Month: June 2018

glumshoe:

My housemate is very friendly and her night terrors do not manifest as the “hysterical screaming” she warned me about. A few yelps now and then – nothing alarming.

She does, however, have some very… uh. Interesting ideas about health. I’ve lost track of all the weird shit she’s said, but last week she encouraged me to replace sunscreen with coconut oil for my very photosensitive skin and then gave me a huge bag of diatomaceous earth… to eat.

#can i offer you some DIATOMACEOUS EARTH in these trying times????#i like you but i do not want to eat your sharp powder 

Diatomaceous earth kills insects because it’s fine and sharp and clogs up their breathing holes. That’s about all it’s good for. If someone has intestinal parasites (and this includes pets) they should probably take actual antiparasitics, DE is not effective when swallowed. It’s also very, terribly bad for your lungs, and I suspect not great for your innards in general. 

zoologicallyobsessed:

thatfloatingcat:

demonessdollie:

*whispers menacingly*

Your dog is a fucking GMO because of selective breeding. Quit using fear mongering conspriacy theories to fuel your rage against “big scary science”

Selective breeding is not the same as GMO tech? GMOs are often organisms that could not occur from normal crossbreeding?

Like look I don’t think GMOs are dangerous to human health or killing us all or whatever, but can we not use inaccurate comparisons please? Yes, humans have been altering the genes of things since we started agriculture. No, selective breeding is not the same as lab-created GMOs which often contain genes from different species that couldn’t be crossbred without human-initiated specific gene splicing in a lab. No, this doesn’t make GMOs intrinsically bad or dangerous, but yes, there are very good reasons to be concerned about GMOs from a standpoint of preserving genetic diversity in agriculture, preventing corporate monopolies of the food supply, and preventing us from digging ourselves deeper into problems like pesticide and herbicide dependence that stem from the kind of homogenous monocrop system practiced in much of the developed world.

By all means, fight the conspiracy-theory type stuff about GMOs. Some of it is really wacky and harmful. But at least use an apt analogy, and recognize that there are plenty of reasons to oppose GMOs that have nothing to do with their safety for human consumption, many of which are perfectly valid.

Selective breeding is literally a type of GMO. The thing you’re whinging about is just genetic modification which is one way in which GMO’s are created. 

Seems like you’re confused as to what GMO entitles and means based on your hyper focus on what part of GMO’s and GMO tech. 

So you really shouldn’t be saying what is or isn’t considered GMO when you yourself are still confused.

A good example is a type of rice that was recently genetically modified to help it survive flooding. Instead of selectively breeding it to survive flooding, which is entirely possible but would take many generations and was far too slow to solve the immediate problem of people starving after floods, the rice was spliced with a gene from a grass that can survive flooding. This produces the same result as selectively breeding the rice for that trait, but much, much faster, in time to save lives. 

Corporate monopolies, lack of genetic diversity in agriculture, and pesticide/herbicide dependencies do not come from GMOs. The same thing can come from corporations selectively breeding plants for certain traits. Corporations and current agriculture methods are the issue there, not GMOs. Don’t forget that whole “the pollen from my patented corn blew into your corn, so now I own your corn seeds” business- again, people causing that, not GMOs. 

GMOs are the future of agriculture. Plants can be modified to do better in all sorts of artificial farming situations that take far fewer resources than traditional farming, like aquaponics. If we’re going to terraform other planets and live on them, we are going to do it by developing GMOs to help us. 

Some people use the Internet to communicate and arrange criminal acts. That doesn’t make the Internet bad, that makes the Internet a thing that people can use for unpleasant purposes. 

