily posts that go “i was abused and now i have kinks that clearly stem from my abuse, am i evil? :(”

and then have an incredible ratio of “oh yeah same and here’s what i’m doing to conversion therapy myself out of my kinks instead of addressing the root causes of my distress and self-loathing” comments to “you’re not evil and that’s literally completely normal and extremely common and you’re probably gonna have more luck learning to understand and accept it as normal and okay than make yourself stop having those kinks, bc turns out Conversion Therapy Doesn’t Fucking Work”

wow, i almost wonder if these two phenomena are related? if perhaps treating an interest in or appreciation of anything that might trigger someone else as a sign of cruel degeneracy and thoughtlessness and Not Something Anyone With REAL Trauma Would Ever Feel might contribute to making fellow survivors feel broken and evil when their trauma responses include “be horny about it”?)

anyway idk. i’m just tired of it. i see so many posts and conversations where people are just clearly buying uncritically into the idea that triggering = objectively and self-evidently bad, and that calling something triggering is the same as calling it bad/wrong/flawed, and that deliberately making something which could be or is triggering to someone is an act of malice, and that all things should strive to be as untriggering as possible or if they MUST be triggering (which is always treated as if it has any kind of objective, fixed meaning!) then you should damn well fucking apologize for it

and i’m sick of it. it’s so stupid. it’s a completely self-absorbed and frankly infantile way of engaging with the world. maybe this is because i’ve had to grow up about it because MY biggest triggers are things like “people having sex actually irl” and “the entire field and concept of gynecology” which are completely fucking inescapable and i can’t really say that an entire field of medicine is Morally Bankrupt just because i personally had a traumatic experience relating to it as a child, and with the sex thing i could either recognize it as a Me Problem or become a fundamentalist christian and i’m too much of a weird pervert for that i guess, but like

i don’t understand where this came from, i don’t get why so many people buy into it, i don’t really understand how anyone who is capable of even the most basic critical thinking could not realize how pointless and stupid a belief it is, and i stg next time i see someone talking about media through this lens i’m going to scream

#trauma stuff #see this is why i take this shit so seriously in fandom bc like. it's not ABOUT fandom. it's about the attitude #which is getting applied TO fandom #which exists outside of fandom spaces #and causes problems there too

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thelandswemadeofpaper · 2 years

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Evil/Grey/Annoying Actions for Characters

Unethical Actions and Crimes (especially some 'spy' ones)

Terrorism

Bombs/Nukes.

The Status Quo.

Sabotage

Extortion

Spying, Stalking and Harassment

Infiltration (and associated crimes, like poisoning and making the secretary sick to take her place)

The Motherfucking Greater Good.

Refusing to understand a fucking 'NO'.

Reading other people mails, cellphone and stuff. Or restraining them.

Unethical information gathering. Leaking the information for the wrong person.

Use other people as bait/decoy/scapegoat/cover/distraction.

Drugging (potions too). Also, don't mess with people's food. Never.

Doing anything to a person in vulnerable state, like unconcious, sleeping or injured.

Bugs, Trackers and Cameras. (Non-consensual pictures and videos)

Steal Information/Documents

Blackmail and Bribe

Unethical and Ilegal Interrogation

Take blood/DNA without consent. Stealing a blood/DNA sample or a blood test too.

Corporal Punishment, Violence, Multilation, Torture, Physical Abuse…

Professional Impersonificators (Like Doctors Theraphists, Drivers, Police, Babysitters). Infiltration (as a Maid? Secretary? Fake Friend? Teacher?) or just having those people in your pocket.

A bad solution to a real problem.

Propriety

Steal MacGuffin, Objects in General or 'Confiscation' or Modification of said McGuffin (because of curiousity, greed, you want to taunt someone)

Steal inventions, discoveries or just take the credit. Etnopiratary.

Grave Robbing or any disrespect to an corpse.

Hoard of Knowledge, Resources, Lands...

Money is a great source of crazy ass conflicts (Heritage? Lottery? Marriage's finances?)

Stealing Inheritance. Stealing things like work and art. Doing it 'legaly' is even worse. Attempt/Demand to get an person to 'hand over' an artefact. Refusal to give something back too.

Entitlement (some people think everything and everyone is God's gift for them or that other people legally getting something you wanted is 'stealing', may have fantasy prejudice involved).

Resources in general, from either animals or people or others ('magicals' or not).

You 'don't want it to fall in wrong hands'? Okay, pal, what are 'good hands' then? Yours?

Using an object the wrong way or something like that, dunno, just remembered Kim Kardashian with Marilyn's dress and MJ's jacket, THAT was a evil greedy villain worthy action

Threats (Do it or Else)

Threatening someone loved ones (they can be under your power in some way?) or using them against said person in any way (taking them to a dangerous place or situation? Put a bomb or something similar on them?) Trying to get said loved one under your control (like taking them to 'safety').

Threat of imprisonment. Taking a person to make their loved ones 'cooperate'. (Like a 'invitation' for a meeting or interrogation). Put them in any danger.

Threat of withhold the cure or medication for a sick person/people, can be secretely making the patient's condition worse. Offten have a relative of said patient working/helping you.

Any threat really, can be a sniper, a bomb, physical. Take advantage of a person's dependency on another.

Doing something bad to a person under your custody because they are dependent of you or you think you 'own' them, therefore have the 'right' to do so.

Any threat to free will or control (over a person self and their abilities): mindcontrol, brainwashing, potions, drugs, magical contracts and oaths, binding and seals, devices, the Cage Bird Seal from Naruto...

A unfair deal/exchange/blackmail to get incentive someone to help you/give you/stop doing something in some way. Like 'I will give the thing I stole back if you do this for me', 'I will break the deal if you steal this for me' or even 'I will heal your friend if you give me this thing', Maybe by making the person need you in first place?

Manipulation

Forced Recruitment, Servitude or Help.

Manipulation (to fight? To steal? Forcing you to do something? Fake information? Using people how? Sign you up for something without consent? Tricking you to agree to a unfair deal? Social or Emotional? Guilty Trip? Humiliation? Isolation?)

"Tests" are very manipulative, often forcing a person hand, like the Poison and Cure Gambit. Control Freaks. Attempts to exercise authority (and begin respected and obeyed as such) everywhere. Attempt to coerce, press and trap you on obeying them, giving people orders and deciding/dictating their life choices.

Use a person to/for: find another? find a place? get a object? get inside a place?

Use a Relationship as means of control and manipulation.

Forcing them to fight against their will: maybe locking they up with the opponent or left you with them? Bring the enemies to you? Put their loved one in danger? Create the problem for them to solve? Forced enlistment?

Mindfuckery, just reading (or attempting) people's mind without consent, it does not matter if you are 'curious' or how 'rightful' you are. Also erasing things too (events? information? people? alter memories?), forcing someone into another identity or to obey you, getting information.

Unfair Deals or trying to make a 'generous offer' to get something from a person (when you need or want her/him), forcing her to accept your terms, especially when the person owns you nothing. Sadistic Choices too.

Blackmail someone with arrest and prision to make them do something.

Any extreme thing to get what you want: want a person to move? Steal all their things and put in another house or burn down their house. Want a person to attend a college not other? Sabotage or sign off them. Or got them in trouble. Want them to wear some clothes not another? Burn the other clothes. Refuse to go? Send their men to 'fetch' you. Refuse to give/borrow something? Steal it.

Science and Biology

Bloodpurism. I hate it but love its plots, from both Asoiaf and Harry Potter.

Non-Consensual Experiments in General (not just the 'mad scientist' type, any non-consensual medical test, unaware ones, sterilization, fucking lobotomy and shock theraphy). Kidnapping is not really necessary, plenty of times the hospitals did more experiments than what was consented, or told the patients they were doing another thing, more vulnerable people like mentally disabled, soldiers and isolated tribes (or the non-educated poor) are easier to trick.

Using the Results of an Unethical Experiments (like the Nazis or Henrietta Lacks). Using an artefact or something similar that had unethical origins too (kinda like the philosophical stone with the Ishvalan souls)

Disrespect to Body Autonomy and personal choices. (Deny acess to things like contraceptives, pain killers and insulin, hysterectomy, tampering with it too. Information about your own body, about an medical process, breach of privacy, chastity belt, lack of medical consent, body modification or mutilation)

Anything related to hurting an animal (magical one included, any curious attempts to 'capture' one to study is also included, or entertainment). Fuck zoos by the way. Be it a 'cursed' or 'blessed' creature leave them in fucking peace.

Any breeding programs, genetic aprimorament and asthetic alterations too. Eugenics. Also if they produce or have something you want as a product or another reason (pearls, skin, venon, medicine...)

Reproduction Control and Breeding Programs, especially in minories (the Church used to kidnap and fake the death of babies of single mothers and pagans to give them to 'proper Christian couples', lesbian faced problems to their rights for insemination and adoption, mixed children were aborted without the mother's consent or even knowledge, 'pure' aryan women were 'encouraged' to join brothels to breed in Nazi Germany.) Its a fucking mess, but normal in matters of prejudice.

Kidnapping/Restriction of Freedom

The 'Rebel = Evil' mentality.

Unjust Imprisonment, Unlawfull Arrests. Double Standarts and Inequal Rights.

Kidnapping (can be complex ones like showing up at school/work or using an trap like summer camp, a vacation or a modeling job the most, forced meetings, forced to move which may involve stealing your things, arranged marriages...)

Just taking you to a place for different reasons (under false pretense) of those told to you is already bad. Making a person go with you because of threats or 'incentives' too. Taking you to a place you won't be able to leave without their help, like another country. With intent to permanently keep you (and never let you near your family and friends again)

Block the passage/door, invade personal space, surrounding places, ganging up, traps. Stop a person from leaving a place or taking her here against her will, 'retrivals' and 'escorting' also count. Imprisonment ultil you agree with their demands or is under their control.

Hostages (don't have to kidnap, can be someone that was in your custody before the conflict started).

Any restriction to a person's freedom. Guilded Cages (marriage? a puppet king?), forbidding to have a life (education, hobbies, fun, friends, to travel, isolation, certain jobs), forbidding to anything for a bad reason (contact with people, go to a place, being locked for your safety or usefulness)...

Servant Race (looking at everyone who mocks Hermione's anti-slavery moviment).

Locking up people because they are 'different', 'crazy' or 'unnatural' (most likely a prejudiced group) Ex: monasteries, asylums, reformatory camps...Not only that, but anything done to 'fix/cure' them, like devices, surgeries and treatments.

Being in another territory, or services like Hospital, Towns and School, even if it is from an 'ally' is dangerous, same thing with their people (doctors, drivers, professionals of any type).

Any Binding of sorts, by seals, contracts or magic or whatever. And breaking willing bonds against the person's will too.

Incapable of Disobeying

Attempt on gain the custody of minor for bad reasons. Children of powerful people have the powers/bloodline/heirship/propriety/alliances but are easier to control and manipulate.

Any forceful adoption: taking children from parents to be adopted into families you have control of, taking a bastard child away from their mother, taking any child in your custody without their consent (even if you are related/has the 'legal' right to). Maybe a reveal that your 'adoption' is pretty much a kidnapping? (Loki and Xanxus both sound like this to me, Theon too).

The person is change of you is revealed to have bad intentions? Want to create a matyr hero, maybe?

Ownership or Claim over an person or people (Bloodline? Recruitment? Human Weapon? By Association? Nationality? McGuffin? Custody between parents?)

Forced Marriage or Mandatory Fatherhood/Motherhood. (To 'continue the bloodline', a alliance or some shit like that)

Destruction and Invasion

Set a place in fire (house? comercial buildings? orphanages?)

House (or Room) Invasion and Trashing, messing on people's things without consent, uninvited guests. Trespassing private propriety in general, invading a space you are forbidden to go into, appropriation of buildings or other places (public? religious?private?), wanting acess to said places, forced housing (like that law about soldiers, thankful its no longer valid).

Destroy propriety and places (especially important and 'simple' ones, like libraries, burning books, clothes, hobby materials, documents, with sentimental value, or worse things like medicine). Not even when its 'accidental' careless excuses, don't touch people's things alright?

Sell/Throw away other people's things for any reason, like not respecting their choices (food, religious pratices, hobbies, books).

Another Things

Everyone loves bashing the 'Hero Faction' and so do I.

Unhealthy Obsession

Toxic Relationships (neglecful? clingly? delusional? imbalanced? obssessed? smothering? controlative? pushy? attempt forced reconciliation? expectations? selfish? doormat? fangirl? clingly? manipulative? False but keeping appearences?). Friendship? Romantic? Parental? Leader?

And people in a bad relationship, even if they are the victim, can do bad things because of it and refuse to leave the relationship. Can even begin unaware used against you.

Both Lysa Arryn and Sawada Nana are exemples of this. Worse, they are mothers, and mental ill for sure.

Doing something without a person's consent, awareness or knowledge. Honestly, 'needing' to sacrifice a person in some way is and always will be fucked up.

Dragging a person back to the bad situation they ran away from in first place.

Put reputation above safety, people lives and feelings (like refusing to cancel a event, deny a divorce or attempt cover up, a cover up, refusal to let people leave when in danger, in situations like death, rescue and injury)

Force an person to use an dangerous power without thinking of the consequences. Force a Traumatic Power Awakening. Attempt to learn the Secret of an Power.

'Feed' on an person's lifeforce, use their energy to power up yours or something similar? Stole their power/magic to give to another?

