Today's the president's birthday, but I don't want to do another entry on that and pretty much covered that in my last entry with grimmrow--and I did post a lot of memes and art to my DeviantArt account on that subject--but I'd rather focus on Flag Day.

Flag worship is an American tradition I absolutely do not fucking like, and sort of goes against my Christian values since idolatry is a big no-no if you read the Ten Commandments, which the American Right seems to forget, and since America and its allies did evil shit throughout its history, like backstabbing its allies, exterminating the Native Americans, laying waste to the Confederacy, and warmongering post-WWII, I sort of consider the American flag a graven icon, a symbol of imperialism--the whole "the more states it gets, the more stars it gets" thing--even "racist," since racism was prevalent before, during, and after the Southern Independence War, especially more so today on part of blacks. A symbol of hypocrisy as well since America was conceived on bullshit principles like "all men are created equal" (which is fucking wrong, and as an autistic that doesn't sit well with me), accusations against the king of Britain his ministers did, and the indigenous population being "merciless Indian Savages"--which would foreshadow their genocide, and I know the American Left mostly represents that toxic American "value" of double standards.

And I think the pledge of allegiance is really dumb as well, pledging allegiance to such a flag and its respective country, and nowadays I wouldn't do so for religious reasons. The Texas pledge of allegiance, though, is a million times better:



I know Kamala got shit for flubbing the US pledge of allegiance but I can forgive her for that and would personally rewrite it as:

I pledge allegiance to the United States of America,
A republic whose people and governments keep one another in check,
One nation under God, with liberty and justice for all.

I like Bart Simpson's pledge of allegiance as well, which pretty much feels how I feel about America good and bad:



This episode was made back in 1997 but has aged really fucking well. Definitely my all-time favorite scene from The Simpsons. Said war was Vietnam so Nelson's "Haw, haw!" was definitely warranted. Apparently they predicted Trump making fun of John McCain as well ("I like guys who didn't get caught!"), alongside him becoming president. McCain was still an asshole, though--he backed the coup that brought the current government of Ukraine into power--but was right about campaign finance reform (though his laws were full of holes), and we need to go even fucking stricter since both parties are corrupted as fuck by money today, but the Supreme Court would naturally bitch.

That aside, I find most American patriotic music really fucking cringe. I know "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" was the first (albeit de facto) national anthem, but the lyrics sort of seem nonsensical, and I know Renaissance English. "My country, it is of thee." "It is of thee my country." That makes no fucking sense. It was also written at a time when the average white had to work 80-hour works weeks--and slaves had it no better--which doesn't seem very fucking "free" to me.



I like doing these "reaction" memes that plague DeviantArt--and Judy Hopps' face is really fucking priceless.

And I think "The Star-Spangled Banner" is actually a really fucking horrible national anthem, one of the worst in the world next to Japan and Britain's given the whole flag-worship thing and militarism.

The only patriotic song I really like is "America the Beautiful," and I think it should be the national anthem instead, and I love lyrics like "God mend thine every flaw," and if I ever gave political speeches, I would end them with, "May God mend America's every flaw!"



"The Star-Spangled Banner" to me is sort of the national anthem equivalent of "Simple and Clean" from the Kingdom Hearts games, okay music but really moronic lyrics. But the "black national anthem" people are also fucking morons, and I had posted before about black people wanting everything black but then screaming about segregation, akin to minority and fringe groups trying to push their standards and values upon the general population like the gay and trans communities really try to today.

I had mentioned on someone's DeviantArt submission ages ago about how "America the Beautiful" should be the national anthem but they bitched that God shouldn't be in the national anthem.

Were it not for my l'esprit d'escalier I would have pointed out how Canada is way less religious than America but mentions God in their national anthem--and "O Canada" is definitely a fuck of a lot better than "The Star-Spangled Banner" and how The Netherlands is even less so, yet this is theirs:



Really, really fucking beautiful, sort of sounds like the story of my life, my all-time favorite national anthem, and one I would definitely stand and salute for. The Netherlands is actually the only other country I would consider living in since it's the most accessible to Anglophones (English-speakers) as 90% of the population speaks English, alongside other shit like being more culturally and religiously tolerant, crime not being a problem to the point where they closed prisons, good jobs in most fields across the country, and high pay with medium cost of living.

Germany's is probably second, and East Germany's is probably the best dead country's national anthem ever--and I can actually sing pretty decently in German as I can pronounce shit right, with Germany's national anthem sharing its tune with "Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken," one of my favorite Christian hymns.

Yeah, I think I'm done.

Today was Mexican Flag Day, so I AI-generated some mariachi bunnies:



I also did this Day of the Dead-themed birthday gift art for Peaches the Wolf, an artist I admire on FurAffinity and DeviantArt, and she loves Halloween themes.

I did this AI art for President's Day, and decided from now on I'll lump them together in one picture via the Mac app Freeform, so I'm not constantly spamming my DeviantArt account with AI images more so than my regular digital art.



