Hello Post people!

Quite a bit of Reddit is going dark on Monday.

It's a number of issues, the API pricing (pushing out third parties), Reddit's need to get some of that sweet AI LLM cash (because Reddit is a huge source for training models), some bad treatment of developers - including tools that provide accessibility.
This is very much tied to the platform's move towards an IPO and showing it's value.
To put it simply (you can also refer to this image), these changes are causing some significant issues:

• Third-party tools are being priced out (and the pricing announcement/start day is rapid, relatively speaking)
• Reddit's change will heavily impact users with visual impairments - as Reddit's native tools lack.
• It affects quite a bit of moderation tools - making everything harder.

From our mod perspective, it seems like these shifts are happening far too quickly, in a rush to show value.

The new pricing model has already forced some third-party tools to exit, whether that's the intention or not. The implementation feels poorly handled (worse than Apple's FCPX or Avid's new title tool!). The recent treatment of the creator of the Apollo client raises concerns about Reddit's approach - especially the "remember the person behind the keyboard," which is part of reddits' own written Rediquette. Again, worst of all, users with visual impairments may be left behind for an extended period.

In response, numerous subreddits are going 'dark' for 48 hours starting Monday with some even considering a permanent exit.

This week, in the notes from a call from Reddit, there were allegations against Apollo for 'threatening' Reddit (They didn't). Additional language included "Go ahead and protest, it's a democracy" but also was a particular line:- "We are tolerant, but also have a duty to keep Reddit online," which feels like a thinly veiled threat.
We've received queries/concerns from our community, so we believe it's crucial to open this discussion.
Not participating in the blackout feels wrong…especially considering the large number of subreddits (800-1000+), including /videos, /gaming, and /music, that are going dark (large list here.)
Yet, we are also aware that it may not have any substantial impact on the corporate direction. If they lose 20% of their views, it doesn't matter.
For additional details, refer to the following links:

• Developer call
• Moderator coordination
• Apollo shutting down. (This is the Third-party iOS tool that was not handled well - see the developer call - especially that he was featured as part of Apple's WWDC this past week.)

Regarding the implications for our subreddits:

We're still discussing what we feel is the best course of action. I (Greenysmac), honestly don't think two days will mean "much"; I don't expect corporate entities to give in.
But Just nuking communities or turning them private forever isn't a great perspective either. It's a pretty great place here.

How it will affect you:

If you're a member of any of our subreddits, if we decide to go private, it means that the subs will still load for you - it'll just never show up on the wider part of Reddit (like /all). Many subreddits are auto-removing any new posts/comments or posting a note about this issue on every post during the blackout period.
Know that these paths increase the workload for our moderators quite a bit.
Please feel free to share your thoughts on this issue; we want to hear what you think, as it affects us and Reddit as a whole.

I have a good friend who constantly makes little quips at me that makes me feel small and hurt. It happens almost every time we spend 1 on 1 time together. It got to a point where once we were at a restaurant with a few of her friends and she loudly scolded me for “being too loud.” This made me furious and so I ended up sitting there in silence until she asked for a bite of my food and when I said no, she took it anyway. That made me even more angry so I stood up and went home. After I explained this to her, she said she was sorry and that she would change.
Fast forward a few months later, the quips keep happening but just not super publicly. She would make little comments about how she “could tell” my jewelry was from shein (I had bought it much earlier before I learned the full harm of Shein) , or about my music taste, or laughing when I mess up just singing in the car. Once, we were supposed to go out for my birthday and I got the timings mixed up for a place and she snapped at me saying “you didn’t check the timings?” Then we spent the rest of the time together just her complaining about her life and problems (which are super valid and difficult). It’s just that it was supposed to be my bday celebration but it didn’t feel at all like it.
Its now at the point where I feel like I’m acting when I’m around her - making sure I wear and say the right things.
The other day, something unrelated that she said triggered me to unlock and spill everything to which she said I was just attacking her and she felt gutted by me. She said I shouldn’t have let it bottle up, but I didn’t know what else to do. I can’t imagine having to tell her every time she makes a mean comment to me. I think if I were to do that, it would not make for a good time for anyone because it’s every time we hang out and would be a mood killer. But, this could mean that I’m the AH for not telling her about it while its happening and letting it bottle up.
She’s going through some stuff and said she needed a few days but I said I need a few weeks to think about what I want to do.
I really enjoy her friendship and company. She’s very loyal and tries to be a good person. I think that I want to stay her friend because we’ve been through so much together and she’s done a lot for me but sometimes idk if it’s worth it for me to go through the little quips. And at this point, I’m not sure if the friendship can survive. I think it would end up being us both walking on eggshells around each other.
What do I do?

