#Debbie Abrahams

[ianchisnall]

Some strange votes for the Conduct of Boris Johnson

This week in Parliament there is only one event that has published that involves a Sussex MP. It is taking place on Wednesday under the headline of “Environmental impacts of Rosebank oilfield” and the contributor is Caroline Lucas who is the Brighton Pavilion MP. It will be interesting to find out which other MPs will take part in that session. Before that that takes place, this afternoon there…

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

by Alana Goodman

CHICAGO—The longtime leader of the Anti-Defamation League, who now serves as director emeritus, expressed concern about Jews being forced to meet in "secret locations" at the Democratic National Convention due to security threats and anti-Semitism.

"I know in my heart that in the future, it will be better, for Jews in America, then [sic] it is today. But I fear it will never be the same," said Abraham Foxman in a Twitter post on Wednesday.

"After 50 years fighting anti-Semitism in America, I could not have imagined a time Jews would have to meet in secret locations in Chicago at DNC."

Foxman, a Holocaust survivor, served as director of the Jewish civil rights organization from 1987 to 2015. The ADL is now run by Jonathan Greenblatt, a former Obama aide, who has steered it in a much more partisan direction.

Foxman’s comments come as Jewish groups holding events on the sidelines of the convention have kept their meeting locations a closely guarded secret.

The Jewish Democratic Council of America held panel discussions with former U.S. ambassador to Spain Alan Solomont and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D., Fla.), but attendees were required to register before receiving the location. Private security and metal detectors were present at both events.

The Israeli-American Council only disclosed the location for its "Hostage Square" discussion to attendees a few hours before it started, the Times of Israel reported on Wednesday.

The security concerns appeared justified. On Tuesday, pro-Hamas agitators disrupted a DNC event with hostage families hosted by Agudath Israel of America, an Orthodox Jewish group. The protesters shouted, "Zionism has got to fall" and "Shame on you" at attendees. Dozens of anti-Israel protesters were also arrested after clashing with police near the convention Tuesday night.

Jewish Democratic leaders acknowledged the concerns about anti-Semitism at the DNC but also downplayed the divisions within their party.

Wasserman Schultz, speaking at a JDCA event on Thursday, said she had "angst for over a week over what the reaction would be" when the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, one of the eight Americans being held captive by Hamas, spoke at the DNC on Wednesday.

Wasserman Schultz said there was a lot of "hype about how many protesters there were going to be," and she felt relieved when there were no disruptions from the audience.

But Democratic politicians have also seemed reluctant to mention Israel’s war with Hamas and the Oct. 7 attacks on the convention stage. None of the prominent Jewish Democratic speakers—including second gentleman Doug Emhoff, Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro—mentioned Israel or the hostage crisis in their remarks.

The only speakers to broach the subject were Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) and Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison, who are aligned with the left-leaning anti-Israel movement. Both politicians called for an Israeli ceasefire.

President Joe Biden briefly acknowledged the anti-Israel protests in his speech on Monday, saying the activists "have a point."

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our website

By Jean Shaoul

University College London (UCL) and Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK hosted a screening of The Unequal Pandemic, followed by a panel discussion, to launch the film about inequality during COVID.

The film is now available here: goodguysproductions.co.uk/the-unequal-pandemic/

Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK was formed in April 2020, because its two founders who had both lost close family members to COVID-19 believed that their loss could have been avoided if the government had made different decisions. They are determined to ensure that lessons are learned from their suffering and that others don’t have to go through the same horrible fate that they had. They want to ensure that the lessons learned from the UK Covid-19 Inquiry, which their campaign had been crucial in setting up, are turned into legislation that saves lives in the future.

They were responsible for the creation of the National Covid Memorial Wall, a 500-metre-long mural with over 200,000 hand sized red hearts painted on it to mark each of the deaths suffered at that time in the UK from COVID-19, on the south bank of the Thames facing Parliament.

The Unequal Pandemic film, by Labour MP Debbie Abrahams and Good Guys Productions, highlights the vastly unequal impact of the pandemic on Britain’s poorest communities, often minority ethnic groups. The short film lays bare the long-term institutional, social and government failures that led to one of the highest excess COVID death rates in the developed world. Its testimonies from bereaved families and stark evidence contradict the then Conservative government’s cynical claim that “We are all in it together.” This was a reference to the now infamous statement of the Tory Chancellor George Osborne in 2012 falsely claiming that everyone, and not only the working class, was bearing the brunt of the savage austerity unleashed by his government.

COVID-19 both reflected and exacerbated all the social inequalities prevalent in Britain today.

Sir Michael Marmot, Professor of Epidemiology at UCL and director of the Institute of Health Equity, a leading authority on health inequalities and author of several landmark government reviews on poverty, introduced the film. He told the audience that the UK is a “poor country with a few rich people in it.”

The pandemic killed nearly 250,000 people in the UK, according to the official statistics, with the population suffering the sixth worst death rate in the world due to the homicidal policy of Boris Johnson’s Conservative government, summed up in his infamous outburst at the height of the pandemic, “No more fucking lockdowns, Let the bodies pile high in their thousands!” The number of people infected with the virus—and continue to be infected—is so great that over a million people are estimated to be suffering from the debilitating impact of Long COVID.

The government’s policies were driven not by the fight against a preventable disease to protect public health, but by the impulse to prevent the disruption of global supply chains and financial markets. The ruling class welcomed the death of the elderly and those in need of care as a means of reducing social spending.

The pandemic had a disproportionate impact on black, ethnic minority and migrant communities (BAME). They were more likely to contract the virus, have a higher death rate, less access to sick pay, with migrants having no access to sick pay, under conditions where sick pay rates in the UK are among the lowest in the developed world, less access to adequate support schemes, unequal vaccination coverage and more likely to have inadequate living space. These conditions had a devastating impact on their health and in turn helped to spread the virus throughout the country.

The film opened with Marmot saying, “People said it will be the great leveller. But that’s not the history of mass disease. It will expose the underlying inequalities and amplify them. Professor Clare Bambra, Professor of Public Health at Newcastle University, said her heart sank when she first heard about the new virus because of the knowledge of what happened in previous global pandemics and what it meant for different communities.

Marmot said that BAME communities suffered huge excess mortality rates, much of which could be attributed to where people lived and other socio-economic factors. But there was something else going on as well. Dr. Habib Naqvi, chief executive of the NHS Race and Health Observatory, explained that the reason typically given for why BAME workers suffered such high rates was they were more likely working on the front line in the pandemic, in health and social care, transport and retail. They were also more likely to have to use public transport to get to work, further exposing them to risk. But no one explained why that was the case in the first place, he said, indicating that racism was the unacknowledged factor.

However, the overwhelming weight of evidence presented demonstrates that it is the socio-economic factors detailed by the documentary that overwhelmingly determine the disparate impact of the pandemic, including on black and Asian workers.

Mortality rates were far higher in the north of England, the former industrial—and now poorer—area of the country, than in the south, and far higher in the more deprived areas, highlighting the north-south divide. According to figures produced by Food Aid Network and the Trussell Trust, “By 2019, prior to the pandemic, the UK had more food banks than McDonalds outlets.” Marmot said that health had been deteriorating prior to the pandemic. His earlier report in 2020, Marmot Review-10 years on, revealed that life expectancy had been stalling and health inequalities were widening. Socioeconomic inequalities played a major part in these adverse health conditions in the decade before 2020.

Marmot explained that the UK fared so badly because the government had disinvested in public services in the most regressive way, with the poorest areas bearing the brunt of the cuts. Local government slashed expenditure on adult social care. Healthcare spending failed to rise in line with demographic and historical patterns. There were cuts in public health funding as well as in welfare to families with children, in education spending per school student and the closure of children’s centres. Not only had public services been cut to the bone but the tax and benefit system had been recalibrated to the disadvantage of the lower income groups, with child poverty almost doubling to 4.2 million in 2022 since 2012.