Unethical Hunters/Collectors.

Indiana Jones, Museums and stuff.Tourists being assholes (like taking 'souvenirs')

Wanting people to sacrifice or risk themselves for your own benefit. Or calling them selfish for thinking about themselves first or doing something for their own benefit (maybe something they used to do for another people's benefit?)

Telling a secret that is not yours (about plans? Existence? Location? If you are a professional, than its ilegal)

Turn everything (people, mcguffins...) into weapons or source of money.

Make everything about yourself. Make yourself the victim when you aren't.

All of the Other Reindeer Trope

Fostering a foster child for bad reasons (like free labour)

Be creative when creating your own fantasy world problems, here some ideas you can adapt:

Society and Culture

Bad Working Conditions.

Nationalistic Ignorance

Matyr Culture. (And all this duty to country bullshit)

Any danger a Secret Society presents to clueless innocent people.

A country's superiority and their right to rule/choose/have authority/even 'save' other ones.

Fantasy Capitalism and attack on everything that threats it in some way (libraries and free knowledge, community gardens, unions, lab-made diamonds...)

Insist that another character is 'lying' or 'just confused' about something and refuse to investigate/try to silence them. Happens often with children.

Religious/Cultural Appropriation and Modification. (That include monuments, objects, songs, rituals, words...)

Refusing/Closing researchs and pretty much anything because it goes against your 'beliefs'.

Insist that another character is 'lying' or 'just confused' about something and refuse to investigate/try to silence them. Happens often with children. Ignore or mock a person's knowledge. (Scientists did it a lot with some natives about their own history, medicine and culture). Believe yourself to know more than people with experience on this. (maybe they have a problem you don't?)

The denial of truth (Biology? Science? History? Origins? Problem?)

Calling people 'mad/hysterical', 'inferior' or 'unstable', (mostly happens to women and disabled) to justify their 'incapability' of making their own decisions.

Control the information taught in the schools/history. Keep information from people, therefore putting them in danger. (Its work related? About a product? Scientists?)

Many fake facts and rumors about prejudiced groups still taken a real today, even in professional medicine, it really bad. Mostly for the vilification or attempt control.

Put a person with special needs, or any person really, in danger/pain because of 'belief' or ignorance.

The classification of what is 'Unnatural/Natural' and 'Pure' in a society.

Anything cruel, (like abuse, assault, murder, prejudice, cruel punishment, rituals, some ideologies, multilation) being done by the sake of 'tradition' or because its 'natural', the whole 'its was always done like this' bullshit. Honor-Related abuse in general. Also religion as a justification for this.

Created a mess at someone event (like a proposal at a wedding)

Authorities

Imposed authority and orders.

Make an country go into civil war or war with another for benefit/profit.

Military, there so much problems. (I am pro-veteran and anti-millitary), the whole enlistment = free college is a fucking trap for poor people.

Deny acess to important things. (Like information about the problems/situation, medicine, education, some places, jobs). Hide information about something because it benefits you (about a product? A food? A experiment? A operation? Mission? Goal? About people's own biology?).

Being forced to put up with an bad person's bullshit because your Leader refuse to punish them/acknowledge them as evil or easily forgive them. If they try to make you 'befriend' said person aka let them into your house, with acess to your things, begin easier to do shit.

Defending a bad person and refusing to acknowledge it, expecting you to forgive and let them hurt you without fighting back.

Like the Minister of Magic or Shield trying to 'confiscate' the miraculous, or a zanpakutou. Or even Dumbledore with the Philosopher Stone. Or trying to have some 'control' over a 'magical creature'.

The Guys in White from Danny Phantom are the worse villains cuz they are 'legaly' doing crap. Interrogating, kidnapping and attacking people, invading the houses and stuff.

Ministry of Magic having Magical Nazis in their ranks but leaving them be because they are rich and noble, ignoring everyone's warning, wrongly punishing people and silencing them, forcing students to put up with spies and clearly problematic people in power (like that fucking toad and the Death Eaters like Snape), therefore making laughable easy for them to kidnap/attack students, people being allowed to do as they please (hurting your friends, family and innocent people in the process) and you being forced to sit down and do/say nothing because the Authority says so, refusing to check the Dark Mark, punish pureblood Death Eaters or give Sirius an trial is the most realist shit in HP.

Your Leader/Ruler is either an inactive idiot or an asshole and the characters are forced to obey their orders and decisions.

Ignoring a crime because it benefits you (looking at you China government about bride kidnapping). Or keep a cure, a eco solution or something like that a secret for the same reason.

Destruction of Evidence that goes against you in some way (your beliefs? Your ideals?)

The Law Enforcers take the side of criminals against the victims. (Like giving back a kidnapped victim back to her kidnappers)

If you going to have a Evil Tyrant, you need to plan their actions (force the people to build them something? Steal their labor and lands? Maybe they want the lands to build their evil invention?)

An Cover Up (specially when involve the villanization of the victim, like I saw in a few HP stories where the wizards aka the 'good guys' put drugs on dead muggleborns students, making their families lost their jobs and reputation. Or an Danny Phantom one where his family is murdered and he's kidnapped by evil scientists, who put the blame of their deaths on him).

Unhelpfull Characters

Useless and stupid adults in general, who could led their children into dangerous situations without care. If a guy/gal showed up asking about my kid, to have a private conversation with them or a 'intership'/special school without signing up first. I will bury them into my garden, weirdo.

The Fentons and Sawada Nana are the best example.

The annoying character who just do crap and refuse to listen good advices, fucking up the entire plan.

Naive, dumb, petty, pushy or delusional characters.

Passive Character who don't do nothing.

Disrespect the privacity of people and will, like letting another person mess with their things/room/house, telling secrets that are not theirs, forcing you to go to an place or with an person, worse if its an parent.

If any of those things is done to an minory group (or vulnerable ones like the poor, pregnant, disabled, refugees, orphans and children) because of prejudice, even worse.

Its depends a lot on what type of social problems you create, like squibs are disabled-coded (hidden from public from bringing 'shame' to the family, most likely to be killed by their pureblood parents), so you could make, idk, a 'magical surgery' of sorts in attempt to give them power? One that could be harmful to them but pureblood parents are more interested in having 'perfect magical children'? Or a secret pureblood mass kidnapping of innocent muggleborn babies to be switched with squibs?

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a-wild-rosette · 3 years

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Hey saw your 'Ranboo Negative' post about how you don't think he's a good character? (i'm sure that's what you said) and i was wondering if you wanted to expand on that?

(no pressure i'm just not the biggest fan of him either and like hearing people who agree with me lmao)

Hi anon my beloved.

I don't usually write crit but I'm mad enough today so :D here we go :D

So I'll admit that his entire like, enderwalk mystery and such doesn't engage me as much because mystery isn't my most favorite genre and I just feel like there are too many questions and mysteries keep piling up on top of each other. But like, that's probably just a personal preference thing.

But like on a character development, especially emotional and the way the character interact with the world? Yeah not into that. Here's why.

1. People excuse his actions too much and there is literally no consequence on Ranboo for his actions whatsoever.

c!Ranboo is the type of person who is nice, but not kind. The kind of person that stands for nothing and therefore falls for nothing. Instead, other people suffer the consequence of his actions.

Like Ranboo gave Techno back his weapons and stood by and watched at people were tortured by Techno and Tommy. Twice, may I add, with Fundy - one of Ranboo's supposedly closest friends, and Connor - an innocent bystander. No one ever calls him out on it, and he can go on and deny what he did (or didn't do, more like) was not bad. Or like the whole ordeal with Doomsday. He basically talks a big game of being loyal and choosing people, but in Doomsday the only person he chose was himself and his own safety.

He betrayed L'Manberg. He left Tubbo and Tommy to fight for their death even though he said he was going to fight with them. He abandoned every other person who cared about him, only to go and team up with the people who destroyed the country of the FOUR PEOPLE who had always wanted to protect him (Tubbo, Tommy, Niki, Fundy). He refused to pick a side, and by that, he picked the side of the tyrant. In the face of injustice, inaction is an action in itself. But yeah, while everyone else lost everything, Ranboo has everything to gain. He has powerful allies, a home that he can fill to the brim with richness, and in the end, everyone who he has hurt? Tubbo goes out of his way to protect him against Quackity's (reasonable, albeit quite harsh) criticism. He's still friends with Tommy, you know, despite being friends with one of the dudes who blew up Tommy's country. Even Fundy and Niki still care about him in the aftermath. He didn't lose anything - everyone else in L'Manberg did.

Somehow, he never had to stop and reconsider his stance on everything and who he supports, he never had to stop and considered "hey, maybe i'm not as good of a person as I want to be". AND HE COULD DO IT because no one calls him out on his action (or inaction, more like). It's always "oh no he's a victim because he has memory issues". Cool motive, still murder :) He's still a person with autonomy, and "peer pressure" is still not a good enough excuse to hurting people. And you know for sure that, even if Ranboo hurt someone *again*, it's gonna still be "justified" by whoever he didn't hurt :) (Not naming names here but it starts with Ranboo and ends with apologists). Actually, just look at the outpost situation with Las Nevadas right now :D

You see, Ranboo can do things that are really just... frustrating at best and downright annoying at best, and the amount of people going hearteyes at him still is enough to overwhelm any meaningful criticism in character :)

2. In fact, the consequence of Ranboo's actions fall onto other people. Or like, people justify Ranboo’s actions by demonising other characters. C!Ranboo does this too.

Not just other people blaming Ranboo's actions on him being "peer pressured", Not just like, people getting hurt because Ranboo didn’t support them. But Ranboo himself pushing the blame on other people to maintain the view that he was blameless.

c!Ranboo wants to be a “good” person so bad that he went to a lot of length to justify himself, blaming any wrongdoings on other characters, putting himself in the victim role to explain away his actions. He wants to be a good person, a “reasonable person” who would bring “peace” to the server and resolve conflict, but he refuses to actually do the hard things, because being “good” means taking a stance, being “good” is hard and needs effort, efforts that Ranboo does not have the drive to put in. So instead, he chose the easier thing: explain his actions away. He wasn’t bad, he couldn’t control other people’s actions. He was just a victim. Oh no!

Like when he called Fundy a coward for wanting to team up, for “choosing people, not sides” - the exact things Ranboo preached. Like when he yelled at Tommy for when his plan to kill Dream failed, even though he and Tubbo helped Tommy without ever trying to stop him or make him more well prepared. He denied any of his involvement in any plan that went wrong and pushed the blame onto the people around him. And even in the Las Nevadas dispute just now? He also subtly hinted that Tubbo was the one who made the decision, not him. He’s the reasonable one here. As if he didn’t help Tubbo. As if he didn’t antagonise Las Nevadas right along his partner.

And I would be more lenient with this trait if it weren’t also supported by literally everyone around Ranboo. Like, take the time when Phil told Fundy he had “a lot of redeeming to do” and expressed that Tubbo also had things to make up for, and then compared Ranboo with them as the poor, manipulated victim. Deliberation or no, that comparison push a narrative between Ranboo and Tubbo and Fundy, between the “good” victim and the “evil” perpetrator. Or, like, take the times where everyone blames c!Dream for manipulating c!Ranboo, even though there is no hint about that actually happening. Ranboo’s “victim” narrative keeps being reinforced, which, again, gives him no space and no dissonance to actually reconsider his stance.

3. There's no stake for c!Ranboo's character.

When L'Manberg was still around, Ranboo clearly showed his loyalty didn't lie with the country. He had no emotional connect to the place, and he failed to see how the country meant so much to the people who built it and fought for it and saw it rise and fall. Even his emotional connection to Tubbo and Tommy was chalked up, by himself, as "they were nice to me, so i'm nice back". Relationships, in season 2 at least, were just a tradeoff of favors and niceties to Ranboo, and whether it was the case or not, Ranboo convinced himself that was the case. This gave him a detachment from *everyone*, because at the end of the day, the emotional stake wasn't there, loyalty was not in ss2!Ranboo's vocabulary.

And right now? Ranboo is in full life, he has a whole chest of totems. The closest thing he has to a stake is Tubbo and Michael, but like, meta-wise? I don't think Tubbo is dying anytime soon, and Michael is also probably safe because no one would be cruel enough to use Michael as a plot, when cc!Ranboo and cc!Tubbo are clearly really attached. Ranboo is rich, powerful, with a powerful husband, and a whole fucking lot of plot armor. And while, yes, his attachment to Tubbo and Michael is a positive development (and the *only* positive development actually), it's also paled a bit when Ranboo is still allied with the people who destroyed Tubbo's home, not to mention he was there against Tubbo when the Syndicate threatened him. The emotional connection between him and Tubbo was still not strong enough for Ranboo to reconsider the people he supports.

I’m gonna be patient for now, but honestly the way the character is being excused over and over both in canon and by the fandom is really frustrating to watch.

#dream smp #dream smp analysis #c!ranboo critical #long post #rose's analysis

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vrishchikawrites · 3 years

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Are you still taking prompts?

Cause if so, I'd love to see a time travel fic where post-canon WWX and LWJ get yeeted back into their younger bodies, and land just before the GC transfer. And Post-Canon WWX - who's had some years of being a part of a loving, supportive family, in a non-toxic, non-abusive environment; and therefore no longer has any misconceptions about how much the Jiangs were not his family - takes one look at JC lying there on the table in the cave after WQ knocked him out (and is now in the middle of prepping for surgery); and just goes, "LOL, yeah; nope.😆 Been there, done that; 10/10, would not recommend.😝 Hey, WQ - change of plans!😎"

(Except, you know, not written like crack. 😉)

Not necessary to include, but a fun idea:

JC gets dragged along to the past as well because he has WWX's GC; so whatever sent them back mistook him for part of WWX and brought him along.