TL;DR: I (23M) am currently on leave from medical school. I left during M1 due to mental health issues, and almost unaliving myself. It’s been a rough year, and quite the learning experience, but I’m doing better.
I’m now struggling with the idea of going back though…but also…not going back too. I only have a few weeks to decide. I don’t want to make a mistake either way, but I fear potential regret from either choice.
I’m not sure what I’m looking for by posting this, or if it’s just a vent, but thank you for reading if you do. You are all amazing.
Hey friends,
I posted a few months ago about how I took a leave from medical school during my first year.
Long story short I had a lot of mental health issues (and no meds), a drug/alcohol problem, and at my lowest had an unaliving letter written to my loved ones and was actively planning my way out. My entire family dropped everything to fly across the country to pull me out of school because despite my struggles, I couldn’t give it up on my own.
After leaving I spent some time in a facility, and got some nice grippy socks. I was eventually cleared though (woo-hoo 🥳), and have been trying by best to stay healthy ever since.
I started proper medication, quit drinking, kicked my addictions, got pretty fit actually, traveled some, etc. Things have gotten better…but the scars of the past are still there. I’d be lying if I said I was 100% okay. I still meet with multiple mental health professionals on a regular basis, and am now pretty reliant on (properly prescribed) meds to get me through the day.
Fast forward to these last few weeks and (re)entrance tasks have picked up. Paperwork, zooms, emails, loans, cross-country apartment hunting, etc. have all triggered me to say the least. I can feel the anxiety building.
I’m scared of losing myself again. Or even worse, racking up $100k of debt per year and then losing it at some point down the road when I’m in too deep. I already have ~$100k debt from undergrad + last year with a pretty useless chemistry degree to show for it. However, I’m also scared to let this all go.
People from the outside make it seem like it’s so easy to just walk away. It’s not. Like many of you, I put everything into this. This was my dream, and the only career I ever really considered. Getting here consumed so many years of my life. I’m not the brightest person, so I worked pretty hard in undergrad for good grades. I made no friends. I didn’t go out. The MCAT took forever to study for. Meanwhile, I couldn’t work, do internships, or build a real-world resume because I was so focused on checking boxes to get in. And that’s just my part. My parents also supported me in many ways financially throughout this entire process.
As dumb as it may sound, I hate that I feel so stuck on a path that I’ve barely even started. I got a near 4.0 from a decent undergrad, I got a 52X on my MCAT, I got into a top medical school, I spent years getting here. I worked so hard…..all potentially for nothing?
I hate that I only have a few weeks to decide if I want to try this out again, or fully drop out. I already got denied extending my leave another year.
I hate that if I do drop out, there’s no going back. I’ll likely never be accepted again, even if I were to reapply several years down the line. I’m scared I’ll regret it.
I hate that if I do drop, I’ll be doing so without an actual taste of what real medicine is like. Just a really small sample of preclinical, which is nothing like clinical medicine.
I hate that leaving means I’ll probably have to go back to undergrad, and potentially work towards a backup career that might not turn out the way I’m hoping again. A career that will always be something I did less out of interest, and moreso because medicine just didn’t happen for me. There is nothing I’d want to do with a chemistry degree.
I think most of all though, I hate thinking that there is a chance, even if it’s a very small one, that I could go back to med school and figure it all out. I could get through it all and love being a doctor like I always thought I would. I could maybe finish and look back on this one day & be so happy that I stuck it out. But, there’s no guarantee.
Obviously this is a personal decision…it’s my life after all. I just wish it didn’t have to be this difficult.

Half Day Fridays taken away
Hi all,
My role has had half day Fridays since before I joined because most of us work from 7:30-5 Monday-Thursday. I joined 6 months ago.
Since a lot of our clients have ramped down recently due to the overall economy, we were notified this morning that half-day Fridays are no longer a benefit, effective today. A lot of us have made plans in the near and long-term on Fridays because of this. I’m not in a role where there’s critical work on Friday afternoons and often times I receive no emails after 11 am
How would you handle this situation?
My plan is to go about my business per normal today because cancelling a half-day the morning of is fucking ridiculous.
As for future weeks, I plan on refusing to take meetings before 9 am anymore because I’m no longer getting the freedom of my Friday afternoons off.

Hiya! I’m April, an avid enthusiast of the Marvel Universe, and I'm on the lookout for a creative and dedicated partner to embark on an exciting Marvel roleplay journey together. I'm passionate about exploring the vast possibilities that this universe offers, and I'm thrilled at the prospect of creating our own unique Marvel adventure.
In our roleplay, I'd love for us to take on the roles of canon/already-established Marvel characters. We can select our favorite heroes, villains, or even side characters to portray. The possibilities are endless, and I believe it's through these characters that we can breathe life into our very own Marvel universe.
What I'm truly seeking is a partner who is willing to dive deep into the world we create, balancing both slice of life elements and thrilling action sequences. It would be fantastic to explore the everyday lives, relationships, and personal struggles of our characters, while also delving into epic battles, world-saving missions, and everything in between.
To ensure an immersive and engaging experience, I'm hoping to find a partner who enjoys writing responses of a few paragraphs or more. This will allow us to develop the story, characters, and their interactions in a detailed and satisfying manner. The depth and richness of our writing will truly bring our Marvel universe to life!
I'm in the Pacific Daylight Timezone (PDT), and I'm fortunate to have a flexible schedule, making me available throughout the day. Whether you prefer quick-paced responses or a more relaxed posting schedule, we can find a rhythm that suits us both.
If you're as passionate about the Marvel Universe as I am and are excited to create something extraordinary together, please reach out to me via private message. Let's brainstorm, collaborate, and build our very own Marvel universe, one post at a time!
Looking forward to hearing from you soon!
Best regards, April

We have all seen this phrase a lot as everyone tries to figure out where they fall to relieve their anxiety. I have posted my situation before so I won't go too far into details but will say this is where I fall. Loans paid off, they were federally guaranteed but commercially held.
I have also seen that the "usual suspects" are involved in something more in regards to this. I can glean what this could mean and it still gives a little hope to the situation so I stay out here in this sub and keep reading. I also see some wonder if they should go their own legal route to recoup their losses, something I wouldn't do because of time and $$ involved and the ridiculous fight that would ensue. Then these folks are told about this "something else" in the works.
Being it's all legalese I don't know what can or can't be said about it. But, I feel people like me should be aware of it and it is apparent that some aren't and are just giving up, as I planned to do until I learned of it and decided to just hold hope for a few more years. I didn't know anything about Sweet v. Cardona until I received the Feb 28th email, let's face it...this sort of stuff isn't getting heavy coverage, at least to folks like me. If I had, I may have made different decisions in the last few years and kept my hope alive.
Is there more info on this that could be given out? Again, I just want people in similar positions to be aware that there is something out there so they don't take their own drastic action. But, also, I have to wonder if there is something more that we can do to help? I would have offered the same had I known about Sweet v Cardona, even if the answer back was "No" but this seems a little different.
I also can't help but wonder why the DOE is taking on refunds; why can't/shouldn't those in my position at least get refunded BY the college for the money spent at the college (tuition, etc.) for their defrauding us? It feels like these colleges are just keeping they money they "earned" from us and have no repercussions.

