As far as actually finishing a novel, I rather doubt that. But I think I will take time to at least put some work towards the novel I've been working on for what feels like a decade. And maybe I'll even get a rough outline of the RPG I want to release at approximately the same time I finally get that thing published.

I wasn't going to do NaNo this year... but then I had an idea for a first scene. I've no idea where it's going after that scene, but I want to find out.

I've also decided to make the whole thing public as I go along. So I'm putting it up on Livejournal! You can read along or comment as you wish (and if you're on LJ, friend me!). If people do comment, I may throw in some reader interaction - y'know, for when I run out of ideas.

Currently-untitled NaNo 2016

(I've run out of ideas now. :-/)

hS

I am at least going to attempt to be more productive. I've got a mission approaching completion (not "Subjugation," sorry), and a fluffy sort of plotbunny that entered my brain and won't leave me alone. If I can get both of those published this month, I will be very pleased with myself. {= )

Good luck to those of you doing it for real!

~Neshomeh

Says the one who never celebrated it and won't celebrate it. It's just another day here.
(Also not doing NaNo because uni is supposed to start in a week and a half.)

I am performing that most sacred of rites, the wait until midnight to start writing. I have about half a plan - that's about right for NaNo, right?

I already showed a few other Boarders, but...



And Sir Aegis and Lady Iximaz went out for a lovely candy-collecting stroll together. And Sir Aegis was finally introduced to the Horrific Rocky Lands. T'was quite fun.

Can't say I'll be doing NaNo since I'm busy with work, but I'll definitely try to bang out some more of my bizarre original story. The one I had the weird RP thing for, with Death and Hezrak and all that jazz.

Just catching up on a few things but expect to have done some more wiki stuff by the end of the weekend.

Take some Bleeprin and cookies, you'll need them.

Hopefully you'll make friends and such here.

Now, I'm late, so all the questions were asked, so the only thing left is giving you some black-hole chocolates. May your stay in this madhouse be long and more than enjoyable.

Hope you enjoy your stay in this wonderful madhouse.

For your newbie gifts I present a Replica Holocron and a +1 longsword. I don't know how often you visit places where that sort of thing makes much of a difference, but it never hurts to be prepared, right? Plus, it's a sword. Can't go wrong with a sword.

For your newbie gift, have this wooden board, carved in the shape of an 'A'! It has "Welcome" written on the back. It's a "Welcome A-Board," get it? :3 Terrible puns aside, I hope you enjoy your stay! Welcome to the PPC!

I'm ye olde Larfenne J. Stockee, of ye olden days time.
Ye be welcoming ye to ye olde villagee PPC-ee.
Ye welcome!

Ye gifte, in olde traditione, ise: ye olden female calf!
Enjoye!

Here, have this best hamster and a bit of music.

I bid thee welcome. Ix's already got the constitution and the wiki pointed out, so I suppose I'll ask the obvious and see if, apart from the magnificent Protectors of the Plot Continuum, you have any particular fandoms?

Also, any preferred pronouns? I'd like to know what to call you, should I happen to be talking about you behind your back.

Either way, welcome! I give, as a gift, my questions, because I'm cheap. Hope you like it here!

Oooh, what fandoms are you in? And I'm happy to see that your enjoyment of our community is still going strong!

Have one of my own shed feathers and a complimentary kit of Spikes!

Hello, and welcome aBoard! For your newbie gift, take this plate of freshly-made SPaGhetti!

If you haven't yet read them, may I point you towards the Constitution? That and the Original Series are pretty much the only required reading around these parts. Another useful resource you might use is the Wiki; if you have any questions, just look here before asking. We like it when newbies (or returnbies!) do the research. ;)

Sehkmet,

Nice to see that I'm not the only newbie. Here, take some cookies.

Nice to see a newbie! Have some Bleeprin - you'll need it.

Here's a bucket of movie-theater popcorn to eat while you read the Original Series and other important stuff, a water bottle (always helpful), and two packs of bobby pins! Don't ask me where the bobby pins came from, I don't know either. Enjoy your stay!

