dark days and bright nights @liqueur-de-citron - Tumblr Blog

gnostiquette-deactivated2025061

the satan: oh foolish mortal...i greet you, to reveal your desires unto you! me: ok hey what's up the satan: i have decided to test you, to-day, to discern your commitment to The Good me: sounds great! so, do i have to reject a kingdom of glory and riches or refuse to jump off a building and make God save me or— the satan: oh no none of that. this'll be much simpler. i am going to present you with a series of ethical situations! ahahaha! me: oh sweet i think about these all the time the satan: perfect...it is time for The First Situation! now, picture a city that is so perfect, everyone is happy and no one is ever sad and there's cakes and festivals and orgies and— me: is this Omelas the satan: me: like this is just gonna be the Le Guin story with the kid in the basement right the satan: ...yeah. ok so there's the kid and the basement and there's the torture, ok yeah you know this one. right. so anyway...you have just learned about the kid being tortured in the basement. what is your judgement here? me: well uh, i guess i walk away the satan: aha but i didn't ask you what you'd do, did i? me: oh come on you tricky little fuck. ok. yeah this situation sucks the satan: and why, pray tell, do you say that is, despite all the happiness and nonsadness and cakes and festivals and orgies and whatnot? me: i suppose it's just that none of that shit justifies torturing a kid in a basement forever. also all that shit sounds kinda gay when you put it like that. like some weird Dutch fag shit the satan: ah. well, moving on, you whimsy-hating homophobe— me: what, just because i say that sounds like Dutch fag shit makes me homophobic? i'm gay you know i can call shit fag shit if i want the satan: —moving on, you would agree with the statement that whatever the consequence, it is inherently wrong to torture a child, hmm? me: well yeah that sounds about right the satan: aha...! me: wait why'd you make that noise the satan: wh-what me: that clicking noise. that was you right the satan: oh no no noise of things clicking into place emanated from my nostrils me: you worded that pretty weirdly, you know the satan: it's time for The Second Situation! you have cro— me: damn you just straight up evaded what i was saying the satan: —you have crossed The First Situation, i was saying, so now it is time for round two. ahem. now, firstly, would you agree that, in general, lying and stealing and cheating are bad? me: well, yeah. i don't like lying, and in general it seems pretty fucked up to cheat and steal the satan: so now you have come across a man in the street who is starving and wounded. after one hour he will die if he is not fed and treated for his wound. there is a store nearby but you are flat broke and have no pocket money, and begging isn't an option. even if you ask your friends to PayPal you they will not be able to get back to you for another two hours. the ER is too far away and there's too much traffic for an ambulance to arrive and take him there in less than an hour and a half, but there is a clinic nearby able to take anyone immediately. however the clinic only accepts people with insurance, and neither of you have an insurance card. you are, however, fairly confident that you can make up fake details that they would be willing to accept. me: what are you trying to write a Jacobin article or something. i'm already a socialist, you don't need to lay out how fucked up our healthcare system or whatnot is, i already know— the satan: okok sure this would never happen under socialism blahblahblah the point is what would you do in this situation me: but in the last one the point was my judgement not what i do. this is getting confusing the satan: DIFFERENT SITUATIONS HAVE DIFFERENT RULES OK?? GOD JUST LEAVE IT AT THAT FOR NOW God: OH HEY SATAN DID YOU JUST CALL UPON ME the satan: HOLD ON I'M STILL TESTING THIS GUY GIVE ME A SECOND God: OH OK THAT'S YOUR JOB AFTER ALL. I SHALL LEAVE YOU TO IT. JUST DON'T BE TOO MEAN

the satan: FUCK. ok. ok. anyway here's the question. assuming you're also relatively confident you can shoplift without getting caught, do you steal a couple things from the store for the man to eat and do you present fake information to the clinic to get them to accept the guy and treat his wound me: yeah totally. i don't want him to die or anything. i'd gladly do just about anything to save someone's life the satan: so in other words, doing bad things like lying, stealing, and cheating in order to accomplish a good thing such as saving a life is good, right? me: sure, i'd say so the satan: AAAAAHH-HAA! i have TRAPPED you! for your response to the first situation implies that good inheres in the act itself, regardless of consequences, and your response to the second implies that good inheres in the consequences of an act, regardless of the means!

