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phoenixyfriend · 19 days ago

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Trade Deficit/Surplus and Their Relationship to Tariffs

Hey, let’s talk about trade imbalances and why they’re not an optimal way to dictate tariffs. A few people showed interest when I asked if I should talk about it, so I've written up about [checks] 3.2k about it.

(If you want to support me in writing these up and living my best life, you can prompt me for more on ko-fi. I'm trying to move out of my parents' house.)

Previously, I explained comparative advantages and why they can be a crucial indicator for what fields are a reasonable target for import/export taxes. Let’s have a quick recap:

A comparative advantage is when two countries are both capable of an industry, but one is much better at it. Ideally, the two countries have different specialties, and can complement each other. The classic example is England, specializing in wool, and Portugal, specializing in wine. Both countries could and did engage in both industries, but they put greater amounts of resources into their specialties and then traded. If Portugal did one quarter resources on wool (to maintain a domestic industry in case of a breakdown of trade relations or natural disaster) and three quarters resources on wine, they could trade part of that wine to England for the wool, and both countries would end up with more of the product due to specialization. England has better conditions for rearing sheep, and Portugal has better weather for growing grapes.

That is comparative advantage. If two countries are largely self-sufficient, and they have one industry respectively that stands out as exceptionally efficient each, then you see a trade balance: equal amounts of wine and wool exchanged, as measured by monetary value.

An imbalance occurs when one country sells drastically more of their product than the other. Say Portugal has a bad harvest, and makes less wine than usual. They then sell less to England, but may buy the same amount of wool as usual, dipping into savings or making their money elsewhere in order to buy. In that year, England is experiencing a trade surplus, and Portugal is experiencing a trade deficit.

Four things to cover:

The nature of an enduring imbalance in a stable economic system

Artificially enforced imbalances

Indirect profits

Excluded industries

What can cause an enduring imbalance?

Let us say that we have a closed economy of three countries.

Country A has good weather and soil, and so they specialize in agriculture and are a bread basket for the region. They are self-sufficient in terms of raw minerals or metals, but have little in the way of energy resources.

Country B has a large amount of energy; they have large deposits of gas and oil, and have built out infrastructure to capture energy from offshore wind farms and hydro as well. Their farmland is decent enough to support their population, but they have little in the way of metals and minerals to build those oil drills and windmills.

Country C has a strong mining industry, and is rich in mineral resources and key metals like iron and copper. They are self-sufficient in terms of energy, but their farmland is poor and they cannot easily feed their people.

To recap:

Country A: sells food, buys energy. Little trade in mining.

Country B: sells energy, buys metals and minerals. Little trade in agriculture.

Country C: sells metals and minerals, buys food. Little trade in energy.

You can probably see where this is going: Country A sells a lot of food to Country C, but doesn’t buy metals and minerals from them, so A has a trade surplus with C. Meanwhile, they buy a lot of energy from B, which doesn’t need their food, so there they have a trade deficit there.

Country A:

Buys energy from B: deficit

Sells food to C: surplus

Country B:

Buys metals and minerals from C: deficit

Sells energy to A: surplus

Country C:

Buys food from A: deficit

Sells metals and minerals to B: surplus

As you can see, any bilateral trade relationship in this closed system is heavily imbalanced. However, when taking the full scope of the system into account, it’s balanced, because all three are feeding into each other. They cover each others’ weaknesses, and so the trade is stable.

Introducing tariffs would disrupt that balance. If A starts to tariff energy from B, because they see it as a threat to their own minimal domestic industry, then they disincentivize purchasing energy. In turn, B’s profits fall, which means they have less money to buy metals and minerals from C, which means they have fewer resources to build wind farms and oil rigs, which means they have less energy to sell in the first place. This then also impacts C, which now isn’t making as much money from selling their mining products, which means they can’t buy as much food from A, and that means… the perceived deficit, which was stable, may have been shrunk, but so has the efficiency of the entire circle.

In a global economy, there is always a good chance that the ‘deficit’ is just part of a larger balance. India buys energy from Russia, which buys food from China, which buys tropical foods from Thailand, which buys machinery from Germany, which buys electronics from Japan, which buys minerals from Australia, which buys pharmaceuticals from… India.

This is very simplified, but you see what I’m getting at with the complexity of the web of international trade. One perceived deficit does not a holistic view make.

(This is especially true of imports that are near impossible domestically. We literally can’t grow coffee in the United States outside of Hawaii and a few island territories like Puerto Rico or American Samoa. There small attempts in California and Florida, but it’s not commercially viable. Most of them cannot grow enough to export to the rest of the US, especially when factoring in other high-demand foods that require these climates, such as oranges and bananas. While there are places in the US that can grow these tropical foods, those places are so limited that we just can’t grow enough of each and every one to meet demand, so those places specialize in the foods they can grow most effectively, which is how you end up with the majority of Florida’s exports, at least in terms of cash value, being citrus, peppers, and tomatoes.)

There are valid reasons for tariffs to be implemented as protectionist measures, even when specialization seems to dictate otherwise, and I covered that in my other post. However, the above is meant to illustrate that the simplified view of trade deficits as the only dictator of tariff policy is a very poorly thought-out exercise.

Let’s look at a case study of recently-implemented tariff policies: Lesotho.

Lesotho is a small country surrounded entirely by South Africa; it’s the largest sovereign enclave in the world (the others are San Marino and Vatican City). Lesotho is a fairly poor country. They cannot afford to import much from the United States, simply due to the low GDP per capita.

For reference, the US GDP per capita is over $86k.

South Africa, Lesotho’s nearest neighbor, has a GDP per capita of about $16k, adjusted for PPP.

Lesotho’s GDP per capita, adjusted for PPP, is about $3.2k. (These numbers were pulled from Wikipedia, current as of 2023-2025.)

The people of Lesotho, by and large, cannot buy goods from the United States.

Meanwhile, they have two major lines of export. One is garment manufacturing; much like China and Southeast Asia, the low wages ensure that garment costs are kept minimal, which the people of the US find palatable. These wages to the local population are low enough that they cannot in turn buy from the US. The other export is diamonds, an industry that heavily favors the upper classes when it comes to profits, again relying on comparably low local wages that have been the subject of union actions as recently as 2020.

