Solace K. Ames @solacekames - Tumblr Blog

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In an op-ed for The Washington Post this week, former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang urged Asian Americans to combat a recent surge in anti-Asian hate by “embrac[ing] and show[ing] our American-ness in ways we never have before.” He praised Japanese Americans who volunteered for military service from WWII concentration camps “to demonstrate that they …

From the article:

Japanese American military service did play an undeniable role in easing anti-Japanese sentiment after the war — but so did coalitions with other communities of color, the nation’s attention shifting to the Cold War and the Civil Rights Movement, and many other historical events that make Yang’s analogy ring false today.

Yang is severely mistaken if he thinks the lesson we should take away from our history is that Asian Americans can, or should, escape racism by appealing to racists. Japanese Americans tried to prove their loyalty to this country during WWII, through military service, through quiet endurance, and, in some cases, through the vilification of those who chose to exert their American-ness in acts of civil disobedience. These demonstrations did not prevent the uprooting of our community, the years of incarceration without trial, or the onslaught of rhetorical and physical hate directed at Asian bodies.

Should we, as Yang says in his op-ed, “step up, help our neighbors… and do everything in our power to accelerate the end of this crisis”? Absolutely. Many Asian Americans are already creating community support networks to supply our elders with groceries and ensure that Chinatown and Nihonmachi businesses stay afloat. But flag-waving allegiance should not be a prerequisite for ending anti-Asian violence.

Putting on a model minority show of hyperpatriotism and unrequited loyalty will not protect us. What will protect us is solidarity. With Black folks creating pathways to liberation through both white supremacy and anti-Blackness from other people of color. With Indigenous peoples fighting to protect and nurture the land on which we stand. With survivors who are already intimately familiar with the consequences of victim-blaming, and actively engaged in building a world where we need not “prove” our worth. And with Asian Americans striving for true justice, not proximity to whiteness.

Now is not the time to cull the dissenters and resisters from our communities. Now is not the time to retreat to the center and erase those who live on the margins. Rather than appealing to notions of loyalty and “American-ness” that demand we sacrifice our cultural and political identities as a price of admission, let us instead build our own power and mutual support.

We are enough, and we have nothing to prove.

#andrew yang #fuck off andrew yang #anti-asian racism

Two of my favorite responses to Andrew Yang’s horrible bootlicking op-ed. One of them is gracious and educational, the other one cuts to the chase.

#andrew yang #fucking dispshit go away already #anti-asian racism

theravennest

Siren 3x01 Sneak Peak

#siren freeform #fuck yeah new siren

diaryofanangryasianguy

Sometimes I legit feel like crying bc nobody talks or cares about anti asian sentiment in the west. Like I’m so tired, literally everyone around me my age is a weeaboo or is friends with a weeaboo, i fucking hate being japanese sometimes, im tired and exhausted by the idea that i am “white people lite” as if people my ethnicity my father’s age weren’t very recently put into camps? as if the country he came from wasnt nuclear bombed? Ugh. Thanks for running this blog. I feel less alone.

It’s okay to cry if you need to though. Sometimes it helps to just let things out, whether it be tears or not.

But yeah, a lot of weeb trash blowing in the wind nowadays. Need a bigger rake and garbage can to put them all in, especially for those incel/weeb/misogynist types. They’re everywhere and will only continue to increase tbh.

And of course, you’re welcome! It is hard sometimes but we’re all in this together. @solacekames and @wearejapanese are also Japanese btw. They’re good folks

Angry Asian Guy

solacekames

Being Japanese will really fuck with your sense of reality because those weeaboos are always insulting you and sexually harassing you and now random people want to kill us for being Chinese just like they wanted to kill Chinese people for being Japanese in the 80s. Hold on, we’ll all get through together. Except for the weebs. I honestly hope the coronavirus pandemic will give us an opportunity to hasten weebism’s demise.

#weeaboos ruin everything

My annual azalea bush selfie in the time of coronavirus.

