@w_guppy an overbearing and barbarous people. that whole latitude is afflicted, really. northeastern united states, italy, southern balkans, turkey. could probably wipe it at a net positive to other latitudes.
Always been intrigued by the Japanese comfort around insects - the way they can often be quite casually insouciant around them, even treat them almost like pets sometimes. Doesn’t seem to trigger the disgust reflex like it does in other countries. There is of course the famous example of Satoshi Tajiri creating ‘Pokémon’ downstream of his obsession with bug collecting, but (apparently) insect admiration goes back centuries in Japan - you can find bug-appreciating literature like the "The Lady who Loved Insects" (虫めづる姫君, Mushi-mezuru Himegimi) dating to the Heian period
@cruelsardaukar point about baltic-german nobles supplementing “russian” ones is kind of irrelevant when they had been assimilating for the whole 18th century and remained in service until nicholas ii. the baltic-germans WERE russia, especially as an empire.
Golden Monkey City Military Decorations👇
—Order of the Slurped Worm
—Knight of the Thrice-Twigg'd Cross
—Proctor of the Swollen Mudbank
—Longarm of the Sun-Gilt Gibbon
—Binder of the Shattered Peel
—Folder of the Shining Leaf
—The Mailed Glove of Kong