#FUMBLE HALL OF FAME

[littlewhispersmokesigns]

Alex Chilton + Lesa Aldridge

[hereticallyeverafter]

I know there's a whole meme about not having relationhip decay and how that's super common with NDs, something something emotional object permanence, etc.

It's cute if your friends are in on it and know to expect a phone call once a month.

It's not cute when you see an ex-friend and your heart skips a beat even though things ended badly, they claim not to even remember you (possibly valid for private reasons but idfk), they're a million miles away, and they feel absolutely less than than nothing about you. While you feel everything like it was yesterday.

You, a pleb: How bad could i- 10 YEARS AGO 💀

Also, don't worry, I am aware that ruminating isn't healthy, issa symptom luv. I'm not gonna, like, do or say anything weird, just venting. I know people need disclaimers these days 🤟

[sorceressofthesky]

"Fumbled a gay situationship so hard the bottom became a dictator" hall of fame

[cassandraclown]

Tony Khan simultaneously fumbling the Golden Lovers reunion, the signing of Kota Ibushi in general, and the pushing of both face and heel Takeshita needs to be studied. Hall of Fame level bag fumbling. Potential Top 10 Fraud of all time

[tinyozlion]

--The Gundam Wing Drinking Game! (*you don’t actually have to drink)--

Happy Eve War Armistice Day, everyone! As we all gather around the warmth of a flickering screen with friends, family, or discord buddies to celebrate the beginning of True Peace between Earth and the Space Colonies-- WHICH WILL SURELY LAST FOREVER-- why not play a little festive anime parlor game? This can be played with beverages, snacks, points, or the penalty/reward system of your choice!

THE CLASSICS— take ONE any time:

1) Someone shouts: "IT’S A GUNDAM!" or "THAT’S A GUNDAM!" 2) Magical Gundam Transformation Sequence 3) The BFG: the buster rifle beam canon does what it does best. 4) Relena Yells At The Clouds 5) "Omae o korosu!": Heero threatens to kill someone and then doesn’t. 6) THAT'S SO FETCH: Duo calls himself the God of Death or says one of his catchphrases. 7) BOOBY TRAPPED: Heavyarms fires its chest missiles. 8) SAFETY FIRST: Quatre wears his goggles. 9) GO-GO-GADGET: Wufei uses the dragon claw extendo-arm.

THE SPECIALS— take TWO whenever the following occurs: 1) A fruit or vegetable is given meaningful screen time. 2) Episode title is the opposite of what occurs in the episode. 3) VA Hall of Shame: a voice actor fumbles a line or really chews the scenery. 4) This Is Big Nose: An impossibly silly military call sign is used. 5) Someone with Special Eyebrows conveys normal information in a straightforward way. 6) FOUND FAMILY: The Maganac Corps shows up to save the day. 7) Bee-bee-bee-bee-bee-bee-bee!

SING ALONG AT HOME— you MUST CHANT whenever:

1) KAIJU SHOT! KAIJU SHOT! a mobile suit looms into view of a window and horrified onlookers. 2) CRAB! CRAB! CRAB! CRAB! any time you see a MS Cancer or its aquatic friend group. 3) CLOWN! CLOWN! CLOWN! CLOWN! any time you see a clown. 4) HEEEEEEROOOOOO: you know what to do. *Stackable with article 1 section 4. 5) PUSH THE BUTTON FRANK: an ominous button is pressed to devastating effect.

POUR ONE OUT— take TWO and go "Oooooo, YIKES!" whenever one of the following occurs:

1) Someone REALLY should have locked their mobile suit hatch. 2) One Day From Retirement: a hapless schmuck gets got immediately after giving the all clear. 3) A gross failure to correctly estimate the impact tolerance of gundanium alloy despite all documented evidence. 4) Heero takes it on the dome or otherwise hits the ground at speed. 5) Duo gets used as a punching bag. 6) The Bright Noah Special: someone gets slapped or hit in the face. 7) Brutality: A mobile suit makes direct lethal contact with a human target. 8) Red Card: a fencing move does damage to a person or their equipment. 9) The Can Opener: Something gets split in half by a beam or heat weapon. 10) Fuck This Thing In Particular: A mobile suit (or other vessel) self detonates-- *stackable with article 3 section 5. 11) Up-Skirt Shot: A mobile suit or its pilot gets an unflattering camera angle.

