Chris de Mercado
@cdem.bsky.social
32 - Amateur actor; D&D nerd; writing procrastinator; idiot - Gender: Magic 8 Ball - Sexuality: Yes - Pronouns: Ask/Again/Later - Home is where the teabags are.
There was probably a point I was going to make at the start, but I'm exhausted and don't have the energy (or memory) anymore.
I'm just sick of the world going to shit, and people who claim to be in favour of unity and cooperation choosing to sneer at people simply to have a companion in suffering.
I'm just sick of the world going to shit, and people who claim to be in favour of unity and cooperation choosing to sneer at people simply to have a companion in suffering.
January 21, 2026 at 4:08 PM
There was probably a point I was going to make at the start, but I'm exhausted and don't have the energy (or memory) anymore.
I'm just sick of the world going to shit, and people who claim to be in favour of unity and cooperation choosing to sneer at people simply to have a companion in suffering.
I'm just sick of the world going to shit, and people who claim to be in favour of unity and cooperation choosing to sneer at people simply to have a companion in suffering.
Mistakes are opportunities to learn and grow. When making them is unsafe, we eliminate that education and growth; we remain stuck forever.
Wielding perfectionism as a silver bullet, making every issue a matter of "whoever's got the cleanest history is right", does just that: makes mistakes unsafe.
Wielding perfectionism as a silver bullet, making every issue a matter of "whoever's got the cleanest history is right", does just that: makes mistakes unsafe.
January 21, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Mistakes are opportunities to learn and grow. When making them is unsafe, we eliminate that education and growth; we remain stuck forever.
Wielding perfectionism as a silver bullet, making every issue a matter of "whoever's got the cleanest history is right", does just that: makes mistakes unsafe.
Wielding perfectionism as a silver bullet, making every issue a matter of "whoever's got the cleanest history is right", does just that: makes mistakes unsafe.
Moral superiority and perfectionism only leads to the rot of the Right taking over.
None of, not a single one of us, is perfect. We have all done something worthy of criticism, or even disdain.
That in itself, however, does not mean we are unworthy of care, nor deserve what we all necessarily get.
None of, not a single one of us, is perfect. We have all done something worthy of criticism, or even disdain.
That in itself, however, does not mean we are unworthy of care, nor deserve what we all necessarily get.
January 21, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Moral superiority and perfectionism only leads to the rot of the Right taking over.
None of, not a single one of us, is perfect. We have all done something worthy of criticism, or even disdain.
That in itself, however, does not mean we are unworthy of care, nor deserve what we all necessarily get.
None of, not a single one of us, is perfect. We have all done something worthy of criticism, or even disdain.
That in itself, however, does not mean we are unworthy of care, nor deserve what we all necessarily get.
An awful lot of us will happily join in on government criticisms. Hell, that's nothing new.
But when criticising everyone in Europe the same way, you criticise millions who are either not guilty of the accusations or, quite infuriatingly, put the lie to them.
They do not deserve your resentment.
But when criticising everyone in Europe the same way, you criticise millions who are either not guilty of the accusations or, quite infuriatingly, put the lie to them.
They do not deserve your resentment.
January 21, 2026 at 3:57 PM
An awful lot of us will happily join in on government criticisms. Hell, that's nothing new.
But when criticising everyone in Europe the same way, you criticise millions who are either not guilty of the accusations or, quite infuriatingly, put the lie to them.
They do not deserve your resentment.
But when criticising everyone in Europe the same way, you criticise millions who are either not guilty of the accusations or, quite infuriatingly, put the lie to them.
They do not deserve your resentment.
Like the US, the stances and actions of European governments increasingly fail to represent the wills of their people.
What you see and hear of Europe, in the US, in all likelihood doesn't include that, and vice-versa.
When you laugh at our plight, who do you laugh at? Our governments? Or people?
What you see and hear of Europe, in the US, in all likelihood doesn't include that, and vice-versa.
When you laugh at our plight, who do you laugh at? Our governments? Or people?
January 21, 2026 at 3:55 PM
Like the US, the stances and actions of European governments increasingly fail to represent the wills of their people.
What you see and hear of Europe, in the US, in all likelihood doesn't include that, and vice-versa.
When you laugh at our plight, who do you laugh at? Our governments? Or people?
What you see and hear of Europe, in the US, in all likelihood doesn't include that, and vice-versa.
When you laugh at our plight, who do you laugh at? Our governments? Or people?
Similarly, when some people claim that Europeans are simply getting what they deserve, for inaction on Israel's genocide of Palestine and the Palestinian people, or for the various 'interventions' in living memory, in Africa/West Asia, consider what makes you believe that's true.
January 21, 2026 at 3:52 PM
Similarly, when some people claim that Europeans are simply getting what they deserve, for inaction on Israel's genocide of Palestine and the Palestinian people, or for the various 'interventions' in living memory, in Africa/West Asia, consider what makes you believe that's true.
It's also worthwhile to consider what your claims are based in.
I made the broad 'leftist American' claim out of both frustration, and my own experience and perception of the actions I've personally witnessed, at the beginning. That doesn't necessarily make it true, though. I will admit that.
