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fantasy2739 · 4 years ago

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Hi! Fic request for Douxie and his parents? Is he orphan? Was he abandoned? What do you think? (It could be based in the 21 century as a memory or in the 12, your choice) I read the others, they’re very good!

Sorry this took a while, but I’ve written it. You got flashback! Thank you for reading the others I’m glad you like them.

I went with abandoned Douxie because I think it’s more. Angst.

Here it is, a bit long:

After everything that had happened, Douxie wasn’t allowed to just take Nari and fly away. Claire insisted that at the very least he rest and pack for the journey. Douxie had tried to argue but was shot down by everyone reminding him he had technically just died and could barely walk five feet. Ha agreed, only to stop their pestering. They went to the Lake house, Krel steering the ship, while Steve had to help Douxie walk. Jim took a deep breath before knocking. Strickler answered, looking ready to stab anything that moved. Douxie could understand that, given the recent alien invasion and even more recent ship falling from the sky. Strickler stares at the now re-fleshed Jim in shock.

“Barbara!” He called, before sweepings his gaze over the rest of them. “You’d better come in.” They stumbled into the house. A loud crash told Douxie that Krel had found somewhere to park. The blue boy came hurrying in.

“Sorry I’m still trying to get the hang of it.” He said sheepishly. Steve lowered Douxie onto the sofa, where he flopped uselessly, while Nari hopped around to sniff everything.

“Oh Jim.” Barbara said weakly, having just arrived at the foot of the stairs. She pulled Jim into a tight hug and Jim was hugging her back just as hard. She pulled away and stroked her son’s face. “It’s good to see you.”

“And no longer troll either.” Jim said. Barbara smiled but shook her head.

“I wouldn’t care what form you came in.” She said. “I’m just happy to see you.”

“I’ve been calling and texting.” Jim defended.

“It’s not the same.” Barbara said, finally seeming to notice everyone else. “Walt, call the other parents. You can tell us everything when they arrive. I’ll look you all over.” She greeted Toby and Claire with a hug and Blinky and Aaargh got smiles. “Who’s the worst?” Several eyes fell on Douxie, making him duck his head. Barbara day next to him after grabbing the first aid kit.

“Good to see you again, Dr. Lake.” Douxie greeted, flashing his most charming smile.

“Douxie right? From the cafe?” She asked and he nodded, trying not to jostle his injuries too much. She was frowning as she checked him over. “You’re badly injured.”

“He fell.” Tony answered the unasked question for him. Claire rolled her eyes.

“Yeah only a few thousand feet.”

“From that height you should be...” Barbara trailed off.

“Dead.” Douxie supplied. “Decided I didn’t like it so I came back. Wizard.” He added.

“A wizard? Like Merlin?” Barbara said coldly. Everyone cringed while Douxie tried not to sob.

“Sort of. I’m no where near as powerful.” Douxie managed.

“I dunno Teach. You manage okay.” Claire said with a warm smile. Archie cleared his throat.

“Douxie was Merlin’s apprentice, now he’s a master wizard in his own right.” Archie nuzzled Douxie. “Merlin died recently to protect us.” Barbara blinked at the talking cat but gripped Douxie’s hands.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” She said, letting them lap into silence.

When the other parents arrived, Nana, Claire’s parents and Coach Lawrence, the kids launched into the story. Douxie didn’t say much except for his fight with Bellroc and Skrael, which he tried to downplay. The adults were hugging their children, leaving Douxie feeling... lonely. He felt a pang of longing. They were all so close and he was just an intruder. No one noticed him slipping into the back garden. Everything hurt. Not just physically. The toll of losing his mentor, his keepsakes. Of dying. It was hitting him hard. He wanted so badly for someone to hold him. At 919 he shouldn’t need parental comfort but he did. And Merlin had been the closest thing to a parent he’d ever known. He wasn’t the best but he’d at least tried. He’d been a scrawny ten when his magic had shown up properly, leaving his parents to only look at him with distaste.

Douxie didn’t want to keep carrying his father’s cloths. He wanted to go and play.

“On the bench Hisirdoux.” His father told him absently, trying to find a dropped stitch. “There’s more by the door.”

“Can I go play after?” He asked.

“No. There’s more work to do.” Douxie tried not to pout. He wanted to go and explore. He’d felt something the last time he’d been out exploring. Something different. Exciting. Freeing. Not that he’d tell anyone. He wasn’t stupid, different was bad. Douxie scrunched up his nose at the next batch of cloth. He wished it would just fly to wherever. That would be quicker. He didn’t expect it to actually start floating, encased in a lovely sky blue.

“What the!” His father yelled, startled by the sudden floating cloths. “Stop that. You... you... stop that right now.” Douxie didn’t know how to. He didn’t understand why his father was so angry. The floating cloths weren’t hurting anyone. His mother came in.

“Is everything...” She trailed off at the sight of levitating clothing. “He... he has magic?” Douxie blinked at his mother, trying to see if she was angry. She didn’t seem angry. Just cold.

“What are we going to do with him?” His father asked, low and panicked. His mother seemed to mull it over, giving her son the coldest look he’d ever seen.

“He’ll have to go.” She said eventually. Douxie’s eyes widened.

“Mother?” He asked uncertainly.

“Don’t!” She snapped. “You... you have magic. You’re dangerous. You’ll put us in danger.”

“No I won’t!” Douxie exclaimed. “I won’t Mother.” She shook her head, muttering.

“Abomination of my flesh. Evil sullying my own blood. We’ll be killed for harbouring a mage.”

“Leave.” His father said. “Pack up and leave or we’ll call the guards.” At that Douxie squeaked. He knew what the guards were like. They got mad if you played in the wrong part of town. He’d be thrown in some dark dungeon. He ran to his room and grabbed what little he could fit in a bag. His mother shoved him out the back door.

“Don’t come back.” She warned, ignoring the tears in her only sons eyes. “You are no longer my child.”

“Douxie?” Jim called, waving a hand in front of his face. Douxie jumped back.

“Sorry mate. A million miles away.” He said, flopping onto a rock. “Something wrong?”

“I could ask you the same question.” Jim said, sitting next to him. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Douxie insisted. Jim raised an eyebrow and damn those blue eyes. “Just thinking about my parents.” Jim frowned before looking back to his house with dawning realisation.

“I’m sure they’d be proud of you.” He said. Douxie managed not to snort.

“Doubt it.” He muttered. Jim’s frown deepened and Douxie knew he’d have to explain. “When my magic turned up. Well you saw Camelot. People aren’t fond of it. So they sent me away.” Sent away sounded so much better than kicked out.

“They didn’t have magic?” Jim asked. He must have thought it was hereditary. “Maybe they just wanted you to be with someone who knew about magic.” Douxie didn’t reply, staring at the night sky intently.

“Go back inside Jim.” Douxie said, managing to sound his 900 years. “Your mother has missed you.” Jim stood up, giving Douxie a squeeze on the shoulder before heading in. Douxie felt a tear fall. He tried not to hate that there would be no more pats from Merlin. No hugs, pride, telling him how well he’d done. In the dark, Douxie wept.

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honeydewjoongg · 5 years ago

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early-morning confessions [j.yh]

(the gif is perfect for this holy crap)

Genre: bestfriend!yunho, (best) friends to lovers, FLUFFY AS A CLOUD HOLY-

Word count: 919

Summary: You’re woken up at 4am by a cryptic text from your best friend, but sadly, all does not go as you hoped it would... or does it?

Warnings: please see a dentist after this tooth-rotting fluff

A/N: Well... this was originally supposed to just be a short time stamp, but I got a little carried away. So here we are. I’m actually really happy with how this turned out, so I hope you enjoy!

[3:36am] Puppy Boy: Hey, can you meet me at the convenience store on the corner? Quickly, it’s important

The buzzing of your phone woke you up. With a groan, you rolled over with every intention of silencing the device when you saw the text. Your eyes widened and you shot up and out of bed. Stumbling around your room muttering worriedly, you pulled on some sweatpants and your favorite hoodie. Once sufficiently dressed, you slipped on some slides and grabbed your keys from the kitchen of your apartment. You wrapped a scarf around your neck and face before you walked out into the icy winter wind.

It was a cold December night, and the streetlights illuminated the swirling snowflakes as they were blown around the downtown street. It would have been quite beautiful had you not been worried so much. It had to be serious if he called you out this late – or early, rather. Once you rounded the corner, you saw the light from the 24-hour convenience store. Sure enough, the silhouette of your best friend could be seen in the window and suddenly you were running towards the door. Nearly slipping, you caught yourself on the handle and yanked it open, blowing into the shop along with the wind and snow.

“Yunho! What’s wrong…?” You trailed off, seeing your best friend smiling with two steaming bowls of ramen.