#selfie #me #personal

farmcontent

“Farm workers are out in the fields now making sure we have food on our supermarket shelves. Farm workers are worried, just like all of us. It's scary out there. Non-union farm workers are especially worried. At least workers under UFW contract are getting informed about COVID-19, what to do and steps their company is taking to protect them. But most non-union farm workers we're talking to, especially those under labor contractors, are not getting any information. We've been reaching out to farm workers digitally, via the phone and text, and site visits to workplaces. We're concerned--very concerned.

Farm worker Jesus Zuniga told us, “As of yet, we have not been informed about the coronavirus. We are working like we normally do. I am very concerned because at this company they don't care about us, they don't give us any information, no training. Schools have closed their classes. In our city, several events have closed, everyone is taking precautions to help combat this pandemic and here where we work we continue as if nothing is occurring. If I get sick, I stay at the will of God because they don't offer us a medical plan or other benefits.”

Strawberry worker Marcelina Gonzalez shares, “In my company they gave us a hygiene meeting on how to keep clean, but they never mentioned anything about the coronavirus -- they only mention we should wash our hands before picking up the product. Not having information from our employer about this virus can be a big risk for us to take the virus home.”

Things are different at companies with a UFW contract. Wine grape worker Adelaida Mendoza works at Washington state's Chateau Ste Michelle. She says, “When we started hearing about the coronavirus, the company gave us a special training about how to protect ourselves from this virus. The company is worried about our health and they made a safety plan for us. They have put out hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes in the lunch rooms. The company is going to implement social distancing practices to try to avoid the spread of illnesses. They always have soap, water, and paper towels to clean our hands and disposable cups to drink water. I feel safer because I have the RFK medical plan, sick leave and personal hours to take time off in case I get sick.”

We are receiving reports from other UFW contract companies outlining the plans put in place. But there is more that needs to be done. We are taking every step to make sure ALL farm workers are protected. We sent a letter to all growers and ag organizations asking that they take proactive steps to ensure the safety of farm workers, who are laboring through this crisis to keep supermarkets stocked and America fed. Your donation will help us continue to safeguard the men and women doing this essential work.”

- from the United Farm Workers website. Please, please consider donating.

https://ufw.org/covid19donations/

diaryofanangryasianguy

A white dude got in my face today about how the coronavirus is all my fault and a (white) friend of mine told him to back off. And I guess I should be grateful but she was like, "Hey, lay off her, she's from Uzbekistan!" and all I could think was, 'what, so what he was doing would be okay to you if I was from China?' I guess she meant well but something about her objecting to that and not just telling him not to be racist rubs me the wrong way.

Yeah, it shouldn’t matter because we’re all in the same boat. If you look or can pass as Chinese or East Asian, it doesn’t matter because they’ll treat us all the same. But at the same time, it’s kind of like we shouldn’t always read so deep between the lines either and just appreciate something as it is.

Angry Asian Guy

Pocket Mask for Basic Sewers

Hey I haven’t been around on Tumblr for a while. Life is crazy and shit.

Anyway, here’s what I’ve been working on all weekend. I wanted to make pocket masks for everyone along the lines of this tutorial, but my sewing skills are only intermediate. So I altered it and wrote it up. This is a pocket mask instruction sheet for basic sewers. It doesn’t matter what color thread you use or if you can’t sew super straight, because this is a turn-it-inside-out design where you won’t see any of the seams anyway! Here you go. Hope you find this useful. While this will be faster if you use a sewing machine (I’m trying to turn 10-20 of these out per day) you can also quite easily substitute hand sewing.

What you will need:

Breathable 100% cotton fabric. Examples: Muslin, cotton jersey, lightweight linen. An old bedsheet, pillowcase or T-shirt will work fine as long as the fabric is loosely woven, breathable, and smooth enough to hold against your face for extended periods of time. It should be 100% cotton so that it can be washed at high temperatures after every use and still hold up. See this link for more info: https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/best-materials-make-diy-face-mask-virus/

Elastic: ½ inch elastic, Dritz brand. Can be substituted with flat ribbon ties if necessary.

Filter fabric. This can range from very good filtration (surgical melt-blown non-woven fabric) to good (vacuum cleaner bag filter) to mediocre (craft felt) to desperate but probably better than nothing (paper towels, toilet paper).

