this is another discussion tangential to the one about LotR/Tolkien, but I do also think that the cartoon-fascist cosplay that is in vogue on the US far right has hindered a lot of people's (especially Americans') ability to recognize or push back against strains of conservatism/fascism that rhetorically focus more on things like stability, tradition, family, and community rather than the worship of power and cruelty for the sake of power and cruelty. the deep Catholic conservatism that underpins LotR might seem opposed to the far-right politics that is in vogue right now in the US (see also the whole Pope Leo vs. Trump and Vance thing) but obviously there's a reason that fascists and conservatives have loved Tolkien's work for a long time, and there are more sophisticated and arguably more dangerous strains of fascism that are extremely skilled at weaponizing the same "universal" values that LotR's heroes are fighting for. and obviously I'm not immune to this, or the tendency to project my own politics onto LotR -- I watched the theatrical rerelease of The Two Towers the same day that Alex Pretti was murdered, and when Théoden says "so much death. what can men do against such reckless hate?" I felt myself moved almost to tears because it seemed to speak with such clarity to the precise moment. but there is a difference between "this is what the text seems to be saying to me in this moment" and "this is the value system underpinning the text itself."

My name is Ahmed, and I am writing these words from Gaza after the war changed everything in my life. I lost my leg and now live with a permanent disability, but that is not the hardest thing I have lost. The hardest part is watching my child grow up surrounded by fear and deprivation, and sometimes being unable to provide even the most basic necessities for him.

I am not asking for pity. I am asking for a chance to live. I am asking you to hear my voice and help my story reach as many people as possible. A single share could make a difference in our lives and help us receive the support we desperately need.

Please do not scroll past my story in silence. Share it, spread it, and be a voice for a family struggling to survive under circumstances that words can barely describe.

influencers are telling everyone to get off their birth control and repackaging sexist narratives about menstrual cycles as some kind of kind of cissexist "self-care" thing and all the stores are filled with ankle length floral dresses like is anyone else getting scared

Official Post of Massachusetts

while the english word sounds pretty, i dont like the german "geißblatt" (apparently from the word for she-goat, also direct translation from the latin word). but another trivial name is Jelängerjelieber, which, okay, that sounds fine.

slow and slutty wins the race