me: i mean...not necessarily? like— the satan: wh-what do you mean, mortal me: well, perhaps i think the negative consequences of torture for the child far outweigh the positive consequences for everyone else the satan: what the fuck is that you're doing me: oh i mean you're doing red text, i figure i do blue text, i figure this is like an Umineko thing or whatever the satan: fine. sure. you can do that. whatever. none of this matters to me. why did i pick this fucking job in the first place me: the satan: ...ok, the townspeople get far more happiness than the kid gets suffering me: but what if suffering itself is worth more in moral accounting than happiness, for instance the satan: then how about this? in the second example, you could have caused the shop to shut down due to lost trust with the distributor! you could have caused the clinic to lose their licence over insurance fraud! those could have easily caused far more suffering than if the man simply passed out and died after an hour! me: that's...that sounds far-fetched, but you said it in red, so. ok what if good actually inheres in the character of the person doing the act, so a virtuous person would refuse to sanction torturing a child for the greater good and gladly steal and cheat to save a man's life the satan: virtue ethics is unable to provide actionable guidance! me: oh? the satan: all you can do is imagine what a virtuous person would do, and different people have wildly different imaginations! me: well hmm. that's fair. i'm not sure i could personally live with that, especially in an age where we're getting ever closer to potentially misaligned AI. what if there's rules that say you must never do some things but then other rules can be broken if there's something more important the satan: if those rules exist, then list them off and justify them to me >: ) me: uh, don't torture, don't rape...don't kill is up there, but what if you're killing someone to defend someone else...wait fuck no, what about bombing civilians to end a war, that doesn't sound justifiable at all...god damn it... God: OH HELLO YES I'M BACK the satan: NO FUCK NO WAIT NO God: HELLO DEAR SWEET MORTAL CHILD. IS MY EMPLOYEE BEING TOO HARD ON YOU? OH DEAR I CAN GIVE YOU AN ANSWER IF THIS IS GOING TOO POORLY the satan: oh come on please just let me do my job like normal God: MY DEAR LITTLE CREATURE I HOPE YOU KNOW YOU CAN SIMPLY RELY ON MY EDICT AND ALL THESE DILEMMAS BECOME AS DUST IN THE BROOM OF AN OLD FAT LADY me: why thank you, my Lord, but no matter how perfect You are, it remains that divine command theory is a fundamentally subjectivist theory that cannot provide a truly objective and impersonal basis for ethics, and subjective morality is not a risk i'm really willing to take God: BUT AREN'T I PERFECT FOR YOU AND ALL THINGS MY PRECIOUS LITTLE CREATION me: why, yes, but there's a small but persistent chance You're a figment of my imagination, just like the satan over here, and— the satan: hhHHEYYY NOW me: —and i know that You love righteousness, so really i'd rather continue pleasing You even if You weren't around to tell me what righteousness is God: WHY THAT IS VERY SWEET OF YOU. YOU KNOW WHAT I'M JUST GOING TO STRAIGHT UP LIFT YOU TO HEAVEN LIKE THAT MERRY OLD FELLOW FAUST me: wait huh the satan: w-wait Lord don't you think you're being a bit hasty in judgement a chorus of angels: [grabbing me and lifting me into the aether] ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*HE WHO STRIVES ON AND LIVES TO STRIVE CAN EARN REDEMPTION STILL*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ me: [rapidly disappearing into the sky, utterly bewildered] wait. hold on. hold up. wait,

dduane

(chuckle)

niconebula

I need you guys to listen so bad, but I’m at least glad people on Twitter are starting to talk about this. The government of Canada is expanding Medically Assisted Death to cull the poor and disabled, and now suicidal and mentally ill (these are usually interchangeable of course here). It is EUGENICS and every single disabled rights organization is against it.

Disability payments are $1,200 a month. The average one bedroom apartment rent in the Greater Toronto Area (greatest pop. area by far here) is $2,000 a month. People with mental illnesses are on months long waitlists to get even a single publicly funded session. Weeks to get privately funded care which costs at least $200 a session. There is no housing here for disabled people. We are in one of the worst housing crises in the world right now.

Doctors are now offering MAiD unprompted to young suicidal people. This woman is 21, a health practitioner literally suggested she kill herself.

