there's a fine line between being wary of manipulation and becoming completely paranoid because you get very close to the realisation that pretty much all human interaction involves doing things we hope will lead to a result we like

this post is about a lot of things. it's about my ex saying it was manipulative to talk to them in a cute voice because that influenced their emotions. it's also about someone on this webbed site saying being funny is "engagement farming". like yeah every single conversation you have is going to be "manipulative" if your standard for that is "did something with the goal of eliciting a response". if that bothers you go live in a hut in the forest and speak only to the trees. I'll be over here manipulating my friends into being happy by giving them compliments

we are all sinners

preacher boy

sorry for bitching and whining. unfortunately i have to or else ill start killing and eating people instead

his big doleful eyes and violently self-destructive tendencies have captivated me

nothing bottom jeans and boots with the nothing

the whole club was gone

she failed to arrive to hit the floor

The only clue was the word "CROATOAN" carved into the bar

That was the last sunrise I ever saw. Perhaps the kindest thing the dark gift has given me. // It was the last time I saw my brother. It was the last time I saw the sun. It was the only time I ever felt free.

Interview with the Vampire (2022 - ) // Sinners (2025)

Former Minnesota Vikings punter, Chris Kluwe, who was blacklisted from the league for standing up for marriage equality, speaks at a city council meeting where he calls Trump a Nazi. He is subsequently arrested and carried out by police.

I just want to clarify a few things, because I have a feeling some people may share this without watching the video in full and/or getting further details from related news articles:

1. Kluwe was there to specifically protest the installation of a [massively cringe] pro-Trump plaque. Per ABC News: "Kluwe, a Huntington Beach resident, was protesting the council's decision to place a plaque commemorating the public library's anniversary. The plaque included the words "Magical Alluring Galvanizing Adventurous," an apparent nod to President Donald Trump's Make America Great Again slogan."
2. Kluwe was not just arbitrarily hauled off by cops for speaking out against Trump. If you watch the video until the end, you'll hear him announce his intentions to engage in the "time-honoured American tradition of peaceful civil disobedience." From there, he defiantly approaches the stage where the seven [aforementioned cringe, right-wing lunatic] Huntington Beach City Council members are all sitting, knowing full well that he is about to be arrested and charged with disrupting an assembly.
3. Thanks to this deliberate act of protest, some of Trump's 24/7 news blitz will now be interrupted by images of a former NFL player being carted away by a gaggle of dour looking cops:

(this is a good thing, if that's not clear; I feel like too many people have forgotten about the tactical use of arrests by activists, especially during the Civil Rights era, to highlight injustice or disrupt a media narrative)

Anyway, kudos to Mr Kluwe for this, I hope more public figures will follow suit.

But you saved me!

We are suffering from a male whininess epidemic

nevertheless, we ball

thereupon we ball

to sleep, perchance to ball

there may come a day when the courage of men fails, when we forsake balling, and break all bonds of fellowship -- but today is not that day

i need to press that man like a flower. get in the book boy

Already seeing people on tiktok saying “I still hate trump but he ate with this one” like … babes … you just got propagandized … that’s literally exactly what he created this situation in the hopes you would say …

Sing Sing (2023) dir. Greg Kwedar