#vin locking
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Apple fucked us on right to repair (again)
Today (September 22), I'm (virtually) presenting at the DIG Festival in Modena, Italy. Tonight, I'll be in person at LA's Book Soup for the launch of Justin C Key's "The World Wasn’t Ready for You." On September 27, I'll be at Chevalier's Books in Los Angeles with Brian Merchant for a joint launch for my new book The Internet Con and his new book, Blood in the Machine.
Right to repair has no cannier, more dedicated adversary than Apple, a company whose most innovative work is dreaming up new ways to sneakily sabotage electronics repair while claiming to be a caring environmental steward, a lie that covers up the mountains of e-waste that Apple dooms our descendants to wade through.
Why does Apple hate repair so much? It's not that they want to poison our water and bodies with microplastics; it's not that they want to hasten the day our coastal cities drown; it's not that they relish the human misery that accompanies every gram of conflict mineral. They aren't sadists. They're merely sociopathically greedy.
Tim Cook laid it out for his investors: when people can repair their devices, they don't buy new ones. When people don't buy new devices, Apple doesn't sell them new devices. It's that's simple:
https://www.inverse.com/article/52189-tim-cook-says-apple-faces-2-key-problems-in-surprising-shareholder-letter
So Apple does everything it can to monopolize repair. Not just because this lets the company gouge you on routine service, but because it lets them decide when your phone is beyond repair, so they can offer you a trade-in, ensuring both that you buy a new device and that the device you buy is another Apple.
There are so many tactics Apple gets to use to sabotage repair. For example, Apple engraves microscopic Apple logos on the subassemblies in its devices. This allows the company to enlist US Customs to seize and destroy refurbished parts that are harvested from dead phones by workers in the Pacific Rim:
https://repair.eu/news/apple-uses-trademark-law-to-strengthen-its-monopoly-on-repair/
Of course, the easiest way to prevent harvested components from entering the parts stream is to destroy as many old devices as possible. That's why Apple's so-called "recycling" program shreds any devices you turn over to them. When you trade in your old iPhone at an Apple Store, it is converted into immortal e-waste (no other major recycling program does this). The logic is straightforward: no parts, no repairs:
https://www.vice.com/en/article/yp73jw/apple-recycling-iphones-macbooks
Shredding parts and cooking up bogus trademark claims is just for starters, though. For Apple, the true anti-repair innovation comes from the most pernicious US tech law: Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
DMCA 1201 is an "anti-circumvention" law. It bans the distribution of any tool that bypasses "an effective means of access control." That's all very abstract, but here's what it means: if a manufacturer sticks some Digital Rights Management (DRM) in its device, then anything you want to do that involves removing that DRM is now illegal – even if the thing itself is perfectly legal.
When Congress passed this stupid law in 1998, it had a very limited blast radius. Computers were still pretty expensive and DRM use was limited to a few narrow categories. In 1998, DMCA 1201 was mostly used to prevent you from de-regionalizing your DVD player to watch discs that had been released overseas but not in your own country.
But as we warned back then, computers were only going to get smaller and cheaper, and eventually, it would only cost manufacturers pennies to wrap their products – or even subassemblies in their products – in DRM. Congress was putting a gun on the mantelpiece in Act I, and it was bound to go off in Act III.
Welcome to Act III.
Today, it costs about a quarter to add a system-on-a-chip to even the tiniest parts. These SOCs can run DRM. Here's how that DRM works: when you put a new part in a device, the SOC and the device's main controller communicate with one another. They perform a cryptographic protocol: the part says, "Here's my serial number," and then the main controller prompts the user to enter a manufacturer-supplied secret code, and the master controller sends a signed version of this to the part, and the part and the system then recognize each other.
This process has many names, but because it was first used in the automotive sector, it's widely known as VIN-Locking (VIN stands for "vehicle identification number," the unique number given to every car by its manufacturer). VIN-locking is used by automakers to block independent mechanics from repairing your car; even if they use the manufacturer's own parts, the parts and the engine will refuse to work together until the manufacturer's rep keys in the unlock code:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/07/24/rent-to-pwn/#kitt-is-a-demon
VIN locking is everywhere. It's how John Deere stops farmers from fixing their own tractors – something farmers have done literally since tractors were invented:
https://pluralistic.net/2022/05/08/about-those-kill-switched-ukrainian-tractors/
It's in ventilators. Like mobile phones, ventilators are a grotesquely monopolized sector, controlled by a single company Medtronic, whose biggest claim to fame is effecting the world's largest tax inversion in order to manufacture the appearance that it is an Irish company and therefore largely untaxable. Medtronic used the resulting windfall to gobble up most of its competitors.