Demographics: International student State/Location of residency: India Type of high school: Indian Feeder (35-45/80 go to US colleges) GendeRace/Ethnicity: Indian Other special factors (first generation to college, legacy, athlete, etc.): N/A
Intended Major(s) Finance
GPA, Rank, and Test Scores Unweighted HS GPA: 10th Grade IGCSE (6A* 2A) 11th Grade IB: 35/42 12th Grade Expected (Predicted: 43/45) GPA might look mid but the school does not really care because it is mostly IGCSE into IB.
ACT/SAT Scores: 1440 (Should I report?)
Coursework HL: Economics, Business Management, Computer Science, Hindi B SL: Math AA, English
Awards - Distinction in the ICE Certification - 1st Place in Screening for a prestigious Business Quiz Competition - 2nd Place in the DSIJ Investing Competition - 44th Globally in a well known Olympiad (CS) - Award for the best research and communication by the New York Institute of Finance
Extracurriculars Extremely impactful social service organisation focusing on farmers in India, which helped them learn about financial policies and govt offers that they could avail. 10000+ people reached and 150+ farmers helped. Paired the Farmer service by training a ai up to date to create a chatbot that can dispense financial advice to anyone using it. 8000+ people reached. Internship at a big Assets Management Firm. Made significant improvements to asset management structure over the course of 4 months. Another internship in bombay with a big4 investment firm where i worked on mutual funds and etf analysis in india Headboy of a stock-related club, made massive upgrades to the club reputation, transformed from a 5-10 member club to a 65 member club, gave multiple speeches and held many financial literacy sessions for teachers at the school. Managed a personal portfolio from $1000 to $ 4500 over the course of 4 years using derivate, technical and value investing Research paper on real estate in india published in a semi reputable journal (self done) others are okayish
Essays/LORs/Other Essays: 9/10 LORs: 10/10 I go to a boarding so the teachers writing are essentially second mothers/fathers to me.
Cost Constraints / Budget $100k a year
Schools The thing with this is that I only wanna go to good schools that lead to good jobs in finance. otherwise, I might as well just stay in India. I don’t care particularly about fit or rigor as I can handle both. I would prefer to go down the IB pipeline, but any high finance job is a target for me. I would prefer not to go to a isolated college, but I am willing to go if its a good school. Please chance/match me for schools I can apply to? If you need any more info, please feel free to ask me. My parents are completely unfamiliar with the collegge process, so it is a bit difficult for me. seeking your help.

Hiya! I’m April, an avid enthusiast of the Marvel Universe, and I'm on the lookout for a creative and dedicated partner to embark on an exciting Marvel roleplay journey together. I'm passionate about exploring the vast possibilities that this universe offers, and I'm thrilled at the prospect of creating our own unique Marvel adventure.
In our roleplay, I'd love for us to take on the roles of canon/already-established Marvel characters. We can select our favorite heroes, villains, or even side characters to portray. The possibilities are endless, and I believe it's through these characters that we can breathe life into our very own Marvel universe.
What I'm truly seeking is a partner who is willing to dive deep into the world we create, balancing both slice of life elements and thrilling action sequences. It would be fantastic to explore the everyday lives, relationships, and personal struggles of our characters, while also delving into epic battles, world-saving missions, and everything in between.
To ensure an immersive and engaging experience, I'm hoping to find a partner who enjoys writing responses of a few paragraphs or more. This will allow us to develop the story, characters, and their interactions in a detailed and satisfying manner. The depth and richness of our writing will truly bring our Marvel universe to life!
I'm in the Pacific Daylight Timezone (PDT), and I'm fortunate to have a flexible schedule, making me available throughout the day. Whether you prefer quick-paced responses or a more relaxed posting schedule, we can find a rhythm that suits us both.
If you're as passionate about the Marvel Universe as I am and are excited to create something extraordinary together, please reach out to me via private message. Let's brainstorm, collaborate, and build our very own Marvel universe, one post at a time!
Looking forward to hearing from you soon!
Best regards, April

I was poking around on my Remarkable 2 via SSH and accidentally deleted a system file. Now when I turn on the tablet, it gets stuck on the boot screen and never makes it to the launcher. I've tried a number of things to fix it but no luck so far.
At this point, I think my best option may be to find a full system backup image and attempt a full restore on my Remarkable 2. Does anyone know if this would work or have a system backup image I could try that isn't a full restore? My system version was whatever the latest was as of March 2021.
Any help or advice would be much appreciated. I really don't want to have to do a hard reset using self made recovery tool if possible. Let me know if any additional details would be helpful.
Thanks in advance! I'm hoping the Remarkable community will come through for me on this one.

I am Staff Sergeant Baw (Enclavebaw) and I am the best man with a rifle in the entire NCA (New California Army) due to my skills and prowess with the Marksman Service rifle.It has a reflex sight and a unusable bayonet cambered in 12.7mm in game. Multiple combat operations in the Mojave (can see some of the operations on my YouTube Enclavebaw 64) mostly successful operations with assistance from the infantry and heavy infantry with savaged power armor. One of my biggest accomplishments was glitching Pvt. Halford into following me forever, until he dies or the game wipes. The general Kos was so impressed that he made a new medal and renamed the event not on the discord after Halford. To get The Halford Cross you need to protect and have him survive for 2 weeks. Pvt. Halford can also attack players while normal companions can’t. Join the NCR in Fallout NVMP there super kool. Have a good one 👍.

