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almost home
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if i look back, i am lost
shark vs the universe
KIROKAZE
"I'm Dorothy Gale from Kansas"
TVSTRANGERTHINGS
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occasionally subtle
Monterey Bay Aquarium
@theartofmadeline
Kaledo Art
Andulka
Jules of Nature
Product Placement
trying on a metaphor
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#extradirty
Cosimo Galluzzi
seen from Malaysia
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@regulusblacklovers
Transparent Lipgloss Gif (lipgloss matches colour of your blog)
i swear i have reblogged this today like sooo many times, its so nice
HOLY FUCKING SHIT
i love this
i cant even stop watching this
such smooth
very lips
wow
reblogging for doge
I must reblog thissssss
Alright I have got to see this
Cool, it does work!
#tw: dynamite gal
Oh wait now I get what triggers are
Yeah, see, THIS is a trigger. Something that prompts a horrible flashback that makes someone go into a literal panic attack. It is NOT something that makes you slightly uncomfortable, so can we all just stop tossing that word around like it’s nothing.
thank you Wreck It Ralph
Reblogging for valuable commentary
Also, can we talk about how Felix dealt with it? He NEVER used that word again (only once in front of Ralph, never by her), there was never any talk about how she could get over it, and in their wedding they all made plans to help her with her paranoia by recognising her fears and showing she was safe by pointing guns at the window and having extra security.
A++++++ on dealing with mental issues magnificently, Wreck-It Ralph!
Will never not reblog this when I see it
also this was the greatest 5 second character development in cinematic history
Georgia Aquarium
Wow, sea lion Neptune can really dance.
i’m so fucking pessimistic and depressing. everyone so joyful and happy for this sea lion and all i fucking see is animal abuse, captivity, and this poor animal performing for “treats”
i need a therapist 😔
no, you need reeducation as to WHY zoos are brilliant and why they teach animals to preform “tricks”. this is not animal abuse.
you yourself should make the effort to learn something instead of assuming the worst, but training these animals accomplishes two things:
-entertainment FOR the animal! its playing, its excersising, its healthy and active, the sealion is playing with the keeper in a way that benefits it. the keeper herself is NOT making contact with the animal, shes respecting its space.
-the keeper can check the animals physical health. those tricks? you can see the flexibility in the sealions tail, its ballance when standing, the strength of its movements. chances are there are other keepers watching and checking for scratches or injuries that might have occured if this sealion shares an enclosure.
zoos are good, this video is cute. dont be a fucking downer and do some research
TEACH PEOPLE THE WORD “ENRICHMENT”!
zoos (or any place that cares for animals) will play with the animals, and teach them easy “tricks” that earn them treats, so the animals understand “I do thing you want, I get a goodie”, and when it comes time to give them a physical check-up, they can motion for the animal “Sit here, hold still, let me look in your ear, OK time for a goodie”. the positive rewards for the constant behavior, both playful and important, helps the animals trust the people taking care of them. animals that get to play when THEY feel like it, according to their specific needs or a routine they are comfortable with, is good. other people who come to zoos to watch the animals play, or just chill out, is also good, the only time it is a problem is when places FORCE animals to perfom constantly or for a routine that suits the humans, and makes them do tricks that are too difficult. if the animals are tired, hurt, forced to do things that are outside of normal behavior, forced to do things in a stressful setting, and get punished for not performing, THAT is abuse
ERASE the idea that America saved lives by dropping two atomic bombs on Japan from your minds. ERASE the idea that it was anything more than a political move to scare Russia and also to satiate US curiosity as to the true ability of nuclear weapons. Nagasaki and Hiroshima were not military bases. They were heavily populated civilian cities chosen precisely bc the U.S. wanted to see how many people an atomic bomb could kill in one go. Japan was on the verge of surrendering, the U.S. literally wanted to test out their nuclear weapons on people that they deemed disposable. That is it. If those bombs were dropped by any nation other than the US veryone involved would have been tried as war criminals.
Also erase the idea that America was the hero of WWII and got into the war because they wanted so save people. They couldn’t have cared less about the victims of the Holocaust, proven by the fact that they turned away so many shiploads of refugees that went on to die at the hands of Nazis.