During lockdown, as hospitals scrambled to keep their desperately needed supply of ventilators running, Medtronic's VIN-locking became a lethal impediment. Med-techs who used donor parts from one ventilator to keep another running – say, transplanting a screen – couldn't get the device to recognize the part because all the world's civilian aircraft were grounded, meaning Medtronic's technicians couldn't swan into their hospitals to type in the unlock code and charge them hundreds of dollars.
The saving grace was an anonymous, former Medtronic repair tech, who built pirate boxes to generate unlock codes, using any housing they could lay hands on to use as a case: guitar pedals, clock radios, etc. This tech shipped these gadgets around the world, observing strict anonymity, because Article 6 of the EUCD also bans circumvention:
https://pluralistic.net/2020/07/10/flintstone-delano-roosevelt/#medtronic-again
Of course, Apple is a huge fan of VIN-locking. In phones, VIN-locking is usually called "serializing" or "parts-pairing," but it's the same thing: a tiny subassembly gets its own microcontroller whose sole purpose is to prevent independent repair technicians from fixing your gadget. Parts-pairing lets Apple block repairs even when the technician uses new, Apple parts – but it also lets Apple block refurb parts and third party parts.
For many years, Apple was the senior partner and leading voice in blocking state Right to Repair bills, which it killed by the dozen, leading a coalition of monopolists, from Wahl (who boobytrap their hair-clippers with springs that cause their heads irreversibly decompose if you try to sharpen them at home) to John Deere (who reinvented tenant farming by making farmers tenants of their tractors, rather than their land).
But Apple's opposition to repair eventually became a problem for the company. It's bad optics, and both Apple customers and Apple employees are volubly displeased with the company's ecocidal conduct. But of course, Apple's management and shareholders hate repair and want to block it as much as possible.
But Apple knows how to Think Differently. It came up with a way to eat its cake and have it, too. The company embarked on a program of visibly support right to repair, while working behind the scenes to sabotage it.
Last year, Apple announced a repair program. It was hilarious. If you wanted to swap your phone's battery, all you had to do was let Apple put a $1200 hold on your credit card, and then wait while the company shipped you 80 pounds' worth of specialized tools, packed in two special Pelican cases:
https://pluralistic.net/2022/05/22/apples-cement-overshoes/
Then, you swapped your battery, but you weren't done! After your battery was installed, you had to conference in an authorized Apple tech who would tell you what code to type into a laptop you tethered to the phone in order to pair it with your phone. Then all you had to do was lug those two 40-pound Pelican cases to a shipping depot and wait for Apple to take the hold off your card (less the $120 in parts and fees).
By contrast, independent repair outfits like iFixit will sell you all the tools you need to do your own battery swap – including the battery! for $32. The whole kit fits in a padded envelope:
https://www.ifixit.com/products/iphone-x-replacement-battery
But while Apple was able to make a showy announcement of its repair program and then hide the malicious compliance inside those giant Pelican cases, sabotaging right to repair legislation is a lot harder.
Not that they didn't try. When New York State passed the first general electronics right-to-repair bill in the country, someone convinced New York Governor Kathy Hochul to neuter it with last-minute modifications:
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/12/weakened-right-to-repair-bill-is-signed-into-law-by-new-yorks-governor/
But that kind of trick only works once. When California's right to repair bill was introduced, it was clear that it was gonna pass. Rather than get run over by that train, Apple got on board, supporting the legislation, which passed unanimously:
https://www.ifixit.com/News/79902/apples-u-turn-tech-giant-finally-backs-repair-in-california
But Apple got the last laugh. Because while California's bill contains many useful clauses for the independent repair shops that keep your gadgets out of a landfill, it's a state law, and DMCA 1201 is federal. A state law can't simply legalize the conduct federal law prohibits. California's right to repair bill is a banger, but it has a weak spot: parts-pairing, the scourge of repair techs:
https://www.ifixit.com/News/69320/how-parts-pairing-kills-independent-repair
Every generation of Apple devices does more parts-pairing than the previous one, and the current models are so infested with paired parts as to be effectively unrepairable, except by Apple. It's so bad that iFixit has dropped its repairability score for the iPhone 14 from a 7 ("recommend") to a 4 (do not recommend):
https://www.ifixit.com/News/82493/we-are-retroactively-dropping-the-iphones-repairability-score-en
Parts-pairing is bullshit, and Apple are scum for using it, but they're hardly unique. Parts-pairing is at the core of the fuckery of inkjet printer companies, who use it to fence out third-party ink, so they can charge $9,600/gallon for ink that pennies to make:
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/11/ink-stained-wretches-battle-soul-digital-freedom-taking-place-inside-your-printer
Parts-pairing is also rampant in powered wheelchairs, a heavily monopolized sector whose predatory conduct is jaw-droppingly depraved:
https://uspirgedfund.org/reports/usp/stranded
But if turning phones into e-waste to eke out another billion-dollar stock buyback is indefensible, stranding people with disabilities for months at a time while they await repairs is so obviously wicked that the conscience recoils. That's why it was so great when Colorado passed the nation's first wheelchair right to repair bill last year:
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair
California actually just passed two right to repair bills; the other one was SB-271, which mirrors Colorado's HB22-1031:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB271
This is big! It's momentum! It's a start!