Marmot noted that income inequality led to health inequality. Health had stopped improving, and there was a high prevalence of the health conditions that increase case fatality ratios of COVID-19. The unequal conditions into which COVID-19 arrived contributed to the high and unequal death toll from COVID-19.

Thus, that disinvestment set the UK to manage the pandemic very poorly.

Even after the first case of COVID-19 was announced in February 2020 and the virus was spreading rapidly, superspreader events such as a football match in Liverpool and the horse races at Cheltenham were allowed to go ahead, with the inevitable results. The government was complacent and ignored the lessons of previous pandemics, the healthcare specialists explained. They had totally inadequate protective clothing, masks that did not fit and personal protective equipment (PPE), if it was provided at all and in many cases it was not, was useless, leaving them exposed to COVID and terrified. One healthcare worker was told when she complained to buy her own from Amazon, at a cost of £300! Many hospital workers died as a result.

When the government did try to procure PPE, it turned to its friends to do so without even the pretence of going through the correct procedures for public procurement. As a result, much of it ended up in bonfires. As Marmot said, “Pub landlords might not be the best people to buy our PPE from. So the government’s absolute faith in the private sector led to an incredible waste—£38 billion for the government’s test and trace system. The government stopped funding public health, so we had no capacity. So then it says, ‘Let’s get some capacity, let’s put tens of billions into some new private sector organisation to do.’

“No, how about funding Public Health to do it? That’s what it is set up to do. To work with local government. To work with the voluntary organisations. Do I think that running Test and Trace through local public health services would have been better than the private sector? I don’t think it could have been worse.”

The film’s screenshots show Britain’s deprivation graphically. It gives voice to some of the people who lost family members. Francesca Michaels speaks about her mother, Billie Michaels, who grew up in a deprived, working class area of Liverpool in the north west of England. Billie brought up five children while on benefits and lost her life to the virus while parties were going on in Downing Street: “It was a conveyor belt of death. She was cremated in a body bag.”

Karren Frasier-Knight speaks about losing her twin sister, Paula Greenhough. “I lost half of me – half of me is gone,” she says through tears. Lobby Akinnola, one of the panellists in the discussion after the film, had a similar experience. He says: “When I got the call from my mum that dad was no longer with us, my world ended in that instant. I fell on the floor. Everything fell apart.”

In conclusion, Marmot said that many of the failings before and during the pandemic were clear to see. Poverty is something that “impedes freedom… Don’t get rid of environmental and social protections: get rid of poverty. That way, we will be better prepared to face the next pandemic.”

Following the film, there was a discussion chaired by Delanjathan Devakumar, Professor of Global Child Health and Director of the UCL Centre for the Health of Women, Children and Adolescents. The panellists included: Sir Michael Marmot, Naomi Fulop, Professor of Health Care Organisation and Management and Director of Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK, Oluwalogbon Akinnola, a campaigner from Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK, Debbie Abrahams, Labour MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth and Andrew Gwynne, Labour MP for Gorton and Denton and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department of Health and Social Care.

While the discussion centred on health care inequalities, none of the panellists addressed the central questions: how is social inequality to be eradicated or where is the much-needed funding for healthcare to come from? Much less did they challenge Abrahams and Gwynne over the Labour government’s plans for a budget with at least £40 billion in spending cuts and tax rises that will vastly accelerate the 14 years of brutal cuts already carried out by Conservative-led governments and the continued evisceration of the National Health Service. That this will fall hardest upon the most vulnerable was made clear by the Labour government’s first act—to abolish the winter fuel supplement for the elderly.

Ending social inequality can only be achieved by expropriating the billionaires’ wealth and imposing massive taxes on the super-rich, the financial institutions and the corporations to fund urgently needed social programmes for workers and young people. No solution can be found to any of the problems confronting working people except through the ending of the capitalist system and its replacement with socialism.

[calliemity]

hey! did you know there were a few songs that were written as possible additions to the movie version of little shop of horrors? lets talk about them!!

first and foremost, im getting all this information from a wonderful book called "Attack of the Monster Musical: A Cultural History of Little Shop of Horrors" written by Adam Abraham. its the best book ever written ever, if youre interested in the details of lsoh's creation, from the early inspirations to the most recent revival, this is the book you wanna read! again, my source is this book, please check it out of you can!!

okay, so heres the list of songs written specifically for the movie, some of them you might know already! also im not counting the cut songs from the stage musical, maybe ill talk about those another time. ill include song/lyric links if applicable!

Thundercrash: this song was a prototype to Some Fun now, and was meant to replace "Ya Never Know" and "Closed for Renovation". the name comes from a lyric in the original version of both songs, Ya Never Know ("and with a thunder-crash"). i cant find anything else on this song aside from the book, which gives us only 1 verse: "Seymour, the shnook / His life was the worst / Oh what a bore dirt poor is / Now take a look / His luck has reversed"

Some Fun Now: this one is used in the movie! youre definitely familiar with it lmao

Bad: first version of a final villain song for audrey II. this one's probably the most well-known, since it was featured on the 2003 broadway cast album as part of the cut songs. it's the only one included that wasnt cut from the orignal show!

Bad Like Me: the second version of a final villain song for audrey II. much less well known than Bad, this one includes musical motifs that ended up transferring over to the final version of the song! its also just a very neat song imo, probably my favorite out of these

Mean Green Mother From Outerspace: the final version of audrey II's villain song, which was obviously used! there's nothing to explain here, everyone knows this song lol

Your Day Begins Tonight: a song written for the final credits of the movie. sung by the urchins, its unclear if this song came before or after the other end credit song. not much is known aside from lyrics, apparently!

Crystal, Ronette, and Chiffon: another song considered for the final credits. this one actually got a howard ashman demo, and its also been covered by debbie gravitte and was performed by the cast of the recent off broadway revival! its gotten a good amount of attention!

this is all i have im pretty sure! hopefully you thought this was cool :] if i missed anything let me know!!!!!

[wankerwatch]

Commons Vote

On: Passenger Railway Services Bill (Public Ownership) Bill: Committee: Amendment 14

Ayes: 111 (95.5% Con, 4.5% DUP) Noes: 362 (97.0% Lab, 2.5% Ind, 0.6% SDLP) Absent: ~177

Day's business papers: 2024-9-3

Likely Referenced Bill: Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill

Description: A Bill to make provision for passenger railway services to be provided by public sector companies instead of by means of franchises.