“Hey! Come over away from the door, you’ll get a cold.” He grinned, motioning you over to sit beside him.

“What is this? I thought you said it was important.” To say you were a little frustrated was an understatement.

“It is important,” He whined, “Ramen is very important.”

“Yunho.” Your voice was stern. His smile slowly dropped, and he turned back to his food. You could tell that he was upset, but you were frustrated!

“Yunho, don’t be upset. I was worried, okay?” You sighed.

“Why?” He mumbled, picking at his ramen with his chopsticks.

“Why? You woke me up at 4am with a cryptic message telling me to meet you because it was ‘important’. What was I supposed to think?” You didn’t mention what you’d hoped, deep in your heart of hearts: that your best friend, who you’d loved since you were six, would finally confess to you. No, that would be a mistake. You could never tell him.

“I-I just wanted a reason to see you…that’s all.”

With your heart breaking in two, you sat beside him. Without a word, you unwound your scarf, took your bowl of ramen and a pair of chopsticks, and began eating. Maybe if you had enough sodium, your unwanted feelings of heartbreak and disappointment would go away. It wasn’t Yunho’s fault, after all. It was yours. You didn’t notice that you were crying until Yunho leaned down to look into your eyes with a sound of surprise. Tenderly, his fingers wiped away the tears as he stuttered out apologies.

“S-sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean to make you cry. I-I love you so much.”

You two had often exchanged the words before, casually, platonically, but it sounded different this time. You looked up at him slowly, eyes wide. Could it be… does he….?

“I-I really mean it,” He was still rambling, “I love you.” He laughed wryly, shaking his head. “I know I’m ruining our friendship by saying this, and I know you’ll say ‘Oh, we can still be friends,’ but I don’t know… I don’t know how we could still be friends-”

“Yunho…” You whispered, still in shock. He continued his ramble.

“Call me selfish, but I don’t think I could survive seeing you with someone else-“

“Yunho.” Your voice was louder this time.

“I mean, I want you to be happy, so of course I’ll support you, but I think I’d have to take a break to collect myself-“

“Yunho!”

“Because I really, truly and honestly mean it, Y/N, I love you. And I know you don’t think- mmph”

You’d finally had enough, grabbing the collar of his shirt and yanking him towards you to shut his mouth with your own. For a few seconds, he’d been frozen, blinking owlishly in shock, before his lips finally began to move against yours. After a few moments, you pulled away, taking in his flushed and still-shocked face.

Gingerly, he lifted his fingers to his lips, “H-how long have you-“

“Since we were six, Yunho.” You smiled softly, heart soaring.

“Oh. Okay.”

You giggled at his response, clearly able to see that he was still stunned by the unexpected turn of events. Shaking your head fondly, you turned back to your ramen. For a few minutes, the only sounds were the wind, the pelting of ice crystals against the window, and you slurping up the last of your ramen. Suddenly, just after you’d swallowed the last of the spicy broth, you were spun around and backed up against the counter, Yunho’s lips on yours as he kissed you with bruising intensity. You let out a surprised sound but recovered quickly, wrapping your arms around his neck to bring him closer. For what seemed like forever, you lost yourself in your best friend.

Finally, you both pulled away, gasping for air. Yunho’s eyes were sparkling, and his face was flushed. Not from shock this time, though.

“You taste really good.” He breathed.

“Oh-?”

“Like ramen.”

The laugh that exploded from you actually scared the boy, causing him to jump back with a startled yelp. That only caused you to laugh harder.

“You’re such a dork.” You giggled, turning to sit back down.

“Yeah, but I’m your dork.”

#Yunho #ateez #ATZ #ateez fluff #ateez scenarios #ateez fic #ateez imagines #yunho fluff #ateez yunho #kpop fic #kpop #kpop scenarios #kpop imagines #ateez imagine #yunho fics #yunho scenarios #yunho imagines #fluff #honeydewjoong

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sparda3g · 6 years ago

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One Piece Chapter 919 Review

It must feel good for Luffy to be the savior of the leftover town. After exploring the piece of the country, it’s time to head over the gravesite that was once a castle. Will Luffy encounter a ghost or something strange? In One Piece, the latter is always the case. This was an interesting chapter that goes beyond than what you believe and I do mean “beyond.”

As mentioned in my last review, it appeared the arc is closing, but in reality, it’s closing one part of the big arc. Case in point, the chapter starts off by concluding the crisis at Okobore and that includes with Tama; at least for the time being. It’s a good thing Luffy encountered Speed along the way, because not only they have a new ride, but a possible new comrade. Like an actual horse, she’s loyal to the one that tamed her and Tama did just that in the last chapter. Useful skill indeed.

Luffy borrows her “dog” and they bid farewell. Also, he’s going to hold on the sword for a little longer, so the idea of curse can still come in play at any time. I can’t say we will get to see him using the sword for once, but you never know with Oda’s intention. The farewell was charming, so I was left feeling good. Kind of sweet how Speed also feel good about the scene. Another good feel moment is the townspeople thanking Luffy for saving them. It seriously feels like the arc just ended. Law is bitter about pirates being kind, which is funny coming from a doctor. Oh well, Luffy did a good thing.

After a part of an arc concluded, the next destination is the gravesite. Kiku continues to pull her acting skills to the test, avoiding the actual reason to go to the site with others. She has been weird throughout the arc so far, considering how her persona shifts back and forth multiple times. She acts like an innocent poor helpless woman, but then she becomes a strong Samurai. What gives? Her mind bubbles does give a hint of her actual intention as well as associating with Kouzoki Clan. Zoro knows she’s hiding something, so it’s only matter of time.

There’s a scene that at first glance, it seems a bit unnecessary, but by the end, it does hold a value in narrative perspective. However, you can still see it as a world building interest and it certainly caught my attention. The kids in school at the Flower Capital are taking history lessons, but every lesson is fouled by corrupted and despicable manner. Take Open Country for example; apparently, it’s considered evil because people outside would like to share ideas within the border. This must be Trump’s dream.

It’s awful how the children are celebrating the ruler Kurozumi Orochi as their savior that slayed the so-called tyrant, evil Samurai, who of course is referring to Kouzoki. It’s rather creepy how the teacher is a snake-like being. It basically means the school system has it lockdown to threaten the children if they were to go against it. This is Attack on Titan all over again. It’s interesting to note that Orochi is a two blade style user, so I can expect really cool display when he battles. It’s also worth noting that Kouzoki Clan were slayed 20 years ago. Hm…

There’s another scene that takes place elsewhere, but this holds value right from the start. Come to think of it, it does continue off from the school session, so by this point, that scene doesn’t seem unnecessary anymore. Anyway, the interest lies on what Kyoshiro said about 20 years ago. It’s not only the time where the “tyrants” were slayed, but it was also the time where Oden’s wife was on her last stand and supposedly, placed a curse upon the Shogun.

The curse supposedly will activate in 20 years, which is today, and Shogun will be taken down by 9 Samurai. They will also open the country to the world outside, which is odd timing since Luffy is slowly making it into reality. If we take that curse into consideration, who will be the 9 Samurai? I assume with Luffy holding the sword for the time being, he’s part of the philosophy. Zoro can count as well, so we are left with others to think over. Of course, you can say it’s the whole Strawhats since there are 9 members, but something tells me that’s not the idea, especially when you consider the ending, which we will get to that very soon.

I should address the elephant in the room. If you have been following me and read my last review, you’ll notice that I made a mistake about the gravesite. I didn’t think about the fact the names on the tombs are the same characters back at Zou. This world is so vast, it somehow flew over my head. Instead of thinking about the chances of ghosts appearing, I should be thinking of why they’re confirmed dead. I am a shame of myself. I will now commit seppuku…

…No. I want to see the series’ end…whenever that may be…

I find it hilarious when Luffy arrives at Oden Castle, he was dumbfounded that the castle is not there. He was told already that it’s in ruins; what part of ruins he did not get. He was easily convinced that the characters he met back at Zou could be dead and their tombs confirmed it. His logic in this arc has been killing me. It’s even funnier when Law doesn’t ease the mood with his ominous words, which gives an impression that they are dead and ghosts will arrive at night. If they were, I wouldn’t look like a fool in my last review then.

Of course, Kin’emon and others are alive. Funny how Luffy accused Law to be a liar, even though he didn’t say anything about them being dead. I will blame him for using incredibly vague words. Kin’emon will arrive at night because he has a diarrhea and he most likely come out of the bathroom at night. What a troll, but I’ll forgive for making me laugh a lot. Oda loves to troll the fans, so there’s no ghosts. Right?

Kiku dashes straight towards Kin’emon; obviously means she has a special attachment with him. Loyalty doesn’t seem the best way to describe it. It does explain why she was so worried about the possibility of Luffy and others are up to no good. Momo is also there, only he has been practicing on wielding a sword. Very interesting; does he count as part of 9 Samurai? I wonder.