But it can't be the end. When Bill Clinton signed DMCA 1201 into law 25 years ago, he loaded a gun and put it on the nation's mantlepiece and now it's Act III and we're all getting sprayed with bullets. Everything from ovens to insulin pumps, thermostats to lightbulbs, has used DMCA 1201 to limit repair, modification and improvement.
Congress needs to rid us of this scourge, to let us bring back all the benefits of interoperability. I explain how this all came to be – and what we should do about it – in my new Verso Books title, The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation.
https://www.versobooks.com/products/3035-the-internet-con
If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/22/vin-locking/#thought-differently
Image: Mitch Barrie (modified)
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Daytona_Skeleton_AR-15_completed_rifle_%2817551907724%29.jpg
CC BY-SA 2.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en
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kambanji (modified)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kambanji/4135216486/
CC BY 2.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
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Rawpixel (modified)
https://www.rawpixel.com/image/12438797/png-white-background
#pluralistic#vin locking#apple#right to repair#california#ifixit#iphones#sb244#parts pairing#serialization#dmca 1201#felony contempt of business model#ewaste#repairwashing#fuckery
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kinda starting to think that Alecto the Ninth isn’t coming out in 2023…………….
#only day you can reblog this#i think i’m hilarious#the locked tomb#vin speaks#tamsyn muir#alecto the ninth#gideon the ninth#harrow the ninth#nona the ninth#tlt
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i need taejin dead so bad right now you guys dont even understand
#he better watch his back tonight#lock his windows and his doors#because when i catch this man#look at her!!! what did she do to deserve this!!!!!#my poor girl... i dont even know your name...#lookism#lookism manhwa#lookism webtoon#vin jin#jin hobin#seongji yuk
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ROUND 1 MATCH 19: VIN/ELEND VS. MAGNUS QUINN/ABIGAIL PENT
Vin/Elend Propaganda:
"They didn't die only to lose:("
Magnus/Abigail Propaganda
none
if there's a ship name for either pls give as usual
#vin mistborn#vin venture#elend venture#mistborn#abigail pent#magnus quinn#the locked tomb#tlt#gtn#gideon the ninth
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there is a guy ritchie movie with jason statham in lead role and i have not watched it??? BLASPHEMY
#i have a thing for that guy#i think it started w snatch or lock stock#vin diesel thing started w pitch black i just rmbrd that#or maybe the itslian job.. had a thing for him there too#effervescentdragonrants
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Harrowhark Nonagesimus and TFE!Vin would be terrible for each other, they would bring out the worst in one another and one would probably slit the other's throat by the end of the first week of knowing each other but god I would love to see them interact
Also ngl but having Harrow around would probably keep Vin from falling for Zane's bullshit in WoA
#the locked tomb#msitborn#cosmere#harrowhark nonagesimus#vin venture#tamsyn muir#brandon sanderson#jess talks
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sex and money are the root of all evil
#sorry im locked in horrible interpersonal drama where my underlings are having so much sex and cheating and being only mostly consensual#that i think i am going to blow my brains out#this is a#vent#but you know#vins variety hour#always for the funnies
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A High Security Specialists. We can custom design and install a High Security Locking System for your Business or Factory and Homes.
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boss!
oc x m reader (can be read as gn)
imagine being the waiter for your friend's prestige restaurant but something seems a bit off.. whatever at least he offered you this job!
" you know the basics already, right? " he looked at you up and down, inspecting checking you out for any signs of wrinkles or anything.
" yeah yeah, ive worked in the service industry for ages, you don't need to worry, boss! "
he kept quiet. " uh.. hello? earth to vin? " you waved your hand in front of his face. he swatted your hand away and walked away. " customer's coming. you better not mess up, yn. "
you pouted at him as you strolled out of the kitchen, pulling out your notepad and pen.
vin stood there, silently staring at the kitchen door where you just exited from.
" uh, chef? " one of the chefs approached vin and tried to tap him only for his hand to be slapped away.
" what do you think you're doing? get to work. " he stormed towards his office, locking the door after stepping into said room.
fuck he thought to himself. why did you have to call him boss? now you got him all hot and bothered during working hours..
honestly, he has to punish you for this later!
here's something while i fight off writer block....
#tyunniez 🕷#x male reader#bottom male reader#bttm male reader#male reader#uke male reader#amab reader#male x male smut
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Lookism Guys: Ruffling their Hair
G/N. Gun, Jake, Sammy, Ryuhei, Johan, Vincent. Goo here
Gun Park
Ducks, dodges and weaves your outstretched hands. Honestly, you should be grateful. You've seen him punch someone for much less. However, your need to find out whether his hair, with all that product, is crunchy or greasy or just rock solid overrides all sense of self preservation.