Originating house: Commons Current house: Commons Bill Stage: 3rd reading

Individual Votes:

Ayes

Conservative (106 votes)

Alan Mak Alberto Costa Alex Burghart Alicia Kearns Alison Griffiths Andrew Bowie Andrew Murrison Andrew Rosindell Andrew Snowden Aphra Brandreth Ashley Fox Ben Obese-Jecty Ben Spencer Bernard Jenkin Blake Stephenson Bob Blackman Bradley Thomas Caroline Dinenage Caroline Johnson Charlie Dewhirst Chris Philp Claire Coutinho Damian Hinds Danny Kruger David Davis David Mundell David Reed David Simmonds Desmond Swayne Edward Argar Edward Leigh Gagan Mohindra Gareth Bacon Gareth Davies Gavin Williamson Geoffrey Cox George Freeman Greg Smith Gregory Stafford Harriet Cross Harriett Baldwin Helen Whately Iain Duncan Smith Jack Rankin James Cartlidge James Cleverly James Wild Jeremy Hunt Jeremy Wright Jerome Mayhew Jesse Norman Joe Robertson John Cooper John Glen John Hayes John Lamont John Whittingdale Joy Morrissey Julia Lopez Julian Lewis Karen Bradley Katie Lam Kemi Badenoch Kevin Hollinrake Kieran Mullan Kit Malthouse Laura Trott Lewis Cocking Lincoln Jopp Louie French Mark Francois Mark Garnier Mark Pritchard Martin Vickers Matt Vickers Mel Stride Mike Wood Mims Davies Neil Hudson Neil O'Brien Neil Shastri-Hurst Nick Timothy Nigel Huddleston Oliver Dowden Patrick Spencer Peter Bedford Peter Fortune Priti Patel Rebecca Harris Rebecca Paul Rebecca Smith Richard Fuller Richard Holden Robbie Moore Robert Jenrick Saqib Bhatti Sarah Bool Shivani Raja Simon Hoare Steve Barclay Stuart Anderson Stuart Andrew Suella Braverman Tom Tugendhat Victoria Atkins Wendy Morton

Democratic Unionist Party (5 votes)

Carla Lockhart Gavin Robinson Gregory Campbell Jim Shannon Sammy Wilson

Noes

Labour (351 votes)

Abena Oppong-Asare Abtisam Mohamed Adam Jogee Adam Thompson Afzal Khan Al Carns Alan Campbell Alan Gemmell Alan Strickland Alex Baker Alex Ballinger Alex Barros-Curtis Alex Davies-Jones Alex Mayer Alex McIntyre Alex Norris Alex Sobel Alice Macdonald Alison Hume Alison McGovern Alistair Strathern Allison Gardner Amanda Hack Amanda Martin Andrew Cooper Andrew Gwynne Andrew Lewin Andrew Pakes Andrew Ranger Andrew Western Andy MacNae Andy McDonald Andy Slaughter Angela Eagle Anna Dixon Anna Gelderd Anna McMorrin Anna Turley Anneliese Dodds Anneliese Midgley Antonia Bance Ashley Dalton Baggy Shanker Bambos Charalambous Barry Gardiner Bayo Alaba Beccy Cooper Becky Gittins Ben Coleman Ben Goldsborough Bill Esterson Blair McDougall Brian Leishman Callum Anderson Calvin Bailey Carolyn Harris Cat Smith Catherine Atkinson Catherine Fookes Catherine McKinnell Catherine West Charlotte Nichols Chi Onwurah Chris Bloore Chris Curtis Chris Elmore Chris Evans Chris Hinchliff Chris Kane Chris McDonald Chris Murray Chris Vince Chris Ward Chris Webb Christian Wakeford Claire Hazelgrove Claire Hughes Clive Betts Clive Efford Clive Lewis Connor Naismith Connor Rand Damien Egan Dan Aldridge Dan Carden Dan Jarvis Dan Norris Dan Tomlinson Daniel Francis Danny Beales Darren Paffey Dave Robertson David Burton-Sampson David Pinto-Duschinsky David Smith David Taylor Dawn Butler Debbie Abrahams Deirdre Costigan Derek Twigg Diana Johnson Douglas Alexander Douglas McAllister Elaine Stewart Ellie Reeves Elsie Blundell Emily Darlington Emily Thornberry Emma Foody Emma Lewell-Buck Euan Stainbank Fabian Hamilton Fleur Anderson Florence Eshalomi Frank McNally Gareth Snell Gareth Thomas Gen Kitchen Gerald Jones Gill Furniss Gill German Gordon McKee Graeme Downie Graham Stringer Grahame Morris Gregor Poynton Gurinder Singh Josan Harpreet Uppal Heidi Alexander Helen Hayes Helena Dollimore Henry Tufnell Ian Lavery Ian Murray Imogen Walker Irene Campbell Jack Abbott Jacob Collier Jade Botterill Jake Richards James Asser James Frith James Naish Janet Daby Jayne Kirkham Jeevun Sandher Jeff Smith Jen Craft Jenny Riddell-Carpenter Jess Asato Jess Phillips Jessica Morden Jessica Toale Jim Dickson Jim McMahon Jo Platt Jo Stevens Jo White Joani Reid Jodie Gosling Joe Morris Joe Powell Johanna Baxter John Grady John Healey John Slinger John Whitby Jon Pearce Jon Trickett Jonathan Brash Jonathan Davies Jonathan Hinder Josh Dean Josh Fenton-Glynn Josh MacAlister Josh Newbury Julia Buckley Julie Minns Juliet Campbell Justin Madders Karin Smyth Karl Turner Kate Osamor Kate Osborne Katie White Katrina Murray Keir Mather Kerry McCarthy Kevin Bonavia Kim Johnson Kim Leadbeater Kirith Entwistle Kirsteen Sullivan Kirsty McNeill Laura Kyrke-Smith Lauren Edwards Lauren Sullivan Laurence Turner Lee Barron Lee Pitcher Leigh Ingham Lewis Atkinson Liam Byrne Liam Conlon Lilian Greenwood Lillian Jones Linsey Farnsworth Liz Kendall Liz Twist Lizzi Collinge Lloyd Hatton Lola McEvoy Louise Haigh Louise Jones Lucy Powell Lucy Rigby Luke Akehurst Luke Charters Luke Murphy Luke Myer Margaret Mullane Marie Tidball Mark Ferguson Mark Hendrick Mark Sewards Mark Tami Markus Campbell-Savours Marsha De Cordova Martin Rhodes Mary Glindon Mary Kelly Foy Matt Bishop Matt Rodda Matt Turmaine Matt Western Matthew Patrick Matthew Pennycook Maureen Burke Meg Hillier Melanie Onn Melanie Ward Miatta Fahnbulleh Michael Payne Michael Shanks Michael Wheeler Michelle Scrogham Michelle Welsh Mike Amesbury Mike Kane Mike Reader Mike Tapp Mohammad Yasin Nadia Whittome Natalie Fleet Natasha Irons Naushabah Khan Navendu Mishra Neil Coyle Neil Duncan-Jordan Nesil Caliskan Nia Griffith Nicholas Dakin Nick Smith Nick Thomas-Symonds Noah Law Oliver Ryan Olivia Bailey Olivia Blake Pam Cox Pamela Nash Pat McFadden Patricia Ferguson Patrick Hurley Paul Davies Paul Foster Paul Waugh Paula Barker Paulette Hamilton Perran Moon Peter Dowd Peter Kyle Peter Lamb Peter Swallow Phil Brickell Polly Billington Preet Kaur Gill Rachael Maskell Rachel Blake Rachel Hopkins Rachel Taylor Richard Baker Richard Quigley Rosie Duffield

Rupa Huq Ruth Cadbury Ruth Jones Sadik Al-Hassan Sally Jameson Sam Carling Sam Rushworth Samantha Dixon Samantha Niblett Sarah Champion Sarah Coombes Sarah Edwards Sarah Hall Sarah Jones Sarah Owen Sarah Sackman Satvir Kaur Scott Arthur Sean Woodcock Seema Malhotra Sharon Hodgson Shaun Davies Simon Lightwood Simon Opher Siobhain McDonagh Sojan Joseph Sonia Kumar Stella Creasy Stephanie Peacock Stephen Kinnock Stephen Timms Steve Race Steve Witherden Steve Yemm Sureena Brackenridge Tahir Ali Taiwo Owatemi Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi Tim Roca Toby Perkins Tom Collins Tom Hayes Tom Rutland Tonia Antoniazzi Tony Vaughan Torcuil Crichton Torsten Bell Tracy Gilbert Tristan Osborne Uma Kumaran Valerie Vaz Vicky Foxcroft Warinder Juss Wes Streeting Will Stone Yasmin Qureshi Yuan Yang Zubir Ahmed