Welcome! For your newbie gift, please accept this little lion sculpture, which roars when you press it's nose. I am afraid, however, that it lacks a volume switch. But do not worry! It does have an "off" switch on the bottom of the stand.

Welcome to the PPC! Enjoy your stay! :3

May you make many friends here.

Now, we don't get a goddess applying all the days. Did it really take that much time after smiting this glitterbag mocking you for joining this organization? (People don't understanding this joke just earned a mandatory lecture session of this spin-off.)

Anyways, please have a pot of black-hole coffee, and my welcome in this madhouse.

Come on in, grab a seat by the fire (careful, it's started burning cold instead of hot recently, no idea what's causing it.) and leave your sanity by the door.

For your newbie gifts I present my customary Replica Holocron and a dimensional compass. Don't ask me how it works, I'm just the salesman.

As I see you enjoy Doctor Who, might I ask who your favorite Doctor is? I'm guessing... Four. Am I correct?

so ill make this fast im really sorry but you know thats the way it goes

so uh your gift is uh, goddamn, im in a hurry, uh socks!
thats your gift, socks!
sorry im in a rush, welcome!

I cannot confirm nor deny my knowledge of any Egyptian deities who may or may not be known on the Board.
My fandoms are Stargate, Doctor Who, Lord of the Rings, and various sundry. The various sundry does not include Potter-verse, though I do occasionally look through the crossovers and fan art.
Preferred pronouns: Destroyer of all She Surveys. So DoaSS for short I guess.
My favorite agents are Supernumerary and Ilraen. Mittens and the Radioactive Moss Creature are second.
Thank you all for your kind gifts. I think I have to go clear a wall space now.
And Iximaz, no glomping. Please.

You wouldn't happen to know a certain Sakhmet Black, would you? ;) I kid, I kid. May I ask what fandoms you're in, for the sake of fandom-specific gifts from me and others?

For now, have a khopesh made from one of my own shed feathers, and the obligatory kit of Spikes to go with it!

A goddess, huh? Well, there goes my position as highest-ranked Boarder. Phooey. Well, Your Divineness, I present unto thee a Royal Ice Cream Container. Close lid, state desired flavor, open lid, enjoy! Infinite refills are a definite plus, in my opinion.

So, which agents have you read? Favorites?

Like I said in the other newbie's intro post, the Original Series and the Constitution are the only required reading around here.

So, what's your fandoms? Preferred pronouns? Got anything else to share?

Have a plate of welcome SPaGhetti, and hope you decide to stay a while!

The ones I can think of being:

1) A Jedi Temple.
While the rules on Force ghosts aren't quite clear (in either canon, so far as I know) it might be possible for your character to stumble across some lesser known Jedi outpost and be confronted by a guardian or spirit there, and be promoted by them.

2) Someone who knew Jedi tradition well enough to decide if your character would be worthy.
Perhaps a historian of some description, a member of another Force using group (depending on whether this is Disney or Legends), a notable associate of a Jedi Master, or someone who worked in the Temple itself. I know you said it would be selfish of him to Knight himself, but perhaps it would be different if he didn't make that judgment himself? I dunno.

3) A Jedi Holocron.
While the Holocron gatekeeper (provided those are still a thing in Disney canon) wouldn't have the authority to actually Knight anyone, it would certainly know better than most when a person is worthy of the title, and after a while of being considered a Knight in all but name, why not just accept it? Goes back to the Knighting himself thing, but I'd say it would be entirely reasonable to consider yourself a Knight if the closest thing to a Jedi Master you're likely to find says you've earned it. Suppose it depends on the character, though. And there's the rather significant problem of how to find a Holocron.

4) A former Jedi.
While Jedi Masters leaving the Order wasn't a common thing, there are enough instances in Legends to justify making one of your own, and if it's Legends, then there's a whole new canon to work with. Of course, that also means there's a whole new canon to trip over, but I'm sure you could make it work. As long as you could find a plausible reason for the Master to leave the Order (the horrors of the Clone Wars, for instance) then I see no reason why they couldn't survive Order 66 long enough to meet and promote your character. Hard to track a Jedi who's not a Jedi anymore, after all.