To your surprise, more than anything, it is soft. As is his accompanying sigh and look once your fingers reach their target and he lets you caress his locks.
He doesn't allow you to do it often, and you care about not having broken fingers to do it too much. Once that urge kicks in though, Gun eventually gives in.
Jake Kim
It's rather unbecoming for a leader to get their hair ruffled, especially to those outside of his inner circle. The first time the rest of the crew saw you ruffling their boss's hair, they exchanged odd glances.
And Jake knows this. He grumbles each time you do it in front of everyone. He knows this takes the shine off his reputation somewhat, yet he makes it easy for you anyway.
Leaning down so you can run your hand through his hair, messing it up, before he then smooths it back down with a half hearted whine.
Samuel Seo
The first time you stroke his hair, there is no immediately discernible change in his demeanour. He gives you a look for messing up his immaculate hair but tolerates it nonetheless.
What gives away how much he likes it, and how much he craves your touch, is the way his eyes flutter shut, the way his breathing slows and deepens, how his body slackens. Not enough for anyone else to see, but enough for you to feel.
It calms him, and he finds the gesture sweet. Not that he would ever admit it outloud.
Ryuhei Kuroda
You ruffled his hair once. Once. He practically melted, then you found his head within reach in almost all situations.
An overeager, overbearing (rabid attack) puppy at the best of times, and being appropriate eludes Ryuhei anyway. But you ruffling his hair seems to have opened up pandora's box and made him realise how touch-starved he is (by you specifically) at all times.
He treads a fine line between annoying and adorable, although usually the former, but there's something wholesome about how much he wants you to run his fingers through his hair.
Johan Seong
From the way he tensed up at you ruffling his hair, you thought you did something way worse.
It was a spur of the moment gesture. Him glaring at you beneath his fringe, looking like a sulky puppy, you couldn't help it.
His mom was the only one that touched his hair, and after that - the other time was the mad doctor. Johan's hair a physical embodiment of trauma.
And then you ruffled his hair, reminding him that it's just hair, that touch can be sweet and kind, and unleashing waves of nostalgia. Looks like you just acquired a prickly puppy.
Vin Jin
Scowls until he's absolutely sure you're not going to try and reveal his eyes then he relents. Sort of.
You manage to graze his hair, just a bit, before he slaps your hand away. He lets you, enough times (until he has had enough and tells you to go away) that you eventually know exactly the texture of his hair. Felt it when it was short, buzzcut, often covered by a cap; temporarily bleached to match Mary's; cropped and left long on top; finally now - long enough to tickle his chin.
"Your hair has grown long," you say, running your fingers through his hair. A hum of agreement is all he responds with but he doesn't move away anymore.
#lookism#lookism x reader#gun park x reader#jake kim x reader#samuel seo x reader#ryuhei x reader#wannaeatramyeon#ryuhei kuroda x reader#vin jin x reader#seong johan x reader#lookism hc#lookism fic#lookism manhwa#lookism webtoon
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guys if we're all feeling this insane about a 32 page short story that expanded a 30 second scene from Nona the Ninth. how are any of us gonna survive when the entire full length book Alecto the Ninth comes out. there is still an entire locked tomb book that we haven't read yet. what are we gonna do.
#I'm just gonna fuckign. die I guess.#I'm being so serious when I say that I'm not surviving alecto the ninth#vin speaks#alecto the ninth#nona the ninth#the locked tomb#tlt#harrow the ninth#gideon the ninth#atn#ntn#htn#gtn#tamsyn muir#the unwanted guest
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Drunk Vinnie | Vhackerr
Warning: vinnie being drunk and clingy
might make a part 2. idk
“I need to text my girl. I want my girl.” Vinnie whined as he leaned onto Jack. “She’s right there Vin.” Jack laughed as he pointed to you, who was preoccupied by ordering a Uber. “That’s….that’s not her! I’m texting Y/n right now.” Vinnie huffed before pulling out his phone. He pulled in his bottom lip. He squinted his eyes trying to successfully type correctly.
In his mind he thought he texted, baby where are you? I miss you!
Instead he actually texted, “biby here ure uuuu( iiiii muss youuu &&”
You chuckled as you read the text before going back to what you were doing. “Why won’t she text me back!? DID SHE DIE?! JACK CALL THE COPS!” Vinnie yelled when he did see those three bubbles pop up. “Vinnie, stop yelling.” You rubbed his arm, trying to sooth him. “No! Who are even you?! I have a girlfriend, lady!” Vinnie quickly gave you a dirty look.
