a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Nus Braka held at phaser point by two guards, surrendering to arrest. text says "This isn’t a criticism of Starfleet Academy. I thought this episode was gorgeous, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The failure of imagination when it comes to the future of justice is my most consistent disappointment with Star Trek as a whole. We have envisioned a future without money and without scarcity, but we can’t envision a future without penal colonies and harsh sentences?"

a warp-speed-esque sky-blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: the Athena docked in San Fransisco with the city skyline. text says "When I envision the “no money socialist utopia” future, it is a future where we recognize that inside that criminal there is just a traumatized little boy who watched his parents die and never got over it, and rather than locking him up, we help him heal. And in doing so, we might just save the quadrant."

/end

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Nus Braka standing in a pile of rubble of the Athena starship. text says "This is where prison abolition comes in. Because Nus Braka, galactic warlord, could have been prevented. Not by the Federation doing triage differently—I believe them that they did their best—but the first time he was arrested. If, instead of being sent to a penal colony, he had been given access to the resources necessary to figure out what was motivating his crime, he would have learned that his childhood trauma wasn’t what he thought it was."

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Nus Braka holding a model of the Athena starship. Text says "He could have been helped to process all that rage and pain. He could have, instead of being punished, been presented with ways to make amends for the harm he had caused. Maybe by using his incredible gift for strategy to help create aid programs for the worlds who were turning to the Venari Ral for protection and help."

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: A screen showing the omega 47 minefield surrounding Federation space. text says "Punishment doesn’t work. Because the Federation chooses punishment over genuine rehabilitation, Nus Braka grows stronger out of his hatred and desire for revenge. I say again: this could have been prevented. The Federation IS guilty. Every person harmed at the hands of the Venari Ral under Braka’s leadership was also harmed at the hands of the Federation who chose to hurt him instead of help him."

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Anisha Mir with tears in her eyes. text says "And what about Anisha? What should justice have looked like for her? After all, she helped organize this theft. She was partly responsible for a man’s death. Again, start by asking the question “why did she do this?” Answer: lack of resources. How do we prevent future criminality? Provide resources. And I might be in the minority here, but I suspect that in almost all cases accidentally killing someone is its own punishment. She doesn’t need a deterrent against doing future murders, she just needs help. The injustice done to her and Caleb was not only the act of separating them, it was the act of punishing her at all."

🧵

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: a news ticker that says "the federation is on trial! nus braka hosts the trial of the century aboard the athena, a gaudy treasure of the pompous federation." Nus Braka is being held by a space cop as he leers at Anisha Mir and Nahla Ake. Text says, "I am still on my Restorative Justice/Prison Abolition bs, and the season finale of Starfleet Academy is the perfect vehicle for me to talk about it through."

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Nahla Ake at a podium and Nus Braka out of focus. Text says "This episode is allllllll about justice. The Federation is put on trial by proxy on behalf of all the worlds they haven’t saved, using Nus Braka as victim and prosecutor, Anisha Mir as victim and judge, and Nahla Ake as defendant and defense attorney. Nus says the Federation let his family starve, then bombed them in retaliation when they tried to shoot down a supply ship."

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Anisha Mir making an impassioned speech. Text says "Anisha was separated from her 6 year old child and sent to prison for participating in a theft that led to a murder. We already know that Nahla considered that to be unjust and that she has been trying to rectify it for years. She takes accountability, and she already made the Federation change their policies, but Anisha is way, WAY too traumatized to forgive her (or by extension, the Federation), and proclaims them all guilty."

a warp-speed-esque blue background with streaking stars, and screenshots from Starfleet Academy: Nahla Ake looking pensive and sad. text says "However, twist! We learn that nothing about Nus’s story checks out. He believed what he was told as a child, but that story wasn’t true. The Federation didn’t “let them starve,” they were doing quadrant-wide triage. And they never bombed civilians—Nus’s dad accidentally lit the atmosphere on fire with his homemade missile. All the leaders from the other worlds leave the Zoom trial. The Federation shows up and arrests Nus, but not Anisha, she’s been pardoned. A happy ending?"

SPOILERS for SFA season one!!!

I say I’m “still on” my bs but really I’m never off it.

