The Definitive Cool Kid

I need help paying a medical bill after an accident I had earlier in the month. If anyone could donate, it’d be really helpful. My paypal is [email protected]. I need around 500 dollars.

I see that point. But I also know that there are some people who genuinely enter a space occupied by a diverse representation of humans, as demonstrated in this comic strip, and go “UGH there are children here! This is spoiling my experience of this space.” People genuinely do believe that “nobody [presumably] enters a space and wishes there were more children in it.” That is a viewpoint. Here is a very charmingly designed and accessible explanation of that viewpoint. 

I don’t agree with any of OP’s ecological analysis. I do not picture small humans sitting on mountains of skulls and I find overpopulation discourse to be profoundly tiresome. So OP and I are not in perfect alignment on any particular political stance. I also have a kid, and I do not believe that having the kid was a selfish act. I’m not reblogging this to endorse their rhetoric, but I do respect their story.

I have a diverse representation of humans among my friends and followers, and I know that among them, there are plenty of people who feel this way. So here is why. It’s a good explanation of the viewpoint.

I tag partially out of respect for people with this viewpoint to help them avoid mentions of children. Partially because I know people who are experiencing fertility and loss, and they find it helpful to be warned. And a good portion is so that, when people moan because I “talk about my kid all the time,” I can reply that they have all of the tools they need to curate their experience and move on.

and that rebuttal is that, unlike other groups of vulnerable marginalized humans, EVERY SINGLE HUMAN ON THE PLANET WAS A CHILD AT SOME POINT.  Therefore, every human on the planet has also had the experience of being a part of that vulnerable marginalized population and has a firsthand understanding of the ways in which children experience the world.  There aren’t many human experiences as universal as “being a human, but young and undeveloped.”

Monster Girl vs. The Great Green Unknown.

Support me on Patreon! My family likes eating.

are you confused about trans stuff? it’s so complicated even some trans people don’t fully understand all the nuance. wild, right? never fear, because this is a new series of basic trans info that will hopefully help everyone on and off the LGBTQIA+ spectrum understand a little better. onward to the basics!

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CISgender = someone whose gender corresponds with their assigned sex at birth TRANSgender = someone whose gender does not correspond with their assigned sex at birth

someone’s Assigned Sex At Birth (ASAB) is determined by a) visual genital examination, b) surgical genital alteration.

visual sex assignment is not a scientifically or medically accurate way of determining someone’s biology, much less their gender. sex assignment does not include any medical tests such as: karyotype (chromosomes), hormone panel, ultrasound or physical examination (to identify internal intersex conditions).

the most common sex assignments are Assigned MALE At Birth (penis, scrotum, no vaginal opening) or Assigned FEMALE At Birth (vulva + vaginal opening + small phallus. this phallus can be naturally small or surgically altered to be so). on rare occasions, an intersex child - or, a child with genitals that have a combination of the above features - will not be forcibly assigned male or female, but they’re usually still assigned a gender.

your ASAB has very little to do with your actual bodily functions, and NOTHING to do with your gender!

[ vocab to remember: trans, cis, ASAB / AMAB / AFAB, intersex ]

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what is gender? some people think it is a literal extension of your genitals, but that’s extremely far from the truth.

gender is hard to explain. it is a feeling that usually has very little to do with your biology (that is, your actual factual biology, not your ASAB). some people think gender is neurological, some think it is spiritual, but here’s one thing it isn’t: tethered to your genital appearance or reproductive abilities.

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did you know that intersex people make up the same percentage of the population as redheads? that’s a lot of people who have genitals that can’t be described as a simple ‘penis’ or ‘vagina!’ there’s also sex chromosome abnormalities - some people go their entire lives not knowing that their chromosomes are not a simple XX or XY figuration!

[ vocab note: the scientifically false assumption that (man = male = XY = penis) & (woman = female = XX = vagina) is called the gender and sexual BINARY ]

both intersex people and people with sex chromosome abnormalities can have ANY gender. a man who finds out he has Klinefelter’s syndrome (two or more X chromosomes in addition to a Y) is not suddenly a woman, right? of course not!

apply this same principle to all people of all biological realities. you don’t have to have a fertile uterus or two X chromosomes to be a woman. you don’t have to have a functioning penis or a flat chest to be a man.

beyond that, you don’t have to identify as a man OR a woman at all! many more people than you realize, historically and in modern society, exemplify gender diversity. judaism, for example, has six genders. six! indigenous americans can have two (or more) spirits in one body, which result in a person with no gender, or multiple genders that may or may not include man/woman. some people simply do not feel they have a gender.

anyone who is transgender but does not identify as solely a man or a woman is NON-BINARY.

you shouldn’t tell someone that they have to identify as a man or a woman based on their ASAB, and you also shouldn’t force them to pick one or the other. to do so ignores biological fact, cultural and spiritual history, and individual autonomy.

think about the people around you and the assumptions you make about them. did your nana really feel like a woman? did you ever ASK?

