Latest Posts by mothymyths - Page 9
If it makes any of you feel better, Donald Trump will have an uphill battle to change the constitution. He will need:
-2/3 of Senators (60)
-2/3 of the House of Representatives (290)
-3/4 of the states (38)
In 2026, 33 senate seats will be up for grabs, and we’ll be able to vote for people who are against Trump and his ideals.
Breathe and remain hopeful because it’s not over. We can still fight and make Trump’s last four years hell.
Has anything actually gotten better, for all the work you talk about doing? Or is it just treading water in misery forever?
Anon, ten years ago gay people couldn't get married in large parts of the US. AIDS was an almost certain death sentence when I was in high school. I was looking at job boards the other day and found a part time gas station job that had health insurance as a benefit, which NEVER would have happened 15 years ago. When I was a kid, hitting your child was extremely normalized in the US and my parents were the weird ones for not doing it. There is a vaccine for chicken pox. I didn't meet anyone who had transitioned until my 20s because it was so uncommon to transition in the aughts, and now there are some states that protect your right to have gender affirming care provided by your health insurance. It's not all states, but it's better than the number of states that had it in 2010, which was zero. THERE ARE TENANTS UNIONS NOW. WE HAVE A VACCINE AGAINST CERVICAL CANCER.
And all of that has been the work of a lot of individuals and organizations and research teams and activists.
not to quote rent at you like the millennial queer i am, but the opposite of war isn't peace, it's creation.
make art. make music. make literature. make poetry. make clothing. make a birdhouse. make a meal. make a little guy. make a journey. make friendships. make community. make connections. make someone smile. make someone laugh. make someone burn bright with the assurance that they are loved. make a home.
your job on this earth is to care for yourself and be a blessing to those around you. we create a better world right here, where we stand, starting with us.
If you're feeling anxious or depressed about the climate and want to do something to help right now, from your bed, for free...
Start helping with citizen science projects
What's a citizen science project? Basically, it's crowdsourced science. In this case, crowdsourced climate science, that you can help with!
You don't need qualifications or any training besides the slideshow at the start of a project. There are a lot of things that humans can do way better than machines can, even with only minimal training, that are vital to science - especially digitizing records and building searchable databases
Like labeling trees in aerial photos so that scientists have better datasets to use for restoration.
Or counting cells in fossilized plants to track the impacts of climate change.
Or digitizing old atmospheric data to help scientists track the warming effects of El Niño.
Or counting penguins to help scientists better protect them.
Those are all on one of the most prominent citizen science platforms, called Zooniverse, but there are a ton of others, too.
Oh, and btw, you don't have to worry about messing up, because several people see each image. Studies show that if you pool the opinions of however many regular people (different by field), it matches the accuracy rate of a trained scientist in the field.
--
I spent a lot of time doing this when I was really badly injured and housebound, and it was so good for me to be able to HELP and DO SOMETHING, even when I was in too much pain to leave my bed. So if you are chronically ill/disabled/for whatever reason can't participate or volunteer for things in person, I highly highly recommend.
Next time you wish you could do something - anything - to help
Remember that actually, you can. And help with some science.
I know there’s an existing post somewhere, but here’s the list of OBGYNs in the USA and other countries that will perform tubal ligation (aka female sterilization) without arguing with you
Given the misinformation that's been going around and will be going around, thought this might be helpful to some people
For a lot of reasons, I'm very good at this/at searching, to the point where I have worked as a professional fact-checker for two different publishers. So, here goes:
My Article Fact-Checking Protocol
Thorough Version
Read the full article. Keep an eye out for emotionally loaded words, and all-or-nothing language
Keep an eye out or anything that sounds too good to be true, and in contrast, anything that sounds so awful it must be true
Run the website/source through the amazing Media Bias/Fact Check. They'll tell you about a publication's bias and history of accuracy
Go to the website's home page and read through the headlines. Look at what topics they cover/prioritize, sensationalist headlines, and whether they're framing anything in a way that feels odd/off to you
Do a search related to the topic. This can be keywords, a question, or even just copy-paste the article title (Recommended: use DuckDuckGo so the results don't change based on what Google thinks they can sell you)
If multiple highly credible sources that say the same thing pop up, and there's no major societal biases that might affect the coverage of the topic in those sources (e.g. anything related to the Israel-Palestine conflict/Palestinian genocide, no matter which side), then I'm done!
