Its kinda sweet seeing the children of old hollywood actors on insta/ fb or what have you sharing pics of their parents being like “mommy/daddy on the set of ____!!!” and reminiscing
I also like the interviews where someone mentions what age they were when they figured out most kids don’t have feature-length movies of their parents/grandparents doing dramatic or funny stuff.
One of the most vile tricks ever pulled, is the way that even the mildest left-leaning ideals are made out to be a political imposition trying to force people to act or think a certain way, while even the hardest right-wing ideologies are construed as mere beliefs, matters of opinion that we must respect.
No one ever mentions in discussions and arguments about anti-intellectualism/”out of touch elitism” etc. etc. that colleges and universities operate on the back of one of the lowest, most exploited, most underpaid, and most insecure labor pools in the U.S. Just as an example after graduate school I was offered & turned down a job at a state university for 18k dollars a year and no benefits, which is pretty typical. This is just slightly more than I made teaching a 2/3 course load as a graduate student. Yes, I was lucky that I got funding etc. etc. but its also true that I was working a full time job for like $7.00 an hour. I know a lot of adjunct professors & PhD and other students who are basically living in poverty. There’s this weird cultural assumption that people should just be grateful/the work is not real? This particular labor crisis is absolutely invisible to most people and completely absent from infuriating conversations on both the left and right about how universities are “bubbles” or intellectualism is somehow classist or w/e when a significant portion of people standing in front of the classroom are living below the poverty line.
Our Blessed Country, Small and Peopled as it is, remains Home to Any Number of Inscrutable Figures, Awesome Occurrences, and Terrible Sensations, found in those Wild, Windswept Landscapes–Much Akin to those Moors you tramp with Such Stunning Regularity–which remain Untouched by the Hand of Mankind and his Meddlesome Hand, so Keen to mar the Face of the Wilderness with Road and Shop-front and Monument! These Places are those possessed of the Spirit of Ancient England, of Celt and Druid, and the Obscure and Unnamed Folk known Only in the Yearning, Ensorcelled Hearts of Children and Poets, who are Inclined by Natural Compulsion to seek out the Thrum of their Hallowed and Fantastic Presence pressed Against their Breast. Strange to think that Just Beyond the Borders of Manicured Parks and Bucolic Village Greens lie the Enchanted Wilds, Wherein All Manner of Spectre and Beast are Free to roam, and a Banshee, Sylph, Fairy, Witch, or Ghost of the Very Description which you have relayed makes her Home…
Or so I have read. In Truth the Direst Threat of the Moor is a Wetland of Greater Depth than one suspects, and, in no Small Measure due to the Superstitious Reputation of Forest, Moor, and Field, the Droves of Young Ladies and Poets drawn to Such Places for their Frolics and Languishing. It is my Firm Belief the Young Woman you encountered was Just as she appeared: a Maid Insufficiently Dressed for the Chills of Autumn, embracing the Mad Impulses of Youth. You ought to enquire in the Nearest Village about her, in the Dreadful Case she came to Some Misfortune for her Romantic, Foolhardy Ways.
Nothing quite illustrates the men in power think they’re untouchable, honestly mood like Admiral Motti insulting the religious convictions of an armored, superpowered cyborg with a laser sword.
See, this bit has always fascinated me for other reasons.
Fans have long noted that once the prequels entered SW
continuity, we had to accept that the Jedi had been erased from history only
two decades after they had ceased to exist –now I can well believe that an
effective propaganda campaign could have accomplished this, but the behavior of
the admirals in A New Hope implies that even the Empire’s top brass have
apparently swallowed the belief that the Jedi died out centuries ago. Like, they
very clearly view Lord Vader as “the daffy old guy we have to tolerate because
he was a Hero of the Revolution and is still one of the Emperor’s drinking
buddies.”
I think the Doylean explanation is probably “Lucas didn’t
know Vader would turn out to be one of the most popular characters and hadn’t yet
bothered with a detailed backstory, whatever he claimed later,” (the initial
marketing pitched Grand Moff Tarkin as the Big Bad, because Peter Cushing was
one of the two well-known actors in the film). Watsonian explanation? Maybe the
Emperor’s been adding some mind tricks to the basic “kill or at least demote
any senior officer who admits to remembering that he actually met some Jedi
back in the day.”
I’m still trying to process the Trump administration’s latest attack on trans rights and identities. As I read that first article I just felt rage consuming me. I can’t imagine how trans people are feeling right now.
These policies solve no problem. They avert no danger. They balance no budget. They help no individual or group. They do not serve any governmental function.
It’s just pure concentrated hate for hate’s sake.
I wish I had more hopeful words that could help alleviate people’s fear. All I can say is that I support everyone who may be harmed by what may come. I offer my voice and my love.
Sometimes the most difficult trials birth the most promising futures. If we can win this battle now, perhaps fewer people will have to struggle to be accepted.
This fight should not be necessary. But hatred is the tool of the weak. Your strength is legion. We can prevail.
Since I mentioned it in the tags of my previous post, I thought I’d share some info on “Der Erlkönig” in case y’all haven’t heard this incredible story and song!
It’s based on a Germanic folktale which has its roots in the Wild Hunt. The most famous version is set down in a 1782 poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (of Faust fame), which really plays up the psychopomp aspect. You can read the original poem in both German and English here.
(I highly recommend any and all Wikipedia clickholes that may come of this.)
In the early 1800s, Franz Schubert set Goethe’s poem to music arranged for piano and solo voice. Both parts are notoriously difficult, but when done correctly, it produces an amazing, haunting effect (and will probably be stuck in your head for the rest of recorded time).
The first version I want to share with you, sung by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, is probably the definitive rendition of this piece. Between the impressive accompaniment, his smooth voice, and the facial expressions he makes for the different characters, it brings out the best aspects of the music while still effectively communicating the text.
The second rendition I wish to share features Samuel Ramey, the voice of The Beast in Over the Garden Wall. This version is audio-only, but for fans of the show and/or really deep voices, it’s a treat nonetheless. This version is actually performed in an even lower key than the original.
Mooncustafer 