Nose wire (optional). Garden wire or aluminum craft wire suggested, must be bendable and non-tarnish/waterproof.

Sewing materials: ruler, scissor, needle, thread (any color), pins.

Suggested: a piece of cardboard, an ironing board and iron to flatten pleats and folds as you work.

Exact dimensions of all necessary material:

9”x17” breathable cotton fabric

11” of ½ inch width elastic band (substitute: two 16” flat ties)

8” of ½ inch width elastic band (substitute: two 12” flat ties)

4” nose wire (optional).

8”x5” filter material (thick nonwoven fabric as described above)

Instructions. See images for illustrations.

Start off with a 9x17 sheet of cotton fabric.

Fold it roughly in half but create an overlap of two inches.

Fold the top over so there is still a distance of two inches maintained.

Fold the bottom two inches up on top and pin it in place. This will create a kind of flap pocket which we will use to a) turn it inside out when we’re done b) place and hold in the filter material.

You can get rid of the piece of cardboard now. Move the upper fabric edge until it is one-third of the way to the top edge, while the fabric edge underneath is about half the way down.

Flip the fabric over, making sure to keep the top folded edge on top. This will become the front of the mask once you are done sewing and turn it inside out. Now you need to create the pleats. It might be helpful to mark off every .75 inches to get started on the pleats, but this is optional. You can probably just do the four front pleats by feel.

Reach your fingers inside the fabric tube and pleat the front of the fabric tube. Create about four pleat folds. The pleats should point upwards, because when you turn this inside out again at the final step, they need to face downwards. As you create the pleats, work the bottom of the fabric upwards while keeping the top the same.

There should be at least 1.5 inches of unpleated fabric at the top. Once it looks right, pin the pleats in place. If you’re having trouble creating the pleats without wrinkling the fabric in the back of the fabric tube, try putting a piece of cardboard back between the two layers while you create the pleats.

You can now take out the horizontal pins that are holding the overlapping flap in place, because the vertical pins are holding the folds steady now.

Then sew the sides closed. Sew it close to the edge and make sure to leave at least 1.5 inches on the top and bottom, because that is where you will put the elastic. This seam doesn’t have to be perfect because it’s not the main seam anyway, it’s just to keep the pleats in place while we work on the rest of the mask. Take out the vertical pins after you’re done sewing.

Now take the top ½ inch of the mask and fold it backwards. This is not a pleat, this is just to create a small padded pocket for you to place the optional nose wire. Pin the fold in place if you need to, although if you’re using a sewing machine you might not need to even pin it as you sew it.

Sew the pocket in place along its bottom edge but DO NOT SEW ALL THE WAY ACROSS. Only sew the central 5 inches and leave a couple inches on either side. That way you can guide the wire in. Don’t worry about the thread, it will not be visible once we turn this inside out.

Flip back to the front. Now we are ready to place the elastic. The top elastic is 11 inches and the bottom is 8. This is a comfortable size for most adults and older children. This design can be altered to make earloop masks as well, but those will require a different and lighter kind of elastic. If you don’t have elastic, substitute two 16” flat ribbon ties for the top corners and two 12” ribbon ties for the bottom corners.

Guide the elastic bands inside using the flap opening in the back and line them on the left corners. Make sure that the 11 inch is on top and the 8 inch is on bottom. Line them up by feel and try not to get them twisted. If you do find out they’re twisted after sewing them in place, the mask will still work but you will be very annoyed.

We are going to place the elastic INSIDE the pocket. That way when we turn the whole thing inside out it will also go inside out and the right way around.

When the elastic is lined up, pin the elastic into place on the top left and bottom left corner.

You can’t see the elastic but it’s there, tucked between the two layers and lined up with the outside edge.

Now that the elastic is safely pinned in place, sew the main left seam. This should be generous, about an inch from the edge, and a very solid seam. Go back and forth on the corners to make sure the elastic is securely sewed in.

Now you need to pin the RIGHT edges of the elastic into the right corners of the mask and sew them in with a solid seam. This is kind of tricky because you need to make sure the elastic band is flat and not twisted. Also, because the lower band is shorter than the mask itself, it will cause the lower part of the mask to bunch up a little bit.