HALL OF FAME— FIRST ONE TO SPOT one of these gets a freebie:

1) BRAND NAME: shout the Improbable Brand Name™ featured on background signage or product. 2) QUICK CHANGE: A character somehow gets into or out of a space suit off screen with no indication how. 3) GOOD BOY ALERT: There's an animal on screen (end credits don't count). 4) THE FUTURE IS NOW: State of the Art 90's Tech in use. 5) IMPORTANT PERSON SITTING AT A DESK ON THE LEFT SIDE OF A ROOM WITH A LARGE WINDOW BEHIND THEM: An important person sits at a desk on the left side of an empty room with a large window behind them.

EXTRA CREDIT: SLAP THE TABLE and call "DID YOU KNOW" to win a chance to make the FRIEND OF YOUR CHOICE take a penalty-- IF:

1) You can correctly identify one of the main voice actors in a bit role. 2) You spot an easter egg or reference to something from Universal Century. 3) Space Physics Don't Work That Way: you can explain why physics don’t work that way in space. 4) Actually Physics DO Work That Way: you can explain the science or theories behind an element of space tech, tactics, or engineering. 5) You can name a real-world location used on a map or background shot.

Happy holidays, enjoy responsibly, and have fun! -Wesley, and to a lesser extent, Tinylion

[trapny]

Wrote a short story

Ah, Corwinne magical wizarding school.

A famed place of spells and sorcery. 

All of the greatest wizards and witches were graduates of this academy. Fludorn the great, Oxfin the good, Schomer the pretty alright, all walked these halls.

If the walls could speak, oh the stories they’d tell.

And if the walls could cry, they probably would. Because each one of those wizards died young. And that's the problem. 

That’s also where I come in.

I’m a new hire this year. They hired me as a teacher for a brand new, mandatory course that teaches no magic whatsoever.

“Welcome to the non-magic course.” I tell a full classroom of wizards and witches. “This is your ticket to survival.”

Most students are confused. The rest are far too pompous to even consider being confused.

“Sir, why do we have to participate in this course?” a young witch asks, his hand raised.

“So you brats don’t die like idiots. Next question.” I tell him.

“What will this course be teaching?” another student raises her hand.

“Basic self defense, and swordplay.” I answer.

“This is beneath me.” a particularly egotistical student mutters.

“That is exactly what Melsephone the Mage said before she was stabbed to death.” I say to him, before turning back to the rest of the class. “So. If you think this course is somehow ‘beneath you’, then you are exactly who it’s for.” I lean closer to the young boy who spoke out. “And if you choose not to give this course your all, you will not make it past 30.”

In response, the boy just mumbles something about his family’s status. I don’t particularly care for the whole wizard family hierarchy. 

“Any other questions?” I ask. The response is a sea of silence. “Excellent. Who wants to go first?” I ask, pulling a sword out of my scabbard.

Nobody raises their hand, except for one student with black hair and an expensive looking robe on. He looks like he thinks he’s important. 

“Well, come on up.” I tell him. “And bring that wand.”

He walks to the front of the class, an expensive looking wand in hand. We stand on opposite sides of the room, as though we are engaging in a magic duel. Although I have no wand.

“Now. I want you to use your magic and try to stop me.” I tell him. “3. 2. 1. Go.”

With long strides I casually walk towards him.

He casts fireball after fireball, directly at me. I deflect each one with my sword, sending them crashing into the wooden walls and floors. The other students scream and duck for cover as flaming orbs sail over their heads, exploding on the very flammable surroundings.