This article from 2017 stated that garment workers earned about $96 per month; that number has doubtlessly changed in some way since then, but it’s definitely still in the ballpark of ‘skilled workers in Lesotho make in a month what minimum-wage Americans make in two or three days.’ This study from 2022 talks about the lack of general impact of the mining industry on the population of Lesotho, addressing the employment opportunities, impact on local resources like water and air quality, and how money is or isn’t cycled back into the community.

Because of the above, Lesotho has a notable trade imbalance with the US. From the US, this is a trade deficit. The US has a very diminished capacity for garment production due to outsourcing to cheaper pastures, and only one active diamond mine, which is used for tourism rather than commercial mining. We can’t make what they do, and they can’t afford what we do.

The trade imbalance with Lesotho is 120-130 billion USD, depending on the year. They export a lot to the US, and buy very little, and I’ve hopefully illustrated why.

The tariffs laid against Lesotho, a country that cannot realistically buy much from the US due to the general poverty, were set at 50% on Trump’s so-called liberation day.

So what would that accomplish, realistically?

Artificially Enforced Trade Imbalances

We now take a look at trade imbalances that are the results of manufactured pressures rather than natural ones.

With the earlier model, I covered three countries with complementary industries and a desire to cooperate in favor of overall better outcomes. That model assumes good faith.

The real world has Walmart. Also Amazon, Apple, SHEIN, TEMU, H&M, Zara, Target, and more.

Also, a history of colonialism.

…we need to go back a bit, for this one.

For several centuries, European powers had control over large portions of the Global South and East, for a variety of reasons that mostly involved spreading diseases and having guns. The East India Companies (Dutch and English) were major factors in this.

Let’s zoom in on England and India. England had partial or full control of India from 1757 to 1947. This was achieved through superior weaponry, a navy (controlled by the East India Company) that could blockade ports, and a generally higher willingness to commit crimes against locals. Due to English control over many aspects of trade and access to resources, the economy was aggressively molded to be in greater favor of the British. This includes deindustrialization, taxes that favored British imports over domestic products, and enforced trade barriers to other nations. A particularly notable example is the cotton trade; raw cotton would be shipped to the UK with no tariff, spun into threads and woven into fabric, and then sold back to India at a high tax rate. This meant that India was pressured into sending away a central pillar of their economy, and then sold that same product back at a massively inflated cost that they had to pay, because they no longer had the resources to do it domestically. This led to a widespread reduction in the infrastructure to make fabric as they had once been known for, along with a massive transfer of wealth from India to the UK, much of it under the oversight of the British East India Company.

This had a lasting impact on India, one that they’ve been working to recover from since before gaining independence. This is true of many countries that were colonized and exploited by the West, which includes most of Latin America, Africa, South Asia, and South-East Asia. Some of East Asia can be read broadly as having recovered, but few economies managed that kind of economic bounce-back, and few did so quickly.

These days, there is no British East India Company, as it was dissolved in the 1870s. Instead, we have companies like Walmart and Amazon. Their tactics involve a few less guns, but there is still a massive impact on things like local wages.

(The guns do still make an appearance; ever heard of union-busting?)

Due to the size of the American economy, military, and political influence, smaller economies with less power are pressured to submit to Western whims. America, in particular, gained a lot of international power with WWII, setting up bases all over the world, as well as experiencing a massive economic boom. The two factors combined resulted in an economy that could buy in bulk for sales at department stores, even setting up individual factories of their own in these countries that were, in many cases, only just achieving independence from their Western colonists. They were still in the agricultural period of economic growth, often due to forced de-industrialization like in India, and the manufacturing business was created by foreign investment, or by a government inviting such from foreigners.

Newly independent, struggling economies, searching for a way to strengthen their positions and banks. Factories, and a wealthy overseas client that wants all the goods you can make.

They will pay you pennies for it. Those are pennies you don’t have, and maybe you have a debt to pay off. Maybe the government incurred debts building those factories, and people have to work to pay that off, but once it’s paid, you’ll get the money for real!

(You know those $200k student loans you spend forever working off? Imagine that, but it's your regional government owing money to a foreign company.)

Or maybe they pay you decently, for now.

So, countries with decimated industries agree to work for these companies. They get into factories, sit down, and start sewing. They agree to do petroleum refinement because the US doesn’t want to stink up its own air anymore, could you do it instead, pretty please? They mine, or cut lumber, or destroy their own rivers making that pretty ‘vegan’ leather.

And your local economy is reliant on Walmart now, or Amazon, or Apple. Ninety percent of the town works for them, after all!

But inflation is a thing, so you ask for a raise.

And the factory says no.

In fact, they cut your wages. You’re making too much, they say. The shops in America want it cheaper, they claim. Too bad, so sad. If you don’t like it, go work somewhere else.

But the factory employs 90% of the town.

So because America wants cheap goods, there is a trade deficit: buy whatever you want from China, or Bangladesh, or Vietnam. They can’t afford to buy anything back, but that doesn’t matter, does it?

Oh hey, we are sending them so much money by buying all their stuff! That’s not fair, is it? They’re taking advantage of the United States by not buying any of our products. Let’s tariff them.

Western companies placed interminable barriers on these economies, and now the US government wants to punish the victims of those barriers. And that’s frustrating for many reasons, but a big one is this:

Indirect Profits

A lot of the ‘imports’ that the US gets are actually bringing a net profit.

Let’s say Apple set up a factory in China ten or twenty years ago. They are pretty entrenched as part of the economy, and it also took a long time to establish. There is nothing in the US that can replace it in a realistic timeframe.

Let’s say that iPhone takes $400 to build in China. $150 for parts, $250 for labor and overhead, and then toss on $5 for shipping, since that’s a cost that easy to scale. Bring that phone to the US or France or Singapore, sell it for $1000. That’s almost $600 in profit!

Something that is valued at $1000 gets tariffed at the $400, and then sales taxed at the $1000.