“I am your girlfriend, Vinnie.” You laughed. “No! You don’t look like my Y/n. My pretty Y/n. Where’s my pretty Y/n?” Vinnie’s bottom lip begins to tremble. “Okay, Vinnie, let’s get you home.” You say, “Jack. Help? Uber’s here.” Jack nods before you and him put Vinnie’s arm over your shoulders.
“Y/n! I love Y/n so much! She’s so pretty!” Vinnie yells as you guys walk outside. “Vinnie, shhh.” Jack said. “Jack-o’-lantern, you just don’t understand.” Vinnie lays his head on Jack’s shoulder. “Yeah, man. Here. In you go.” Jack shakes his head before helping you put vinnie in the car.
After a short 15 minute drive you guys are back at your house, knowing Vinnie will be too loud for his apartment. “Honey! I’m home!” Vinnie yells as he stumbles into the house. You shake your head before shutting the door and locking it. “Do you want some water?” You ask. “Yeah, that sounds great random person. Hey, this place looks at lot like my girlfriend’s house?” Vinnie scans the room.
You quickly dash and get him some water. Once he’s handed the glass, the water is gone in a matter of seconds. “Let’s get you to bed.” You say before grabbing his hand. “Okay, but nothing is happening between us! No funny business lady or I’ll tell Y/n!” Vinnie tells you. It was honestly so cute, seeing Vin miss you even though you were there.
Once you reach the bedroom, Vinnie wastes no time collapsing on the bed. “Mm. So comfy.” A happy lazy smile on his face. You take his shoes off and his socks knowing he hates sleeping with his socks on. “Y/n is the best. Do you have a Y/n?” Vinnie asked as you unbuckled his belt. “Sorta. Expect he’s a guy.” You say before pulling his pants down and throwing them somewhere. “That’s good. What’s his name?” Vinnie ask as you pull him to sit up. “Arms up.” You say.
Vinnie puts him arms up and strikes a pose while doing so. You laugh softly before pulling it off as well. Sober vinnie would thank you because he gets hot to easily in his sleep. “The guy! His name!” Vinnie says before falling back. You don’t know how but he somehow knew he wasn’t under the covers so he quickly places himself underneath.
“Vinnie. His name is Vinnie.” You say before grabbing a t shirt to sleep in. “What!? That’s my name! My name is Vinnie!” Vinnie yells. “I know that, Vin.” You quickly toss your hair in a low bun before sliding in bed. “I never asked but, what’s your name?” Vinnie says. “It’s y/n.” You laugh before moving a piece of hair out his face. Vinnie’s face scrunched before his eyes went wide.
“Wait a minute! You’re Y/n! My Y/n! Oh my God! When did you get here baby?!” Vinnie quickly rushes into your arms. You laugh, “I’ve been here the whole time Vin.” “Nuh uh! That other lady was here! I swear.” Vinnie nuzzles his head in your neck. You lay back so that you can both rest comfortably. “Whatever you say, Vin.” You message his head.
“I love you Y/n. Promise to never leave me like that again?” You smile before slowly closing your eyes. “I love you too. I promise to never leave you again.” You feel Vinnie smile and it isn’t long before the both of you are passed out into a bliss.
#vincent hacker#vinnie hacker#vhackerr#bwwm couples#bwwmromance#oneshot#love#lovers#vinnie hacker x reader
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Getting fucked by Vincent and Bo
Here have this thing I thought of while jerking off 😛
Bo is showing Vincent how to fuck a woman. You're splayed out on the dining table, like a toy, as Bo instructs his brother on how to touch you.
"She likes that. Her pretty cunt is sensitive. Go on give her a taste, it's fucking divine."
Vincent kneels between your legs, slipping his mask off and setting it next to him. Slowly he spreads your cunt open, the wet sound of the skin parting makes Vin's cock twitch.
"Go on, dig in." Bo urges, and you glance to him. He's smirking, and his jeans sport an obvious bulge at the crotch.
Vince gets his face closer to your heat, the smell of your cunt is even better from the source. Vincent's been stealing your dirty panties from the laundry basket for months. Licking off your discharge and holding them to his nose while he fucks his fist late at night.
Bo knows his brother is a pervert. Both of them. He plans on giving Lester a lesson soon too. If they wanna fantasize about you, then they gotta know how you like it.
Vincent whines as he finally presses his face into your hot cunt. He sucks your clit and slurps up your slick. Saliva dripping down to your puckered ass hole. So sloppy for such a delicate artist.
"Don't she taste good? Better than what's on her panties huh?"
You're mewling and whimpering, then looking down between your legs. A jolt of pleasure pierces your body as your eyes meet Vincent's. His one blue eye is locked on you, pupil blown out with lust.
His tongue slips down and invades your cunt. Rubbing the fleshy walls, trying to taste as much of you as possible. You throw your head back and moan loudly, eyes wandering to Bo.
