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ostrasyn.bsky.social
Felix
@ostrasyn.bsky.social
660 followers 2.2K following 1K posts
Melbourne's west • 34 • he/him 🏳️‍🌈
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ostrasyn.bsky.social
brunch, you say?
A cocker spaniel looking in the direction of a stack of pancakes.
November 8, 2025 at 1:18 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
A recent comment in that vein, from Ralph Babet.
Ralph Babet (6 November 2025): > If we don't bring back masculinity and the patriarchy the west will fall. Fact. https://x.com/senatorbabet/status/1986385445677375945
November 7, 2025 at 1:46 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Ayer may have been on to something.
On Twitter, Sarah Fine (18 December 2017): > Publisher: Would you like us to design you a book cover? > Ayer: No need. I have just the thing. Below the text, an image of the front cover of A. J. Ayer's *The Central Questions of Philosophy*, with a photograph of Ayer and a dog. Ayer is seated in a comfortable-looking armchair; the dog is seated on his lap. From https://twitter.com/DrSJFine/status/942516359682052097
October 31, 2025 at 12:26 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Rough day in the garden?
A cocker spaniel laying down on the grass next to a bag of potting mix.
October 12, 2025 at 8:41 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Um, okay.
A Twitter user's (@Kassandra_Zerb) bio, where they describe themself as a "non-genocidal TERF."
October 11, 2025 at 11:55 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
We nearly lost this silly little guy earlier this year—he was so unwell. And he's getting old (13 this year). I know it'll be heartbreaking when my partner and I don't get to have him in our lives anymore. Pets aren't some accessory for a streaming setup.
A cocker spaniel wearing a dinosaur-themed hoodie. That same cocker spaniel, touching grass. Same cocker spaniel, laying down, front paws raised. That same cocker spaniel, sitting in a laneway.
October 8, 2025 at 2:26 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
He's not afraid of ducks! In fact, he wants to get as close as possible.
A cocker spaniel looking in the direction of a group of ducks.
September 28, 2025 at 10:16 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Streaming could never.
The DVD boxset of *The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Extended Edition).* Front cover, featuring a square-shaped decorative piece, with the title of the third film in the trilogy below it. Back cover, featuring art by Alan Lee. Lee's work captures the Grey Havens, with a ship sailing west as the sun sets on the horizon. Three figures are seen on the pier, watching the ship depart. The inner covers. On both covers, there is a smaller version of the square-shaped decorative piece that appeared on the front cover. On the left one, below the decorative piece, the text says "Special Extended DVD Edition." On the right one, below the decorative piece, it says "The Appendices." Lifting the left cover and unfolding the packaging further reveals a partial map of Middle-earth, with lines indicating the Fellowship's journey and a DVD.
September 18, 2025 at 12:19 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
There's another interesting aspect to it, which is that many of them absolutely despise anything deviating from their version of Thomism.
Tweet by an unknown user (21 August 2018): > Duns Scotus was utterly, utterly wrong! Univocity of Being is heresy; it misrepresents the nature of God and of Being; it leads to Nominalism and Voluntarism, which eventually brings you to Descartes, Hobbes, and full blown Modernism in all its disgusting depravity.
September 15, 2025 at 12:49 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Haven't played this in so long.
A copy of *The Battle for Middle-Earth*.
September 4, 2025 at 12:46 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Reminds me of Butler's comments.
> The Terfs (trans exclusionary radical feminists) and the so-called gender critical writers have also rejected the important work in feminist philosophy of science showing how culture and nature interact (such as Karen Barad, Donna Haraway, EM Hammonds or Anne Fausto-Sterling) in favor of a regressive and spurious form of biological essentialism. So they will not be part of the coalition that seeks to fight the anti-gender movement. The anti-gender ideology is one of the dominant strains of fascism in our times. So the Terfs will not be part of the contemporary struggle against fascism, one that requires a coalition guided by struggles against racism, nationalism, xenophobia and carceral violence, one that is mindful of the high rates of femicide throughout the world, which include high rates of attacks on trans and genderqueer people. > The anti-gender movement circulates a spectre of "gender" as a force of destruction, but they never actually read any works in gender studies. Quick and fearful conclusions take the place of considered judgments. Yes, some work on gender is difficult and not everyone can read it, so we have to do better in reaching a broader public. As important as it is, however, to make complex concepts available to a popular audience, it is equally important to encourage intellectual inquiry as part of public life. Unfortunately, we are living in anti-intellectual times, and neo-fascism is becoming more normalized. From https://web.archive.org/web/20210907102452/https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/sep/07/judith-butler-interview-gender
September 2, 2025 at 1:17 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Erin said it well (www.erininthemorning.com/p/anti-trans...). In the wake of the judgment they didn't just expect compliance; they expected apologies.