Craters burn around me and screams fill the air, I walk closer and closer to the increasingly desperate student. He keeps casting fireball like it’s all he knows. He starts fumbling with the pronunciation, sending flames everywhere.

With one swift motion, I slice his wand in half and press the sword against his neck, stopping the fireball casting.

“You have failed, and I have beheaded you.” I tell him, putting the sword back in the scabbard.

“You… you f-…y-you dolt! That wand was worth more than your entire salary!” the student spits.

“Oh calm down.” I pick up half of his wand from the floor and chant a simple spell. “crescere e ritornare.”

The tangled wood of the wand grows and latches onto the other half of it, pulling it out of the student’s hand. The wand pulls itself back together.

“See? Plant magic.” I tell him as I hand him the wand. “Good as new.”

“But… but…” the student stammers “it’s not in mint condition anymore, and-”

“Don’t care.” I interrupt him. “Besides. Fireball degrades the wand faster than any other spell. You should know that.”

I send the student, who’s still cradling his wand, back to his seat and repair the room with more plant magic.

“Now. Can anyone tell me why exactly he failed?” I ask the class as the craters close with thick, crawling branches of wood. Everyone's a little shell shocked. But one student raises her hand. I point at her.

“Is… is it because iron deflects most forms of magic?” she asks, her voice quiet and shy.

“Yes it is.” I nod. “Can anyone tell me what he should’ve done?”

Nobody raises their hands. They’re all a bit shaken up by the fireball rains. The same girl raises her hand again. I sigh and point at her.

“He… he should’ve… ran?” she speaks in an unsure tone.

“In most cases, yes. He should’ve ran.” I say, looking over the classroom. “However, this is an enclosed space. He didn’t have anywhere to run to.” I pace around the front of the room. “So… what should he have done instead?”

No hands are raised.

“I’m not moving on until I get an answer.” I say, looking around the room. 

The same girl from before raises her hand.

“You.” I point at her. “What’s your name?”

“Nuvera.” she answers.

“Nuvera, what do you think he should’ve done?” I ask her.

“... Plant magic?”

“Wrong. Anyone else?”

Someone else raises their hand. “Curses.” 

“Wrong.”

“Metallokinesis?”

“The blade is enchanted, and you’re all far too inexperienced to warp metal anyways.” I quickly respond. “Good guess though.”

“Well I guess I should’ve just died then.” the boy with the expensive robe and the now less expensive wand says.

“Correct.” I say. “You had zero course of action. You would have died. Just like Goric the wise.” 

Several students gasp at the mention of Goric, who was a well known and revered wizard. Speaking about his death in such a brazen way is considered highly disrespectful.

You may have gathered this already, but I don't really care.

“Goric died like an idiot. He was skewered and unceremoniously bled out.” I say, blatantly and purposefully drawing out the shock to hammer my point in. “For someone so ‘wise’ he notably didn't put much thought into basic defense. One anti-mana potion and he was completely defenseless. One stab, and he was dead. Like an idiot.”

I pause a moment letting the words sink in. The story of Goric is often told as a tragic and unfair tale. I doubt these students have ever heard it framed in such an… unflattering way.

“You, my students, will not die like idiots.” I say, breaking the silence. “That is what this class is. Understood?”

I watch several students nod.

“Excellent.” I sigh and turn to the chalkboard. “Lesson one: proper stance.”

And class began.

[seeking-elsewhither]

*climbing in through your window* Hey! I-- stop screaming it's just me-- I have. A work in progress. For you! Enjoy

-----------------------------

It was said that the stars in the heavens above the Galactic Archipelago cast such light to make the midnight as the noon. Yet this light, for all its fame, had never reached the white coral walls of the fortress at the bottom of the deeps. Night in Kamino meant nothing more than inky blackness in place of the day’s dark and endless blue. 

The lamps were long-since extinguished. Curfew had been thrice-rung from the great gong in the central turret. None but the few Kaminoan night-guards dared to set a foot in the lightless coral halls.

