i want what they have so bad

TUMBLR 101: a helpful guide for tiktok refugees

are YOU a former tiktok user trying to learn how to use tumblr to fill the void the american tiktok ban is leaving in your soul? here are some things you should know, from someone who’s going on their eighth year on this hellsite:

1. you can say anything on here. gone are the days of having to use words like “unalive” and “seggs.” murder! kill! sex! fuck! speak your mind!

2. there is a community for you on here. regardless of what you’re into or however small the fandom is, you have a place here. at least one other person will have heard of your weird obscure interest. strike up a conversation!

3. followers don’t matter. tumblr is one of the last remaining social media sites in which your number of followers means absolute jack shit. this can be disorienting at first, but once you lean into the fact that everyone on this website is equal, it’s very freeing. clout means nothing here.

4. similarly, you can post at any time. while tiktok has an algorithm that favors certain times, tumblr has no such algorithm. post whatever you want, whenever you want. every post has virtually the same chance at getting notes, regardless of when it is posted.

5. tags can have spaces between the words! this one is very exciting. tags can be a whole sentence. you can also use the tags to comment on someone’s post without actually adding onto the physical post itself (which is sometimes frowned upon and called “derailing” if you use this feature to bring up a completely different point other than the one that’s being made on the original post).

TL;DR: speak your mind, find your place, followers don’t matter, post anytime, have fun with tags!! tumblr is a wonderful site used to share things you’re excited about. be patient with yourself as you’re learning and have fun!

SO HERE IS THE WHOLE STORY (SO FAR).

I am on my knees begging you to reblog this post and to stop reblogging the original ones I sent out yesterday. This is the complete account with all the most recent info; the other one is just sending people down senselessly panicked avenues that no longer lead anywhere.

IN SHORT

Cliff Weitzman, CEO of Speechify and (aspiring?) voice actor, used AI to scrape thousands of popular, finished works off AO3 to list them on his own for-profit website and in his attached app. He did this without getting any kind of permission from the authors of said work or informing AO3. Obviously.

When fandom at large was made aware of his theft and started pushing back, Weitzman issued a non-apology on the original social media posts—using 

as reasons we should allow him to continue monetizing fanwork for his own financial gain.

When we less-than-kindly refused, he took down his ‘apologies’ as well as his website (allegedly—it’s possible that our complaints to his web host, the deluge of emails he received or the unanticipated traffic brought it down, since there wasn’t any sort of official statement made about it), and when it came back up several hours later, all of the work formerly listed in the fan fiction category was no longer there. 

THE TAKEAWAYS

1. Cliff Weitzman (aka Ofek Weitzman) is a scumbag with no qualms about taking fanwork without permission, feeding it to AI and monetizing it for his own financial gain; 

2. Fandom can really get things done when it wants to, and 

3. Our fanworks appear to be hidden, but they’re NOT DELETED from Weitzman’s servers, and independently published, original works are still listed without the authors' permission. We need to hold this man responsible for his theft, keep an eye on both his current and future endeavors, and take action immediately when he crosses the line again. 

THE TIMELINE, THE DETAILS, THE SCREENSHOTS (behind the cut)

Hey folks, I doubt many people will see this message or the comment I left about it down below, but if you’re reblogging this post with death threats or calls for physical violence against this man, I am blocking you. I want this post to reach as many people as possible, and if you carry on like that you’re not just incriminating yourself, you’re giving tumblr reasons to nuke this entire recap. Thank you.

For the people coming in after Weitzman made the fanwork hidden to people who hadn’t signed up for an account beforehand, there does appear to be a way to see if your fic was lifted: searching for the fic title (+ your username maybe, if your title is a song lyric or something else used frequently) + wordstream will still bring up your fic if it was included in the theft:

Again, sharing this info is appreciated, because (understandably) I’m getting a lot of questions about this, and I will not be answering all of them individually. Share (and check back for) all additional info in the comments either here on on the latest Reddit thread if you can, because even useful additions in reblogs are difficult to keep up with. Thank you!

The thing neurotypicals tend not to understand about the ADHD brain is that it really only has two gears

I turn to the chalkboard and carefully write out

WORKIN' HARD

HARDLY WORKIN'

Much like a cars transmission getting stuck between gears the adhd brain can also access a secret mode called HORKLY WARDIN' that feels bad

Yeah

No but truly one thing we don’t talk about enough in regard to Jason is the embarrassment of it all. Part of why Jason reacted so strongly to not being avenged is because he really and truly believed in Bruce and thought the world of him and to be let down like that is embarrassing. To die like that is humiliating, to once again be forced to survive on the streets is humiliating, to have to live as a shell of yourself for years is humiliating, and then getting your mind back only to immediately be presented with evidence that your death didn’t change anything is the biggest humiliation of them all. Jason really thought that his death would be enough to change Bruce. That Bruce would choose him over his moral code. To be proven wrong about that is deeply deeply embarrassing

Yes!!! I always think about the ending scene of UtRH...

