Dovie'andi se tovya sagain

1.5M ratings
277k ratings

See, that’s what the app is perfect for.

Sounds perfect Wahhhh, I don’t wanna
the-kuribuchu
blueboyluca

“When I first heard it, from a dog trainer who knew her behavioral science, it was a stunning moment. I remember where I was standing, what block of Brooklyn’s streets. It was like holding a piece of polished obsidian in the hand, feeling its weight and irreducibility. And its fathomless blackness. Punishment is reinforcing to the punisher. Of course. It fit the science, and it also fit the hidden memories stored in a deeply buried, rusty lockbox inside me. The people who walked down the street arbitrarily compressing their dogs’ tracheas, to which the poor beasts could only submit in uncomprehending misery; the parents who slapped their crying toddlers for the crime of being tired or hungry: These were not aberrantly malevolent villains. They were not doing what they did because they thought it was right, or even because it worked very well. They were simply caught in the same feedback loop in which all behavior is made. Their spasms of delivering small torments relieved their frustration and gave the impression of momentum toward a solution. Most potently, it immediately stopped the behavior. No matter that the effect probably won’t last: the reinforcer—the silence or the cessation of the annoyance—was exquisitely timed. Now. Boy does that feel good.”

— Melissa Holbrook Pierson, The Secret History of Kindness (2015)

nerodiscord
666coyotewoman666

the extent to which anti-homeless measures make cities exponentially worse for everybody who lives in them for the single solitary purpose of enacting social cleansing. actively making urban life unbearable in unprecedented ways in the name of culling the poor. vile irredeemable society

shadow-banned-the-hedgehog

And like half of that can be seen in parks (less benches and now they have metal bars between seats, no more toilets, no more water fountains, or gazebo), or in the bus/metro system (no more covered bus stop, no more benches they've been replaced with bars you can ''lean on'', no more bathrooms, or amenities). Because they don't want homeless people to find shelter from the cold and the rain, or they don't want them to have access to basic commodities or a place to sleep.

So they make everyone suffer.

ramblingsfromthemiddleofnowhere
dyke-terra: “magicalpaz: “prismatic-bell: “paddysnuffles: “robphoton7: “lotrlocked: “ weaselle: “ There was an arrest across the street from my place in Oakland one day – three cop cars with a bullhorn and guns out – and before I could even get out...
weaselle

There was an arrest across the street from my place in Oakland one day – three cop cars with a bullhorn and guns out – and before I could even get out the gate there were a couple people posted up and one of them was filming and another one was narrating in a calm but very loud voice, just

“HE IS COOPERATING! HIS HANDS ARE EMPTY! HE IS DOING WHAT HE IS TOLD TO DO! HE IS HOLDING STILL! HIS HANDS ARE EMPTY! HE IS NOT BEING THREATENING! HE HAS PUT HIS HANDS BEHIND HIS HEAD AS ASKED! HE IS NOT RESISTING!”

and that was something I hadn’t thought to do before. It certainly let the cops know what the narrative of eye witnesses was going to be. 

I especially liked “his hands are empty” because this statement would still be true and a witnessed reason the police should not become violent even if it turned out he had a weapon on his person somewhere.

lotrlocked

I see people in NYC stop and record a lot. Even if they are just being nosey, that’s still witnesses if shit goes down.

robphoton7

We must be vigilant.  The New Solidarity.  You might just save a fellow human being.

paddysnuffles

If you don’t feel comfortable with doing the narrating thing (which really is quite clever), even just standing around and blatantly staring actually legit helps immensely.

There are studies that show that even an image of someone looking can be effective to change people’s behaviours.

Sidenote: If you see a cop stopping an Indigenous person, the same protocol applies.

prismatic-bell

I did this in a parking lot when I saw a group of Black men and teens being harassed by a cop. Stayed in my car, but whipped out my phone and started to record, pointing out via narrative when I could hear the cop contradicting himself and changing his story. At the eight-minute mark, when I knew he was past the reasonable-stop guideline time (thanks, legal tips side of tumblr!), I flipped on my dome light.


Fam, what happened next was INCREDIBLE.


The cop had been gesturing in a wild way, almost flailing, like he was actively trying to get these guys agitated. He saw my dome light, saw a white face with a phone, and suddenly his hands came to rest on his vest. Within 90 seconds he’d packed his shit up and gone.