If you somehow thought it’s taking too long for Strawhats from Thousand Sunny to be reunited, even though it’s done for narrative purposes to dive in the world building, then good news, everyone. Sanji, Nami, Chopper, Carrot, and Brook have returned. Although I was patient, it does feel damn good to see them together again. We’re only missing Robin, Franky, and Usopp now. As for Law’s crew, they’re missing Bepo. Why? Because he has diarrhea. Is this going to be a diarrhea arc? It won’t be, but perhaps something “beyond.”

Wano Country was looking to be a pretty straightforward arc and that’s perfectly fine. Shogun and Kaido are monsters, Luffy and his crew go there to save the country, and Kouzoki Clan will be redeemed. There’s a shocking revelation to add onto it. Kin’emon, Momo, Kiku, Raizo, and Kanjuro are not from this time; they came from the past. How far back? 20 years ago. I believe I did enough references, so I’ll stop myself. Aside from that, well, that’s something I didn’t expect.

I know One Piece’s world is vast and filled with crazy/whacky possibilities, but time traveling hasn’t occurred until now. It does explain why Kiku speaks with old formal Samurai language. Is that why she was hiding to avoid conflict with the “future?” It also explains how they’re considered “ghosts.” They’re determined dead yet they didn’t live through normal pace; they jumped 20 years later. Was it Oden’s wife that sent them? How they jumped time? This can be tricky, considering time travel subplot can get messy. I’ll trust Oda to get the job done.

This was a pretty interesting chapter with a shocking revelation. Many segments are connected and adding altogether reveal many new information that has increased my interest. There were good feel moments in the beginning as well. The artwork is clean and the outlook of other locales greatly displayed the corruption of the country’s system. The time travel can be done great, so long it is kept minimum or put a lot of thoughts to it. Who knows. Maybe it’s just this moment, and I’ll be fine with that. What future lies ahead for all?

#one piece #chapter 919 #review #spoilers

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simplyy-imagine · 7 years ago

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Draco Malfoy x Reader: “Lovers’ Quarrel”

Idea: The reader and Draco have been fighting since she accidentally brought up the fact that they were dating, which causes Draco to be mean to her and they break up, though they eventually reconcile. Requested by anon.

Author’s Note: For some reason I had a lot of difficulty writing this prompt, which is why it took me so long, anon. You said the ending was of my choosing, so obviously I chose fluff. I hope you like it.

Word Count: 919

It had started off so simple; passing notes in class, late night meetings in the Room of Requirement, “study” sessions in the library. You had welcomed his attention, his affections; you hadn’t minded a bit of secrecy. Hell, you still didn’t. After all, it wasn’t like you wanted him to bring you home for Christmas dinner. You just wanted him to acknowledge to his friends—hell, to anyone—that you two were dating. It didn’t seem to you too much to ask.

You told Draco that you had informed a close friend of yours of your plans to go to Hogsmeade together this weekend. His entire disposition immediately changed; his discontent was clear.

“I didn’t realize our relationship was a secret.” You said icily.

“I didn’t realize there was a need to advertise it.” He said, clearly irritated, his words clipped.

“Telling one of my best friends about us is hardly advertising.” You snapped.

“Couldn’t keep your mouth shut about dating the Slytherin Prince, could you?” He said, putting a less than pleasant inflection on the nickname he had been given. You knew that, despite his ego, he actually disliked the title. He wanted to be seen as Draco; just Draco. No titles, no pretenses. You knew that the girls he had previously dated had been with him for his status only, but if he genuinely thought that you were that pigheaded, he needed a reality check.

“If that’s what you think then clearly we shouldn’t be together, your highness.” You said, furiously, your tone mocking. It was what you called him when he was acting like a git. He looked as though someone had just slapped him in the face, but the vulnerability was only present for a moment before he covered it with a sneer.

“Clearly.” He spat, turning on his heel and leaving you to the crushing weight of your regret.

It had been two days since then, and you were currently sitting in the Great Hall attempting to eat your breakfast, sourly watching the Slytherin table. Draco was sitting in between Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, with Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini seated across from him. Parkinson looked particularly interested in what he was saying, which put a bad taste in your mouth. You wondered, for the umpteenth time, if this was one of the reasons he was so against telling people about your relationship. Feeling sick to your stomach, you got up to leave, having barely touched your breakfast. As you were leaving, you saw Draco glance up at you, his smile dropping before he muttered a reply to something Crabbe was saying.

Normally you were ecstatic at the prospect of attending History of Magic, as it was the only class you had with Draco, but you spent the rest of the morning dreading it. You walked into Snape’s dungeons with a sinking feeling in your stomach, your eyes automatically searching for the blond-haired boy.

He was sitting in the front of the room, next to Crabbe, so you sat down in the back, quietly spreading out your books, trying your best not to draw attention to yourself. As if he could sense your presence, Draco turned his head slightly, his cloudy gray eyes finding yours. He tilted his head to the desk beside him, which had a free chair; an invitation to come sit beside him. You deliberated for a second before gathering your belongings and joining him at the front of the room, wondering all the while what he had in mind.

“Hey.” You murmured, avoiding his stormy gaze.

“Don’t look so glum, love.” He said, his voice smooth, catching you off guard. Your eyes shot up to meet his, wide. This wasn’t what you were expecting. The words left your mouth quickly and quietly, before you could stop them.

“I miss you.” Your face got red as you waited for the mockery to come. He just laughed, however.

“Who wouldn’t?” He said, grinning. You relaxed instantly; he was being playful. Before you could think of a good reply, Binns’ ethereal form drifted into the room and everyone quieted at once as he began lecturing.

Throughout Binns’ droning, you watched Draco intently. You could see that he was folding a piece of parchment, but he purposely had his arm blocking your view of what he was doing. Occasionally, he would stop whatever he was doing to cast a sideways glance at you and smirk as he caught you watching him, unabashedly.

Draco finished his project just as class ended. You felt your curiosity build as he unsheathed his wand and began muttering an incantation you couldn’t hear above the project you couldn’t see. He moved his arms in order to pick up what he had been working on so diligently during class; you could see now that it was an origami bird. He scooped it up, tenderly, and blew on it gently. It flew around your desk a few times before landing, and you realized his gesture had caught the attention of nearly the entire class. You realized that this was his way of telling everyone about his affections for you. The two of you locked eyes and you smiled at him, brilliantly, so that he would know all was forgiven.

“Plans still on for this weekend?” He said, arrogant and charming at the same time, in the way that only he could be.

“Of course.”

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pnwdoodlesreads · 8 years ago

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By Madison Iszler

[email protected]

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.

Alec Dent, a sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill, often feels like an outsider on campus.

“For conservatives, you sort of feel out of place,” Dent, who is from Lumberton, said. “Most Trump supporters here don’t really feel comfortable saying they voted for him. No one’s walking around with their ‘Make America Great Again’ hats on.”

Donald Trump’s election and some of his administration’s early decisions have caused friction between liberal and conservative students on college campuses across the United States, including in North Carolina, a key battleground state Trump won.

Many of the state’s largest colleges – including UNC-CH, N.C. State University, Wake Technical Community College, Duke University and N.C. Central University – are in Wake, Durham and Orange counties, which Democrat Hillary Clinton won. Trump carried nearly all of the state’s suburban and rural counties.

While some college students in North Carolina led the charge to get out the youth vote for Trump, others staged walk-outs during Trump’s inauguration and participated in protests in Raleigh and Durham. Dent said he’s witnessed an uptick in protests on campus since the election.

Conservative students at UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State and Duke emphatically agreed that the majority of pushback on campus hasn’t come from faculty or administration, who have been largely supportive of conservative students and groups, they said. Rather, the bulk of it has come from their classmates and peers.

Some of my liberal friends are willing to have a discussion, but others are close-minded and almost militant about another perspective.

“The administration really does want to have an open dialogue on campus and brings a truly diverse community of thought to Carolina,” Dent said. “It’s really the students here who are kind of intolerant.”

Frank Pray, a senior at UNC-CH, said he has received death threats, been called a “racist” and a “bigot” and had his car vandalized – all because he’s an outspoken Republican on campus.

“As a vocal conservative, I expect to get pushback, but there’s a difference between discussing opposing views and being called names and threatened,” Pray said. “Some of my liberal friends are willing to have a discussion, but others are close-minded and almost militant about another perspective.”

Pray said he received the threats via text, email and social media, including Facebook. He said he did not want to disclose whether he reported the threats to campus police because of concerns for his safety, though he said he did report the vandalism incident to the Chapel Hill Police Department.