Started this as a request for a FurAffinity/DeviantArt user yesterday and finished it today of a blue walrus character of his.



Since today was statehood day for a few of India's states, I did this AI art for the occasion.



I did this today as birthday art for quentincoyote, though I can't show him it since he's somewhat fallen off the face of the internet.

Since today was my brother-in-law's birthday, he's a carpenter, and he and his family love corgis, I decided to conjure up a quartet of appropriate art from Bing Image Creator for the occasion:




And since today's Grenadian Independence Day, I made some art for the occasion with an original Robinson's mouse opossum character (with that being one of the mammals that inhabit the country):



Seemed to have ended up with a Five Nights at Freddy's aesthetic.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

2. Should book burning be outlawed?

Fuck no. There are tons of books I'd gladly incinerate, such as masturbatory political hagiographies/autohagiographies (thanks for introducing me to the terms, Logan) and political nonfiction masquerading as "literature," much of which could easily qualify as fiction, specifically fantasy or horror, depending upon the tone.

Logan also mentioned banning flag burning, and a big hell no to that as well, for a few reasons. First of all, America was founded upon treason, "dissent is the highest form of patriotism," and in regards to American Independence Day, "treason is the reason for the season" as Jesus is regarding Christmas. Second, I consider flag worship, particularly the Pledge of Allegiance, to be a form of idolatry, which is a big no-no in my Christian faith (hey, it's not nearly as bad as not being vaccinated for "religious reasons"). Some observations as well. Burning other countries' flags in America is in many respects considered worse and xenophobic, and most of the strongest supporters of illegalizing U.S. flag burning have a few paradoxical other views, for instance being among the biggest defenders of the Confederacy in the so-called "Civil War" (though I think resisting illegal military action by another country is perfectly fucking reasonable), and vice versa.

That's my view, folks. Take it or leave it.

Based on the Christmas novelette of the same name by Charles Tazewell and the first and only Disney animated project directed by Don Bluth before he went rogue (having worked small parts on some of the studio’s prior animated features), the short film focuses on a Galilean boy who seeks to sell the eponymous donkey, past his prime. However, no one except a tanner takes interest, though the boy eventually sells him to a notable historical and religious figure. I found it enjoyable and tender, with a beautiful titular theme song and solid voice performances that don’t seem out of place in the Israeli setting.

The first holiday special based on The Bad Guys serves as a prequel to the film, focusing on the eponymous animal-populated criminal gang as they seek to rob a bank on Christmas on account that most in their city will be celebrating home. At a parade, however, their car accidentally destroys a Santa Claus balloon, causing the city’s holiday mood to plummet to the point where Christmas gets canceled. Thus, they seek to cheer up the residents so they can commit their heist as intended, although they hit some hitches in their plan, and the end doesn't pan out as expected. However, it ties into potential future specials, and I enjoyed the revisit to the world of the Bad Guys overall.

Charles Dickens's classic novella A Christmas Carol likely sets the record for having the most film and television adaptations, among them the 1984 live-action made-for-TV version directed by Clive Donner, starring the late George Campbell Scott as the misanthropic Ebenezer Scrooge, who considers his payment of taxes to the British government his main contribution to society, being a thrifty businessman and not a people-person. Scrooge displays apathy towards the Christmas season at his nephew Fred Hollywell, son of his deceased older sister Fanny, and his current business partner Bob Cratchit, who replaced the long-dead Jacob Marley.

On Christmas Eve, the earthbound specter of Marley visits Scrooge and admonishes him that he will meet a similar fate if he doesn’t change his ways, warning that three spirits will come after midnight. First is the Ghost of Christmas Past, which shows Scrooge in his youth, beginning with his abandonment by his father at a boarding school after his mother died in childbirth. The Ghost of Christmas Present shows him the Cratchit family’s celebration of the holidays, with the disabled Tiny Tim vulnerable to early death, and his married nephew’s festivities. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows Scrooge that nobody misses him after his demise, some even purloining his possessions, which makes him change his ways.

Overall, I believe this to be the definitive adaptation of Dickens’s story, which is one of few pieces of literature I would term a masterpiece, given that despite being written in the mid-nineteenth century, it’s still readable by contemporary standards (more so than the author’s other works), and has a timeless message that the well-to-do should be more compassionate towards the lesser-privileged and of high character. I have a minor issue with Fred not mourning or bequeathing his uncle’s property in the alternate future where Scrooge dies. However, the central theme, “God Bless Us, Everyone,” is one of the most beautiful pieces of seasonal music ever composed and had me cry happy tears. Very highly recommended.

Listen to the main theme yourself:

Commission by Rock Baker. I intend to use it as a March background for Facebook since Texas Independence Day is on March 2, and it'll be in the easter season, hence the rabbit characters.

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Every President throughout United States history is just as subject to criticism, judgment, and review as any other before or after them, even those whom historians term "great", in which case they seem to more like the "idea" of said Presidents instead of the Presidents as they actually were.