Hope that's a least a little bit helpful, and if you need any more help feel free to drop me a line. I may not be quite the expert I used to be, but Star Wars remains my all time favorite fandom.

If you have to ask whether or not it's badfic, it's probably not worth sporking. We don't go after borderline stuff, just the bottom of the sludge pit.

That said, when you start veering into greyer territory just judging whether a fic is bad or not, it becomes a bit more subjective. What you think counts as "bad" might just be "mediocre" for another.

This was a well-written mission. Even though I was not intimately familiar with all four continua, I was able to follow the mission.

Errors:
“Vi?” asked Lapis. Then a cross-vein appeared on her head. “Sarah, did you seriously —”

“No connection, none at all!” Sarah had her hands raised, her expression exactly as one would expect from a girl staring down a mouthful of teeth like a great white shark. “Cupid’s ex, remember? You saw her at the Gift Exchange this past January.”
What beef does Lapis have against Vi? Especially given this following quote:

I’m guessing she’s the one who invited me and Ami?”

“Yeah, that’s me. I’m Lapis Lazuli, pronounced Lay-pis La-ZOO-lee.
Did Lapis invite Vi or not?


“I’m not exactly happy about this either, Lapis,” Aiko replied, glaring right back at her childhood rival. “I wasn’t aware that you would be here with either. If I had been, I would probably have reconsidered.”

That word doesn't belong.


happened fifty thousand, seven hundred and fifty years ago.

According to the Steven Universe Wiki, it was 5,750 years ago, not 50,750. Or did I read the wrong page?


She grabbed Ami’s hand and ran to catch up with the Crystal Gems, currently getting Steven and the replacements to safety.

I'm guessing that it was the Gems getting Steven to safety, not Violet. Either delete the comma or add "who were" after the comma. Actually, the latter option would be clearer.

Not really knowing any of the continua involved, I had some difficulties keeping track of who’s who and which agent knows which continuum, but I finished reading eventually.

Speaking of continua and their singular:
Well, at least those of us who know whichever continua each charge applies to.
Shouldn’t this be "continuum" (singular), or may some charges actually apply to more than one?

Well, as the one who knows the continua that this chapter is focusing on.
As far as I understood, Aiko doesn’t know One Piece, Fairy Tail or Steven Universe. This should definitively be "continuum" (singular), even if the part of the badfic under discussion didn’t focus solely on Naruto.

I wouldn’t put it past the Flowers to specifically punish someone who knows a certain continua in addition for the general punishment for failing in collecting enough charges.
This should either be "a certain continuum" (singular) or just "certain continua" (plural, no "a"); and I think for should be "to".

I’m sorry, but I just can’t, not when I have cause to believe that is she only arguing against me that much because she hates me
Word order should be "she is".

Did you realize how you in the heck you could have caused THAT?!
The first you should not be there.

She’s taking the image of one of my favorite characters and twisting it while doing while doing all this mess, after all.
Too many words again.

Don’t tell me that I have witness something that amounts to torture again.
Missing word "to"? (While "have witnessed" would be grammatically correct too, I don’t belive that’s what you meant.)

Well, I don’t think we really needed it, but if there was any doubt of just how bad this is, it just went out of window right there!
Missing word "the" ("out of the window").

(I wondered whether Aiko’s speech patterns are building up to her speech becoming almost incoherent in a rage, but it doesn’t really look like this is intentional, and it continues when she’s calmed down again.)

The agents who rescued us charged us just for sake of it, but there wasn’t much aside from Anju and I just being there, so we got saved.
Missing word "the" ("for the sake of it").
Also, while "Anju and I were there" would be right and "Anju and me were there" would be a wrong use of "me" that occurs far too often, MS Word Grammar Check tells me that this should be "Anju and me just being there". (I may have learned the applicable rule ages ago, and it may have something to do with the continuous form, but I can’t really explain. English grammar is weird.)

This is job is very important for her, so she wouldn’t do anything to miss it.
The first is should not be there.