[ review & thought experiment: intersex people cannot be tied to a binary sex assignment. is it okay to tell people with in-between biology that they can’t have an in-between gender experience? ]

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okay, so now… what about sexuality?

this one’s easy. anyone can be attracted to the same gender or multiple genders. it doesn’t matter what your gender is, or your chromosomes, or your hormone levels and what kind of puberty you went through, or if you’re sterile or reproductively capable.

if you are a man with a penis, you can want to sleep with a man. if you are a man with a vulvovagina, you can want to sleep with a man, as well, and still be a man! a gay cis man and a gay trans man are both gay men.

meanwhile, a trans person who has an interest in multiple genders isn’t confused. their gender is not related to the scope of people they find attractive.

here are some sexuality terms you might recognize from the LGBTQIA+ acronym. (it’s a great idea to look up the rest of them on your own.)

gay, lesbian = a person who is attracted exclusively to their own GENDER (not sex!) bisexual, pansexual = a person who is attracted to MULTIPLE genders. remember that since “man” and “woman” aren’t the only gender options, people with multiple gender attraction (MGA) can experience a LOT of personal nuance - try not to make assumptions.

[ vocab to remember: binary & nonbinary, gay & lesbian, bisexual / pansexual / MGA ]

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before we go, how about reproduction?

that, too, is a simple answer. every couple on this earth will at some point face the question of whether or not they’re going to have kids, whether that be through natural pregnancy, in vitro fertilization, a surrogate, fostering, or adoption. if you don’t want children, that’s an easy answer! if you do, it’s not.

ALL couples face troubles with reproduction, not just members of the LGBTQIA+ community. you could have a straight couple who are both cisgender, but one or both partners could have a reproductive tract that does not function. one or both partners could be intersex, or have abnormal sex chromosomes, or have a hormonal disorder that affects sperm production or menstrual cycling.

when you look at it this way, the reproductive choices made by a couple where one or both are trans don’t sound particularly strange, do they? people do what they must in order to have a child. for a cis woman - maybe she’s a lesbian, maybe she is a single woman who wants to be a mother - that might be artificial insemination. for a trans man, the easiest option might be carrying his own child. a trans woman may choose to have sperm cryopreserved before she starts HRT and risks stopping sperm production.

no one’s reproductive choices make them any more or less gay, cis, trans, or MGA.

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do you have any more questions? i know this is a lot. we’ve been told so many things through our lives about sex, gender, and biology, but the more research is done, the less rigid the boundaries seem.

while it can be difficult to accept that the world is so much different from what you were told, the common ground uniting all of us should be mutual respect and kindness. please go forward in life keeping this in mind, and don’t challenge people on their private biological reality, gender, or gender expression. also, respect people’s pronouns!

1. the gender binary is the assumption that there are only two genders. your definition: “the scientifically false assumption that (man = male = XY = penis) & (woman = female = XX = vagina) is called the gender and sexual BINARY”

by defining the gender binary this way, you’re suggesting that being a trans man is not adhering to the gender binary, which in turn suggests that trans men are not actually men, which is completely not true. the gender binary does involve/reinforce the things you mentioned, but its overarching concept is not that.

2. not all non-binary people identify with the word trans. just say someone whose gender cannot be described by the words male/female ffs

3. please don’t differentiate between sex and gender. i’m non-binary. my genitals are non-binary by extension because they’re mine. other trans people feel differently about their genitals and that’s fine, but this “difference” shouldn’t matter when it comes to respecting trans people’s genders.

4. asexual and aromantic people exist and are queer too like come on what do u think that a at the end of lgbtqia+ is for, hint: not ally

5. i kind of hate that you’re using historical examples as “multiple genders exist” because the groups you mentioned are marginalized and tend to be marginalized/appropriated (india, native/indigenous cultures -_-), but i’m not from any of them so i’ll shut up

5.1. thx for not naming non-binary genders outside of the actual word

Ace identities are not relevant when you’re addressing the misconception that transwomen are just sexually confused gay men, and the sex/gender split that you’re talking about is a pretty advanced concept and OP’s still trying to establish that trans & nb people exist and are real.  You can’t jump ahead to calculus when you’re still trying to explain arithmetic.  Ze’ll get to that topic eventually, trust me.