The most outspoken gentleman in the group came up to me and went “whatchu doing in there?” So I straight-up told him “it looked like you were being harassed, so I was recording.” The whole group recognized someone who was on their side, and started venting about the shit that had just gone down.


Turns out the asshole had had them stopped for a good five minutes before I pulled in. That means they were stopped, with no probable cause and a cop changing his story no fewer than three times, for AT LEAST THIRTEEN MINUTES. While chatting in a parking lot. One car had pulled in next to another that turned out to belong to one of his buddies and they were just shooting the shit when Officer Bacon came by.

Want to know the kicker here? One of the cop’s stories was that a group “matching their description” had been reported by the grocery store security guy for shoplifting. Black man, red shirt with a sports logo, jeans. Know what this convenient report didn’t mention?


HIS HEIGHT.


This guy was, without exaggeration, at least 6’10”. I assure you any report of him would have mentioned his height FIRST. And you’d best believe I pointed that out in my narration.


Cops WILL try shit. You CAN stop them. I did it and it was as simple as having some patience and a camera.

magicalpaz

Same for muslims!

Look out for your fellow marginalized people!

dyke-terra

Honestly, this applies to everyone. It’s a higher priority for the aforementioned groups, but nobody is safe around the police. The police are the enemy.

jacobtheloofah
enki2

image
sinnahsaint

Which is why it’s important to not be mean.

Their cult teaches them that the world is full of scary monster people who hate them for being so good and loved by god. If you swear at them and call them names or get in their face you’re just doing the cults work for it.

I’m not saying you have to listen to their presentation or try to debate them (and really getting into a debate without thoroughly understanding what they’re being taught will just make things worse)… I am just saying to be polite and say no thank you like if they were trying to hand you a flyer for something you don’t care about.

It’s easier for them to see the world outside their bubble as less scary if they see everyday people just going about their business and being as nice to them as you are to everyone else. This goes doubly for anyone who happens to dress modestly, not swear, and not drink or smoke because whatever you believe, they’ll see you as a “good” person who happens to strangely have no interest in their “message”, and that might be enough to get some curious about the possibility of themselves living in the real world.

It’s sometimes hard to be nice to people who seem to represent something you dislike. Just remember these “elders” are sheltered young men, some of which are getting their first real contact with people of other/no faiths.

They are not your enemy. They are victims.

traycakes

They aren't being sent out to actually convert people, they are being sent out hoping that they will be harassed and treated poorly so they view those outside the cult as dangerous and evil and stick to the safety of the familiar group.

You being mean to some teenager isn't sticking it to anyone, you're doing exactly what their church elders want to happen.

atlinmerrick

PLEASE READ THIS.

Please read this.

Don't do the church's work for them.

motherkatereloyshipper

If you're kind to enough of them, they put you on a block list.

They were such sweet kids, they'd turn up at my door with the thatch of raspberries out front and try to share their word with me, and I'm me, so, I fed them.

Then it was one of the wee 'elder's' birthday, so I made him a cake, and all the little lads came, and they asked about my books and board games and CCGs, I was just a nice frumpy middle aged Jewish lady, I was no threat, so I fed them and made them cakes and took them to the local gaming store and listened when they talked.

One loved yu-gi-oh cards, and it turns out, one of the other wee lads, we'll he loved him back, so I got them in touch with some resources so they had support and a different way to pay for college, they're still together 15 years later, they have dogs, they send me ecards on their birthday. No-one figured out I'd.helped them, I was just the nice lady who made them tea and listened when people were slamming doors.

The next one really wanted to be an artist, so I left out art books and resources, my eldest shared their coptic markers, they draw comic books now, no idea why his folks were insisting he needed to be a dentist, but, he's not a Mormon anymore, (not a Jew either before anyone makes any counter conversion claims).

The first 2 lads were the only dramatic ones, the rest went back into the network but, like Hugh of Borg, they spread the word, sometimes I'd get Mormons from other cities come and make the journey to break bread at my Sabbath table and be seen.

I still think very fondly of that time.

Many of those boys still email me now and then.

Most of them aren't Mormons anymore.

Someone higher up spotted the pattern and suddenly no more Mormons at my door.

I was blacklisted, for kindness.

