EL Maester

our lives matter more than your fucking nostalgia.

The FDA is considering a petition to make all trans women on estrogen enroll in a registry as a condition of our prescriptions.

If you are in the United States, you have the power to comment on this proposed regulation. The instructions for doing so, and more about the petition, are here. I just left a comment, and it took two minutes. You can do so anonymously.

The petition is bad for other reasons too. It blatantly singles out transgender women and asks for mandatory psychiatric gatekeeping of lifesaving gender affirming care.

right now there are 61 comments on the petition and all are in support of it. Being one of the voices that pushes back is the easiest thing in the world.

If you don't like those posts about how everyone on this website doesn't care about trans women, and wouldn't lift a finger to save us from genocide, here's your chance to prove them wrong.

Hi, it's me again, the person who wrote that viral post about fanfiction plagiarism! Today I'm here to warn you about abuse perpetrated by bots who have stolen AO3 usernames.

There's currently an epidemic of bots going around leaving (apparently random) horrible, hateful comments on people's fics. This isn't the first time bots have invaded AO3, but the big problem with this wave is that they're using real AO3 usernames to do it.

I learned about this when another writer contacted me after receiving the following comment on their story:

Now, while that is my username, I DEFINITELY did not leave this comment (and anyone who would leave something like that on a fic should be slapped! What an awful thing to post). This fic is in a completely unrelated fandom that I have never participated in, nor has that author participated in any of my fandoms, so the probability of it being some intentional fandom drama thing to make me look bad is also low.

The writer whose fic the comment was left on enlisted the aid of some friends and tracked down other guest comments with unrelated usernames attached, which is pretty strong evidence that they are being left by bots at random.

The TL;DR: If you receive a cruel comment from a (Guest) with an actual AO3 username attached, it's most likely from a bot. Please do not lash out at or dogpile the AO3 user who owns that name, and who in all likelihood has no idea that their name has been hijacked for evil.

If finding this kind of comment on a fic, even left by a bot, is likely to upset you, I would recommend changing your comment settings so that only users who are logged in can leave comments. To do this, edit your story settings, and under "Privacy," select the radio button that says "Only registered users can comment," as shown below.

i’ve not seen a lot in the media about this so i’m going to do my best to put this into words and explain what will happen if the government is successful in replacing the human rights act with the bill of rights (aka the rights removal bill).

this will mean that in the uk:

you won’t be allowed to say anything negative about the government

if you are disabled or chronically ill, you won’t be allowed to say no to being given a DNR in hospital

you won’t be allowed to bring ‘trivial’ human rights violations to court

public authorities (the police) won’t have to actively protect people’s human rights

the uk military will be allowed to basically do whatever they want overseas

if you ever commit a crime, they can disregard your human rights

the government will not be obligated to obey human rights

Donate if you can please. I’m being charged with assault and battery for punching my racist neighbor for spitting on me during a pandemic. I need to pay for lawyer fees and to move out of my racist town. 💗

If you don’t want to donate through gofundme then you can cashapp me $Muvatokyo

If you can’t donate, please reblog when you see this. I’m desperate. Thank you!

I have a family friend who worked at our local Salvation Army headquarters as a a secretary. This particular office took all the Christmas donations for children in need, put them in a warehouse, and on a designated day the staff and their friends picked through them all, taking whatever they wanted. She saw people hauling away bikes donated for specific families. Some local children had hundreds of dollars of gifts donated in their name, and on Christmas they received three cheap things, items likely not even from the person who sponsored them.

My friend quit, and I’ve not given them a dime of my money since then.

I’m a wildfire and disaster logistics specialist.

I deal with a lot of agencies who provide disaster relief.

I used to say the Salvation Army’s disaster services were the one (literally the ONE) good thing they did.

They would come in, set up a canteen trailer, make and pass out hot coffee and donated food in a disaster, usually being one of the first agencies to get there and the last to leave.

Then I found out.

Every time they did this, regardless of if they were actually invited or deployed by the agency in charge (usually FEMA, sometimes others) they would SELF-DEPLOY. Meanjng they would just show up. Ok. That’s not TOO bad, sometimes agencies have to take initiative and get there before the red tape is sorted out. BUT. They, after they left at the end of the incident, they would send FEMA or the host agency a BILL. They used one or two paid employees (usually the driver of the truck and a supervisor); and many VOLUNTEERS, but they would bill for EVERYONE’s Labor at standard federal rates. They would bill for the food they distributed even though it was all donated by another agency or private parties. They would bill for the coffee they made and the supplies. Except they would use electricity from the shelter location, water from donations or from the shelter, and in many cases, they would get the coffee and industrial filters DONATED, but bill for them at retail prices.

It’s been going on for decades. Why are people still investing their time and money into bogus government charities and welfare agencies? It has always been a ploy, it still is and it always will be. Be more critical and discerning with what you endorse in. And do research away from any official government foundations and establishments.

Capitalism runs everything. Government is a means of making the rich richer and the poor poorer and the average oblivious to these goings on.

The thing about being aromantic, asexual, or on the spectrums that a lot of people don’t seem to get is that compulsory sexuality exists.

Not just compulsory heterosexuality. Compulsory sexuality. Period. The idea that every person on the planet feels some kind of sexual and romantic attraction.

I grew up watching media, same as all of you, and how are people that are interested in purely sexual relationships depicted? As cold people. As cheaters. Usually it’s a straight man looking to use women. His character development almost always includes settling down. And people that don’t experience sexual attraction? Characters like Data from Star Trek or Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory. Androids and characters coded as having a very specific type of autism. And even they have sexuality forced upon them by the writers at least once. With Data it happens in the second episode.