And that profit goes toooooooooooooooo Apple.

Back in the US. Except it’s actually Ireland. (They do this to avoid other taxes.)

(The Ireland situation is insane, by the way. They call it leprechaun economics. You can read about it, though this article is much more Accounting Terminology than most people looking to read.)

Now, I do need to clarify that the Trade Imbalance Numbers are still using that wholesale rate of $400, not $1000. So it doesn’t necessarily impact the trade numbers as massively as it could, but the end numbers are that the perceived value of the trade deficit isn’t the actual end value of the products being imported.

And the thing is, that profit still gets back to the US (technically Ireland), even when that phone goes to Germany or Nicaragua or Burundi or wherever else. The American company still gets the money, which then gets spent on physical imports like mangoes and cobalt.

The US takes advantage of China in this regard, because so much of that profit is pocketed by the parent company, in the US (technically Ireland), rather than the employees themselves. The given reason for this is that the Americans are bringing the product development and coding and marketing to the table.

Phone made in China, sold to Germany. Trade imbalance reflects the relationship between China and Germany, but the profits go to the United States: the US is making money that isn't reflected in trade deficits.

And that brings us to our last point:

Excluded Industries

Did you know that the trade deficit only counts physical goods?

These numbers do not include IP or service trades.

That art your friend in the UK commissioned you to draw does not factor in. The South Korean showings of the latest Marvel movie do not factor in. That Adobe Photoshop that someone downloaded in Brazil does not factor in. That Netflix subscription in Italy doesn’t factor in. That financial analyst getting paid by a US company to report on the Nikkei index in real time, from Japan, does not factor in. That head of operations that the US company is paying to run product distribution in Dubai does not factor in. That C drama you streamed in Colorado doesn’t count. That eBook you bought from a writer in Darfur doesn’t count. That app you bought from a company in Peru doesn’t count.

None of it counts.

None of this is included in the calculations. Even the WSJ is annoyed (that article is paywalled but I like their chart at the top, and that part is free to see).

Now, the services surplus isn’t enough to compensate for the trades surplus, but it doesn’t have to be. Remember: if you make something in Vietnam, and sell it in Spain, but the money still comes back to the US… that doesn’t count towards either side of the trade balance.

But it does raise the GDP.

(Unless you send the money to Ireland, maybe.)

Trade deficits are a genuinely bad thing to base your tariff policy on, in the sense that it cannot be the only factor. It can factor in—doing so with China in particular makes sense given shifts in the global market since the early 2000s, especially with regards to de minimus exemption—but it can’t be your sole deciding factor.

This is especially true when the government both isn’t doing it for the reason they claim (likely), or doesn’t understand what tariffs and trade deficits really do (Trump, at least, has been talking about this since the 1980s, so I’m pretty sure he actually believes in this, and thus doesn’t know the actual ramifications).

Conclusion

Sometimes you need to understand how comparative advantage and trade webs work before you take someone’s word for the nature of deficits. Tariffs play a role in the balance of trade and protection of domestic industry, but trade imbalances cannot be your only factor in deciding on tariffs, nor can tariffs be your only tool in reindustrialization.

Anyway. Prompt me for more on ko-fi or something. Help me move out of my parents' house.

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coastalsteelstructures · 2 years ago

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Filtering Non-serious Prospects: Addressing Quote Request Overload in Steel Construction

Businesses that manufacture or construct steel buildings daily are fielding inquiries about pricing, customization, and construction timeframes. Steel buildings have numerous uses, whether for an indoor horse riding arena or covered riding arena, an industrial manufacturing warehouse, farming, agricultural buildings, or even aircraft hangars.

Know More: https://coastalsteelstructures.com/filtering-non-serious-prospects-addressing-quote-request-overload-in-steel-construction/

#covered riding arena #Steel Aircraft Hangars #Agriculture Metal Buildings #hangar kit #Agricultural Steel Buildings

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arc-hus · 5 months ago

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Double Roof House, Taiwan - Studio Tngtetshiu

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typewritingyip · 29 days ago

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The Arcturus Missions

Part Thirty Nine - Dazed

Part Thirty Eight

———

It is estimated that the Second World War’s financial cost for the world was at least a billion dollars in roughly present day dollars, though there is no specific statistical data. There were however other estimates.

Between twenty and forty percent of dwellings, agricultural property, and general structures in Europe were destroyed. Leaving another unknown cost for repairs and rebuilding.

Then the standing death toll.

Wars came after, with their different costs and horrors.

Korea cost another estimated 687 billion with direct, indirect, and mixed costs in todays dollars.

Vietnam cost roughly 828 billion just on the United States military with another estimated 111 billion in other ventures.

Both wars created endless destruction of rural and suburban areas, leaving an unknown cost for structure and infrastructure.

For all war it is near impossible if not entirely impossible to estimate the total loss, both financial and physical loss. There is never a perfect number to point out and say that is how much it cost to create weapons of destruction, then use them. An imperfect number of casualties. Estimates.

It is estimated that the cost of the war against the Quintesson costs three times the combined cost of the last three major conflicts.

—

The paint on his hands had come away from digging. Shifting rubble and clawing at the remains of what had been their bar.

It was strange how quickly the place had become theirs, how they made reference to it, but it played music from home from a far simpler time. That made it theirs. It was likely the bartender was somewhere under this mess too and that tore at his heart while the paint came away across chunks of metal and concrete.

Pausing, he breathed heavily, looking up at the twins who were still digging as well. Bits of red and yellow paint being flung from the hole each time they could get a hold of a piece of scrap. Watching for a moment, Hound turns back and goes back to digging.

No pings were going through the remains of the structure, all the boosters were destroyed and made it impossible to get a signal through it. Some buildings nearby were designed specifically for that, but most weren’t. His hands ached with each pull of metal, he winced for a second when a sharp piece gouged his hand.

Stopping, Hound stares at his hand for a moment before slightly slowly. His hands were shaking again, but he looked back at the hole, there was some metal that wasn’t the same tone or shape as the rest but still grey, “Wait!” The twins stopped, both heaving.