“the us wanted to see how many people an atomic bomb could kill in one go” oh really? Source your bullshit, asshole
i left out sources bc i figured most tumblr users know how to use google but ok
- Report produced by the U.S Strategic Bombing Group (employed by Truman) to survey the air attacks on Japan concluded that:
“Based on a detailed investigation of all the facts and supported by the testimony of the surviving Japanese leaders involved, it is the Survey’s opinion that certainly prior to 31 December 1945 and in all probability prior to 1 November 1945, Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war, and even if no invasion had been planned or contemplated.” - page 52-56
- Dwight Eisenhower future president and then Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces also said:
“I had been conscious of a feeling of depression and so I voiced to [the then Secretary of War] my grave misgivings, first on the basis of my belief that Japan was already defeated and that dropping the bomb was completely unnecessary, and secondly because I thought that our country should avoid shocking world opinion by the use of a weapon whose employment was, I thought, no longer mandatory as a measure to save American lives.” - page 380
- Admiral William Leahy, one of the highest ranking officials in the US army during WW2 wrote of the usage of the bombs:
“It is my opinion that the use of this barbarous weapon at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan. […] My own feeling was that in being the first to use it, we had adopted an ethical standard common to the barbarians of the Dark Ages. I was not taught to make war in that fashion, and wars cannot be won by destroying women and children.” - page 441
- General Douglas McArthur, another high ranking US official in the war:
“[When asked about his opinion on bombing Japan] He replied that he saw no military justification for the dropping of the bomb. The war might have ended weeks earlier, he said, if the United States had agreed, as it later did anyway, to the retention of the institution of the emperor.” - page 70-71
- On September 9, 1945 Admiral William F. Halsey commander of the Third Fleet publicly quoted as saying:
“The first atomic bomb was an unnecessary experiment… . It was a mistake to ever drop it… . [the scientists] had this toy and they wanted to try it out, so they dropped it… . It killed a lot of Japs.” - online source
- The US secretary of war, Henry Stimson, speaking to President Truman:
“I was a little fearful that before we could get ready the Air Force might have Japan so thoroughly bombed out that the new weapon [the atomic bomb] would not have a fair background to show its strength.” - diary of Henry Stimson which can be found online here
- Even those deploying the bombs questioned the decision to drop them on civilian cities:
“I thought that if we were going to drop the atomic bomb, drop it on the outskirts–say in Tokyo Bay–so that the effects would not be as devastating to the city and the people. I made this suggestion over the phone between the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings and I was told to go ahead with our targets.” - online source
- Lewis Strauss Assistant to the Navy Secretary James Forrestal on the locations of the bombings:
“I remember suggesting […] a large forest of cryptomeria trees not far from Tokyo. The cryptomeria tree is the Japanese version of our redwood… I anticipated that a bomb detonated at a suitable height above such a forest… would lay the trees out in windrows from the center of the explosion in all directions as though they were matchsticks, and, of course, set them afire in the center. […] Secretary Forrestal agreed wholeheartedly with the recommendation.” - page 145
So to recap:
A lot of American generals were against using the bomb as they felt it served an empty purpose.
Those who agreed with its usage completely disagreed with dropping them on cities.
Truman went ahead and had them detonated in two highly populated civilian cities anyway. Two cities that had remained mostly untouched by regular bombings throughout the war precisely bc of their lack of value to the Japanese war effort.
Draw your own conclusions.
I hope y'all know that this is common knowledge to everyone of every other country
#BlackLivesMatter #AntiRacism
things that don’t last forever:
waking up without a reason to get out of bed
feeling extremely tired and unmotivated
stressful things like exams
having no close friends or people to talk to
disliking yourself or your body
feelings after a heartbreak or failure
all the bad things you’re going through
you’re going to be okay. things will pass and time heals everything. keep going and doing your best ♡
Cults? In my life? It’s more likely than you think.
In my last post, I talked about how the Law of Attraction and Christian prosperity gospel both use the same thought control techniques as cults. I’ve received several public and private replies to that post: some expressing contempt for “sheeple” who can be lead astray by cults, and others who say my post made them scared that they might be part of a cult without knowing it.
I want to address both of those types of replies in this post. I want to talk about what a cult really looks like, and how you can know if you’re dealing with one.