He's got his cock out, slowly stroking, enjoying the show. He grins like the devil as he moves towards you. Gripping your hair and pulling your head backwards towards his cock, your nose presses to his balls as your neck bends off the end of the table.
Bo smacks his hot, red tip of his dick against your lips. A command to open up. You obey, and he shoves his cock down your throat.
"C'mon pretty girl, put that mouth to good use."
#vincent sinclair#vincent sinclair x reader#bo sinclair#bo sinclair x reader#slashers headcanons#slashers smut#slashers x reader#slashers imagines#slashers#Smut
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More things I hate about modern literature because today is a bad day and I need to be a dick online to feel better:
How much sex there is in everything
And again I am not a prude, erotica has existed for decades and it's okay but every popular YA or adventure book nowadays is a bad erotica with some low stakes adventure in the background
And somehow they are able to be both bad porn and bad adventure
And also people will promote those books as " yes the plot kinda sucks but there's good sex scenes"
The word Mary sue
The misuse of the word Mary sue
Any attempt to make a "LOTR inspired" book made by a man
Because usually the things that made LOTR good go just over the authors head and we end with basically a vin diesel movie set in the middle ages
This is not just about modern literature but books about or set in horrible moments for a oppressed minority(like holocaust or slavery) written by people who aren't part of said minority
Coleen hoover
She did for feminist literature what Seth MacFarlane did for adult animation
The harry Potter/Percy Jacksonification of children's literature
The magical choose one trope being taken to a magical world did irremediable damage to children's literature
The mean girl trope
Books set in fictional middle ages but the protagonist go to balls in fashion show modern runaway style dresses
You know the tacky Pinterest glittery showing shoulders back and leg
Those official arts of the same exactly white women and the same white guy in slightly different clothes with the same 2016 style eyebrows and the sharp jawline and the nothing expression
Characters being described as "golden skin" so depending if the author needs some representation points they can be interpreted as people of color but if no one says nothing they stay as just tan white
Comparing dark skin color to any food
How many authors try to make at the same time "this is brainless wish fulfilment fantasy about being desired by a hot dominating guy" and " this is a profound take about the horrors of abuse"
Usually by having the second love interest to abuse the protag
In the end the message that stays is any abuse is forgivable if the abuser is hot enough
The "I'm skinny but not hot super model skinny I am ugly skinny my bones show because of malnourishment"
"yet I don't feel any other effect of starvation like being weak and I can carry five times my body weight in whatever animal the author needs me to hunt in the beginning of the book because making me a farmer wouldn't be cool"
"I am ugly" cried the skinny girl with locks of auburn hair porcelain white skin and eyes of emerald green.
The jk Rowling stupid name school (she named the werewolf Wolfy mcwolf in Latin and people though it was smart now we have a girl who fights on a island named island and the archer who marries a fae named fae archer )
And again faes because fuck faes
#anti sjm#anti sarah j maas#anti booktok#books#writing#unpopular opinion#i guess#yes i am sour and mean#anti jk rowling#anti lore olympus#i know it doesn't counts as a book#but i bloody hate it#fuck booktok#anti coho#anti coleen hoover#i think this is how you write her name
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please do a vinnie imagine about her girlfriend taking off her promise ring after an argument
No Promises
Summary : Vinnie and you get into a fight, which escalates into your taking of your promise ring he gave you
Pairing : Vinnie Hacker x Fem!Reader
Warnings : Cursing, fighting
Notes: Hope you enjoy anon! i’m sorry it’s so short
"Vinnie, where are you?" you shout as you walk up the stairs, anger courses through your veins at each step. This wasn't the first time something like this happened, he had forgotten to pick you up before, but this time was even worse since it was currently pouring outside and you had forgotten an umbrella, so now you trudged up the stairs angry and soaking wet.
You swing his gaming room door open, "Hey baby what's wrong?" he asks, not even taking his eyes away from the screen. "What's wrong?! What's wrong is my boyfriend rather play video games then pick me up from work" you shout. Vinnies eyes go wide, he immediately pauses the game and turns toward you, finally taking in your appearance. "Fuck baby I'm so sorry, I was streaming and time got away from me" he says. You roll your eyes "This is the 3rd time this has happened! And this time I was stood in the pouring rain" you yell, gesturing to your water soaked clothes. "I know I'm sorry baby please I'm sorry it won't happen again" he pleads. "Thats what you said the first two times" you shout back, still in shock that he had forgotten to pick you up again.
"You know what? It's fine really it's fine" you scoff, before turning on your heel and walking to the bathroom so you could change and take a hot shower after being stuck in the pouring rain. Once you were changed and freshly showered, you made your way down to the kitchen to get something warm to drink. You see your boyfriend out of the corner of your eye, but decide to ignore him, as you were still incredibly upset with him.