It shifted slightly and the three of them shared a look before going back to digging, scooping aside what they could as quickly as they could.

—

This was not the first time he had been trapped under a collapsed building with Megatron pinning him to the surface, it was however the first time it had happened with Megatron trying to protect him and not kill him. So there is a sense of character growth in that he supposed.

The last time had been on an organic planet with overly large fauna that they hadn’t been able to understand, but they had rudimentary construction. Energon had been prevalent on the planet, surprisingly, and it had brought both starving forces together.

When Megatron had slammed him into the building, there had been only a slight hope that it wouldn’t fall on them. That hope had not lasted long. Heavy stones and poles of metal had them pinned for cycles, spending most of it bickering at each other, as Ironhide would say ‘like the old married couple you would become.’ He still did not find that funny.

It always brought a laugh out of Megatron though.

If he wasn’t still so mad, he’d be very happy to hear his protectors laugh.

Over the last seven months, Optimus had chosen work over repairing his relationships but so had Megatron, focused on protecting New Kaon. The Quintessons had been consistently attacking their nearby settlements and protected planets. His best commanders were spread out among the stars and it tore at his spark. This war was reminding everyone of why they worked so hard and long for peace, a thousand years of peace negotiations had only led them to a vorn or so to enjoy it before the attacks started again.

Now he was under a collapsed building with people who were so willing to risk their lives for his own, their selflessness in the face of the unknown bewildered him. He saw how it left his own kin stunned, no one wanted to fight the Quintessons of course but these humans, their pilots, understood that the end of their species was likely if they didn’t finish the fight quickly.

Just because he didn’t agree with their methods doesn’t mean he couldn’t understand the misplaced judgement calls. Leaders, when faced with desperate circumstances, would make drastic and dire measures. He knew he had during the last war and was trying desperately to not have to this time. Then again, there were five pilots who were taking those orders without having to give them.

Optimus wasn’t sure if he felt grateful or guilty about knowing that, sometimes it was one or the other, and other times it was both. Back when it had just been Jazz, it was more grateful than he’d like to admit. Now that it’s five pilots it was more often than not guilt that ate him alive.

He knew Megatron and him felt similarly on the subject, but Megatron was already ready to wage war against a people he knew so few of. It was frustrating, even he wouldn't let his anger go and instead let it blind himself.

They hadn’t been as close as they had stood in that bar in more than a quartex. Also two of his timing was running right, but that hadn’t been the top of his priority list of late. His medic had been mostly off-world after all, not venting down his neck.

Anger had clearly gotten the better of both of them, he leaned his head back against the stone under him for a moment, he still deserved an apology. He’d return one once he had his, of course, but he wouldn’t give without one.

Some fights honestly would last forever, same with stubbornness.

Then he’d make sure they both apologized to the humans, clearly they weren’t understanding something about where they came from.

Venting slowly, his hand pinned to Megatron’s back with a metal beam across it, he onlined his optics again and tried not to panic. Tight spaces weren’t his friend and hadn’t been in eons, this was no exception. Clutching at the back kibble of Megatron’s platting, he tried to vent slowly.

Trying to remain calm.

While there was a building on top of him and his love, with Quintessons above Iacon, yeah he was calm. Completely comm with every ping bouncing back at himself except those to try and rouse Megatron, which was going nowhere.

Clutching at his back, Optimus vented slowly before starting to finally move.

—

The metal was grey and Hound’s heart was racing. They all had seen what a dying or dead frame looked like, it wasn’t a pretty picture. They’d seen human bodies in a million states, it was as if they could be numb to that now. This was different, watching the vibrant colors of their unit, their friends, drain and the subtle glow you didn’t notice till it faded from their chest just disappear was horrifying. Energon, the way it continued to almost glow after, made it worse.

In a way, he was thankful his suit wouldn’t lose all of its color upon his death but then again there was a peace to it. If any of them were still with the Cybertronian’s when they died, what would they think? It’s not like they get to see the spark fade like they do with their friends and family. His crew was human. When they died it would be a miracle if all the blood stayed in the cockpit instead of spilling out the seams.

He kept digging, the metal of his palms cracking and bending under the stress. Grey left behind instead of green.

Whoever was under this mess thought, was moving and Hound couldn’t help but think it was Megatron and kept digging. If it was Megatron, the Prime would be nearby, even if they were fighting like the old married couple they were. Everyone knew they’d thrown themselves in front of bullets for each other, it was almost sickening.

Mirage, the bartender, and maybe Optimus were still missing under this rubble somewhere.

Not hyperventilating was a good idea, that sounded like a good idea. Staying focused, he kept pulling chunks of concrete away, trying to be what rescue class is supposed to be.

He couldn’t stay solely focused on this or he’d lose his mind.

None of them had been trained in it, which now Hound found endlessly stupid because he was sure there was some training of how to rescue a trapped pilot from a collapsed building or something at least. It was something they could have been trained on easily, or literally anything a rescue did, it might have been useful in space.

But, they were sent to die, for whatever reason, they just happened to live.

Whoever they were digging out started to move again, using their almost free hand to shove at a sheet of metal, “Hold up.” Holding up a hand, Hound looks to the twins and watches his fingers shake while whoever was in the hole they were digging shifted the sheet of metal away from their face.

”Holy shit.” His heart stopped before racing again, moving forward quickly to go back to digging. Blue optics shone at him as Mirage tried to smile, most of the blue in his paint was gone, but it was clear to him now that he was seeing through Mirage more than anything else. Being able to tell he was there even when he was using his outlier.

Tearing at the ground, Hound went back to it with a fever, more desperate, “Hound, who's been found?” Mirage’s voice cracked and broke, there was energon leaking from the side of his mouth as he came into view again, “I, I don’t know. Just let me get you out.” Sunstreaker pressed a hand to Sideswipe’s chest, holding his brother back as Hound kept digging.

They would crush Mirage if they got in Hound’s way right now. All they had to do was share a look before getting out of Hound’s way, Sunstreaker more gawking then Sideswipes light smirk.