Independent (9 votes)

Apsana Begum Ayoub Khan Imran Hussain Jeremy Corbyn John McDonnell Rebecca Long Bailey Richard Burgon Shockat Adam Zarah Sultana

Social Democratic & Labour Party (2 votes)

Claire Hanna Colum Eastwood

[clownsgobeepbeep]

List of OCs

Just a long reminder for myself

D'Vitt Family

Pepper the Clown/Roger D'Vitt

Jelly the Clown/MECOR/Coraline D'Vitt

Cosmos the Clown/Stellar D'Vitt

Ula the Tiny Clown/Lily D'Vitt Mendax

Dante the Firebreathing Clown/Dante D/Vitt

Robyn and Rayden the Clown(s)/Robyn and Rayden D'Vitt

Jeff and Bubble/Neil and Veronica D'Vitt

Aster the Clown/Vincent D'Vitt

Lydia D'Vitt

Stripes the Clown/Grandpa Stripes/ He does have a human name but I have decided to keep it hidden, now everybody will literally call him 'Stripes'

Caroline Wickes D'Vitt/Mam Carol

Velvet/Auntie Velvet/Roxanne (Bellerose) D'Vitt

Uncle Lucky/Perry D'Vitt

Tennant Family

Cuckoo the Ringleader/"LOGIUM"/Harley Tennant

LOGIUM/Harvey Tennant

Boggs Family

Ace the Clown/Abraham Boggs

Missy the Spider Clown

Cantarella the Mime/Cantarella Boggs

Arabella the Mime/Arabella Boggs

Evie the Clown

Sage/Olsson Family

Schrader the Clown/Schrader Sage

Walter the Clown/Walter Sage

Archer Sage

Sherry Olsson

Hilton Family

Ferry the Sweet Clown/Leota Hilton

Many deceased...might just have to give her a relative after all these years

Mendax Family

James Mendax

Ryder/Ryder Mendax -> Garden Bud

D'Vitt/Blackwood Kids

Phoebe the Moth Clown

Orion and Hunter

Carina

Boggs/Hilton Kids

Ally

Bingo

Carney

Sage/D'Vitt/Etoile Kids

Basil the Slasher Clown

Rowan the Deer Clown

Fantastic Flora

Willow ---

Frankie

Dahlia

Elders

TRITUNA

SIONIS/Zeta

RISUS

DECLA

CONLLIUM

NALIA

TREMA/The Astute One

LOGIUM(Listed in Tennant Family)

MECOR

CUNDOLILI

Others

Trevor

Riskey Rudy

Colette

Sonny the Stooge

Debby

I'm sure I'm forgetting some but whatever this was already a lot ^^'

[blackfemmecharacterdependency]

January: Happy Birthday List

Capricorn (Dec 22-Jan 19) 1: Josette Simon  2: Erica Hubbard, Renée Elise Goldsberry 3: Angelique Perrin, Nicole Beharie 4: Jill Marie Jones, Miss Tina Lawson, Lenora Crichlow, Alexandra Grey, Coco Jones, Sindi Dlathu 5: Ms. Juicy Baby, Olunike Adeliyi 6: Betty Gabriel, Jacqueline Moore, Tiffany Pollard, Armelia McQueen, Tanyell Waivers 7: Blue Ivy Carter, Ruth Negga, Sofia Wylie, Zora Neale Hurston 8: Butterfly McQueen, Ryan Destiny, Cynthia Erivo, Shirley Bassey 9: Amber Ruffin, Flo Milli, Anais Lee/Mirabel Lee 10: Kathleen Bradley, Sisi Stringer, Teresa Graves

11: Adepero Oduye, Aja Naomi King, Amiyah Scott, Kim Coles, Mary J. Blige 12: Cynthia Addai Robinson, Erinn Westbrook, Issa Rae, Naya Rivera, Amerie 13: Janet Hubert, Andy Allo, Shonda Rhimes 14: Adjoa Andoh, Vonetta McGee, Emayatzy Corinealdi 15: Regina King, Kellita Smith, Sanai Victoria 16: Debbie Allen, Aaliyah, FKA Twigs, Sade 17: Eartha Kitt, Indya Moore, Michelle Obama, Ann Wolfe, Quen Blackwell

18: Ashleigh Murray, Estelle, Samantha Mumba 19: Simone Missick, Lidya Jewett, Shaunette Renée Wilson

Aquarius (Jan 20-Feb 18) 21: Anastarzia Anaquway 22: Blesnya Minher, Dwan Smith 23: Lanei Chapman 24: Kenya Moore, Tatyana Ali 25: Ariana DeBose, Jenifer Lewis, Tati Gabrielle, Etta James, Alicia Keys, Willow Nightingale 26: Angela Davis, Anita Baker, Bessie Coleman, Ciera Payton, Desiree Burch, Sasha Banks, Zara Cully  27: Betty Adewole 28: Tyra Ferrell 29: Oprah Winfrey 30: Jody Watley, Kylie Bunbury 31: Miss Peppermint, Kerry Washington

List will be updated as needed... I don't know everybody's birthday, and sometimes, the search engine don't either. I be using Google, and if something's wrong, it's wrong until I figure out the right date. Thank you.

Ones left off in 2024, when I made the list:

Vanity, Sindi Dlathu, Tanyell Waivers, Zaraah Abrahams, Zabryna Guevara, Quen Blackwell, Lanei Chapman, Willow Nightingale

[msclaritea]

BY JOHN DILILLO

NOV. 11, 2021

"Method acting is a Hollywood tradition that’s netted many an Oscar and irritated thousands of coworkers, but it’s likely never been this stinky before. For The Power of the Dog, the new Netflix psychological-thriller-meets-cowboy-romance, Benedict Cumberbatch joins the unwashed ranks of celebrities like Jake Gyllenhaal and Ashton Kutcher. To stay fully in character, the actor didn’t shower for six days.

It was a choice wholly encouraged by Oscar-winning director and writer Jane Campion.."

YOU DONE FUCKED UP, CIA, AND SCIENTOLOGY CONNECTED, GEORGE CLOONEY .

"The Clooney family connections to Washington and politics at the highest level is nothing new. Fun fact, his maternal great-great-great-great-grandmother, Mary Ann Sparrow, was the half-sister of Nancy Lincoln, mother of, you guessed it, Abraham Lincoln.

Not only is Clooney related to Washington royalty, he’s not the first person in his family to make it big in entertainment.

Cabaret singer and actress Rosemary Clooney was George Clooney’s aunt, the sister of his father Nick Clooney. George’s other aunt, Betty Clooney, was also a famous singer in the 1950’s. And yet another famous singer, “You Light Up My Life” singer Debby Boone, is George’s cousin. Recall that his father was a gameshow and TV host and it almost starts to seem as if being from certain families makes it a lot easier to break into Hollywood.

Clooney was raised a strict Roman Catholic and attended Catholic schools where he served as an altar boy from the time he was young. By middle school Clooney had developed Bell’s Palsy, a type of facial paralysis. Bell’s Palsy is rare in adolescents, as it’s most commonly linked to sexually transmitted herpes and extreme stress. It’s worth noting that Clooney’s fellow United Nations and Council on Foreign Relations pal Angelia Jolie has also long struggled with Bell’s Palsy. In Clooney’s case, what with the rampant systemic child sex abuse we are learning has gone on for decades in the Catholic church and the connection between Hollywood, child sex abuse and Hollywood-linked military programs such as MK Ultra (recall Clooney’s father’s military ties), his having Bell’s Palsy as a child is certainly an interesting side note....Clooney studied acting with leading Scientologist Milton Katselas at his Beverly Hills Playhouse for 5 years, from 1982-1987.