Last night someone requested that we put together a list of evidence for both Dotun and Joey as F1 to compare them. I also put together a list that points to evidence against each one as F1. If anything was missed, please feel free to add it in the comments.
🚨Also - we are NOT counting out Xavier (who was sleuthed out to have made the final 3). We focused on just Dotun and Joey because Xavier’s list doesn’t have a substantial amount yet and he was the last of the final 4 to go public (a week ago) so he hasn’t been sleuthed for much time to generate a longer list yet. As more info about Xavier gets out, I can make another post that includes his growing evidence.
And yes - Charity will probably see this post and switch things up to make it harder to sleuth but we are almost 2 weeks out from the premiere with no official F1 confirmation so at this point…let’s just lay out the evidence.
DOTUN F1 CLUES:

• Two 1-1 dates back to back (1 in week 4, 1 in week 5)
• Positive body language during week 5 1-1
• Producers may have rented super nice car for his hometown.
• Spotted in Fiji
• He is 6’7”
• Went public on IG a couple days after 1st suspected SHV weekend.
• Both use 🫶🏾 emojis
• deleted a song by Fireboy, a Nigerian artist (Dotun is Nigerian) from her “Mickey and Minnie” playlist before the playlist was discovered by redditors. The playlist itself was never played by her during the weeks after it was created, but she quickly deleted it once someone here announced they found it.
• “Why are you excited to meet Charity?” written response sounded romantic/F1 vibes.
• Romantic speech in “meet the men” tikTok.
• Has similar traditional/religious family like Charity’s.
• Dotun has family in law enforcement (does Charity have a military family background? Someone please verify if you can).
• Liked a bunch of the posts on the Bachelorette IG page.
• Nehemiah followed Dotun on IG
• Charity followed the Mount Hood Railroad IG account (Dotun possibly had his 1st 1-1 in that area)
• Charity followed the artist Tems. Dotun already followed Tems. No success finding Dotun’s spotify to sleuth more of his music, unfortunately.

JOEY F1 CLUES:

• Group date roses in weeks 2 and 4
• Audience reported romantic chemistry during kissing group date and Barbie group date.
• Kiss during kissing group date was reported by multiple people as “too intimate to watch”.
• He received the first 1-1 date of week 5, typically given to F1s.
• Charity’s most recent ex was white
• Given “competitive” edit in “meet the men” tikTok.
• Seen with Charity in a lot of the promo footage.
• Massive IG clean up right after getting home and going public on IG. A lot of IG models cleaned up.
• Massive IG cleanup done by his sister on IG.
• Appears to have stayed on the mainland for three weeks post filming before going home to Hawaii (would line up with possibly staying until the 1st SHV happened).
• About 2-3 days after getting home, he added a profile picture (the same as his IG one) to his spotify and went private for his listening. Making some think Charity could have told him to do that, as generally speaking the men focus on cleaning IG, Twitter and don’t really make changes to their Spotify (unless they are a “music head”).
• Charity (although she had just 1 single John Mayer song across all her Spotify playlists) followed John Mayer on IG during Joey’s birthday, proceeded to add two John Mayer songs to her playlist after the first SHV. Joey is a big JM fan and goes to his concerts.
• Both use 🤠 emojis
• During each suspected SHV weekend, Charity has seemingly switched from her typical worship/pop/r&b music to play John Mayer, James Bay, artists Joey listens to.
• Joey appears to only post to his story showing he’s in Hawaii during SHV weekends.
• The song with very specific “flying to LA” lyrics.
• Joey’s mom following Nehemiah then going private after we realized.
• Joey’s mom liking posts that specifically feature Charity and no one else.
• Nehemiah followed Joey, unfollowed (as if he might have slipped) and then refollowed him.
• “White boy on my roster” tikTok made days after filming wrapped. (Area codes song).
• Charity posting the barbie date footage of her and Joey close up, then deleting the story.

AGAINST DOTUN AS F1:

• 2 back to back 1-1s. While this was listed as a point for being F1, an argument can be made that this show historically doesn’t have this happen with F1s. The rare occasions that it has happened has been with F2s (Becca T, Lauren).
• Waited a long time to go public on IG. This definitely could be disputed as a point foagainst him, but generally speaking in the last few seasons, he stayed private longer the way Greg, Bri, Jason A did.
• Still to this day hasn’t deleted his FB post about the mentally challenged people he worked with. Charity and her friends are very online and definitely didn’t miss the numerous times it was brought up here. As someone working in her field, it’s assumed she would have asked him to delete it at this point. His FB cleanup was shoddy at best which could mean she didn’t help with it.
• Changes were made to Dotun’s fitness website prior to the end of filming in the middle of FS week.
• Charity trying to prove how she got the time square billboard photo instead of just letting us believe Dotun sent it to her.
• The few of Dotun’s friends that are public didn’t follow any of the BN fan pages or follow Charity to track his journey/get familiar with Charity.
• So far, has a “hidden” edit in promos. The last real hidden F1 was Rachael K, as generally speaking the F1 does get some screen time in promos. But perhaps this clue could be disputed too.