So when he wakes up from the anaesthesia, he freaks out about not having a GC anymore. And WWX has this whole story ready to tell young JC about how, "Oops, sorry; you can't have a new GC after all" - but this is Post-Canon JC; so he knows about the transfer, and knows that this means that WWX decided not to do it again.

Which means he ends up screaming at WWX about, "How dare you not give me your GC!"

So WWX feels exactly zero sympathy.

(Before that happened he was maybe feeling a little bit bad for young JC; because that JC hadn't done anything too bad yet - but he already knew how it would turn out if he went through with it. And he was not giving up his chance to cultivate to immortality with his hubby; just so that JC could Feel Like A Real Man, and go on to murder his way through life again.)

What would be really, really great about this, is if WWX had brought JC to Qinghe or Gusu; or somewhere the other cultivation sects involved in the SSC had gathered, before JC woke up. Planning to leave him there where he would be safe. So when JC wakes up and starts screaming, everybody hears him.

And they're all like, "...WUT."🤤

"You expected him to do what?!?"😲😨😱

So instead of all the sympathy and compassion, etc, that he would have gotten over what happened at LP (that he probably did get the first time), or for losing his GC; basically the entire allied cultivation world as a whole is collectively side-eyeing him.

IDK; I just think it would be really funny.

But mainly, I just want to see WWX a few years post-canon; having the chance to do it all again, and choosing not to go through with the GC transfer. LWJ going with him is because the thought of post-canon LWJ losing his WWX makes me sad; and I want them to stay together. 😋

Post-Canon JC going back and getting stuck with the coreless body he deserved is just for my own catharsis.

(The rest of that idea is simply for the lulz.) 😉

(I decided not to include JC traveling back in time. Hope this works and satisfies you!)

“No, I don’t.” Wei Wuxian sees Wen Qing blink and stare at him while Wen Ning stills in the process of making Jiang Cheng comfortable.

“What?” Wen Qing asks but rethinks it immediately, “No, no need to answer that.” She starts packing away her instruments immediately like she’s glad that Wei Wuxian has changed his mind. He looks at her and feels aching fondness rise in his chest. She must be frustrated that he made her go through all of that trouble and yet she still chooses to move before he can change his mind again.

“What… are we going to tell Jiang-gongzi?” Wen Ning asks tentatively but Wei Wuxian notes the faint look of relief in the boy’s eyes.

“We’ll tell him the treatment wasn't possible,” He says, glancing at his… former shidi. It isn’t an easy decision to make, because he knows Jiang Cheng would suffer for it. A part of him feels like he’s being unnecessarily cruel by denying Jiang Cheng his core.

But he has already paid his debt and it cost countless people their lives. Jiang Cheng’s actions didn’t just lead to the death of the Wens. Lan Zhan had told him about the numerous ‘demonic cultivators’ Jiang Cheng had pursued relentlessly. Even his love wasn’t certain how many people died or were tormented to insanity because of Jiang Cheng’s persistence.

While Wei Wuxian doesn’t intend to let the situation get so out of hand, it is apparent that Jiang Cheng can’t be trusted with power.

He is worried about how Jiang Cheng would react. Wei Wuxian had promised him a core, after all. But whatever happens, a powerless Jiang Cheng is safer for everyone.

“We’ll tell him that rebuilding the core is impossible because Wen Zhuliu destroyed his meridians as well.”

“He has,” Wen Qing points out, “I was about to repair them.”

Wei Wuxian frowns, “And can you repair them still? Without transferring the core?” That would certainly help Jiang Cheng heal faster and accept some spiritual energy transfusions. Wen Qing looks at Jiang Cheng with a frown and nods.

“Wei-gongzi… what changed your mind?” Wen Ning asks as Wen Qing goes to work immediately. Wei Wuxian knows that if he has to help the Wens, he needs to tell them the truth. While Wen Ning would trust him and accept his explanation without too many questions, Wen Qing wouldn’t be so easy.

Wei Wuxian takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, getting his thoughts in order. When he opens them again, both of the Wens are looking at him with frowns.

He grins wryly and spreads his hands, "I have a tale for you, my dear friends."

Jin Guangyao needed to have his last 'hurrah'. He just couldn't leave them be, even as he died. Whatever he did, whatever tool he used, it sent a shockwave of Resentful Energy that would've killed them all.

As always, Wei Wuxian stepped forward to protect people. As always, Lan Wangji stepped forward to protect him.

Wei Wuxian gritted his teeth and changed his plan at the last moment. At first, he wanted to absorb the energy and channel it somewhere else. But with so many people just lingering instead of running, he needed a different solution.

His mind flashed, he saw Jiang Cheng, and decided.

A forbidden array formed.

"I needed something that would use up all of the Resentful Energy and protect everyone, including Lan Zhan."

"So, at the last moment and on the verge of dying, you chose something as improbable as time travel." Wen Qing deadpans. Wen Ning is looking at him with wide eyes. Strangely enough, both look like they believe him. Well, he did mention a few things, personal incidents, that he had no way of knowing if the Wens hadn't told him.

Still.

"I'm not the one for regrets," He says softly as he looks at Jiang Cheng, "But I thought that array was the safest solution. It doesn't harm the current timeline so everyone is safe. Lan Zhan, I know, wouldn't mind following my lead in this." He did regret taking Zewu-jun's brother away from him after such a traumatic event but there really was no other option. Not with Jin Ling so close and so many innocent people in the vicinity.

Wei Wuxian is quite certain that the blast would've destroyed everything around them, including the innocent people around the Guanyin Temple complex.

The siblings exchange glances before Wen Qing returns to Jiang Cheng's side, preparing to work on his meridians, "You're going to change things." She observes, "Save people?"

"Save you and Wen Ning. Save Jiang Yanli. Save innocents, yes."

Wen Qing freezes.

---

Lan Wangji doesn't know what Wei Ying did but he trusts his beloved. When he finds himself in the past, just before the Sunshot Campaign begins and shortly after the fall of the Lotus Pier, he doesn't hesitate.

He knows that his brother is safe and his uncle is managing things at Cloud Recesses. But he also knows that somewhere out there, his beloved is preparing himself for a risky, painful procedure.

Wangji can't let that happen. He thinks back on everything Wen Ning shared with him about the incident, particularly the location of where it occurred. He's probably too late to stop the transfer but perhaps not late enough to stop the Wens from finding Wei Ying.

It takes him days to reach Yiling without the aid of Bichen but he manages and immediately heads towards the approximate location Wen Ning had mentioned.

"Wei Ying," He breathes softly when he spots his beloved shopping for some supplies. He hadn't anticipated finding him so soon but is grateful nonetheless.

Wei Ying is dressed like a peasant and blends in well with the people around him but Wangji can recognize him anywhere.

Dressed discreetly and without his forehead ribbon, Wangji too is inconspicuous. He moves swiftly towards Wei Ying and catches his elbow, eyeing the people in red and white uniform at the far end of the street warily.

"Come." He whispers.

Wei Ying doesn't say a word, just paying the vendor and following Wangji into a more discreet location.

Wangji looks at his beloved's face, drinking in his bright silver eyes and sharp features with acute relief.

"Wei Ying, you… you look well." Strangely so, for someone who has just given up his Golden Core.

Hope stirs in his chest and Wangji reaches for Wei Ying's wrist.

His love's lips quirk in amusement, but Wangji ignores him, focusing on sending his spiritual energy through Wei Ying's meridians.

A strong core pulses in response.

"Wei Ying," Something bright and triumphant burns in his chest and he resists the urge to pull his beloved into a crushing embrace.

He would've supported Wei Ying's decision to give up his core and cultivate with resentful energy again. He knew it wasn't evil or harmful now.

But Wei Ying chose himself. His beloved had finally chosen to save himself.

"Aiya, Lan Zhan!" Wei Ying laughs, "If you keep looking at me like that, I'll do something quite shameless and embarra-"

Wangji kisses him.

He cups that precious face, pulls him close, and slides his lips over soft flesh in a tender expression of love he can't contain.

Wei Ying chose himself.

---

Jiang Cheng returns from his trip to the mountain with a thunderous expression on his face.

He disregards Lan Zhan and grabs Wei Wuxian's arm in a tough grip, dragging him away from the crowded tea house. Lan Zhan follows without a word, his expression frosty and eyes on Jiang Cheng.

"Your Grandmaster," He spits, "Is just as useless and worthless as you. All she could do is repair my meridians! My body was too damaged for anything else, she said!"

Wei Wuxian knows Wen Qing wrote the note they left by Jiang Cheng's side but he hadn't known what she had written.

It must've been reasonably convincing for Jiang Cheng to be convinced.

"That's-" He searches his mind to find words that would be appropriately sympathetic. Saying 'that's too bad' would be just rubbing salt on an open wound.

He may dislike Jiang Cheng, but some of the childhood affection still lingers. He doesn't wish to hurt his former shidi.

"I didn't know," He says finally, his heart throbbing in sympathy at Jiang Cheng's devastated expression. He briefly reconsiders his decision but Lan Zhan shifts discreetly by his side and Wei Wuxian remembers why he made that decision in the first place.

Jiang Cheng had been unworthy of the gift he had been given.

His shidi snarls and turns to Lan Zhan, "What are you doing here, Lan er-gonzi," He snarls, "Coming to triumph in our misery?"

Lan Zhan looks at him flatly, "I came to assist Wei Ying."

"Came to assist Wei Ying," Jiang Cheng mocks, his expression tight and furious, "Well, you're welcome to take him away! There's nothing left for him to destroy. Everything is gone. He invited the wrath of the Wens on our heads to protect you and that led to the destruction of my sect. He couldn't even repay that debt. His Grandmaster failed."

Jiang Cheng turns hate-filled eyes towards him, "You are a curse. My father should have left you to rot on the streets!"

"Jiang Wanyin!" Lan Zhan warns but Wei Wuxian places a hand on the Second Jade's arm to halt him.

"I'm taking you to Meishan to be with shijie." Wei Wuxian says calmly, "And then I'll go join the war efforts."

Jiang Cheng sneers before turning his head away, silent.

Wei Wuxian does as he says. He leaves Jiang Cheng in Jiang Yanli's care and heads to Qinghe with Lan Zhan. The war goes differently than before. He manages to kill Wen Zhuliu and Wen Chao early, which gives them a big morale boost. But that's the only thing that goes their way for a long time.

"I'm going to use it," He tells Lan Zhan once, when the scales tip dangerously in the Wen's favor.

Lan Zhan studies him before nodding gracefully, "I will help."

There's no way to avoid using his cultivation method, not if he wants to keep people safe. He's more careful and restrained this time and he doesn't create the Yīn Hǔ Fú. But Mo Dao is Mo Dao. It attracts disapproval from people regardless.

Wei Wuxian doesn't care and Lan Zhan stays by his side without paying any heed to the grumblings of his clan. He goes to sleep every night with Lan Zhan's guqin notes in his ear and meditates every morning with the Cleansing purging the Resentful Energy from his body.

With a powerful and active Golden Core, Wei Wuxian can't use Mo Dao liberally without risking Qi Deviation. But he uses enough to help them win the war.

Wei Wuxian successfully retakes Lotus Pier and Yunmeng from the Wens. Jiang Cheng's hatred doesn't diminish and even Jiang Yanli grows distant after a while. Jiang Cheng's suffering and downfall hardens something in his soft shijie.

Wei Wuxian accepts that consequence quietly.

He hands Lotus Pier back to Jiang Cheng and stays on the front lines, leaving most of the freshly recruited disciples behind to protect his former martial siblings. When the war ends, argues to keep the Wen cultivators in better conditions. He makes sure everyone knows how much the Jiangs owe the Wen siblings, and saves the children and elderly.

With Jiang Cheng out of the Cultivation World and Wei Wuxian's reputation as a war hero, saving the Wen remnants is easier than it had been before.

---

Everyone is baffled when Jiang Wanyin names a new head disciple and Wei Wuxian never returns to Yunmeng. People gossip, sect leaders question, and new Jiang disciple flounder.

Neither Jiang Wanyin nor Wei Wuxian confirms it but it is clear to everyone that the Jiang Sect has, foolishly, kicked out its most powerful disciple. YunmengJiang remains wealthy but the Sect's influence diminishes significantly once Wei Wuxian leaves.

Other Sects, big and small, scramble to find Wei Wuxian, ready to offer him a place and get a powerful cultivator in their ranks. Letters pour in promising wealth and prestige.

Wei Wuxian ignores them all and settles in Cloud Recesses. He's content to teach a group of eye-wide Lan ducklings now to deal with resentful energy and limit the risk of Qi Deviation. He takes them on Nighthunts, teaches them real-life lessons, encourages creativity, and becomes a well-loved senior.

New YunmengJiang disciples aren't near as strong as their predecessors without someone to teach them properly.

People gossip and speculate as the years pass. They hint that he is wrong to leave his former sect behind but he doesn't care.

Wei Wuxian has Lan Zhan and Lan Sizhui. Wen Qing and Wen Ning live happily in a small farming village not far from Gusu. They intervene before Jin Guangyao kills Nie Mingjue. They save Lan Xichen from heartache. Jin Ling is born and has both of his parents.

