habibi means beautiful

10 notes and I drink water everyday

20 notes and I eat 3 meals a day even if it means being late for school in the morning

50 notes and I take on of those gender test things to see if I’m non-binary

100 notes and I try and get at least 6 hours of sleep a night

200 notes and I start writing the fic again

500 notes and I’ll eat less unhealthy food

2000 notes and I’ll ask go on a walk every day

5000 notes and I’ll read homestuck

10,000 notes and I’ll start learning how to draw

15,000 notes and I’ll ask my mum if I can go to therapy (please no)

20,000 and I’ll ask my crush out (please no again)

According to the Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary as of 2022, “freedom” is primarily defined as “the quality or state of being free: such as the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action”. Freedom is often praised in the United States of America and similar countries, but most of us lack a type of freedom: the freedom to obtain.  “Free” is primarily defined by Merriam-Webster as “not costing or charging anything”. Most products are not free to obtain in capitalist countries; these include food, water, shelter, health care, and electricity. The artificial need to trade – usually with currency – for these necessary goods and services and others is fundamental to capitalism. One receives and is usually indebted until payment, but what if that was not the case?

Conservative ideology frowns upon the provision of free products, but the benefits outweigh the lone negative of possible laziness. Even then, that negative can be resolved by reorienting the common motivation to work from the need to make a living to the need to help others live/thrive. Why not help others when your own survival is already maintained? Beyond that issue, plenty of benefits come from the wide-reaching removal of debt/trade:

No More Inflation: Monetary inflation beyond money supply changes comes from market equilibrium based on maximizing profit. When demand rises and/or supply sinks, businesses raise prices in order to earn the most money possible after paying for production, delivery, and other costs. If currency is no longer exchanged, no prices can be increased for that: neither in oil, food, higher education, nor housing.

No More Poverty: Poverty is an issue related to inflation. While inflation is the economic problem all conservative movements target, poverty is the economic problem all progressive movements target. Too many people do not receive enough money to afford healthy lives, let alone save and invest. This would not be a problem in the absence of prices altogether.

No More Inequality: Wealth inequality relates to the impossibility of profit in the absence of debt and is the primary concern of socialists. If no surplus value – as measured by the money in profits – can be taken away from the working/proletarian class whose efforts brought products to consumers, the rich/investor/bourgeois class cannot gather more and more wealth. Without that accumulation and the corruption investors establish to keep winning, their employees would finally be able to control decision making at work and on public policy.

No More Bankruptcy: Without the need for repayment of debts, no debt can overwhelm the assets anyone owns and induce devastating bankruptcy. This applies to student debt, mortgages, medical bills, and governmental shortfalls. Yes, even federal debt would be null and void.

Almost No More Violence: The most common forms of violence – including international wars, police attacks on USA First Amendment rights, gang warfare, and robberies – are centered around gaining and keeping resources. Without assets to be gained from trade, almost no one would threaten or attack others over territory or goods but would share instead. People would also not attack out of desperation from destitution and might not even attack out of revenge in a world without artificial scarcity.

Okay, I wasn’t going to do this, but it kept eating at me (and other people around me). So. Let it be known that I am a South African Bisexual cis female.

“Corrective rape was a term coined by South African lesbians! Thus this is a lesbian-only term!” is something that’s getting thrown around a lot by the Discourse Brigade. 

The first time I saw this I burst into laughter. I mean, I am the victim of corrective rape and never have I ever been told by any of my lesbian sisters to not use this term. It never occurred to anyone I know that I would not be able to use this term, or that this is not what my sexual assault was.

It was yet another example of how silly people could be. Were people who had never spoken to a single LGBT+ South African really going to be this ignorant? 

I never took it seriously for a second because, really? Surely nobody actually thought that South African Lesbians were gonna expect everyone to conform to some nebulously specific list of things to qualify to use the term “corrective rape”. 

But hey, as an African you get used to people talking over you and thinking you ride to school on a lion. Whatever, you laugh and you move on. 

But I couldn’t move on. 

Because people kept telling other people that they were, I don’t know, spitting on people’s graves, for using this term “incorrectly”. 