AGAINST JOEY AS F1:

• Joey’s arrival home for a family wedding cuts it very close to when filming wrapped. Usually F1s stay a couple days longer on location post-filming. This could mean he didn’t win.
• Never spotted in Fiji
• Lots of screen time in the promos (was used as a point for F1, but could be disputed too) it might mean he is being pushed as the next lead.
• The only white guy in all black top 4.
• Perhaps Charity wouldn’t choose someone who lives so far away in Hawaii.
• Added “Love Goes” by Sam Smith (a breakup song) to his playlist the week he got home.
• People said body language looked more “tense” during their 1-1 date. It was later found that they had their hands interlocked the whole time in the photos so that could be up for debate.
• Charity’s “when they’re all over 6 feet” IG comment. Joey is 5’11”.

Hey there, leader from Clan kalh2 here.
are you looking for a Clan where you can just have fun while maxing out your base? you are reading the right thing here.
We Offer a chill atmosphere, a well organized clan and a friendly enviorment. we just trying our best to max our bases and get some 3 stars :)
We offer: Max Clangames / ClanCapital level 7(not rushed) / save spot in CWL (gold league 1) / Lots of friendly challenges / max and fast donations / chance for Promos / constant Clanwars / (free to participate) / no Discord Required / new friends :)
Rules:
- Min. 1000 points in Clangames
- Attacks in CW and CWL are required if you choose to participate.
- use red/Green button for Clanwar Participation.
I would love to hear form you!
just send me a message, comment below or feel free to join us right away:
https://link.clashofclans.com/en?action=OpenClanProfile&tag=2YJG0L2PR

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https://preview.redd.it/wuzwnrsmfz4b1.jpg?width=660&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=16d7424087c5edca7df4dd1f198a37158f95974e
Today we will do things veeeryyy different than during the main character study of Gorou Amamiya or Aqua Hoshino but I assure you it won't be less interesting. It was by pure accident that I stumbled over an old book I haven't touched for a long time, a book that goes by the title "The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde. It's from the late 19th century.
The story revolves around the rich and handsome Dorian Gray and a portrait of him painted by Basil Hallward, a friend of Dorian's and an artist infatuated with Dorian's beauty. Through Basil, Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton and is soon enthralled by the aristocrat's cynical hedonistic worldview: that beauty and ruthless self-centered sensual fulfillment are the only things worth pursuing in life while ethics and morals are the natural enemy to this philosophy. Newly understanding that his beauty will fade, Dorian expresses the desire to sell his soul to ensure that the picture, rather than he, will age and fade. The wish is granted by some supernatural force and Dorian pursues a libertine life of varied amoral experiences while staying young and beautiful; all the while, his portrait ages and visually records every one of Dorian's sins in grotesque expressions.
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Now what I discovered during my excursion of a book that I actually didn't really enjoy at all to be quite frank, were similarities in both conception but also psychological realities for both Gorou/Aqua and his father Hikaru Kamiki. From time to time his monologues would sound like commentary to understand what is going on in Hikaru's mind, while the mystic circumstances of Dorian Gray's picture and his eternal youth have strong links between Aqua and Hikaru who indeed are lookalikes. Aqua by that is Hikaru's portrait which will age and visually record every of Hikaru's sins while Hikaru pursues a libertine life of varied amoral experiences while staying young and beautiful. It all culminates to Aqua's movie role of the culprit in which Aqua will be the living proof of Hikaru's sinful life and eventually lead to his downfall. This is also Dorian's fate with his potrait.
I know, this sounds so unbelievably far stretched but believe me I'm thrilled about the actual similarities and the integretiy of the psychological templates that found their way into Oshi No Ko. I firmly believe it's not accidental. And since I enjoy ONK but not so much Oscar Wilde's novel I'm glad those in itself truely interesting psychological types found their way into Aka's work.
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AQUA HOSHINO AKA DORIAN GRAY
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Trivia:

• In Greek the name Dorian means "child of the sea" or "gift of the sea". The name aquamarine comes from aqua (Latin for 'water'), and marine, deriving from marina (Latin for 'of the sea')
• Dorian is described to have gold hair, blue eyes (and rose-red lip)

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1.
In Chapter III of the book we get to hear about Dorian Gray's tragic family background and this is already the first strong indication that 1. the similarities are real 2. what we discovered about Gorou's grandfather / family background could have been more right than wrong.
Now, the story behind the birth of Dorian is slightly so different then Gorou's but the general notion in a short poetic summary within the novel sounds pretty familiar:

"So that was the story of Dorian Gray’s parentage. Crudely as it had been told to him, it had yet stirred him by its suggestion of a strange, almost modern romance. A beautiful woman risking everything for a mad passion. A few wild weeks of happiness cut short by a hideous, treacherous crime [NOTE: HER FATHER, DORIAN'S GRANDFATHER KILLs HER LOVER, DORIAN'S FATHER]. Months of voiceless agony, and then a child born in pain. The mother snatched away by death, the boy left to solitude and the tyranny of an old and loveless man [NOTE: HIS GRANDFATHER]. Yes; it was an interesting background. It posed the lad, made him more perfect, as it were. Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic. Worlds had to be in travail, that the meanest flower might blow.... " (Chapter III)

Isn't this interesting? And there is another very cool symbol. Dorian - after he witnessed the first changed in his potrait - had to hide the picture in a diferent room of his mansion where nobody could find it and witness "his soul" which is captivated in that portrait that gets uglier and uglier with each day of his sinful life. About that room:

"He had not entered the place for more than four years—not, indeed, since he had used it first as a play-room when he was a child, and then as a study when he grew somewhat older. It was a large, well-proportioned room, which had been specially built by the last Lord Kelso for the use of the little grandson whom, for his strange likeness to his mother, and also for other reasons, he had always hated and desired to keep at a distance." (Chapter X)