“Hound, is everyone okay?” Mirage tried to shove at more of the rubble while Hound kept digging, “I don’t know, just hold still.” His heart skipped with fear as Mirage sat up, wincing and holding his side, “Primus,” and he reached out to steady him, “Easy, Mirage, easy.” Moving to his knees, Hound held him up and looked to Sunny, “Go get Knockout, or a medic, someone.” Looking back to Mirage, he didn’t even bother to see if the twins left. Just going straight back to freeing him.

The hole was a horrible mix of green flaked paint, blue paint, and energon slowly seeping into the ground.

Mirage’s hands grasped his head, even as he dug his legs out, lines punctured and dripping slowly, his plating dented. Glancing up only briefly, Hound frowned and looks back down to keep moving the building off of Mirage, “Are you feeling okay?” Mirage’s grasp on his head tightened slightly, “I could have died.” Closing his eyes for a second, Hound sighed slowly, “I know, I’m sorry.” He tugs on Hound’s head and his hands slide over the rubble, falling into Mirage, “Damnit, I’m trying to get you out!”

Looking up, Hound freezes, Mirage was staring at him very intensely, “I could have died Hound, you’re the only one who saw this coming.” Slowly, carefully, Mirage leaned his forehead against Hound’s visor. His face burned, “Mirage, I’m going to get you out of this and you’ll be fine.” But he shook his head, fingers brushing against the back of Hound’s suit and causing him to shiver, “God.” Pulling away sharply, Hound goes back to trying to get his legs clear.

—

The twins were just getting out of the hole when Bluestreak came running over, taking Sunstreaker’s remaining arm, “We think we found Optimus.” He pulled sharply at Sunny’s arm and they went sliding over the metal and rubble.

Sideswipe stared after then, still numb from it all, but he was trying his hardest to not hyperventilate.

A ping startled him out of his stupor, blinking as the pings light up one of his screens, he reaches over and answers with a strangled voice, “Hello?” His voice broke, “What happened? Where are you?” He could almost cry, “Elita,” The anger in her voice almost shook him to his core.

”What happened, Sideswipe?” He sighed shakily, “The Quintessons blew up the bar, we were all inside, we don’t know where Joan or Megatron is. I, It fell on us.” He dragged a hand down his face, turning slowly, “We’re still in the rubble.” Her breath was audible over the comm, “Sideswipe, focus for me, okay?”

Humming a bit, he started walking over towards where Jazz, Prowl, Bluestreak, and Sunstreaker were pulling away chunks of metal, “Sideswipe?” Getting down on his knees, he started to help next to Sunny, “Yeah, I’m here. Just trying to get them out from under the building.” There was a moment of pause, “Sideswipe, are you alright?” His hands were shaking again, pulling at the metal and rubble, and he really couldn’t answer.

She was quiet for another moment, “Damnit,” and the line clicked dead.

He kept digging, trying to help as a blue hand attempted to shove aside metal and concrete, Prowl’s face turned down towards the hole and clearly listening intently to his comms. Shoving a beam aside, Sideswipe stared at the carnage for a moment.

Grey metal which was cracked and dented had covered the Prime, the grey metal of Megatron, his stomach turned and he had to sit back.

It was too much, too much like his apartment building, concrete and metal holding his family hostage, how it took his mom and then after ages took his dad. How his parents had made sure Sonny would be okay, not ensuring their own safety.

Sunstreaker’s hand landed on his shoulder and shook it, hard, “Simon, you there?” Looking over, he took a shaky breath, “I can’t breathe.” Nodding a bit, Sunny moved over and grasped his shoulders, “We’re not in Florida, this isn’t our apartment. You need to talk to Elita-One.” With a lightly shove, Sideswipe climbed away from where they were digging.

His comm only had to ping once before he was picking it up, “Sideswipe, we can’t get to you quickly so you need to focus.” Nodding slowly, he sits back down and straps his oxygen mask on after a moment of struggling, “You’re going to be okay, just breathe for a minute.” Dragging a hand down his face, he leans back against a metal chunk.

Breathing in slowly and out, Sideswipe looked anywhere but at the sky and tried not to look where his friends were digging each other out of the rubble, “Sunny is okay.” He couldn’t think to say anything else, “I know, I was on comms with him, I’m not asking about him I’m asking about you.” He sighed shakily, “Sunny is okay, that’s what matters. He’s digging out the Prime right now, I should help him.” He was shaking, “No, you should breathe. Take a moment.”

Tucking his head down to his knees, he tried to breathe, and then started to sob, “They took down our building! It was ours goddamnit!” With a flick, he turns off his external speakers, so he could focus on Elita.

Her voice came in clear, “I know, I’ve heard about this bar, I’m sorry. I know it was your closest connection to your home.” And he shook his head angrily, “They tried to bury us, they took our home and tried to bury us in it. I wasn’t even there.” There was a long pause, “Sideswipe, you’re there.” With a nearly growl he stands up and starts to pace.

”No, no mom, I wasn't there when you died. I was in the hospital with dad when we unplugged him, he couldn’t thrive, couldn’t even breathe on his own. God, I can’t breathe. But I wasn’t there, Sunny was there. Sunny is fine, he’s right there. Missing his arm but there.”

Elita didn’t know what to say, “Alright, you need to focus, pull yourself out of this. Your brother needs you right now,” He shakes his head, “No, he has Blue, no matter how much I hate him Blue right there.” And she could almost smile, “He needs you, told me that he needs you. This is too much like your home, but it’s not and you need to focus.” He took a shaky breath.

Letting it out slowly, he adjusted his helmet and checked over his monitors, “You’ve got a job to do Sideswipe, I’m relying on you to help the Prime and Lord High Protector,” She bit off the last bit, always distrusting Megatron, “I’m not there right now and you need to fill my position, same as Sunstreaker is filling Ironhide’s till he can get there. Can you do that?” Slowly, the shaking stopped.

With another breath, finally out of tunnel vision, he nods slowly, “Yes ma’am.” She sighed, “Alright, now. You’ve have to go back to that hole and dig out the prime, can you do that?” He shook his hands off, “Yeah.”