However, with her Byakugan still activate, Gem!Hinata easily noticed this and rushed over, the palm of her raised right hand glowing with chakra as she prepared to strike Aiko in return.
This should be either "active" or "activated".

... thus dodge the knife when without seeing it at first.
I’m not quite sure what you are trying to say, but "when" is probably a word that shouldn’t be there.

You know, I’m definitely happy we will probably get over all that, but don’t get wrong.
Missing word; may be "don’t get me wrong", "don’t get this wrong", "don’t get it wrong".

We don’t have to enemies to be that, after all.
Missing word "be".

So, even if we trying to nicer to each other now, I believe we still have a contest to settle.
Missing words; probably "we are trying to be nicer".

I’m glad that Lapis and Aiko will come to terms.

HG

I like that Lapis got some character development, and the interpretation of the author's note in the beginning as a sock puppet show.
Still, there's a couple of issues I have with this mission and they may be reoccurring issues in previous missions and missions some other authors have written as well.

1) Minimal description of the surroundings during the mission.

Although the badfic just states the location (I think?), the mission's surroundings aren't that much better. The mission just gives enough description to establish the surroundings and not much more than that.

Example:
Just then, the scene shifted around the agents, dropping them in another big heap. This time, they found themselves on a sandy beach, bordered by a wide selection of pastel-colored buildings.

And that was it. Even after the agents finished unpiling themselves, there was no mention of the sea breeze, no mention of the sounds of the ocean, no mention of the color of the sky, etc. Even if the location became generic because of the badfic, a description of what had become of the beach would be nice.

2) When agents are observing, it reads like an mst.

I think it's because the mission has copied-and-pasted chunks of badfic when paraphrasing would work better.

Example:
However they noticed something strange about, not only about the marking but instead of coming in pointing it was holding something.

All of them stared at it.
"Is that…" said Amethyst.
"It is." Said Pearl not knowing how to react.
"It's a white flag." Said Garnet.
"Wait… does that mean they're coming in peace?" asked Steven.
On the ship both the orange one and the lavender one stared at the white flag the ship was holding.
"This seems like a really stupid idea." Mumbled the orange one to herself.
(Then there's the reaction from the agents)

For this example, I think it would have worked better if you described the scene more like the agents are watching what the characters do. Writing the scene as just a copied passage then a response, looks to me less like the agents are actually spying on the scene and more like the agents are doing an mst, giving the feeling of not really being there even when they actually are.


I think that's all for the criticism. I know you worked very hard on the mission and I want you to know that I'm glad you had fun writing it!

Here's your replica Rose's sword back. But with a few modifications.

It now houses the innards of a Nano Saber, which means added electric damage, as long as you charge it with EU. Apart from that, it's the same old sword.

Honestly, this mission suffers from some of the same things I've noticed recurring in Skarmory's other missions: an excess of characters, a lot of backstory-dumping, and a lot of inter-character bickering. In this case, things between Lapis and Aiko are less justified than between Lapis and Backslash, which doesn't really help things. And Violet, Ami, and Seung-Li don't contribute all that much to the mission, at least in the first half, though they do gain more personality once they split up. In all honesty, the smaller groups give the characters a lot more chance to shine. On the other hand, I'm not sure that it makes sense in mission terms; you can't really have one group handle every other chapter, because they'll miss a lot of details, and charges of poor in-fic continuity will be harder to catch.

It is nice to see Lapis get called out for her behavior; I have to agree with Sarah that she spends way too much time angsting about her background. However, I think having her overcome her personal problems via magical regeneration seems a bit... cheap. Aside from the Heroic Sacrifice, which is a bit on the cliche side, she's said she's going to change, but the progress gets made without us actually seeing the character development. It's also confusing because I can't tell if this occurs before or after "Witches Get Stitches." In terms of characterization, it seems more like the latter one came first, as this one continues the trend of Lapis learning to get past her issues and disagreements, but it'd make more sense for her speech and swearing patterns to change after regeneration. (Swearing is something people usually do instinctively, so it doesn't really make sense for someone to begin swearing in a language they've just learned, unless there's some other factor at play.) Also, I'm not really sure about Lapis regaining her waterbending powers. I mean, I know they're not necessarily overpowered, they just don't really seem like a necessary power-up. It kind of feels like she's being rewarded just for making a token effort to get better. I know the Heroic Sacrifice was supposed to be the major point, but given that she recovered fairly effortlessly, it takes away some of the impact.