Now sew the right seam.

You’re basically done! All you need to do now is remove the pins, reach inside the back opening and turn the mask completely inside out. No visible seams!

Insert the filter into the mask using the back pocket. For the filter we are using an 8x5 inch piece of felt. The idea of this mask is that while the pocket itself won’t stop many particles, the filter will. After every use, the filter should be discarded and the mask should be sanitized (suggestion: throw it in a mesh bag and put it through the washer, then hang dry it).

Optional: guide a four inch wire into the nose wire pocket at the top of the mask. This green wire is actually “rose wire” for tying back roses and other shrubs. This will ensure a good fit at the top of the mask.

Put on the mask and shape the optional nose wire to the shape of your nose.

#coronavirus #mask #diy mask #covid-19 #pocket mask

See

I started watching this for Jason Momoa. The postapocalyptic premise is dumb as hell and the disability representation is messed-up. Almost everyone in the world is blind (not played by blind actors though), and blindness makes everyone feudal and into medieval torture apparently.

On the positive side, Jason Momoa is great and the fight scenes are sick. If you’re into Spartacus and Zatoichi and stuff like that and can turn off the part of your brain that asks “how is any of this possible” it’s a good watch and better than Daredevil.

#see #see tv #see appletv

Regarding the last post? Every once in a while something I post ends up in TERF-land and I end up getting the stupidest most irritating and racist responses in my notifications. I have no patience for them anymore.

Also, sorry I’ve been gone for a while. Things have been nuts but I hope they’ll start calming down soon!

solacekames

China and India have 70 million more men than women. The consequences are far-reaching.china,india,

Nothing like this has happened in human history. A combination of cultural preferences, government decree and modern medical technology in the world’s two largest countries has created a gender imbalance on a continental scale. Men outnumber women by 70 million in China and India.

The consequences of having too many men, now coming of age, are far-reaching: Beyond an epidemic of loneliness, the imbalance distorts labor markets, drives up savings rates in China and drives down consumption, artificially inflates certain property values, and parallels increases in violent crime, trafficking or prostitution in a growing number of locations.

Those consequences are not confined to China and India, but reach deep into their Asian neighbors and distort the economies of Europe and the Americas, as well. Barely recognized, the ramifications of too many men are only starting to come into sight.

This is an incredibly important global issue but one also clouded by a massive amount of racism, bigotry and misogyny. Anyone leaving a callous comment along the lines of “it’s what they deserve” will be instablocked.

kereeachan

The article is really good and I think it does a good job of explaining how we’re still only beginning to see the effects of this. In many ways the article’s too short, because what it’s trying to cover spans so much. Even the sections it’s divided into scream that they could easily have been twice as long and had way more detail (especially since the article focuses much more heavily on China).

I remember another effect of the one-child-policy that I read about way back around 05 were worries of how you would have smaller younger generations taking care of a larger elderly one. While it’s not directly addressed in this article, it was on my mind while it discussed how Chinese parents with sons often work themselves to the bone trying to come up with bride price, in the hopes of landing a bride for their son, and how having a son used to guarantee being taken care of in old age but now it’s practically the opposite. This is a policy that was in place for nearly 40 years, so the aftereffects will be just as far-reaching.

solacekames

Japan is dealing with that right now: becoming a nation of senior citizens. Positive side effects include long life rate and cities becoming extremely disability friendly. Negative effects include importing senior care workers from less rich countries but not letting them become citizens thus increasing class inequality and draining the poorer countries’ healthcare systems. So like China and India’s problems, it has a global effect.

piquegender

ok but this is not comparable to a generation imbalance AT ALL. japan may have unique challenges right now but it is not the same as an unnatural sex imbalance.

solacekames

Fuck off you dirt stupid TERF.

WEEBS TALK BIG BUT STILL CAN’T DO NOTHING

The account is responding to every single Nazi weeb in the comments and telling them to fuck off, I love it

#japan #antifascism #antifa #carve that on my gravestone #weebs talk big but still cant do nothing #weeaboos ruin everything #nikkei

shazadlatifgf-deactivated202301

Thank you Preacher for 3 wonderful years of the Unholy Trinity!