This is one of the worst Disability Rights Violations we’ve ever seen in Canada. The government is killing us because it is cheaper than funding healthcare, cheaper than giving people housing and food and basic human rights.

xylophonetangerine

Stop being so dramatic. If you don’t want MAID, don’t submit a request for it. It’s that simple. The government is not just killing people randomly.

vaspider

That’s a lot of words for “I don’t understand how coercion works.”

Asshole. :)

queerfictionwriter

For all the people going “sources?!” or who are trying to claim that this is fearmongering:

This article(1) here, among others listed below, will help us set the stage upon which this atrocity, re: MAiD is taking place:

between 2018 and Sept 2022, the provincial disability pension in Ontario, the most-populated province in Canada, was a) frozen, and b) $1169/mo. for a single adult

never fucking mind that inflation went fucking bananas during the pandemic, and that the offered pandemic income supports discriminated against disabled people(2), as the only ones eligible to receive pandemic funding were those who worked and made over a certain amount of money, so help was largely unavailable

The actual help the federal govt offered was a paltry and insulting one-time payment of up to $600, but only if you had valid paperwork in before Sept of 2020, and weren’t receiving other benefits(3) (4)

in Sept 2022, Ford’s Conservative govt raised that amount by a whole 5%, which is absolutely less than what the cost of living went up by, to $1228/mo

In southern Ontario–where the majority of access to medical care, especially specialized care is–even outside of the GTA, the standard amount required to pay rent for a one-bedroom apartment is over that $1228/mo (a) (b) ©

if you live with someone else, as a co-renter, you will be screened to determine if your relationship with that person is what they deem to be “spousal”; if it is found to be such, their finances will be investigated. If they make too much money, you will not receive benefits, bc you’re officially that person’s problem, not the govt’s

if you rent a room in a house, you will receive less than the $1228/mo., bc you are considered a “lodger”, not a “renter”, and they will dock your shelter allowance accordingly

Currently, any disabled person on ODSP who works is allowed to earn $200/mo before clawbacks begin, which happen at a rate of fifty cents per dollar for every dollar over that $200 cap

ex: if someone earned $250, then their income for the month would be cut by $25; meaning that, functionally, their additional income for the month is $225

Ford plans to “help” this terrible situation, by raising the earnings cap, while also increasing the clawback rate: now, you can make up to $1000/mo, but the clawback is now seventy-five cents on every dollar made over that.

there are currently about 378, 145 people on ODSP, the provincial disability support, in the province

of those, an estimated 25, 000 are working

those who are not working will not receive a further increase in benefits

this means, functionally, that 6.6% of those on ODSP in Ontario will see some sort of positive change to their situation

over 200 advocacy groups are shrieking at Ford to pretend to have some humanity and double the ODSP rates; Ford says “no”

meanwhile, he maintains that “the best way out of poverty is something called a job”

Add to this that Ford cancelled the Basic Income Pilot Project when he was first elected, pre-pandemic, despite the fact that the data being collected indicated it was doing EXACTLY what it was supposed to (5). And that, when first elected in 2018, his plan was to tighten restrictions on ODSP, making it harder to qualify for, while simultaneously increasing the clawback rate on those who work while on welfare, and slashing the planned increase to welfare rates(6)–a govt assistance program that has some really horrifying requirements, by the way(7).

So now that the absolute horror of trying to survive as a disabled person despite our provincial leader believing that people on social assistance programs “have their hands in the public trough”(8) has been established as one of the stages upon which this MAiD controversy is playing out, here, have even MORE sources about the eugenics of all this specifically:

There is a man who is choosing MAiD specifically because of poverty. (9) There was a woman who chose MAiD after two years of relentless self-advocacy, and advocacy on her behalf by friends, family, and medical staff, that amounted to nothing–she was unable to find housing she could live in that did not worsen her disabilities (10). Another woman who simply cannot live, because the special diet and treatments she needs are expensive, and not covered by her disability benefits–and aren’t ones she can afford to pay for, on her disability pension, so she’s choosing MAiD out of “brutal practicality” (11).