If you type the word “cult” into Google Images, it will bring up lots of photos of people with long hair, wearing all white, with their hands raised in an expression of ecstasy.
Most modern cults do not look anything like this.
Modern cultists look a lot like everyone else. One of the primary goals of most cults is recruitment, and it’s hard to get people to join your cause if they think you and your group are all Kool-Aid-drinking weirdos. The cults that last are the ones that manage to convince people that they’re just like everyone else — a little weird maybe, but certainly not dangerous.
In the book The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple, author Jeff Guinn says, “In years to come, Jim Jones would frequently be compared to murderous demagogues such as Adolf Hitler and Charles Manson. These comparisons completely misinterpret, and historically misrepresent, the initial appeal of Jim Jones to members of Peoples Temple. Jones attracted followers by appealing to their better instincts.”
You might not know Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple by name, but you’ve probably heard their story. They’re the Kool-Aid drinkers I mentioned earlier. Jones and over 900 of his followers, including children, committed mass suicide by drinking Flavor Aid mixed with cyanide.
In a way, the cartoonish image of cults in popular media has helped real-life cults to stay under the radar and slip through people’s defenses.
In her book Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control, Luna Lindsey says: “These groups use a legion of persuasive techniques in unison, techniques that strip away the personality to build up a new group pseudopersonality. New members know very little about the group’s purpose, and most expectations remain unrevealed. People become deeply involved, sacrificing vast amounts of time and money, and investing emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, and socially.”
Let’s address some more common myths about cults:
Myth #1: All cults are Satanic or occult in nature. This mostly comes from conservative Christians, who may believe that all non-Christian religions are inherently cultish in nature and are in league with the Devil. This is not the case — most non-Christians don’t even believe in the Devil, much less want to sign away their souls to him. Many cults use Christian theology to recruit members, and some of these groups (Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, etc.) have become popular enough to be recognized as legitimate religions. Most cults have nothing to do with magic or the occult.
Myth #2: All cults are religious. This is also false. While some cults do use religion to recruit members or push an agenda, many cults have no religious or spiritual element. Political cults are those founded around a specific political ideology. Author and cult researcher Janja Lalich is a former member of an American political cult founded on the principles of Marxism. There are also “cults of personality” built around political figures and celebrities, such as Adolf Hitler, Chairman Mao, and Donald Trump. In these cases, the cult is built around hero worship of the leader — it doesn’t really matter what the leader believes or does.
Myth #3: All cults are small fringe groups. Cults can be any size. Some cults have only a handful of members — it’s even possible for parents to use thought control techniques on their children, essentially creating a cult that consists of a single family. There are some cults that have millions of members (see previous note about Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses).
Myth #4: All cults live on isolated compounds away from mainstream society. While it is true that all cults isolate their members from the outside world, very few modern cults use physical isolation. Many cults employ social isolation, which makes members feel separate from mainstream society. Some cults do this by encouraging their followers to be “In the world but not of the world,” or encouraging them to keep themselves “pure.”
Myth #5: Only stupid, gullible, and/or mentally ill people join cults. Actually, according to Luna Lindsey, the average cult member is of above-average intelligence. As cult expert Steven Hassan points out, “Cults intentionally recruit ‘valuable’ people—they go after those who are intelligent, caring, and motivated. Most cults do not want to be burdened by unintelligent people with serious emotional or physical problems.” The idea that only stupid or gullible people fall for thought control is very dangerous, because it reinforces the idea that “it could never happen to me.” This actually prevents intelligent people from thinking critically about the information they’re consuming and the groups they’re associating with, which makes them easier targets for cult recruitment.
So, now that we have a better idea of what a cult actually looks like, how do you know if you or someone you know is in one?
A good rule of thumb is to compare the group’s actions and teachings to Steven Hassan’s BITE Model. Steven Hassan is an expert on cult psychology, and most cult researchers stand by this model. From Hassan’s website, freedomofmind.com: “Based on research and theory by Robert Jay Lifton, Margaret Singer, Edgar Schein, Louis Jolyon West, and others who studied brainwashing in Maoist China as well as cognitive dissonance theory by Leon Festinger, Steven Hassan developed the BITE Model to describe the specific methods that cults use to recruit and maintain control over people. ‘BITE’ stands for Behavior, Information, Thought, and Emotional control.”