So we have: A drama between mother and father, child born in pain, mother dies after giving birth, boy left to soltitude and tyranny of his grandfather who hates him for physical likeness to his mother (in PART II we wrote: Gorou would remind his grandfather every day of his own failure and guilt for losing his daughter), always hated his grandson. This is just literally everything we found out in PART II of our character study!
And the man with this background gets reincarnated in the body of a human being which looks exactly like his father Kamiki, thus is his "portrait" or "The Picture of Hikaru Kamiki"! But this portray inherited Gorou's trauma which is expressed by the symbol that the portray lives in the "trauma room" which had been specially built by his grandfather.
Also the metaphor's of "play-room when he was a child and then as a study when he grew somewhat older" goes hand in hand with what we figured out in the "THE RIGHT TO DREAM" essay about how Gorou's childhood-trauma and the guilt-complex provoked through his grandfather's abuse induced him to study medicine instead of striving for his own dreams as a result of him living in this "study trauma room".
Additionally "He had not entered the place for more than four years" - like Aqua who hasn't entered his trauma room for 4-5 years after reincarnation until Ai was murdered in front of his eyes! This reenactment placed him back into this room of guilt.
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2.
Another interesting story revolves around Dorian's first love with the actress Sibyl Vane. While we can look at this "Arc" from the perspective of Dorian as represented by Hikaru and Sibyl represented by Ai - and we certainly will because actually looking at Dorian as the representation of Hikaru will be even more intereting then the things we have to say about Aqua right now - we can also look at it from the perspective of Aqua and Ai/Akane, which we'll do now.
Dorian loves theater and one night his curiosity leads him into a shappy filthy working-class theater, one with lousy actors and a lousy orchestra. It's essentially the last place a delicate creature would expect greatness. However there at a performance of Shakespears "Romeo and Juliett" he witnesses Sibyl playing and falls for "her" instantly.
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"But Juliet! Harry, imagine a girl, hardly seventeen years of age, with a little, flowerlike face, a small Greek head with plaited coils of dark-brown hair, eyes that were violet wells of passion, lips that were like the petals of a rose. She was the loveliest thing I had ever seen in my life. You said to me once that pathos left you unmoved, but that beauty, mere beauty, could fill your eyes with tears. I tell you, Harry, I could hardly see this girl for the mist of tears that came across me. And her voice—I never heard such a voice. It was very low at first, with deep mellow notes that seemed to fall singly upon one’s ear. Then it became a little louder, and sounded like a flute or a distant hautboy. In the garden-scene it had all the tremulous ecstasy that one hears just before dawn when nightingales are singing. There were moments, later on, when it had the wild passion of violins. You know how a voice can stir one. [...] Harry, I do love her. She is everything to me in life. Night after night I go to see her play. One evening she is Rosalind, and the next evening she is Imogen. I have seen her die in the gloom of an Italian tomb, sucking the poison from her lover’s lips. [...] I have seen her in every age and in every costume."

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Aqua's similar rememberance of Ai in a sigfnificantly less pathos drivin manner.
Sibyl Vane is Dorian's ultimate ido. She can perform any of Dorian's romantic ideal heroines from the most captivating drama's written, in utter artistic perfection. He is "her" ultimate fan:
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"Lips that Shakespeare taught to speak have whispered their secret in my ear. I have had the arms of Rosalind around me, and kissed Juliet on the mouth.”
“Well, I can’t help going to see Sibyl play,” he cried, “even if it is only for a single act. I get hungry for her presence; and when I think of the wonderful soul that is hidden away in that little ivory body, I am filled with awe.”
“You can dine with me tonight, Dorian, can’t you?”
He shook his head. “Tonight she is Imogen,” he answered, “and tomorrow night she will be Juliet.”
“When is she Sibyl Vane?”
“Never.”
“I congratulate you.”
[...]
"My God, Harry, how I worship her!”
[...]
“Harry! Sibyl Vane is sacred!”

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To put it into Kindaichi's words in ONK C97:

"You'll find people with those eyes ... once in a while. Deceptive eyes that have the power to make lies look like truths. It's the best quality for an actor"

The concept of great acting is basically reduced in the symbol of eyes for the sake of keeping the lore a little bit simpler in ONK, but essentially he just means that sometimes there are special actors who can just perform like if they are literally what they perform.
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Dorian approaches and courts Sibyl, and soon proposes marriage. They love each other. Dorian invites Basil and Lord Henry to see Sibyl perform in Romeo and Juliet. Sibyl, too enamoured with Dorian to act, performs poorly - also to the anger of the theater audience which left early because of that-, which makes both Basil and Lord Henry think Dorian has fallen in love with Sibyl because of her beauty instead of her acting talent. Embarrassed, Dorian rejects Sibyl, telling her that acting was her beauty; without that, she no longer interests him. The heartbroken Sibyl eventually commits suicide on this very night.
Now, we find every element of that story in the history between Aqua and Akane but in a reversed construction. Akane joins LoveNow but because of her personality she fails her role in this reality tv setting. She gets rejected by the audience and the audience is even angry with her. Under that pressure she attempts suicide. However after she studied Aqua's ideal role she becomes of great interest for both him and the audience. This is essentially like Vane performing Juliett or Imogen or what not but with the difference that Aqua just loves one Idol: Ai. Structurally it is similar though and Aqua falls for her role. During LoveNow we have the same realization inside Aqua and Dorian, so the plot reverses back but without tragedy: Aqua rejects Akane as serious love interest between her real self and him, telling her that hei's only interesting in her as an actor, just like Dorian rejects Sibyl by telling her that acting was her only beauty.
Dorian to Harry:

"Ordinary women never appeal to one’s imagination. They are limited to their century. No glamour ever transfigures them. One knows their minds as easily as one knows their bonnets. One can always find them. There is no mystery in any of them. They ride in the park in the morning and chatter at tea-parties in the afternoon. They have their stereotyped smile and their fashionable manner. They are quite obvious. But an actress! How different an actress is! Harry! why didn’t you tell me that the only thing worth loving is an actress?"