This article (12) discusses the issues in depth with why making MAiD available to people with mental illness–whose only qualifying illness is mental illness–is deeply problematic, which includes the fact that wait lists for mental health help–if it is available at all, and if it is covered for you through insurance/benefits of some kind–can take anywhere from four months to nearly a year and a half, and as soon as you’re referred to another service, you’re put on another wait list. It also acknowledges that Canada’s guidelines are the least stringent of countries that offer medical assistance in dying, and that laxity is most pronounced when it comes to applicants that are applying for mental health reasons. This article (13) points out that, while the current applications are reasonably low, they are rising quickly, and 81% of written applications for MAiD are being approved. Of those who were not approved, 2% withdrew their application, 13% died before being approved, and 4% were rejected. Four percent actual rejection rate. I don’t know about you, but that terrifies me.

Especially when this article (14) backs up all of the above, and offers further examples of people offered–or even given–MAiD–in inappropriate circumstances, such as against family member’s wishes when the family member was checked into a mental health ward (15), or when a veteran was advised to consider MAiD when he was seeking treatment. What’s worse is that there’s no way for a family to review the decision-making process, or a method by which to hold the doctors and institutions responsible for suspected wrongful euthanasia deaths. This happened despite the supposed safeguards in place, as well as a palliative care physician stating outright that poverty, not pain or suffering, is driving disabled people to seek help ending their lives, and getting that help, because Canada has the most permissive guidelines in the world and provincial governments that are happy to mandate that disabled people who can’t work live in legislated poverty. It also mentions that seniors have reported being given a choice between nursing homes and MAiD, which is ageist in addition to ableist, and a whole new level of horrifying in an already-appalling state of affairs.

And, in case anyone wants to argue that still isn’t eugenics, somehow, this Vancouver palliative physician, Dr. Margaret Cottle sums it up pretty nicely(16): “In British Columbia it takes less paperwork and less assessment to get MAiD than it does to receive government-supported home oxygen.” That article also states that the Canada Health Act enshrines assistance in dying as a right–but palliative care, the kind of medical care you get at the end of your life, is not equally enshrined. When your choices are “suffer because the govt and society has decided against supporting you in accessing the basics of what you need to live comfortably” or “quick, easy, assured death”, the latter is not a freely-made choice. The bodily autonomy to be able to die with dignity is important, yes, but this? This system, as it exists right now? Is so fucking broken that the only reason there isn’t rioting in the streets about it is because disabled people are the minority group it’s still socially acceptable to discriminate against. And because disabled folk, due to, y’know, being disabled, have a hard time mobilizing to riot on our own behalf.

Oh, and let’s not forget: the COVID-19 pandemic is a mass-disabling event(17). Post-viral illnesses and long COVID are real, and because of the issues in getting diagnosed, the rates could be anywhere from 10%-30% of people who’ve contracted COVID. Which seems relevant, here.

1) https://globalnews.ca/news/9276379/province-quintuple-exempt-earnings-ontario-disability-support-recipients/

2) https://www.thestar.com/business/2021/11/26/cerb-and-crb-discriminated-against-canadians-with-disabilities-new-charter-challenge-claims.html

3) https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2020/05/30/people-with-disabilities-forgotten-amid-covid-19-pandemic-advocates-say-in-plea-for-federal-support.html

4) https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2020/06/05/prime-minister-announces-supports-canadians-disabilities-address

5) https://nowtoronto.com/news/doug-ford-basic-income-poverty-welfare/

6) https://nowtoronto.com/news/doug-ford-basic-income-poverty-welfare/

7) https://www.ontario.ca/page/rights-and-responsibilities-ontario-works-clients-and-beneficiaries

8) https://pressprogress.ca/10-cruel-and-unusual-ways-doug-ford-has-made-life-worse-for-the-people-of-ontario-since-last-years-election/

9) https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/assisted-suicide-for-poverty/

10) https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/woman-with-chemical-sensitivities-chose-medically-assisted-death-after-failed-bid-to-get-better-housing-1.5860579

11) https://www.chatelaine.com/health/maid-assisted-death-poverty/

12) https://www.ctvnews.ca/w5/the-death-debate-why-some-welcome-canada-s-move-to-assisted-dying-for-mental-illness-and-others-fear-it-1.6109646

13) https://beta.ctvnews.ca/national/health/2022/8/13/1_6025922.amp.html

14) https://globalnews.ca/news/9176485/poverty-canadians-disabilities-medically-assisted-death/ (if you only choose to follow up on one of these links, to only read one? Read this one.)