Behavior Control may include…
Telling you how to behave, and enforcing behavior with rewards and punishments. (Rewards may be nonphysical concepts like “salvation” or “enlightenment,” or social rewards like group acceptance or an elevated status within the group. Punishments may also be nonphysical, like “damnation,” or may be social punishments like judgement from peers or removal from the group.)
Dictating where and with whom you live. (This includes pressure to move closer to other group members, even if you will be living separately.)
Controlling or restricting your sexuality. (Includes enforcing chastity or abstinence and/or coercion into non-consensual sex acts.)
Controlling your clothing or hairstyle. (Even if no one explicitly tells you, you may feel subtle pressure to look like the rest of the group.)
Restricting leisure time and activities. (This includes both demanding participation in frequent group activities and telling you how you should spend your free time.)
Requiring you to seek permission for major decisions. (Again, even if you don’t “need” permission, you may feel pressure to make decisions that will be accepted by the group.)
And more.
Information Control may include…
Withholding or distorting information. (This may manifest as levels of initiation, with only the “inner circle” or upper initiates being taught certain information.)
Forbidding members from speaking with ex-members or other critics.
Discouraging members from trusting any source of information that isn’t approved by the group’s leadership.
Forbidding members from sharing certain details of the group’s beliefs or practice with outsiders.
Using propaganda. (This includes “feel good” media that exists only to enforce the group’s message.)
Using information gained in confession or private conversation against you.
Gaslighting to make members doubt their own memory. (“I never said that,” “You’re remembering that wrong,” “You’re confused,” etc.)
Requiring you to report your thoughts, feelings, and activities to group leaders or superiors.
Encouraging you to spy on other group members and report their “misconduct.”
And more.
Thought Control may include…
Black and White, Us vs. Them, or Good vs. Evil thinking.
Requiring you to change part of your identity or take on a new name. (This includes only using last names, as well as titles like “Brother,” “Sister,” and “Elder.”)
Using loaded languages and cliches to stop complex thought. (This is the difference between calling someone a “former member” and calling the same person an “apostate” or “covenant breaker.”)
Inducing hypnotic or trance states including prayer, meditation, singing hymns, etc.
Using thought-stopping techniques to prevent critical thinking. (“If you ever find yourself doubting, say a prayer to distract yourself!”)
Allowing only positive thoughts or speech.
Rejecting rational analysis and criticism both from members and from those outside the group.
And more.
Emotional Control may include…
Inducing irrational fears and phobias, especially in connection with leaving the group. (This includes fear of damnation, fear of losing personal value, fear of persecution, etc.)
Labeling some emotions as evil, worldly, sinful, low-vibrational, or wrong.
Teaching techniques to keep yourself from feeling certain emotions like anger or sadness.
Promoting feelings of guilt, shame, and unworthiness. (This is often done by holding group members to impossible standards, such as being spiritually “pure” or being 100% happy all the time.)
Showering members and new recruits with positive attention — this is called “love bombing.” (This can be anything from expensive gifts to sexual favors to simply being really nice to newcomers.)
Shunning members who disobey orders or disbelieve the group’s teachings.
Teaching members that there is no happiness, peace, comfort, etc. outside of the group.
And more.
If a group ticks most or all of the boxes in any one of these categories, you need to do some serious thinking about whether or not that group is good for your mental health. If a group is doing all four of these, you’re definitely dealing with a cult and need to get out as soon as possible.
These techniques can also be used by individual people in one-on-one relationships. A relationship or friendship where someone tries to control your behavior, thoughts, or emotions is not healthy and, again, you need to get out as soon as possible.
Obviously, not all of these things are inherently bad. Meditation and prayer can be helpful on their own, and being nice to new people is common courtesy. The problem is when these acts become part of a bigger pattern, which enforces someone else’s control over your life.
A group that tries to tell you how to think or who to be is bad for your mental health, your personal relationships, and your sense of self. When in doubt, do what you think is best for you — and always be suspicious of people or groups who refuse to be criticized.
You didn’t deserve to die. My God! You were full of love and light. Rest In Peace Elijah McClain.
