Apocaloptimist

Item: Inappropriate Douglas

Being playfully rude with someone who doesn't know you on the internet is actually identical to just being rude

"I'm not an asshole! I only spoke to you, a complete stranger who doesn't know my good and pure heart, in a way that is indistinguishable from how an asshole would!"

Official Post of Massachusetts

It’s a huge secret in my family that I like lemons as decoration. Not because it’s shameful or anything but because I know that if word got out to my grandparents and aunties that I like stuff with lemons on it I’d get nothing but stuff with lemons on it for the rest of eternity. I just enjoy a few things with lemon pattern. I do not want to be flooded with citrus themed kitchenware every Christmas.

I think this is where the rubber meets the road for actually having principles. It’s easy to defend the things we like, just like it’s easy to fight for our own rights and those of people just like us. When you have to use logic to extend your sense of justice to people you can’t relate to, that actually takes effort.

The expectation that you will refer to a trans person by their preferred pronouns and name is not them ‘forcing you to accept them’ it is basic respect. You don’t have to like trans people, you don’t have to ‘believe’ our identities or whatever. You do have an obligation to treat us like people, though. If you had a 40 something cis male coworker named Bill and you repeatedly, pointedly and aggressively called him ‘Shirley’ and exclusively used she/her pronouns to refer to him, that would be a major HR problem. It is not persecution to have to show basic human decency.

“natural immunity is good for kids” is my least favorite antivax pro-baby kissing phrase because. actually no. simple childhood illnesses can cause major lifelong disabilities. happened to me. happened to JFK. not to mention the millions of children in cemeteries across the globe who died from preventable and treatable common childhood ailments. “natural immunity” is not better than vaccine related immunity and getting kids sick when reasonable precautions could prevent it is bad.