I made the broad 'leftist American' claim out of both frustration, and my own experience and perception of the actions I've personally witnessed, at the beginning. That doesn't necessarily make it true, though. I will admit that.
January 21, 2026 at 3:49 PM
It's also worthwhile to consider what your claims are based in.
I made the broad 'leftist American' claim out of both frustration, and my own experience and perception of the actions I've personally witnessed, at the beginning. That doesn't necessarily make it true, though. I will admit that.
I made the broad 'leftist American' claim out of both frustration, and my own experience and perception of the actions I've personally witnessed, at the beginning. That doesn't necessarily make it true, though. I will admit that.
I understand the frustration when one issue apparently takes precedence over other, similar issues, especially moral ones.
It is possible, however, to acknowledge that it is still worthy of being taken seriously and remedied before being criticised.
That's how empathy, care and trust is built.
It is possible, however, to acknowledge that it is still worthy of being taken seriously and remedied before being criticised.
That's how empathy, care and trust is built.
January 21, 2026 at 3:47 PM
I understand the frustration when one issue apparently takes precedence over other, similar issues, especially moral ones.
It is possible, however, to acknowledge that it is still worthy of being taken seriously and remedied before being criticised.
That's how empathy, care and trust is built.
It is possible, however, to acknowledge that it is still worthy of being taken seriously and remedied before being criticised.
That's how empathy, care and trust is built.
From that position of understanding, you can choose better how to react--or, indeed, when to simply not react; that is just as often the best option.
If your reaction to someone's fear of your country is simply "well your country's been a dick, too, lol" then where is that going to take any of us?
If your reaction to someone's fear of your country is simply "well your country's been a dick, too, lol" then where is that going to take any of us?
January 21, 2026 at 3:40 PM
From that position of understanding, you can choose better how to react--or, indeed, when to simply not react; that is just as often the best option.
If your reaction to someone's fear of your country is simply "well your country's been a dick, too, lol" then where is that going to take any of us?
If your reaction to someone's fear of your country is simply "well your country's been a dick, too, lol" then where is that going to take any of us?
When empathy comes with conditions, or is treated as being inexorably linked with agreement and endorsement, then we give room for its absence to become weaponised.
You can empathise with someone and still disagree with them, whether a little or a lot. All it means is you've gained understanding.
You can empathise with someone and still disagree with them, whether a little or a lot. All it means is you've gained understanding.
January 21, 2026 at 3:37 PM
When empathy comes with conditions, or is treated as being inexorably linked with agreement and endorsement, then we give room for its absence to become weaponised.
You can empathise with someone and still disagree with them, whether a little or a lot. All it means is you've gained understanding.
You can empathise with someone and still disagree with them, whether a little or a lot. All it means is you've gained understanding.
There's a reason why, especially among the Right, 'empathy' is a dirty word; why it's spat with vitriol by RW ideologues; why commentators and detractors talk about it in terms of aggression and warfare: because it's anathema to them. Empathy is the vaccine to their virus. They feed off its absence.
January 21, 2026 at 3:34 PM
There's a reason why, especially among the Right, 'empathy' is a dirty word; why it's spat with vitriol by RW ideologues; why commentators and detractors talk about it in terms of aggression and warfare: because it's anathema to them. Empathy is the vaccine to their virus. They feed off its absence.
'Everything is so hot!...'
'Even me?'
'Nearly everything is so hot!...'
'Even me?'
'Nearly everything is so hot!...'
January 14, 2026 at 6:18 PM
'Everything is so hot!...'
'Even me?'
'Nearly everything is so hot!...'
'Even me?'
'Nearly everything is so hot!...'
Just what someone who will return in Avengers: Doomsday would say.
January 13, 2026 at 6:26 PM
Just what someone who will return in Avengers: Doomsday would say.
Surreal Video Game Screenshots or Photos of Crewe Challenge (Impossible)
December 31, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Surreal Video Game Screenshots or Photos of Crewe Challenge (Impossible)
Happy 31!
Once you hit 32, we're coming for you!
Once you hit 32, we're coming for you!
December 19, 2025 at 12:22 AM
Happy 31!
Once you hit 32, we're coming for you!
Once you hit 32, we're coming for you!
Man, I can't believe you're still playing .
I mean, 's good, don't get me wrong, but this is proper dedication.
I mean, 's good, don't get me wrong, but this is proper dedication.
December 9, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Man, I can't believe you're still playing .
I mean, 's good, don't get me wrong, but this is proper dedication.
I mean, 's good, don't get me wrong, but this is proper dedication.
Why there's Jonno, Bip, Amandamanda...
December 5, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Why there's Jonno, Bip, Amandamanda...
"Shop with us for your home furnishings! You have precisely 1 hour between the time you park up and the time you drive away. Make your choices wisely but quickly. Clock's ticking."
December 1, 2025 at 5:29 PM
"Shop with us for your home furnishings! You have precisely 1 hour between the time you park up and the time you drive away. Make your choices wisely but quickly. Clock's ticking."
I'll donate a Tesco value block to the cause; they'll happily lob British butter.
November 30, 2025 at 12:26 AM
I'll donate a Tesco value block to the cause; they'll happily lob British butter.