> Ultimately, Freeman's column isn't pitiful because it rubs salt in the wound—it's pitiful because it lays bare the true aim of the anti-trans movement. This was never about policy or bathrooms or youth sports. It's about a cohort of people who feel culture shifting beneath their feet, who were raised in a world where casual cruelty toward transgender people was normalized, and who now find themselves resentful that society has moved on. Rather than reflect or grow, they double down, demanding that their revulsion be seen as virtue—that their discomfort be not only accepted but celebrated. Freeman's yearning for social validation, cloaked in the language of righteous indignation, reveals the movement's hollow core. The title of her piece says it all: this isn't about the law, it's about the isolation that comes from being wrong.
July 4, 2025 at 3:36 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
You could see elements of this in the comments to Bettcher's guest post in February: Many of the "GC" commentators hated that Bettcher and others were talking about the role they've been playing. Back then, I replied with: "Did they draft the policies? No." Well, Bryne came close to!
> As Jenny Saul argues, the term "gender critical" may be misleading; these are anti-trans commentators. Did they have a role in giving "legitimacy, or support, to current US policies in any politically significance sense"? That depends on what you mean. Did they draft the policies? No. Does their project legitimate them? Yes. Do they support the policies? It appears so. Did their anti-trans commentary contribute to the wider reactionary push for such policies? Yes. I'd argue that that's politically significant, and in a way that addresses your concern about being "insulated from the rest of society"—as much of their commentary has been in widely visible outlets, giving them a substantial platform.
June 28, 2025 at 3:23 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
For this case, she's given up on even pretending to have proof.
From Elizabeth Haigh in the *Daily Mail* (19 June 2025) (https://web.archive.org/web/20250619164755/https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14828079/JK-Rowling-friend-banned-vet-gender-beliefs-dog-fat.html): > In written arguments lodged with the court, Gus Baker, for the vets' practice, told the judge: > >> In this case, the claimant alleges that she was deregistered as a patient from the defendant's veterinary practice ... because of her gender-critical beliefs. This is denied. >> >> It is surprising the allegation has ever been made in circumstances in which there is no documentary evidence to support the assertion the claimant makes. >> >> The claimant's case is that she was deregistered on the basis that she was unpleasant to members of staff working for the practice, culminating in an interaction of 18 January 2023. >> >> The claimant does not believe she was unpleasant to staff, including during the 18 January interaction. Accordingly, she draws the inference that there must be animus against her for another reason and that reason must be her gender-critical beliefs. >> >> The obvious problem with this logic is that it rests on the claimant being able to reliably judge how other people perceive her. >> >> It is no doubt true that being de-registered from a veterinary practice because of behaviour is likely to be a distressing experience for anyone.  >> >> It is understandable that the claimant has sought to find, for herself, a different explanation rather than accept that the way she was perceived by reception staff because of the way she interacted with them was rude, unpleasant and even "vile." >> >> The claimant's case is that the preponderance of contemporaneous evidence of her rudeness can only be explained by a conspiracy against her because of her protected beliefs. >> >> There is a simpler explanation ... the way she sees herself, perhaps in times of stress regarding the health of her pets, is not how other people always perceive her. Also in the article (https://web.archive.org/web/20250619164755/https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14828079/JK-Rowling-friend-banned-vet-gender-beliefs-dog-fat.html): > She criticised "the paucity and dubious character of the documentary evidence relating to the claimant's alleged poor conduct," adding: "No other client of the defendant has been expelled in remotely similar circumstances." > > She told the judge that it is for the vets' practice to prove that they did not discriminate against Ms Bailey's protected gender-critical characteristic, rather than for her to prove that they did. > > "The claimant has shifted the burden of proof and ... the defendant cannot satisfy the court that it did not do the act alleged or that the act was in no sense whatsoever because of the claimant's gender-critical belief," she said. > > At a previous hearing, the court was told the ban resulted after an incident in January 2023 when she went in to order worming and flea treatment for Jonty. > > Linnaeus' lawyers say Ms Bailey became "very angry" when told that the medication she wanted wasn't available, asking the receptionist "what she was going to do about it." > > Records from Jonty's notes referred to Ms Bailey also allegedly stating, "when I ask you to do something for me, I expect it to be done." > > Lawyers for the practice insist the volatile behaviour was "not a one-off," citing previous conduct which led to one receptionist branding her "very rude." > > During an exchange of emails with the practice, Ms Bailey had stated she was thinking of leaving because she was dissatisfied, and an internal email within the practice emerged, written the following day, which read: "I don't know what happened in this particular time, but this woman is absolutely vile." > > "She is one of the worst Walthamstow clients, she is very rude and treats everyone really badly at every interaction. Everyone at the practice is scared of her and avoids dealing with her whenever possible."