“Alright, I’m going to stay on comms with you, you keep me updated. Primus knows Optimus won’t.” He gulped before going back to the hole, “Yeah, yeah, I’ve got you.” He slid down and looked at his brother. Sunstreaker lightened his visor slightly and together, they went back to shifting the building off the leaders of Cybertron.

—

Hound had his arm around Mirage, helping him up and out as Knockout ran towards where the Prime and Protector had been found. For now, Mirage was stable, even if Hound wasn’t. His mind was racing and he was still trying not to hyperventilate or throw up. The shaking had yet to subside.

They stood together, Mirage looking at Hound’s battered suit, his hand falling right over the spot where his platting had been torn away by Knockout months ago. On instinct, “Does it hurt?” Hound shrugged lightly, “Not any more than normal, my ears are ringing though, my head hurts, back hurts, ass hurts. It doesn’t feel good to have the build dropped on you.” Mirage chuckled weakly, “No, no it does not.”

With a shaky breath, Hound looked over, “Are you hurting?” Mirage had a nasty gash across his face, but still smiled, “I’ll live, it’s not the first building dropped on me.” Hound blinks slowly, “What?” Mirage chuckled, wincing and holding his side, “It’s a long story, Dear-Spark.” If Hound was actually made of metal and wires, he would have probably short circuited, “What?” After a moment, Mirage rested his head on Hound’s shoulder.

Keeping his arm around Mirage, his mouth had gone dry, “Alright now, let’s go over and check on the Prime.” Humming, Mirage kept his hold on Hound as well, and they shuffled forward. It was slow going.

Hound couldn’t help but keep wracking his brain, maybe it had just been a poor translation, that was always possible. Yeah, poor translation. He tightened his hold on Mirage carefully. Mirage’s cheek shifts on his shoulder, his heart rate didn’t come down.

They came over a small section of mounded rubble, it was roughly where the bar top had been and came back down towards where the Prime and Protector had been found. Only one still unaccounted for was the bartender, either somewhere under this mess or long gone, it pulled at Hound’s heart to know they just didn’t have the time to look.

Distance gunfire was the only thing keeping him sane for the moment, knowing there were people in Iacon protecting the city.

Breakdown was sat down with Sideswipe, his arm over the younger mans shoulders, who still seemed to be dealing with shock or worse. Sunstreaker was standing with Bluestreak, who was holding his hand and had Sunny’s fallen arm tucked under his, even with his eye put out he was gazing at the significantly more grey, yellow pilot. Prowl and Jazz were standing together, Jazz keeping a hand on Prowl’s back and keeping his voice down while Prowl’s door-wing hung awkwardly still.

Honestly, it looked like a scene from a war movie, never in his life did he think that his life would be straight out of a movie scene. He’d been very determined to not think that in all the years he’d been a pilot, even when his suits’ likeness was used in a cheesy propaganda movie.

It left a lump in his throat, holding up Mirage. Taking a shaky breath, he needed to focus. But everyone was giving Optimus Prime space. It was hard to watch, as Optimus pulled himself up from the rubble, dragging an unconscious Megatron, the erie calm that was over his face even as Knockout moved in was one that felt all to familiar.

They all looked like hell. Missing paint, missing parts, missing confidence behind their eyes. They sure as hell weren’t ready for what came next, but they had to be.

With hardly a glance around, Optimus straightened, a brief flicker of pain hit his face as his battle mask slapped shut, “Whose well enough to fight?” Every hand went up, even if it was a lie, even if Sunstreaker had to lift both his and Blue’s hands up, none of them were going to let this stand as it was.

“Good. Prowl, do you have comms with command?” Shifting forward a bit, he nodded, “Yes sir.” Nodding slowly, Optimus, even with dented plating and missing paint, gave off a determined confidence that everyone else lacked, “Well then, Hound, what would you suggest we do?” The lump was still lodged in his throat, but he shifted slightly.

Letting out a slow breath, Hound nodded, “Well, I’ve got a plan and you ain’t going to like it.”

———

A/N

This chapter was like pulling teeth, I swear. Partially because I’m like, sorta sick. I don’t feel like 100% crap but I also don’t feel great. Go figure.

So, yeah, part 39 is crazy. 131k words is nuts. And I feel like I’m losing my mind a bit. This chapter is a bit of a short one for that reason, it was hard to write and just the bits that probably should have been a part of last chapter but it wasn’t finished. Sorry.

The action starts again next part with Arcturus 3 coming again soon.

TAGS

@lunarlei68 @whirlywhirlygig @loop-hole-319 @pixillandjester @alek-the-witch @not-a-moose-in-disguise @goddessofwind8water @neurologicalglitch @dersereblogger @pixel-transformers @mrcrayonofdoom @wireplaces @twilightfreefaller @original-blog-name-2 @devilangel657 @robbin-u @miniartistme @starwold @tea-enthusiasm @valeexpris606 @celticdoggo @bird599 @agentsquirrelsgotrobots @aquaioart @thatwandercat @artdagz @seisha974 @halenhusky309 @leethepiper @cat-cassette @sirassban @cosmique-oddity @garbageenthusiast @xervias @azulabutterfly @fryseem @spring-mc @echo-circuit @aghostsnail @wooblewooble @ask-glory-haddock-and-others @nonsscrapheap @magichats @iminahole247 @omgflyingderpywhale @thetrexartist @naaaafam @elegantmantaray @emichusai @waterlilykitty @diabolichare @ham4ponyo @osqindaxend @sunnyvibesanddoodles @ratatatata248 @ijustneedausernaneplease4444444 @sprook-children @fooolisher

And once again thank you to @Keferon for this AU!