A flier found on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus and also circulated on social media in February threatened violence against Trump supporters. “If you see something ...” was printed above drawings of a man with a “Make America Great Again” hat and a man with a swastika tattoo. “Do something!” the flier continued, showing drawings of the tattooed man being hit on the head with a baseball bat that said “Bash the Fash.”

UNC Chancellor Carol Folt and other administrators issued a message condemning the fliers.

“We take these matters very seriously,” they wrote. “The flier and its message are the antithesis of the values that are the foundation of our University. It is not designed to spark civil discourse or encourage thoughtful debate. Its intentions are to incite violence, and there is no place for that here or in our society.”

UNC’s campus safety department has not received any complaints from students alleging that they were threatened because of their conservatism or affiliations with Trump, said Randy Young, a spokesman. Requests made to Duke and N.C. State asking whether their campus safety departments had received complaints of that nature were not answered.

Harrison Preddy, a junior at N.C. State, said people have vandalized cars with conservative bumper stickers on campus, including egging cars, ripping windshield wipers off and slashing tires. The day after Trump’s election, two men yelled at Preddy while he was dining at a restaurant near campus, calling him a “racist, fascist bigot” because he had a “Don’t tread on me” bumper sticker on his car.

Many conservative students are now “stuck in the closet,” Preddy said, including some minority students “who people assume are Democrats.”

“There’s been a lot of violence against conservatives on campus. It’s terrifying and intolerant,” Preddy said. “Your voice and opinion only matter if you’re a Democrat. At every turn, we’re never given the chance to express ourselves. Liberal students have the privilege on this campus.”

Student votes

Nationwide, Clinton received 55 percent of the youth vote on Election Day while 37 percent voted for Trump, according to data analysis by Tufts University’s Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. However, millennials’ support for Clinton was lower than it was for Democrat Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012.

Young adults’ willingness to cast a ballot in North Carolina also declined. Only 53 percent of registered voters between 18 and 25 voted, down from 55 percent in 2012 and 60 percent in 2008, according to advocacy group Democracy North Carolina.

Students for Trump, a national organization started by two Campbell University students in 2015, was launched in part to galvanize young voters.

“Our job is to inform and mobilize young voters to vote for Donald Trump. One of the biggest issues in today’s society is the lack of political participation among the younger crowds,” the group’s website reads. “With social media being one of the best ways to get in touch with the younger generation, we aim to reach out to students from colleges and high schools all throughout the country.”

While many College Democrat organizations endorsed Clinton, some College Republican groups were hesitant to endorse Trump. N.C. State’s College Republicans supported Trump, while Duke’s College Republicans decided to “abstain” from endorsing the candidate. UNC-CH’s group chose to neither endorse nor refuse to endorse Trump, drawing ire from the editorial board of the Daily Tar Heel, the school’s student newspaper.

“By refusing to disavow Trump, they have set themselves up in a similar position to many national Republicans – but without the private power of congressional negotiations to influence Trump for the better,” the board wrote in a December editorial, calling on the group to “hold him accountable” and “stand for a more principled, virtuous conservatism than this.”

Share or retreat?

Pushback on campus has made some conservative students all the more eager to share their political views, while others are retreating.

Mitchell Siegel, a freshman at Duke, was a vocal Trump supporter “from the beginning” and hoped there would be more room for debate after Trump became president. However, the atmosphere has become “very emotionally charged and hostile,” he said. Several weeks ago, he witnessed a friend crying in his dorm room after being “verbally abused” by other students for voting for Trump.

I’m concerned for my generation. The way people act is crazy. I expected a little more maturity.

Mitchell Siegel, a freshman at Duke University

“I’m concerned for my generation,” Siegel, 18, said. “The way people act is crazy. I expected a little more maturity.”

Some students said they think there’s a silent minority of conservatives on college campus. For two years, Pray was chairman of UNC-CH’s College Republicans group and grew membership from about 65 to more than 500 students.

“My goal isn’t to change people’s minds. It’s to make sure that other conservatives know that it’s OK to fight for your principles and what you believe in,” he said.

Dent, who is editor-in-chief of UNC-CH’s conservative publication, the Carolina Review, is trying to get more students involved with the Review.

“There are a lot more conservative students on campus than people realize, but it’s the others who have the loudest voice,” Dent said. “I’ve tried to raise my voice, and I think it’s important for them to know they’re not alone.”

Others, however, are retreating. Some people have scraped off their bumper stickers and stopped speaking up in class because they’re afraid, Preddy said. Though there are about 300 names on an email list for N.C. State’s College Republicans group, only 25 people attend an average weekly meeting and he’s been told that some students are too scared to attend. He’s thought about organizing protests for conservative causes on campus, but worries about the backlash.

“It’s hard to motivate people to go out and be criticized. We’re a scared minority,” he said. “We did win, but we can’t celebrate that we won. We’ve retreated.”

Madison Iszler: 919-836-4952; @madisoniszler

#College voters

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aikipoet-blog · 6 years ago

Text

Geoffrey Chaucer, The Knight’s Tale, Part I (Numbered) (Forrest Hainline's Minimalist Translation)

