Culture Wars/Current Controversies

‘Reformed’ narcissist describes how she would manipulate people in a viral TikTok

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‘Reformed’ narcissist describes how she would manipulate people in a viral TikTok

Most of us know that while we colloquially throw around the word “narcissist” to label someone as arrogant or selfish, those who are actually diagnosed with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) are quite rare.

We also know that self-aware narcissists are even rarer. And yet, TikTok has become a booming platform for self-described narcissists to offer insights into how their minds work and even encourage others to seek therapy. This makes sense—you get the ego-boosting attention of likes and views while also developing more altruistic intentions. Win, win.

At the very least, it seems to be further proof that while NPD is a serious disorder that can leave a trail of hurt and abuse in its wake, no two people are alike, and we find more understanding in not lumping all narcissists together.

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Woman gives away 6,000 books for free as part of a campaign: ‘Reading shouldn’t be a privilege’

Sofia Akel, 28, often found herself lost in the books near the East London Library where she grew up. According to Sofia, this place “nurture my mind as a child.” Akel, a writer and cultural historian, realized that not everyone had easy access to books and that many could not afford them. So she created a non-profit company called Free Books Campaign – dedicated to getting books by authors of color to those who can not afford them. Launched in 2020, it has donated 6,000 books to people across the UK and Ireland. “Reading shouldn’t be a privilege,” she says. Anybody can request a book they like. According to BBC, the company is funded by donations and can purchase the book for you.

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Access to food is about gender, the consequences falling on women who often eat last and least in times of crisis.

You may be surprised to learn the following facts about the leading cause of death worldwide:

  1. It affects women far more than men
  2. It’s a completely preventable problem
  3. It’s hunger.

Nearly a year has passed since Russian forces arrived in Ukraine, sparking one of the largest military conflicts since the end of World War II. Civilian suffering is by far the greatest casualty of this war; the United Nations estimates that 17.6 million people in Ukraine will require humanitarian assistance in the coming months.

Over half are women and girls.

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Kids’ YouTuber Ms. Rachel returns from social media break with wonderful thoughts on boundaries

Rachel Griffin Accurso, known as Ms. Rachel to her 3.16 million YouTube subscribers, didn’t intend to become a sensation with young children and their parents. But when she realized there weren’t any developmentally appropriate shows for her son, she put her teaching degree to work and made one herself.

After just 4 years in production, her show, “Songs for Littles,” has over 1.8 billion views on YouTube.

Accurso is intentional with all of her videos, doing close-ups of her mouth when introducing new words and pausing to “hear” responses from her viewers after asking a question. She stresses that everything she teaches and models on the show is backed by research.

Given what Ms. Rachel does for the smallest among us, who could have a problem with her show? Some parents became angry that Ms. Rachel featured Jules Hoffman, who uses they/them pronouns, on her show. A TikTok user who describes herself as a “traditional mom” called out Ms. Rachel for being “political,” and the video received over 300,000 views.

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Chatty animals get ‘interviewed’ with a teeny tiny microphone, and boy is it entertaining

Ever wonder what an ideal date for a lemur would be? Or a lizard’s favorite Disney princess?

Thanks to one YouTube poster with a passion for animals and an endearing sense of humor, all questions shall be answered. Well, maybe not all questions. But at the very least, you’ll have eight minutes of insanely cute footage.

In a series titled “Tiny Mic Interviews,” Maya Higa approaches little beasties with a microphone so small she has to hold it with just her thumb and forefinger. And yes, 99% of the animals try to eat it.

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