That's all he needs to be happy.

YunmengJiang is no longer his responsibility.

#short prompts #time travel au #wei wuxian #lan wangji #no golden core transfer #anti jiang cheng

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blueink2k · 3 years

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Propaganda in Death Note and How It Played Into Light’s God Complex

[This is based on information from the anime, as I have yet to read the manga for myself. Caps from or references to the manga may be included to emphasize points or provide visuals, but the version of the plot I'm referring to is taken from the anime.]

Light Yagami does not pick up the Death Note knowing he’s going to use it to commit mass murder and become the God of his New World.

Actually, he does the opposite. He kills someone to test it as he’s under the impression it isn’t real, convinces himself it was a freak coincidence, and decides to try it out in a way that will provide a more concrete conclusion. When it does end up working he’s stunned, to say the least.

“I killed them both...I killed two men. Those were human lives. I-It won’t be overlooked. Besides, who am I to pass judgment on others?”

Light Yagami, the perfect, straight-A, model student, has just confirmed he killed two people using some strange supernatural notebook that just happened to fall into his hands. He’s always believed strongly in his morals. He’s been on course his whole life to join the police force like his father an deliver justice, and here he is, an indirect murderer.

So what does he do about it?

...He comes up with a reason to justify himself.

The people he killed were criminals. Mere scum who do nothing but rot and infect the world. Wouldn’t everyone be better off without them? It isn’t that he’s never considered this before, he has, albeit not to the same degree as taking their deaths into his own hands. But now that he has the power to do so, why shouldn’t he? He’s smart, he’s determined. He’s capable of it.

In fact, in his mind, he’s the only one who is.

He’s kind of right. He’s the top of his class, he comes out on top in national tests, he barely even has to try. Plus, he’s the only one that has a Death Note, and therefore the power to do this.

At this point in time, he doesn’t consider himself a god. He doesn’t want to rule the world, he just wants to change it. Something else important to note is that he doesn’t refer to himself as Kira or anything other than Light.

...That is, until...

Websites start popping up all over claiming that whoever this mass murderer is is named “Kira”, a god among men risen to punish criminals and save the world.

Two things to note here;

Apparently, “Kira” is returning, meaning there must have been some kind of previous belief in an entity that either did something similar to Light or had the same beliefs. There isn’t any other canon mention of a previous Kira, and this in and of itself is pretty vague, but given that there’s tons of religions in real life that have never had a big breakthrough, it’s reasonable to believe this could be something similar. That, or a creepypasta. Or a cult.

Light created this understanding that he had to be the one to change the world to cope with his murders. Actually - that might be the worst way to put it, since we know how strongly he feels about justice and being given an outlet to carry out this wish of world peace just enhanced this, but nonetheless... It’s impossible to assume he’s doing all of this without even a speck of guilt. Therefore, this is the first hint of appreciation or even just acknowledgement that what he’s doing is right.

Disregarding the first point (as interesting as I find it), this is really the first time Light is ever told what he’s doing is good. His own father - who he idolizes -considers Kira evil. His sister flat out says she hates him. Of course, this is all after Kira actually does become popular, but still, all he receives from that point on is disapproval from the people he cares the most about. The online love for Kira is all he has.

So, yeah, he probably internalizes it.

He thinks he’s doing the right thing. He thinks he’s giving others justice. He thinks he’s the only one who can do this. Others agreeing is only enhancing this. They’re the ones who call him God.

As the story progresses, Kira’s power and popularity grows. He gains direct news coverage, people begin sending him names of people to kill, his following grows. So much so, that when someone gets a Death Note and figures out that must be what he’s using, their immediate response is to find a way to contact him.

Cue Misa Amane and Sakura TV.

Sakura TV is a news program known for its unreliability. Demegawa, the director, even says he’s willing to make things up for publicity. And that’s when the Second Kira tapes arrive.

This, however, is only the first encounter with Sakura TV.

After this, the only direct involvement the police has with it is in the Yotsuba arc, when it’s used to lure out Higuchi. Otherwise the program promotes Kira all on its own, even going so far as to create Kira’s Kingdom - half a scam for viewers’ money, half a way to get more people to see Kira as God. And it works. He gains a following of people who believe he will create a new, better world, and will even give themselves up to help him.

An example of this following is when a mob of followers attacks the SPK under Kira’s orders. They’re so quick to join in, and are even willing to put their names and faces on TV in trust that Kira will not kill them.

All of this publicity sparks fear in the general public. People begin fearing that if they do something wrong Kira will kill them, causing crime rates to drop nearly 70% over Kira’s 6 year reign, as well as completely stopping wars.

Demegawa is eventually killed. Other news programs begin scrambling to claim the voice of Kira, topped by NHN, where we are reintroduced to Kiyomi Takada as Kira’s spokeswoman as well as one of his greatest supporters.

Light, as much as he hates Sakura TV and NHN’s depictions of Kira, uses them to his advantage as much as he can.

But really, imagine what this is all doing to him.

At the beginning, he struggled with grasping what he was doing as right. His sense of justice, righteousness, and perfectness shattered by a single notebook. But this is perfect, he figures that if he really wants to fix the world, this is one surefire way to do it. And yeah, his family hates Kira, but online he’s worshiped as God. We already know he has a pretty decent ego, and all of this is doing nothing but fueling it.

To top it all off, as he continues with his killings, his following grows. More and more people begin to support him, every single day there’s news stations upon news stations covering his story, some negative, some positive. People from all over express admiration towards him, even the President of the United States sides with him. He is literally worshiped as Kira, as God.

This all makes it sounds like his god complex starts later in the series, so to clarify; no, he does not pick up the book with plans to become God, but the second people start fueling his ego, the more twisted his ideals and motivations become. He’s the only one who can fix this rotten world. He holds the power of a god in his hands, he does what only a god can do, and everyone treats him accordingly. He is Kira, he is God.

Between websites, news programs, and his cult-like following, Light had enough attention to feed into his ego for a lifetime. He was perfect pre-Death Note. Smart, charming, set for success. There never was a time where he was particularly not narcissistic, it was just that he only felt this way inside of himself. The way he presented to others? A perfect, cool guy persona with an - in all honesty - annoying prickly jerk hiding inside. But no one ever knew this, he never let them know, and because he was always naturally successful it was more of an expectation he just met rather than surpassed, so he wasn’t consistently praised and this incredible self-esteem wasn’t propped up by anyone but himself.

To cycle back to the title of this rant-essay-analysis-whatever you’d like to call it, I want to share some examples about exactly why I even classify this news coverage and whatnot of Kira as propaganda.

Kira’s supporters cause a riot at SPK HQ under Kira’s orders and Demegawa’s direction.

Mikami providing his insight as to why he supports Kira on television, openly promoting Kira and encouraging others to join him.

Takada announces her new role as Kira’s spokesperson on NHN.

Mikami uses his power as Kira to kill members of Kira’s Kingdom, supposed followers of Kira who have been using his publicity to gain money and attention.

Most of this doesn’t exactly look like your standard propaganda posters or news story, but it does fit the overall criteria;

Information from a biased viewpoint used to promote/publicize a certain view (accepting Kira as God)

Shows exclusively positive views on Kira

Assigns Kira positive adjectives and makes him appear as good (God, savior, messenger from Hell), never considering or showing the bad

Presenting only positive statistics (Light does this in his monologue where he brings up the 70% crime rate drop, and given there’s no way he could have calculated this on his own he likely got it from one of these media sources. Not that it’s incorrect, per se, but he does fail to mention how many innocent people he’s killed in order to do this.)

Appeals to regular, everyday people by talking about how he’s doing this for the betterment of the whole world. People who are directly affected by crime are also likely positively impacted by this.

Initiates and spreads fear by explaining how Kira only attacks those who do wrong.

In the end, Light’s personal descent into his god complex, as well as his effects on the world can be attributed to many things, but it would be a crime to ignore just how big of a role news and other types of media played in this without his direct input. To think, if Light had won and overtaken the police like he was going to, he’d have absolutely no problem stepping into his shoes as God. Everyone else already set the stage, he just had to get there first.

This is my first Death Note analysis, so please excuse any errors, I just watched the anime for the first time and am doing my best to piece together all of the plot and especially Light’s deep characterization the best I can. If I ever read the manga or find something new, chances are this will be updated. But as for now, it’s finally finished after a week or so of procrastinating. Thank you for reading if you got this far! <3

#death note #light yagami #kira #analysis #anime analysis #rant #essay #hitoshi demegawa #do people even care enough about him to have a tag #💀#death note anime #teru mikami #kiyomi takada #yagami light #mikami teru #takada kiyomi #long post #meta

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rainhadaenerys · 3 years

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Sansa stans keep criticizing Dany for literally every breath that she takes, and keep insisting that Sansa is "smarter", "better ruler", "better politician", etc. And this just makes me curious to know how they think Sansa would have acted better than Dany.

Like, let's say Sansa was in Dany's place and was forcibly married to Khal Drogo. Since Dany is so evil for "owning slaves" while she was married to Khal Drogo, what would Sansa do if she was in Dany's place? How would Sansa avoid being a "slave owner" that they accuse Dany of being? Then Khal Drogo and his khalasar attack some villages, take slaves and rape women. According to Sansa stans, Dany taking the women as her slaves is evil because she is not really saving those women, and therefore Dany deserved to be betrayed by Mirri. So what would Sansa do in Dany's place? What does Sansa do differently to "truly" save those women from the Dothraki?

Then let's suppose Sansa gets to Slaver's Bay and sees how dehumanized the slaves are. What does Sansa do, since Dany's way was clearly evil? Does Sansa just see all the slaves and leaves them there, since violence to free slaves is evil? Or since Dany's attack against the slave masters in Astapor was evil, does Sansa buy only the slaves that she could afford and then frees them, but leaves all the rest of the slaves behind, still enslaved? And what does Sansa do with these handful of slaves that she freed? I mean, Sansa stans say that Dany allowing the Unsullied to follow her is wrong and clearly makes her a slaver who is just the Unsullied's new master. So Sansa obviously can't do what Dany did, because what Dany did is evil. Since letting the Unsullied follow you and using them as your army is wrong, would Sansa just leave the Unsullied behind, to live their own lives? But wouldn't this just leave these Unsullied vulnerable to being recaptured and re-enslaved if they're no longer organized as soldiers? What does Sansa do to protect them then, since using the Unsullied as soldiers is wrong? How does Sansa build a new life for them?

Since Dany attacking and conquering Yunkai and Meereen is also evil because it involves violence, what does Sansa do to free the slaves in those cities? She just… doesn't free them? Because I guess letting people remain enslaved is still more moral than using violence? Or does Sansa make pacific protests in front of those cities? How would this even work? Does anyone actually believe the slavers would just end slavery because some random girl was making a peaceful protetst? Oh, and if Sansa doesn't conquer either Yunkai or Meereen (because violence and conquering is evil), where does Sansa find the resources to feed the former slaves that she freed? Does she buy food from those cities? But how would she buy food, if she already spent the money she had in buying the slaves that she freed? Does Sansa just leave them behind to die, since she can't feed them (and taking the cities to feed them would involve violence, so Sansa clearly can't do that).

Ok, now let's supposed that Sansa does decide to conquer Meereen to feed her people like Dany did. How does Sansa do it better than Dany? I mean, we clearly know that Dany's way was evil and incompetent. Dany ended slavery in Meereen and didn't build a completely new economy out of nowhere in a single day. But Sansa is clearly smarter, more educated, more gracious, and more moral than Dany. So Sansa would clearly find a better way, right????

So how does Sansa manage to take Meereen without violence? Dany punished the rapists, looters and murderers in her army. But clearly that wasn't enough, Dany should have been competent enough to stop all of her soldiers from looting, raping and killing. So how does Sansa, the smartest politician evah, do to control every single person in her army and stop them from looting, killing and raping? Sansa is better than Dany, so Sansa would clearly find a way to avoid all of that, right??? Also, what does Sansa do to stop the slaves from revolting and killing and raping their former masters? Sansa is so superior to Dany, she would have clearly found a way, right???

Now, let's suppose that some Meereenese come to Sansa asking to sell themselves into slavery. Dany allowing it was clearly evil, so Sansa obviously won't allow it, because Sansa is superior to Dany. So what does Sansa do to stop them from asking to sell themselves? Remember, the Meereenese who ask to sell themselves were gently born and lived lives of luxury, and wanted to sell themselves to live in luxury as prized educated slaves. For Sansa to stop them from wanting to sell themselves, she needs to give them the kind of luxurious life these people were accustomed to. So how does Sansa do it? Does she just… take money from the city to pay for the luxury of these people, all to avoid them asking to sell themselves? But what about all the poor people in Meereen? If Sansa is going to pay some people a life of luxury, then she should do this for everyone, right? How does Sansa manage that? Does she plant a magic tree that grows money?

What about the people who come to Dany for justice? They would come to Sansa as well. Remember, there was a son of a master that comes asking for a former slave to be punished for killing and raping his mother. Dany had declared a pardon for all the crimes committed during the sack, but Sansa stans have clearly decreed that this was wrong and evil. So what does Sansa do? Does Sansa go around killing all former slaves accused of crimes when they revolted against their masters? And how does Sansa avoid the complete political chaos that would arise from that? How does Sansa stop the former slaves from turning against her? Sansa is clearly a political genius, so I guess her huge brain would devise a strategy that would allow her to kill slaves who rose against their masters, all without the former slaves turning against her and all without creating chaos and violence in Meereen. Suuuuure. Because Sansa is clearly a genius and clearly a more morally correct person than Dany, so she would have found a magical way, of course.