Essay & graphics by Lark, made entirely with my own brain and hands. 🧵
#starfleetacademy #startrek

Memes? In the mail? Heck yes! (Zine info) | Hashtag Ruthless Productions Get more from Hashtag Ruthless Productions on Patreon

And we asked Elise if tracking that would be a nightmare, and they said it wouldn’t be. So here we are!

The zine is available to all paid patrons, regardless of tier! Get all the deets here: www.patreon.com/posts/148297... /end

And since we’d recently put out those punk guides and folks were excited to have those as physical zines, that was fresh on our minds. And one of us jokingly was like, we should send memes in the mail. And then both of us were like… wait, what if we sent memes in the mail? 🧵

(It’s called The Gayly Planet because it’s a newspaper pun, but it won’t just be Star Trek stuff!) 

Why are we doing this? Basically, we were talking about how sad and stressful the internet is, and how it seems like maybe social media is dying, and how we miss making silly stuff 🧵

As promised in our birthday episode, here are all the deets on our new zine 💌

We’re introducing our silliest project yet: The Gayly Planet print edition! 

What is it? A physical zine full of memes, fan fiction, and other silly stuff, sent to your mailbox four times a year. 
🧵

[Cover of our first zine: a rainbow ringed planet patterned with newspaper print with text "the gayly planet zine, issue #1 February 2026" and the geordi yes/no meme with no being "make memes for instagram that you'll never see" and yes being "make memes to send you in the mail." All images have the grainy look of a newspaper]

Memes? In the mail? Heck yes!

(the irony of posting this on socials is not lost on us!) 🧵

This is the most flattering reason to not be on your "top pods" roundup 💜💜💜

Some other stuff Clear your past Google data! Go to myactivity.google.com, go through each option and turn off and delete all history. Use a VPN! Remember to turn if off and on again from time to time—if you stay connected to the same one all the time it becomes less secure. Don’t use Google or Facebook to login to stuff! Just use a password! They just want to know what you’re up to, and it’s none of their business. Don’t download that app! They want you to use the app because it gives them more of your personal information. Don’t do it. Use your web browser, and, if they’ve made it (intentionally) unusable on mobile, get out your computer like a weirdo (it’s me, I’m the weirdo. I wrote this post on my computer).

stay tuned for hashtag ruthless presents: anticapitalist punk guide to using your money ethically in a capitalist hellscape.

Your life is yours, don’t give it away to corporations who are actively using it for evil. /end

Lock down your phone privacy! (iPhone version) -Disable Siri + Apple Intelligence! This is the biggest, most important step. (If you have a Mac computer, this applies there too!) -Check your Location settings. Turn all location settings to “off”. The ONLY apps that should have access are maps, and that should be set to “while using.” -Disable analytics and improvements -Disable “Significant Locations” and delete old data! -Disable App Tracking -Disable Personalized Ads -Disable Health tracking -Turn off biometrics!! Face ID and fingerprint can both be used to force you to unlock your phone. Make sure your password is long and strong!

Lock down your phone privacy! (Android version) All androids -Revoke app access to location/mic/camera/everything. Head to Permission manager and check each app. -Disable ad tracking -Turn off biometrics!! Face ID and fingerprint can both be used to force you to unlock your phone. Make sure your password is long and strong! Pixel -Disable Gemini -Disable AI Mode -Disable Circle to search -Disable Gemini in messages -Disable Magic Cue Galaxy -Disable Galaxy AI (12 separate features to be disabled independently)

More phone privacy settings Limit access to all apps. -In your privacy settings, go through each item and limit the apps that have access. Photos should either be “None” or “Limited Access.” Especially for social sites! Camera & Mic should be OFF for everything unless absolutely necessary. Contacts should be OFF for everything unless absolutely necessary. Motion and Fitness tracking should be OFF

Some other stuff Get rid of those cameras!!! Your Ring/Nest/Home doorbell is literally Big Brother. You’ve gotta get rid of it. techcrunch.com/2025/10/16/amazons-ring-to-partner-with-flock-a-network-of-ai-cameras-used-by-ice-feds-and-police/ Get rid of Alexa/Google Home! Seriously, do we need to get into why having a device that is mining every piece of information about you and tracking your every move is a bad idea? Switch to Signal! This is less urgent if you’re using Messages with your AI turned off, but if you use ig chat or fb messenger, it’s way past time to make the switch.