So there you go, if you don't want Mormons at your door, just love those kids for a couple of years, feed them, help them, and eventually, no more will be allowed to visit

bogleech
technoturian

One thing about the WGA Strike is that Onion article was kinda right. Hollywood shot themselves in the foot with their current standard of cancelling every show people like to produce more and more short-term novelty.

It’s not like we have tons of shows ending on cliffhangers waiting for season six anymore. Due to their greed, they’ve personally taken long-term viewer investment outside and shot it and now they can’t count on it for negotiating power. What are viewers going to be mad about missing out on? The Twilight reboot? Another Star Wars spin-off? Several promising pilot seasons on Netflix with great representation that were already produced and cancelled before they aired and would’ve been even if the strike hadn’t happened?

bogleech

Every show I grew up loving was cancelled before the writers or fans wanted it to be and that was when a single “season” was an entire year’s worth of weekly episodes, something that really felt like a big part of people’s lives for a reasonable length of time. Now the standard is a “season” of 12 episodes dumped all on streaming one night when you aren’t looking. Everyone binges it and the enthusiasm lasts about a week or two before there’s nothing left to talk about.

Like a fruit fly. Fruit fly fandoms. The show and hype live for around ten days before they die.

avendesora-sedai
its-gita-time

Some union basics:

1. Striking is the LAST RESORT. If a union is at the place where a strike is being proposed it is because they have been bargaining for a long time and exhausted all their other options.

2. Before a strike happens, all the members vote. Everyone is very aware of the status of negotiations long before they’re made public. But if a strike is occurring it’s because an overwhelming majority voted to strike—you want almost everyone in the union to agree before you take such a huge step.

3. Strikes are difficult but necessary demonstrations of workers’ collective power. The hope is that your labor is so essential that the bosses lost profits will make them come back to the bargaining table. The bosses are hoping that the workers will starve to death.

4. Working during a strike is called scabbing. Coming in from an outside industry to do work during a strike is sometimes called crossing the picket line. Both send you straight to hell.

transcyberism

5. Crossing the picket line is not the same as buying a product. A strike is not the same thing as a boycott. Don't attempt to organize a boycott of something unless the union has endorsed one; it can fuck with negotiations and undercut the union's leverage.

avendesora-sedai
claritharklow

ohh my god a teenager online posted something that reveals a less than perfectly developed understanding of the world around them? should we tell everyone? should we screenshot it and share it everywhere so we can pat ourselves on the back for being so much wiser than Kids These Days? should we invite a boomer comic artist

claritharklow

you will never convince me that a middle schooler with no rights who gets flustered talking about sex is the heart of the global rise in reactionary sentiment we're dealing with right now and not senator john segregation who drafts 300 anti trans laws a day and wants that middle schooler to die in childbirth

cargopantsman
punkitt-is-here

image

Massive Minnesota W read em for yourself

aleatoryw

I was planning to drop the items from the linked tweet thread onto this post, but there are SO MANY new bills that it became a wall of text - line after line after line of incredible things Minnesota has enacted in a single session.

  • Marijuana will be fully legal starting in August, but the bill also wipes past criminal records and sets up marginalized communities to benefit from the new incoming profits.
  • voting rights are restored immediately after leaving prison, probation is capped, and phone calls for prisoners are free now.
  • there are so many labor rights being added i can't begin to list them. an end to non-compete clauses, paid sick and family medical leave for the WHOLE STATE, unemployment for seasonal education workers, safety regulations for workers in warehouses and nursing, establishment of minimum wages for gig drivers!
  • carbon free electricity by 2040
  • cutting child poverty by 1/3 immediately
  • price caps for high cost pharmaceuticals
  • more funding for public transit, public defense, education, homelessness prevention, and the removal of ALL lead pipes in the state water system
  • roe v wade is codified, conversion therapy is banned, and other state's anti-trans bills are blocked for anyone receiving gender related care here.
  • undocumented immigrants can get drivers licenses and basic healthcare through the state
  • improvements to our already robust voting rights
  • basic gun safety laws, like background checks and red flag laws

I'm.... actually blown away. the political landscape often feels so hopeless, but the DFL pulled themselves together, getting every member on board for these changes - real changes that are going to protect health, keep people out of jail and housed, and improve work conditions massively. this should be a beacon for every other state democratic party - change doesn't have to be incremental. things can get better and they can get better right now. get crackin'.