Here beginneth the Knight’s Tale

859 Once, as old stories tell us;

860 There was a duke called Theseus;

861 Of Athens he was lord and governor,

862 And in his time such a conqueror

863 That greater was there none under the sun.

864 Full many a rich country had he won;

865 What with his wisdom and his chivalry,

866 He conquered all the reign of Feminie,

867 That once was called Scythia,

868 And wedded the queen Hippolyta,

869 And brought her home with him in his country

870 With much glory and great ceremony,

871 And too her young sister Emily.

872 And thus with victory and with melody

873 Let I this noble duke to Athens ride,

874 And all his host in arms him beside.

875 And certain, if it weren’t too long to hear,

876 I would have told you fully the manner

877 How won was the reign of Feminie

878 By Theseus and by his chivalry;

879 And of the great battle for the nonce,

880 Between Athens and Amazons;

881 And how assieged was Hippolyta,

882 The fair, hardy queen of Scythia;

883 And the feast that was at her wedding,

884 And of the tempest at her home-coming;

885 But all that thing I must as now forbear.

886 I have, God knows, a large field to air,

887 And weak be the oxen in my plough.

888 The remnant of the tale is long enough.

889 I will not delay eek none of this route;

890 Let every fellow tell his tale about,

891 And let’s see now who shall the supper win;

892 And where I left, I will again begin.

893 This duke, of whom I make mention,

894 When he was come almost unto the town,

895 In all his wealth and in his most pride,

896 He was ware, as he cast his eye aside,

897 Where that there kneeled in the highway

898 A company of ladies, tway and tway,

899 Each after the other clad in clothes black;

900 But such a cry and such a woe they make

901 That in this world no creature living

902 That heard such another lamenting;

903 And of this cry they would never cease

904 Til they the reins of his bridle seized.

905 “What folk be you, that at my homecoming

906 Perturb so my feast with crying?”

907 Said Theseus. “Have you so great envy

908 Of my honor, that thus complain and cry?

909 Or who have you misbeden or offended?

910 And tell me if it may be amended,

911 And why that you be clothed thus in black.”

912 The eldest lady of them all spak,

913 When she had swooned with a deadly cheer,

914 That it was ruth for to see and hear;

915 She said, “Lord, to whom Fortune has given

916 Victory, and as a conqueror to live,

917 Not grieves us your glory and your honor,

918 But we beseech mercy and succor.

919 Have mercy on our woe and our distress!

920 Some drop of pity, through thy gentleness,

921 Upon us wretched women let thou fall,

922 For, certain, lord, there is none of us all

923 That she hasn’t been a duchess or a queen.

924 Now be we captives, as it is well seen,

925 Thanks be Fortune and his false wheel,

926 That no one’s estate’s assured to be well.

927 And certain, lord, to abide in your presence,

928 Here in this temple of the goddess Clemence

929 We have been waiting all this fortnight.

930 Now help us, Lord, since it is in thy might.

931 I, wretch, which that weep and wail thus,

932 Was once wife to King Cappaneus,

933 That died at Thebes – cursed be that day! –

934 And all we that be in this array

935 And make all this lamentation,

936 We lost all our husbands at that town,

937 While that the siege thereabout lay.

938 And yet now the old Creon – wail-away! –

939 That lord is now of Thebes the city,

940 Fulfilled of ire and of iniquity,

941 He, for despite and for his tyranny,

942 To do the dead bodies villainy

943 Of all our lords which that had been slain,

944 Had all the bodies on a heap lain,

945 And will not suffer them, by no assent,

946 Neither to be buried nor burnt,

947 But make hounds eat them in despite.”

948 And with that word, without more respite,

949 They fell grufe and cried piteously,

950 “Have on us wretched women some mercy,

951 And let our sorrow sink in thine heart.”

952 This gentle duke down from his courser start

953 With heart piteous, when he heard them speak.

954 He thought that his heart would break,

955 When he saw them so pitiful and so mat,

956 That once were of so great estate;

957 And in his arms he them all up hent,

958 And them comforted in full good intent,

959 And swore his oath, as he was true knight,

960 He would do so far-forthly his might

961 Upon the tyrant Creon him to wreak

962 That all the people of Greece should speak

963 How Creon was of Theseus served

964 As he that had his death full well deserved.

965 And right anon, without more abode,

966 His banner he displayed, and forth he rode

967 To Thebes-ward, and all his host beside.

968 No near Athens would he go nor ride,

969 Nor take his ease fully half a day,

970 But onward on his way that night he lay,

971 And sent anon Hippolyta the queen,

972 And Emily, her young sister sheen,

973 Unto the town of Athens to dwell,

974 And forth he rode, there is no more to tell.

975 The red statute of Mars, with his spear and targe,

976 So shines in his white banner large

977 That all the fields glitter up and down

978 And by his banner born is his pennon

979 Of gold full rich, in which there was beat

980 The Minotaur, which that he won in Crete.

981 Thus rides this duke, thus rides this conqueror,

982 And in his host of chivalry the flower,

983 Til that he came to Thebes and alight

984 Fair in a field, there as he thought to fight.

985 But shortly for to speak of this thing,

986 With Creon, which that was of Thebes king,

987 He fought, and slew him manly as a knight

988 In plain battle, and put the folk to flight;

989 And by assault he won the city after,

990 And rent down both wall and spar and rafter;

991 And to the ladies he restored again

992 The bones of their friends that were slain,

993 To do obsequies, as was then the guise,

994 But it were all too long for to devise

995 The great clamor and the lamenting

996 That the ladies made at the burning

997 Of the bodies, and the great honor

998 That Theseus, the noble conqueror,

999 Does to the ladies, when they from him went;

1000 But shortly for to tell is my intent.

1001 When that this worthy duke, this Theseus,

1002 Has Creon slain and won Thebes thus,

1003 Still in that field he took all night his rest,

1004 And did with all the country as he lest.

1005 To ransack in the tass of bodies dead,

1006 Them for to strip of harness and of wede,

1007 The pillagers did business and cure

1008 After the battle and discomfiture.

1009 And so befell that in the tass they found,

1010 Through-girt with many a grievous bloody wound,

1011 Two young knights lying by and by,

1012 Both in one arms, wrought full richly,

1013 Of which two, Arcite hight that one,

1014 And that other knight hight Palamon.

1015 Not fully quick, nor fully dead they were,

1016 But by their coat of arms and by their gear

1017 The heralds knew them best in special

1018 As they that were of the blood royal

1019 Of Thebes, and of sisters two born.

1020 Out of the tass the pillagers had them torn,

1021 And had them carried soft into the tent

1022 Of Theseus; and he full soon them sent

1023 To Athens, to dwell in prison

1024 Perpetually – not held for ransom.

1025 And when this worthy duke has thus done,

1026 He took his host, and home he rode anon

1027 With laurel crowned as a conqueror;

1028 And there he lives in joy and in honor

1029 Term of his life, what needs words more?

1030 And in a tower, in anguish and in woe,

1031 This Palamon and his fellow Arcite

1032 For evermore; there may no gold them quit.

1033 This passed year by year and day by day,

1034 Til it fell once, on a morn of May,

1035 That Emily, that fairer was to seen

1036 Than is the lily upon his stalk green,

1037 And fresher than the May with flowers new –

1038 For with the rose color strove her hue,

1039 I know not which was the finer of them two –

1040 Ere it were day, as was her want to do,

1041 She was arisen and all ready dight,

1042 For May will have no sluggardy at night.

1043 The season pricks every gentle heart,

1044 And makes it out of his sleep to start,

1045 And says, “Arise, and do thy observance.”

1046 This made Emily have remembrance

1047 To do honor to May, and for to rise.

1048 Clothed was she fresh, for to devise:

1049 Her yellow hair was braided in a tress

1050 Behind her back, a yard long, I guess.

1051 And in the garden, at the sunrise,

1052 She walked up and down, and as she pleased

1053 She gathered flowers, parti white and red,

1054 To make a subtle garland for her head;

1055 And as an angel heavenly she sang.

1056 The great tower, that was so thick and strong,

1057 Which of the castle was the chief dungeon

1058 (There as the knights were in prison

1059 Of which I told you and tell I shall),

1060 Was even joined to the garden wall

1061 There as this Emily had her playing.

1062 Bright was the sun and clear that morning,

1063 And Palamon, this woeful prisoner,

1064 As was his want, by leave of his jailor,

1065 Was risen and roamed in a chamber on high,

1066 In which he all the noble city saw,

1067 And too the garden, full of branches green,

1068 There as this fresh Emily the sheen

1069 Was in her walk, and roamed up and down.

1070 This sorrowful prisoner, this Palamon,

1071 Goes in the chamber roaming to and fro

1072 And to himself complaining of his woe.

1073 That he was born, oft he said, “alas!”

1074 And so befell, by adventure or chance,

1075 That through a window, thick of many a bar

1076 Of iron great and square as any spar,

1077 He cast his eye upon Emily,

1078 And therewithal he blanched and cried, “Ah!”

1079 As though he stung were unto the heart.

1080 And with that cry Arcite anon up start

1081 And said, “Cousin mine, what ails thee,

1082 That art so pale and deadly on to see?

1083 Why criest thou? Who has thee done offense?

1084 For God’s love, take all in patience

1085 Our prison, for it may none other be.

1086 Fortune has given us this adversity.

1087 Some wicked aspect or disposition

1088 Of Saturn, by some constellation,

1089 Has given us this, although we had it sworn;

1090 So stood the heaven when that we were born.

1091 We must endure it; this is the short and plain.”

1092 This Palamon answered and said again,

1093 “Cousin, for truth, of this opinion

1094 Thou hast a vain imagination.

1095 This prison caused me not for to cry,

1096 But I was hurt right now through my eye

1097 Into my heart, that will my bane be.

1098 The fairness of that lady that I see

1099 Yond in the garden roaming to and fro

1100 Is cause of all my crying and my woe.

1101 I know not whether she be woman or goddess,

1102 But Venus is it truly, as I guess.”

1103 And therewithal on knees down he fell,

1104 And said, “Venus, if it be thy will

1105 You in this garden thus to transfigure

1106 Before me, sorrowful, wretched creature,

1107 Out of this prison help that we may escape.

1108 And if so be my destiny be shaped

1109 By eternal word to die in prison,

1110 Of our lineage have some compassion,

1111 That is so low brought by tyranny.”

1112 And with that word Arcite gan to spy

1113 Whereas this lady roamed to and fro,

1114 And with that sight her beauty hurt him so,

1115 That, if that Palamon was wounded sore,

1116 Arcite is hurt as much as he, or more.

1117 And with a sigh he said piteously,

1118 “The fresh beauty slays me suddenly

1119 Of her that roams in the yonder place;

1120 And but I have her mercy and her grace,

1121 That I may see her at least a way,

1122 I am but dead; there is no more to say.”

1123 This Palamon, when he those words heard

1124 Despiteously he looked and answered,

1125 “Whether sayeth thou this in earnest or in play?”

1126 “Nay,” said Arcite, “in earnest, by my faith!

1127 God help me so, that would be full evil play.”

1128 This Palamon then knit his brows tway.

1129 “It were,” said he, “to thee no great honor

1130 For to be false, nor to be traitor

1131 To me, that am thy cousin and thy brother

1132 Sworn full deep, and each of us til other,

1133 That never, for to die in the pain,

1134 Til that the death depart shall us twain,

1135 Neither of us in love to hinder the other,

1136 Nor in no other case, my dear brother,

1137 But that thou should truly further me

1138 In every case, as I shall further thee –

1139 This was thine oath, and mine also, certain;

1140 I know right well, thou dare it not withstand.

1141 Thus art thou of my counsel, out of doubt,

1142 And now thou would falsely be about

1143 To love my lady, whom I love and serve,

1144 And ever shall til that my heart starve.

1145 Nay, certes, false Arcite, thou shall not so.

1146 I loved her first, and told thee my woe

1147 As to my counsel and my brother sworn

1148 To further me, as I have told before.

1149 For which thou are bound as a knight

1150 To help me, if it lay in thy might,

1151 Or else art thou false, I dare well say.”

1152 This Arcite full proudly spoke again:

1153 “Thou shalt,” said he, “be rather false than I;

