Media is cool! Let's talk about it :)

Nicky (22, He/Him). Miscellaneous thoughts about media I've loved, what makes art compelling, and more? . BANNER ART NOT MINE - a commission by u/Arcturiss on Reddit, aka Proxentauri)

[andhumanslovedstories]

I started using Head and Shoulders ten years ago for itchy scalp and dandruff, and then for ten years I have not had itchy scalp and dandruff, so I thought “why do I still buy shampoo to combat itchy scalp and dandruff when I do not have itchy scalp and dandruff,” so I stopped buying the shampoo for itchy scalp and dandruff and can you guess I have now? Can you predict what currently afflicts me? It’s alright if you can’t because apparently I fuckin couldn’t either

[andhumanslovedstories]

Cutting something out of your life because you think you don’t need it any more only to realize that it was in fact working as intended and preventing a problem that will return should you stop doing this is a good experiment to run periodically with something small like dandruff shampoo, lest you start to think it would be a good idea to do this with like let’s say public health and the social safety net and vaccines

[thomrainierskies]

I had a liver transplant when I was 14 and like six months later I was chatting with my surgeon and he said “there’s gonna come a time, probably when you’re a teenager, where you’re gonna think, ‘I feel great, why am I still taking all this medication? I haven’t needed it in years.’ and you’re gonna want to stop taking all this medication. Guess what’s gonna happen then? You’re gonna go into rejection and your liver is gonna start failing, and you’re gonna be dying again, and we’re gonna have to find you another liver. So don’t do that.” And I said “why the fuck would anyone do that?” and he said “people are stupid.”

every once in a while when I get annoyed by a pharmacy or don’t wanna get out of bed to do my drugs I think “ugh, this is dumb, why do I do this?” and that conversation slams into me like a truck and I remember that I am, in fact, stupid

[zenosanalytic]

#you are not immune to the recency bias(via@arrows-for-pens)

[morethanonebraincell]

Every person on earth needs to read this post. It will make people’s lives a lot better and lessen the crises everyone faces in day-to-day lives.

[ziggy-scardust]

I reblog this every time I see it because I am not immune to the recency bias

[fleetwood-mac-andcheese]

[itsbasil]

you put those tags on this post where they belong

[beardedmrbean]

Next up someone is going to claim that the Narnia series isn't kids books.

Kids books is probably not the best way to word it, you can enjoy them at every age, including your childhood, as you get older you may find new truths in them, but they're still good for any age.

[cookingwithroxy]

I want you to understand this. I NEED you to understand this. My mother read me the hobbit as bedtime story, and I started pushing myself to read before pre-school so I could in fact read the hobbit for myself instead of having to wait for bedtime.

I didn't do so right away but jesus wept I PUSHED myself to learn to read SPECIFICALLY so I could read The Hobbit! It is, in fact, a children's story! And children only see page count as 'there is a lot of this fun story to read!'

[achillesjumped]

I learned to read complex books specifically because my mom read me The Hobbit and then Lord of the Rings as a kid. I was so enamoured by the worlds and the stories I wanted to be able to experience them myself. Kids don’t perceive length, and word complexity can be a fun challenge if you care enough about the story. It’s like people have forgotten that children are incredibly, unabashedly *curious*.

[catmask]

many people ask 'how do i know my art is good enough to start a comic'. this is a very common mistake. you do not make a comic to make good art you make comics because its fun and looked yummy

[catmask]

saying this very gently. how will you improve

[catmask]

me when i improve the skill by (checks notes) not doing it so no one sees me doing it badly

[taliabhattwrites]

Tumblr users will say "queer history" and mean "midcentury archival records from a specific US-American city that I have extrapolated into a universal mythos" and not even blink

[taliabhattwrites]

"learn your queer history" I am from fucking INDIA

[taliabhattwrites]

Maybe your queer elders fictional or otherwise were also influenced by the biases and contradictions of their own circumstances, time and place, and I am no more beholden to their ideas and ways of doing things than I am to any other form of tradition trying to constrain me.

Perhaps history is a conversation and not an edict.

[taliabhattwrites]

I fucking snortled

[lastoneout]

Fun how the bystander effect was coined to cover up how cops are bigoted cowards who let a queer person die and stockholm syndrome was coined to cover that the cops handled a hostage situation so badly the hostages trusted their captors more than the cops.

[foulmiraclekitty]

wait I didn't know this about the Stockholm syndrome thing? Can someone please educate me, I don't want to somehow accidentally speed misinformation about anything

[achillesjumped]

The police in a hostage situation in Stockholm really fucked up. The Wikipedia article (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome) has a pretty good overview. Tl;dr, the police put the hostages at risk, the hostages acted mistrustful, the police were confused, a psychiatrist invented Stockholm syndrome without talking to any of the hostages.

[crazysodomite]

The popularity of the "incompetent stupid piece of shit husband and competent wife who loves him anyways" trope in media is a psyop to make women believe its normal to settle for an incompetent stupid piece of shit husband

[opera-ghost]

[respectissexy]

Having experienced a lot of it in my 20s, I think some of the worst, pettiest, most straight up this-is-just-bullying-you're-passing-off-as-praxis incidences of Queer Infighting endemic to young people can be best understood as attempts to exercise power by people with very little power.