15) https://apnews.com/article/covid-science-health-toronto-7c631558a457188d2bd2b5cfd360a867

16) https://www.catholicregister.org/item/34948-surprise-support-for-anti-maid-campaign

17) https://finance.yahoo.com/news/long-covid-patients-doctors-america-172004184.html

tagging @allthecanadianpolitics in hopes of a signal boost

natalieironside

There's something very sad about all those posts that are like "Dumb city people who post #aesthetic pictures of deer are stupid because if they actually went to the country and saw a deer they'd know that deer are stupid garbage animals and they suck" cuz like I came here from the woods & I still think deer are nice to look at after seeing them regularly my entire life & eating many of them so idk I think this is less about city people and is more of a "stop and smell the roses" type of situation

discodeerdiary

For real I'll post all the aesthetic pictures of city pigeons and squirrels I want

natalieironside

Me fr

discodeerdiary

I used to live in an area where turkeys roamed the sidewalks and they were a perfect blend of majestic and silly

natalieironside

Now this is fuckin great

zooophagous

Honestly the more I encounter the city turkeys the more majestic I find them. They're truly very impressive, beautiful birds. Even when they're trying to fight their reflection on a car in the parking lot.

itsvictorfreeze

Op has clearly never had a deer eat all their roses, the geranium their grandma gave them and all the birdseed they put out. Deer are nice to look at, but they ruin every nice thing you try to do with your yard.

natalieironside

You must be a real hoot at parties

discodeerdiary

Sometimes I wander through rich people's neighborhoods and take little bites out of their gardens

stillnotfivefoot

to this day, i still find it really fucking funny how wilbur's the only canonical child of supposedly both philza and death, yet he never managed to snag either of their inhumane genes. mans could've been a mix between a crow and a omnipotent god/spawn of death but got stuck as the most generic guy they could've asked for and im all here for it. not even a crumb of cross-breed.

nicostiel

#this had to be done

hey-hamlet

“rent lowering gunshots” this, “we can’t let them know we like it here” that, i think everyone is just having fun posting cringe

hey-hamlet

you, you get it.

kotyawtf

petitelappin

This child who came to my house tonight is literally the funniest human being on the planet. She complimented me on having both lollipops and mini Three Musketeers available because "a lot of houses these days don't give you a fruit flavor option." She was very solemn about this.

rattledazzlebones

Kind of obsessed with the tumblr Twitter account

mintcandii

Touch starved

napstawantstosleep

C! Eret has been on my mind lately and I noticed that their growth as a character was mostly them accepting their mistakes and making peace with their past self haha my life model fr

feminetomboy

THE STAR - Forgiveness after destruction.

You have endured many challenges and yet... you are ready to love again.

---

After so long, I can finally show you this Tubbo inspired by the Star Tarot arcana that I drew for XDivination. This was freshly after Wilbur's A Year Later stream. I thought Star fit him the best -- he's endured so much, but he has the hope to move on.

If you want to own this physically, consider going over to the XDivination Twitter or Tumblr, as the zine is currently selling leftovers.

rubysapphrald

[click for higher quality] been imagining some sort of character selector or perhaps a gacha game with all the silly outfits. try to collect them all

twistcmyk

bananonbinary

i just saw the tag “canon complicit” instead of “canon compliant” and im laughing its like “canon is a criminal act that i unfortunately support with this fic”

quillingmesoftly

The Three Grades:

Canon Compliant: “This fic goes along with canon.” (Because I like it? Because I’m too tired to disagree by writing my own fic? Who knows? The author may or may not tell us.)

Canon Compatible: “Listen, I know it ISN’T canon, but think of it as Microsoft Office for Mac, it’s COMPATIBLE with canon, and that counts.”

Canon Complicit: “I have not died a hero, so I have become an accessory to the Villainy of Canon.”

faustandfurious

Canon Compatible is a great term for when your fic is Probably Not What Tolkien Would Have Wanted but it doesn’t really contradict anything in canon either

quillingmesoftly

#you can install this fic without canon crashing and that’s what matters