1154 And thou art false, I tell thee utterly,

1155 For paramour I loved her first er thou.

1156 What will thou say? Thou knows not yet now

1157 Whether she be a woman or goddess!

1158 Thine is affection of holiness,

1159 And mine is love as to a creature;

1160 For which I told thee my adventure

1161 As to my cousin and my brother sworn.

1162 I pose that thou loved her before;

1163 Know thee not well the old clerk’s saw,

1164 That ‘who shall give a lover any law?’

1165 Love is a greater law, by my pan,

1166 Than may be give to any earthly man;

1167 And therefore positive law and such decree

1168 Is broken all day for love in each degree.

1169 A man must need love, maugre his head;

1170 He may not flee it, though he should be dead,

1171 And be she maid, or widow, or else wife.

1172 And too it is not likely all thy life

1173 To stand in her grace; no more shall I;

1174 For well thou know thyself, verily,

1175 That thou and I be damned to prison

1176 Perpetually; us gain no ransom.

1177 We strive as did the hounds for the bone;

1178 They fought all day, and yet their part was none;

1179 There came a kite, while that they were so wroth,

1180 And bore away the bone between them both.

1181 And therefore, at the king’s court, my brother,

1182 Each man for himself, there is no other.

1183 Love, if thee list, for I love and ay shall;

1184 And truly, dear brother, this is all.

1185 Here in this prison must we endure,

1186 And each of us take his adventure.”

1187 Great was the strife and long between those two,

1188 If that I had leisure to say;

1189 But to the effect; it happened on a day,

1190 To tell it you as shortly as I may,

1191 A worthy duke that hight Perotheus,

1192 That fellow was unto Duke Theseus

1193 Since thilk day that they were children lit

1194 Was come to Athens his fellow to visit,

1195 And for to play as he was want to do;

1196 For in this world he loved no man so,

1197 And he loved him as tenderly again.

1198 So well they loved, as old books say,

1199 That when that one was dead, truly to tell

1200 His fellow went and sought him down in hell –

1201 But of that story list me not to write.

1202 Duke Perotheus loved well Arcite,

1203 And had him known at Thebes year by year,

1204 And finally at request and prayer

1205 Of Perotheus, without any ransom,

1206 Duke Theseus him let out of prison

1207 Freely to go where that he list over all,

1208 In such a guise as I you tell shall.

1209 This was the forward, plainly for to endite,

1210 Between Theseus and him Arcite:

1211 That if so were that Arcite were found

1212 Ever in his life, by day or night, or stound

1213 In any country of this Theseus,

1214 And he were caught, it was accorded thus,

1215 That with a sword he should lose his head.

1216 There was no other remedy nor rede;

1217 But taking his leave, and homeward he him sped.

1218 Let him beware! His neck lies to wedde.

1219 How great a sorrow suffers now Arcite!

1220 The death he feels through his heart smite;

1221 He weeps, wails, cries piteously;

1222 To slay himself he waits privily.

1223 He said, “Alas that day that I was born!

1224 Now is my prison worse than before;

1225 Now is me shape eternally to dwell

1226 Not in purgatory, but in hell.

1227 Alas, that ever knew I Perotheus!

1228 For else had I dwelled with Theseus,

1229 Fettered in his prison evermore.

1230 Then had I been in bliss and not in woe.

1231 Only the sight of her whom that I serve,

1232 Though that I never her grace may deserve,

1233 Would have sufficed right enough for me.

1234 Oh dear cousin Palamon,” said he,

1235 “Thine is the victory of this adventure.

1236 Full blissfully in prison may thou dure –

1237 In prison? Certes not, but in paradise!

1238 Well has Fortune turned thee the dice,

1239 That has the sight of her, and I the absence.

1240 For possible is, since thou have her presence,

1241 And art a knight, a worthy and an able,

1242 That by some case, since Fortune is changeable,

1243 Thou may to thy desire sometime attain.

1244 But I, that am exiled and barren

1245 Of all grace, and in so great despair

1246 That there’s not earth, water, fire, nor air,

1247 Nor creature that of them made is,

1248 That may me help or do comfort in this,

1249 Well ought I starve in wanhope and distress.

1250 Farewell my life, my lust, and my gladness!

1251 "Alas, why complain folk so in commune

1252 On providence of God, or of Fortune,

1253 That gives them full oft in many a guise

1254 Well better than they can themselves devise?

1255 Some men desire for to have riches,

1256 That cause is of his murder or great sickness;

1257 And one man would out of his prison feign,

1258 That in his house is of his money slain.

1259 Infinite harms be in this matter.

1260 We know not what things we pray here.

1261 We fare as he that drunk is as a mouse.

1262 A drunk man knows well he has a house,

1263 But he knows not which the right way is thither

1264 And to a drunk man the way is slipper.

1265 And certes, in this world, so fare we;

1266 We seek fast after felicity,

1267 But we go wrong full often, truly.

1268 Thus may we say all, and namely I,

1269 That wend and had a great opinion

1270 That if I might escape from prison,

1271 Then had I been in joy and perfect heal,

1272 There now I am exiled from my weel.

1273 Since that I may not see you, Emily,

1274 I’m but dead; there’s no remedy.

1275 Upon that other side Palamon,

1276 When that he knew Arcite was gone,

1277 Such sorrow he makes that the great tower

1278 Resounds of his yelling and clamor.

1279 The pure fetters on his shins great

1280 Were of his bitter, salt tears wet.

1281 “Alas,” said he, “Arcite, cousin mine,

1282 Of all our strife, God knows, the fruit is thine.

1283 Thou walks now in Thebes at thy large,

1284 And of my woe thou gives little charge.

1285 Thou may, since thou hast wisdom and manhood,

1286 Assemble all the folk of our kindred,

1287 And make a war so sharp on this city

1288 That by some adventure or some treaty

1289 Thou may have her to lady and to wife

1290 For whom that I must needs lose my life.

1291 For, as by way of possibility,

1292 Since thou art at thy large, of prison free,

1293 And art a great lord, great is thy advantage

1294 More than is mine, who starves here in a cage.

1295 For I must weep and wail, while I live,

1296 With all the woe that prison may give,

1297 And too with pain that love me gives also,

1298 That doubles all my torment and my woe.”

1299 Therewith the fire of jealousy up start

1300 Within his breast, and hent him by the heart

1301 So madly that he like was to behold

1302 The boxtree or the ashes dead and cold.

1303 Then said he, “O cruel gods that govern

1304 This world with binding of your word eternal

1305 And written on the table of adamant

1306 Your parliament and your eternal grant

1307 What is mankind more unto you hold

1308 Than is the sheep that rucks in the fold?

1309 For slain is man right as another beast,

1310 And dwells too in prison and arrest,

1311 And has sickness and great adversity,

1312 And oft times guiltless, pardee.

1313 “What governance is in this prescience,

1314 That guiltless torments innocence?

1315 And yet increases this all my penance,

1316 That man is bound to his observance,

1317 For God’s sake, to lessen of his will,

1318 There as a beast may all his lust fulfill.

1319 And when a beast is dead he has no pain;

1320 But man after his death must weep and plain,

1321 Though in this world he have care and woe.

1322 Without doubt it may stand so.

1323 The answer to this let I to devise,

1324 But well I know that in this world great pain is.

1325 Alas, I see a serpent or a thief,

1326 That many a true man has done mischief,

1327 Gone at his large, and where he likes may turn.

1328 But I must be in prison through Saturn,

1329 And too through Juno, jealous and too wood,

1330 That has destroyed well nye all the blood

1331 Of Thebes with his waste walls wide;

1332 And Venus slays me on that other side

1333 For jealousy and fear of him Arcite.”

1334 Now will I stint of Palamon a lite,

1335 And let him in his prison still dwell,

1336 And of Arcite forth I will you tell.

1337 The summer passes, and the nights long

1338 Increasing double wise the pains strong

1339 Both of the lover and the prisoner.

1340 I know not which has the woefuller master.

1341 For, shortly for to say, this Palamon

1342 Perpetually is damned to prison,

1343 In chains and fetters to be dead;

1344 And Arcite is exiled upon his head

134e For evermore, as out of that country,

1346 Nor never more shall his lady see.

1347 You lovers ask I now this question:

1348 Who has the worst, Arcite or Palamon?

1349 That one may see his lady day by day,

1350 But in prison he must dwell alway;

1351 That other where he likes may ride or go,

1352 But see his lady shall he never more.

1353 Now deem as you like, you that can,

1354 For I will tell forth as I began.

Explicit prima pars

0 notes

liveinvictoryeveryday · 6 years ago

Text

Psalm 31 (NIV)

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness. 2 Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. 3 Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me. 4 Keep me free from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge. 5 Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, Lord, my faithful God.

6 I hate those who cling to worthless idols; as for me, I trust in the Lord. 7 I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul. 8 You have not given me into the hands of the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious place.