June 19, 2025 at 5:26 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Bindel is such a loser.
On Twitter, Julie Bindel (12 June 2025): > This fuckery at my local charity shop Included is a photo of a shop window display with rainbow flags and a sign that says "wear with pride" and "dress proud."
June 12, 2025 at 5:41 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
This sort of rhetoric isn't new. It's disgraceful.
A piece by George Pell, published in *The Age* (28 May 1999). Pell writes: "Instead of blaming the churches, find the real reasons for homosexual suicide." Part of the text has been highlighted. In that part, Pell writes: > No person in Australia, particularly a youngster, needs to commit suicide. Compassion is always available somewhere, even if a search is needed. > > It is grossly unfair and misleading for those who work to win recruits to homosexual practice to blame those who discourage such recruiting for the suicide of homosexuals. > > The churches try to help those who are depressed or suffering. A deep homosexual orientation often brings suffering, but acting this out generally brings greater suffering. particularly when accompanied by adult seduction, mistaken convictions about fixed orientation and abhorrence at patterns of promiscuity. Instead of accusing the churches of homophobia, which we condemn roundly, we should be seeking the real reason for youth suicide. Clippings of two pieces by Peter Stockland in the *Calgary Herald*. In the first piece (27 February 1997), Stockland argues that an "action plan to protect homosexuals is a textbook case in the triumph of propaganda." He states that "responsible trustees should have felt compelled to voice suspicions about the motives behind the plan" and claims that they did not do so "because they were victims of a meticulously crafted propaganda barrage in which the suicide scare tactic was but the opening salvo." In the second piece (28 February 1997), Stockland again draws on the example of the action plan to argue that "fear tactics [are being] used to push agendas."
June 3, 2025 at 1:45 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
I came close to finding out because I didn't let him chase the ducks.
A cocker spaniel standing in front of a fountain, looking eagerly in the direction of a flock of about twenty ducks.
June 2, 2025 at 5:37 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
I think @caseyexplosion.bsky.social said it well:
On Twitter, Casey Explosion (23 May 2023): > The densest, most incredulous people on this site look at big companies celebrating pride month as proof they're all under the thumb of Big Gay™ instead of the reality of rainbow capitalism; cynical, insincere, and opportunistic at best. https://twitter.com/CaseyExplosion/status/1660987395460800512
June 2, 2025 at 5:05 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
"Queer liberation, not rainbow capitalism."
Photo by Delia Giandeini. Posted on Unsplash on 9 November 2019 (https://unsplash.com/photos/selective-focus-of-photography-of-blue-and-brown-signage-poj5MKZvqkE). The information accompanying the photo says it was taken at a pride parade in Geneva, Switzerland (July 2019). In the photo, a sign can be seen with the words: "Queer liberation, not rainbow capitalism."
June 1, 2025 at 3:34 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
She hid this reply from someone who, at the time, had seven followers.
On Twitter, @artfoolpolitics (24 April 2025): > You have indeed become Dolores Umbridge, one of your own fascist characters. From https://twitter.com/artfoolpolitics/status/1915077126669136309 Elsewhere, the tweet isn't visible. Instead, the following text appears: "This reply was hidden by the original Post author."
May 26, 2025 at 5:36 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
I think it's one of these charts.
Juliana (@Dubious_Angel) on Twitter (15 January 2022): > Helen Joyce asking for a chart definitively ruling intersex variations as either male or female. > > There are in fact three such charts by 'Gender Critics' in circulation, as that phobic movement is split on Androgen Insensitivity. It's almost like sex is complex! From https://twitter.com/Dubious_Angel/status/1482030936174829568
May 24, 2025 at 7:57 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Reminds me of these magazine / pamphlet covers and some of the contents. Some of the motifs are recognisable in commentary today as well.