The point of citing the historical existence of multiple genders is to point out that trans & nonbinary identities have existed throughout all of human history and it isn't just some newfangled fad that only started in the 90s.  Cis people are often under the misconception that trans & nb people are unnatural and have never existed before now - that’s what this is attempting to address.  Yes, groups like the hijra have also been historically marginalized, but the point is to establish that nonbinary identities are a normal development of human culture, which is true whether the specific cultures in question are accepting of those identities or not. Ze didn’t name off any specific non-binary genders because, again, ze’s still trying to establish that they’re a real thing with a valid existence.  You need your audience to accept the larger premise before you can start getting into the details.

Happy 20th Birthday, Pokémon

I mean yeah it’s a little discouraging that Sanders lost SC but it is by no means over, there are 11 states holding primaries in 3 days and Sanders intends to stay in the race.

Reblog this for Gold/Silver/Crystal

Reblog this for Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald

Reblog this for Fire Red/Leaf Green

Reblog this for Diamond/Pearl/Platinum

Reblog this for HeartGold/SoulSilver

Reblog this for Black/White/Black 2/White 2

Reblog this for X/Y

Reblog this for Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire

Reblog this for the Mystery Dungeon Series

Reblog this for the Pokemon Colloseum Series

I mean yeah it’s a little discouraging that Sanders lost SC but it is by no means over, there are 11 states holding primaries in 3 days and Sanders intends to stay in the race.

ALRIGHT MY FRIEND I have received about six messages in this vein since yesterday, but I worked for thirteen hours today and I have no time for this nonsense. Short answer: YES. 

I’m gonna summarize some salient points on why pandas are awful from a conservation standpoint:

PANDAS LITERALLY CANNOT MATE IN CAPTIVITY. IT’S UNBELIEVABLE

Artificial insemination and hand-rearing of cubs are basically standard practice, and still they usually die. At what point is it reasonable to give up because I think we hit it DECADES AGO

In 35 years, only 90 cubs have been born in captivity outside of China

Wild panda numbers have increased a bare (bear?) 200 individuals in 10 years, despite literal billions of dollars being poured into conservation

NO OTHER AREA OF ANIMAL CONSERVATION EVEN COMES CLOSE TO THE MONEY BEING POURED INTO PANDAS. NONE

And yet we’ve managed to literally rebuild populations of black-footed ferrets, oryx, and California condors with exponentially less money

Despite all of this, only 10 pandas have been released since the 80s, and all but two died

I bet you wouldn’t have guessed that it’s because their habitat is destroyed and fragmentary and barely protected!!!!!! 

The only good thing about panda conservation is that protecting their range is also protecting tons of other species. Which would be great, if more of their range was being protected effectively.

There is way more money in keeping captive pandas captive than in releasing them!! surprise!!!!!!

Zoos pay a lot of money to get pandas on loan because people just LOVE looking at pandas and they can’t afford to house and care for their other animals without people coming to visit! Or do any kind of conservation whatsoever!! Panda-economics! (this is kind of a pro as opposed to a con but its the kind of pro that makes me feel like I need a shower)

Pandas are endangered and sort of have a role in spreading bamboo seeds around, so they get billions of dollars. Every shark ever is MORE endangered, and without them the entire ocean ecosystem would collapse, but that’s fine they don’t need money (I’m not bitter) ((I am bitter))

I’m gonna be frank with you. We are in the middle of a mass extinction event, caused by us. Not to be a downer (jk, I’m gonna) but we’re already driving so many species to extinction that we cannot afford to save them all with the money and interest that is in conservation right now. 

Instead, we have to do some kind of awful extinction triage and assess which animals will do the most good to work to conserve - and getting into keystone species, ecosystem engineers, and other truly integral species is a whole other can of worms I’m not gonna touch on - but there are animals that are “more important” in a certain sense than others, in that they can support or affect a much wider range of other species than another. 

People only care about big, cute, fluffy animals - a common lament heard from conservationists, but it’s so true. There are thousands, if not millions of species that don’t fit this mold that conservation work would benefit eons more than pandas. It’s like fixing a pretty, stained-glass window in a house whose foundations are collapsing and thinking you’re helping. 

Pandas have always been the face of conservation, and they continue to be one of the biggest and most expensive ongoing failures. 