In the book co-authored by the now-deceased-under-extremely-mysterious-circumstances Andrew Breitbart, Hollywood, Interrupted: Insanity Chic in Babylon — The Case Against Celebrity, Milton Katselas is discussed at length. As well as Scientology in general and it’s connection to Hollywood.

'Here’s the cliff’s notes: Think of Scientology’s presence in Hollywood as an intelligence dragnet to identify those who will trade compromising secrets for power and influence.'

One of the very top lieutenants of that intelligence operation, for decades, was Milton Katselas.

July 15, 2007, New York Times, ‘The Actualizer’: “Students have left Katselas’s school, the Beverly Hills Playhouse, because of the pressure they felt to join the Church of Scientology… they could not ignore how many of their classmates and teachers were Scientologists … and the assorted weirdness..."

[itsyourchoicedevotionals]

Wrong Spiritual Choices

“The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight …They abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors… They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them… angered the Lord …This made the Lord burn with anger against Israel, so He handed them over to raiders who stole their possessions. He turned them over to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them.” Judges 2:11-12,14NLT

Yahweh God the God of relationship making a covenant with Abraham. When He brought the Israelites, Abraham’s descendents, out of Egypt, He desired to be their Father, God and King. Seventy-four Israelites were allowed to dine in God’s Presence. “Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel climbed up the mountain. There they saw the God of Israel. Under His feet there seemed to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, as clear as the sky itself… though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, He did not destroy them… they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in His presence!” Exodus 24:9-11NLT God celebrated their freedom for Egypt with them. We similarly celebrate special occasions with meals in our families.

After the leaders left, Moses returned to God to receive instructions. Forty days away, impatience took over the Israelites. Give us a god we can ‘see’ they whined. Never mind that some had really seen Him, their majority wanted to create a golden calf! God became angry with their unfaithfulness.

In our text scripture, Moses and Joshua were deceased. Again they couldn’t ‘see’ God. “They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them.” Through Moses, Yahweh had given the Israelites choices— Deuteronomy 28. Verses 1-15 held all the blessings covering every good thing imaginable coming to those faithful ones under the umbrella of God’s mercy. Verses 15-68 showed all the curses coming to those who chose other gods and a life of sin. Slavery, poverty, and sickness are some of those curses.

In 1620AD a group of Pilgrims made a covenant with God for the new America. Groups came to this land seeking a place of freedom to worship Jesus, unfettered by the organized church. Those leaders all died. We’ve organized many denominational churches. Many such denominations have lost full sight of Jesus as Lord; His amazing love and power. Others have fallen into the sleep of apathy. Those Pilgrims would be aghast.

Has anyone noticed the soaring prices of inflation? Loss of medical care after Obama’s medical takeover? Higher taxes? Enormous national debt? Sex trafficking of our children? Enemy invasion over our borders? Foreigners owing our land and government buildings? Check out Deuteronomy 28. Could our national enslavement be because of our wrong spiritual choices?

2Chronicles 7:14NLT “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” God has given us a way out of this mess— repentance. Solely prayer won’t suffice. We must ask God to show us our sin, in order to repent, not just our sins but those who’ve gone before us. Sins thriving inside each of us individually. REPENT per online dictionary .com is defined— “to feel such sorrow for sin or fault as to be disposed TO CHANGE ONE’S LIFE for the better; be penitent.”

Thus repentance is not just a ‘God I’m sorry’ prayer. This is a prayer of heartfelt change, doing a 180 degree life turnaround. Our choices today are like the Israelites. Repent or become more enslaved down to even watching our nation be totally destroyed. What do you want? Will you repent in prayer? It’s your choice. You choose.

LET’S PRAY: Father forgive us of our sins! Help us to regret our sinful ways. Please change our hearts in the name of Jesus Christ I pray.

by Debbie Veilleux Copyright 2024 You have my permission to reblog this devotional for others. Please keep my name with this devotional, as author. Thank you.

[aardvark-123]

~How Minh Reclaimed the Sword of Fire from the Castle of Burning Steel~

Many years in the future, in the sundered realm of Massachusetts, the people of a small steading near the eastern coast had come into danger. To their aid came Lady Minh the Dauntless of the Order of the Minute, riding hard upon her fiery yellow steed.

"Every girl's dream! Every girl's dream! Oh, &$@% off," spat Minh, kicking the refurbished Giddyup Buttercup in the shin. "Stupid tiny metal and plastic horse, everything aches down there."

In spite of the... disagreement with her noble steed, Sir Minh came anon to Finch Farm, where the local headman, Abraham of Finch, beseeched her for aid.

"Ours was a happy, peaceful hamlet once. We had little compared to the city people in the south, but we had enough." Abraham wiped a tear from his eye. "But alas, black smoke now rises from yonder Saugus Ironworks. Cruel men have established themselves in there, dwarves and orcs calling themselves the Forged..."

"Dude," said Minh, "what the %£&@ are you talking about? What's an orc, and do you not know women can be raiders?!"

"But alas!" Abraham cut in. "My fearless, foolhardy son Jake, he always seemed to tire of our peaceful ways. He went to them, good knight! He took our clan's ancestral sword, the Infernal Blade of Shish'kebab, and I fear he plans to face those brutes himself... Or what if-?!" Abraham's voice dropped to a terrified whisper. "By the Sun Goddess, if he means to join them?!"

"Well, that wouldn't be great." With a sigh, Minh checked her map. "Saugus Ironworks... I guess can pay them a visit."

With courage in her heart and the light of Lady Evetora shining down upon her, Minh rode to-

"No I DIDN'T, dumbass! I walked! Well, ran. I'm a video game character, we run everywhere."

Oh, Minh, can you at least try to work with me? *sigh* With courage in her heart and the light of Lady Evetora shining down upon her, Minh trekked at a gentle jog to the ancient Ironworks. Lord Saugus, father of the dwarves, had once blessed the castle with his shining hammer, but Minh felt a trickle of fear when its smoking spires rose above her.

An imposing figure in broad, spiked metal armour met her at the gate. "Halt, stranger!" he bellowed in the guttural tones of a Bostonian orc, banging his halberd against the flagstones. "None may enter the seat of the Forged who have not yet been tempered."

"Oh, I'm not here to enter anyone's seat, I'm here for the Dungeons and Dragons game at six. Minh Vu? You might know me as Debbie, um, Xiao Long... The half-elven paladin?" Minh said sweetly.

"Those who steal cool-sounding surnames from cartoons are not worthy!" bellowed the guard. "Your weak flesh will become food for the Forge. Prepare to die!"

The guard surged forwards, but with a swipe and a flick of her nailed baseball bat, Minh had him drawing his last breath upon the ground. Her troubles were only beginning, though, for the warriors of the Forged were charging out to the gate. Tall, well-built orcs and short, well-built dwarves, shouting battle cries and raising a din with their twisted metal armour.

Minh stood her ground. With her longbow, enchanted by the elves of Sanctuary Hills, she opened fire on the enemy ranks, wounding many. Yet the Forged were no mere rabble, and they pressed upon her with bombs and gouts of flame, conjured by some foul, arcane engineering.

Poor Minh so nearly was roasted in her jumpsuit, but she was not to be defeated by overwhelming power alone. Fleeing into the shadows, Minh called upon the mystic aim-taking magic of the Vault Priests, and one by one she picked off her pursuers with burning red arrows. Exhausted, she fell upon the cold, muddy grass and into fitful dreams.

When she awoke from her impromptu nap, Minh found herself in unfamiliar surroundings. It was hot, although the jagged stone bricks and the faint morning sun through the stained glass windows suggested it should not be.

"Ah, the good lady of Sanctuary Hills awakens."

Minh sat up with a gasp, reaching for her bat. "Who are you?!"