9 Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and body with grief. 10 My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction,[b] and my bones grow weak. 11 Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors and an object of dread to my closest friends— those who see me on the street flee from me. 12 I am forgotten as though I were dead; I have become like broken pottery. 13 For I hear many whispering, “Terror on every side!” They conspire against me and plot to take my life.

14 But I trust in you, Lord; I say, “You are my God.” 15 My times are in your hands; deliver me from the hands of my enemies, from those who pursue me. 16 Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love. 17 Let me not be put to shame, Lord, for I have cried out to you; but let the wicked be put to shame and be silent in the realm of the dead. 18 Let their lying lips be silenced, for with pride and contempt they speak arrogantly against the righteous.

19 How abundant are the good things that you have stored up for those who fear you, that you bestow in the sight of all, on those who take refuge in you. 20 In the shelter of your presence, you hide them from all human intrigues; you keep them safe in your dwelling from accusing tongues.

21 Praise be to the Lord, for he showed me the wonders of his love when I was in a city under siege. 22 In my alarm I said, “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help.

23 Love the Lord, all his faithful people! The Lord preserves those who are true to him, but the proud he pays back in full. 24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.

Under Attack

Have you ever been Under Attack? Have you ever lived life and Everything seemed “complicated”? Often times our best intentions are met with a snicker or a sneer. We smile and the response is a stare. We work overtime for no extra money and everybody acts like that is what we were supposed to do. Life is filled with a constant barrage of challenges and choices to respond. Being under attack is frustrating. Being under attack is stress inducing. Being under attack requires a response.

One way many people deal with being under attack is to blame someone else. when we are under attack we look for the source and most times the source is from someone or something outside of ourselves. When this happens we tend to look for relief in any way we can find it. On this 3rd day of Lent, we may be experiencing feelings of attack. If we have given up a certain food or behavior our body is screaming out, “What’s going on?” Why are you forsaking me?

The writer in Psalm 31 is under attack. The whole Psalm is pointing to getting help from GOD. The writer speaks of rescue, refuge, and resilience. The writer, like us, is experiencing challenges and simply wants it to be over soon. feeling unjustly attacked, the writer calls on GOD to come quickly and rescue him from the shenanigans of shame. The writer exclaims, 2 Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. The writer continues on to say, “keep me free from the trap that is set before me.

As I ponder this response I am challenged to wonder if the trap set before us could be the trap of believing our source of sorrow is someone else and not ourselves. As long as we can blame somebody else and ask GOD for help to defeat an enemy, we can easily overlook the enemy of the inner me. Lent provides us an opportunity to be introspective and identify how we may be complicit in our own struggles. Take the time not look deep and ask GOD to deliver us from traps with the awareness that the trap may not look like we think it looks.

Point to Ponder: How are we playing a role in our own destruction? What can we do to identify our traps and blind spots in our faith?

Lent Day 2019 Day 3 “Under Attack” Psalm 31 (NIV) For the director of music. A psalm of David. 1 In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; 919 more words

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maxwellyjordan · 6 years ago

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Opinion analysis: Justices uphold arbitration exemption for transportation workers in rare victory for arbitration opponents

Arbitration month at the Supreme Court continued this morning with the unanimous decision in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira – following by a single week the unanimous decision in Henry Schein v. Archer & White Sales. New Prime, though, is anything but business as usual: Justice Neil Gorsuch’s opinion for a unanimous court rejects a claim for arbitration for the first time in a string of more than a dozen of the Supreme Court’s cases stretching back more than a decade. Indeed, I doubt the court has rejected such a claim in any previous decision since the turn of the millennium.

Justice Gorsuch with opinion in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira, and Justice Thomas with opinion in Stokeling v. U.S.

New Prime involves an exception to the rule in the Federal Arbitration Act that obligates courts to enforce arbitration agreements that involve interstate commerce. Specifically, under the “transportation” exclusion in Section 1 of the act, “nothing” in the act applies to “contracts of employment of … seamen, railroad employees, or any other class of workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce.” In this case, all agree that the truck drivers (including respondent Dominic Oliveira) driving trucks for petitioner New Prime are “workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce.”

The question for the court is whether the lower courts should have sent this dispute to arbitration even though the drivers might work for New Prime as independent contractors rather than as employees. New Prime argued in the lower courts that the exception for “contracts of employment” applies only when the workers are employees; because New Prime endeavors to structure its relations with its drivers so that they are independent contractors rather than employees, New Prime argued that the act should apply notwithstanding the transportation exclusion.

The first question Gorsuch addresses is whether the lower courts should have been considering the exclusion at all. New Prime argues that because its contracts delegate questions of arbitrability to the arbitrator, the lower courts should have allowed the arbitrator to consider the application of the exception in the first instance. That argument should be familiar to readers of this blog – it was the central topic of the decision last week in Henry Schein. As I explained in my discussion of that opinion, the Henry Schein court unanimously reaffirmed the rule that courts must enforce a contract that delegates “gateway” questions about arbitrability to the arbitrator; the specific holding in Henry Schein was that a court must send a case to an arbitrator even if the claim for arbitration strikes the court as wholly groundless.

In this case, however, the Supreme Court is calling for judicial assessment of the objection to arbitration. Gorsuch explains that the provisions of the act obligating courts to stay litigation and compel arbitration (Sections 3 and 4) apply only if the dispute is one to which the act applies under Sections 1 and 2. Because the act “warns that ‘nothing’ in the Act ‘shall apply’ to ‘contracts of employment’” in the transportation sector, “a court should decide for itself whether § 1’s ‘contracts of employment’ exclusion applies before ordering arbitration.” For Gorsuch, “a court must first know whether the contract itself falls within or beyond the boundaries of §§ 1 and 2” before it can “invoke its statutory powers under §§ 3 and 4.” In sum, even if the contract is “crystal clear and require[s] arbitration of every question under the sun, … that does not necessarily mean the Act authorizes a court to stay litigation and send the parties to an arbitral forum.”

It may be, as Gorsuch remarks, that “[n]othing in” that analysis “should come as a surprise.” We would expect, though, perhaps a few words explaining the distinction between this case and the unanimous decision in Henry Schein a week earlier. It’s not difficult to articulate a distinction. The most obvious difference is that the arbitrability dispute in Henry Schein involved interpretation of the contractual agreement, while the arbitrability dispute in New Prime involves the court’s statutory authority. Indeed, Chief Justice John Roberts suggested such a distinction in the oral argument in New Prime (apparently referring back to the Henry Schein argument that the court had heard a few weeks before it heard New Prime).

But what is to explain the absence from the New Prime opinion of any reference to Henry Schein? It might have something to do with the timing of the two opinions. Because New Prime was argued earlier (in October rather than November), it would be natural for Gorsuch’s opinion to omit any reference to Henry Schein – Gorsuch well might have circulated his opinion in New Prime before Justice Brett Kavanaugh circulated his opinion in Henry Schein. But New Prime has a brief concurring opinion from Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (more on that below); if the drafting of that concurrence delayed the release of New Prime beyond the release of Henry Schein it is easy to see that Gorsuch might not have thought it worth the effort to go back and amend his opinion to discuss the now earlier-decided Henry Schein matter. The natural person to call for a discussion would have been Kavanaugh (the author of Henry Schein), but he did not participate in New Prime.

In any event, having determined that the scope of the transportation exclusion is a question for the court, Gorsuch turned to that question. For him, the “key to the case” (foreshadowed by his trenchant comments on that subject at the oral argument) is that the statutory reference to “contracts of employment” must bear the meaning that phrase had “at the time Congress enacted the statute” (quoting his own opinion last term in Wisconsin Central Ltd. v. United States). “After all,” he explains, “if judges could freely invest old statutory terms with new meanings, we would risk amending legislation outside the ‘single, finely wrought and exhaustively considered, procedure’ the Constitution commands” (quoting Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha).

Gorsuch notes New Prime’s central argument – that modern usage limits the term “employee” to the traditional “relationship between master and servant” that is antithetical to the independent-contractor relationship New Prime has tried to craft with Oliveira and the other drivers. Gorsuch rejects that argument, though, based on his conclusion that “at the time of the Act’s adoption in 1925 … most people … would have understood § 1 to exclude not only agreements between employers and employees but also agreements that require independent contractors to perform work.” Among other things, he cites dictionaries indicating that “employment” was not “then a term of art,” but rather “more or less … a synonym for ‘work,’” routinely applied “whether or not the common law criteria for a master-servant relationship happened to be satisfied.” In the same way, detailed footnotes support the view that the same usage pervaded the Supreme “Court’s early 20th-century cases …, [m]any state court cases, … a variety of federal statutes, … [a]nd state statutes too.”