Cover of *The American Legion Magazine*, Volume 51, Number 5 (November 1951). On the cover, the text says: "In this issue: Do colleges have to hire red professors? By Louis F. Budenz. Parents can rid campuses of communists who cloak themselves in 'academic freedom.'" An illustration depicts a college professor teaching a class. Behind him is a blackboard with the words "imperialism," "Lenin," "Marx," and "Asia," among others that are partially occluded. On a table or desk nearby is a stack of books. On the spine of one of the books, the words "Revolt of" can be seen. However, the rest of the book's title is occluded. Below it, a book whose title begins with "1000 American." The rest of the title is also occluded. Cover of *The American Legion Magazine*, Volume 51, Number 3 (September 1951). On the cover, the text says: "In this issue: Our new privileged class (the commies and those who play their game). By Eugene Lyons." An illustration depicts a protest, with protesters carrying signs that read "stop fascist warmongering" and "defend civil liberties." Partially occluded signs appear to read "patriots want peace," "free the '12'," and "sign peace pledge now." Page 11 of *The American Legion Magazine*, Volume 51, Number 3 (September 1951). An illustration by Cass Norwaish takes up about half the page. It depicts a woman standing before a panel, seemingly comprised entirely of men in suits—possibly legislators. She appears to be shouting angrily at them, her hand pointing in their direction in a gesture seemingly meant to convey accusation or criticism. One of the men on the panel is taken aback in disgust and takes his glasses off. The others look on; some appear indifferent, some concerned. Over the illustration, the text reads: "Our new privileged class. One of the most obnoxious characteristics of reds and pinks is their attitude that they are a law unto themselves." Below the illustration, the text reads: "Time and again the public has seen commies flout the law, meanwhile howling for their 'legal rights.'" In the lower half of the page, the article by Eugene Lyons begins. An illustration depicting a Soviet soldier injecting a school with "organised communist propaganda." Text at the top reads "how red is the little red schoolhouse?" Text at the bottom reads: "It's high time American parents knew the facts!" It is difficult to determine the exact source of this image. It is reportedly the cover of a pamphlet published by the National Council for American Education in 1950. That's the account of it given in *The Fifties*, by Douglas T. Miller and Marion Nowak, published 1977. According to Miller and Nowak, "this pamphlet was part of a concerted right-wing campaign against progressive education" (p. 248). It reportedly included headings like "the treason ring is out to make reds of your children" and "textbooks can be red propaganda."
May 23, 2025 at 5:04 PM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
From 1995.
A comic by Alison Bechdel, dated 1995. First panel. "One slow evening at the multiplex..." Lois: "Man, did that suck!" Mo: "Think we can get our money back?" Jillian: "Not after we sat through the whole damn thing. Wait up, okay? I have to pee." Second panel. Mo and Lois standing outside the entrance to the bathroom. Mo: "Lois, I have to go too, but I just wanna wait a minute. I know Jillian's cool, and she's done great work with the Avengers and everything, but I dunno... I still feel kinda weird using the bathroom with someone who used to be a man." Lois: "Mo! I'm not gonna stand around here all night just because you're having a transphobia attack! Get over it and go pee, or we'll leave without you!" Third panel. As Mo enters the bathroom, a stranger: "Excuse me! Aren't you in the wrong bathroom?" Jillian: "Of course she's not! Take a closer look, hon!" Fourth panel. Mo: "Uh... thanks, Jillian. I'd do the same for you, y'know." Jillian: "Thanks, but I actually don't have much of a problem in ladies' rooms. At least, not since my 'nobody knows I'm a transsexual' t-shirt wore out."
May 22, 2025 at 3:55 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
It's hard to believe that this comic is nearly 30 years old.
A comic by Alison Bechdel, dated 1995. First panel. "One slow evening at the multiplex..." Lois: "Man, did that suck!" Mo: "Think we can get our money back?" Jillian: "Not after we sat through the whole damn thing. Wait up, okay? I have to pee." Second panel. Mo and Lois standing outside the entrance to the bathroom. Mo: "Lois, I have to go too, but I just wanna wait a minute. I know Jillian's cool, and she's done great work with the Avengers and everything, but I dunno... I still feel kinda weird using the bathroom with someone who used to be a man." Lois: "Mo! I'm not gonna stand around here all night just because you're having a transphobia attack! Get over it and go pee, or we'll leave without you!" Third panel. As Mo enters the bathroom, a stranger: "Excuse me! Aren't you in the wrong bathroom?" Jillian: "Of course she's not! Take a closer look, hon!" Fourth panel. Mo: "Uh... thanks, Jillian. I'd do the same for you, y'know." Jillian: "Thanks, but I actually don't have much of a problem in ladies' rooms. At least, not since my 'nobody knows I'm a transsexual' t-shirt wore out."
May 22, 2025 at 2:33 AM
ostrasyn.bsky.social
Reminds me of two things Jessie said in a recent video (youtu.be/iwuEK4KV2eM?..., youtu.be/iwuEK4KV2eM?...).
> And this is frankly personally just difficult. Because as an autistic person, the fear of being misunderstood is already tough, but when it's weaponised against me it becomes frankly unbearable. It's why my videos have become so long and filled with caveats. Because I just want to try and guard against every bad faith interpretation. ... People crave simplicity in a world that's frankly overwhelming right now, and that's human. But that simplicity turns me and others into antagonistic narratives for \[online] engagement. > Recently, I saw someone comment on my work, who saw through all the reasons why my videos contain so many caveats and clarifications, who said, "The good faith actors don't need it and the bad faith actors won't respect it." And that hit me hard because they're right. I spent too much time explaining myself to people who will never care.
May 20, 2025 at 1:25 PM