A Collection of Miscellanea

Various things that I found amusing, educational, or interesting. Mostly reblogs, with the occasional piece of original content. I reblog fandom stuff over at @fandom-stuff-wsr.

[myjetpack]

My latest cartoon for New Scientist

[voroxpete]

To be clear, this isn't a bit. This is what they actually did. "Its too late" is the new "Climate change isn't real"... And its still a lie!

Every serious climate scientist agrees that there is no such as thing as too late, just as there is no such thing as too early. We should have done a lot more than we have to fight climate change, and the world will suffer for our inaction, but there is no point of no return. We can always work to reduce the amount of suffering that occurs, and eventually turn things around to the point where our planet is healing once again. Do not believe anyone who says it's "too late".

[i-suggest-landback]

i have a suggestion

[anarchistmemedistro]

decolonization reading list

The Solutions are Already Here: Strategies of Ecological Revolution from Below : Peter Gelderloos : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : I

Are alternative energies and Green New Deals enough to deliver environmental justice? Peter Gelderloos argues that international governmenta

Audible Anarchism

Philosophy Podcast · Updated weekly · A podcast broadcasting Anarchist texts and audiobooks

Ecodefense: A Field Guide to Monkeywrenching

Various Authors Ecodefense: A Field Guide to Monkeywrenching 1993 A note from the web-publisher: I put this up to make ecodefence informatio

[creatingblackcharacters]

I can't remember where I read it last week, but the person discussed how when we think of chattel slavery in the US, we tend to think of massive plantations of cotton or tobacco, with one very rich white master or mistress with lots of land and lots of enslaved people. But we very rarely think of the many families that had just one or two slaves, in smaller homes.

Because it's not like you had to pay them, so once your family owned someone, they owned them and their descendants indefinitely. Could you pay and eventually free em- sure! You could also send them anywhere you want for any labor you want, could have an enslaved woman bred for more children, or maybe save up and buy new slaves and sell the old. Like cattle (thus, chattel slavery).

So it's interesting that many people go "oh well it's not like my family owned slaves!" Because like, one, how do you know that? Have you ever actually asked your grandmas about their grandmas? How many of your family members grew up with mammies? Have you ever asked? I wonder how many people have actually done the digging for the truth (or was it easier to just benefit). Because I've talked to my grandma, who picked cotton in the sea islands. She had to have been doing that for someone in the 1930s and 40s!

And two, it's easy to think that because your family (or someone else's) didn't own sprawling stolen land and generational blood money like a plantation owner, that it wasn't as important. But... It was. That was still someone's entire life. That was a person, whose labor benefitted and saved a family money that could be used in other ventures. How often do we think of them?

[tiktoks-i-enjoyed]

[odyver]

alright I've got to do some quick math to explain attitudes towards AI to my boss.

we're looking to create an AI policy, and when we were talking about this, my boss (older millennial) was genuinely shocked to hear that younger people do not (seem) to view AI positively (a la the recent commencement speakers being booed)

please rb for larger sample size!

Question 1/3

What is your age, and do you feel AI is a net positive or net negative in our lives today?

under 18, AI is a net positive

under 18, AI is a net negative

18-29, AI is a net positive

18-29, AI is a net negative

30-45, AI is a net positive

30-45, AI is a net negative

46-60, AI is a net positive

46-60, AI is a net negative

over 60, AI is a net postive

over 60, AI is a net negative

Remaining time: 5 days 11 hours

[odyver]

Question 2/3

How often do you visit or interact with museums/archives (whether in person or online)?

Frequently (multiple times per month)

Often (multiple times per year)

Occasionally (a couple times per year)

Rarely (once every couple of years)

Never :(

Remaining time: 5 days 11 hours

[odyver]

Question 3/3

If you saw a museum was using AI in exhibits, marketing, research, etc., would you be more or less inclined to visit that museum?

under 18, more inclined

under 18, less inclined

18-29, more inclined

18-29, less inclined

30-45, more inclined

30-45, less inclined

46-60, more inclined

46-60, less inclined

over 60, more inclined

over 60, less inclined

Remaining time: 5 days 11 hours

Thank you for helping with this data collection. Please rb for as big a sample as possible!

🫶

[counterintuitivecomics]

Je suis tellement honoré d’annoncer l’édition en français de mon zine scientifique gratuit sur le COVID-19 ! L’équipe de traduction Eli, Neptune, Jibé et Alex a magnifiquement transformé WHY WE MASK en POURQUOI PORTER UN MASQUE : CE N’EST PAS 'JUSTE UN RHUME', avec un texte alternatif, un guide imprimé et une page bonus de ressources en français. Et tout est gratuit à lire, télécharger et imprimer !