It’s about refusing to fund companies that are funding atrocities. (Remember: your data is a form of currency!) It’s about the fact that even your grocery list is NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS. The memes you send your bestie are NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS. 🧵

Hashtag Ruthless presents: anticapitalist punk guide to the internet. keep it secret, keep it safe.

GET. OFF. GOOGLE. Email—Proton is your bestie! It’s easy to migrate all 100,000 of your emails over to your new Proton account. Then delete your gmail inbox, set up auto-forwarding and an auto-reply alerting folks to your new email address. Keep that up for a year, then delete the account. (Also, disable “smart features” before you head out.) Drive/Docs—Proton again! It’s very easy to migrate your entire library>> proton.me/support/import-files-google-drive If you can’t give up gmail, at least turn off “smart features!” By turning this off you disable their inbox data mining.

GET. OFF. GOOGLE. Browser—Vivaldi is the only anti-LLM browser out there, so that’s our recommendation. It’s a little slow, but worth it for this: vivaldi.com/blog/technology/vivaldi-wont-allow-a-machine-to-lie-to-you/ However, Tor, LibreWolf, Aloha, and DuckDuckGo are all options as well. Sadly, Firefox is not an alternative anymore: zdnet.com/article/the-firefox-i-loved-is-gone-how-to-protect-your-privacy-on-it-now/ Search engine—DuckDuckGo is the best option we know of, because it’s private and you can turn off “AI” (LLM) features and hide “AI” (LLM) generated image searches.

Say no to “AI” (LLMs) Every use of an LLM is an act of theft, an environmental blight, and a privacy violation. There’s no reason and no excuse to use it. And hey, when your doctor/vet/etc asks if they can use their new thing that records your session, the answer is “absolutely not!” (Our only qualms with Proton and DuckDuckGo are their LLM integrations. We yearn for more privacy-focused companies to have a moral backbone and refuse to implement LLM features!)

This is the “the glove compartment’s locked, so’s the trunk in the back, and I know my rights so you gon’ need a warrant for that” guide to internet use—it’s not about whether you have something to hide, it’s about saying no to unethical practices. 🧵

cover of FABULOUS BODIES by chuck tingle it is greenish blue background with large pink text in the middle there are heart shaped sunglasses with pool reflection and at the bottom it says 'never meet your heroes'

its the FABULOUS BODIES cover reveal, my latest horror journey arriving next summer. buckaroos are calling it DRIVE MEETS BEETLEJUICE (but COLLATERAL in palm springs with an undead queer icon also works). PREORDER NOW BUCKAROOS LETS TROT us.macmillan.com/books/978125...

We always have the best time talking with our friend and official Data correspondent @chucktingle.bsky.social

Find The Gayly Planet on the pod player of your choice for our full hour long discussion of The Measure of a Man!

So happy these sweet babies are making people happy!

See a podcast, share a podcast.
Share this post with the podcasts you love!

🎙Here are mine:
EsGAYpe From Reality:
@hashtagruthless.bsky.social

Tales from the Stinky Dragon:
@stinkydragonpod.bsky.social

Good Morning From Hell:
@morningfromhell.bsky.social

A bit Fruity:
@mattxiv.bsky.social

love cannot be stopped it is the inertia of existence itself

Superman in his iconic flying toward the camera pose, one arm stretched forward and the other full of photoshopped potted cactuses. Text says "omw to sort out the American government"

He's gonna need a lot of cactuses.

Our Superman bonus ep was a delight to record, don't miss it!

blank nightfire image for FABULOUS BODIES that says 'cover to be revealed' and has nightfire publishing colophon. it is set against pool water

pool water background with book summary that reads: From Chuck Tingle, USA Today bestselling author of Bury Your Gays, comes Fabulous Bodies, a supernatural joyride where Drive meets Beetlejuice. Fashion influencer by day and grave-robber by night, Poppy Stringer is on call when Eddie Michaels—a flamboyant, piano-slamming rockstar and queer icon—unexpectedly dies. All Poppy has to do is retrieve Eddie’s body from the medical examiner’s office, but what starts as a routine delivery quickly goes off course when Eddie wakes up. Poppy must fight for her life in a blood-soaked night of carnage and fabulous entertainment all across Palm Springs.

my new horror novel FABULOUS BODIES is out next summer. PREORDER NOW to give your future self a little treat AND support art you enjoy. preorders are SO important and all it takes is a few clicks. EXCITED FOR OUR NIGHT OF CARNAGE IN PALM SPRINGS. LETS TROT BUCKAROOS us.macmillan.com/books/978125...

image of the cover of Lucky Day by Chuck Tingle with text above/below that says “existential horror but make it hopepunk. Listen now on the gayly planet”

Our interview with @chucktingle.bsky.social AND our review of Lucky Day are available now for your listening pleasure!