And then we try to explain this to people. Why we hurt ourselves and put ourselves in dangerous and uncomfortable situations trying to fix ourselves. Make ourselves feel sexual and/or romantic attraction. We bring up the bullying we endured. The things our therapists tried to fix about us. We talk about our trauma related to compulsory sexuality and you all just don’t hear us.

I’m so tired of it. I’ve been fighting the fight to be seen since I was fourteen! I’ve given talks in GSAs. I’ve written essays to educate. I’ve comforted other asexual people on the internet and irl. I’ve scraped and grabbed for community. I’ve done my very best to fight to be seen. I’ve healed from the trauma I put myself through in trying to fix myself. I’ve realized that I don’t need to be fixed. I’ve been as goddamned involved as an asexual person can be with the resources we have. I may be young but I have been fighting longer than most and I am so protective of the people just realizing that they’re aro or ace or demi or anything else. No matter how much older or younger they are than me.

And then some people on the internet decide that they get to undo everything I and so many other asexual and aromantic people have done. They get to decide that their trauma is more real than mine. They get to push me and my brothers and sisters and siblings out the door because they don’t see invisibility as oppression. They’ve held up their little sign that says “must be this oppressed to enter” and then held it up higher so that we didn’t fit.

Some of them told me “oh you can come in because you tick these boxes but that other box doesn’t count”

No. That box definitely counts. That box is just as much a part of me as any of the others and it is the one I have fought for the longest. Our community won’t be made invisible again. Invisibility is crushing. It is suffocating. Abuse and hatred of all kinds thrive in silence.

I feel alone sometimes. Like I am the only soldier holding a banner in front of a stone wall. But I am not alone, and you aren’t either. I’m tired of being casual. I’m tired of being seen as a rarity. A novelty. An android. A nuisance. I am none of these things. I, like every other arospec or aspec person, am a friend of dragons. Something that was hidden for so long, protecting itself and what it loves, but has the ability to be loud, dangerous, firey.

Asexual and aromantic people have been polite. Quiet. Because that’s what we feel we have to be. We can’t protest by kissing someone in front of a picket line. What can we do then? Talk. Write. Wear our colors. If we have to keep being polite and quiet about it, fine. That’s how we do. But let’s not be invisible. I will continue to let everyone that knows me understand under no uncertain terms that I am asexual. I will point to our aromantic siblings, sisters, brothers. I will tell you to look at them. Look at us. We exist. We are wonderful. We belong. In queer spaces, in the media, in the public eye.

If you are aro or ace people will tell you that they don’t care. They will ask why they need to know. But being yourself is a radical act. I know it is. We are often polite in this community. We don’t rally. We don’t look to change the world. We don’t depict ourselves as radical or challenging the establishment, but we are. We are. We have been from the moment we realized we exist. Our history is small. We are creating the early stages of it as we speak, but it is still rich. It is still beautiful. Even if we are spread out, I love this community so deeply. So completely. I probably won’t ever be a leader in this community or any other one. That’s not where my talents lie. But I will continue to push for us to be seen. I will write literature for us. I will talk. I will be as visible as someone like me can be. I will fight to make the words ace and aro and demi and grey just as well known as gay, ace, lesbian, bi, trans.

And there are so many of us out there doing the same. We are not alone. We have never been alone. And these people trying to make us alone won’t succeed. I know this. I feel it in my gut.

Hey all you lovely people who have periods, the world is starting to look a little bit brighter now that certain tampon/pad companies have started to allow people to receive small kits and samples of pads, maxi pads, liner, and tampons for free. And I mean 100% free and discreet. You just have to give them your address and name, and bam! You’ve got all the menstrual cycle products you could ever need for no cost. Links below!

U by Kotex

Always

Playtex

Be safe! You are loved!

-your weight

-your clothing choice

-your amount of make up

-having sex

-not having sex

-breast size

-having your period

-saying no

-not appreciating catcalls 

-masturbating

okay guys, ary ( @skishenanigans ) has me really worried.

tumblr has a feature where you can report a user suspected of wanting to take their own life and will do their best to track their ip and roll out authorities to make sure they are okay. you can help ary by doing the following:

1. go onto her blog and see the last post she made. at the bottom there will be a little plane lookin arrow. click it

2. once you have clicked it a like of options to “share” the post should pop up. you want to click the flag that says “report”

3. next, three options will appear. click “report something else”

4. a page with several options for violations will appear. click “self-harm”

5. tumblr will ask if this user is in immediate danger. no one has heard from ary for a couple of days. click “yes”

6. tumblr will then ask you for your name and to verify you are a real person. once you have done that, submit the form

Anyone who claims to be a real Marvel fan will reblog this on all social media platforms. And you’ll write to the actors of the Marvel movies to help us also. It seems like only the actors and us, the fans, are the ones who really care about Mr. Lee anymore. Please guys. We have to help him. NOW.

Stan Lee is a hero to a lot of us. It’s time that we be a hero for him. And even if you don’t like Marvel, anyone who doesn’t tolerate elder abuse should help!

Stan Lee created Marvel Comics.

Stan Lee changed the world of entertainment as we know it by diverging from the norm and encouraging the acceptance of those who are different (X-Men mutants in 1963).

Stan Lee, at the age of 95, is giving up on life because everyone close to him is depending upon him like vultures.

Please please please reblog this. Maybe someone with influence can help him. Maybe the state will step in if enough people but them about it. Maybe we can make Stan’s twilight years enjoyable instead of the hell he’s going through.

Thanks you.