Like you're 22, you're queer, you've just become a Marxist, the scope of World Suck is overwhelming and you have $30 in your bank account. What can you do to feel like you have any power? Well, you can try to get your frenemy cancelled for cosplaying a character from a problematic show. You can write a public callout post over someone's obviously friendly use of a slur you don't think they technically have the right to reclaim. Doing this stuff can make you feel like you have power and your actions have an impact. Unfortunately the impact in question is a negative impact on other marginalized people. But that often takes some maturity and self-reflection to notice.

[drtanner]

I'm reminded of this post from 2017. To paraphrase, OP took part in community service via their university and part of that was cleaning the bathrooms at the local homeless community centre, which would frequently get trashed, not because the homeless people using them disrespected the work of the people cleaning them but because they had so little control over other things that happened in their lives, and the bathroom was something they could affect.

This, too, is a trashed bathroom; young queer people living through hell and having precious little control over their circumstances or the world in which they exist can affect something by using the language of social justice as a cudgel on their would-be allies, as well as getting a brief feeling of power over someone else by doing it.

It's not worth it. Don't trash your community bathrooms.

[justalittlespore]

Perhaps important to note here is that this is not necessarily something people do consciously. I've seen people say "well I would never do that," assuming that because they would never intentionally hurt someone to make themselves feel powerful, they are immune to it.

This sort of thing tends to happen subconsciously. You don't say to yourself, "I'm feeling powerless and therefore I will lash out at the one thing I can control." You just feel angry and frustrated in ways you can't necessarily describe and then for no apparent reason you see someone do something that can be construed as problematic if you squint at it sideways and have an overwhelming impulse to DO SOMETHING about it. You don't know where that impulse comes from, you just know that giving in to it feels good. It feels righteous. You are doing the right thing and that's why it feels good. Right?

That's why it's so easy to fall into this sort of behavior. It doesn't feel like you're trying to regain a sense of control over your own life. It feels like you are doing something righteous and justified and correct, and anyone who says otherwise is probably a bad person. And the more often this happens, the more times you call someone out over some bullshit, the more righteous it feels! And the more "Bad People" start crawling out of the woodwork to attack you (defending the people you've attacked and trying to explain why you're mistaken), the more targets you have.

In the end it leads to increasing isolation. You wind up being pulled into hateful groups like terfs who see you as an easy target. They reassure you that yes, you are doing the right thing, those people are bad. We understand and support you! Join us!

Eventually, the only way you know to feel good is to attack others, but in your mind, it feels good because you're doing good, you're making the world better, you're protecting someone or something. You're fighting against the Bad Guys.

And all the while you're cutting yourself off from your own community. You're not healing, you're not regaining control over your life, you're not making the world a better place. You're just hurting the people who are on your side.

It's not easy to avoid doing this. You can't just tell yourself "I'm a good person who would never harm my own community." That's not enough. You have to be vigilant. You have to ask yourself, whenever you feel an impulse to lash out at someone, whenever you feel a sense of Justice rising up in you that is directed at another marginalized person or group, whenever you feel yourself thinking that someone isn't being queer the Right Way, whenever you find yourself worrying about who is the Most Oppressed... You have to question it. Every time. It is HARD to do this. It is HARD to admit that you have the capacity to do harm even though you don't intend to. But you have to. For your sake, and for the sake of your whole community.

[respectissexy]

Thank you so much for this addition, @justalittlespore.

You would not believe how many people have reblogged this post with tags that basically say "ummmm sounds like the people who do this are Bad People and you should be a Good Person by not doing this. I'm a Good Person and would never do this."

That type of thinking makes you VERY AT RISK of doing this!!!

[apricops]

*trying to pitch public transportation to Americans* it’s like a legal form of texting while driving

[aropride]

ur clothes size doesnt say anything. like it doesnt say anything abt u as a person but it also especially doesnt say anything about what size your clothes are

[raccoonmilf]

If the only thing that has kept you going was outliving Mitch McConnell, imma need yall to pick a new person to outlive and fast. Your mission is not over.

[queerautism]

Hey so as the economy continues to get worse in the next few years, gambling companies are going to go extra hardcore predatory as people become more desperate. Yes, even more than they already are. You have to promise me right now you're not going to fall for it. No gambling, okay?

This is going to be especially bad with prediction markets and sports gambling, and it's already really fucking bad. But it also goes for loot boxes, blind box collectables, trading card games, and ESPECIALLY gacha games.

[ashenmind]

good lord this thing is useless

[fishmech]

idk what yall are mad about the new Lies Your Older Cousin Tells You machine is working great

[dragongirltongue]

Happy horse on mars day

[muppetshow2026]

i genuinely feel like im being edged

[imviotrash]

"Kill them with kindness" Nah, fuck that, CRICKET BAT 🏏 🏏🏏🏏*SMACK* 🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏

[the-haiku-bot]

“Kill them with kindness”

Nah, fuck that, CRICKET BAT 🏏 🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*

🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏

Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.

[bulbekuggeleh]

This opens up a lot of possibilities for what a haiku can be

[kushblazer666]