"Have you calmed down now?" he asks, which infuriates you, he still seems to not be taking anything seriously. "Fuck off Vin" you say, before stomping out of the kitchen and into the living room. "Come on baby you know it was a honest mistake" he says, starting to feel himself get upset at the fact you won't just accept his apology. "Yeah a mistake that happened 3 times" you say back, "Come on you know how important it is to get these streams in, it's what makes money so we can live here!" he snaps. "More important than your girlfriend?" you yell back, in disbelief, "I didn't say that and you know it" he responds back, "Yeah but you implied it" you sneer. "Look if the streams and games are more important, maybe you should give this to your computer" you shout as you pull the promise ring he gave you off your finger and throw it at him, before storming out of the living room and into the guest bedroom.
You slam the door behind you, quickly locking it, before crawling onto the bed and crying. You didn't care if he thought you were overreacting, you knew you had a valid reason to be upset. "Baby please open up" you hear him say as he knocks on the door, but you refuse to move. "Go away Vinnie" you shout back, not wanting to see him. "Please Y/N can we talk" he begged, "Please just go away" you yell back, before breaking into a sob.
You knew deep down you needed to tell him how you were feeling, not just about this incident, but about your guys relationship. You felt like he started to ignore you lately, you would try to do things with him but he would always say he couldn't because he had to stream. Today was just your breaking point, and when you realized that his games seemed to mean more to him then you.
Vinnie slid down against the locked door, throwing his head in his hands and sighing out of frustration. He knew he fucked up big time, and hoped he could find a away to fix it. "I'm sorry y/n, I know i've been dismissive towards you lately, fuck i'm so stupid. I guess sometimes I get so in the zone I forget what's going on around me, which I know is a shitty excuse but its true. You have every right to be pissed at me. I've been such a shitty boyfriend lately, just know things are going to be different now I promise." he says, before standing up.
Before he could walk away you opened the door. He turns to face you "Baby I'm so sorry" he says, and walks towards you. "I know vin" you say back, "It just feels like this relationship has been so one sided lately and I feel like I'm just not important to you anymore" you say as tears pour down your face. His heart breaks when he hears you say that. "Y/N, you're the most important thing In my life, I'm sorry that I ever made you doubt that" he says and pulls you into a tight embrace.
The two of you cry in eachothers arms for a few minutes before pulling away. "How about we watch movie together, then tomorrow go out on a date and just spend the whole day together, just you and me, no technology" he suggests. You nod your head "Sounds good Vin" you respond. You hope that what he promised would come true and knowing Vinnie it probably would.
"Do you have the ring?" you ask, as the two of you are curled up on the couch. "Yeah" he says, as he pulls the ring out of his pocket. You put your hand out for him, signaling for him to slid it back on your finger. He finally takes the hint and slowly slides the promise ring back on your finger. "I love you" he says, "I love you too" you respond, before pulling him in for a kiss.
#vinnie hacker#vinnie hacker x reader#vinnie hacker imagine#vinnie hacker fic#vinnie hacker x you#angst
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like crazy - vince dunn
vince dunn x gn!reader
summary: after a much needed win, vince is in a good mood while you spend some time enjoying LA
warnings: none i think, just fluff 🩵
word count: 1.3k vibe playlist 🎧✨🌴
you breathed a sigh of relief as you starfished onto your back onto the soft hotel bed. you felt a weight on top of you as vince’s arms circled your waist, his head resting on your stomach as he used you as a pillow. you giggled as his hands tickled up your back, rolling the two of you over to lay side by side, facing eachother. it seemed like the smile hadn’t left his face since the kraken won their game, a rematch of their loss last week against the kings.
“what are our plans for your day off tomorrow?” you asked, and he intertwined his fingers with yours, holding your hands up in the air as he laughed. you loved him like this; a carefree mood that came to him only after a win, or when he was with you.
“i don’t know. probably enjoying the nice weather and doing some shopping? what do you think?” he asked.
“sure, that sounds good to me. maybe we could go to the pool tomorrow, too?” you suggested, remembering how pretty the pool you had seen earlier on the roof had looked. a mischievous grin tugged at the corner of his mouth, and there was a playful sparkle in his eyes. “uh oh, what is that look?” you asked, knowing he had an idea in his head.
“we could go to the pool now,” he suggested.
“it closed at 10,” you sighed, looking at the clock that told you it was already after midnight.
“so?” he smiled, and you gave him a look as if to say ‘absolutely not’.
“do you know how much trouble we would get in if-“
“if we get caught. which we won’t,” he promised, and you couldn’t say no.
“okay, fine,” you agreed, and he nearly tackled you in a hug as he rolled on top of you, the two of you a pile of tangled limbs and giggles.