Merci à tous ceux qui ont lu et partagé le fanzine, et MERCI MERCI MERCI à tous ceux qui masquent ! Il n’est jamais trop tard pour commencer à prendre soin les uns des autres.

version web - avec des ressources avec des URL cliquables 

version téléchargeable gratuitement - Imprimez et distribuez vos propres exemplaires  (tous les dons vont à l’impression d’exemplaires). Alternatif

notre patreon - Aidez-moi et @earnestattempts faire plus de comics comme celui-ci !

envoyez-nous des questions, des commentaires, des photos de fanzines, etc. à laurellynnleake @ gmail dot com

Read the English version here. Des pages supplémentaires sous la coupe, y compris les sources pour toutes les notes de fin: 

English translation of this post:

I’m so honored to announce the French Language edition of my free COVID-19 science zine! Translation team Eli, Neptune, Jibé, and Alex have beautifully transformed WHY WE MASK into POURQUOI PORTER UN MASK: CE N’EST PAS ‘JUSTE UN RHUME’, complete with alt text, print guide, and a bonus French resources page. And it’s all free to read, download, and print! 

Thank you to everyone who’s read and shared the zine, and THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to everyone masking out there! It’s never too late to start taking care of each other.

website version - featuring: clickable endnotes! working URLs!

free downloadable version - print & distribute your own copies (print fund donations welcome but not required)

our patreon - help me & @earnestattempts make more comics like this one!

send us questions, comments, etc at [email protected] (we love seeing pics of the zine out in the wild)

Extra pages under the cut, including sources for all the endnotes.

[teaboot]

My problem is that I have a deep admiration and respect for ingenuity, dedication, and commitment to the bit.

Which is ultimately benign, until I am placed in the role of a caregiver or general authority over a person or animal

Because I can't just catch someone in the midst of pulling off a ridiculous, clever, determined and absurd little scheme and just act like I'm not impressed

It wouldn't be honest or fair

And so, it appears that if anything with free will is placed in my care long enough, they invariably learn that if they can get me to laugh without hurting anybody or risking their health then they can pretty much get away with almost anything

Which has resulted in some very funny events

[teaboot]

He tore open a bag of cheetos and hid them somewhere in the apartment so even after I cleaned up the mess and put the bag in the fridge every couple hours I hear a crunching sound and follow it to find him hunched defensively in a corner eating a cheeto

[moonmadmagic]

Ollie adds enrichment to his own enclosure.

[velteris]

yeah i drive the truck that isekais all those lonely 20yo NEETs and bored salarymen. it’s a really hard job. they keep sending me to workplace counselling after each hit. “it’s normal to feel guilt at ending someone’s life,” they say. how do i tell them that’s not what makes me feel guilty? “but it’s okay. he’ll live a better life in another world.” yeah, with 100 girls who could have lived normal lives but got drafted into being in these boring dudes’ harems. how many women’s lives have i ruined. and they don’t even know. they don’t even know

[mcgravin]

Sounds like you need "His Soul is Marching On to Another World; or, the John Brown Isekai" by CabbagePreacher, an actual fic on AO3 about famed abolitionist martyr John Brown getting isekaied to such a world and going on a rampage abolishing harems.

[mercurymusing]

[theunvanquishedzims]

140 CHAPTERS?

[wildsummerrose]

Link:

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Now up to 180/? Chapters!

[markovchaingang]

hey you. teenage girl writing in her diary. quit talking about the boy you have a crush on and start writing about the current political situation, the valuation of currencies, and the level of technology your people hold. your diary might be the only piece of evidence our society existed after nuclear war fries all of our data backups. future historians don't need to know about damian, they need at least a secondhand accounts of the great water wars and whether or not your leaders truly did worship a deity called "the free hand of the market"

[mothnem]

Keep writing about your crush Teenaged Girl. About your clothes, and how that other girl wore the same dress as you. Paint me a picture of what you were like.

[enchantedlantern]

Historians are going to hear about Damian and they're gonna LIKE IT

[therealbeachfox]

Make those future Historians reverse engineer the socioeconomic hierarchies of the 21st century from dreamy descriptions of Damian's current fashions. It's giving them enrichment.

[vaspider]

Talk about the things you want to talk about. You never know what mysteries your diary might solve in future generations bc you are the only person who talks about something that other people thought was too obvious to talk about, like whatever that third condiment dish that used to be on the table with salt and pepper was for.

[oberonsson]

Dame Archer kicks McDougal’s Scots ass there in the rain at the Washington Midsummer Renaissance Faire - August 11, 2018 - Photo by Douglas Herring

[anarcho-wormism-deactivated2019]

😮

[garrettauthor]

Oh NO.

[treacleaergia]

me, a sheltered noblewoman: Pray who is that brave knight? Dame Archer:*turns around* me: gasp! *instantly in love*

[dirtyriver]

Alicia Archer

[ex-sang-uination]

my bi heart………

[ohmightysmiter]

I’VE NEVER SEEN THE ADDED PICS

[hrefnatheravenqueen]

[nyx-belial]

*dies*

[garrettauthor]

Oh shit.