If there are major societal biases, or I can't get a consensus of sufficiently credible sources, then I do some combination of:
(1) search the topic again + the words "controversy" and/or "fake"
(2) search the opposite of the topic, or do some sort of other filtered search
(3) look up a sufficiently credible news outlet with the opposite point of view of my source, and see what they have to say
(4) if it's a big enough topic, start by looking up 2 of the top national papers and 1 major paper for your region (I usually do the ones in the US, because that's where I am In the US: the LA Times, the Washington Post, and the NY Times)
Adjust "news" to "relevant type of source, e.g. tech, environmental" as relevant for all of the above options
If no red flags come up, and it's a topic I understand enough to smell huge bullshit,
Then I'm usually done!
If there are red flags, or I actually need a certain amount of detail/understanding, then it gets more complicated, but that would be a whole other thing to break down and such
or
tl;dr
Quick Version
Read the full article. Keep an eye out for emotionally loaded words, and all-or-nothing language
Keep an eye out or anything that sounds too good to be true, and in contrast, anything that sounds so awful it must be true.
If I don't know the website:
Run the website/source through the amazing Media Bias/Fact Check. They'll tell you about a publication's bias and history of accuracy
If I trust the source, but something else pinged my radar:
Do a quick web search to verify anything that sounds suspicious or too good/bad to be true (Recommended: use DuckDuckGo)
“You must never give in to despair. Allow yourself to slip down that road and you surrender to your lowest instincts. In the darkest times, hope is something you give yourself. That is the meaning of inner strength.”
ATLA
Where did you go? 😭
Hi Anon. The last year has seen some big upheavals, both wonderful and really really difficult, in my personal life and it is a huge regret of mine that keeping up with this blog was one of the things that fell off my metaphorical plate as I dealt with those changes.
That being said, I think it's time for me to be back. I wish it was under happier circumstances.
For now, here are some resources on staying grounded and moving forward in the wake of today's news:
•Finding Steady Ground: Strengthening our spirits to resist and thrive in these times
•10 Ways to be prepared and grounded now that Trump has won
And here are some great other blogs to follow that post similar good climate and environmental news if you need more of that on your dashboard.
•@climatecalling
•@reasonsforhope
•@gardening-tea-lesbian
•@thehopefuljournalist
Today we grieve, tomorrow we roll up our sleeves and get to making things better. No one gets to vote on that.
Make the most of the next two months
Get all your vaccines
Travel while we have a functioning DOT
Read and buy books on feminism, anti-racism, pro-lgbt
Attend drag shows
Don't skip any of your classes
Read and buy history books
Find your out-of-state networks
Learn to carry cash
Get birth control solutions
Support the Biden/Harris administration
Postpone large purchases and save money
Be careful of what you say online, like un-ambiguous attacks against the incoming administration, especially in spaces that contain your full name or personal information
Feel free to add on.
This is a reminder to:
Never mention a possible pregnancy/abortion to anyone, especially not through a social media app messaging service such as messenger, WhatsApp, Instagram DMs, Snapchat, etc.
Delete all period tracking apps and to start tracking using a planner or physical calendar
Book appointments for a form of birth control if possible, or to always carry condoms for yourself and other
Look into sterilization options if that is the route you want to go down (here is a list of 1000 doctors willing to sterilize you without a fight)
Protect your fellow person, protect the women in your life, the queer people, the disabled people, everyone will be affected by this
Form communities. Tell your people that you love them. Protect one another. Check in on one another. None of us are alone.
Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin (2018), dir. Arwen Curry
don't give up
The fact that this is the third time this man is on the ballot for US president is shameful. The fact that the election is this close after everything this man has openly admitted to and been convicted of is shameful. There is no pride in being American when this is our reality. There is no pride in knowing that Americans were faced with the decision to either vote for a bigoted felon or for a candidate that could not make a single promise to work towards a ceasefire in Gaza. There is no pride in knowing that nearly a million people voted third party to make a point, forgoing securing the rights of women, trans folks, migrants, and minorities in the process. There is no pride in knowing that even voting for the side that does want to protect those rights doesn't secure our future, but could just be delaying the inevitable and clear decay of our democracy. It's a shameful day to be an American
*gritting my teeth* the only way out is through and by god im taking all of you with me
*gripping your shoulders and shaking you* you gotta promise me one thing, if nothing else. you have to promise me to live, do you hear me. and if it's for nothing else but spite, LIVE. donald trump wants you to feel defeated and alone. let's show him and all the americans who voted for him that we will not stay quiet, we will not be devided and we will LIVE. we will survive that 78-year old felon, we will OUTLIVE him. so please reach out to friends and family, reach out to each other and STAND TOGETHER.
PLEASE, LIVE!
If by some miracle sweet potato Hitler doesn't win come the end of the week, this won't be necessary, but should he win here are some of the first things to be aware of or do.
If you know a trans person, no you don't. Respect them as best you can in private but you know nothing in public.
Be aware that TikTok will likely be banned, find new platforms to spread information. Fuck Twitter and what ever tiktok replacement he's working on.
Learn to Garden, even in winter so you can feed yourself should prices skyrocket
Get an air purifier. The Clean Air Act is likely to be stripped of its power with the EPA deregulated, air quality is going to suffer
Should you have kids, try to supplement history/social studies education. That's the first place they will attack, if you need help ask, history teacher will help
Try and do what you can to be aware of your health before January.
Help one another. That's the best way we can move forward and make change in the future.
any trans person reading this I love you
any woman reading this I love you
any poc minority reading this I love you
any queer person reading this I love you
💙 USA 💙
national suicide prevention
national domestic violence hotline
national sexual abuse hotline
trans lifeline and resources
💙INTERNATIONAL💙
list of suicide hotlines by country
domestic violence hotlines and resources by country
sexual (+ domestic) abuse agencies by country
international trans resources
if you're feeling powerless right now—and god knows I am—here's a reminder you can donate to the National Network of Abortion Funds, the Trans Law Center, Gaza Soup Kitchen, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund, and hundreds of other charities that will work to mitigate the damage that has been and will continue to be inflicted
life continues. we still have the capacity to do good, important work. that matters
like to charge reblog to cast
“There are other forces at work in this world besides the will of evil.”
group hug for everyone living through historical events
I don't know who needs to hear this, but it has been a central Republican strategy in the final week before an election to claim that the polls are breaking their way, that a red wave is coming, that Republicans are engaging in victory tours at least since the presidential election of 2000. (That's when I stopped watching CNN regularly, as the network promoted this line despite the fact that Gore would go on to win the popular vote.)
Given that Republicans have, in fact, only won the popular vote once in this period (2004), this is a strategy, not a statement of fact.
Don't sweat the narrative. Vote. Turnout wins, not news stories.
ok, because i just saw a terrible take, i feel compelled to say that there is no "fic market" to "oversaturate" in fandom. good gravy.
Because they do. VOTE BLUE.
USAmericans without Stable Housing:
Here is a guide to voting while unhoused!
Some key takeaways:
- You don’t need a permanent address to vote, but you do need a mailing address to receive election-related mail
- Reach out to your local unhoused services organization for help with this. You can also just ask a friend with an address or PO Box to allow you to receive mail there, or a church or other community organization.
- Your local election office is going to want your permanent address if and when you do have one to update your registration (or register you in your new state)
- You can check state by state ID laws here
- Reach out to your local election office for information about what other programs are available to you, potentially including
Anyways, if you don’t have stable housing, I know you probably have a lot on your plate, but if it feels accessible, the steps to use your vote are easier than you might be picturing. Here’s to using your voice to change the future of our country!