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As I said in my blurb for the art I posted Saturday, I had a bit of a private mental breakdown at work due to overthinking about the horrible things I've said and done in the past, which led to tears and nose stuffiness. I'm better, though, and I'll definitely tell my psychiatrist tomorrow I seriously think I'm ADHD due to my constant mind-wandering.

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I finished Yunica's story in Ys Origin, which I'm playing on my PlayStation 4 (free since I had bought and played it on Vita) since my Steam Deck can't play Steam's respective version of the game, which I had purchased and played the last decade. I'm also playing Torchlight on my Steam Deck, albeit portable since the controls are far better and I can use the left trackpad as a mouse substitute. I've finished the main game, although since there weren't any ending credits, I'm proceeding with the "postgame" content until I do see closing credits (or not, depending upon how the developers did things).

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to those who genuinely honor the late civil rights leader's legacy (and I largely stand where he did ideologically). Keep in mind that, despite oddly-popular belief (for some reason widespread within the furry fandom), being of certain demographics such as race, white or nonwhite, does not make one untouchable.

My second anniversary at my current job was last week (though I didn't get an evaluation from my managers about it the way I did after my first year), and for those of you who aren't familiar with what I do, I'm a Workforce Traffic Analyst for a call center down the hill from where I live, submitting regular reports, one in particular hourly, regarding Energy Advisors outsourced from Southern California Edison (and our call center represents FedEx as well, though their division will close down at the end of the month and we'll be getting new accounts, and very likely, more work), sort of a cyber truant officer making sure agents aren't spending too long on calls, on hold with customers, or in after-call work, etc.

I'm allegedly still in Java training and placement, with the last communication from our instructor being last week, although we didn't have any sessions then or today, and I was certain to note ahead of time when my right shoulder rehabilitation (which seems to be going well) was at the local physical therapy clinic, which may have had something to do with the delays. I've been doing plenty of exercises during downtime at work at my desk (and I have my own individual station again due to the Lead Analyst and SCE managers wanting me to verbally tell the managers which agents have been having issues with their calls), and the pain hasn't been too distracting.

I've also snuck in some alcoholic beverages on nights (such as spiking ice cream milkshakes I make with our Ninja blender with Kaluha, Bailey's Irish Cream, etc.), and drinking some of my dad's Coronita Extras that have otherwise gone untouched for weeks. I also bought and tried a Mike's Hard(er) Lemonade, and while I did get somewhat tipsy, I can apparently hold my alcohol well. I don't actually care much for the taste of beer, but have largely been drinking responsibly for the medicinal benefits (since alcohol can play part in dulling pain). I most recently bought some Guinness beers from a 7-11 at the edge of town, and whether it's lager or ale, it's definitely an acquired taste. I consider myself an "antisocial" drinker since I'm sure my parents would bitch and moan about me drinking despite me being a middle-aged man (I turn 38 in a week).

I've also discovered that apparently, hemp cigarettes are a thing and purchased a pack from a nearby convenience store after I did some research on them, and while they don't exactly taste all that good, a little worse than cheap tobacco, they've apparently helped too with my pain. Since I became legal I've been an on-and-off smoker due to all the stress I've encountered in my life, and with my parents spending the bulk of Sunday evening down in Austin, I tried one of the cigars I purchased from Walmart, which was okay, and I had purchased a $7 premium one from a local store that seems to be the exclusive seller of them in our town. I recently bought a four-pack of more-expensive cigars, although I'm not sure when I'll have the time to try them since my parents are really fierce anti-smoking Nazis.

Despite the issues with my parents, I have been somewhat improving mentally, with my new psychiatrist and non-doctoral therapist being nice to talk to from the comfort of my own computer, and I've largely severed ties with my old psychiatrist who's getting advanced in age and hadn't really improved me psychologically despite my having seen him for seventeen or so years. When I had put one of my appointments into the digital calendar, though, my dad took notice (and as usual he couldn't get the damn name of the cyber clinic, Talkiary, right, despite having a Master's Degree, which I strongly suspect he cheated on given his blatant imbecility), and bitched about costs, despite the online clinic taking Medicare, which I have. I still feel ADHD coexists with my OCD, and will emphasize that next time I talk to my psychiatrist and therapist.

Gaming-wise, I'm still working on Persona 5 Royal and am at the casino Palace, searching for the red control panel in the slot machine wing. I'm also having a blast with Pokémon Violet and have cleared one Team Star camp, two gyms, and one "titan" 'Mon. I sort of put Torchlight on hold since I have a weird system where I track the in-game playtime of whatever I'm playing, and I discovered that it actually did track playing time through experimentation with controls, which has somewhat been difficult, and I'll mess around more next time I pick up the game. I've moved on to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, which, despite getting a lot of critical head, I don't exactly view with rose-tinted glasses, given my frustrations with the original N64 version, so my eventual review of the game when I do finish it probably won't be very saccharine.