#transformers #maccadam #tf mecha universe #tf mecha au #mecha pilot jazz au #mech pilot jazz au #the arcturus missions #Hound #breakdown #sunstreaker #sideswipe #mirage #knockout #bluestreak #elita one #optimus prime #megatron #jazz #prowl

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usmcr-c78 · 2 months ago

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Vedic Astrology Nakshatras

Pt.1

Characteristics Associated with

Aries 0° to Taurus 10°

Ashwini/ Bharani /Krittika

Nakshatras

CHECK big 3 Sun Moon or Rising (Sidereal/Vedic chart) for traits

Ashwini : Swift Mover, Horseman, or Horse Harnessers

Symbol: Horse’s head

Presiding Deity: Ashwinis (Health)

Location: Aries 0º to Aries 13º20’

Dasa-Ruling Planet: Ketu (7 years)

Color: blood red

Animal: Male horse

Favorable: Good, steady worker; honorable living; competent, does a bove-average work; intelligent, reliable, self-sufficient; good finances;light-hearted, gives upliftment and healing energy to others; spiritual tendencies; modest, moderate habits (such as eating); likes to dress well

Unfavorable: Interest in newness may cause a weakness in finishing things; naive; wants to do things their own way too much; stubborn; zealot;wild and racing about like a horse

Recommended Activities: Conveys the energy of a horse. Good for doing things that require you to “move fast” or when you need to get results quickly; good for putting in your individual effort and cleverness, taking medicine, improving health, getting more wealth, conquering enemies,starting new learning, starting the study of Vastu or building designs, setting up new religious objects, engaging in activities related to transportation such as buying or selling a vehicle, traveling, getting new jewelry.

Bharani : The Bearer

Symbol: A female sex organ

Presiding Deity: Yama (Death or the setting sun)

Location: Aries 13º20’ to Aries 26º40’

Dasa-Ruling Planet: Venus (20 years)

Color: blood red

Animal: Male elephant

Favorable: Quick-minded; desires new experiences (especially with loveaffairs); prefers spontaneous behavior; gets things done quickly; dutiful;sticks by their family and friends; courageous attitude; good longevity

Unfavorable: Feels burdened; too much activity; fickle, amoral, too clever or calculating; doesn’t pace themselves; resists control;unmanageable, stubborn, childlike, vulnerable; their vigor often bothers more conservative people

Recommended Activities: Conveys the energy of cutting. Good for severe activities; “bearing the burden” of those unpleasant but necessary responsibilities; doing things that have a destructive, cruel, severe, orwarlike aspect to them; driving out “evil” influences; starting a lawsuit,initiating an attack, filing for divorce, entering a competition; starting a campaign against a competitor or rival; doing things that involve toxins,chemicals, fire, or any “poisonous” things (e.g., starting chemotherapy,applying pesticides, etc.); good for burning things; agricultural activities start well here; doing related things such as drilling for water

Krittika Translation: The Cutter

Symbol: Axe, sharp edge, or flame

Presiding Deity: Agni (Fire)

Location: Aries 26º40’ to Taurus 10º

Dasa-Ruling Planet: Sun (6 years)

Color: White

Animal: Female goat

Favorable: Motivated; achieves and acquires many things; bright; strong appetites (such as food and sex); goal oriented; likes to get the bottom line;goes for what they want; survivor; dignified; takes pride in what they do;will honor their commitments; good leader; straightforward

Unfavorable: Changeable, vacillating, stubborn; not open to advice; hard to please; impatient; responds too strongly to challenges; sets goals or expectations too high; burns out their health by constant and unrelenting activity; often nervous or excitable

Recommended Activities: Conveys the energy of being militaristic. This placement is good for “cutting to the chase”; being audacious, brash, and cutting straight to the point; arguing for one’s point of view in a razor-sharpmanner; doing any type of cutting such as carpentry work; good for seizingthe initiative and being competitive; not asking for permission; taking an aggressive and combative approach; working with weapons and doing metal work; collecting money that is due. Carefully planned strategies will be well executed when the Moon occupies this nakshatra; one’s opponents will be weak to resist. It's not good for travel or for driving vehicles

𓋹Thx so much for reading so much effort put in its tiring lol, I'll be more appreciative of the other astrology posts and tarot that are done well𓋹

𓋹I will be posting pt.2 Taurus nakshatras soon𓋹

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blueiscoool · 1 month ago

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2,000-Year-Old Roman Dagger and Ring Found in Germany

In northwest Germany, near the site of the 1,600-year-old Roman military camp Anreppen, archaeologists discovered evidence of an ancient agricultural settlement.

Three farmsteads unearthed at the settlement in present-day Delbrück-Bentfeld date back to the first centuries AD during the Romans’ push into Germania, according to an April 1 news release from the Regional Association of Westphalia-Lippe.

One of the farmsteads had a primary residence and two outbuildings that were likely used for textile production, experts said.

Archaeologists found a gemstone engraved with the image of the Roman god Mercury, which they believe was part of a 2,000-year-old ring.

As the god of trade and transport, Mercury is depicted holding a purse in one hand, and a staff in the other, experts said in the release.

Archaeologists found an iron knife with brass stripes dating back to the Roman Empire buried deep beneath the cellar floor of an outbuilding.

The knife was fully intact and buried with the blade sticking straight up. Researchers said since it was buried so deep, it likely wasn’t meant to inflict injury.

Archaeologists are questioning if it had a cultic purpose, buried as a building offering meant to ward off evil.

Coins, pottery fragments, non-ferrous metals and remnants of a kiln were previously discovered at the site, experts said.

Researchers said they believe residents of the settlement produced textiles and jewelry, according to the release.

Delbrück-Bentfeld is about a 105 mile-drive northeast from Düsseldorf.

By Lauren Liebhaber.

#2000-Year-Old Roman Dagger and Ring Found in Germany #Delbrück-Bentfeld Germany #Roman military camp Anreppen #ancient artifacts #archeology #history #history news #ancient history #ancient culture #ancient civilizations #roman history #roman empire

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homeofhousechickens · 1 year ago

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You may not want to hear this, but none of these cows in the above pictures are being neglected or abused. That last cropped picture is actually from a bigger farm as well during the storms happening during the Loon fallout event.

Mud is a completely normal part of raising livestock, especially in places where it gets wet and rainy during different parts of the year. Even the driest climates will experience a build-up of manure and mud around feeding and watering locations since livestock likes to hang out there for obvious reasons.