And what does Sansa do when a former slave comes asking the former master to be gelded for raping his wife? Dany refuses to punish, because at the time it happened, the crime wasn't illegal, and if she granted this she would have to geld every man who ever slept with a sex slave, meaning that she would have to geld almost everyone in Meereen. But Dany was clearly evil and wrong in her decision. So I guess… Sansa would have granted the request and gelded the man? But then, what would Sansa do when former sex slaves started coming to her all asking for their former masters to be gelded? Would Sansa go on a hunt across Meereen in order to geld all the rapists? But wouldn't this be too violent, and isn't violence evil according to Sansa stans? Also, wouldn't this kiiiiinda cause a huge political chaos and create more war within the city? How does Sansa manages to punish all the rapists without creating political chaos? Or maybe… Sansa could imprison them all? But to imprison all the people who ever slept with sex slaves, she would have to build prisons, wouldn't she? I doubt there's all that space ready in Meereen. So how does Sansa do that, in a short span of time? And how does Sansa manages to capture all the rapists in Meereen? I mean, surely the former masters would fight back against this. So how does Sansa do this, and all without creating chaos and violence in Meereen? I guess the better solution would be to have been conciliatory and not gelded men who slept with sex slaves when slavery was legal, but then Sansa would have been just as evil as Dany…

Ok, now, how about the economy? Sansa stans say that Dany was incompetent in not rebuilding an entire new economy in the time span of one week, so how would Sansa manage that? How does Sansa end slavery without creating any economic problems (considering that slaves were the only thing Meereen exported)? Does Sansa plant magic beans that grow in a single night? Does Sansa buy teleportation machines in order to travel across Essos to negotiate trade deals with different cities? And how does she even convince the slave cities of Essos to trade with a city that just ended slavery? I guess Sansa super charm and courtesy magic would have made them all want to be friends with her, right? Or maybe Sansa just negotiates with Braavos… but for that to work in such a short span of time (remember, Sansa needs to rebuild the economy in one week) Sansa needs to use that teleportation machine, or else she can't get to Braavos. Also, what will Sansa even trade??? Meereen had nothing but slaves and olives to trade. The slavers burned the olives, and Sansa ended slavery, so wtf would she trade? Oooops. My bad. I forgot Sansa had magic seeds that made crops grow in a single day. I guess Sansa can trade those magic crops. Or maybe… Sansa ends slavery gradually, in order not to collapse the economy? But that would make Sansa a slaver, wouldn't it? How does she justify forcefully keeping people in bondage for the sake of the economy? Also, how do the slaves not rebel against her when she refuses to free them all for the sake of the economy? And how does she force the slave masters to give up their slaves when the time finally comes?

Ok, but now let's pretend Sansa indeed had a perfect plan to end that was so much better than Dany. Where is the evidence in the books that Sansa would do a better job than Dany? Where are the book quotes that show Sansa's understanding of economics, "pacific" (?) military tactics, how to end slavery…? And remember, if Sansa was in Dany's place she wouldn't have a formal education and wouldn't have Littlefinger's training.

Let's face it: Sansa stans just want to criticize Dany for whatever reason and to claim that their fave is better, without even thinking if their fave would have done things better or what she would have done, or if there's even evidence that Sansa would be better than Dany. And the same goes for show!Sansa by the way. I see Sansa stans talk about how "if Sansa went to Dragonstone instead of Jon, she would put Dany in her place" (because obviously, Sansa is sooooo much smarter), and yet I haven't seen anyone explain what would be Sansa's plan to "put Dany in her place" and defeat the army of the dead without Dany's help, or how would Sansa manage to get Dany's help without bending the knee and at the same time disrespecting Dany (since they want Sansa to "put Dany in her place"). This political genius Sansa really only exists in their minds, and they aren't even smart enough to come up with actual concrete plans on what Sansa could have done that is better than Dany.

#fandom wank #daenerys targaryen #anti sansa stans #fandom meta #rambling

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mitigatedchaos · 3 years

Text

[anon]

[...] Like transsexualism, antiracism is a deer-horse, a loyalty test. The point is to cull dissidents, not to actually give up any [w]s' wealth or power [...] This isn't to say that the authorities might not lose control of their weapon and have it actually end in [genocide]. But I think they'll prevent that.

I think we're dealing with a kind of emergent ignorance.

Progressives think that if, as a hypothetical, Italians were discovered to be cursed to have bad backs, for some reason everyone would immediately conspire to murder them all. So if we don't know for sure what's causing the higher rate of back injuries to Italians at the Amazon warehouse, we should make sure not to report any information that could be used to make the case that Italians have bad backs.

The problem here is that the next layer of Progressives does the same thing starting with the biased output of the last layer, repeatedly. The last layer are two orders of magnitude off on the numbers, have switched the actors around, etc.

There may be some cynical operators, but the thing they're cynically operating for is probably cash.

A few are able to cut through the layers of bullshit, but they just do step one over again. A net reduction in the bias of the results. (Some of those people say "please stop getting obsessed with this" in increasingly worried tones.)

Progressives seem to have gotten the idea that genocide comes from a belief in "inferiority," so absolutely no one can be allowed to be framed as "inferior," or they'll get murdered.

This may have come from the actions of the Nazis. It might also come from an intuitive sense of the Progressives themselves. E.g. "no one deserves to have a bad back, therefore no one deserves to be Italian, therefore..."

From a more Conservative perspective, if Italians have bad backs, that's their problem. They can just be left to sort that out for themselves.

From a Transhumanist perspective, an Italian with a bad back is just a dude who has had the misfortune not to be provided with an indestructible robot spine yet.

From a more traditionally Liberal perspective, we just propose to measure each person's back strength individually while looking to see if we can develop any back exercises that sort it out.

In order to not be a totalitarian, you must be willing to accept some imperfection.

What makes Progressives worried about genocide is different from what makes me worried about genocide.

As a note, generally, I believe that "genocide" needs to include a component where you are actively killing people, or else so systematically preventing them from doing what they need to survive that you might as well be. This also needs to be at scale. (We can discuss specifics later. For instance, sterilizations may also qualify as a variety of genocide.) So a migration that doesn't involve cutting down the local men from horseback might be an erosion of representation or sovereignty in some way, but it is very probably not a genocide.

I tend to think in terms of, what are the release valves? What are the escape conditions?

First, I think that people don't kill other people just for "being inferior." Does anyone go around shooting everyone that scored less on the SAT than themselves? You have to build a claim. You have to argue that they have collectively harmed you - it works even better if you claim that they're currently collectively harming you and will continue to do so in the future.

Second, this evil should be portrayed as unique - if Italians and Irish and your own guys are all robbing you at the same rate, it can't be solved by genociding the Italians.

Third, the guilt has to be collective - if we must try each and every individual Italian for robbery in a court, what we will find is that most Italians do not commit robbery, and so our attempted genocide will just be messily applying the death penalty to robbery by Italians, which is excessive, but not really the same thing. So we need to argue that all Italians are uniformly inherently robbers, or that all Italians are involved in some kind of conspiracy, or that they're all colluding subconsciously, etc.

Fourth, our claim against the Italians or whatever other group we've trying to get rid of should be unfalsifiable. If we set the condition up that someone can disprove it, someone probably will, because people are willing to spend a lot of resources to not die. To carry this out, we should prohibit any study that might prove the group's innocence, or even cast doubt on their guilt.

As an addendum to the previous: if we actually have to scientifically determine whether all Italians are robbers, not only may it be disproved, but it might take ten or twenty years to really examine properly - long enough for the genocide urge to pass.

Fifth, and this one is important, there can be no valid land claim allowed for the group in question. Even if we conclude that all Italians are inherently robbers, we might still conclude that the answer is to simply separate the Italians from everyone else by either sending them all to Italy (assuming that Italy is legally required to take them and cannot refuse them) or dividing up the country and putting all the Italians in Florida or something.

If there is a valid land claim (to land it's possible to farm), then while it is quite possible that there will be great suffering, it's very unlikely that all the Italians will be wiped out.

Contemporary Progressive race discourse meets all of these criteria. Rather than the Emperor bringing in a deer, calling it a horse, and then throwing out anyone who objects, he has brought in a relatively fearsome-looking wolf, with a mouthful of sharp teeth, and called it a big friendly dog.

If it's working to remove dissidents, it's because a wolf is a legitimately dangerous animal and has no business walking around the imperial court.

But I don't think having this wolf walking around was really planned, except by a small handful of people. (I think a number of them have blinded themselves to the differences between wolves and dogs, but should have had the character to stop and think about it at multiple points along the way.)

To the degree that they realize they're doing this, they're doing so to extract leverage which can be used to demand everything less than the continent.

As for transgenderism, I'm sure many Conservatives feel like Progressives are supporting it to psychologically abuse them, but isn't it a natural corollary to the idea of sexed brain differences, which most Conservatives would believe in? If those exist, there must be some biological mechanism to implement them, which could misfire.

#holocaust cw #antisemitism cw #genocide cw

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missnight0wl · 4 years

Note

Who do you think is the mole?

Merula is the mole

And I’m not saying that because everything bad has to be Merula. It truly makes the most sense, and as soon as I realised it, I was like: “Well, duh! Obviously!”. I’ll try to explain everything the best I can, but first, I want to address some basic things about the mole, proving that Alanza is probably NOT our culprit (as I believe she’s one of the most common suspects in fandom). I already talked about it a little in other posts, but I want to organise everything and maybe add something.

To begin with, there’s a lot of evidence that R is watching MC ever since they came to Hogwarts or at least Y2. There was someone contacting/controlling Ben when the cursed ice appeared. In Y3, we even got a warning Letter From No One:

In Y4, someone was controlling Ben again. In Y5, MC AND Ben were attacked by someone, and it’s still unknown whether or not they were under Imperius too. Someone unleashed a Dementor on Hogwarts, and R knew that MC defeated it as soon as it happened. Someone, who’s description fit a Red Cloak, moved the portrait which trapped Beatrice later.

And of course, each vault every year was allegedly tampered by someone, causing the new curse to occur. In Y5, someone made Rowan draw their wand on us, and while it was implied that it was Pettigrew, it was never confirmed. Either way, R had never problems to take actions at Hogwarts. Moreover, they seem to be well aware of our every move. MC also sometimes talks during classes that they feel like being watched. So, if R was successfully pulling strings all those years, even without Rakepick, why would they bother now to bring Alanza to the castle? Especially that there was a huge gap when Rakepick was already gone, but Alanza was still not there! It could’ve been as long as six months, judging by Ben’s comment before Rowan’s death that they’re well into the sixth year. And quite a lot happened in that time! For example, we found the letter from R to Jacob. There’s no way it was left by accident, and while it’s possible it was placed by Jacob himself, it doesn’t change the fact that R didn’t need Alanza for that. So, again, why would they need her exactly?

Admittedly, the way they talked about it in the recent chapter:

… does make it sound as if the mole is someone SENT by R. However, I believe it’s just unfortunate wording because in that case, it could be only Alanza (and as I said, it just doesn’t really make sense). Like, none of our friends was “planted” by R. Even if they were recruited before coming to Hogwarts, they were simply kids in school-age anyway. It could be about a teacher or something, but they’re all the books canon characters. Unless it’s about the new DADA professor we haven’t even seen yet, but I doubt it.

Now, I think we can all agree that the mole is most likely another student. Sure, an adult would have more influence among the staff, maybe access to more places, but they also wouldn’t get as close to MC, and I assume that’s the point – to know what MC’s doing. Although, when I’m looking at the examples I listed above, I have to say that it’s possible that there is somebody else involved (other than the mole), but still, one of our peers would be the best as the source of information. So, without further ado, let’s explain how Merula fits into that puzzle.

YEAR 1

From the very beginning, Merula talked badly about Jacob because of his obsession with the Cursed Vaults. But then, something’s changed after our first duel, and even MC pointed out how odd it was.

I wouldn’t be surprised if R reached Merula at some point before that conversation and convinced her that the Cursed Vaults are real and very much worth it to search for them. Alternatively, Merula knew about it already when she came to Hogwarts, and then it’s connected to the Devil’s Snare accident. This idea is based on my other theory that Jacob made a deal with R that he’d join them IF they wouldn’t hurt MC. The deal was valid for the first two years; however, if R used Merula to hurt/kill MC, their hands would technically be clean.

YEAR 2

I wrote about it in the past during my replay, but there’s quite a lot of material so I’ll just leave a link here. It’s very important for this theory, though, so please, go and read it to fully understand my thought process.

YEAR 3

This is the year when we found Jacob’s room. And if you claim that Merula can’t lie or hide important information: she can. She didn’t tell us about Jacob’s room for at least a year, and she probably wouldn’t tell at all if we didn’t find our brother’s notebook. Also, there’s a possibility that she took something from there:

Was she lying, though? What could she take? What did she do with it?

Later the same year, Merula was following us to the Library AGAIN (the Vault of Fear), as she was ALSO following us back in Y1. When you think about it, Merula follows MC quite a lot, also in later years… Eavesdropping on MC and Talbott, learning that we’re an Animagus (in the “Animagus Adventure SQ”, so separately from Talbott’s situation), sending Ismelda to eavesdrop on us when MC wanted to leave Hogwarts in Y6, following us when we practised Protego with Jacob… She also knows that she can manipulate MC emotionally. The Frog Choir TLSQ anyone? Even if she wasn’t lying then about her mother, she still had no problems to use her suffering to influence MC and get what she wanted.