#preacher #preacher amc #ahhhhhhhhhh

uhaveeverything

Let’s talk about that finale (Preacher spoilers)

I’m disappointed. I wasn’t disappointed for most of the episode - in fact I was cheering a lot of the choices and enjoying how they were wrapping it all up

Until the LAST THIRTY DAMN SECONDS

I’m sorry, but that’s a bullshit ending for Cass. He deserved better

Now it’s possible that I would’ve been disappointed a little by whatever they did that was different from the comics, because the way the comics wrap up is so intensely satisfying and felt so right to me. But.

You know what happens in the comics? The trio doesn’t end on good terms, but Cass lives, with a real, solid chance at moving on to be a better person. To “act like a man,” as Jesse puts it, by which he means being honorable, just, and thinking of something more than himself

He doesn’t get what he wanted, but he gets a real, honest chance at finding it. He gets HOPE

Now you’re telling me they all save the world, and maybe Cassidy goes off to decompress, but they were still friends. They love each other. They’ve said so multiple times. Maybe he needed some time away, but he never went back?

Never?

Never??

I actually think it’s in-character that he might have subconsciously not wanted to see them aging, and so kept putting it off until they were gone, and the regret of missing out on what he could have had makes him walk into the sun.

It makes sense!! But WOW I HATE IT

The whole thing about how he left Ireland after being turned because he didn’t think his family would accept him? He had acceptance! He had love! It was right there ready to embrace him! Where is the character development

I can also see it like this: the time he had with Jesse and Tulip was his greatest adventure. They’re the best friends he ever had, and he doesn’t want to live without them. He’s lived long enough, he can go now.

I could’ve accepted that so easily if he’d just had more of a life with them. ANY amount.

We do get the sense that they stayed in touch, at least….there’s that. I guess that’s some sort of having a life together. He at least didn’t cut them off, and technology makes it so they could have actually seen each other even if they weren’t physically in the same space

Don’t mind me if I cling to that thought like a life raft

it’s weirdly extra frustrating because I had no complaints about the rest of the episode. less than zero. it was great, up until that point

Like that fight between Tulip and Cassidy? In the comics, the last big fight Cass has, the one where both participants are reckoning with their relationship - is with Jesse. When I saw how they were setting it up here, I got so excited. When she punched him I literally exclaimed “SHIT YES!!!”

It made perfect sense for how the show had set up their relationship. Tulip was the one he still had the most to work through with. That smile they shared when the Grail folks started bashing down the door - ;;;;;;

The memorial moment for Humperdoo was also perfect

Jesse’s last scene with God was perfect

The confrontation between God and the Saint? /chef’s kiss

Everything with Featherstone? Surprised me with how grounded and emotional it was

Starr getting away with everything? Checks out

See what I mean about having less than zero complaints about the rest of it? :|

I’m just. A bit let down.

solacekames

I have to respectfully disagree. His ending was moving and made me cry and write fanfic (which I haven’t done in years) because I wanted to just process it all. But... I don't think he necessarily deserved better.

While Cassidy in the show is lightyears better than Cassidy in the comics, he's still not a good person by almost all measures. He's intensely lovable and sympathetic, so it’s easy for us to forget that he's also just... not very good. He’s ruled by desire and sentimentality and whim: he does good things when they feel good, he does bad things when they feel good. He probably killed that old man in Australia. When God strong-arms Cassidy, he held out for a while, but he eventually betrayed his friends and was on the verge of letting humanity be destroyed. He makes the right decision ultimately, but again, not because he knew it was right, but because it felt right.

(This is not to say Tulip and Jesse are good people either. They’re all terrible. All of the heroes are intensely lovable but terrible.)

When it comes to disappointment, I have a sense of what you mean. Yeah, I wanted more. More of everything. I wish Preacher had been at least two seasons longer, goddamnit!

But I don’t have a problem with his ending. I think it was a win for him on some levels, even. He ends his story as the best possible version of himself, and who knows? Maybe they’re all going to be together again ;_;

#preacher #preacher amc #suicide tw