Ah, Wodehouse. Truly, He Is Beyond Compare. In All Sorts Of Ways.

Ah, Wodehouse. Truly, he is beyond compare. In all sorts of ways.

The Bystander, England, July 20, 1921

Yeah, Tolkien did his homework.

Coolest thing about lord of the rings? The king of horses shows up. It appears he is no different from all other horses

I feel like Deus Ex doesn't really do the former - that's more of a Shadowrun aesthetic - but Gunther Hermann and Viktor Marchenko are classic examples of the latter. Given the function-over-form attitude of Václav Koller's augs, he surprisingly ends up in "tank" territory, philosophically.

Adam Jensen, whose body was... pruned... so his shiny black designer augs could be properly symmetrical, is a surprise contender for both categories: involuntary star tank.

Especially if you're Bri'ish, consider signing on! Policy should listen to science, and gender-affirming care should be an accessible medical service, not a crime.

There is a pro-transgender Labour revolt against health secretary Wes Streeting. You can sign the letter.

Labour health secretary Wes Streeting has continued the transphobic policies of the previous Conservative government. Now Labour members have published and open letter anyone can sign.

Wes Streeting has said:

“This ban [on puberty blockers] brings the private sector in line with the NHS. We are committed to providing young people with the evidence-led care that they deserve”.

Evidence shows that blockers are of great help to young trans people, as it gives them some breathing space before puberty changes their bodies in traumatic ways.

Streeting is either lying about what medical research on trans people says or he has not done his homework. As a gay man he should know how oppression and erasure works.

The letter states:

International evidence shows that puberty suppressing hormones are a safe and effective way to temporarily pause a young person’s puberty, giving them time to consider their options for transition. Much of the concern around their use stems from the idea that those who take puberty blockers go on to use cross sex hormones as part of their transition. We do not think that trans young people growing up to be happy and healthy trans adults is a bad outcome while rates of de/retransition are exceptionally low. Rather than honouring Labour’s manifesto commitment to “remove indignities for trans people who deserve recognition & acceptance,” you have decided to strip trans young people of their bodily autonomy, undermining important medical principles, such as Gillick Competence, in favour of upholding the Conservative approach of politicising the lives of trans people. Even the widely discredited Cass Review does not go so far as to recommend the criminalisation of puberty blockers for trans young people.

You can read and sign the letter here.

See also:

Wes Streetings Tweet: An Analysis #BWOT Wes Streeting sparks fury after defending ban on puberty blockers for trans kids The World Professional Association for Transgender Health with severe critique of the UK Cass review on transgender youth

By Jack Molay.

Nice sentiment, but what a wasted opportunity to talk about so many things:

Swords can be used defensively in a tactical sense. Winning a swordfight is not about killing your opponent; it's about not dying before you can bring the fight to a close somehow.

Swords can be used defensively in a strategic sense. The paradox of tolerance and contemporary American politics are sterling examples of this, and it's a reason LotR has retained so much power so long after it was written. Sometimes you have to fight to preserve the good things in the world. It's a tragedy, sure, but Frodo and Sam used Sting to keep the Shire safe.

Swords are a poor choice of weapon against an animal. They are an excellent choice of weapon (at least as a backup) against a human. What does it mean to carry a sword rather than a bow, or a hunting spear, or a woodcutter's axe? It means you expect to fight people. That would have been an interesting dichotomy to present, given how Link often has a bow.

Ultimately, swords are tools. They are no more nor less evil than their wielders, or the purposes to which they are turned. The sword is symbolic of Link's responsibility that he has already taken up by accepting the quest to save the world. The sword is not a curse.

Unless it's a buster sword. Those things are pretty cursed.

Magnificent.

fun fact about languages: a linguist who was studying aboriginal languages of Australia finally managed to track down a native speaker of the Mbabaram language in the 60s for his research. they talked a bit and he started by asking for the Mbabaram word for basic nouns. They went back and forth before he asked for the word for “dog” The man replied “dog” They had a bit of a “who’s on first” moment before realizing that, by complete coincidence,  Mbabaram and English both have the exact same word for dog.