"Fear not, Sir Minh. I am a servant, but I can assure you that I am no ally to Lord Slag and his Forged."

Minh's eyes were wide with amazement. Before her stood a heavy-set metal creature, an orange crystal glowing upon their head. "A Protectron? Juuuuust great. Where the Hell am I, exactly?"

"You are in the Saugus Ironworks," the good-natured atronach replied. "I carried you here, to a room where few warriors tread, that my masters would not discover you outside when dawn broke."

"The %&£$'s an atronach? I mean, thanks for..." Minh cleared her throat. "Did you dip my hat in white paint?"

"Your helmet is being washed, good sir knight. But we have more pressing matters," said the atronach. "Lord Slag is about to execute young Jake of Clan Finch, on the flimsy reasoning that the Infernal Blade of Shish'kebab was too easy a tribute to give."

"Tribute... Ugh, so he DID want to join up!" Minh groaned. "Why do people have to become Raiders? I mean, I guess it's fun, what kind of LIFE are they gonna have?!" She paused. "A short one. Thanks in part to me. I'd better go and talk him out of it."

Thanking the noble atronach for his aid, Sir Minh alighted from the bowels of the fortress. With cat-like tread, she snuck through the keep, feeling all the while as though the air was growing hotter around her...

Lord Slag had been waiting in the heart of the castle, on a gilded balcony above a lake of molten steel. His armour was like nothing Minh had yet seen, thick pieces of metal tied and riveted together into a tower, a scrapheap of fury and might. And kneeling at his side, trembling in a battered old rain coat, was Jake of House Finch.

"Ahh! At last, the great hero approaches!" Slag crowed in a voice like thunder. Not an orc but a man was he, and a formidable one at that. "Sir Minh of the Minute, what a fine name for a fine warrior. It seems my Forged had not the means to keep you away..."

"Cool," Minh lied. "I'm here for Jake and that sword. Do you wanna do this the hard way, or-"

"I am not an unkind man," Slag lied, "so hear my offer. By slaying my warriors, you have proven yourself a worthier man-"

"Woman!"

"Shut up. You have proven yourself a worthier man than all who fell before you. Worthy, perhaps, to be Forged! I offer you a test, Minh, one final show of loyalty." Grinning savagely, Slag picked Jake up by the collar and threw him to the floor below. "Kill this useless mongrel. Take his head and become my right-hand man!"

Minh smacked her forehead. "Do you even know what 'woman' means?!"

"Of course I- Er...?" Slag squinted down at her. "Oh! M-my apologies, good lady. I, er, that is to say, your hair is so short..."

Minh chucked a grenade at him.

Sound and heat filled the chamber, yet when the smoke from Minh's flame spell faded, Slag still stood. He strode, laughing, towards her, stepping on Jake in the process. Narrowing her eyes, Minh unsheathed her baseball bat and advanced on the dread lord of Saugus Ironworks.

"You had your chance, Minh," Slag laughed. He unsheathed a bright metal sword that caught fire when its blade met the air. "Now you will learn the truth of the Forge, that the strong are tempered by fire and pain, while the fate of the weak is but to melt!"

The Infernal Blade of Shish'kebab...! Minh fought to keep surprise off her chiselled face. "The Order of the Minute taught me this, Slag. The strong are not only the iron bars who become shields and axes! Sometimes the strong are the kind hands who weave cotton into a bed, coax good crops from the earth, and give comfort to the sick. But today, the strong is I, who shall deliver your evil unto its end!"

The thought ocurred to Minh, What the Hell am I saying?! No, seriously, what WAS that?!, but the time for words was past. Burning steel met wood and nails as she gave battle with Slag, beating away his savage strikes and scoring scratches into his armour. But Slag was strong, and rallying well he forced her back towards the wall.

Drinking a vial of Psycho Jet, the elixir she had been given by a witch from the Cambridge Institute of Thaumaturgy, Minh leapt over Slag's head onto the upper balcony. The mahogany shuddered beneath her boots, but it held, and she raised a hand alight with magic.

"Eat bottlecap mine, screwball!" roared Minh, and she threw her, um, arcane rune at Slag's feet. Mystic energy and the tops of around ten Nuka Cola bottles filled the chamber as Slag's armour was reduced to dust.

"Gaaahhhh!" Slag cried out in pain. "Such power...! You should have been mine, Minh. You should have been Forged! But I am lord of Saugus Ironworks, and only I will see the next dawn. Behold the true power of Lord Slag! Behold dragon fire!"

While Slag had been making his grand speech, Minh had been scampering down the walkways until she saw him directly overhead. She pulled from her bag a mystical staff of Lexingtonian make, the powerful Double-Barrelled Shotgun, and took aim at Slag's feet.

"&%£$ yeah! How d'you like them holes in your feet, asshole?!" Minh rejoiced. She could take no pleasure in vanquishing this great foe, for near him lay young Jake of Clan Finch, coughing his last few breaths with a footprint pressed deep into his chest.

"Jake..." Minh sighed. "Tough break, kid. I can't believe he trod on you!"

"Nor can... I..." groaned Jake, dying.

It was a solemn moment when Minh bent down over the body of her slain foe, his heart silent, his feet bleeding through their socks. Slowly, carefully, she untied Slag's belt from around his stout waist and took the Infernal Blade of Shish'kebab's asbestos sheath.

She picked up the discarded sword and sheathed it, cradling it in her hands for a moment before she slung it from her own laden belt. As Minh headed out of the castle, her footsteps echoing in halls now cold and silent, she thought only of the poor Finches, down one son, and how Abraham was probably going to want the Infernal Blade back before she'd even got to try it.

"I-I get to keep the sword?! Thank you, Todd!" squealed Minh, kissing Abraham on the lips.

"I-I'm not Todd! I'm Abraham!" gasped Abraham, furiously wiping his mouth.

"And he's married!" cried Abigail. "To me!"

"Oh, I know! Don't worry, I could never compete with you," Minh lied. "Sorry about your son, guys. I was... too late for him."

"Dear Jake... The pain of his loss will remain with us forever," sighed Abigail. "But know this, Sir Minh. Thanks to you, a dark cloud has lifted over the land today, and perhaps... Perhaps now someone else's son will keep his precious life. You and and your order have our gratitude."

"Will you stay for the night?" asked Abraham. "We have mead and Fancy Lads Snack Cakes, surely not the fare you are accustomed to, but..."

"I do believe I will." Minh smiled. "Thanks, Abraham, Abigail, and the other one. Give me a minute, I need to get my stupid horse watered..."

[winderlylandchime]

find the word wip game

I was tagged by @lostcol with these words: smile, grab, hungry, sweaty, happy   

I am using my QAF Brian/Justin WIP carried me with you (as a result some of this may already be published because I don’t have much written beyond what’s been posted…I’ll try to pick sentences that haven’t been posted yet but…)

smile: And that’s another thing I noticed. Sunshine wasn’t so shiney these days. He never made eye contact, he never flirted with the customers the way he used to, he never smiled that big smile. He looked almost as blank as Brian.

grab: “Ha,” Justin said, a bitter imitation of a bitter laugh. I set my glass down and turned around towards the refrigerator, pulled it open, and grabbed a bottle of water. I handed it to Justin as he continued. “It’s a pretty shitty dynamic.”

hungry: Debbie seemed to be there all those nights too. And, god, if she didn’t make it mean something. With her mournful eyes. With her hand on her heart. Sometimes a guy works late and is hungry and the diner is reliably open and serves reliably shitty food.

sweaty: Literally none, yet. I haven’t written most of the smut.

happy: “Crazy to think it’s been a year.” I swung him up and down again, and Lindsay reached over and tugged one of his socks back on his foot. She murmured her assent. “And to think, we could have been singing ‘Happy Birthday dear Abraham.’” I smirked at her.

