Fucking Relatable Master Yupa

The HRT clinic I go to makes me kinda emotional whenever I go. It's staffed by a mix of balding middle aged queens and loud yet mousey lesbians and it genuinely feels like seeing my stupid gay high school friend group all grown up with successful and stable lives. We are all going to make it.

Skull of St. Thomas Aquinas being transported to Fossanova Abbey. Photograph by Daniel Ibanez, 2024

Here is my best guidance for action, rendered beautifully by the great John Lithgow. I first published these lessons more than eight years ago, in late 2016. They open the twenty chapters of On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century.

Millions of you, around the world, have put these lessons to good use; it has been humbling to learn how from courageous and creative dissenters, protestors, and oppositionists.

I am delighted to have this special chance now to share the lessons again. I was honored when John, a wise advocate for civil discourse and civic engagement, volunteered to read them aloud.

For the full video, see my substack.

The core of Star Trek is optimism about the future, and this is why one of the quiet, ongoing themes of every show is adults spending their free time engaging in table top games, pretend play, sports, music, art, and other hobbies. No matter what crazy space conflict or reality-warping improbability they've gotten wrapped up in, someone is still running around, pretending they're robin hood. Someone is painting a sunset. A pair of friends are playing cards. A group has formed a chamber ensemble. This is utopia.

That's because you are amazing dear @cryptotheism

Being self taught and talking to actual academics is so funny. Like I have a deep and practiced knowledge of Plotinus, but I'm still not entirely sure on how Plato and Aristotle conflict.

Reblog if you had a Tumblr for 5+ years

𝙹𝚞𝚕𝚢 𝟹𝟷, 𝟷𝟿𝟷𝟽 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙳𝚒𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝙾𝚏 𝙵𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚣 𝙺𝚊𝚏𝚔𝚊, 𝟷𝟿𝟷𝟺-𝟷𝟿𝟸𝟹