Justice for Elijah McClain
Justice for Elijah McClain
Sign the petition!
Reblog or your mom will die in 928 seconds.
I love my mom.
I am risking nothing
I AM SORRY FOLLOWERS, I LOVE MY MOMMY
Will not risk.
sorry followers :(
omg im so glad to se so many people love their mummy
Why’re you being mean to my mum?
goddamn it
Nope. Googled it. 15 minuets. Nope. Not taking any chances
This has 1.2 million reblogs … Ps not riskin it
1.4 almost ps not risking it
Fuck this post
2.5 million notes I hate myself
I reblogged this twice now
I’m so sorry this isn’t b99 related and this isn’t real but I can’t not skip this I’m sorry
Not taking a fucking chance
Sorry, guys, but Im not taking a chance
No chances… She’s out… And she must be protected.
How dare you
Whatcha doin to me Farkle!
i can’t risk it
sorry babes my moms just my favorite person ever
Sorry I can’t risk it
Fuck sorry guys I love my mom
Omg I hate these things but I am paranoid. So sorry guys.
2.8 million notes
CANT RISK IT
Sorry guys
This is a picture of my best friend. Normal photo, right? Well, look closer in the back where the yellow circle is. Can you see the face?
This isn’t just some normal chain letter. My friend died 3 nights after this picture was taken, the police having no idea how he died considering he was 18 and perfectly healthy.
It turns out a boy died in that room a few years ago. He was murdered and then a few nights later he was found dead in his bedroom from his skull broken and slowly bleeding to death.
If you don’t reblog this within an hour, you’ll hear a soft whimper for 3 nights straight. On the 4th night, the boy will come from your closet while you’re sleeping and kill you for not helping us put his soul at rest.
This is not fake. 3 people have already died from not passing this on.
I wanted to not believe this but…… QQ naow I’m scared
Fuckin son of a bitch, i hate the fuck out of chain mails. I need to know how to get rid of them. I am very sorry to whoever is easily scared or easily convinced, unfortunately i am easily convinced.
No chances
I’m scared shitless man
nope nope nope nope
YAY A NEW FRIEND!
Oh ma gawd
nope don’t wanna risk it
Well you know it’s sorta stupid but let’s not die
Reblog art guys. Seriously.
Always reblog art! No one sees it if it’s liked. Help circulate an artist’s hard work!
True tho
Reblog any orginal post, be it a story, Art, Youtube. if you actually like it then share it. likes only go so far
Let those that create know that we care.
And then there’s the wonderful reaction of ‘crickets’ :P Don’t forget that one!
I see likes as either mild approval-
or archiving (I do that a lot with things that I want to contemplate, read later, think about some more, decide where to put it (as I have multiple blogs)
reblogs are support and truly liking something a lot.
reblog + comment or tags- true love. god level
The police caught and arrested him. But despite the heinous and violent crimes he was credibly accused of, he was released without bail. He was free for three months AFTER police discovered that he was abusing 12 underage black girls.
Chrystul Kizer was raped and trafficked by this man for years.
She’s now facing life in prison for defending herself against her attacker.
Free Chrystul Kizer!!!
Pls spread help spread the news!
SIGN THE PETITION
this isn’t an old post; the screenshot has a typo: her hearing is scheduled for february of 2020 and if she is convicted as charged she will spend life in prison. she will likely never be granted clemency. her case and the court are far more stacked against her than they were for cyntoia brown, who regardless still spent 15 years in prison.
please sign the petition.
This is literally the last month you can reblog this joke
ATTENTION ALL GIRLS AND LADIES: if you walk from home, school, office or anywhere and you are alone and you come across a little boy crying holding a piece of paper with an address on it, DO NOT TAKE HIM THERE! take him straight to the police station for this is the new 'gang' way of rape. The incident is getting worse. Warn your families. Reblog this so this message can get accross to everyone.
I will always reblog things like this, it won’t ruin your blog or the look of it, and this could potentially save a life.
PLEASE reblog this.
Please, reblog! IIt’s called self defense. Apart from having here, in the US, one of the highest cases of homicide and rape in the world and high rate of GBV, think about how this could help your mother or sister
Doing my part, meatGod approved