I did like the other characters a lot, especially Seung-Li and Violet. I'm sorry I didn't have more positive comments. It's not a bad mission or anything, and I found the action pretty easy to follow. You also did a good job explaining the Steven Universe stuff, at least.

Thanks for the more stuff to look at instead of doing homework.

I needed that.
More stuff to look at, instead of doing homework.

You do this paging thing a lot, creating a new thread just to get the attention of one specific person, sometimes regarding things that are still on the front page of the Board. Every time, I think to myself, is that really necessary? Is it so absolutely vital that people view and/or respond to your comments that just making the post isn't enough?

I can understand wanting to draw attention to something that may have fallen off the front page, or maybe something that's been missed for a few days or so, but I just looked at the time stamps of this post and the one you're referring to, and they're a minute apart. That's definitely not necessary. Especially for threads like mission plugs and the like, you can be pretty sure the people responsible are keeping an eye out for any feedback as long as the thread is visible—and creating a new thread about it brings older thread closer to falling out of view that much faster, so it's a bit self-defeating.

Give people some time to see what you're talking about before worrying about it and taking up one of the limited thread slots on the Board, yeah? Please also consider other options, such as contacting them in a reply to a recent post in an existing thread or via e-mail, Discord PM, or their wiki talk pages. The entire Board does not need an up-to-the-minute breaking news report that SOH has commented on someone's stuff, y'know?

~Neshomeh

With how it's set up, I am the only one who can renew it, and I'm more than willing to do so.

That said, money is a bit on the tight side at the moment and I can't immediately afford swinging the $48 it costs for the 6 month subscribe.

TY to Des for pinging me to this.

-July

Nice to have you with us.

All the important stuff has already been said, so, have this bottle of space! I'd advise not drinking it, it's oddly salty.

Please have a pot of black-hole coffee. I hope you'll enjoy this place as much as your brother.

Now, I assume that you know the essentials, but what are your fandoms? Having three brothers, I know that differences about them can be quite important.

Here, have this best hamster and an Azeri folk song.

Welcome, welcome. Seems like everybody else took care of the questions, so here, have this Royal Ice Cream Container! Close lid, state desired flavor, open lid, enjoy. Repeat as many times as desired. This container also happens to be very resilient, so if you have a shrink ray and need to escape from a nuclear bomb, you can use the shrink ray on yourself and hide in the container.

Got some Skarm-blood, in here!
Skarm's my big sib, which would make you my, um. Half big sib.
Kind of big sib.
Decently-sized sib.

Welcome, decently-sized sib!
My gift upon you is: Skarm-blood.
I, er, I just found it. Around. I dunno, I feel like he might need it. At least, more than me.

I'm gonna assume Skarm's already told you all about us, so just have this plate of welcome SPaGhetti!

Hello and welcome to our little corner of the internet, have a Mini-Railgun for your troubles.

Seeing as how epl pointed you to the OS, I'll take care of the second part: If you mind telling, what are your fandoms?

Glad you decided to stop by! I assume your fandoms are mostly the same as Skarmory's? Here's a pack of sticky notes and some popcorn to eat while you read the Original Series (hopefully the link works again). Enjoy! :> (It's supposed to be a bird)

Assuming that events in this book series (what is it? is it a secret?) take place on a linear timeline—that is, each new book takes place after the ones before it—then you could just have your character be from the latest time you remember and have them not be aware of anything that happens later in the series. It would be like having a character from an earlier era in Earth's history. If they're from, say, the Renaissance, they could be forgiven for not knowing much about what's happened since and holding some beliefs about the world that have now been outmoded. Same goes for a character from an earlier point in their canon, I'd think.

That said, I'd be leery of doing it myself without at least brushing up on major events/changes in the canon. Does it have a wiki? Just about everything does.