Gorsuch suggests that New Prime’s contrary arguments largely rest on an effort “to shift the debate from the term ‘contracts of employment’ to the word ‘employee.’” Acknowledging an “extended etymological debate” between the parties on exactly when “the words ‘employee’ and ‘independent contractor’ … assumed [their modern] distinct meanings,” as well as “the common root and … intertwined history” of “‘employee’ and ‘employment,’” Gorsuch emphasizes that “[t]he only question in this case concerns the meaning of the term ‘contracts of employment’ in 1925,” a topic he already has examined.

Finally, Gorsuch notes that New Prime, in his view “[u]nable to squeeze more from the statute’s text, … is left to appeal to its policy.” Not surprisingly, he does not deny the vigor of the court’s embrace of a “liberal federal policy favoring arbitration agreements.” In this case, though, the text seems clear enough to persuade all of the justices to reject the claim for arbitration. With a characteristic rhetorical flourish, Gorsuch comments that “[i]f courts felt free to pave over bumpy statutory texts in the name of more expeditiously advancing a policy goal, we would risk failing to take account of legislative compromises essential to a law’s passage.”

Notably, although Ginsburg joined Gorsuch’s entire opinion, she offered a brief concurring opinion summarizing circumstances in which “Congress … may design legislation to govern changing times and circumstances,” suggesting that a rigorous adherence to the meaning of the text at the time of its enactment often might thwart rather than execute congressional intent.

* * *

Past cases linked to in this post:

INS v. Chadha, 462 U.S. 919 (1983) Wis. Cent. Ltd. v. United States, 138 S. Ct. 2067 (2018)

The post Opinion analysis: Justices uphold arbitration exemption for transportation workers in rare victory for arbitration opponents appeared first on SCOTUSblog.

from Law https://www.scotusblog.com/2019/01/opinion-analysis-justices-uphold-arbitration-exemption-for-transportation-workers-in-rare-victory-for-arbitration-opponents/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

#law #justice

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fingerprintingexpress-blog · 6 years ago

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Fingerprinting Express Celebrates 15 Years in Business - https://www.fingerprintingexpress.com/fingerprinting-express-15-years-in-business/

New Post has been published on https://www.fingerprintingexpress.com/fingerprinting-express-15-years-in-business/

Fingerprinting Express Celebrates 15 Years in Business

During the month of October, Fingerprinting Express is excited to be celebrating fifteen years in business serving Nevada residents and organizations. Here is a look back at how it all began and where we are today.

How It All Began

In 2002, Becky Riersgard went to a local police station to get fingerprinted for her new job. After waiting over two hours to be fingerprinted with one person ahead of her in line, she realized there had to be a better way! After doing some research, Becky learned that in 1998 new laws had ended the one-sided law enforcement agency monopolies on civilian fingerprinting and background checks for non-criminal civilians.

Recognizing the market for these services, Becky jumped into the fray of small business owners who had begun providing these services. Most of these business owners, like local UPS franchisees, began fingerprinting as secondary services several years later. Others began fingerprinting out of their vehicles.

In 2003, Becky opened a 600-square-foot store on the second floor of a small Reno shopping mall. On her first day, she made a whopping ten dollars! With limited advertising funds, Becky looked for creative ways to generate business. She enlisted the help of her daughter, Monica, for ideas which would help propel Fingerprinting Express forward. With Monica’s input, Becky began visiting human resources departments at local casinos, armed with boxes of doughnuts, for the opportunity to sit down with HR executives to pitch her business services. Slowly, she began to get new hires coming in to have background checks done for their gaming cards. Over time, with word of mouth and referrals, Becky’s business began to grow until she became the “go-to” for several different industries and businesses.

Because background checks are required by state and federal law for several industries, including healthcare, bus and cab drivers, education, financial services, casino, youth, volunteer and numerous other industries, Fingerprinting Express was positioned to become an industry leader in Nevada.

Fingerprinting Express Gains the Advantage

Becky and her staff became trained in the use of Livescan inkless technology, and once mastered, Fingerprinting Express gained a competitive edge over others in the industry. Livescan technology allowed customers to get high-quality prints by having all fingers scanned to create a digital image which was then electronically transmitted directly to the FBI and state law enforcement agencies to be run through their databases. Not only did Livescan eliminate the need for messy ink-based fingerprints to be taken, it was also more accurate for lower rejection rates (less than five percent) and yielded exponentially faster results.

Becky also had three other advantages over other small business owners and law enforcement agencies:

She put an emphasis on excellent customer service.

She offered convenient one-stop shopping by expanding services to include passport photography and notary public services.

She trained the staff to master the Livescan equipment, which was challenging because Livescan manufacturers didn’t provide much in the way of product training.

Unfortunately, Becky’s husband fell ill in 2012, and Becky recruited her daughter Monica and son-in-law Dave to take ownership of Fingerprinting Express so she could care for him.

Continuing the Legacy of Excellence

Monica and Dave were no strangers to business. Dave had worked his way up from the bottom of the casino industry. After his talent and potential were recognized by management, he was selected for Steve Wynn’s elite three-year management MAP training program. After that, Dave became director of the marketing department at the Bellagio resort and then eventually secured a VP position with MGM Resorts International.

Monica, who had come to Vegas as a young single mother, became a successful high-end real estate agent in the booming real estate market. She eventually started a business called Vegas Passport, which sold lucrative VIP guest packages to restaurants and nightclubs in coordination with resorts and online travel agencies. It was through this business venture that she met Dave, who was managing partner at the Mirage’s Revolution Lounge nightclub, which was struggling to draw in guests. With Monica’s marketing consulting, her services began to fill seats at Dave’s club. The two began dating and were married in 2009.

By 2011, the two were ready for a change of pace. When Monica’s mother Becky reached out in 2012 to get help with Fingerprinting Express, Monica and Dave moved from Las Vegas to Reno with the intent to prepare the business for sale. Because Monica had consulted with Becky from the beginning on all aspects of the business—from strategy and operation to naming, branding, and marketing—Monica was excited about the opportunity to improve the store and create a powerhouse local business that supports and nurtures the local community.

Tapping into a Huge Market

CEO Monica Pappas, could see the opportunity in front of her and began working on the business. Monica streamlined the bookkeeping, migrated to a digital system to replace manual paperwork, and began improving employee procedures and training. She promoted a “Culture to Care” environment where employees were expected to espouse core fundamentals that included:

Treat customers with hospitality, gratitude, and professionalism.

Respect customers’ privacy and needs.

Strive to serve the customers’ interests at all times.

Monica also launched an aggressive marketing campaign to build relationships with human resources departments for major employers in the area. She boosted Fingerprinting Express’s online presence and began receiving calls from around the country from people looking for a store in their area. It was then that they realized the enormous untapped potential of this market! Monica and Dave started making plans to franchise the business.

Becoming Nevada’s Leading Fingerprinting and Background Check Provider

Fingerprinting Express experienced tremendous growth. By gaining intimate knowledge of state and FBI fingerprint-processing procedures and governmental policies, Fingerprinting Express became highly regarded as the gold standard in the industry. So much so that some state agencies have worked with them to perform real-world testing on programs before fully implementing them.

The couple expanded on Becky’s “one-stop shop” approach by adding even more services, including:

Photocopy, print, and fax services

Mobile fingerprinting and Notarizing

Secure paper shredding

And More!

Franchise Opportunities and New Nevada Locations Added

By 2014, Monica and Dave had all the requirements and processes down to a science and began offering franchises for sale. Monica opened a new store in Carson City in 2015, followed by two new Las Vegas locations: one on South Rainbow Boulevard in 2017, and one on East Flamingo road in 2018. With Fingerprinting Express’s unparalleled success, there is no limit to where they will go next!

Giving Back

Through its Culture to Care™ program, Fingerprinting Express has donated over $60,000 in fees and services for volunteers, active military, educators, and non-profits since 2016 as a way of giving back to a community that has fully embraced them. $500,000 in fingerprint fees have been discounted since inception.

Fingerprinting Express has also done free fingerprinting events for Nevada Child Seekers, an organization that works towards the prevention, identification, and location efforts of missing or exploited children. They also provide free Child Identity Kits at all four locations.

What’s Next?

The Reno store will move from the Reno Costco shopping center to the Smithridge shopping center in January 2019. Nevada residents can expect to see more Fingerprinting Express shops popping up soon.

If you are interested in partnering with Fingerprinting Express for employee screenings, becoming a franchisee, or want to learn more about our services, give us a call at 1-800-919-0227 or fill out a contact request form online.

Fingerprinting Express is dedicated to serving communities throughout Nevada. We assist organizations and businesses with our employer support program and we also help individuals that need fingerprints, background checks, notary public, secure document shredding and more. Contact us to learn more or you can walk into a store location near you, our friendly staff is standing by.