YEAR 4

Well, as I mentioned in the post linked in YEAR 2, this is the year when Merula was openly working with Rakepick. If you want to believe that Rakepick is evil and was always a member of R, that’s pretty much it. Perhaps Merula wasn’t aware of that, but still.

Although, what I believe is that Rakepick wasn’t a member of R, but she knew they’re using Merula. Therefore, Patricia “took care” of her for two reasons: 1) so Merula stopped being a pain in the ass for MC, 2) so she could control R’s influence on Merula.

YEAR 5

Here’s where things got a bit complicated because of the events in the Portrait Vault, and a lot depends on what’s really going on with Rakepick. Still, here are some possible explanations:

If Rakepick is evil and Merula was really tortured: Rakepick used Crucio on Merula even though she’s their mole as a punishment for getting too attached to MC. I personally don’t feel close to Merula at all because Jam City fucked up her writing, and so I have no reasons whatsoever to like her. However, they basically skipped to MC and Merula being friends whether you like it or not, so here you are. And Merula was supposed to get close to MC but not like them.

If Rakepick is evil, but the torture was staged: R needed MC to suffer, but they didn’t want to actually hurt their mole.

If Rakepick is not evil: The torture was staged, but Rakepick told R that Merula should be punished for getting attached to MC (so R THOUGHT that Merula was really tortured but she wasn’t) OR they agreed to that, so they’ll make MC suffer without hurting their mole.

YEAR 6

Again, because it depends so much on what’s really happened in the Portrait Vault, it’s even more complicated than Y5, so… I’ll try to explain what I personally believe is going on.

Rakepick staged the torture scene with Merula, and no matter if R thinks it was real or not, she also instructed Merula to keep R believing that she’s their mole. Merula is still delivering R information, but perhaps it’s possibly limited or maybe she even lies about some things to them. I’m not sure what to do with Rowan’s death here (or “death”), but I don’t think Merula was expecting that. I imagine that she thinks that Rakepick screwed everyone over and plays on her own entirely. If that’s the case, she might want to continue to be R’s mole if she believes that it’ll help her expose Rakepick eventually. I mean, if she just told R: “Hey, she doesn’t really work for you”, Rakepick would probably weasel out of it somehow.

Merula being the mole also goes along with Jacob telling us about the assassin being after MC and Merula (Y6Ch6):

He apparently talked about the Wizard in White then, but now we know that he actually isn’t an assassin. So… how did Jacob make that mistake? I mean, if the Wizard in White wanted to take MC to R so they’d join them, they HAD TO have a similar approach towards Jacob. In fact, they wrote to Jacob about joining them after Duncan’s death. Why Jacob thought that they’d try to kill MC now?

Well, it’s simple: it’s not real Jacob and he works for R. Why R wanted MC to think that there’s an assassin after them, though? Well, it’s based on my old theory, but… I don’t buy that the Wizard in White is a member of R. I believe that he was supposed to help MC somehow. R wanted MC to know that there’s an assassin so they’d be distrustful towards new people (including the Wizard in White). What about Merula then? I see two explanations which could coexist: 1) R wanted to scare Merula so she wouldn’t reveal to MC that she’s the mole (when she heard about an assassin being after her, she could’ve connected the dots), 2) Merula is more impulsive than MC, so if she was expecting an assassin, she’d attack him with the intention to hurt or kill, getting rid of the Wizard in White and R’s problem.

(I know that the part about the assassin doesn’t work in the light of the recent chapter, but I’m still trying to figure it out, and I might write a separate post on how the Wizard in White is not a member of R.)

Also, not that it’s super solid evidence, but Merula was the one who suggested that the mole might be among the teachers:

Yeah, there’s some logic in that, but as I said at the beginning, I think we can all agree that it’s way more likely that the mole is a student. I’m not saying that Merula is trying to buy some time before she’s discovered, buuut…

Anyway, I’m almost certain that Merula is the mole. I even hope for that because it could be a very interesting plot: Merula who started from despising MC and wanting to harm them, starting to appreciate the value of friendship and questioning her actions. Of course, it’d be even more interesting if Jam City put any effort in her redemption arc, but oh well. It’s also kind of brilliant that Merula created that rivalry with MC when it comes to the Cursed Vaults, and she did it so well that we don’t even question WHY this rivalry exists. That maybe it’s just an excuse to gain information and pass it on. I mean, look at our conversation in “Flying Solo” TLSQ”:

Merula is so casual about it that MC is not even particularly concerned about her getting information on the Cursed Vaults. You know, they say the darkest place is under the candle...

#long post #hogwarts mystery #hphm #hphm spoilers #hphm mc #jacob's sibling #merula snyde #patricia rakepick #hphm jacob #wizard in white #hphm r #the mole #theory #hphm theory #ask #dalekofchaos

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anticatradoraofficial · 4 years

Text

Anti-Catra/Catradora

This series has always felt like the Catra Show, and so much so that even Hordak never felt like the main villain. And nothing drove that point home more than season five proving once and for all that this series moral line(or lack there of) is REALLY about a Villain Protagonist when the character that increasingly became a MONSTER for FOUR SEASONS still got everything she wanted in the end.

Catra is the poster child for the moral bankruptcy of this series.

I can’t buy her “redemption,” or her relationship with Adora, because she WENT TO FAR.

Therefore nor can I buy the HYPOCRITICAL mental gymnastics that arise when she is a topic of discussion in the fandom.

For four seasons I watched this character WILLINGLY and GLEEFULLY jump rope with the moral event horizon. Then she finally broke it to the pieces when she genocides the planet, and everyone on it, because of her sick,evil obsession with being better than Adora.

Loved all this time my behind.

Catra was a vile person from her introduction, and just got increasingly more poisonous as the show went on.

The story seems to want us to treat Catra like a bad friend that said a few mean words here and there, and therefore all she has to do is sincerely apologize then friendship can begin again.

Here’s the thing Catra wasn’t just a bad friend, but also an ABUSER and a FASCIST.

She had multiple opportunities to leave the horde, had no reason to stay in the first place, gleefully attacks the resistance, is pretty much the direct reason Angela died, tried straight up multiple times to end Adora’s and her friends lives, and was just an abomination to even the ones on her side etc..

On the flip side we have Adora who doesn’t give a damn about Catra for four seasons. She’s too busy enjoying life with her REAL friends. Try and recall, was there ever a moment where Adora was…concerned for Catra’s safety? Pining for her in any way romantically? Ever? Even once during the first four? Because I don’t. Honestly Catra wasn’t important to Adora until Catra showed up on screen. And then they both wanted to kill each other. Any moments of Adora thinking about Catra it was in the context of Catra being her ENEMY.

But I’m supposed to believe in their romance based on what?

Catra’s toxicity? Adora’s nonexistent romantic feelings for pretty much the entire series?

In season 5 all Catra had to do was one act of atonement and out of nowhere, like Adora has been possessed by the ghost of Queer Rep, she suddenly can’t get Catra out of her head. Also note Catra didn’t save Glimmer because she realized her past actions were evil, no it was all for Adora’s sake; the person she is toxically obsessed with.

Back to Catra, her redemption is handled with the most condescending of kid gloves.She seems like she was replaced by a clone for season five. She’s just accepted. It’s like seasons 1-4 didn’t happen.

The forgiveness was excessive, and therefore forced, so we could be okay with this ABUSER/WAR CRIMINAL being chummy and romantic with her victims.

For example Glimmer cries over her, kisses her cheek etc… Yet Catra is responsible for her mothers death, the world ending once before, trying to kill her, war crimes against Bright Moon etc.

Then Entrapta also forgives Catra like it’s nothing even though she sent HER TO DIE, and apparently she was in this hell space for a YEAR.

Same with Scorpia who forgives Catra’s toxicity in five seconds.

But everything is suppose to be wonderful because an abuser ends the series romantically involved with her victim?

When Adora said you made your choice now live with it THAT should have been the end of any reconciliation either platonic of romantic.

Even her flashbacks are her being abusive. You see her in one of them( in her so called redemption season at that) SCRATCHING Adora’s FACE to the point it left BLOOD,and JUMPING ON HER STOMACH just because Adora DARED to be friends with other people.

This was pretty much every childhood flashback they showed. She would emotionally and physically abuse Adora, and then Adora would take her back. This would continue even as near adults. It was a PATTERN(red flag) that Adora unfortunately didn’t escape.

But…..I always loved you,says Catra.

For ADORA’S own mental health/closure she could forgive,but only if she also makes it clear that she doesn’t want her abuser/war criminal ex friend back in her life.

I could have tolerated that ending instead of Adora becoming a COUPLE with her ABUSER.

Basically this villain sue ends the show getting everything she wants even after evil manipulation of several characters, genocide, war crimes against her own people, physical and mental abuse(especially toward Adora), repeated attempts at murder toward again especially Adora( bares repeating loved all this time my behind) as well as anyone else within spitting distance of her toxicity.

She gets to be pretty much a abusive scum bucket for four seasons, on top of ACTUALLY DOING THE SAME THING PRIME WANTED TO DO, yet whiplash forgiveness and Lesbians 4 Evah is her ending.

“So we’re all just okay with this?”, says Mermista incredulously of the war criminal Hordak. Good question,but then I remember you all seem to be okay with war criminal Catra who is pretty much Hordak’s parallel soo ….

Her mirror Hordak, according to the showrunner, is sentenced to beast island for his war crimes. However, my question then becomes where is Catra’s sentence?

Oh, that’s right if you’re Catra you get to be a war criminal in peace.

It’s also convenient that Mermista’s was chipped,and therefore didn’t get to say anything to the girl who helped bring down her kingdom with a smile on her face.

Funny how that worked out.

It’s even more convenient that her victims gave their lighting fast forgiveness.

Can’t have icky things like abuse and war crimes get in the way of that ending smooch you know.

I suppose we also just need to look at Angella as collateral damage while we smile at her daughter hug and kiss her killer I guess.

I also find it odd(since were loving abusers and war criminals) that Shadow Weaver point blank doesn’t get forgiveness from Adora, and she even ends the series dead. However, she defected to the good side in season two(regardless of any impure motivation), and stayed there and helped the protagonists until her season five death. But Catra who not only stayed with the conquering organization the Horde for almost the entire series,and even became their LEADER, was not only forgiven but also given a romance with her victim. Curious.

I’m tired of this abominable trope invading every piece of media.

An antagonist crosses the moral event horizon, and some even break it to pieces, but somehow the story gets selective amnesia and thus they are free to join the protagonists with their numerous sick crimes ignored or a sob story is bsed into a justification onto why we should ignore physical and emotional abuse and/or the numerous bodies piled up.

When you don’t have a moral LINE in your narrative then that means you have already made a mockery out of morality and numerous victims.

The only way I can stomach her season five ‘redemption’, and lighting quick forgiveness, is if I forget the monster of four seasons didn’t exist. Problem is I can’t do that.

Why should I get any catharsis that the protagonists prevailed over Horde Prime when you have two characters in particular(Hordak,Catra) that are pretty much him with a sob story attached. If THEY get to kumbaya with the hero’s then Prime should to because that’s honestly where the morals are at in this story.

I had to stop watching two shows(Vampire Diaries and Once Upon a Time) because I got tired of this sick trope. There were SEASONS worth of whitewashing and selective amnesia for two sick and evil characters(Damien Savatore and Regina), to the point their VICTIMS became their BIGGEST CHEERLEADERS and LOVE INTERESTS.

There is no justice when this vile trope is in play.

The moral event horizon exists for a reason. It means once a character has jumped over it then there should be no moral way they can come back from it.

Humanizing them is a good narrative choice,but that humanization doesn’t and SHOULDN’T erase their heinous crimes.

Thus the only true ending that moral event horizon characters should get are redemption equals death or thanks for growing a conscious and helping us out, but you’re STILL going to prison for life afterwards kay. They don’t get to kumbaya with their victims while the other one’s, THE DEAD BODIES, stay cold.

But you know if I HAD to I COULD have TOLERATED Catra and Hordak going on an atonement journey so they could help the people still living that they made homeless/ lives they ruined. Also they can do this while they both get the therapy they badly need.

I needed CONSEQUENCES that STUCK.

Instead Catra (ADORA’S ABUSER) gets to make out with Adora(HER VICTIM), and also become her girlfriend as well as best friends of her other victims.

So it seems this show’s message is no matter how much emotional and physical pain a person does to you it’s okay to not only let them back in your life(damn your mental health I guess),but also enter a romantic relationship with them to.

Yes, that’s what children need to see.

I did my research on the show runner, and the creators pet/villain sue bias became clearer when I did so. Catra is HER pretty much, and Adora is her wife.

That explains EVERYTHING, and not in a good way.

What the show’s title should actually be called: She-Ra: The Show Where The Villain Sue Antagonist,War Criminal Abuser, Gets a Happily Ever After With Her Victim; Whom She Emotionally and Physically Abused for Four Seasons. Another alternate: She-Ra: The Story of Lesbian Reylo.

Thank you for sharing this submission with us.

#submission #anti c//a #anti catra #(not my post)

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notallthosewho-wanderarelost · 3 years

Text

Warning: Vague Mandalorian 2x08 spoilers

A few vague thoughts on the season finale. Mostly prompted by some reactions I’ve seen on tumblr that made me go “WHAT????????”