~Neshomeh

I'm willing to bet that Ix and Charlotte weren't even at the halfway point of the badfic before they decided to do the Duty. Am I in the ballpark?

As for the usual SOH post-mission usual fare:
1) “This is why establishing the setting is important, people,” Charlotte said through gritted teeth. “Also, can we charge for showing thought-speech as bolded italics?”
Actually, that shouldn't be a charge. Unless things have changed on FFN, they actually have a problem with chevrons. An unfinished Animorphs goodfic that I ran across (the very first FFN fic that I ever read, IIRC), ran into this issue the hard way.

2) The chapter ended with the Animorphs agreeing that Ax and Tobias would watch the Sue, and the agents were thrown into the next, landing in the yard outside her house.
The next what? Obviously the answer is "chapter", but it takes a few moments' thought to figure that out. Please consider being a bit more specific; it only requires adding one more word.

3) So they followed the canons and Sue until they found the entrance to the Yeerk Pool inside the employees only room, though Ax was a bit too distracted by the Sue’s beauty to think about such silly things.
"employees only" should be hyphenated.

I'm still holding out for an appropriately god-awful crossover, preferably involving Ax or other Andalites, in case anybody happens to see one. The best I've got right now is this, which is maybe better MST material than mission material. The author's notes almost outweigh the story, if you can call it that. O.o

(Making Ilraen and Farilan MST it could be fun, though, come to think of it...)

Anyway, the mission! I enjoyed it, and I'm interested in this new take on fixing the problem of Ix and Lottie's different lifespans. Charlotte researching ways to de-vamp herself from various continua could be a fun exploration of different takes on the vampire myth, but even not getting into it in detail, it still provides some food for thought. It also shows how devoted she is to being with Ix, which is a great bit of characterization.

Speaking of showing over telling, the mission did a good job of highlighting how the Sue failed at it with regards to her angsting about her lack of friends while at the same time behaving in an obnoxiously standoffish way. And wow, the speshulness. Jeez. Good riddance to her.

I did have one moment of confusion here:

Ax and Tobias retreated to the bathrooms to morph cockroaches, and just as they were making their way back to the pool entrance, the scene changed again, dumping the agents behind the stack of hay bales.

It took me a minute to figure out that the scene had changed back to Cassie's barn rather than something new, so I struggled a bit trying to make sense of hay bales in a Yeerk pool, where I'd have expected the story to go next. Y'know, if the fic had actually bothered itself with detailing an important action like scouting enemy territory. {= P This could be easily fixed by the addition of a few words, either "the scene changed again back to Cassie's barn" or "behind the stack of hay bales in Cassie's barn." (Not both, of course.)

I feel bad for Lottie at the end. Unbridled hope and enthusiasm meets the cold steel wall of elitism and xenophobia. Ouch. Good to know Ilraen has been seeing her nice side so far. Guess he's in for a rude awakening when he finds out just how much work he has cut out for him.

~Neshomeh

Read this mission while waiting for the lecturer to get into something interesting, no siree.

The Good: I like the characterisation of Ix and Lottie. There is no Talking Heads, which is nice. The mission is... I'm not sure how to say it, but it was an easy, flowing read.
The Bad: there's a distinct lack of funny in the mission. Might just be me, though.
The Ugly: the Sue, who else?

Poor Charlotte being exploded like that... good to see that she'll be okay.

It’s not like one power was enough from her, ...
Shouldn’t this be "for"?

Anyway, charge to mini-flashbacks whose sole purpose is to show off her multitude of powers.
Shouldn’t this be "for" again?

HG

An excellent show of Ix and Charlotte's relationship! I especially enjoyed them making fun of Isuebella together.

HAND ME MY SPORK!

Cimorene for best princess. :)

Finally, at least something from my younger years is being completed (I hope)!

Maybe next would be dubs of the remaining seasons of MegaMan NT Warrior! (A guy can dream, can't he?)

I didn't think they would ever do another season! Who knows, maybe Firefly is next! (There definitely won't be another season of Firefly. Just saying. Unfortunately.)

I had pretty much given up hope on this ever happening. Very happy to see I was wrong.