I’m awful at tagging people but if you have a WIP and want to play, say I tagged you and use these words: beautiful, hand, open, serve, once

[tr0ubl3d-tr4n53nd3r]

Please vote. They need a leader and I'm not a leader.

[rosetyler42]

I feel this with Lucy and Simon mostly. Not only are they from a film often seen as cringe, but they're not only dhampirs but DRACULAS AND VAN HELSINGS. Lucy's very talented, charming, and vampire powered while Simon's a bit more the practical shy pragmatic braincell and secretly the most dangerous of the two. They both look like Wednesday and Pugsley but...that works for this series. Martha looks like Morticia, Drac kinda looks like Gomez in addition to the obvious Bela Legosi Vampire character. Mavis looks like Cartoon Lydia and Ericka looks like Debbie mixed with Olive Oyl, Pinky, and Betty Boop and is the great-granddaughter of legendary monstehunter Abraham Van Helsing. (And yes, some of Lucy's forms definitely have a little of Ericka's Pinky-ness in'em. Especially her bat form.)

No, your oc isn't too cringe or a Mary sue. Yes, it's completely fine that it looks similar to your other ocs. Yes it's completely fine that it looks similar to a Canon character design. No it's not uncreative. No the design isn't shitty. No the backstory doesn't have to make perfect sense or be all figured out. Yes it can be self indulgent or unrealistic or overly sappy. No you don't draw your favorite character too much. Yes you can flip flop between developing whatever characters you want. No you don't have to keep the parts of your character that you don't like or that make you uncomfortable just for the sake of consistency, realism or whatever else

[veale2006-blog]

AMERICA'S REAL PROBLEM Friday, November 1, 2024 Shalom, to you my Friend and Co-Minister in the Great Commission… Many Christians believe that if they can elect the right people, place into position the right Supreme Court justices, pass the right laws, they can save America. We should, by all means, vote and do all we can to impact our government. I am the first to encourage that. But that alone won't save America.

Though politics play an important part, America's problem is not ultimately political. It is not ultimately economic, and not even ultimately cultural.

America's problem is ultimately spiritual - and so only a spiritual answer can solve it. If we change laws but not hearts, then the unchanged hearts will, in time, change back the laws. We should seek to change unrighteous laws, but if we don't change hearts, we will lose everything in the end. The overturning of Roe V. Wade was momentous and by the hand of God. But without the overturning of hearts, people will seek abortion, if not one way, then another, if not in one state, then another, until they can overturn the overturning itself. A recent poll found that 66% of Americans oppose the total overturning of Roe V. Wade with 29% in favor. How long can that be sustained if hearts don't change.

According to another recent poll, the percentage of Americans who want to overturn the legalizing of gay marriage is 28%. The percentage in favor of legalized gay marriage was found to be around 70%. As for the more conservative, as in Republicans, the percentage was somewhere around 50%. Among young Americans, the percentage is even higher than 70%, but then about 1-in-5 to 1-in-4 young Americans now consider themselves LGBT in one form or another. With regard to America's future, it is that last percentage, that of the young, that will prove the most important. We must face the fact that we are living in a nation in a state of apostasy.

In the years 2016 to 2020, the American government was led by a Republican and conservative administration. And there were many accomplishments that conservatives and Christians could boast in - executive orders issued on behalf of life and religious liberty, the appointment of conservative Supreme Court justices, the Jerusalem Declaration, the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Abrahamic Accords, the recognition of Israel's sovereignty in the Golan Heights, and more.

But at the same time, America's spiritual, moral, and cultural decline, apostasy, and fall, did not stop. If anything the indoctrination of its children in the classroom, online, and in mass media, into the ways of immorality and godlessness only increased. If we don't change those things, we will not change America's trajectory - or its fall.

Electing a more godly or moral administration will not matter in the end, if there is no changing of hearts, no turning back to God, no revival. On the other hand, electing an ungodly or immoral administration will not matter in the end, even if we do change hearts, if the nation does turn back to God, and if true revival does come to America.

This month, let us now vote with our prayers, and fervently plead with God for revival. It is that only that can save this nation. And May God greatly bless you this month as you do!

Your sister and co-laborer in His love and service, Debbie

2 Chronicles 7:14 King James Version 14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. God appeared to Solomon that very night and said, “I accept your prayer; yes, I have chosen this place as a temple for sacrifice, a house of worship. If I ever shut off the supply of rain from the skies or order the locusts to eat the crops or send a plague on my people, and my people, my God-defined people, respond by humbling themselves, praying, seeking my presence, and turning their backs on their wicked lives, I’ll be there ready for you: I’ll listen from heaven, forgive their sins, and restore their land to health. From now on I’m alert day and night to the prayers offered at this place. Believe me, I’ve chosen and sanctified this Temple that you have built: My Name is stamped on it forever; my eyes are on it and my heart in it always. As for you, if you live in my presence as your father David lived, pure in heart and action, living the life I’ve set out for you, attentively obedient to my guidance and judgments, then I’ll back your kingly rule over Israel—make it a sure thing on a sure foundation. The same covenant guarantee I gave to David your father I’m giving to you, namely, ‘You can count on always having a descendant on Israel’s throne.’

[curtiscroachblog]

It's a walk of faith

Word for Today written by Bob and Debby Gass

Monday 28th October 2024

'We walk by faith, not by sight.' 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV

Impalas are one of the most powerful animals in Africa. They can leap to a height of more than ten feet and cover more than thirty feet in one jump. Yet the impala can be kept in an enclosure with a fence that's no more than three feet high. Why? Because it won't jump unless it can see where its feet will land. In a sense, impalas walk by sight, not faith.

What does it mean to 'walk'? To put one foot in front of the other and move forward a step at a time. What does it mean to have 'faith'? To trust the Lord, obeying his word regardless of how things look or feel. Now, faith doesn't do away with intelligent thought and reason. But there is a difference. When intelligent thought and reason won't take you another step, faith keeps right on going. Why? Because intelligent thought and reason hold the hand of a person and go only as far as they can travel, whereas faith holds the hand of God, the God who makes a way where there seems to be no way. That was Abraham's story: '[Urged on] by faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed and went forth to a place which he was destined to receive as an inheritance; and he went, although he did not know or trouble his mind about where he was to go' (Hebrews 11:8 AMPC).

Are you anxious about the future? Don't be; just take the next step of faith, and you'll be one step closer to the blessings and rewards God has in mind for you.

[wankerwatch]

Commons Vote

On: Passenger Railway Services Bill (Public Ownership) Bill: Second Reading

Ayes: 351 (96.6% Lab, 2.3% Ind, 0.8% Green, 0.3% SDLP) Noes: 84 (100.0% Con) Absent: ~215

Day's business papers: 2024-7-29

Likely Referenced Bill: Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill

Description: A Bill to make provision for passenger railway services to be provided by public sector companies instead of by means of franchises.