None, save the two identical youths who slipped down the corridor with silent feet and tangled fingers. 

“This is madness, you know,” hissed the younger into the elder’s ear. “If we get caught-”

“We won’t get caught,” his brother assured him, a laugh hidden (as it quite often was) in the hushed tones of his voice. “We’ve been planning this for weeks, and I did not commit the guardsmen’s schedules to memory for us to fail. We’ll be alright, vod.”

“Still.” Something stern and somber and more than a little afraid clouded his bright brown eyes. “I fear for our batch. I… worry they would punish us all for the one small defiance of two.”

The elder boy halted, just for a moment, still as a statue, before he pulled his brother into an alcove in the next hallway. His face, though obscured by the darkness, grew grave in a manner more befitting of a grown man than a lad of seven-fifteen, and he brought his hands to clasp the younger’s shoulders comfortingly.

“Vod,” he whispered. “You know I would not let them. You know full well that I would not ever desire to put my brothers in danger, and that if the danger came I would do anything to ensure the worst of it would fall to me.” One hand rose from a red-clad shoulder to cradle the face instead.

“But, my brother- you have not ever been a strong swimmer. I fear our minders do not favor you for this, though by your countless other merits you are more than deserving of far greater things than favor. Yet you are to be a soldier and a sailor- what good is a sailor who cannot swim? Were you to fall from the ship, you surely would drown, and–” His voice quavered with the hypothetical, before he swallowed and carried on, “–and it is for the prevention of this that we must make such a dangerous journey.”

His brother sighed in silence, and pulled himself from the embrace. “I know. But knowledge does not curb my fears.”

“It may well be that nothing can. Now, come, before someone finds us.”

*shrieking before I fumble for some semblance of "chill" as the kids say*

Oh, hey there, vod, totally expected to see you there, haha

Okay but in all honesty?

Jaw-dropping.

This?? Art, mate. Pure gold. Simply wonderful. Exquisite, lemme tell ya.

After the absolutely disappointing day I just had to deal with, this made me grin like a feral tooka.

Bets placed on Fives and Echo, but I'm so ready for this fic to be complete!

sniffling because brothers. sobbing because clone brothers.

weeping because they've never seen the stars.

For youuuu

[tweeterwilbury]

The '76 stills-young tour should be on the fumble hall of fame

[rustedpipe]

and when you guys talk about the fumble hall of fame can you include me in that as well. bob dylan, graham nash, stephen stills and cynth. if it's not too much trouble thanks guys

[lboogie1906]

Otis Sistrunk (September 18, 1946) is a former football player who played seven seasons as a defensive lineman (1972-78). He played his entire NFL career with the Oakland Raiders. He became a professional wrestler in the NWA.

He was born in Columbus, Georgia, and was one of the few NFL players of his day to not play college football, going directly from William H. Spencer High School in Columbus to the Marines. After leaving the military, the 21-year-old found work at a Milwaukee meat-packing plant and played two years of semi-pro football in the area for the West Allis Racers before joining the Norfolk Neptunes of the Continental Football League in 1969.

He played three years for the Neptunes (the last two in the semi-pro Atlantic Coast Football League after the CPFL folded); in 1971, a Los Angeles Rams scout spotted him and believed he could play in the NFL. During team practice, he was observed by representatives of the Oakland Raiders, who brought him to their team in 1972.

He was inducted into the American Football Association’s Semi-Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 1974. In 1976, playing under coach John Madden, he was part of the Raiders team that won Super Bowl XI against the Minnesota Vikings. He retired after the 1978 season, finishing his career with seven fumbles recovered and three interceptions in 98 games played.

After leaving football, he spent two years as a beer salesman. He was then approached about working with the Army as a civilian employee. He spent twelve years working at Fort Benning. He now manages Cowan Memorial Stadium at Joint Base Lewis-McChord and helps with athletic training programs.