How he condemned nothing being done before slipping to begging for something to be done. How he practically debased himself by making a loud scene revealing his vulnerabilities and insecurities about how he thought he mattered while his murderer is front-row present to his breakdown. How he said he would do it for himself, how he was going to do it for himself (and the others that came before), only to get a batarang to the throat instead by his father's hand. He neither was allowed to relieve past humiliations for himself and was instead forced to live with another embarrassment on top of everything prior. Thinking that his father just needed to see how distressed his murderer being alive made him, and learning for himself that wasn't good enough either. Jason placed himself above Bruce's code, he thought he mattered more than Bruce's code, and to find out that he was wrong...that didn't only leave him feeling off-kilter, deeply betrayed, and powerless, but also shamed for wanting more.

it's embarrassing to open yourself up to the idea of loving and being loved by someone, and it's deeply embarrassing to find out you love that someone more than they love you. Even more embarrassing to learn that you may have been wrong and may not have been loved at all. It is deeply humiliating to choose someone and for them not to choose you back. It is deeply humiliating to realize you thought you mattered more than you did, and for everyone to know this before you yourself do. It's humiliating to feel stupid, childish, belittled, powerless, and like everyone's looking at you confused that you thought otherwise.

OP is more so focusing about Jason's embarrassment in the moment that lead to his reaction, but I always think about how he may feel about it all in retrospect. I can only imagine it's like being on the cusp of sleep when your mind decides to shove something "cringy" forward and then you're wide awake dialed to eleven. The cold rush of water on a person's shoulders before heat warms their face. The shaking hands and tight chest + shoulders--the mix of anxiety, panic, and humiliation--the full body vibrations that are telling you to Get Away!! The pounding heart...How you still can't DO anything about it, especially now, yet the moment keeps on replaying no matter how hard you shut your eyes. It's downright painful--like you want to claw it out of you.

It's like everyone in the room is laughing at you, and the only thing Jason can do is laugh with them and say things like "I was full of piss and vinegar when I came back" because that's easier than acknowledging how he actually feels about all his vulnerabilities and insecurities from that time that still loiter today. Humiliation feeds into our sense of self, and what if he confines that he felt proved right again about how he doesn't matter, and they confirm those insecurities?

There's an EU initiative going on right now that essentially boils down to wanting to force videogame publishers with paid games and/or games with paid elements such as DLC, expansions and microtransactions to leave said games in a playable state after they end support, or in simpler terms, make them stop killing games.

A "playable state" would be something like an offline mode for previously always online titles, or the ability for people to host their own servers where reasonably possible just to name some examples.

I don't think I need to tell anyone that having something you paid for being taken from you is bad, which is a thing that routinely happens with live service and other always online games with a notable recent example being The Crew which is now permanently unplayable.

Any EU citizen is eligible to sign the initiative, but only once and if you mess up that's it. You can find it here. (https://citizens-initiative.europa.eu/initiatives/details/2024/000007_en)

Even if you're not European or you signed it already, you can share this initiative with anyone who is, even if they don't care about videogames specifically because this needs a million signatures and there is different thresholds that need to be met for each EU country for their votes to even count and could also be a precedent for other similar practices like when Sony removed a bunch of Discovery TV content people paid for.

I'd love to see something like this in the States.

Especially with some of the big license gacha games that have been shutting down over the past few years.

unfortunately for us in the good ol US of A, the situation is bleak

hence why the strategy is to challenge this issue in the EU, where they actually seem to get things done in a way that tends to benefit the average person instead of corporations

Yuri on Ice was such a life changing anime, especially to have experienced in real time waiting for those episodes to drop every week. It was an open acknowledgment and love letter to queerness, to valuing and creating art, to loving yourself and loving those around you and it’s no surprise that it had such a large impact on those who watched it. Not to mention how stunning it was to be presented with an open letter to queer love during a time where same sex marriage and gender equality was still a very hot and controversial topic. It’s, in its own way, nestled itself into history.

It may not be in the way we all expected or hoped, but see you next level.

We need a Cultural Revolution in this country

so true itadori

who can relate

Help me fic finders

uhh, I need those super cool people who find specific fics to help me find one.

I don't remember much about it, but it was about Dick Grayson (Nightwing) kinda falling apart, and during a fight, he electrocutes himself with an escrima stick, in order to snap back into the fight.

I think It was a one-shot

Keep an eye out

Asking the Real Questions (Episode 1)

Welcome to “Asking the Real Questions” where we ask the fandom and non-fandom related questions that are the questions we should really be asking instead of the commonly posed ones!

This episode instead of asking who Bruce Wayne’s favorite child is we’ll be asking:

RECALL POST! huge listeria outbreak in the US & canada that has been ongoing for YEARS, with dozens of foods recalled!

posted february 10, 2024

fucking hell. what the fuck. CLICK THE LINKS FOR MORE INFORMATION, INCLUDING SPECIFIC PRODUCTS. there will be more updates. this recall is ongoing and more products are being recalled by the day.