Originating house: Commons Current house: Commons Bill Stage: Committee of the whole House

Individual Votes:

Ayes

Labour (341 votes)

Abena Oppong-Asare Abtisam Mohamed Adam Jogee Adam Thompson Afzal Khan Al Carns Alan Campbell Alan Gemmell Alan Strickland Alex Baker Alex Ballinger Alex Barros-Curtis Alex Davies-Jones Alex Mayer Alex McIntyre Alex Norris Alex Sobel Alice Macdonald Alison Hume Alison McGovern Alison Taylor Alistair Strathern Allison Gardner Amanda Hack Amanda Martin Andrew Cooper Andrew Gwynne Andrew Lewin Andrew Pakes Andrew Ranger Andrew Western Andy MacNae Andy McDonald Angela Eagle Anna Dixon Anna Gelderd Anneliese Dodds Anneliese Midgley Baggy Shanker Bambos Charalambous Barry Gardiner Bayo Alaba Beccy Cooper Becky Gittins Bell Ribeiro-Addy Ben Coleman Ben Goldsborough Bill Esterson Blair McDougall Brian Leishman Bridget Phillipson Callum Anderson Calvin Bailey Carolyn Harris Cat Eccles Cat Smith Catherine Atkinson Catherine McKinnell Catherine West Charlotte Nichols Chris Bloore Chris Curtis Chris Elmore Chris Hinchliff Chris Kane Chris McDonald Chris Murray Chris Vince Chris Webb Christian Wakeford Claire Hazelgrove Claire Hughes Clive Betts Clive Lewis Connor Naismith Damien Egan Dan Aldridge Dan Jarvis Dan Tomlinson Daniel Francis Danny Beales Darren Jones Darren Paffey Dave Robertson David Baines David Burton-Sampson David Pinto-Duschinsky David Taylor David Williams Dawn Butler Debbie Abrahams Deirdre Costigan Derek Twigg Diana Johnson Douglas Alexander Douglas McAllister Ed Miliband Elaine Stewart Emily Darlington Emma Foody Emma Hardy Emma Lewell-Buck Emma Reynolds Euan Stainbank Feryal Clark Florence Eshalomi Frank McNally Fred Thomas Gen Kitchen Georgia Gould Gerald Jones Gill German Gordon McKee Graeme Downie Graham Stringer Grahame Morris Gregor Poynton Gurinder Josan Hamish Falconer Harpreet Uppal Heidi Alexander Helen Hayes Helena Dollimore Henry Tufnell Hilary Benn Ian Lavery Ian Murray Imogen Walker Irene Campbell Jack Abbott Jacob Collier Jade Botterill Jake Richards James Asser James Murray James Naish Janet Daby Jas Athwal Jayne Kirkham Jeevun Sandher Jeff Smith Jenny Riddell-Carpenter Jess Asato Jessica Morden Jessica Toale Jim Dickson Jim McMahon Jo Platt Jo Stevens Jo White Joani Reid Jodie Gosling Joe Morris Joe Powell Johanna Baxter John Grady John Healey John Slinger John Whitby Jon Pearce Jon Trickett Jonathan Brash Jonathan Davies Jonathan Hinder Josh Dean Josh Fenton-Glynn Josh MacAlister Josh Newbury Josh Simons Julia Buckley Juliet Campbell Justin Madders Kanishka Narayan Kate Dearden Kate Osamor Kate Osborne Katie White Keir Mather Kenneth Stevenson Kerry McCarthy Kevin Bonavia Kevin McKenna Kim Johnson Kim Leadbeater Kirith Entwistle Kirsteen Sullivan Kirsty McNeill Laura Kyrke-Smith Lauren Edwards Lauren Sullivan Laurence Turner Lee Barron Lee Pitcher Leigh Ingham Lewis Atkinson Liam Byrne Liam Conlon Lilian Greenwood Lillian Jones Linsey Farnsworth Lisa Nandy Liz Kendall Liz Twist Lizzi Collinge Lloyd Hatton Lorraine Beavers Louise Haigh Louise Jones Lucy Powell Lucy Rigby Luke Akehurst Luke Charters Luke Murphy Luke Myer Luke Pollard Margaret Mullane Maria Eagle Mark Ferguson Mark Hendrick Mark Sewards Mark Tami Markus Campbell-Savours Marsha De Cordova Martin Rhodes Mary Creagh Mary Glindon Matt Bishop Matt Rodda Matt Turmaine Matt Western Matthew Patrick Matthew Pennycook Maureen Burke Maya Ellis Meg Hillier Melanie Onn Melanie Ward Miatta Fahnbulleh Michael Payne Michael Shanks Michael Wheeler Michelle Scrogham Michelle Welsh Mike Amesbury Mike Kane Mike Reader Mike Tapp Mohammad Yasin Nadia Whittome Natalie Fleet Natasha Irons Naushabah Khan Neil Coyle Neil Duncan-Jordan Nia Griffith Nicholas Dakin Noah Law Oliver Ryan Olivia Bailey Olivia Blake Pam Cox Pamela Nash Pat McFadden Patricia Ferguson Paul Davies Paul Foster Paul Waugh Paula Barker Paulette Hamilton Perran Moon Peter Kyle Peter Lamb Peter Prinsley Peter Swallow Phil Brickell Polly Billington Preet Kaur Gill Rachael Maskell Rachel Blake Rachel Hopkins Richard Baker Richard Quigley Rosena Allin-Khan Rosie Wrighting Rupa Huq Ruth Cadbury Ruth Jones Sadik Al-Hassan Sally Jameson Sam Carling Sam Rushworth Samantha Dixon Samantha Niblett

Sarah Coombes Sarah Edwards Sarah Hall Sarah Jones Sarah Owen Sarah Russell Sarah Sackman Scott Arthur Sean Woodcock Seema Malhotra Shabana Mahmood Sharon Hodgson Shaun Davies Simon Lightwood Simon Opher Siobhain McDonagh Sojan Joseph Sonia Kumar Stella Creasy Stephen Doughty Stephen Timms Steve Race Steve Reed Steve Witherden Steve Yemm Sureena Brackenridge Tahir Ali Taiwo Owatemi Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi Tim Roca Toby Perkins Tom Collins Tom Hayes Tom Rutland Tonia Antoniazzi Tony Vaughan Torcuil Crichton Torsten Bell Tracy Gilbert Tristan Osborne Tulip Siddiq Uma Kumaran Valerie Vaz Warinder Juss Will Stone Yasmin Qureshi Yuan Yang Zubir Ahmed

Independent (8 votes)

Adnan Hussain Apsana Begum Ian Byrne Imran Hussain John McDonnell Rebecca Long Bailey Richard Burgon Zarah Sultana

Green Party (3 votes)

Adrian Ramsay Ellie Chowns Siân Berry

Social Democratic & Labour Party (1 vote)

Colum Eastwood

Noes

Conservative (84 votes)

Alan Mak Alberto Costa Alec Shelbrooke Alicia Kearns Alison Griffiths Andrew Bowie Andrew Griffith Andrew Rosindell Andrew Snowden Aphra Brandreth Ashley Fox Ben Obese-Jecty Blake Stephenson Bob Blackman Bradley Thomas Caroline Dinenage Caroline Johnson Charlie Dewhirst Claire Coutinho Danny Kruger David Davis David Mundell David Reed David Simmonds Desmond Swayne Edward Argar Gagan Mohindra Gareth Bacon Gareth Davies Geoffrey Clifton-Brown George Freeman Graham Stuart Greg Smith Gregory Stafford Harriet Cross Harriett Baldwin Helen Grant Helen Whately Jack Rankin James Cleverly Joe Robertson John Cooper John Glen John Hayes John Lamont John Whittingdale Julia Lopez Julian Lewis Katie Lam Kemi Badenoch Kieran Mullan Kit Malthouse Lewis Cocking Lincoln Jopp Louie French Mark Francois Mark Garnier Martin Vickers Matt Vickers Mel Stride Mims Davies Neil Hudson Neil Shastri-Hurst Nick Timothy Patrick Spencer Paul Holmes Peter Bedford Peter Fortune Rebecca Harris Rebecca Paul Rebecca Smith Richard Holden Robbie Moore Robert Jenrick Roger Gale Saqib Bhatti Sarah Bool Shivani Raja Steve Barclay Stuart Anderson Stuart Andrew Tom Tugendhat Victoria Atkins Wendy Morton