He had a brief movie career, appearing as a short-order cook in Car Wash (1976) and the role in Babyface (1977).

His nephew Caesar Rayford, was a defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys. He is a distant cousin to former NFL player Manny Sistrunk. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[justjarminsports]

Josh Allen and Bills beat the 49ers in Snowy conditions, clinching fifth straight AFC East title.

Photo Credit: AP; Adrain Kraus.

By BenJarmin Munguia

Date: December 2nd 2024.

It was a winter wonderland for the Buffalo Bills and Bills fans everywhere.

Buffalo Bills once again dominated a football game, this time in lake-effect snowy conditions. The snow was too much for the San Francisco 49ers, who lost 35-10 and stayed in last place in the NFC West. 

The 49ers struck first on their opening drive with a 33-yard field goal from Jake Moody, but that was it, as the Bills answered back with running back Ray Davis scored on a 5-yard touchdown, giving the Bills their first lead of the night 7-3.

In the second quarter, the Bills took advantage of Moody's missed field attempt and answered on the next play. James Cook scored on a 65-yard touchdown run, giving the Bills a 14-3 lead. Josh Allen found Mack Hollins in the endzone just before the half, giving Buffalo a 21-3 lead at halftime.

Josh Allen was on the record books for tonight. In the third quarter, he completed a pass to Amari Cooper, who then lateraled back to Allen to score on a 7-yard touchdown reception. He would then run one in the fourth quarter, becoming the third player in 2005 to run, throw, and catch a touchdown pass all in one game. 

Allen also passed Hall of Fame and legendary quarterback Jim Kelly for most touchdowns in franchise history with 245, 

Allen completed 13 of 17 passes for 148 yards and two passes touchdowns, carrying the ball 3 times for 18 yards and a touchdown, and finally, catching his pass (from Amari Cooper) for a touchdown. 

Jame Cook ran 14 times for 107 yards and a critical 65-yard touchdown.

The 49ers were absolutely brutal tonight. They fumbled their way through the night.  Kyle Juszczyk fumbled at the Bills' one-yard line, which the Bills recovered. Deebo Samuels coughed up the ball while returning a kickoff, and Brock Purdy fumbled early in the fourth quarter. 

Brock Purdy completed 11 of 18 passes for 94 yards, but he was sacked twice for 8 yards. The total passing yards were 86, the lowest since the 2023 NFC Championship game vs. the Philadelphia Eagles when the team finished with 84 passing yards.

Jordan Mason filled the void for McCaffery, rushing for 78 yards on 13 carries, 

Christian McCaffrey suffered a knee injury in the second quarter. According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, 49ers head coach  Kyle Shanahan said it was a PCL injury that could end his season.

The Bills clinched their fifth straight AFC East title with five weeks left in the season, a feat not accomplished since the 2009 Indianapolis Colts.

The Bills move to 10-2 and look for more wins as they fly across the country to play the Los Angeles Rams, where there will be no snow. Meanwhile, the banged-up 49ers, who dropped to 5-7, look to snap their three-game losing skid as they play the Chicago Bears, who are also on a long losing skid.

[listedbuilding]

does anyone have that fumble hall of fame post with joan baez judy collins and joni mitchell? thinking of it rn picturing it so beautifully in my mind

[alixinwwonderland]

“It’s lonely here without you.”

one "make s5 all go away, just in case" fic, coming right up!

She sees a stranger, a dark-haired man in a trench coat, walking down the street, just before she steers herself into Susie's office and perches herself on a chair, hoping to get that reminder out of her head.

It's lonely here without you.

She can't help thinking it. She hasn't been able to stop thinking it since that bittersweet, all-too-brief conversation at the airport. She hadn't realized, before, that it would be lonely without him around, without even the possibility of running into him at some club or bar or street corner, as if by some magic from the realm of the meant-to-be. It's a lot harder for a sneak attack to happen when it would require a transcontinental flight.