[Sources/ stuff to read to make sense of my incoherent response!]

seriously pandas are the perfect example of “failure to thrive”.

they are carnivores with a carnivore digestive tract and carnivore energy/nutrition needs but they subsist ENTIRELY on fucking BAMBOO, and they have to eat SO MUCH because they cannot digest it efficiently enough to gain the energy they need for basic daily function otherwise

they frequently give birth to twins and then let one cub die because they can’t produce enough milk to support two, which means a further waste of energy resources, and also only reproduce at a rate of one every two years MAX because they’re only fertile once a year for like 3 days and can’t support a pregnancy while nursing another cub

like

come the fuck on

pandas have been surviving DESPITE evolution, not because of it. they’ve been lucky enough to have an environment that supported their shitty inefficient evolution and then humans disrupted it and they started dying off and now everyone’s like ohhh nooo the poor pandas

but really, FUCK pandas. not only could the conservation money be better spent elsewhere, but think about how much bamboo a single fucking panda eats in a single fucking day for the bare minimum of survival, and then think about how many OTHER animals in their ecosystem could be using those resources much more efficiently to thrive

Netflix made an adorable X-Files fanvid!

They’re also prone to doing really shady things like, if in the above situation you put in a deposit of 26 dollars to try and cover the amount, they will process the debit before the credit and you’ll still wind up in the hole. 

Now, you can set up your card to refuse a transaction if there isn’t enough money on it–at that particular moment in time. Vendors do not always request payment at once–they can request 5-7 days later! Here’s a reasonable example.

Notice how the payment actually went through on the 22nd, but it says the payment was authorized a day prior? This is typical. Usually it’s processed within one business day, and you may see a pending transaction reflected in your balance. However, sometimes no pending transaction shows up–the finalized transaction will simply materialize the following day, arms flung open, crying, “WHAT NOW.” This is further complicated on weekends and holidays, when nothing is processed and it’s up to you to keep track of your funds. (Remember, weekend purchases are processed on Monday night, so you probably won’t see them until Tuesday morning!) Even better, different companies will request payment at different times. Starbucks and Subway are particularly bad about charging later rather than sooner (sometimes as late as a whole week!), whereas Wal-Mart requests payment instantaneously.

So if your account currently has $10 in it and you try to spend $25, the vendor should decline your card. Cool. But what if you have been shopping all day, and the vendors haven’t processed all of your transactions yet? Your account will look like it has $100 on it and when you swipe your card for that $25 purchase, it goes through. Then the other vendors ask for money the next day. Wham, bam, overdraft fees. You know what makes this better? When the vendor’s payment request is denied, so the vendor REPEATEDLY ASKS FOR THE FEE TO BE PAID. Usually they stop requesting after three attempts, but there are some vendors who will request far more often. So even as you’re scrambling to cover the overdraft fees you got hit with the previous day, you may get hit with MORE payment requests, which cause MORE overdraft fees.

Just as importantly, purchases involving the manual entry of your debit card number–such as online payments–won’t always decline. Yeah, even if you don’t have enough in your account! I don’t know why this is. It seems to depend on the company.

Long story short, DON’T RELY ON YOUR ONLINE BANK STATEMENT ALONE. You’re only safe if you manually keep up with your funds yourself. I highly suggest keeping a check register, which you can print out for free here, download as a free app for your iPhone, or receive for free at your bank. It definitely takes more time to log each purchase, but it’s very easy to forget how many payments you’ve actually made–and much easier on the wallet than overdraft fees.

so let’s say you check your account and think you have $65 left. you, being responsible, put $30 in the car to fill it and $20 on groceries. But… you forgot you used an atm from another bank at some point… so your bank charges you $3 for that. oh… and you were under the daily minimum, so they charged you $5 for that (so, you really only had $57 to begin with). Then you picked up a bag of chips and soda to contribute to the food for the weekly football game with your friends…$5. You think you’re still in the black with $10 and you’re only half right. you’re in the black with $2…. but then something happens… maybe your heater breaks down. your roommate scores a cheap as hell space heater and you need to give them half on it… $30. you’ve officially overdrafted. but you should have only done so once… with the last $30. Instead, what these banks will do is charge you $30, $30, $20, $5. So now… since you only had $57, the only one that doesn’t incur an overdraft fee is the first $30.

so now you’ve been charged $35 three times ($105) when you should have only been charged once for something out of your control. so now on top of already struggling with money, you suddenly owe the bank $105 in addition to the money you “didn’t have”, $28 ( = $3+$20+$5) and also have asshats who would rather paint you as irresponsible than consider perhaps banks may need to adjust their policies/algorithms/whatever if people are being punished for using money they actually had.