So as we all know from Florida way back in 2000, one of the best ways to drag out an election is to call for recounts. There have been various rumours that Clinton might do that, and several purported reasons why (one being a mismatch between results from paper and electronic votes, when Russian hacking has already been part of the electoral season), but so far she hasn't.

But now Jill Stein has.

Apparently you don't have to be in with a shot of winning to request a recount - you just have to be on the ballot. And to pay for it, which, uh, she's up to $2.5 million now. That's far more than the amount needed to file for a recount in Wisconsin (which has to be done by tomorrow), and should cover the actual fees for said recount.

So, yeah. I don't even know if you should donate to this at this point; I have absolutely no clue what's going on any more.

Wheeeeeeeeee, 2016!

hS

We are the citizens of the dystopia. Our lives are worth less than others' right to shoot. Our health is a commodity, to be bought and sold. We work, earn, and live at the pleasure of the Corporations. If we lose their favour, we die - there is no escape.

(Freedom is slavery.)

Our votes mean nothing. Town and country are at war, and those who rule are happy to keep it that way. They have shaped the very landscape to give us no choice in who represents us; even the highest ruler of all is chosen by a bare handful of us, while others merely tread their pre-chosen paths.

(Resistence is futile.)

They say those who seek peace should prepare for war; we, who preach equality, prepare ourselves by rejecting it. Across swathes of our country, outlawed hate is shouted from the rooftops and marches through the street, while our leaders laugh along. The police do nothing to stop them - they are the police.

(Silence is golden.)

Welcome to the Dystopia. We call it the land of the free.

(Ignorance is bliss.)

~hS

Sir Killalot 2020

Picked up from a friend on Facebook:

https://twitter.com/i/moments/796417517157830656

Just in case anyone thought we were afraid for nothing. We're not. Electing Trump for president of the United States implicitly sanctions stuff like this, or has at least made these people feel emboldened to act hatefully toward others. Know that this is real. People are being hurt by this.

Look out for your friends and neighbors, people. If you see things like this, say something. Do something. Be there.

(And in case it needs saying, never ever resort to violence. That does not help.)

~Neshomeh

I would like to know, what were the most important issues to you?

The bad news is, Trump won. The good news is, I have a day off school to mourn.

Yes, the news is depressing. But in two years, we have a chance to cut this off at the knees. Figuratively speaking.

I keep trying to think through this. Apparently, both sides of this divide are terrified of the other. I know why I'm terrified of Republican platforms - this election especially.* But… why are they afraid of us? I don't want to take their freedoms away. Not to go to church. Not to proselytize. Not even, believe it or not, to own guns. I'd like to see fewer domestic terrorist attacks, so fewer high-magazine guns. Maybe more checks against domestic abusers and people with violence problems buying them. But, as someone who's lived a long time in a rural area, I fully understand the necessity of some gun ownership. And that is honestly the norm - "ban all guns" is a radical and not well supported position. I can't think of any freedom of republicans that I don't support. Not one. I just want more people to have a voice.

Seriously. I know there are some republicans on here. Help me out, guys. Why are you afraid of Democratic positions?



* Pence literally believes in conversion therapy. Shock therapy at that. Trump wanted to deport all Muslims. And Mexicans. And those of Mexican descent. More wars are scary - partly because of the American lives, partly because of the civilian lives lost on the other side. They're likely to cut funding for education; I fear both the broad costs to society and for my personal future, since I am an educator. They are likely to promote policies that lead to unplanned pregnancies, and cut funding for even early abortions.

Tammy Duckworth won and will be the first thai-american senator! She is also disablied with both her legs missing so ... yeah!

Kamala Harris won and is going to be the first black female senator since 1999 and became the first Indian-American and second African American female to serve in the United States Senate.

Oregon elected Kate Brown and she will be the first ever openly lgbtqa governor in us history!

Catherine Cortez Masto won and will be the first ever latina us senator!

Also this happened a while ago but Louisiana,a mostly red state,got a democratic Governor!

Not all is lost. The Popular vote was all for Hillary too. We are not a lost cause and we are not irredeemable.