A faint curse from the opposite seat snaps Midge out of her reverie. She looks up to see Alfie fiddling with something - a mirror, maybe, or a deck of cards?

"Everything okay there, Alfie?" she asks. He looks up, seemingly surprised to see her there.

"I just... this trick... why won't it... See, I'm supposed to move my hands like this, and then—"

Alfie fumbles his prop, and Midge's world tilts on its axis.

She meets with Susie, then heads home. Nothing seems out of the ordinary, not now, nor when she gets up the next morning, or the days or months after that.

She goes to work, and works at Gordon's show day after day, making friends and gaining fame along the way, even while she keeps up with her own standup.

She supports Joel with Mei gone. She gets on a boat. She falls off a boat. She fights with Susie. She makes up with Susie. She fights with her parents. She makes up with her parents. She kisses a man. She runs away from a man.

She gets older.

She plays Carnegie Hall. She has her own show. She gets the worst news she's ever heard and cries until she doesn't think she can ever cry again. She does a major photoshoot in the ugliest outfit she's ever seen.

She gets older.

She's on TV. She's on stages across the country and around the world. She's in California and briefly thinks of him. She's everywhere. She's at the Friar's Club. She's got a mansion. She's getting interviewed.

She gets older.

An office slams into view around her.

"Alfie, what the fuck was that?!" Susie shouts, banging around the corner and looking like... well, like Midge probably looks about now. Midge doesn't quite hear what Alfie says; her own heartbeat pounding in her ears is the only thing she hears. She can't help it, touching her face (still smooth), her hair (still bouncy), her clothes (still gorgeous) to check that decades haven't actually passed since she was last sitting there, that everything is right.

Everything isn't right, though.

"I gotta go," she hears herself saying, pushing herself up out of her seat and towards the door. Before she gets all the way out, she darts back and plants a kiss on Alfie's cheek.

"What was that for?" he asks, a little more dazed than usual.

"I think you know," she says. She looks at Susie, who gives her a single, sharp nod. Alfie thinks for a moment, then offers his strange, sweet smile.

"It wasn't on purpose," he adds.

"The best things in life usually aren't," Midge says as she heads out the door with plans she needs to tweak and a phone call she needs to make.

[shakespeareanbonnet]

why didn’t i get that hot butch’s whatsapp or instagram or anything. i am such a idiot. i have fumbled so hard its going in the hall of fame

[mamalolo24]

Happy For GP, But...

As a fan of Glen's, I'm happy for the Hall of Fame Induction, the laundry list of new projects, the summer of Glen with Hit Man, Twisters and his Blue Angels documentary, and, of course, waking up this morning to the Vanity Fair article with those gorgeous pictures.

That having been said, there's something about this guy that makes me feel like he lives his life dodging bullets; there's a "you can't hit them moving target" vibe about him.

First, there was this pretense that the break up with Gigi was some kind of shock. Anyone who watched the 2023 Golden Globes saw the two GPs giving phony, Hollywood smiles to the camera while looking uncomfortable when the lenses weren't flashing. Gigi in particular had this anywhere-but-here look on her face. She was supposed to go to Australia with Glen (she posted on IG then took it down) and then backed out, but I guess her agents had set up a job for her that she was too professional to back out of. She never visited him on set as reported, and there was that "picking her up from the airport with the flowers that she refused to take" fiasco and then he didn't see her again until the night before she left when apparently they decided to break up for good. The whole "know you're worth video" thing was because after three years together, she wanted a ring and he didn't. He chose his career over her and she literally and figuratively walked away. He said in an interview, he was trying to make sense of the whole thing. What was there to make sense of it was pretty obvious.

Then he "leaned in" to the relationship, rumors then talked about how having people talking about his personal life on social media really bothered him, and yet he kept leaning in.

Then he got the dog which seemed like nothing more than a major distraction.

Then during the strike there was all the vacationing, traveling for endorsement deals, partying, followed by post-strike never-ending ABY promoing/leaning into the rumors with SS with a denial chaser.