Mostly Bo-Katan related but not going into too much detail on Clone Wars stuff so it stays accessible to people who haven’t seen it. Also something on the ending + predictions on the future of the show. Just posting this to get my thoughts out of my head and down somewhere, not looking to start an argument.

Edited because I missed the credits scene lol.

The Bo-Katan salt is STRONG on tumblr today. Can you all please think for more than a minute before declaring her evil? I’m begging you.

Is she being set up as an antagonist? Most likely. Does that make her evil? No, not necessarily. Bo-Katan has always been a “do whatever must be done” type of person in all her appearances, but that doesn’t make her end goal here wrong. She wants to reclaim Mandalore, she wants Mandalorians to have a home again- their home, the one the Empire took from them. She wants the Darksaber because it will give her the authority she needs to unite Mandalorians behind her to retake Mandalore. She’s not just after power for power’s sake. Plus, she’s been trying to do this for more than THIRTY YEARS. It’s basically her life’s goal. “Bo-Katan didn’t immediately do what Din wanted and has her own goals” doesn’t make her evil, it just makes her a dimensional character. If her goals bring her into conflict with Din, that will make her an antagonist, but it won’t necessarily mean she’s evil.

This is her second appearance and also the second time I’m seeing people slamming her for not doing exactly what’s convenient for Din. PLEASE. Her being a three-dimensional character is good. It’d be boring if everyone did exactly what’s convenient for Din. That’s having 1 main character and making everyone else cardboard cutouts, and it would be terrible writing. I like Din too, but I don’t want him to be the only three-dimensional character in the show.

Was Bo-Katan a terrorist? Yes. Once. And then she stopped being a terrorist because things were spiraling out of control and she didn’t think it was right. The ends no longer justified those particular means for her. Yes, Bo-Katan was part of Death Watch which wanted to attack and overthrow her sister Satine’s pacifist government and restore the old way of Mandalore, but she never wanted to KILL Satine. She shows that she cared about her sister. They may have been polar opposites ideologically and it led them down very different paths, but it doesn’t mean they hated each other.

How are we getting “Bo-Katan is prejudiced against foundlings/believes being a Mandalorian is only genetic” from her crack about Jango being Boba’s donor? That wasn’t a “genetics trumps all” line, that was a “you’re a clone, you don’t have a father” dig. I sure don’t agree with the sentiment, and on top of that I think the anti-clone implications were bad of her, but I don’t think she was trying to say that all foundlings aren’t Mandalorian. She was saying Boba isn’t Mandalorian. Plus, he didn’t exactly refute her. He never claimed to be Mandalorian, only said that his father was and the armor was his father’s.

(On the anti-clone implications of that line: as of right now, I don’t think she meant them. That doesn’t make it okay for her to have said it, but as far as we know Bo-Katan has only ever had good interactions with clones in the Siege of Mandalore. She probably respected them as soldiers. I mean, who knows, maybe the Empire carried out the Purge with former clone troopers just to be spiteful and that means Bo-Katan hates clones now, but that’s the only way I could see her actually meaning that line in that way. I think she was just making a dig at Boba.)

You can’t criticize Bo-Katan for attacking Satine/the New Mandalorian government and then immediately also criticize her for supposedly being hung up on genetics making a Mandalorian and therefore not following the Creed by discounting foundlings. Those two things cancel each other out. By definition of the Creed, the pacifist New Mandalorians weren’t Mandalorian. Genetically, they apparently were. (Yes, I know that at least some of them were descendants of colonists from Kalevala, but Bo-Katan herself is one of them! And she basically tells Din in 2x03 that she is Mandalorian by descent/family tradition.) Bo-Katan’s entire reason for joining Death Watch was to restore the old Creed, aka the warrior way of Mandalore. Criticize her either for attacking the New Mandalorians or not respecting the Creed, fine, I get it, but criticizing her for both doesn’t make any sense. Bo-Katan has spent her life trying to uphold the exact Creed that you’re valuing so much when it’s coming from Din.

Was there some sort of press release that I missed, why is everyone flipping out about the show supposedly no longer being about Din and Grogu, or about Din at all next season? The bond between the two of them is the whole crux of the show. They’ll be back together sooner or later. Boba Fett might be around again, but that’s because he’s the original Mandalorian and it would frankly be wrong to have a Star Wars show called “The Mandalorian” without him. That doesn’t mean he’s going to suddenly become the main character. The cast expanding to include characters like Boba Fett and Bo-Katan Kryze isn’t a bad thing! In fact, it’s good, because the show needs a bigger plot and this season has been laying down the building blocks for it. Din trying to find a Jedi to teach Grogu was obviously only ever going to be a temporary plotline, because a show called “The Mandalorian” is probably going to wind up being about Mandalorians. For goodness’ sake, please have some faith in Favreau and Filoni and the rest of the Mandalorian team. They haven’t led us wrong yet.

Edit: I’m a dummy and didn’t realize there was a post-credits scene! Alright, so we’re getting the Book of Boba Fett next year! Awesome! I still don’t think this is the end of Din’s story, or Grogu’s. Either the Book of Boba Fett is a spin-off, or it is The Mandalorian season 3 like people are speculating and we follow Boba for a season before going back to Din. It’d be kind of like how Clone Wars would go off and follow different characters for several episodes at a time (though TCW at that point always had story arcs that were 3-4 episodes long) while still advancing the main plot. Clone Wars was basically an anthology show once it really got going. In my opinion, that was a great thing- we really got to see a lot of the GFFA and see different types of characters and perspectives.

I started thinking as soon as Bo-Katan showed up that the endgame of this show is probably going to involve Din somehow joining with other Mandalorians to reclaim Mandalore. With the addition of Din now having a beskar spear very much like old imagery of Mandalore the Ultimate, and Katee Sackhoff discussing in interviews how leadership doesn’t come easily to Bo-Katan, I wouldn’t be surprised if Bo winds up stepping aside eventually in favor of Din becoming Mand’alor. Plus, thematically this season has been explicitly having Din try to start defining for himself what it means to be Mandalorian. He’s been meeting different people to whom being Mandalorian means different things, and fitting all of those views together and adding his own principles to that. Story-wise, doesn’t that sound exactly like something the eventual ruler of Mandalore should be contemplating?

#the mandalorian spoilers #mandalorian spoilers #mando spoilers #the mandalorian 2x08 #i tried to fill up the tags so this doesn't show up in tags. who knows if it'll work #the mandalorian #bo katan kryze #din djarin #mando #sw #meta #mine #my stuff #my meta #a rare text post appears

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emisfritish · 3 years

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So as someone who claims to be one of @yihwa closest friends and is all buddy-buddy with her, are you going to address the bulluying she's been doing to other blogs or are you going to stay silent and keep reblogging posts about shows no one cares about but you ? You usually love mansplaining and patronizing others in your posts, why silent now ?

Oh anon, anon, my dear anon.

I was trying SO BAD to keep my 2021 resolution of focusing on positivity and only interacting with people I genuinely like and respect on this website, why must you bring me back kicking and screaming with the most random ask I’ve received in a while ? Why would you do something so brave (as brave as sending an anon can be anyway), yet so stupid ? You realize I’m a pretty small blog right ? So what do you hope to accomplish by this, exactly ?

But you know... Fine, I guess. I’ll answer.

First off let’s get this out of the way, because it’s going to bother me the entire response if I don’t. Mansplaining ?

Like a+ for efforts on shading me, but please look up the meaning of the word.

Realistically, I probably do many things that are too much and/or annoy people (I speak way too much for one, I’ll admit that). But mansplaining isn’t one of them since, you know I... lack key equipment to even be able to mansplain, what with me not being a man and all...

But anyway, I think I got what you meant, so let’s move on from this.

I’ll admit I’m mega confused as to why I’m receiving such an ask seeing as :

I have purposefully stayed away from this whole thing even when it was actually hurting a person I adore, specefically because I didn’t want the feeling of ‘being ganged up on’ to grow even deeper for some people involved.

Axelle and I aren’t close by any means, but as two of the french people in this fandom, we have spoken on occasion and I would hope that if she had some issue with me or wanted to talk about all of this, she would have come directly to me. I know I certainly would have with her, in any case.

You are right about one thing though, anon. @yihwas and I are very close friends (and please if you people are going to keep dragging her name, can you at least spell it right ? Between you not spelling her url correctly and the people calling her Sophie, I’m losing it here). Sophia’s a queen, I love her and we talk every day.

Me staying out of this until now in spite of everything that was being said about her and how protective I can be of my friends was entirely out of me trying to be considerate for other people’s feelings (especially when said feelings appear to be so hurt already that the person is fully delving into conspiracy theories and imagining evil plots against her), and because I didn’t believe that constructive conversation could go on under such circumstances. I was genuinely trying to be kind and as non-judgemental as possible.

With you dragging me into this in the most random way though, I’ll bite.

I’ve stayed silent up until now, but I do actually agree with most of the criticism that’s been made. I wasn’t about to pile on to what was already going on and worsen the situation and hurt feelings, but I do. Had I believed that talking about those issues in this moment could have led to self-reflection and an open conversation, I would have definitely done so long ago by talking directly to the person involved, because I do believe that some of the things mentioned in all the posts that have gone around can genuinely be seen as problematic.

More importantly though ? It doesn’t really matter what I personally believe.

@teh-ohaew said it way better than I could, so please feel free to go and read this post. To sum it up though ? It doesn’t really matter what was intended or not in those posts/tags, it doesn’t matter if you’re the best ally there is : If several people in a community (no matter which one) are telling you that some things you said/did could be seen as offensive, then the only decent thing to really do in this situation is to listen, think it over, and try to reflect before apologizing if necessary.

It’s important, we’ve all had to do it at some point in our lives with the different people we interact with, and it’s how we evolve and grow as people.

This leads to something else, which is something that deeply bothered me by reading some of the posts going around : there seems to be a misconception that what is being perceived as offensive/problematic is an opinion only shared by Sophia, Shannon and Morgan, and that they’re somewhat leading or pushing other people into sending messages (either on anon or not). Do you guys realize how patronizing and offensive this sounds ?

People are not sheep ready to be led by whoever screams the loudest, has the most followers, or whatever other reason you may have come up with. People can think for themselves and decide of their actions by themselves. God knows I hate how mob-mentality works on tumblr sometimes, but that is not what’s at play here. What’s at play is several different people who may have never interacted before thinking the same thing, and deciding to address the issue.

Sophia and I are indeed great friends, but one of the things I love the most about our friendship is that we can disagree on things (and have in the past), discuss them like the adults we are and move on from there, with both of us coming out of the discussion with a maybe different perspective than the one we had before talking to each other about the issue. In fact when all of this started, Sophia and I did talk about one of the posts in particular and I didn’t necessarily see everything the same way she did, and guess what ? She still loves me ;)

If that’s the case for me, why wouldn’t it be the case for Shannon and Morgan ? @yihwas @1akorn and @minghao-ah are all different people, with different experiences and different thoughts, as are all the people that have spoken out about this issue. Can we stop pretending like they share one brain and aren’t capable of critical thinking by themselves ? Can we stop pretending that sophia is the big bad wolf sending people over to terrorize others, like it was implied in some posts ?

So to answer your question anon, and before anyone goes on thinking that I’ve been brainwashed or am putting this out there only to defend my friend or whatever other theory you may come up with : No, I wasn’t going to say anything about the situation. Not only because there is no bulluying going around, but also because Sophia is Sophia and I am me. I’ve never needed anyone to think for me and neither has Sophia, and we can each behave how we please on our own blogs.

As you were trying to point out with your frankly hilarious misuse of the word mansplaining, I have no issues expressing my thoughts through posts and neither does Sophia. Both of us (and every one now involved in this) are individuals fully capable of thinking for ourselves, and pretending that three people are causing many others to speak out (and therefore ignoring the initial message being spoken out) is doing a disservice to everyone involved in this issue.

I’ll finish with one last point, because it’s almost 2:30 AM, I have to work tomorrow and I am tired and frustrated at having been dragged into this when I was trying to be considerate by not saying anything : can we please stop using the words bullying and harrassment out of context and throwing them out there whenever we feel like it ? That’s incredibly harmful to the people actually suffering from those issues, and it’s behaviour like this one which allows those words to lose their meaning and become normalized.

There isn’t an evil plot at play to try to drive people off of tumblr or whatever else some of you may be thinking, so please let’s come back down to earth and try to talk about all of this like adults.

Now if you don’t mind anon, it’s getting pretty late and I’m pretty tired after writing this novel. So I’ll just go back to trying to keep my blog a positive place like I’ve been doing for the past couple of months, and reblogging posts about shows no one cares about but me, as you’ve perfectly said :)

I hope you have a good day/night, a good week to come, and a good life. Please let’s never interact again !

#Anonymous #emi answers #ask and you shall receive #seriously though how did you even find me ?#the only way you'd know sophia and I are friends is if you follow either one of us and like...#if you hate her / me so much what are you doing here ?#please let's not do this again and never interact I'm tired of people right now #I'm so pissed that I was genuinely trying to be kind and understanding by not speaking out about this and yet...#here it is #it's late I have a migraine and frankly I low key hate people right now so can I go back to running a mediocre blog in peace now ?