The idyllic pictures you see of cows in green pastures likely have a rotational grazing setup or large amounts of land, which isn't possible or feasible for most small farmers. Pastures in this state are a common side effect of having large livestock, but even chickens, goats, and dogs can turn a pasture into dirt if the pasture can't get rest. It doesn't mean the animals are getting neglected or abused, and anyone who says otherwise is likely coming from a place of privilege or ignorance.

The suicide rate for agricultural workers is five times higher than the general population. Farmers experience more debt, indignity, and isolation compared to the general population and what sucks is when I talk about this I get replies that are like "just choose a different profession" when these people are how your getting fed. Food does not magically manifest in the grocery store it comes from farmers, and farmer depression is a global crisis.

I'm sure there are some people who are uncomfortable with those photos but I want you to sit in that discomfort and realize that when you buy beef from the store it's not unlikely that that cow stood on a muddy floor and that cows have been standing in muddy pastures for thousands of years.

This isn't a post bashing rotational grazing and other forms of pasture management. I just think it's ignorant to assume these animals are being neglected because their pasture is muddy and that their owners arent always looking for ways to change that. This stuff does make it harder for people to share their troubles or profession. The cows above likely have less hoof issues then cows only on sand, metal grates, or concrete.

Memes like the above exist for a reason.

#farming #agriculture #real cottage core

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ratsoh-writes · 5 months ago

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Say hello to farmswapfell!!! Here’s a little info about the au first:

Farmswapfell is mainly an agricultural au! Humans and monsters were mixed together on the surface like the other farm AUs. However a war years ago had left almost every area fragmented. With the governments all over in shambles, and harsh lines of different battle sides still dividing the people, there was chaos all around.

Due to the lack of structure, there was no enforcement of the law. Groups of bandits roamed the land. Farms became fortresses while others hoping to get rich or take over territory formed packs to take on these homesteads.

Right before the situation blew up and started another war though, the monsters and many humans were pulled through the crash into ebott! And here they are today!

Meet the farmswapfell bros!!!

Swine Wingdings (farmswapfell sans)

Swine is a skeleton monster standing at 5’8 with a reddish orange magic. He has sharp teeth and slightly droopy eye sockets with one thick scar across both sockets. When wearing his ecto he has a rather chunky build. He’s aged at 92.

Swine is a confident and outspoken monster with a rather troubling tendency to pick fights or stir the pot. He’s known yo he rather shameless, attempts to fluster or guilt him rarely work. Swine is a clever monster, easily picking up new skills, and because of this he looks down on those who are less flexible. While he struggles with empathy, he’s deeply loyal to those thick skinned enough to stick around. He’s a true ride or die friend. He adores animals of all types

Swine works in Goldenvalley as a pig farmer. He owns a nice plot of land where he raises a large herd of swine. His farm definitely isn’t one of the fancy ones. While the pigs are clean and treated well, he’s fine with feeding them anything that won’t make them sick. As a side hustle, he allows others to use the pigs to get rid of… unsavory merchandise

Swines magic weapon is a rocket launcher shaped as a decapitated pigs head lol. It’s more show as the weapon he made is rather slow, but if you’re uncoordinated enough to actually get hit, it packs a massive punch

Swines special ability is called gluttony. His ectos dissolving function when eating is much stronger than the average monster making him able to safely eat materials like plastic, metal, stone and even some plants that are poisonous to monsters. He simply burns them too fast and hard for the poison to enter his body. Unfortunately this comes with the side effect of a constant nagging sense of hunger/appetite

Things he loves: bacon, just meat in general but especially bacon, watching Gordon Ramsey on tv, the British bake off and any other cooking show, the color pink, the gun range, hunting, his hunting dogs lass and lady, contraband human food from outside of ebott, punk rock and country music, dandelions

Possum Wingdings (farmswapfell papyrus)

Possum is a taller skeleton monster standing at 6’8 feet tall! He has a reddish purple magic and a double set of teeth with two top sharp canines in front and sharp teeth underneath. Possums right eye socket has a large scar from top to bottom. The eyelight in that socket no longer works. He is 38 years old.

Possum is at first glance sleepy and absent minded looking. In reality he’s a sharp observant little sneak. Possum has found over the years how to stay silent and blend into the background to avoid suspicion. He’s gotten very good at being overlooked. He’s rather stiff and simple worded around those he doesn’t trust, but with loved ones he’s sarcastic, a bit pushy, and has a small mischievous side.

On the surface, possum is swines farmhand and known around the town for doing odd jobs for extra cash. However his true job is a little less legal. Possum is the middle man for an illegal shipping gang. He picks up contraband items smuggled into Portland or Steeler, and will resell or move them around Goldenvalley. And of course if he ever gets caught, his supportive brothers pigs are great at eating the evidence.

Possums magic weapon is a small dagger easily hidden in his sleeve. The real danger in the admittedly weak weapon lies with his special ability that the blade can use

Possums special ability is called blood thinner. If he can make contact with the blood of his target, he can make that person dizzy, tired, and forgetful. The effects last as long as possum is near the victim

Things he loves: old western movies, breakfast sausages and maple syrup, dumpster diving, hunting, his brothers hunting dogs, exploring abandoned buildings, contraband from outside of ebott, sunflowers, blues and country music

Side characters:

Beetle (farmswapfell muffet): she is swines closest friend, practically a sister to him. She was a neighbor in his old au that joined forces with him and his parents when things started going to sh*t. Beetle was the one to steal a child possum away as swine fought off the thieves that killed his parents. She had personally hunted down the monster who scarred his face and together they held the farm up until the crash happened. These days beetle is enjoying her time on the pig farm. She’s the secretary handling the selling of the animals and buying of the supplies. Occasionally for extra cash, she’ll make a little moonshine on the side ;)

Rooster: a large tree golem, this monster is a sailor in Steeler who is possums main contact when it comes to receiving illegally imported goods. The two bonded over hating ebotts restrictions and being from farmswapfell. Rooster has a massive crush on beetle but is too scared of swine to confess lol

#undertale imagines #undertale headcanons #worldbuilding #ratsohart #farmswapfell

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