Well, in a screwed way this is also applicable to Ryosuke's issue, who loved Ai for her role but hated her for her real self and eventually kills her for it, as her real self not only is different but essentially is in total opposition to her role as an idol. Dorian describes a similar screwed misogynistic view on women: The actress is mystery and the only thing worth to love, the ordinary woman is the absolute opposite of it, disappointing and unworthy to be loved.
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3.
By the way the director of that working-class theater is described as a stereotypical jew and while I of course do not endorse antisemitism or racism it still is kinda funny that Kindaichi, the director of Lalalie Theater Company and Akane's boss is always depicted with a pretty unusual big and oddly shaped nose while the name Toshirou that means "quick, clever, sharp" and Toshirou's surname Kindaichi that means "gold/metal, money/cash, currency". Pretty stereotypical if you link it to Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray"...But the theater itself also has some working-class vibes to it, since it's implied that back then they opened workshop classes for orphans and probably generally troubled kids without real guardians. Addiotionally he gave Akane the smallest bouquet at the Japan Actor's Award with the explanation that theaters are financially not doing great. Well if it's a reflection of theaters in general, his theater in particular or his personal greed I can't tell. His name implies the latter and the cost of a bouquet surely doesn't ruin a theater. But probably it's still a general observation because theaters are indeed a dying genre.
Some quotes about the "Jew" in the novel:

"A hideous Jew, in the most amazing waistcoat I ever beheld in my life, was standing at the entrance, smoking a vile cigar. He had greasy ringlets, and an enormous diamond blazed in the centre of a soiled shirt. ‘Have a box, my Lord?’ he said, when he saw me, and he took off his hat with an air of gorgeous servility. There was something about him, Harry, that amused me. He was such a monster."

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"On the first night I was at the theatre, the horrid old Jew came round to the box after the performance was over and offered to take me behind the scenes and introduce me to her. I was furious with him, and told him that Juliet had been dead for hundreds of years and that her body was lying in a marble tomb in Verona. I think, from his blank look of amazement, that he was under the impression that I had taken too much champagne, or something.”
“I am not surprised” replied Harry.

This is just a little odd observation, in the epilog we'll find a more cheerful representation of Kindaichi (well, cheerfulness is of course a limited ressource when it comes down to that man :))
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4.
While most of the time the monologues and thought processes of Dorian mainly concern Dorian as the representative of Hikaru, we have here and there sober reflections on what his soul - which is trapped in the potray - would probably experience, thus what he would experience if he'd have his soul inside his own body. Thus we can read this at the same time as a comment on what is going on in Gorou's / Aqua's soul, which is quite interesting. In the following quote for example it's about the nightmare of having a phantom of your guilt following you everywhere you go, essentially a description of Aqua's delusional vision of Gorou who blames him for Ai's death:
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https://preview.redd.it/vns5efrx505b1.jpg?width=1083&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a6ae6628023bb215a4e9ceb6ff08ce21013374eb
https://preview.redd.it/owuow261605b1.jpg?width=1083&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a54f4a6aa13610e04384407526573efc43fd8398

"And yet if it had been merely an illusion, how terrible it was to think that conscience could raise such fearful phantoms, and give them visible form, and make them move before one! What sort of life would his be if, day and night, shadows of his crime were to peer at him from silent corners, to mock him from secret places, to whisper in his ear as he sat at the feast, to wake him with icy fingers as he lay asleep! As the thought crept through his brain, he grew pale with terror, and the air seemed to him to have become suddenly colder. Oh! in what a wild hour of madness he had killed his friend! How ghastly the mere memory of the scene! He saw it all again. Each hideous detail came back to him with added horror. Out of the black cave of time, terrible and swathed in scarlet, rose the image of his sin. "

18 years after Sibyl's suicide her brother James Vane found out Dorian's identity and swore to kill him. He saw Vane lurking for him and panicked, feared for his life. But later he'd reflect that this must've been just a phantom. That's the story behind that quote in that novel. However he would calm after some days and think that he's out of danger.
​

It was not till the third day that he ventured to go out. There was something in the clear, pine-scented air of that winter morning that seemed to bring him back his joyousness and his ardour for life. But it was not merely the physical conditions of environment that had caused the change. His own nature had revolted against the excess of anguish that had sought to maim and mar the perfection of its calm. With subtle and finely wrought temperaments it is always so. Their strong passions must either bruise or bend. They either slay the man, or themselves die. Shallow sorrows and shallow loves live on. The loves and sorrows that are great are destroyed by their own plenitude. Besides, he had convinced himself that he had been the victim of a terror-stricken imagination, and looked back now on his fears with something of pity and not a little of contempt.