[notlostonanadventure]

GAY KNIGHTS

[unicornofdarknessstuff-deactiva]

Fellas I’m real gay

[thecarrott]

@0hheytherebigbadwolf HELP!!

[0hheytherebigbadwolf]

Every June this inevitably winds up back on my dash. And I appreciate that. And I will reblog it. Every time.

[rockitcat]

Hey, it’s @archerinventive, and the Pride Knights!

[shamebats]

Tiktok post by @ wynunlimited.

[iamoutofideas]

“heres how to make a pair of pants for yourself”

step 1: have a entire room completely set up just for tailoring

[niceferatu]

it needs an iron, masking tape, a pencil, and see-through paper. you don't need the pins if you're careful about keeping it lined up. you could do that on your floor and hand-sew it after that if you wanted to. the most specialised piece of equipment they used in the video, apart from the sewing machine, was a clear ruler.

[vinceaddams]

Yeah that's a silly complaint, tons of people cut fabric on their kitchen tables or on the floor. I've been sewing since 2011 and didn't have an actual sewing room until the start of 2024. It was frustratingly cramped sewing in my bedroom, but I still sewed lots of things in there.

Most of my fabric is secondhand, and I've gotten a lot of sewing supplies from thrift stores and estate sales. I know not everyone lives somewhere that has those things, but there are still budget options to look into. There are a lot of things that are nice to have but not strictly necessary.

Frieda Leopold did an experiment earlier this year where she bought the minimum sewing supplies necessary for a dress, and kept to a budget of 150 euros for all the tools including the sewing machine.

And this Morning Mercury video about trying to learn weaving without spending any money also feels relevant.

[oneheadtoanother]

idk anything about this but I love it

[lynati]

If any competition needed to be on Tumblr, it's this one.

[findingfeather]

Every time you think it's a given, that there's NO WAY that Red or Yellow could catch up to the other one given the lead, you are wrong. Right down to the wire.

[anistarrose]

if you are a parent, or may become one, or you are otherwise likely to arrive in the situation of caring for a child while they eat, promise me this: if a child doesn't like a certain food or food group, you will ask them WHY. and specifically, you will pay attention to either confirming or ruling out "it makes my mouth itch" or "it makes my stomach hurt," both of which are medically important info that children may not provide unprompted. which i know because this PSA has been brought to you by "i spent my entire childhood and much of my early teens eating peas and lentils while wondering why everyone else liked the Violently Itchy Mouth Sensation so much, like were they a bunch of legume masochists or something, before i finally realized that Violently Itchy Mouth Sensation was in fact a sinister demon appearing only to me, and her true demonic name was: Legume Allergy"

[brainrockets]

Do not let your child suffer from spicy bananas!

[wildsummerrose]

I Am Begging You to Read Terry Pratchett

One of England’s funniest writers is in danger of being lost to history.

Ma'am, I don't know what kind of drugs you've been partaking of, but they must be some good stuff.

[wildsummerrose]

I have what I called, "left-hand luck."

It's not a flashy kind of luck. Instead it's the ability to go to a small town grocery store, and miraculously find everything I need in one place. It's finding parking in unlikely places, or getting out of tricky situations unscathed.

Last year, my car got hit by a semi, and I walked away with only minor whiplash.

Today I drove off with my cell phone on top of my car. Somehow, despite going 45 miles an hour, it remained on top of my vehicle until I could pull over and reclaim it.

Honestly, I think the trickster gods are playing games with me. 

[stitchthisfiona]

Today in niche genres of joke that I can never get enough of and will probably still be secretly thinking about four years later

[cleolinda]

[cleolinda]

[lotus0kid]

[lotus0kid]

[pomme-poire-peche]

[lotus0kid]

[sashaforthewin]

[twistcmyk]

no, i do not have cameras in your home (yet)

[pangur-and-grim]

Queer Books and Authors are at a Breaking Point

Authors, agents, publishers: every part of the industry is seeing the strain of five years of escalating anti-LGBTQ censorship.

[pangur-and-grim]

if you'd like to show support, here are some upcoming queer books:

When Life Gives You Corpses is a brilliant YA about a cursed praying mantis who falls for a young witch. Yield Under Great Persuasion is a raunchy, but surprisingly sweet story about two men repairing their relationship. Fabulous Bodies is a horror story about a queer rockstar rising from the dead.

This is Where the Future Bleeds is a fantasy set in a vividly imagined land, where two women (who happen to kiss) are the key to healing the broken sky. You're No Better is a story about a teen struggling in the shadow of his murderous parent. Oil on Canvas is about a woman who finds disturbing paintings in the home of her dead mother.

and then here's a list of 26 queer books by Black authors set to publish this year, and a 10 upcoming books by trans authors. if you want to fight back against queer censorship, use your wallet! or (if that's not an option) you can contact your local library and ask them to stock a copy.