Essay
The Blue Sword
The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley Nothing says a childhood classic like white savior Mary Sue! I snagged this one after listening to an episode of Brandon Sanderson’s podcast where he said this inspired one of the stained glass windows decorating his house (because of course he has presumably awesome stained glass windows).
By Matthew J. Fromm3 days ago in Critique
The Automotive Dilemma
The Automotive Dilemma: What If the World Stopped Making Cars for One Year? Imagine a global pause button. For twelve months, the automotive industry stops producing new cars. No new petrol cars, no new EVs. Instead, governments, manufacturers, and suppliers redirect their full capacity to one task: retrofitting existing cars with electric motors and batteries. It sounds like a thought experiment, but the numbers behind it reveal a startling dilemma.
By Peter Ayolov4 days ago in Critique
Mental Health Tips for Digital Creators (From Someone Who Knows the Burnout)
Mental Health Tips for Digital Creators (From Someone Who Knows the Burnout) It sounds like the ideal job to be a digital creator. You get to work from anywhere, be your own boss, and turn your ideas into content people actually care about.
By Farida Kabir5 days ago in Critique
Democrats call for withholding DHS and ICE funding after second Minnesota fatal shooting
Another government shutdown looms on the horizon if the Republicans and Democrats can’t agree upon an appropriation bill. That’s a good thing. Shut down ICE first––and for good. Also, the FDA, DEA, OSHA, NOAA, FCC, FAA, and a whole host of alphabet soup organizations and agencies ought to cease as well.
By Skyler Saunders7 days ago in Critique
Kanye West takes out ad in 'Wall Street Journal' apologizing for past behavior
For Ye to issue yet another missive arguing that his bipolar I disorder led to his horrific behavior is the worst of all worlds. His half-hearted attempt to apologize to the Foundational Black American (FBA) is appalling. His attempt to get on the good side of Jews is embarrassing. What is most damaging is the fact he has no clue that the diagnosis doesn’t come with apology tours or full page ads in The Wall Street Journal. In actuality, the way to deal with this is not to apologize but to put up money. Ye needs to show his contrition by offering millions to Black and Jewish people.
By Skyler Saunders7 days ago in Critique
When Is a Move Final?
The Commitment Problem in Modern Chess Modern chess operates under a fractured commitment model that no longer aligns with how players think, how turns function in most games, or how chess itself is actually played across physical and digital formats. At the heart of the problem is that chess treats physical contact with a piece as binding commitment while simultaneously relying on a separate explicit action to end a player’s turn. This creates a logical contradiction: a move becomes final before the turn is over. In most turn-based games, interaction with game components is provisional until the player explicitly signals the end of their turn. Chess is an anomaly in this respect, and the inconsistency becomes increasingly visible in modern play.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast7 days ago in Critique
to me
I know it had been over the last few weeks to a month since I have read and commented, but I have been reading very occasionally my notifications here on Vocal. Actually, over the past few weeks to probably a month I have been working on my study books that I have been writing, and I plan on publishing on Amazon when completed. I do have some good news to report for I believe that I mentioned that I have a volunteer book reviewing job for a magazine by the name of Story Monsters Ink for the past couple years along with a few others, but this past week I have been hired as a paid book reviewer for the online version of Story Monsters Ink and I have been reading and reviewing a few eBooks already for them already. I am sure glad that I like to read for the publisher wants reviews in 10 days after receiving an assigned book. I do plan on continuing to write, read and comment here on Vocal too.
By Mark Graham9 days ago in Critique
Toward the Linguistic Apocalypse
Toward the Linguistic Apocalypse What stands before the present age is not a technological crisis but a linguistic one. Artificial intelligence does not announce the rise of a new sovereign intelligence; it announces the collapse of an old regime of words. Power is unraveling not because machines are becoming conscious, but because language is becoming uncontrollable. The monopoly over meaning, interpretation, memory, and narration is dissolving, and with it dissolves the architecture of authority that depended on silence, delay, and scarcity.
By Peter Ayolov10 days ago in Critique
Beyond Virality: How Short-Form Storytelling Became My Creative Discipline. AI-Generated.
Short-form video is often treated as disposable—made to be consumed quickly and replaced just as fast. From the outside, it can seem simple: a few edits, a trending sound, timing that happens to align. But working inside the format tells a different story. What looks effortless usually comes from repeated decisions, restraint, and attention. Over time, short-form storytelling became a discipline for me, not a shortcut.
By Zack LePro13 days ago in Critique
‘It’s bigger than me’: Azeez Al-Shaair reacts to NFL fine for ‘stop the genocide’ eye black
NFL player Azeez Al-Shaair displayed the message “Stop the Genocide” referring to the war in Gaza. Firstly, there is a terrible job done by Israel if their goal was genocide as the population of Palestenians has increased since the beginning of the war and the “cease fire.” Also, people are dying because of the Hamas led invasion of Israel on October 7, 2023.
By Skyler Saunders13 days ago in Critique
Don Lemon Fires Back At Nicki Minaj's "Disgusting" Homophobic Rant
How dare Nicki Minaj be homophobic? Isn’t a significant concentration of her Barbz fan base part of the queer community? Her sparring session with Don Lemon is atrocious. With he being a gay man and she allegedly hetero, what is the big deal here?
By Skyler Saunders13 days ago in Critique