Now he's moved back to Austin, but a few months ago in a Cosmo interview, he'd just moved to NYC and was setting up his apartment. But he actually lives nowhere because he's traveling to wherever his next project is shooting.

Yet he says he wants what his parents have and wants kids but wants to work back to back projects.

Following this man's life used to be interesting and fun. Now I have whiplash and a headache.

FYI: Gigi has lost more IG followers. Think she's figured out her worth without Glen. After the breakup, more than one person accused him of "fumbling the ball" by letting her go. I think she's the one who fumbled.

[lazaruspiss]

Historia Strigidae: Part 3/7

A Note on the Waynes

While the Waynes are doubtless considered a Founding Family of Gotham City, they have never been members of the Court. Instead, the Waynes and the Court are two sides of a coin: One representing the stick while the other, the carrot. Given the similarity of our aim, one would think that the Waynes would be among our staunchest supporters, but they lack vision, and more importantly, the courage to do what is necessary in the name of progress.

Many members of the Court look down on the Waynes for the gaudiness with which they flaunt their philanthropy, basking in the glory of their public fame, while we do the true labor of greatness in obscurity. Others despise them for their myopic view of Gotham City's future, and more still for how they blindly interfere with our machinations. While we weave a meticulous tapestry across Gotham City's history, the Waynes fumble about, making a nuisance of themselves. Most recently, delaying construction of our Great Hall by funding a transit line that barrels through real estate we had intended to use.

Through my research into the Court, I have learned that whatever the Court's spoken misgivings about the Waynes, it amounts to little more than pageantry as once a generation, the Court reaches out to the family's patriarch in hopes of finally securing their membership. Thrice we have extended our hand and thrice has it been rebuffed.

While I have seen these pursuits as a waste of time, others seem to think the Waynes have a special role to play in Gotham City's future. I cannot help but wonder how long they can stand apart from the Court before patience wears thin and they are seen as a problem to be solved.

A Note on the Waynes

Handwritten on the back of the page:

I must be mistaken, but I swear I have been followed these past few days. I feel lingering eyes upon me when I go about my daily affairs, and my keen ears have heard footsteps traveling in lock step with my own, an attempt to hide one's presence. Surely the Court does not question my loyalty? One can be loyal to a cause while also questioning the methods with which we pursue it. Nay, I dare posit that true allegiance to a cause demands considered dissent. Blind, unquestioning loyalty is for dogs, not owls.

No. This is the work of an errant member of the Court. An act of intimidation, perhaps, to silence me on an issue they stand opposite. Several candidates for such childishness immediately come to mind. I must narrow the suspect pool and bring this matter to the Court's attention. Such actions are beneath our membership, and the perpetrator will be reprimanded with haste.

Voice of the Court

Once the Court grew its numbers, leadership became mandatory to prevent stagnation and infighting. To that end, the Court created the Voice of the Court, a position elected by Court members to speak for the Court as a whole and to make final decisions on matters voted on by the Council.

A keen eye can track the history of the Court through those elected as Voice, as their leadership styles often define the Court during their tenure. It is with these appointments that our descent into pedestrian barbarism can be tracked. If a Voice of the Court has a taste for blood, we turn from dignified Owls to haggard vultures, picking away at Gotham City's carcass for our own benefit, rather than guarding and guiding it, as has been our intent. A Voice can be recalled by the Council, but doing so is rare, and not without great difficulty. The Council is made up of revered members of the Court, and so their decisions command respect. Voices of dissent such as my own are therefore a rarity.

The Council

While the Voice of the Court stands as a figurehead and leader to the Court, one could argue that the true power resides within the Council: 24 members of the Court who discuss and vote on matters that affect the entire membership. While the Voice can, with discretion, overrule the Council, the Council has the power to recall the Voice. Such an arrangement encourages careful consideration of one's election into either position and values respect and cooperation among the highest ranking of the Court. For the Court to prosper, infighting must be dissuaded.