fandom connoisseur [derogatory]

So I’ll say it again: it is okay if you come to tumblr to escape upsetting news. It is okay if you’re just here for fun and fandom. It is okay if you do not want to use your tumblr as a place to read about or spread the current events that are circulating. It is okay if you need a place to decompress and just relax. There are other ways to be involved in/support causes and you are allowed to set boundaries on social media platforms without it being indicative of your belief systems. 

🇵🇸 From the second ESC semi-final: man waves a small Palestinian flag during Israel's performance, and is immediately escorted out by security

I've seen people try to excuse this by saying there's always been a list of approved flags for Eurovision.

And yes, while it's true that ESC has had an official flag policy for years now—with nation flags either limited to those with UN status, or to participating countries—it's also something that has only been selectively enforced in the past, and never which the kind of hostility we're seeing in Malmö right now.

The first time I remember hearing about the Eurovision flag policy was in 2016, when a Sami artist was representing Norway. The Norwegian broadcaster of ESC, NRK, reported then that the Semi flag was "technically" banned from the ESC arena, but that, according to ESC's the former head of communications, it would be up to the security at the arena whether they enforced this ban or not:

The music competition's rules state that it is only permitted to use flags from the participating countries, from countries that have previously participated, or from countries that are full members of the UN. It is therefore not allowed to wave the Sami flag when Agnete goes on stage on 14 May in Stockholm. - Technically speaking, that is correct, as the Sami flag is not part of the UN or is represented in the Eurovision Song Contest. I understand that the question can arouse emotions as Agnete has Sami roots, says Paul Jordan, communications manager for the Eurovision Song Contest to Sameradion in Sweden When asked what might happen if the public shows up with a Sami flag during the competition, the communications manager says that it will be up to the doormen to decide. - Technically, it is not allowed according to the current rules. Right now I don't know what would have happened at the entrance. Technically, it can be confiscated, but I cannot guarantee that, says Jordan to Sameradion.

I could write several paragraphs about just how revolting it is that the Sami flag was even banned to begin with (they reverted it in 2016, after months of backlash), but the point I want to drive home right now is that there is nothing "apolitical" about the EBU's flag policy, or the way it is enforced.

Reminder again to BOYCOTT EUROVISION 🇵🇸

I'm sorry, have you seen NATURE???

ALSO THE ARTIST IS HUMON, FIND THEM AT HUMONCOMICS.COM!! was so sure I had included that but apparently I forgot, so sorry!

You can also donate physical objects in high demand right now, if you have the $ to pay for international shipping prices, and send to this address [10 Avenue Des Messagers, Quartier Les Volcans, Commune de Goma, Ville de Goma, Province du Nord-Kivu, République Démocratique du Congo]. They need just about everything you use in a day to get by.

Clothing, socks, jackets, coats, (All sizes from infants to adults), purses, tote bags, backpacks.

Blankets, pillows & cases, bed sheets

Shoes, (All sizes!)

Cutlery, pots & pans, plates, cups, mugs (preferably plastic for the cups & plates so they don't break during shipment)

Over the counter medication & med supplies: ibuprofen (Advil), hydrogen peroxide, pain killers, bandages, bandaids, hand sanitizer, acetaminophen (Tylenol), cotton balls, gauze, deworming medication, compression wraps, saline solution, topical pain relief (Icy Hot), hydro-cortisone, detail, anti-funga treatment, surgical tape.

Baby formula, vitamins, water purification tablets, lifestraws, hair care / skin care products, pads & tampons, soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, wet wipes, baby wipes, diapers.

However! If you are in the U.S., you can send (shoes only) your packages to this address in the U.S. [Exile International, Entrance F. 3534 West End Ave. Nashville, TN 37205, United States] which will ship them to the previously listed address, so it's less cost for you!

And finally, you can also go volunteer with Focus Congo! Fill out the application here, and email them at [email protected], make sure to attach your resumé / CV, so they assign you to work that best suits your capabilities. Foreverjuicebae / juicebaeinthewild is one such volunteer and she posts regularly about the conditions of Congolese people in the DRC.