Hey, this medical show actually got a legit timber rattlesnake to play the part of a timber rattlesnake discovered in a field! They didn’t just get a ball python and play rattlesnake voiceover noises! 

gallusrostromegalus:

wigglyflippingout:

did LOTSA draws 2nite

all of these are for an event i am planning in ffxiv next week

it’s a big market and all of these items are going to be for sale – or rather, the first two are free (you can have as much nonbooze lemonade as you like, only 3 cups of the boozy exotic blossom punch tho)

then one of the punch ingredients, and special maple candy shotglasses lol

basically this was one long exercise in me realizing idk what the fuck a plant looks like. this is probably when @gallusrostromegalus would tell me that i am halfway to becoming a botanical illustrator (by realizing idk what the fuck a plant looks like). however instead of actually learning what the fuck a plant looks like by thoroughly looking at it, i just blazed the fuck onwards after like 5 mins of googling. so: lemons and strawberries in first pic, then plum blossom + plum slice + chamomile, then chamomile + rhubarb + at some point i just started making up vague greenery, then a maple leaf

honestly what the fuck is rhubarb though.

Nah, the parts where you went “Fuck it. I’ve done enough research to get this project done to the degree it needs to be” and got mad at rhubarb for being rhubarb are the parts that make you a real botanical illustrator.

I love them, btw.  Are you planning on coloring them or do you mind if I use these lines as digital color practice?

Important Warning Please Read and Share

rpdofficer:

featheredclaw:

youngnoblewoman:

ohsweetcrepes:

ifreakinglovemarshmallows:

simonalkenmayer:

kelincihutan:

arashi-of-ota:

dearnonacepeople:

So Scientology has recently been purchasing ad spots on social media sites including Twitter and Facebook. Scientology has always worked hard to recruit young people it seems like they’re investing in social media as well now. I know most people think Scientology is a joke but it’s a seriously dangerous cult which uses fear, extortion, violence, vandalism and various other unethical actions against those who oppose them both inside and outside the church. Here is key information on the abuses committed by Scientology: 

•Scientology uses a form of pseudo-therapy called auditing which focuses largely on embarrassing and traumatic memories. Scientology collects the information you share and uses that information to threaten you if you oppose the church. They also charge huge amounts of money for auditing sessions (which is why they really are doing all this).

 •They are extremely anti-psychology and psychiatry and pressure you against taking any antidepressants, anti-anxiety medication or any other drugs for mental health.

 •They believe homosexuality can be “cured” and are blatantly homophobic. •Enemies of the church are labeled “suppressive persons” and it is forbidden to communicate with such people. This isn’t just to limit the negative press they receive but also is a manipulative tool. If you are in the cult and decide to leave or criticize the church you stand the risk of being completely cut off from your friends and family. “Suppressive Persons” are often also harassed, stalked, or threatened. 

•If you’re new to Scientology and your family or friends are worried about you being in a cult you’re instructed to cut them out of your life, increasing your reliance on the support system (though there’s nothing supportive about it) the church give to you. 

•Scientology’s doctrine includes the concept of “Fair Game”. This basically says that those who are judged a threat to the Church can be punished and harassed by any and all means possible.

 •Because of this, they have no moral qualms about having their members lie in court which they use to defend themselves from lawsuits or charges that they’ve broken the law and also to help win lawsuits against their enemies. •They essentially spied on and stole information from the IRS and tried to frame the mayor of Clearwater Florida for a hit and run. 

•Scientology filed 50 different lawsuits in one year against the Cult Awareness Network, an anti-cult organization. Using false testimony they won one of the suits and because the organization couldn’t pay the fine Scientology took the organizations name and logo so if you were calling to get out of Scientology you’d be unknowingly telling Scientology of your intentions. (For full transparency my mom was a member of the Cult Awareness Network before it was taken over and was sued individually by the Church of Scientology) 

•Scientology has an official branch known as the Sea Org, a mixture between a paramilitary group and slavery, comprised of their most dedicated members including many children/teens who’ve been raised in Scientology. This is where some of the most rampant and terrifying abuse in Scientology occurs. 

•Sea Org members often work over 100 hours a week for Scientology for around 2$ per hour.