"The FDA and CDC, in collaboration with state and local partners, are investigating illnesses in a multi-year, multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to queso fresco and cotija cheeses manufactured by Rizo Lopez Foods, Inc., of Modesto, California.

This outbreak includes cases dating back to 2014 and is currently ongoing."

DATING BACK TO -> 2014 <-

listeriosis, the infection caused by listeria, can become very serious, and can cause death, miscarriage, and lifelong disability. most infections are not severe. listeria typically makes you sick within 2 weeks of exposure, but it can take as long as 3 months after being exposed to get sick. listeria is the third leading cause of foodborne illness deaths in the united states, and there have been confirmed deaths from this outbreak.

rizo-lopez foods supplies dairy ingredients to dozens of different brands making dozens of different types of foods across the entire country.

recalled products include:

Bright Farms, Campesino, Casa Cardenas, Dole, Don Francisco, Don Pancho, Dos Ranchitos, El Huache, Food City, Fresh Express, H-E-B, La Ordena, Marketside, President’s Choice, Ready Pac Bistro, Rio Grande, Rizo Bros, Rojos, San Carlos, Santa Maria, Tio Francisco, Trader Joe’s, 365 Whole Foods Market.

and freshly made food from various stores. for a good chunk of these products, all prior expiration dates are being recalled. many of these foods have been potentially contaminated for years.

directions from the CDC:

"Listeria is especially harmful to people who are pregnant, aged 65 or older, or have weakened immune systems. This is because Listeria is more likely to spread beyond their gut to other parts of their body, resulting in a severe condition known as invasive listeriosis."

you can check the ongoing list of recalled products as well as more information about the outbreak in the US through the FDA link or the CDC link.

for canada: the canadian recalls link to the US FDA + CDC investigation for more detailed information, but you can keep track of rizo-lopez recalls in canada here.

check your fridge, check your freezer, check your emails and voicemails for recall notifications, check in on others, clean contaminated surfaces thoroughly, and stay safe. do NOT fuck with listeria!

this outbreak and associated recalls affect food commonly eaten during the superbowl! which is tomorrow! please check the links for the recall list if you plan on eating or serving anything dairy, or if you know anyone throwing a party!

i think that, if youre usamerican and any time someone calls out your lack of knowledge on global geography you start talking about how bad the usa education is and how its actually not your fault that you dont know what continent nigeria is on because you cant look at the google maps bc donald trump will personally shoot you, youre very annoying

literally nobody is asking you to point them all on a blank map or know their capitals or count at least 3 major cities but there was someone in the notes who thought egypt was in eastern europe and someone who thought canada was on a separate continent from the usa. knowing sort-of where myanmar or bosnia or montenegro or somalia or laos are is literally the basic minimum and you cant even do that. if you think your knowledge of the georaphy is lacking instead of telling everyone on this site about how "they just didnt teach me that in school!" you can literally open the wikipedia list of countries and look at them. there are blank maps of continents online which you can use to practice. you can google "learn all the countries ever" and youll find a free flash game or some shit. "they didnt teach me that in school" jesus fucking christ

some fun games to build up your knowledge:

I started playing these daily a couple of years ago, and now I can point to almost any country on a map (South Pacific is still a little tricky). Along with trivia like flags and capitals, I've picked up a lot about different places' architecture, languages, and foliage. Often when you play these you'll become curious: why does a Spanish-speaking country have a French-sounding capital? Why is there a really long edge on that border? What does the bird on that flag represent? Where is that beautiful temple in the picture?

You might feel stupid at first, but it's really exciting to realise you're improving.

aros you're marrying for tax benefits i just want to know the general consensus on whether this is okay or no cause i heard some people at work talking about it like it was a cardinal sin

Vote with your heart

Please RB for sample size!

addendums: cult classic tv overlaps with early supernatural seasons somewhat, i am aware, just choose based on the cultural context in which you read your first fic.

for weeaboo crew i was thinking of examples like hetalia, black butler, soul eater, etc--popular anime absolutely included but the distinction is that people who were into dragon ball weren't necessarily going to anime club every week and making deviantart stamps about yaoi, but people into ouran high school host club ABSOLUTELY were.

homestuck is in its own category because homestuck changed fandom forever at a critical time which just happened to be when i was growing up in fandom. harry potter, lotr, star wars, and twilight are in their own categories because they were such multimedia juggernauts they had entire archives dedicated solely and only to their fic that spanned multiple franchise reboots (books -> movies -> extended universes). (i acknowledge star trek technically would fit under this but at the time culturally it had more overlap with other cult classic tv fandoms.)

honorable mentions that didn't make it to the list because i had to pick-and-choose with the 12 answer limit: the final fantasy franchise (axed because i am not familiar enough with the fic scene to know if it was as iconic of a gateway drug as, like, naruto or twilight or star wars fic), a general YA lit category (YA lit outside of twilight only went mainstream slightly after this time period), the MCU (i have a hate boner for the MCU), a broader "american superhero comics" category (this would be valid as an option but i don't have the space)