Just head to The Gayly Planet feed in the podcatcher of your choice to listen.

-the interview is half spoiler-free, but the review is fully spoiled-

There are so many other amazing books and shows and movies about magic schools, magic worlds, magic orphans, fighting the system, taking down corruption. Read them. Watch them. Make new fandoms. Make new friends.

The fandom tried and failed to fire her. It’s time to salt the earth. 7/7

The idea of ethical engagement via fan content is just no longer relevant, because any and all HP references make trans people feel unwelcome, and honestly just… gross? I personally have blocked all HP related hashtags because I don’t want to see anything about it—not even queer fan art. 6/7

We went from being two people for whom HP was a foundational part of our lives, in many ways the thing that brought us together as friends. We moved on because it was right. So you will find absolutely no sympathy from us if your argument is that the series is too important to give up. Move. On. 5/7

Two years ago we went from making a successful HP podcast to struggling to rebuild in a now extremely oversaturated podcast environment. We did it because it was right. So you will find absolutely no sympathy from us if your argument is that your work is tied to this series. Move. On. 4/7

People are still sharing our very old and outdated ig guide to firing JKR, and with every share we become increasingly uncomfortable. Because the reality is, there is NO WAY to ethically engage with the fandom, and we are not okay with anyone sharing anything that implies that we think there is. 3/7

there is no way to ethically put money in jkr's pocket. screenshot of a tweet asking "how do you sleep at night knowing you've lost a whole audience from buying your books?" and JKR responding "i read my most recent royalty cheques and find the pain goes away pretty quickly."

where does her money come from? -universal studios licensing, plus food and merch sales from WW. -the new TV show--do not watch it. -book sales, movie sales and rentals, streaming service rights for HP, robert galbraith, ichabog, etc. -official merch sales. -cursed child ticket sales. -video games. -anything else officially associated with an IP she owns.

what can I read instead? -the sunbearer duology by aiden thomas. -the supernatural investigations series by BB alston. -the legendborn series by tracy deonn. -the scholomance trilogy by naomi novik. -the earthsea cycle by ursula k. le guin. -anything by rick riordan. -the hunger games by suzanne collins. add more recs in the comments!

more in the caption and at hashtagruthless.com/resource-guide. comment policy: our comments are moderated. we delete anything we don't like because we have no obligation to be a forum for your arguments. don't waste your time--go have a nice sandwich instead.

There is no way to ethically participate in the Harry Potter fandom 2/7

How to ethically engage with harry potter- spoiler: you can't.

there is no way to ethically participate in this fandom. screenshot of a news headline that reads "JK Rowling uses Harry Potter wealth to fund anti-transgender organization."

at this point any engagement with this fandom is inherently transphobic. this includes fan content, even if it's funny/critical/queer/whatever. for trans folks it comes across as unsafe, regardless of your intentions. fan content keeps HP culturally relevalt and drives more people to the original works. the fandom tried and failed to fire her. It's time to salt the earth.

how do I talk to my kids about this? "we can't read these books because the author is a very mean person who is using her money to hurt people." what do I do with all my HP stuff? "that's a very personal choice. maybe make a ceremony out of disposing of it. maybe repurpose it into something new. maybe put it in a box in the attic." is this really necessary? "unfortunately, it is. JKR is using the wealth and power we have given her to cause serious harm on a structural, political level."

There is no way to ethically participate in the Harry Potter fandom 1/7

I just finished reading the Sunbearer duology on Lark & Jessie’s recommendation and it was such an amazing read! So excited for the podcast discussion to continue!

A photo of a hardcover copy of the book “The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue” by Mackenzi Lee. Book is resting on a dog. Grey blanket, window to the outside, wall mounted TV, and credenza can be seen in the background. Book is being held in a white persons hand.

Now it’s time for YA romance that I picked up purely because @hashtagruthless.bsky.social mentioned it.
Didn’t even know if it was pirates, gay, history, or what before I got it home.

This description of our work is such a gift 😭💜