I voted later in the day. The turnout was remarkable. According to poll workers this was the largest turn out ever in our precinct. I stayed up all night watching the election and saying "holy crap" every few minutes. I still feel like this election is unreal.

Most of you are probably still asleep. You don't yet know what's happened.

Lucky you.

To those of you who voted for Hillary:

I feel for you. I really do.

To those of you who voted for Trump:

What happens next is on your shoulders. Whatever he does over the next four years, it's all on you.

To those of you who voted third-party, particularly in places like Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and everywhere else that the split between the two actual candidates was less than the number of votes thrown away on 'other':

I hope your protest vote is worth the next four years.

To those of you who didn't bother to vote:

Listen.

I hate you.

hS

They even gave out these nifty stickers!

Early vote-by-mail really is the way to go. It took me almost an entire off day to look up all the candidates and get the voting done, but doing the research is critical.

—doctorlit judges the judges

Early voting is awesome.

I would add to World-Jumper's words: your vote might not count if you do vote, but it definitely won't count if you don't. And the fewer people there are who vote, the fewer people there are whose votes count, and that is bad. So go do it, and drag your reluctant friends and family with you.

~Neshomeh

P.S. By the same logic, please recycle, switch to more energy-efficient lightbulbs, turn out lights when you leave the room, save water, etc. The more people who do these things, the bigger the difference that will be made.

Now, if you''ll excuse me, I'm going back to sleep. 5:30 is too early to be waling up no matter the reason.

And maybe when I wake up, 2016 will he over... /sigh

Sadly, money's a bit tight right now, so I can't donate myself.

Thank you so much guys for getting the word out for me. I'm... I don't really know what to say other than I'm touched. It means a lot to me.

I'm now only $2000 away from my February goal. I think this could really happen. :D

Being basically socially unactive and all. But I still want to wish you the best of luck.

And Sweet Philemon, you'll need it with America gone mad.
Cannot exactly do more, sorry. PPC is the only web community where I'm remotely active.

I wish you all health and luck, Ix, and stand with you in solidarity. I went to bed wondering if I should opt for a mad dash to the closet in one direction or another - and which direction would be safer. I think in the end, we're going to have a long four years, but I hope we can all face them head on.

And but so, reading your post has given me a shot of courage. I'm glad you were able to stand up and shout, and I'll share this around to try and help you.

Luck, health, and happiness,
VM

*hugs*
Best of luck.

What brought you to this decision? Of course, if you don't want to answer, feel free not to, but I would like to know what made you willing to undergo such a (literally) life-altering change.

I know a lot of my crowd will be sympathetic, even if they can't donate. {= )

~Neshomeh

Canon and length?
On one hand, I started uni two days ago. On the other, I need something else to do, so.

Hope everything's okay with you.

My email is in the post below, and many others are available on the wiki, if you want to find a way to keep in contact.

What's going on?

Regardless, I hope whatever it is works out alright for you. Take care.

I know people have many reasons for disengaging with online spaces, but given everything that's happened in the last two days, I thought it was worth checking in.

Hope all is well with you.

It will have to be short and sweet. Possibly an hours worth. So, starting at 10:00 EST,I will read part of one of two things.

1. The story of Denko. (´・ω・`)
2. The worst fanfic I have ever read: Pinkamena, the pink shadow.

Please, let me know which you would rather listen to. I may elect to ignore you and read what I want, but I would still value your feedback.

("Blood Raining Night," for those who don't speak acronym.)

I'm thinking either next Saturday the 19th or Sunday the 20th, probably starting around 2:00 pm CST again. Anyone have a preference of one over the other?

We left off at chapter 14, so we'll be picking up at chapter 15, "School Days," and continuing until we get sick of it, or approximately 5-6:00 CST. We might even finish the thing, since we got about halfway through the first time. I haven't read all the later chapters, though, so I can't guarantee I'll keep my composure as well as it goes on. {= P

Oh, and if you want to read for a part (reprised or otherwise), please claim it in advance. It would really help things go more smoothly. Thanks!

~Neshomeh