(if you scroll on this page you can see some of the sponsors who are also on bds lists)

Also check out the native-owned (pulitzer-prize winner Louise Erdrich started it!) bookstore and press Milkweed Editions (dot org) for an amazing selection of books by indigenous authors. I recommend Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer (a collection of essays that will change your thinking if your mind is open at all) that's great for sitting down to read for bite-sized chunks. For book recommendations, check out this infographic!

Do you own property and want to support landback but still need a place to live? Odds are good that there's established precedence in your area to transfer its jurisduction to a local tribe and pay your land taxes and etc to them instead of the settler government!

Here is a list of charities and fundraisers for indigenous support.

Other ways to educate yourself and learn what indigenous people are working on nationally and locally is to follow indigenous people online! Many Native peoples on various social medias tag with #indigenous, #native, and by looking at those you will find many other tags and people to follow.

looks like i droped my chart of alternatives to adobe software!

how clumsy of me!

it would seems i also dropped my link to flashpoint archive to play old archived adobe flash games and animations along with other old interactive elements in websites, with an included flash emulator!

Edit: just to be clear i didn't make the Adobe alternative chart, it was made by xdaniel on Twitter, here a link to the original post!

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I'm not trying to deny what's happening in Palestine , just understanding better. Where I live there's not coverage or news about it in the media so all I know is from social medias and we all know we can't trust everything on here.

Thanks

I think that’s a fair question to have.

Palestinians have always had to be creative when it comes to finding ways of survival.

For starters, when this aggression was in its early stages, telecom companies like PalTel would assure everyone that their coverage is built to last longer than other companies because, according to their CEO, they have been preparing for war for 15 years. For example, contrary to what other telecom companies do, PalTel run their cables way deeper than necessary to ensure less effects of bombing.

Later though, even PalTel had to go out of service for the most part due to Israel’s relentless bombing. Not to mention, Israel deliberately targets and kills telecom company workers who even try to repair damages to what remained of the network.

Now, the only viable option that Palestinians in Gaza have to connect with the outside world is in fact through e-SIMs. This initiative was started by Egyptian activist Mirna El Helbawi which you can actually donate to and help connect people in Gaza to reach their loved ones and to get help when needed. We hear stories every day of people not being able to notify the civil defense or medics about wounded people following airstrikes who later succumb to their injuries.

As for electricity, at the beginning of all of this carnage, people would use generators. This is actually quite a normal practice as the electricity in Gaza was never provided consistently so people would switch to generators regularly. However, generators are powered by fuel, which is something else that Israel cut off the strip.

So when people and shops ran out of fuel, people started utilising solar panels and continue to do that as their main source to charge phones. Some people would even start applying a fee to allow people to use their charging stations, which are usually set up in tents or on top of cars. Others would walk miles every day to access free solar powered charging stations to be able to charge their phones.

Still, Israel started targeting solar panels specifically so they are not as widely available as before and the dust and debris from bombing rendered a lot of those panels useless. Some people started using car batteries to set up charging stations now. 

With all of that, connections are weak and spotty and some people literally travel to other areas under so much threat just so they can connect and hear the voices of their loved ones. I was actually watching a video earlier today that shows people going on hilltops, raising their arms up hoping to "catch" a signal. 

the ones who:

-say dark things without realizing

-talk to themselves

-have homicidal thoughts

-get really, really angry

-make others uncomfortable on accident

-don't tolerate bullshit

-can't/won't mask

-have dark interests

-have genuinely hurt others before

-have been in a psych ward before

-obsess over people

-have intrusive thoughts about hurting people

-have sexual intrusive thoughts

-don't really care about others much

-always choose themselves first

-have low/no empathy

-are seen as creepy or scary by others

this goes out to my folks with autism that isn't "uwu cute". personality disorder havers. schizospec people. ocders. odd and ied havers. and anyone and everyone else.