•
the two of you walked hand in hand down the hallway, your bathing suits hidden by normal clothes, and you silently hoped there would be towels by the pool. the elevator surprisingly took you straight up to the rooftop with no issue, despite the pool supposedly being closed. even more surprising was the fact that there was no lock on the gate, and no security. you half wondered if vince had paid the hotel to leave it unattended, but you decided you would ask him about it later; or maybe you wouldn’t bother.
vince kicked off his flip flops and pulled his t-shirt over his head, tossing it onto one of many empty lounge chairs surrounding the turquoise water. you walked over to a little counter area and grabbed a few towels, relieved that you wouldn’t have to drip dry all the way back to your room. getting undressed down to your bathing suit, you felt vince’s hand wrap around your wrist. a squeal left you lips as he jumped into the deep end of the pool, pulling you in after him.
you surfaced from under the warm water, wiping your eyes as you stared at him, a huge grin on his face as he brushed his curls off his forehead. you splashed him, and he laughed as you continued to throw water at him.
“vin!”
“i’m sorry! come here,” he said, and you shook your head stubbornly as he wrapped his arms around you, holding you tight so you could splash him anymore. “still love me?” he teased, and you rolled your eyes, unable to stay mad at him when he was being so cute.
“fine, only if you give me a kiss,” you pouted, and he pulled you against him until you wrapped your legs around his waist. your mouths met in a kiss filled with laughter, your fingers tangled in his hair as the water lapped at your skin.
“the stars are really pretty,” he said, his head tilted back as he stared up at the night sky above you. you however, were too busy staring at him; the small dusting of freckles across his nose, the slightly upturned corner of his lips, the crinkles by his eyes. you admired the water droplets stuck to his long eyelashes, and of course, that one damn curl that always fell perfectly on his forehead.
“you’re pretty,” you countered, and he lowered his head to meet your eyes. “i love you.”
“i love you too,” he smiled.
“i mean it though, you’re like really pretty. it’s kind of unfair-“ he interrupted you with a kiss, and you smiled against his lips, his hands sliding up your back, caressing every inch of your bare skin.
“yeah, well you’re not so bad yourself, he grinned, bumping his nose against yours gently. “all the stars and lights of the city and i’d look at you instead everytime.”
you stared back at him in awe, so hopelessly in love as you tried to find someway to respond to something as sweet as that.
“you’re gonna make me cry,” you pushed his shoulder softly, and he smiled again, and you decided it was your favourite sight in the world.
“put your head under the water and no one will know-“ you cut him off with a splash as the two of you fell into a fit of laughter, and he dropped down under the water, dragging you beneath the surface with him. you coughed slightly as you got your head back above water, your stomach beginning to ache from giggling so much.
“should we call the guys to come hang out with us?” you suggested, knowing that they’d probably enjoy a swim in the pool after a winning game.
“sure, i’ll text the group,” he swam over to the edge, and you watched his muscles flex beneath his damp skin as he climbed out of the pool. “you’re drooling,” he teased, and you flipped him the middle finger as he sat on the lounge chair and pulled out his phone, typing a quick invite to the guys. he looked up to see you had turned away from him, looking out at los angeles as the lights reflected off the water. he snapped a picture with his phone to capture the beauty of the scene, setting it as his lockscreen before reading the few replies he had gotten from the group chat.
it wasn’t long before a few of the kraken players found their way up to the pool area, some of the others having already gone to bed, and some of them deciding not to risk getting caught. it was mostly the younger players that had decided to join you, including tye, kailer, ryker, and brandon.
vince followed the guys into the pool, and you covered your face to protect from the splash as tye canon balled into the water next to you.
“dude, we’re supposed to be sneaky, remember?” vince laughed as he splashed water in his direction, tye pushing you in front of him to use your body as a shield.
“we can just hide under the water if someone comes up here,” kailer suggested, and you all failed to contain your laughter, definitely being way too loud.
“we’ll just say it was the rookies idea,” tanev teased, playfully headlocking ryker, who looked a little nervous that he was being serious.
“it’d be way more believable to say it was your idea, turbo,” you argued, and the others agreed, tanev holding his hands up in surrender.
“alright, alright, make the guy who scored a goal take the blame, i see how it is.”
the splashing and giggling continued into the early hours of the morning, until all of your fingers and toes began to turn wrinkly from the water, and the air started to get colder. but it didn’t matter, right now you were surrounded by the people you loved, and up so high above the city, you felt like you were on top of the world.
yeah, you definitely loved when the kraken won, you decided.
disclaimer: all screenshots, events, and/or interactions depicted in this are a work of fiction. i have no association with any parties mentioned
#vince dunn fic#vince dunn x reader#vince dunn imagine#vince dunn#seattle kraken#seattle#kailer yamamoto#tye kartye#brandon tanev#ryker evans#kraken nhl#nhl hockey#nhl imagine#nhl fic#nhl players#real person fiction
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