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self-loving-vampire · 4 years

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@melancholygirlfrien said:

I have a Child Development Associate so I am literally professionally certified to tell you that yes, taking children and babies to places so they can learn how to function and see that they're a part of a world bigger than they are, is important to their social, emotional, and language development. It helps everything from motor skills to social skills and cognition Just because you find babies' cries annoying doesn't mean parents are selfish just for wanting to take their children outside. Children shouldn't be raised indoors all day in a fucking bubble because that's how developmental issue happen. If a child is isolated they can develop serious issues.

Note that there are more appropriate places you could be taking them to, for starters. Places where people can avoid the noise more easily and where it might be less disruptive.

Like, you have options beyond “indoors 100% of the time” and the kinds of locations I mentioned in my first reply to you. Like, you can still take them to places like parks, malls, and other locations where it would be less of an issue.

No it's not fucking self centered for a parent to take their baby outside because they're just doing what they gotta do , not everyone can afford child care especially people of lower socioeconomic status. There are many single mothers who have no other option but to take their baby everywhere because that's what their situation calls for. The only fucking person being self-centered and not considering the struggles of other people is you.

Again, notice the kinds of places I mentioned in my post before going off on straw arguments. My complaints about others involve places like restaurants, the movies, and airplanes.

These are not only places where a child crying can ruin other people’s experience and be inescapable, they’re also places where many of the people there are not poor and had other options for what to do about their situation.

Like, I would think differently about someone who brought their baby to a clinic’s waiting room (for example) as opposed to a flight to Miami.

Black and white thinking is not going to help you understand what other people’s issues are.

No I wouldn't tell someone whos scared of my snake to go suck it, even though I would have every right to. Like I said I understand when people have phobias of certain animals. There might be people out there who have a phobia of dogs but does that mean people who take out their dogs are being selfish and don't care about people who have trauma/phobia associated with dogs?? Fuck no, those people are just being responsible dog owners and doing what every dog owner should which is take their dog out for a walk. Just bc some people might be annoyed by their dog doesn't mean they're being self-centered and bad people.

And yet there are places where they probably should not take their dog because it would be either inconsiderate or outright banned, and if they insisted on doing so then they probably are self-centered.

Like, if you want to take your babies out for a walk or something around the house that’s not nearly as bad as what I was actually complaining about.

your life isn't gonna be fucking ruined from hearing a baby cry in public. The most you'll be is annoyed and anxious for a few moments and then it will go away. Suck it up.

Did I ever say anyone’s life was going to be ruined? Why do you make everything some kind of exaggerated strawman?

Here are some exact quotes you already forgot about:

“It’s not the worst thing but it’s still kind of inconsiderate“

“No one said anything about stopping them or suspending their rights in any way, only that noise is annoying (and especially painful to autistic people with sensory issues).“

“Um… what do you think I do? Activate Karen Mode and go bother the parents about it? Nah, I just judge them silently. I am free to complain as much as I want on the internet though.“

So:

1- I am not treating it as a huge, life-ruining thing, just a sort of dick move. Like people who cut in line or something.

2- I do “suck it up” when it happens but am 100% allowed to complain about it online anyway.

Tbh I can't keep talking to you, I think people like you should be ushered into a dark warehouse and humanely put down.

Empathy-havers are so humane they advocate genocide against autistic people apparently, over a post about baby noises being kind of annoying. I’m not even surprised because you all keep doing this every single time without even thinking about how it sounds.

Maybe you should think about how the things that make children annoying (they're egotistical, they have a hard time empathizing with others because of their self-centered world view) are traits that you have yourself. The difference is that most children develop and grow out of that self-centered world view

If you actually read my post, the primary annoyance I pointed out was that they were Portable Sensory Hell. I made no comment about their ability to feel empathy and actually find low empathy people significantly less annoying than others so that’s clearly not it.

You're a child in my eyes tbh. Your mentality is childish. Say what you will but I would like to remind you again, at one point in your life, you were a baby, and you shit your pants, and someone had to clean up all that shit after. Or else you wouldn't be here.

You know, if you’re going to go around advocating genocide over a post about people not liking baby noises then I am 100% sure my literal child self was morally and intellectually superior to your current self already.

You know what would make me respect you more? If you owned up to the fact that you judging parents when their babies cry is a result of your low empathy and self-centered world view. I would respect you SO much more if you just said "Yo, straight up. I'm just a selfish person. I know babies can't help that they cry and it's not the parents fault but I straight up do not like that shit. I have low empathy as a person and therefore I can't really bring myself to care about babies, children, or the parents and their situation so I just judge parents because I want to. Because their kid is annoying the shit out of me. I don't care about the reasoning tbh I'm just kind of an asshole."

> Implying I care about whether or not you respect me.

Also, this isn’t even correct. At my current point in life I pretty much never have to interact with babies in any way, if I was completely selfish then it would not matter to me now whether or not people bring their crying babies into airplanes and the like. The issue just isn’t a very significant part of my life.

But the thing is that while I am low empathy that does not change the fact that I value other people’s well-being and know that crying babies make their lives worse even if just in a small, temporary way.

The kinds of parents I am complaining about don’t even think about that.

You know you're just incompassionate. So be a self-respecting sociopath and own up to that shit, please, I would respect a stone cold evill mf SO much better than a little weasel who tries to give excuses as to their own egocentric way of thinking.

I am a narcissist, not a sociopath. Of course, if cluster B disorders are just standard insults to you then you might think all low empathy conditions are the same.

Furthermore, you haven’t shown that you understand anything at all about what low empathy conditions are actually like.

Also I find it really telling that you would prefer unrepentant evil selfishness over someone who merely understands and sides with others who are negative about loud babies. Like, actual morality is not something you seem to be valuing here.

"iF I wErE iN tHaT sItUaTiOn I wOuLd jUsT sTaY hOme!" No you wouldn't you stupid bitch because parents have to go out to buy groceries, and run errands like every other adult.

Again, you seem to be treating all of “outside the house” as an interchangeable space with the exact same norms.

Like, do you realize how it might be different to bring your child out for necessary grocery shopping than to bring them to a restaurant or the movies? Do you really think I would treat those things as exactly the same?

MOST parents, especially working-class, poor, or single parents, DON'T have that option, as I already stated. And you are showing a clear lack of regard for people who are in a tougher situation than you for judging parents when their babies annoy YOU. You are literally not putting yourself in their shoes at all bc you have no idea of even half the shit parents have to do in order to make ends meet and look after their babies.

Oh, I am well aware of how having babies will multiply your suffering, especially if you’re poor. It’s precisely why I’m never having any!

I understand it’s a huge pain and people with children are always going on and on about how their lives became significantly more miserable as a result of it.

I think you should honestly love that screaming toddler on the plane because in a few decades she might grow up to become the nurse who will take care of you when you're old and ill.

This argument just doesn’t work one way or another. If the baby is going to help me then I will be grateful once that actually happens, not based on a hypothetical so unlikely I might as well live my life not considering it.

#long post #babygate

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ask-the-seer-of-breath · 4 years

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On Theseus and his Paradox

I'm making this post hoping no one else has done this, haha. Though it should not matter, I'm sharing my thoughts on this anyway. Huge thanks to @FrankTheUnusual on Twitter for bringing to my attention more about this subject.

I know half of us are excited about Homestuck^2: Beyond Canon. I also know the other half of us isn't. Personally, I’ve been reading when I can muster the strenght to do it. Regardless of your stand in the multiple continuations of Homestuck, I hope you find my post interesting and/or fun. (^-^

Remember to keep reading under the cut.

Let's begin with context. Spoilers for the first part of Homestuck^2 ahead.

Dirk Strider has become a full-time anime icon, and he is ripping off Kamina from Tengen Toppa Gurren Laggan. As shocking as this is, he seems to have developed a narcissistic kind of view on himself. One that, I dare to say, is both caliginous and flushed. He has also spiraled down into the Homestuck fan void. He's obsessed with all that pertains to the rich lore, going so far as to have a collection of panels. Not unlike Doc Scratch. And he also seems to be depressed due to severe isolation from his emotions. His only coping mechanism is taking care of some discolored succulents he alchemized. Which are sadly not safe from the fangs of one of his shipmates.

Speaking of shipmates. First mate Terezi seems to be both the plague and the pilot of the Theseus, destined to crash it into a new planet. While Rosebot is as passive of a player as The Choice made by Alt!Calliope. She is not unlike the succulents.

Going back to Dirk, he has perfectioned the abilities of an ascended Ultimate being. And it is revealed his purpose is to take Homestuck back to the times before the narrative went astray into other concepts. His way of fixing the comic? Bringing back commands, which his connection to the Heart aspect allows him to suggest-ify. But he scraps that when it doesn't go the way he expected. Or did it?

Before we continue in what is Homestuck^2, we are left with a view of the Theseus approaching the destination Dirk and crew have pursued for three years at light speed.

Right off the bat, it seems that we are getting more involved with Titles and Roles in Homestuck^2. I suppose, courtesy of yours and my boy, optimisticDuelist.

Who the hell keeps making these references?

The subject of this post is to bring to light the name Theseus, and the fact that it's a ship. A space ship, yes, but it's enough to just know it's a mean of transportation.

Who is Theseus? A demigod, son of Poseidon but also the son of King Aegeus of Athens. The rightful heir to the throne, and a mythical hero for Athenians. Similar to other Greek mythological heroes, he went through several "labors". Daring adventures to prove his strength. These labors he fought against were representations of archaic religions and social orders, left behind by the Greeks. He is, therefore, historically recognized as a symbol of "major cultural transition".

Let's not dawdle, Theseus is highly connected to Ult!Dirk. It is a symbolism, meant to connect Dirk's crusade to a heroic concept of historical rebirth. They're both godly? Checked. They're both catalysts for major changes on the narrative? Checked. Had a sexist friend who was related to horses in some way? Checked. Abductor of women? Checked. Wait.

It is also worth mentioning that Theseus is rooted in the word thesmos. Which in Greek is “The gathering”. It's as if the battles of Theseus are the recount of the Homestuck narrative by Dirk.

But the hero Theseus had a ship too, which he sailed back from Crete to Athens. What is the importance of this boat?

Theseus rows across Paradox Space

What's more important to us right now, is the philosophical meaning of these references to Greek mythology. Because Dirk and Rose are all about that and have been "laying down mad enfilades of philosophical shit" on those three years.

Many times in the Epilogues and now in Homestuck^2, Dirk mentions what is like to be detached from the concept of Self, and how you need to internalize what your Identity is in order to ascend to a fully realized ultimate player. What does it matter being Good or Evil if you are Yourself? But what is Yourself?

Dirk mentions he used to drown in the ocean of his full potential, constantly trying to escape the things he was capable of doing. As a Heart player, he's capable of being aware of his splinters across Paradox Space. All of them doing different things, but all of them being him still. No matter how bad or how good. Are the other Dirks less or more Dirk than him? At what extent does he stop being Dirk?

But now, he has become the ocean. And he is beyond a definition of Self, of a trace of Identity, of being more or less, good or evil. Or so he says.

Let's recount the ship of Theseus. It is said it was kept by the Athenians as an object of adoration and historical importance for many centuries.

The Paradox of the Ship of Theseus says: Suppose that the famous wooden ship, on its preservation, has a piece that starts to rot away. The piece is replaced by a new one, but then the same scenario happens again. And so on, until many years later, the ship has had all of its parts replaced by new wood. Is this restored ship still the original ship in which Theseus sailed?

What happens if someone had stored and cured each rotting piece of wood that was scrapped originally, and then reconstructed the ship entirely. Which ship is the original? The one reconstructed from the old parts or the one restored by the Athenians? Which is more important, the body of the ship or the consciousness around the ship?

At what point does it stops being the ship? How much or how little change should it undergo to still be it? And what is even it?

When something changes, who is to say it's not the same as before, and who is to say it is? But rather than change, what is that which defines an object?

What if we decide to apply this concept to human beings, who is to say that you are the same person you were 10 years ago? If you argue that a person is their body, remember that in a span of 7 years your cells reproduce and decay, until you are made of completely new cells. Are you still You? Let's say you argue a person is their mind. Is your ten-year-old self the same as your fifty-year-old self? Everyone might still perceive you as the same person, but psychologically, you are not the same. You learn new things that influence the way you behave. So what is it that defines You?

"Where does consciousness exist, and what is the reality of our soul if we question the basis of personal identity?"

Living this paradox is what it means to reach your Ultimate self. Which might explain why is it such a difficult feat. The fact that Dirk was even capable of pulling it off is amazing, and probably derives from his upbringing as well as being bound to the aspect of Heart.

However, the Paradox of the Ship of Theseus is not only an answer to ascension, but it is also a question to the fandom.

At what point does Homestuck cease to be?

What is the end of Homestuck? Is it when all the characters reach a happy ending? Or is it when the villain is defeated? Is Homestuck^2 still what we love? And if it changed, who are we to say it isn’t Homestuck? Did Homestuck ever begin or was it already here.

This philosophical question resides in each of you. The answer is what you decide it to be. I myself I’m no philosopher but this was a fun question to reflex on, regardless.

Love it or hate it, H^2 came to stay. Dirk is here to stay. Whatever happens from now on... Let’s see how far we’ve come, everyone.

Thanks for reading!

Sources where I fact-checked and got inspired

Wikipedia: Theseus

Wikipedia: Ship of Theseus

Utne.com “The Ship of Theseus and the Question of Identity” By Noson S. Yanofksy

#Homestuck #Homestuck^2 #Dirk Strider #Theseus #ship of theseus #paradox #homestuck analysis #homestuck theory

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