 •Sea Org member’s living conditions are terrible; they live in overcrowded communal rooms with up to 12 other people, are not given healthcare unless there is a free clinic in the area, often are forced to miss meals or sleep in order to successfully completed their work. 

•Several former Sea Org members have accused the church of physical abuse. •Sea Org members may not have children and women who have become pregnant have reportedly been forced/coerced by their higher-ups to have abortions. 

•Leaving Sea Org without permission automatically makes you a suppressive person, so young adults who’ve been raised in Scientology who want to leave are cut off from everyone they’ve ever known with no money or job and getting permission to leave can require 3 years of hard labor, social isolation, and group pressure.

thie above is 100% true. one of my friends has scientology and other cults as a special interest. there are hundreds of pages of documentation of their abuse that you can publicly read about.

it’s one of the scariest “religions” you’ll ever meet if not THE scariest because it was PURPOSELY created to make money. unlike most cults that do have some seed of genuine belief however twisted and off base the founders are, scientology was never a belief system – it was a get rich quick scheme for a terrible hack author who saw that there was more money to be made in manipulating people into a cult and then not letting them leave. higher and higher levels of scientology, which you have to take to be truly “clear” aka free of evil spirits, will cost you thousands and even millions of dollars. they will literally hook you into a billion year contract and then pursue you for any money you “owe” them, thousands of “back fees” for their religious training, if you try to leave.

oh and it has literally driven people to suicide as part of its goal to keep “suppressive persons” from spreading information. someone even made a fucking song about its abuses.

stay the fuck away from anything marked scientology or dianetics. narconon (NOT the same as narcotics anonymous, the 12 step program) is also their thing. never even step FOOT into one of their free dianetics “auditing sessions” because they will use it to manipulate you into joining. they are incredibly persistent and will use every trick in the book to get you on board.

scientology: not even once.

Off the top of my head, a non-exhaustive list of “Brand Names” used by Scientology:

  • Narconon
  • Dianetics
  • Associate of Better Living and Education (ABLE)
  • Criminon
  • Applied Scholastics
  • Delphi Schools
  • The Way to Happiness Foundation
  • Author Service Inc.
  • Bridge Publications Inc.
  • Golden Era Productions
  • New Era Publications
  • Citizens Commission on Human Rights
  • The National Commission on Law Enforcement and Social Justice

Do not join any of the organizations.  Do not work with them.  Do not use their materials.  Do not give them your money.  Do not sign any documents.

^^^^

I can add nothing to this post except to say that this is true. I’ve crossed paths with these people several times. It’s a fascinating and terrible psychological control.

Took notes on Scientology from a public speaker and regrettably this is very true, based on the research done afterwards. But I think the obvious tell is the fact that the speaker began by explaining for 20 minutes straight about how “Scientology is not evil. It’s not a cult. People are just wrong and stupid.” Anyway if you have to preface your speech with a multitude of reasons why people shouldn’t think your belief system is god awful, then you may have a problem.

I fucking heard a commerical for them on a fairly popular radio station and am absolute appalled 

I’ve heard them, too, and they’ve set up their own TV channel as well.

Particular PSA for the Tumblr crowd as I know there’s a lot of creators on here: They’re also behind the “Writers of the Future” and “Illustrators of the Future” contests, which are run by “Author Services Inc” and “Galaxy Press” so beware of those if you’re looking to submit anything to contests

Fyi scientology is considered a cult in France since 1995 and as a “dangerous cult” since 2006

I protested against Scientology like 8-9 years ago in Times Square at their building there. Every window was lined with cameras trying to take photos of our faces, actors were sent out in plain-clothes to start arguments fights and try to get us arrested (We had a permit to protest to the police were on our side), or to have our faces uncovered and they could ID and sue us. One of the group did get his face ID’d and suddenly got a lot of dangerous sounding mail demanding court appearances and money for ‘slander’, which thankfully saw through their bullshit as they had no evidence and didn’t do anything with it. They’re scary people. Don’t let them get a hold of you.