theangryuniverse three--rings
enki2

image
sinnahsaint

Which is why it’s important to not be mean.

Their cult teaches them that the world is full of scary monster people who hate them for being so good and loved by god. If you swear at them and call them names or get in their face you’re just doing the cults work for it.

I’m not saying you have to listen to their presentation or try to debate them (and really getting into a debate without thoroughly understanding what they’re being taught will just make things worse)… I am just saying to be polite and say no thank you like if they were trying to hand you a flyer for something you don’t care about.

It’s easier for them to see the world outside their bubble as less scary if they see everyday people just going about their business and being as nice to them as you are to everyone else. This goes doubly for anyone who happens to dress modestly, not swear, and not drink or smoke because whatever you believe, they’ll see you as a “good” person who happens to strangely have no interest in their “message”, and that might be enough to get some curious about the possibility of themselves living in the real world.

It’s sometimes hard to be nice to people who seem to represent something you dislike. Just remember these “elders” are sheltered young men, some of which are getting their first real contact with people of other/no faiths.

They are not your enemy. They are victims.

kazashiniwielder

So I’m from a country family. Part of what I was taught as a kid was guests, no matter if you wanted them are not, are treated to a drink and hospitality. So a few years ago a few of these guys came to my door. It was a really hot day out, like high 90’s. So I invited them in for a drink but I made it very clear, I will listen to their basic conversation while they have a drink but I absolutely have no intention of converting or changing my religion. We had a pleasant conversation for about twenty minutes, then they went on their way without leaving any pamphlets or anything and I figured that was the end of it.

About six months later, I had a new group come to my door. I invited them in for a drink and the two immediately jumped back and went to check my address. They then told me they were told about me in their missionary prep class (because they do that). That I was the only actual ‘good person’ on the route because I didn’t actually yell at them, slam doors in their face, or treat them how they were taught the world was. So we once again had a conversation over tea about how sometimes people just don’t appreciate it when someone shows up to their door trying to push a religion on them. I asked them how they would feel if someone who was Heathenistic appearing on their doorstep telling them how acknowledging Odin as the high god is the only way to save them. They admitted they would be really upset and uncomfortable about that.

Long story short after about two more times of this happening I later learned I was removed from the houses the missionaries were allowed to visit. Apparently I was causing a lot of the young missionaries to question what they were taught and was deemed a concern by the elders of their church because many were asking questions after visiting me. All it took was an offer of a drink and a few kind but intellectual questions to make them ask questions and actually listen to what I was saying.

I guess my overall point is, like the above says you are going to get a lot farther by being kind then being an asshole

waterhobbit

I think it's really important to be aware that these kids have been told for multiple years by the time they're out on mission that when they go out on their missions that they might be physically attacked, might be hurt, might even be killed as a result of trying to do what is Good and Right. Not as part of the official missionary prep class, but just in the Young Mens' and Young Womens' Sunday school courses.

I was in a very small deaf branch in a class of like three girls. I was the only hearing girl in the class and the only one who MIGHT go (in like five years because at least at the time women didn't go on their missions until they were in their 20s), and we were still all treated to stories of martyrdom and told how admirable it was that the people in those stories had made the choice to go even though they knew they might die for their faith.

I cannot stress enough how much Mormons lionize Suffering For Faith. I do not know how many times I had to hear the story about Joseph Smith refusing any kind of sedative during an excruciating surgery because the available options were alcohol or laudanum and he thought of those as Bad Drugs. The missionaries are expecting to be yelled at, maybe even assaulted, and that they'll be defending the faith if they weather that storm.

all that is to say, I agree with the above posts. Be civil at the very least. They'll remember it.

Posted on Friday, 21 July 2023 ∙ 9:23pm
theangryuniverse vyazanyy
thestalwartheart

I love it when people take fic writing seriously. I love when it's not 'Here's this dumb thing I wrote' and instead it's 'Here's this thing I put blood, sweat and tears into. Here's this thing I slaved away at, trying new writing techniques and editing over and over. Here's this dialogue that kept me awake at night. Here's this beautiful turn of phrase I thought up. Here's this thing that I wrote with vulnerability and heart, and I am proud to share it with you.'

theangryuniverse

Fics are at the moment the absolutely only way for me to use all the shit I learned at university and I will put as many literary references and stuff in it as I can just for one obscure scene in which Shakespeare will be quoted correctly and in the context of its time, and fanfic is just the perfect medium for that really

Posted on Monday, 17 July 2023 ∙ 8:32pm
theangryuniverse vyazanyy
teaboot

Some rando: You should think about stopping your prescription

Me: My pills make me not want to die tho

They: You shouldn’t want to die, that’s not normal

Me: Yeah that’s why I’m taking my pills

teaboot

Again: But you aren’t the *real* you when you’re on your pills

Me: I’m the alive version of me

teaboot

An actual doctor, once: “Relying On A Chemical Crutch For A Hormonal Imbalance Denies The Fortitude Of The Human Soul”

Me: Cool so like I’m agnostic

inner-muse

They: “But you might be on pills the rest of your life!”

Me: “So?”

illnessisnteasy

Good! That means that I have a “rest of” my life to continue living!

Thanks to the pills.

erinptah

Meanwhile, no person ever: “You should think about giving up your insulin/antiretrovirals/beta blockers/anti-rejection drugs/prosthetic legs/daily multivitamin, because using those your whole life is bad for some reason”

teaboot

Oh no, they do that too.

we-are-not-ok

I have a kidney transplant. A woman once told me she didn’t believe in organ transplants and that people should just die when they’re meant to. 

teaboot

Sounds like a great set-up for a murder

teaboot

People who are fully healthy, fit and neurotypical seem to think they are that way because they’re doing something right that the rest of us haven’t thought of, and not just because they got lucky

gehayi

Speaking of the luck of the non-disabled…I once terrorized a Karen who was using me to teach her entitled kid that disabled people are Other and should not be treated with respect. I told her (truthfully) that until I was twenty-eight, I wasn’t visibly disabled. Then a defective chromosome that I hadn’t known about kicked in. So my luck ran out. But until then, I had been normal–just…like…her. 

The sheer terror on her face as the concept of “You mean I’ve just been lucky so far?” seeped into her brain was a thing of beauty.

missjudge-me

People who are fully healthy, fit and neurotypical seem to think they are that way because they’re doing something right that the rest of us haven’t thought of, and not just because they got lucky

deeksspeaksandsneaks

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

ankoku-jin

“You are one stroke of bad luck, common viral illness, or traumatic event away from being just like me” is honestly the most terrifying thing you can tell an abled person - and you should. I was healthy and fit and doing everything ‘right’ too - right up until some inner switch flipped and my body crumbled right out from under me.

Posted on Monday, 17 July 2023 ∙ 8:24pm