​
We ultimately experience a similar transformation in Aqua's temper after he learns about the apparent death of his father from Taiki. He was away all night (the "night" is a symbol here) but finally came back "in the clear, pine-scented air of that winter morning that seemed to bring him back his joyousness and his ardour for life" He steps to the window and gives Ruby an reliefed smile for the first time since Ai's death:
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https://preview.redd.it/e0ezsvfp705b1.jpg?width=1083&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=97f0236ae0606e6e37654d96b6ed11b55068cfcc
https://preview.redd.it/kd421eyo705b1.jpg?width=1083&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=60ffd4450b497632b36904ce7ba7b35d6727bf3b
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It's not directly "winter" although Ruby's wearing a pyjama which indicate that it's also not summer, but the symbol contracts with the Takachiho arc which we can't spare for Aqua's transformation. What for Dorian was a mere material process of healing his tension and therefore would go away after 3 days of bedriddenness is for Aqua a inmaterial soul-process and he has to put a meaningful end to the phantom of Gorou in his head. And their stay in Takachiho surely appears to be in a winterly setting. This novel must've been of great inspiration for Aka and so he honors it by reimagination of the mental images Oscar Wilde created.
​

"Our father died long ago. There's no way left to avenge Ai. So what should I do? My... revenge..." (C 68)

​
Aqua is finally free and live normaly but when the news about Takachiho appeared he knew he has to somehow find his corpse so that he can "burry his phantom'" so to speak. The corpse of Gorou would be his symbolic proof that it's over, that he has nothing to fear anymore. Eventually Akane and Ruby find it.
​
\"Keep out\" meaning keep this rotten and grotesque thing out of his mind. It's over.
​
Correspondingly Dorian would soon after his "winter-morning" go on a hare shooting in some rural countryside (=Takachiho) where they would by accident shoot James Vane who still was following Dorian. James was finally dead and Dorian could finally close that chapter.
This is everything I could for now link to Aqua without talking about Hikaru's links to Dorian. So for now we have to stop the analysis and call it a day.
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Epilog
So I hope I could convince you to look at ONK from this perspective. This is just the beginning though, the actually interesting part we will only tackle in the next essay Because I believe we can learn a lot of Hikaru's ideology through the character of Dorian, his hobbies, his views, his extreme hedonistic sensualism, perhaps even his relation to his portrait.... It actually concerns me: My very first essay on ONK like a month ago was a half serious schizo theory about Hikaru's involvement in the plot so far where I made the assumption that he probably constantly observes Aqua from far away for years but now - if we apply "The Picture of Dorian Gray" to his personality then this in fact is real.
Dorian would in fact over the years go into his secret room and look at his portrait with a weird for us the next time to explore interest and strange reflections. Maybe there is really more to it...
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Lets end for now with a somewhat luckier characterization of Toshirou Kindaichi. Because he actually looks a lot like the author Oscar Wilde himself:
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https://preview.redd.it/9xoj9ihah05b1.jpg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=781921c3c82f4fce235a14f8433fe906c904e064
And to quote Wilde - which could also be just Kindaichi's own words :

“All charming people are spoiled. It is the secret of their attraction.”

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As always: Thanks for reading!
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****
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Hello! After receiving some modmails about this topic and discussing it internally with the mod team we have decided to join the upcoming subreddit blackout protest against the upcoming API changes. Below is an explanation of what's happening.

What's going on?

TL;DR infographic
Reddit recently announced they are raising the price to make calls to their API from being free to an absurdly high level that will force every third-party Reddit app to shut down.
Some examples of these apps are:

• Apollo (will shut down on June 30)
• Reddit is Fun (will shut down on June 30)
• Sync (will shut down on June 30)
• ReddPlanet (will shut down on June 30)
• Relay
• Narwhal
• BaconReader

Many of these third-party apps have existed longer than the official Reddit app and have tons of quality-of-life features not seen in the official mobile app.
Even if you're not a mobile user and don't use any of those apps, this is a step toward killing other ways of customizing Reddit, such as Reddit Enhancement Suite or the use of the old.reddit.com desktop interface.
This change hurts Accessibility
Many people who are blind or have visual impairments rely on third-party apps to use reddit. See this post made by the moderators of /Blind.
This change hurts Moderation
This isn't only a problem on the user level: many subreddit moderators depend on tools only available outside the official app to keep their communities on-topic and spam-free. Reddit is also going to censor NSFW content from the API, meaning that posts containing NSFW content cannot be accessed and moderated through third-party apps and tools.

What's the plan?

From June 12th to at least June 14th, /ACPocketCamp will go private in solidarity with many other subreddits and you won't be able to access it. On June 14th we will evaluate how to proceed.
If you'd like to continue discussing Pocket Camp during this, you can join us on the Pocket Camp Discord!
​
Signed,
The /ACPocketCamp mod team

Hello everyone, I made this community in efforts to bring together the sim racing community in North Carolina. I’d like this to be a place for us to come together and chat, discuss racing, ask for help, or whatever it be. Welcome to all types of sim racing.

Short story - I'm in my later 30s and did construction for 10 years. Work politics made me try out a maintenance job nearby while I consider careers. How hard would it be to switch with the certifications to a career that would pay over 30$ an hour?
I have read the 'trifecta' is the best option but with no experience prior in the field and no college degrees, how helpful is it to have them or to even bother?

Hi! I work for a small (12 employee) non-profit and a few of us travel occasionally as part of the job. What is the best way for a small company to book hotels? I feel like there has to be a better way than what we’re currently doing.
Current process: our company’s admin assistant books the 4-6 rooms while signed in under her personal bonvoy account but puts each of our names on the reservation. When we check in we must have the front desk change the bonvoy number connected to the reservation, this way the person actually traveling is getting the nights and points vs the admin assistant who is not.
Most of the time changing the bonvoy number has not been a problem, but recently I noticed a stay wasn’t listed in my visits, I put in a missing visit request and was told that another bonvoy number is on there and they cannot add another. I talked to the admin assistant, she called them and they basically said they can’t switch it. Which is really annoying because I gave the front desk my bonvoy number.
So is there a better way to make the whole process less convoluted? Is there a way that our admin assistant can book the rooms for us and attach the traveler’s bonvoy number to it so it doesn’t need to be switched later?
Thanks