So let me tell you this right now: If your assault happened because you do not conform precisely to your society/culture’s cisheteronormative* values, congratulations! You get to use the term corrective rape. Compliments of your South African brethren. 

End. Of. Fucking. Discussion. 

Now- let me tell you why I couldn’t move on. 

Because the assholes that are policing the use of this term are spitting on the graves of every single one of my fucking ancestors. 

Allow me to explain. 

South Africa is a really unique place. Did you know we have eleven (11) official languages? That’s not including the minority ethnic groups that call my country home. 

Now, when you realise that you have nine (9) traditionally black South African cultures, two (2) white cultures, the Chinese people, the Indian people, Other Africans… You may begin to figure out we’re really fucking diverse. 

And we’re pretty proud of that diversity. Post Apartheid. 

Apartheid was a system built- at its core- on ‘us’ vs ‘them’. It wasn’t inclusive. It separated people. It put some people in positions of power over others. It redefined the term ‘gatekeeping’ (in my opinion).

It was really fucking nasty. 

It killed a lot of people. 

And then Nelson Mandela came along. You know the story- he was imprisoned and instead of hating everyone he taught love and inclusion (after Winnie Mandela got him freed whilst running the Struggle- go read up on her. She’s a true feminist icon). 

He is the father of our nation. And he taught us that hatred and bigotry and exclusion are never ever the way to go. 

Afrikaans is still an official language. Part of the old Afrikaans anthem is still included in our official anthem. 

We are taught that this is our country’s way forward. 

We’re the Rainbow Nation! 

LGBT+ people were granted every single right American LGBT+ people are still fighting for in our constitution in 1994. 

But unfortunately, this lead to a huge homophobic backlash. 

Thus- corrective rapes started happening all across the country. 

But! The assholes who rape people? They don’t ask whether you’re lesbian or gay. They don’t check your credentials. 

They can rape the girl who’s a little too ‘butch’ for their tastes, or the boy who might not play football (soccer for the Americans). 

They do not care if you are a card carrying member of the LGBT+! They care only for the fact that you don’t look masculine/feminine enough. That you might have been staring at a boy/girl. That you said no earlier. Maybe you have a LGBT+ friend, so obviously you’re the same. Or hell, maybe your parents know you’re LGBT+ and they pay someone to rape it out of you. Maybe your arranged husband does it on your wedding night. 

They do not care how you do not conform to societal standards- only that you do not. 

And in South Africa we know this. 

We know that no one’s rape is exactly the same as anyone else’s. Because it could never be exactly the same. 

So yeah, here a completely straight white girl could use the term “corrective rape” and no one, no one, would bat an eyelash. Because she was correctively raped. 

Because we know that united we stand, but divided we fall. And we have fallen so very very far in our past. 

So no. 

You do not get to fucking gatekeep this term which my brothers and sisters and I in this struggle have shed our blood and tears in. 

You do not get to exclude people in our name.

Not when we freely gave this term to the world to use as and if needed.

Kindly respect us and our culture enough to not spit directly into our and our forefathers faces. 

*I’m so sorry Trans Tumblr. I couldn’t find another word that really worked here. 

** Yes, I have spoken to my fellow LGBT+ brethren. This is a PSA from the majority of us. If only because I cannot speak for all South Africans. Some of us are assholes too. 

Btw, for anyone questioning or denying that there are Tumblr lesbians arguing a-specs and any “non-lesbian” (in quotes bc a-specs CAN be lesbian) can’t use this term, here are some receipts taken on 01/01/17 - [PROCEED W/ CAUTION!!!!

For the first or second accuser?

The first? No, it was at worst cringey flirty texts

The second? That's more complicated, mostly because the evidence she does out forward is a lot more trustworthy than the first account, but there are claims she makes that she just can't prove. Whether or not it was grooming is a different matter. So serious accusations, enough evidence to look suspect but not enough to immediately say groomer

I'm withholding judgement on the situation until actual proof one way or the other comes forward. Both people have mentioned legal action, and I do think that is the logical next step. A court of law will be able to fact find and collect evidence far better than a bunch of randos on the internet.

I don't want to dismiss the accuser's claims, but I am also not willing to take them at face value. They could be true, they could be false. There isn't enough evidence to say something did or didn't happen.

i dont use twt, i dont rlly follow any people who cover drama and so i found out ab the grooming allegations from the people i do follow vague posting ab it. which-- alr, im writing this just to vent and ill probably delete it later so here we go

im a bit annoyed at many peoples-- fans of dream-- response to this. a lot of its emotional, people being devastated by the news that a cc theyre so attached to is potentially a pedo. like yeah, fuck, that is pretty upsetting on its own. but where is the logic . the critical thinking. come on, people. you are capable of it. ive seen how capable you are.

now. to be fair a lot of the ppl i follow are young and very emotionally invested in this man and use twitter, and if i know anything about the damn internet its that twitter is some kind of fuckin virus. its emotionally draining, it is practically made for going after your sensitivities and insecurities and hopes and fears and all that shit.

the second i figured out the entire situation , i knew it wasnt true. dream is not a damn pedo, or a groomer, or whatever stupid big trigger word theyre throwing at him. and its simple why i know, why its so goddamn obvious.

its DREAM. and i say this with full confidence bc ive heard him talk. about his aspirations , his mistakes, his feelings, ive seen him act it out. weve seen it.

he lives with two extremely close and clearly stable, smart friends. he has many other friends who vouch for him, who have shown integrity and intelligence in their own right.

groomers are idiots. pedos are sick. there are reasons they are like that. dream is neither. he has so many good supports in his life, hes had rough patches as any young and learning and growing person would and he has SHOWN that hes learning and figuring shit out and hes progressing so well, listening and caring and again, its literally visible . the way he speaks ab things, the actions he takes.

i get how important that whole "listen to the victim" shit is, but god. that doesnt mean entirely fucking discard the evidence of innocence on one side of the accusations. take a step back from twitters poisonous moral fear mongering, take a step back from any emotional investment or parasocial feelings you have for dream. look at his behaviour objectively. hes not a villain, hes not a bad guy, hes not a stupid one, hes not the type of person who would do anything like that.

dont doubt what youve seen from this stupid fucking idiot minecraft youtuber. theres a reason you get so attached to him in the first place . hes genuine, hes easy to love because of it.

on the other side of this. the people accusing him very obviously have a malicious agenda. doing this at the height of his popularity, right after he face revealed and is getting ready to do entirely new content ? the wording they use ? god, its so cancel culture it hurts. fuck off with that shit. its disgusting how many times people try and spin popular ccs into pedos and how many fans fall for it bc theyre so scared its true. shut up your fear and think. i say this with a polite tone, bc i am too annoyed to be gentle.

First, the flags in the pic are mislabeled. The "old" lesbian flag, known as the Lipstick Lesbian flag (2010), is derived from the Cougar Pride flag (2008) with a color change, most notably having a giant lipstick mark. This flag was for, specifically, Lipstick Lesbians, a subculture of Lesbians, and wasn't adopted by most Lesbians. The creator of the flag was noted saying some pretty awful stuff to many groups like butches, bi women, Asian women, and trans women.

When the flag was posted on DeviantArt, the lipstick mark was removed to avoid tracing the detailed mark in vector. This was the "Pink" (Lesbian) Flag (2015), though is also referred to as the Lipstick (Lesbian) Flag as well. People liked this flag, but also found out about it's rocky past and sought a new flag.

In a combination of the pink flag, and newly made Butch flags (the one used being a yellow to orange flag), the Sunset Lesbian flag (2018) was created. Later that year, a 5-stripe version was also created. The orange has nothing to directly do with trans inclusivity, and rather is for butch inclusivity as the first few flags where for that subgroup of lipstick lesbians.

The Labrys flag is something completely different from these flags, has a completely different history, controversy, etc. All these flags have been made relatively recently and there are a lot of opinions everywhere, and this barely scratches the history of Lesbian flags. The Pink/Lipstick flag is not inherently bi-phobic, trans-phobic, nor racist, but it does have a tapered history, and this post is way too long to get into the meaning of flags, identities and what it means to the self and others.

Flags pictured and labeled below: