#Justice Henry Brown

[whitesinhistory]

On this day May 18, 1896

Supreme Court Establishes “Separate But Equal” Doctrine as Law in Plessy v. Ferguson

On May 18, 1896, the U.S. Supreme Court released a 7-1 decision in Plessy v. Ferguson, a case challenging racial segregation laws in Louisiana, holding that state-mandated segregation in intrastate travel was constitutional as long as the separate accommodations were equal.

The Court had heard arguments a month earlier on April 13. Homer Plessy, a Black man who had been arrested for boarding a "white only" passenger car, argued that the state segregation law violated the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, which abolished slavery and established equal protection of the laws.

In 1890, Louisiana passed the Separate Car Act, requiring railroad companies to provide separate passenger cars for Black and white travelers. The Comite des Citoyens (“Committee of Citizens”), a New Orleans group of Black men who employed civil disobedience to challenge segregation laws, wanted to challenge the law's constitutionality. When Mr. Plessy—a Black man—was arrested for boarding a “white only” passenger car, the committee helped him to appeal, and the case eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court.

On May 18, Justice Henry Brown wrote the majority opinion, which held that the Louisiana law did not violate the Thirteenth or Fourteenth Amendments because it did not interfere with an individual’s personal freedom or liberties. He claimed the Court could uphold the notion that all people are equal before the law in political and civil rights but could not override social inferiority based upon the distinction of race.

Justice John Marshall Harlan dissented, writing that the Louisiana law was in direct violation of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments' promise of protection of all civil rights related to freedom and citizenship. Justice Harlan specified that the law was a blatant attempt to infringe upon the civil rights of African Americans and that the Court inappropriately yielded to public sentiment at the expense of constitutional safeguards. He predicted the Court’s decision would lead to racial confrontation.

Plessy v. Ferguson legally sanctioned racial segregation by establishing the “separate but equal” doctrine as national law. Public services and accommodations were segregated for decades, until the Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954 overruled the application of “separate but equal” in public education and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited it in public accommodations.

[a-book-of-creatures]

“Is THAT what I look like??? D:”

Illustration by Henry Justice Ford for Andrew Lang, “The Knights of the Fish” in ”The Brown Fairy Book”.

[nocnitsa]

Illustration from The Brown Fairy Book

Author: Andrew Lang

Illustrator: H. J. Ford

[demonicbaby666]

Tres

One shot | Once Upon a Time Masterlist | Masterlists

Fandom: Once Upon a Time

Pairing: Regina Mills x fem!Reader

Genre: Smut

Words: 3.8k+

Warnings: 18+, minors DNI, masturbation, biting, oral, fingering, edge play, strap-on use (r!receiving), spanking, degradation, dom/top!Regina, sub/bottom!reader, mommy kink (tiny bit), praise.

Summary: When Regina walks in to find you waiting for her, she’s not too pleased to discover you’ve started a certain activity without her. In retaliation she decides to play a little game.

A/n: Is this the most descriptive and well-worded piece I’ve written? No. Is it proof read? Also no. But I wrote it super fast, and at least it’s seggsy, so… also the first time I’ve used ‘mommy’, which was a little giggle moment. I digress, have fun reading!

It was close to 5:30 pm, and you knew what that meant. Regina would walk through the front door like clockwork in the next couple of minutes. Henry was sleeping at a friend's house, so you had the place to yourselves and intended to make the most of it. 

You sat in skimpy black lingerie on Regina’s bed, back against her headboard, waiting. Black is, of course, her colour, but god, did she like it on you too. Just imagining the look on her face as she entered through the door excited you. On previous occasions, she’d shown little restraint when demonstrating her appreciation for coming home to one hell of a sight. Hands worshipped every inch of your body. Being impatient, you let your hand drop between your legs, imagining what you wanted and knew Regina would do to you. 

Pushing two fingers into your underwear, finding you were already wet from the sheer memories, you slowly circled your clit, closing your eyes as a small fire grew in your lower abdomen. It was an unspoken agreement that you weren’t supposed to touch yourself, not if Regina hadn’t said, yet knowing you would be caught breaking a rule only spurred you on. You thought of Regina’s slender fingers that, night after night, filled you, her brown eyes that watched you give into her time and time again, and her lips that silenced moans and screams so loud, she thought even a silencing spell couldn’t dampen them. 

At the sound of someone clearing their throat, your eyes fluttered open, revealing the face painted in your mind - though it didn’t do her beauty justice.

“And what are you doing?” Regina asked, standing in the doorway with her hands folded over her chest. Her expression was bone-chilling. 

Your skin burned brighter now you’d been caught. The want to look anywhere but at her jarred through your body, but you knew she would disapprove and kept your gaze trained on her, “I was waiting for you…” you started, guiltily biting your lip, “but I got impatient.” 

The anger in her eyes turned to a menacing predatory stare that dropped to your hand, still wedged in your underwear. And she smirked, “I didn’t tell you to stop.” 

Regina sashayed to the bed and began crawling over you, “Fuck yourself like the little slut you are,” she whispered in your ear before taking the doughy flesh of your earlobe into her mouth and nibbling on it. 

A groan broke from your throat at her gravely tone; it resembled the sound of stones scrapping along each other, shooting a bullet of pure lust straight through your chest. You could have come from her filthy words alone but followed her instructions. The angle made it difficult to achieve the fast pace fucking you craved, so you settled on running two wet fingers over your sensitive clit in a fluid motion. Small moans slipped from you, and as they grew in volume, Regina’s boldness grew too. 

Her lips travelled the length of your jawline, leaving behind rouge lipstick residue. The gentleness morphed into an unquenchable thirst when she reached your lips. Regina’s tongue ran the entire length of your top lip, then your bottom, coating them in wet warm saliva. She puckered her lips and blew on them. A cool sensation tingled from your lips, working into your bloodstream and sending shivers along your spine. You drew in a shuddering breath before leaning up to deliver a hungry kiss. Her teeth bit down on your bottom lip hard enough to draw blood, a reminder that, though your hands were seeing to your own pleasure, she was still the one to give the orders. 

As your fingers continued to circle your clit, growing faster in pace methodically, Regina kept you occupied - swirling her tongue in and around your mouth. She moved the black lace over your chest to the side, revealing a pert nipple that quickly captured between her fingers. Your hips jerked at the sudden pleasurable pain that channelled through your body, but thankfully, the weight of Regina’s body held you down. Your clit throbbed with each movement, thrumming in time with your rapid heart rate. 

When your lips were rendered useless, too preoccupied with releasing gargled ‘yes’s’ and ‘fuck’s,’ Regina moved down. Your throat fell victim to a brutal attack of harsh kisses and bites that would surely leave marks. She painted a line of red blotched down to your chest, where she swiftly took your swollen nipple into her mouth and sucked. 

Your breathing was laboured, jaw shaking with each moan and whimper. The coiling in your stomach had reached an all-time high, and Regina recognised the sides of your impending orgasm right away. Her hands cupped your breasts, flicking your nipples with her thumbs while bringing her lips to your ear, “Are you going to cum for me like a good girl?” 

The word ‘yes’ never made it to your tongue, your fingers and Regina’s sultry voice pushing you over the edge before you could answer. Muscles tensed all over your body, your fingers stilled over your clit, and your chest heaved pointlessly, trying to trail in gasps of air. 

Regina pulled back slightly so she could watch you catch your breath. Her stare made you feel so small, but that had never been a bad thing. There was a comfort in knowing she was in charge and that she’d never let anything happen to you unless, of course, she was the one inflicting the desired damage. 

“My turn,” she devilishly smirked, and before you could stop her, she had your underwear off, placed one hand by your head and two fingers buried deep inside your cunt, “we’re going to play a little game.”

A gasped shriek was all you could spare after having just come down from your high, “Whenever you get close,” she said, looking directly into your eyes, sliding her fingers out with painstaking slowness, “you tell me to stop.” 

Your eyes widened in response. It was an impossible punishment, and something told you Regina had set this game up to see you fail miserably. That way, she could dish out her ‘justice.’ 

“We’ll do it three times. Then if you’re good,” she bent down, letting her warm breath tickle your lips and thrust her fingers back inside you, hard, “I’ll fuck you senseless for however long you want.” 

From that point on, you were determined. Three? You could handle three. But then her fingers started moving, and suddenly three started to feel more like a hundred, and the possibility of cutting one orgasm short already felt like too much of a challenge. 

Regina showed no signs of being in a rush. Why would she? She wanted to make this last, make you suffer, reduce you to whimpering aimlessly and begging for her. Of course, you wanted to hate her for it. Instead, it made you wetter than ever. 

Your hands gripped firmly to the bedsheets, battling between pushing them away and pulling them towards you repeatedly, not knowing what you needed more at that moment. When Regina caught wind of your conflicting actions, she chuckled. The cruel mockery sent another wave of arousal to flood between your legs as her fingers pumped in and out of your pussy. Every attempt you made at quickening the pace was reprimanded. She’d slow down, almost to a halt, until you’d ceased all movement and only then would she resume. It was pitiful, and you knew it. You’d whine, and she’d ‘tsk’, shutting you up instantly. Your only outlet was the ruffled bedsheets and the pillow you used to silence your protests. 

Taking pity on you, Regina increased her vigour. Her fingers curled deep inside you, massaging the spongy lining of your g-spot, knowing it would push you right over the edge - had you not been playing this little game she’d set up, you would have cum then and there. 

You knew what you had to do when you felt the tension reach an all-time high, “Stop!” you screamed. 

And she did. Regina waited a few moments before pulling her fingers out, smirking when your pussy clenched around them - clearly unsatisfied and wanting more. 

“One down, two to go,” She said, kissing lightly on your temple. She looked down at you, and her eyes softened, “Colour?” 

“Green,” you shakily breathed out. Reaching down, you fiddled with the buttons of her slacks, and she did the rest, pulling them off and throwing them somewhere across the room, leaving her in just a silk blouse and underwear.

The softness faded from her eyes, mischief replacing it. A grin lined her lines. She leaned down to your ear and muttered, “Good.” 

Her lips lowered to yours, taking them into a fierce, passionate kiss that knocked the wind out of you. It was easy to fall into the moment, let your hands wrap around her waist, feel silk tickling your stomach, and smell Regina’s signature sharp perfume. Her tongue slid over your lower lip, and you followed her lead by opening your mouth. It was wet and messy and just the way you liked it. 

Slowly, the kiss stopped with her moving further down your body. First, to nibble and suck on your neck, then to your breasts, where she took your bra off and lathered your nipples. Her tongue ran over and around them. She’d suck one into her mouth and release them with a pop. Meanwhile, you were happy to lay back and enjoy the show, encouraging her actions with appreciative sighs and hums. Moving south along your stomach, she pecked what felt like every inch of it. Finally, when you’d started to feel impatience and excitement bubble to the surface, the mayor’s hands came to rest on either side of your thighs. She bowed down, ass perched in the air whilst she teased kisses along your inner thighs. 

Begging was useless; she’d only prolong the torment, yet you found you couldn’t stop letting out a small whimper followed by a soft ‘please’. If she heard the slip, she let it pass, instead choosing to wrap her arms around your thighs and secure them over your hips.

The open window let in a cool breeze that circulated the room and made the sweat on your body cold. It calmed your racing pulse, and you closely monitored the tension easing from aching muscles, happy to forget about the upcoming torture of halting your pleasure, even if the reward would be worth it. 

This lasted for all of ten seconds before the draft coming in was forgotten, and Regina finally ran her tongue through your drenched sex. 

You were no stranger to the magic Regina could perform with her tongue, which was why you relaxed and enjoyed the slow licks along your slit, the gentle sucking on your clit and, with one hand, gripped onto the headboard above you, the other brushing Regina’s hair off her forehead.

The attention to your clit was now alternating between sucks and licks. Sometimes she lay her tongue flat and slithered it over the hardened nub. Other times she'd use the tip of it to run stiff circles or figures of eight over it. Traipsing fingers through dark hair, you made every effort to contain screaming out. Your body desperately wanted more than what was being bestowed. 

After minutes of endless torture, she prodded your entrance with her two middle fingers, only pushing them in halfway and pulling them back out. She repeated this process until you got too impatient and unintentionally tried to push yourself down onto her fingers. This attempt was unsuccessful, what with the force she used to push your hip down into the bed.

When you looked down, her eyes were glued to you, and still, they held that dominance that told you things would move at her rate, and there’d be no two ways about it. You’d have been annoyed if it wasn’t for the fact it - having control ripped away from you - only turned you on more. 

It felt like your whole body had been submerged in boiling water, the slick salted lining of sweat had all but coated your body, and your breath was uncontrollable. There was no hope in holding back moans and mewls with your body being worked up and deprived all at once. No coherent thought seemed to be in your head. The only thing you knew was Regina, and Regina and Regina. 

Finally, her fingers pushed all the way, and your hand flew from the headboard to join its twin in her hair. A loud cry echoed across the room, and you felt Regina smirk over your aching clit. She took the bundle of nerves into her mouth and ran her teeth along it. A gasped moan left your parted lips. This time it was broken off with a near scream as Regina started to pump her fingers in and out of you rapidly.  

You sprang upwards on the bed and loudly panted, “I’m going to, I’m going to cum. Fuck!” 

Prying her tongue away and stilling her fingers, she looked at you with a raised brow and said, “You could have gone a few extra seconds, dear.” Nevertheless, she waited for you to calm down before removing her fingers and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. 

By this point, you were practically dripping onto the bedsheets. An ache had spread to every inch of your body, and you yearned for all the teasing to stop. If not for the gentleness that appeared between moments of unrest, you’d have thrown in the towel. Yet, the small kisses she dropped over your stomach, the tender smile she gave you, and the way she nuzzled her head in your neck so that you could breathe in her hair motivated you to push ahead and persevere. 

Absorbing this spike in affection, your fingers ran through brunette tresses. Closing your eyes, you let your worries float out the window into the late afternoon breeze. 

This time Regina moved slower. She wedged her thigh between your legs and started a slow grinding motion. The abundant slickness present easily allowed for the movement. She didn’t protest or hold your hips down when you matched her actions, so you kept going. Kneading your breast between her hands, she lowered her head down and took your left nipple between her teeth and bit down lightly on it. A balance of pain and pleasure set your body alight, and you found your hips moving faster.

Maybe it was the intensity of the moment, the shift in atmosphere that thrummed through your body - warming your chest and distracting your mind - but you didn’t stop Regina when you felt that familiar tension home in your lower abdomen. Instead, it continued to reach its peak until it was too late, and you’d let out an alarmingly loud moan that bounced around the room and, more importantly, bellowed in Regina’s ears. 

“Did you do what I think you did?” she asked, her voice having a bite to it that drained away the pleasure of what had happened, leaving fear and a sense of disappointment behind your actions. There was none of the gentleness you’d previously observed, and whilst that scared you, it also struck an excited note in you. 

Taking your silence and lack of eye contact as an admission, she shuffled backwards on the bed, kicked her legs over the side, and continued in the same menacing tone, “Come here.” 

You did as told, muttering apologies that Regina paid little to no attention to. You shuffled forward and stood on your knees next to the edge of the bed. 

Taking you over her knees, her hand made firm contact with your left ass cheek. The slapping sound rang through the room, travelling straight back to you, waking up the submissive side within you that would do anything to please and putting any thoughts of disobeying to sleep. A series of harsh slaps left you whimpering and deciding whether to beg her to stop or to keep going. But then Regina’s palm made swift contact with your cunt, leaving behind a delicious sting. 

“Oh god,” you moaned. The burn around your clit was near maddening, and you were sure if you didn’t get some proper relief soon, you’d die, “Please, Regina.” You begged. 

“What do you want, baby?” her voice dripped with power. 

“I want you to fuck me.” You whined, “Please fuck me.” 

“Stay there, and don’t move.” She commanded, sliding back and off the other side of the bed. You heard rummaging and things lightly dropping to the floor but couldn’t see much from the position she had you stay in. The bed dipped beside you, “Suck.” She growled. 

Turning your head to her, you saw Regina had now stripped down to only her panties. Fastened to her hips was her favourite harness - on it the second biggest dildo she owned. The sight of it made your lips water and your clit twitch. Powerful, she didn’t need a thrown or a crown. This was enough to remind you she was a queen and you a lowly subject. 

“Fuck,” you muttered, crawling over and holding onto her hips. 

Bringing your lips to the tip of the faux cock you slowly opened your mouth and sucked the tip in. Although the brunette could gain pleasure from this, simply by using her magic to make her cock real, you knew this was another demonstration of dominance. The thought caused you to moan and show Regina just how willing you were to please, so you took her entire length into your mouth and began bobbing your head. 

Before long, Regina had her hands in your hair as you lubed up the strap, taking it repeatedly to the hilt, then back out again, over and over. 

“You look so pretty sucking mommy’s cock.” she mused, pulling your head back and cleaning the spit off the sides of your mouth, “Such a good girl.” 

Staring up at her, you couldn’t help but feel a little pride rise in your chest and had to bite back a smile. You let it slither across your lips when Regina pulled you up and crashed her lips onto yours. Her hands circled your waist whilst her knees moved forward, guiding you towards the head of the bed. Once your head hit the pillow - promoted by a little push from Regina - plump lips found your neck and sucked your pulse point so hard there was no chance a mark would not be seen the following day. 

Fingers danced over your chest and torso, light enough to pry small giggles. Suddenly, her hands found your hips, and she flipped you over so your stomach and breasts lay flat against the bed. With her firm grip, she tugged your hips up and held you in place as she moved forward and back, teasing your cunt with silicone. 

You stifled a groan into a pillow and allowed Regina what fun she wanted. Eventually, she relented and eased the tip of the strap into you. It was thick and almost painful, but the stretch was welcomed with a grateful whimper. The mayor was kind enough to take it slow, pushing in inch by inch with a steadiness that kept the action unhalted and natural. 

She guided her hips back, then slammed right back into you. The scream you let out was undoubtedly audible from outside, but you couldn’t care less. She kept fucking into you like that, pulling out slow enough that you felt the bumped veins on the dildo glide over your inner walls, then, with a sudden push of her hips, filled you completely. After a while of this, clawing at the bedsheets, pillows, anything you could get your hands on, the fast-paced action you craved had you trying to wrestle against Regina’s hold on you so you could take matters into your own hands. 

“You want me to fuck you hard and fast?” she spoke in a sultry voice, “Is that what you want?” 

“Yes,” you whined. 

She quickly picked up her pace, “Tell me who you belong to. Tell me who gets to fuck you like this.”

“You!” 

“Who else?” She shouted, her hips moving at double their previous speed. 

The bed rocked and squeaked. Your attention remained on the cock mercilessly thrusting in and out of you. 

“Who else?” she barked, delivering a swift slap to your ass.

“No one! Only you!” You screamed. 

The ridges inside the strap-on meant Regina was getting as much pleasure from this as you were. Each moan you let out was followed by one of her own. She loved fucking you from behind, watching her cock disappear in and out of your pussy, and you, too, couldn’t deny the position had its benefits. For one, when she increased her speed, keeping her thrusts strong - much like she was doing then - the dildo would slide perfectly along your g-spot. The pleasure was insurmountable. The next day, you often found you could barely walk, not that it mattered when memories of the things Regina did to you were floating around in your mind. 

Repeatedly, she pounded into you, the base of the cock slamming against your clit, driving you closer and closer to coming. 

Getting the question out was painful because all you wanted to do was let go. “Can I come?” You shakily begged, the words coming out broken and pathetic. 

“Come for me, baby.” she cooed. 

Her voice alone did it. Your walls clamped around the dildo. Regina continued, prolonging the pure bliss of the powerful orgasm that shook your whole body. She held you up when your knees buckled, refusing to stop her wanton hips from fucking you with reckless abandon. 

“Regina!” You loudly moaned, thrashing your head against a pillow, “Fuck! I’m going to come again!” 

She didn’t relent. Instead, she trashed her palm time and time again over your ass, sending stinging pleasure through all your nerve endings. Together you cried out each other’s names, nails dug into your hip bones as you both simultaneously found your release.

She slumped down on top of you and unbuckled her harness, carefully pulling it out of your spent cunt. Regina placed it on the bedside table to be dealt with later. As she lay beside you and breathed heavily, she slung an arm over her eyes and smiled.  

You scooted over to her and lay your head on her chest, drawing lazy shapes over her stomach and breast, “That was amazing,” you chuckled.

Clasping her arm over your shoulder, running soft fingers through your hair, she smirked and looked down at you, “What makes you think we’re finished?” 

You met her eyes and saw that same mischievous look you so adored, “I’m not going to be able to walk tomorrow, am I?” 

Her smirk curved into a full-blown grin, “No, I don’t think you will. You deserve it for starting without me.”

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[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

December 29, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Dec 30, 2024

Former President Jimmy Carter died today, December 29, 2024, at age 100 after a life characterized by a dedication to human rights. His wife of 77 years, Rosalynn Carter, died on November 19, 2023; she was 96 years old.

James Earl Carter Jr. was born on October 1, 1924, in Plains, in southwestern Georgia, about half an hour from the site of the infamous Andersonville Prison, where United States soldiers died of disease and hunger during the Civil War only sixty years earlier. He was the first U.S. president to be born in a hospital.

Carter’s South was impoverished. He grew up on a dirt road about three miles from Plains, in the tiny, majority-Black village of Archery, where his father owned a farm and the family grew corn, cotton, peanuts, and sugar cane. The young Carters and the children of the village’s Black sharecroppers grew up together as the Depression that crashed down in 1929 drained away what little prosperity there was in Archery.

After undergraduate coursework at Georgia Southwestern College and at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Carter completed his undergraduate degree at the U.S. Naval Academy. In the Navy he rose to the rank of lieutenant, serving on submarines—including early nuclear submarines—in both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets.

In 1946, Carter married Rosalynn Smith, a friend of his sister’s, who grew up in Plains. When his father died in 1953, Carter resigned his naval commission and took his family back to the Carters’ Georgia farm, where he and Rosalynn operated both the farm and a seed and supply company.

Arriving back in Georgia just a year before the U.S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, Carter quickly became involved in local politics. In 1962 he challenged a fraudulent election for a Georgia state senate seat, and in the runoff, voters elected him. The Carters became supporters of Democratic president John F. Kennedy in a state whose dominant Democratic Party was in turmoil as white supremacists clashed with Georgians eager to leave their past behind. Kennedy had sent troops to desegregate the University of Mississippi.

Carter ran for governor in 1966, the year after Congress passed the Voting Rights Act. He lost the primary, coming in third behind another liberal Democrat and a staunch segregationist Democrat, Lester Maddox, who won it and went on to win the governorship. When Carter ran again in 1970, he emphasized his populism rather than Black rights, appealing to racist whites. He won the Democratic primary with 60% of the vote and, in a state that was still Democrat-dominated, easily won the governorship.

But when Carter took office in 1971, he abandoned his concessions to white racists and took a stand for new race relations in the United States. “I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” he told Georgians in his inaugural speech. “No poor, rural, weak, or Black person should ever have to bear the additional burden of being deprived of the opportunity of an education, a job, or simple justice.”

His predecessor, Maddox, had refused to let state workers take the day off to attend services for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral; Carter pointedly hung a portrait of King—as well as portraits of educator Lucy Craft Laney and Georgia politician and minister Henry McNeal Turner—in the State Capitol.

Carter brought to office a focus not only on civil rights but also on cleaning up and streamlining the state’s government. He consolidated more than 200 government offices into 20 and backed austerity measures to save money while also supporting new social programs, including equalizing aid to poor and wealthy schools, prison reform and early childhood development programs, and community centers for mentally disabled children.

At the time, the state constitution prohibited Carter from reelection, so he built recognition in the national Democratic Party and turned his sights on the presidency. In the wake of the scandals that brought down both President Richard Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew, as well as many of their staff, when it seemed to many Americans that all of Washington was corrupt, voters welcomed the newcomer Carter as an outsider who would work for the people.

He seemed a new kind of Democrat, one who could usher in a new, multicultural democracy now that the 1965 Voting Rights Act had brought Black and Brown voters into the American polity. Like many of the other civil rights coalitions in the twentieth century, Carter’s supporters shared music reinforced their politics, and Carter’s deep knowledge of blues, R&B, folk, and especially the gospel music of his youth helped him appeal to that era’s crucially important youth vote. Bob Dylan; Crosby, Stills & Nash, Nile Rodgers, Willie Nelson, and Johnny Cash, as well as the Allman Brothers, all backed Carter, who later said: “I was practically a non-entity, but everyone knew the Allman Brothers. When they endorsed me, all the young people said, ‘Well, if the Allman Brothers like him, we can vote for him.’”

Elected by just over 50% of American voters over Republican candidate Gerald R. Ford’s count of about 48%, Carter’s outsider status and determination to govern based on the will of the people sparked opposition from within Washington—including in the Democratic Party—and stories that he was buffeted about by the breezes of polls. But Carter's domestic policy advisor Stuart Eizenstat once said that Carter believed an elected president should “park politics at the Oval Office door” and try to win election by doing the right thing. He took pride in ignoring political interests—a stance that would hurt his ability to get things done in Washington, D.C.

Carter began by trying to make the government more representative of the American people: Eizenstat recalled that Carter appointed more women, Black Americans, and Jewish Americans to official positions and judgeships “than all 38 of his predecessors combined.”

Carter instituted ethics reforms to reclaim the honor of the presidency after Nixon’s behavior had tarnished it. He put independent inspectors in every department and established that corporations could not bribe foreign officials to get contracts. He expanded education programs, establishing the Department of Education, and tried to relieve the country from reliance on foreign oil by establishing the Department of Energy.

Concerned that the new regulatory agencies that Congress had created since the mid-1960s might be captured by industries and that they were causing prices to rise, Carter began the deregulation movement to increase competition. He began with the airlines and moved to the trucking industry, railroad lines, and long-distance phone service. He also deregulated beer production—his legalization of homebrewing sparked today’s craft brewing industry.

But Carter inherited slow economic growth and the inflation that had plagued presidents since Nixon, and the 1979 drop in oil production after the Iranian revolution exacerbated both. While more than ten million jobs were added to the U.S. economy during his term—almost twice the number Reagan added in his first term, and more than five times the number George H.W. Bush added in his—inflation hit 14% in 1980. To combat that inflation, Carter appointed Paul Volcker to chair the Federal Reserve, knowing he would combat inflation with high interest rates, a policy that brought down inflation during the first term of his successor, Ronald Reagan.

Carter also focused on protecting the environment. He was the first president to undertake the federal cleanup of a hazardous waste site, declaring a federal emergency in the New York neighborhood of Love Canal and using federal disaster money to remediate the chemicals that had been stored underground there.

Carter placed 56 million acres of land in Alaska under federal protection as a national monument, saying: “These areas contain resources of unequaled scientific, historic and cultural value, and include some of the most spectacular scenery and wildlife in the world,” he said. In 1979 he had 32 solar panels installed at the White House to help heat the water for the building and demonstrate that it was possible to curb U.S. dependence on fossil fuels. Just before he left office, Carter signed into law the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, protecting more than 100 million acres in Alaska, including additional protections for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Coming after Nixon’s secret bombing of Cambodia and support for Chile’s right-wing dictator Augusto Pinochet, whose government had systematically tortured and executed his political opponents, Carter’s foreign policy emphasized human rights. Carter echoed the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights established by the United Nations, promising he would promote “human freedom” while protecting “the individual from the arbitrary power of the state.” He was best known for the Camp David Accords that achieved peace between Israel and Egypt after they had fought a series of wars. Those accords, negotiated with Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Menachem Begin of Israel paved the way for others. Carter credited the religious faith of the three men for making the agreement possible.

Carter also built on his predecessor Nixon’s outreach to China, normalizing relations and affording diplomatic recognition of China, enabling the two countries to develop a bilateral relationship. While commenters often credit President Reagan with pressuring the Soviet Union enough to bring about its dissolution, in fact it was Carter who negotiated the nuclear arms treaty that Reagan honored and who, along with his national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski, saw the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 as a major breach in international relations. He cut off grain sales to the USSR, ordered a massive defense buildup, and persuaded European leaders to accept nuclear missiles stationed in their countries, which Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev said was a significant factor in the dissolution of the USSR.

To Carter also fell the Iran hostage crisis in which Muslim fundamentalists overran the American embassy in the Iranian capital Tehran, seizing 66 Americans and holding them hostage for 444 days, in return for a promise that the American-backed Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, whom Carter had admitted to the U.S. for cancer treatment, be returned to Iran for trial. Carter immediately froze Iranian assets and began secret negotiations, while Americans watched on TV as Iranian mobs chanted “Death to America.” A secret mission to rescue the hostages failed when one of the eight helicopters dispatched to rescue the hostages crashed, killing eight soldiers. Before he left office, Carter successfully negotiated for the hostages’ return; they were released the day of Reagan’s inauguration.

Carter left office in January 1981, and the following year, in partnership with Emory University, he and Rosalynn established the Carter Center, an Atlanta-based nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization to advance peace, health, and human rights around the world.

The Carter Center has supervised elections in more than 100 countries, has helped farmers in 15 African countries to double or triple grain production, and has worked to prevent disease in Latin America and Africa. In 1986, when the Carter Center began a program to eradicate infections of the meter-long Guinea worm that emerges painfully from sufferers’ skin and incapacitates them for long periods, 3.5 million people a year in Africa and Asia were infected; in 2022 there were only 13 known infections, in 2023 there were 14. So far in 2024, there have been 7, but those will not be officially confirmed until spring 2025. In a 2015 interview, Carter said he hoped to outlive the last case.

President Carter said, “When I was in the White House, I thought of human rights primarily in terms of political rights, such as rights to free speech and freedom from torture or unjust imprisonment. As I traveled around the world since I was president, I learned there was no way to separate the crucial rights to live in peace, to have adequate food and health care, and to have a voice in choosing one’s political leaders. These human needs and rights are inextricably linked.”

In 2002, Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” When journalist Katie Couric of The Today Show asked him if the Nobel Peace Prize or being elected president was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to him, Carter answered: “When Rosalynn said she’d marry me, I think that’s the most exciting thing.”

In his Farewell Address on January 14, 1981, President Jimmy Carter worried about the direction of the country. He noted that the American people had begun to lose faith in the government’s ability to deal with problems and were turning to “single-issue groups and special interest organizations to ensure that whatever else happens, our own personal views and our own private interests are protected.” This focus on individualism, he warned, distorts the nation’s purpose because “the national interest is not always the sum of all our single or special interests. We are all Americans together, and we must not forget that the common good is our common interest and our individual responsibility.”

Carter urged Americans to protect our “most precious possessions: the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the land which sustains us,” and to advance the basic human rights that had, after all, “invented America.” “Our common vision of a free and just society,” he said, “is our greatest source of cohesion at home and strength abroad, greater even than the bounty of our material blessings.”

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[leonardcohenofficial]

as is tradition here are my top nine new-to-me watches of the year—in no particular order (l-r, top row to bottom row):

the african desperate (martine syms, 2022) not a pretty picture (martha coolidge, 1975) anatomy of a fall (justine triet, 2023) the girls (mai zetterling, 1968) network (sidney lumet, 1976) the year of the cannibals (liliana cavani, 1970) all the beauty and the bloodshed (laura poitras, 2022) straight on till morning (peter collinson, 1972) microhabitat (jeon go-woon, 2017)

i hit 150 total films and my continual goal of half of the films by women and nonbinary filmmakers, and still definitely need to keep up with deliberately seeking out films by directors of color! feel free to tell me your faves if you’ve seen any of these 🖤👀🎬🍿🎥

i'll tag @privatejoker / @wanlittlehusk / @majorbaby / @edwardalbee / @draftdodgerag / @lesbiancolumbo / @frmulcahy / @nelson-riddle-me-this / @firewalkwithmedvd and anyone else who'd like to share their top watches of the year!

full list of films for the year is included below, favorites are bolded in red:

Farewell Amor (Ekwa Msangi, 2020)

Hell Camp: Teen Nightmare (Liza Williams, 2023)

Blacks Britannica (David Koff, 1978)

New Year, New You (Sophia Takal, 2023)

Family Band: The Cowsills Story (Louise Palanker and Bill Filipiak, 2011)

The Color Purple (Blitz Bazawule, 2023)

The Apology (Alison Star Locke, 2022)

Close (Lukas Dhont, 2022)

Unintended (Anja Murmann, 2018)

Other People’s Children (Liz Hinlein, 2015)

Omega Rising Women of Rastafari (D. Elmina Davis, 1988)

The Gypsy Moths (John Frankenheimer, 1969)

Be My Cat: A Film for Anne (Adrian Țofei, 2015)

Insomnia (Christopher Nolan, 2002)

Chowchilla (Paul Solet, 2023)

Intimate Relations (Philip Goodhew, 1996)

Monument (Jagoda Szelc, 2018)

After Sherman (Jon Sesrie Goff, 2022)

Remnants of the Watts Festival (Ulysses Jenkins, 1980)

Network (Sidney Lumet, 1976)

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (Joseph Sargent, 1974)

Down Low (Rightor Doyle, 2023)

Our Father, the Devil (Ellie Foumbi, 2021)

The Zone of Interest (Jonathan Glazer, 2023)

Youngblood (Noel Nosseck, 1978)

Joy Division - Under Review (Christian Davies, 2006)

Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story (Steve Sullivan, 2018)

Sun Ra: A Joyful Noise (Robert Mugge, 1980)

Fanny: The Right To Rock (Bobbi Jo Hart, 2021)

Depeche Mode: The Dark Progression (Alec Lindsell, 2009)

Kraftwerk And The Electronic Revolution (Thomas Arnold, 2008)

Blank City (Celine Danhier, 2010)

Oliver Sacks: His Own Life (Ric Burns, 2019)

Monster (Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2023)

Black Is Beltza (Fermín Muguruza, 2018)

Werewolf (Ashley McKenzie, 2016)

The Humans (Stephen Karam, 2021)

Relative (Tracey Arcabasso Smith, 2022)

The Believer (Henry Bean, 2001)

Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill (Brian Lindstrom and Andy Brown, 2022) 

Animals (Collin Schiffli, 2014)

Scott Walker: 30 Century Man (Stephen Kijak, 2006)

Novitiate (Maggie Betts, 2017)

Hunger (Henning Carlsen, 1966)

Late Night With The Devil (Cameron Cairnes and Colin Cairnes, 2023)

The Stunt Man (Richard Rush, 1980)

New York Doll (Greg Whiteley, 2005)

The Iron Claw (Sean Durkin, 2023)

Your Fat Friend (Jeanie Finlay, 2023)

Scarred Justice: The Orangeburg Massacre 1968 (Bestor Cram and Judy Richardson, 2008)

Targets (Peter Bogdanovich, 1968)

Uptight (Jules Dassin, 1968)

Messiah of Evil (Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck, 1973)

Plastic Paradise (Brett O’Bourke, 2013)

You Hurt My Feelings (Nicole Holofcener, 2023)

Pretty Poison (Noel Black, 1968)

The Shout (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1978)

Shakedown (Leilah Weinraub, 2018)

Class of 1984 (Mark L. Lester, 1982)

Betty: They Say I’m Different (Philip Cox, 2017)

Beautiful Boy (Felix van Groeningen, 2018)

Anatomy of a Fall (Justine Triet, 2023)

Gimme Shelter (Albert Maysles, David Maysles, and Charlotte Zwerin, 1970)

The Beach Boys (Frank Marshall and Thom Zimny, 2024)

High and Low (Kevin Macdonald, 2023)

Brats (Andrew McCarthy, 2024)

I Saw The TV Glow (Jane Schoenbrun, 2023)

The Talented Mr. Ripley (Anthony Minghella, 1999)

Altered States (Ken Russell, 1980)

This Closeness (Kit Zauhar, 2023)

How To Have Sex (Molly Manning Walker, 2023)

American Commune (Rena Mundo Croshere and Nadine Mundo, 2013)

Look In Any Window (William Alland, 1961)

Private Property (Leslie Stevens, 1960)

We’re Still Here: Johnny Cash’s Bitter Tears Revisited (Antonino D’Ambrosio, 2015)

The Wobblies (Stewart Bird and Deborah Shaffer, 1979)

Last Summer Won’t Happen (Tom Hurwitz and Peter Gessner, 1968)

Goodbye Gemini (Alan Gibson, 1970)

Keyboard Fantasies: The Beverly Glenn-Copeland Story (Posy Dixon, 2019)

The Most Beautiful Boy in the World (Kristina Lindström and Kristian Petri, 2021)

The Passenger (Carter Smith, 2023)

The Boys Who Said No (Judith Ehrlich, 2020)

Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman, 2008)

Karen Carpenter: Starving for Perfection (Randy Martin, 2023)

...And Justice For All (Norm Jewison, 1978)

I Used To Be Funny (Ally Pankiw, 2023)

Badlands (Terrence Malick, 1973)

Straight On Till Morning (Peter Collinson, 1972)

The Same Difference: Gender Roles in the Black Lesbian Community (Nneka Onuorah, 2015)

Thanksgiving (Eli Roth, 2023)

Sorry/Not Sorry (Caroline Suh and Cara Mones, 2023)

Am I OK? (Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne, 2022)

Joan Baez: I Am a Noise (Maeve O’Boyle, Miri Navasky, and Karen O’Connor, 2023)

No Direction Home (Martin Scorsese, 2005)

Shutter Island (Martin Scorsese, 2010)

Water Lilies (Céline Sciamma, 2007)

The Strings (Ryan Glover, 2020)

The Crucible (Nicholas Hytner, 1996)

Woman of the Hour (Anna Kendrick, 2024)

The Platform (Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, 2019)

Tabloid (Errol Mark Morris, 2010)

Will & Harper (Josh Greenbaum, 2024)

Miller’s Girl (Jade Halley Bartlett, 2024)

Give Me Pity! (Amanda Kramer, 2022)

Landlocked (Paul Owens, 2021)

Perfect Love (Catherine Breillat, 1996)

Not a Pretty Picture (Martha Coolidge, 1975)

Seeking Mavis Beacon (Jazmin Jones, 2024)

Renfield (Chris McKay, 2023)

Compulsion (Richard Fleischer, 1959)

An Angel At My Table (Jane Campion, 1990)

Longlegs (Oz Perkins, 2024)

Rare Beasts (Billie Piper, 2019)

Nightman (Mélanie Delloye-Betancourt, 2023)

The Changin’ Times of Ike White (Daniel Vernon, 2020)

The Substance (Coralie Fargeat, 2024)

The Year of the Cannibals (Liliana Cavani, 1970)

Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara (Erin Lee Carr, 2024)

The Loneliest Planet (Julia Loktev, 2011)

Marjoe (Howard Smith and Sarah Kernochan, 1972)

Witches (Elizabeth Sankey, 2024)

Angela (Rebecca Miller, 1995)

The Morning After (Richard T. Heffron, 1974)

Beach Rats (Eliza Hittman, 2017)

Last Summer (Catherine Breillat, 2023)

The Fits (Anna Rose Holmer, 2015)

Hold Your Breath (Karrie Crouse and Will Joines, 2024)

What Comes Around (Amy Redford, 2022)

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (Kurt Kuenne, 2008)

Priscilla (Sofia Coppola, 2023)

The Girls (Mai Zetterling, 1968)

Sweetie (Jane Campion, 1989)

Victim/Suspect (Nancy Schwartzman, 2023)

The African Desperate (Martine Syms, 2022)

Les Nôtres (Jeanne Leblanc, 2020)

A Sacrifice (Jordan Scott, 2024)

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (Laura Poitras, 2022)

My Name is Not Ali (Viola Shafik, 2011)

Committed (Sheila McLaughlin and Lynne Tillman, 1984)

Chained (Jennifer Lynch, 2012)

The Hour of Liberation Has Arrived (Heiny Srour, 1974)

All Power To The People! (Lee Lew-Lee, 1997)

Night Moves (Kelly Reichardt, 2013)

Destroyer (Karyn Kusama, 2018)

Late Night (Nisha Ganatra, 2023)

The Year Between (Alex Heller, 2022)

Loved (Erin Dignam, 1997)

Girl In The Picture (Skye Borgman, 2022)

Microhabitat (Jeon Go-Woon, 2017)

Dear Ex (Mag Hsu and Chih-yen Hsu, 2018)

[dcsnextgaycharacter]

Not a full list but can people send me panels they would like to see for any ship below, need to outsource help (Hank ships are in here but I don't need help with those, I am using Green Lantern/Sentinel: Heart of Darkness panels for HankTodd):

Hal/Ollie JayRoy HankTodd Match/Inertia Dick/Joey Joe Morgan/Al Pratt Bart Allen/Preston Lindsay Riddler/Scarecrow Jason Blood/Bruce Wayne Dinah/Helena Clark Kent/John Henry Irons Clark/Lex DinahOllieHal Mister Mind/The Joker Tiger/Dick Chastantine Rose/Cassie Edwin Payne/Charles Rowland Diana/Kate Kane Constantine/Lucifer Cassandra Cain/Rose Wilson Helena/Renee Sandman/Corinthian Jay Garrick/Alan Scott/Richard Swift Linda Park/Wally West/Hartley Rathaway The Shade/Jack Knight Richard Swift/Charles McNider BerKon Renee/Scandal Wally/Kyle Riddler/Penguin Hal/Earth Villains Lois Lane/Selina Kyle Ollie Queen/Eddie Fyers Plastic Man/Vic Sage Halowog Cosmic Boy/Lightning Lord Coldflash Maps Mizoguchi/Gold Beetle Nightwing/Catman Black Canary/Lady Shiva Tatsu Yamashiro/Selina Kyle Mr Freeze/Bruce Wayne Vixen/Wonder Woman Superbat Barbara/Kara Wally West/Pied Piper Max Lord/Booster Gold Harper Row/Punchline Brainiac 5/Superman Batjokes Riddlebat Jon Kent/Ash Damian/Jay Cir El/Natasha Irons/Traci 13 HalJohn HalGuy HalKyle HalAlan Beth/Yolanda HankCam Bluepulse

Sandwave Batlantern Brainiac 5/Invisible Kid DickGarth Lightray/Orion Catman/Deadshot Donna/Starfire TimKon MidDickPollo Wonder Woman/Circe Lee Travis/Wesley Dodds/Dian Belmont Boostle Todd/Kaldur Dinahbabs Bruharv Konbart BeaTora Anita Fite/Traci 13 JonDami CissieCassie Ghostbat TimJon StephCass Supercorp Dick/Wally Virgil Hawkins/Richie Foley Courtney/Emiko Talia Kane/Laurel Kent Isamot Kol/Vath Sarn Pied Piper/Trickster Two-face/Riddler Wonder Woman/Cheetah SinHal Tim/Lonnie Birds of Prey Polycule GuyJohn AnitaCissie StephMia TimBerBartKon DinahZatanna CarolDiana JessKori DickRoy BruceOllie GuyDick Bernard Dowd/Jay Nakamura Karen Starr/Helena Wayne Halbarry BruceConstantine Young Justice Polycule Lois/Diana Lex Luthor/Braniac Max Lord/Ted Kord Jessica Cruz/Soranik Natu Lex Luthor/Will Magnus Pre N52 Kara Zor El and Stephanie Brown Steph/Mia Mia/Cissie Alan Scott/Jay Garrick Selina Kyle/Talia Al Ghul Gotham City Sirens Polycule Kyle/Connor

[this-lovely-universe]

Dead Girls Walking

Chapter 3: The Graveyard and- OH FUCK

Tw: Attempted murder and Heavy talk of death

Finley had to admit, whoever decorated this graveyard really put their heart and soul into it

It was so fucking creepy.

First red flag; The damn bonfire in the middle. Second red flag; the fact all the graves were in a circle instead of lines.

“This looks straight out of a horror movie.” She commented, pulling out her phone and turning on the flashlight.

“It really does.” Anastasia agreed, doing the same.

Brook was already looking at some of the closer graves that were illuminated by the fire

“Huh…” She muttered.

“What?” Finley asked, walking over.

She stared down at the grave. Henry Hayward

“Grandad? But he wasn’t…”

Anastasia came over. “what’s- hey wait, I knew him.”

“You knew him?” Brook asked.

She nodded. “He worked with dad.” She said the last word so distastely, you’d think she just got told to eat a moldy lemon.

“He worked with your father?” Finley’s jaw was practically on the ground.

“That’s shocking yet so unshocking at the same time.” Brook said, as Anastasia started walking around.

There were several other names Finley knew in the grave yard. Her mother, grand parents, assumidly distance relatives and the like.

Who knew I had so many dead relatives?

“This is creepy…” Anastasia muttered. “I know like a third of- oh my gods.” She sighed.

“Are these all people we know?” Brook asked quietly.

“Yeah, I think we do.” Finley glanced around the graveyard. “What the fuck is this place?”

“Creepy. It’s a creepy ass place.”

“Well said.” Brook nodded.

“Amen, sister.”

They all continued to look around. Finley was started to see some names she didn’t reconise, and so did the others.

It was starting to get a little less creepy, now that it seemed like any old graveyard.

Until, it wasn’t.

Finley finally found her father’s grave.

“Guys I found-” She froze, seeing the grave next to it.

Finley Zavala

She could feel the colour draining from her face.

“I found Sasha’s!” Brook annouced, convincing saying it at the same time Finley froze.

“Brook, please look at the graves next to hers.” Finley said shakily, not looking away from her own.

“Why?” Finley could hear her sucking in a breath. “Oh gods…”

“What’s wrong?” Anastasia asked.

Both of them opened and closed their mouths like fish, unable to form words.

“What?” She asked again.

“Annie, where’s your aunts grave?” Brook managed to splutter out.

“Uh…”

“Find it. Just find it.”

Anastasia kept searching.

“Oh my fucking shit-”

“Did you find it?” Finley asked quietly.

“The one with my name on it? Yes. Yes, I did.”

“Like the decorations?” A new voice appeared.

Finley’s head whipped around, seeing that all the graves besides theirs had disappeared, and where the bonfire once was, now stood another person.

All their graves formed a triangle around them, the person being stood dead centre of it.

“I really tried to go for the whole ‘haunted halloween graveyard’ thing.”

They had long brown hair and worn a loose velvet dress covered in skulls.

“Who are you?” Anastasia hissed.

“Woah there, tiger. I’m Constantine. Goddess of Justice after death.”

Finley had to hold back a scoff.

Of course it was a divine creature pulling the strings.

“Justice after death? But we’re not dead.”

“Well, your not.”

“You mean the pictures?” Finley pulled hers out her jacket pocket.

It was creased now, and slightly damaged now. Finley had tried to destroy it several times after the nightmares began, only for the photo to be there perfectly fine the moment she turned around.

They didn’t stop. Each time, she saw Brook and Anastasia get attacked.

It made her soul ache every time.

She didn’t want to bring them here. She knew how’d it end, but if she’d learnt anything, it was that fate couldn’t be outran, and trying to change it only made things worse.

“Who else would plant those besides yours truely?” Constantine smiled.

“Why?” Brook asked.

“Why?”

“Why? Why would you do this?”

“Because it’s my domain.” She said simply.

“What did we do?” Finley jumped in. “These deaths were accidents.”

“Hmm, they were flooks.”

“Are those the same thing?” Anastasia asked.

“Death is rarely accidental. Who dies can be, but the cause is rarely accidental.”

“Are you saying that they weren’t suppose to die?” Finley asked.

“Smart girl, you are.”

Finley was starting to get angry now. “What’s your plan?”

“My plan? Well, it’s pretty standard. I come to take the souls who were meant to die.”

Finley glanced between Anastasia and Brook, both were starting to look slightly pale now.

“You’re hear to collect us?” Brook whispered.

“Mhm.” Constantine hummed, nodding.

“But- that’s not right. They’re dead!” Anastasia pointed out.

Constantine turned to her. “Just because they’re dead doesn’t mean they’re gone. You should know this by now, Anastasia.”

Anastasia looked freaked out by the name usage. “What’s the point of killing us if they are dead? What’s that going to do?”

“Besides, my dad’s been dead for 10 years now. Why are you only going this now?” Finley asked.

Anastasia nodded. “Same with my aunt.”

“Okay, to start with, I have mortals. I’m not going to kill a 5 and 7 year old. Secondly, I still have rules and regulations. I can’t go killing people immediately.”

“Ok that makes way to much sense but still. They’ve been dead for ten years.”

Constantine sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I swear I have this conversation seven times a day. I am just trying to do my job. Either we can do it the easy way and you just come with me, or we can do it the painful way.”

They all just looked at each other in disbelief.

Are we really about to die?

“I’m going to take that as painful. I have other souls to pick up. Have at them boys!” Constantine turned on her heel, the graves disappearing and revealing the actual area.

It was dry and barren. The grass was completely dead, and there were a few dead trees and stumps literally the area.

Where a dense forest once stood had now been replaced by what Finley could only guess were Constantine’s ‘boys’.

There was a massive hellhound and a dude holding a snipper gun.

Fuck!

The hellhound growled, clearly smelling its dinner.

Finley gulped, knowing this probably wasn’t their first time doing this.

Almost in slow motion, Finley saw the snipper shooting.

“Duck!” She screamed, dropping the ground.

Anastasia followed. “Fuck!” She cursed.

Finley looked over at Brook, who collasped with a gasp.

“YOU BASTARDS!” She screamed, sprinting over to her. “Brook! Brooklyn! Don’t you dare die on me now!”

“Dude, I’m fine. It’s a flesh wound.” She muttered.

“You’ve been shot.” She deadpanned.

Brook ripped her shirt. “I’ll be fine.”

“Finley!” Anastasia yelped.

Her head whipped around for what felt like the 5th time in the past 10 minutes, only to be completely jumptackled by the hellhound.

She screamed, getting launched into one of the trees.

The tree snapped with the force, half of it coming down as Finley flew a few more feet.

Her vision blurred, and her body felt like it had been hit by a truck.

Hot tears rolled down her cheeks.

OW PAIN OWIE OUCH THAT HURTS FUCKITY FUCK HELP

“FINLEY!” Anastasia started to run, but the hellhound was faster.

It came up and scratched Finley across the face before biting down on her leg.

She shrieked.

“STOP!” Anastasia screehed, twisting her ring to get her sword. “I SAID STOP!”

It turned to Anastasia and growled.

Finley was barely conscious now, way too dazed to keep up with that.

She felt sick, her body vibrating in pain.

Brook was shaking her gently now.

“Finley!” She hissed. “Finley! You gotta stay conscious!”

“It hurts.” She sobbed.

“I know, Fin. I know, but you can’t sleep. Not yet, you need-”

The rest of the sentence wasn’t at all processed by Finley, like her brain had tuned in to a different radio station.

She felt Brook collapse next to her, but she couldn’t even bring herself to react.

Please Annie…

She could feel herself slipping now.

She felt someone’s footsteps, and someone gently grab her hand. She felt their breath as they said something, before the world started spinning.

Her body felt weightless for a few seconds, before the world finally faded away.

Notes:

And that's the end of the fic!

Yay I finished! I'll post an open starter for the aftermath of this probably tomorrow morning so look forward to that

Anyways hope you enjoy this chapter and the fic. I'm so proud of myself for finishing it, and in a week too! I should probably stick to short fics lol

Love to hear your thoughts!

@arisdaughter @childofthewargod @dianedantedominic @kaiaalwayswins @theorphicforest

@that-girl-cupid @delilah-isnt-dead-yett @daonedaonlyskh

@aria-pane @wine-cooper @i-am-persephones-daughter @unhinged-waterlilly

@demigod-jack-hearth @seed-of-the-pomegranate @istglevi-gotmesimping

@if-chaos-was-a-boy @ariathemortal @i-was-never-sane @gaygirldoodles @superbstarlightsheep

If you want to be added, removed or if I forgot to tag you, let me know :)

[ultraericthered]

Favorite Takes - DC

Where I cite my personal favorite non-source material (so film, TV, and video games only) adaptations of some comic book characters.

Clark Kent/Superman

Superman The Movie & Sequels (Christopher Reeve)

All Star Superman (James Denton)

DC Animated Universe (Tim Daly, George Newbern)

My Adventures With Superman (Jack Quaid)

CW DC Universe (Tyler Hoechlin, Brandon Routh)

NOTE: I was never the biggest fan of Dean Cain from Lois & Clark so he couldn't get on here, Tom Welling from Smallville might've been a contender had his character and story not got so bastardized, and the less said of poor Henry Cavill from the DCEU, the better.

Lois Lane

DC Animated Universe (Dana Delany)

All Star Superman (Christina Hendricks)

Superman The Movie & Sequels (Margot Kidder)

TV Versions (Terri Hatcher, Erica Durance, and Elizabeth Tulloch)

My Adventures With Superman (Alice Lee)

Lex Luthor

DC Animated Universe (Clancy Brown)

All Star Superman (Anthony LePaglia)

Smallville (Michael Rosenbaum)

CW DC Universe (Jon Cryer, Michael Cudlitz)

DC DTV Universe(s) (James Marsters, Jason Isaacs)

JLA (James Woods) & Young Justice (Mark Rolston)

NOTE: The last two get a split spot since one of them's got the voice of an evil political fascist while the other got his character mangled in later seasons to be a bad parallel to an evil political fascist. I also like the Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey, Stan Jones, Travis Willingham, Fred Tatasciore, Steve Blum, Ranin Wilson, Giancarlo Esposito, Zachary Quinto, Darin De Paul, Lance Reddick, Marc Maron, and Max Mittelman versions of Lex, and await to see Nicholas Hoult's.

Jimmy Olsen

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Alexander Polinsky)

DC Animated Universe (David Kaufman)

My Adventures With Superman (Ishmael Sahid)

Superman Returns (Sam Huntington)

All Star Superman (Matthew Gray Gubler)

Supergirl

DC Animated Universe (Nicolle Tom)

DC Superhero Girls (Anais Fairweather)

My Adventures With Superman (Kiana Madeira)

CW DC Universe (Melissa Benoist)

Supergirl '84 Film (Helen Slater)

Brainiac

DC Animated Universe (Corey Burton)

My Adventures With Superman (Michael Emerson)

Injustice Series (Jeffrey Combs)

Superman Unbound (John Noble)

TV Versions (James Marsters and Blake Ritson)

Bruce Wayne/Batman

DC Animated Universe (Kevin Conroy)

Under The Red Hood & Young Justice (Bruce Greenwood)

The Batman Trilogy (Robert Pattinson)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Christian Bale)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Diedrich Bader)

Batman '66 (Adam West)

NOTE: I really wanted David Mazouz from Gotham on here, but he had to compete with these other Bruces who were actually full time Batmen, so consider him an honorable mention. I also like Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, and Ben Affleck as Batman, but there were some problems with their particular iterations. Other runner ups include the other Kevin Conroy Batmen (particularly Arkham and Injustice), Rino Romano, Jeremy Sisto, Daran Norris, Anthony Ruivivar, Ben McKenzie, Jason O'Mara, Troy Baker, Peter Weller, Jensen Anckles, Keanu Reeves, Ethan Hawke, and of course the LEGO Batman(s).

Alfred Pennyworth

Burton-Shumacher Films (Michael Gough)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Michael Caine)

DC Animated Universe (Clive Revill, Efrem Zimbalist Jr.)

The Batman (Alastair Duncan)

Arkham Series (Martin Jarvis)

Gotham (Sean Pertwee) and The Batman Trilogy (Andy Serkis)

NOTE: Other great Alfreds include James Garrett, Brian George, JB Blanc, David McCallum, Enn Reitel, Anthony Head, Ralph Fiennes, Nolan North, Tom Hollander, Jason Watkins, and Jeremy Irons.

James Gordon

DC Animated Universe (Bob Hastings)

Batman Year One (Bryan Cranston)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Gary Oldman)

The Batman Trilogy (Jeffrey Wright)

Beware The Batman (Kurtwood Smith)

Batman '66 (Neil Hamilton, Jim Ward)

Barbara Gordon

DC Animated Universe (Melissa Gilbert, Mary Kay Bergman, Tara Strong)

Arkham Series & Injustice Series (Kimberly Brooks)

The Batman (Danielle Judovits)

Young Justice (Alyson Stoner)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Mae Whitman)

Batman: Caped Crusader (Krystal Joy Brown)

Dick Grayson/Robin

Teen Titans (Scott Menville)

Young Justice (Jesse McCartney)

Batman '66 (Burt Ward)

The Batman (Evan Sabara)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Crawford Wilson, Jeremy Shada)

Arkham Series (Josh Keaton)

Dick Grayson/Nightwing

Teen Titans (Scott Menville)

Young Justice (Jesse McCartney)

DC Animated Universe (Loren Lester)

Under The Red Hood (Neil Patrick Harris)

Arkham Series and Injustice Series (Troy Baker)

DC DTV Universe (Sean Maher)

The Joker

DC Animated Universe (Mark Hamill)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Heath Ledger)

Burton-Shumacher Films (Jack Nicholson)

Joker 2019 (Joaquin Phoenix)

Under The Red Hood (John DiMaggio)

Gotham (Cameron Monaghan)

NOTE: Other great Jokers include Mark Hamill and Troy Baker as Arkham series Joker, Mark Hamill in JLA, Troy Baker in Batman Unlimited and some of the newer DTVs, Caesar Romero in Batman '66, Michael Emerson in The Dark Knight Returns, Kevin Michael Richardson in The Batman, Jeff Bennett in Batman: The Brave & The Bold, Richard Epcar in Mortal Kombat and Injustice, John Kassir in Superfriends 2010, Alan Tudyk in Harley Quinn, Tony Hale in Batman Ninja, Barry Keogan in The Batman Trilogy, and the LEGO Joker(s).

The Penguin

Batman '66 (Burgess Meredith, William Salyers)

Gotham (Robin Lord Taylor)

The Batman Trilogy (Colin Farrell)

Arkham Series (Nolan North, Ian Redford)

DC Animated Universe (Paul Williams, David Odgen Stiers)

The Batman (Tom Kenny)

NOTE: I like the Stephen Root, David Jennison, Dana Snyder, and Wayne Knight Penguins as well, but they're not quite good enough to crack this. Mad respect to Danny DeVito too, but his Penguin sucks.

The Riddler

Batman '66 (Frank Gorshin*, Wally Wingert)

Gotham (Cory Michael Smith)

The Batman Trilogy (Paul Dano)

The Batman (Robert Englund)

DC Animated Universe (John Glover)

Arkham Series (Wally Wingert, Matthew Gray Gubler)

NOTE: Sorry Jim Carrey, you couldn't quite make the cut! Also in the running: Shannon McCormick, John Michael Higgins, Rob Paulsen, Weird Al Yankovic, Jim Rash, Brent Spiner, and Geoffrey Arrend.

*I refuse to credit John Astin's one appearance. That didn't happen!

Selina Kyle/Catwoman

Arkham Series (Grey Griffin, Chantelle Barry)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Anne Hathaway)

Burton-Shumacher Films (Michele Pteifer)

Gotham (Camren Bicondova)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Nika Futterman)

The Batman (Gina Gershon)

NOTE: Wish DCAU Selina could've made it since Adrienne Barbeau has easily the best voice for the character, but the writing and artwork let her down too often. Other good Catwomen include Julie Newmar, Ertha Kitt, Patty Matson, Jaynse Jaud, Eliza Dushku, Stephanie Sheh, Laura Bailey, Cree Summer, Jennifer Morrison, Naya Rivera, Liz Gilles, Gina Rodriguez, Christina Ricci, and Zoe Kravitz.

Two-Face

DC Animated Universe (Richard Moll)

Arkham Series (Troy Baker)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Aaron Eckhard)

Batman '66 (William Shatner)

Batman: Caped Crusader (Diedrich Bader)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (James Remar)

NOTE: Apologies to Billy Dee Williams, who would've done great, and Tommy Lee Jones, who could've done great (but definitely didn't). Also in the running but their coins landed on tails: Travis Willingham, Matthew Mercer, Robert Picardo, Petter Jessop, Dave Boat, Keith Ferguson, Gary Cole, Andrew Daly, and Josh Duhamel.

Mr. Freeze

DC Animated Universe (Michael Ansara)

Arkham Series (Maurice LeMarche)

Young Justice (Keith Szarabajka)

Batman '66 (George Sanders, Otto Preminger, Eli Wallach)

Gotham (Nathan Darrow)

Burton-Shumacher Films (Arnold Schwarzenegger)

NOTE: Other noteworthy Freezes who got frozen out of making it include Clancy Brown, Eric Bauza, Robert Kraft, Oded Fehr, Peter Stromare, Jim Pirri, and Matthew Mercer.

Poison Ivy

Arkham Series (Taisa Valenza, Amy J. Carle, Darcy Rose Byrnes)

DC Animated Universe (Dianne Pershing)

The Batman (Pierra Coppola)

Harley Quinn (Lake Bell)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Vanessa Marshall)

Gotham (Peyton List, Clare Foley, Maggie Geha)

NOTE: Uma Thurman, Laure Bailey, Fryda Wolff, Natasha Leggero, Paget Brewster, Peyton List II, Cristina Milizia, and Katee Sackhoff are all fun Poison Ivys as well.

Harley Quinn

DC Animated Universe (Arleen Sorkin)

Harley Quinn (Kaley Cuoco)

The Batman (Hynden Walch)

DCEU (Margot Robbie) and Suicide Squad ISEKAI (Karlii Hoch)

Arkham Series (Arleen Sorkin, Tara Strong)

Batman: Caped Crusader (Jamie Chung)

NOTE: Meghan Strange in Batman: The Brave & The Bold, Jenny Slate in The LEGO Batman Movie, Laura Post in the Telltale games, and Melissa Rauch in Batman and Harley Quinn are also great, and I've no doubt Lady Gaga could've really rocked it too but....yeah.

Ra's Al Ghul

DC Animated Universe (David Warner)

Gotham (Alexander Sidigg)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Liam Neeson)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Peter Woodward)

Young Justice (Oded Fehr)

Arkham Series (Dee Bradley Baker)

NOTE: Also among the great Ra's Al Ghuls are Jason Isaacs, Lance Reddick, Giancarlo Esposito & TC Carson, JB Blanc, and Cas Anvar.

Bane

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Tom Hardy)

Arkham Series (JB Blanc, Fred Tatasciore)

Young Justice (Danny Trejo, Eric Lopez)

DC Animated Universe (Henry Silva, Hector Elizondo)

The Batman (Joaquim de Almelda, Ron Perlman)

Harley Quinn (James Adomian)

Scarecrow

Arkham Series (Dino Andrade, John Noble)

DC Animated Universe (Henry Polic II, Jeffrey Combs)

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Cillian Murphy)

Injustice Series (Robert Englund)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Dee Bradley Baker)

Batman Unlimited (Brian T. Delaney)

Killer Croc

Arkham Series (Steve Blum, Khary Payton)

The Batman (Ron Perlman)

Beware The Batman (Wade Williams)

DC Animated Universe (Aaron Kincaid, Brooks Gardner)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Stephin Root)

Batman Unlimited (John DiMaggio)

Clayface

The Batman (Steve Harris, Wallace Langham)

Arkham Series (Rick D. Wasserman)

Batman: Caped Crusader (Dan Donohue)

DC Animated Universe (Ron Perlman)

Harley Quinn (Alan Tudyck)

Batman Unlimited (Dave B. Mitchell)

Professor Hugo Strange

Arkham Series (Corey Burton)

Gotham (BD Wong)

The Batman (Frank Gorshin, Richard Green)

Strange Days Short (Brian George)

Batman '66 (Jim Ward)

DC Animated Universe (Ray Buktenica)

NOTE: William Salyers in Gotham By Gaslight is fine as well but his part is too secondary. Young Justice Strange is the only one I dislike.

Diana Prince/Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman DTV (Keri Russell)

Wonder Woman '76 (Lynda Carter)

DCEU (Gal Gadot)

Young Justice (Maggie Q)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Vicki Lewis)

DTV Universe (Grey Griffin, Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson)

JLA (Rachel Kimsey)

NOTE: Really wish a Susan Eisenberg Wonder Woman could've landed here, but both of her most major iterations had some issues.

Slade Wilson/Deathstroke

Teen Titans (Ron Perlman)

CW DC Universe (Manu Bennett, Michael Chiklis, Esai Morales)

DTV Universe (Thomas Gibson, Miguel Ferrer)

Injustice Series (JG Hertzler)

Arkham Series (Mark Rolston)

Tara "Terra" Markov

Teen Titans (Ashley Johnson)

Teen Titans GO! (Ashley Johnson)

DTV Universe (Cristina Ricci)

LEGO DC (Laura Bailey)

Young Justice (Tara Strong)

Darkseid

DC Animated Universe (Michael Ironside, Kevin Michael Richardson)

Justice League Heroes (David Sobolov)

Batman: The Brave & The Bold (Michael Leon Wooley)

Injustice Series (Michael Leon Wooley)

DTV Universe(s) (Andre Baugher, Bruce Thomas, Tony Todd)

JLA (Johnathan Adams)

NOTE: I discount Steve Blum from the DTV Universe(s) 'cause what the fuck was that, and Ray Porter in the DCEU was tragically ill-fated.

[rosyrosethings]

Prince Harry.

Word count: 4,533

Summary:Harry is a prince who goes in disguise to a new local bakery in his town. Y/n is a bakery owner who is American and has no idea about the royal family.

A little smut, slow burn, y/n is black.

The soft chime of the doorbell announced a new customer at "Daisy's Confections". Nestled in the quietest part of Albridge town, the bakery was a treasure trove of sugary delights. Freshly baked croissants, intricate pastries, and a variety of cookies lined the shelves, filling the air with a warm and comforting aroma. Everyone in town loved Y/n’s baking. Day by day her baking became more popular.

Even the Prince of Albridge heard of the amazing treats Harry who cant go out with out being noticed. He put on his baseball cap and his shades and his hoodie. He proceeded to try to leave out the palace

"Umm sir where are you going?" Ethan asked him, his bodyguard.

"I am going out alone." He said.

"Looking like a burglar? You know, can get both us in real trouble when you sneak out like that." Ethan said, his job to watch over Harry.

"Ethan I am just going into the town, I promise i will be back soon. If my grandmother or father are looking for me. Just cover for me? Please." He begged, Ethan sighed. Even though he was his bodyguard. They were friends. Ethan nodded as Harry proceeded to leave and make his way to the bakery.

Meanwhile, Behind the counter, Y/n adjusted her bun and dusted flour off her apron as she looked up to greet the newcomer. What she saw took her by surprise—a tall man in a navy-blue hoodie, sporting dark sunglasses and a baseball cap pulled low to obscure most of his face. When the skies were clear and the sun was shining. The guy looked as if he was going to rob a bank or something she thought.

"Good morning," she greeted with a bright smile, undeterred by the man's peculiar appearance. "What can I offer you today?" Her American accent clear and crisp.

The stranger cleared his throat. A bit taken back by her beauty. Her dark brown skin glowing with the hint of sunlight shining on her. Her smile radiant. "I've heard a lot about your bakery . And I wanted to know if I could try for myself." He offered, his voice soft and hesitant.

Y/n's eyes sparkled. "Of course!" She slid a fresh cookie onto a plate and passed it to him. "Enjoy!"

As the man took a bite, a sigh escaped him, his posture relaxing. "This is heavenly. Your reputation does you justice," he commented, still maintaining his hidden demeanor.

Blushing slightly at the praise, Y/n couldn't contain her curiosity. "Thank you. I'm Y/n. I haven't seen you around here before."

The man paused, seemingly pondering his response. "I'm Henry. I just moved to Aldridge for... work."

”Nice to meet you Henry,.” she said,

Despite the sunglass's criminal aesthetic Henry had going on. Their conversation flowed effortlessly—from baking to books to dreams. Y/n was drawn to Henry's mysterious charm, and he seemed equally enamored by her passion for baking.Henry became a daily visitor. He always arrived at the same time, always ordered the same cookies.

One day Inside the fragrant cocoon of the bakery's kitchen, Y/n, lost in her own world, worked meticulously on her next masterpiece. Each fold of the dough, each sprinkle of sugar, was a testament to her passion for baking. The warm glow of the kitchen lights accentuated the small puffs of flour that rose every time she kneaded the dough.

As she hummed a soft tune, the creak of the kitchen door interrupted her rhythm. Brianna, her vibrant best friend and invaluable employee, stepped in, her eyes dancing with a familiar mischief.

"Guess who's graced us with his presence again?" she teased, playfully tugging at Y/n's apron.

Pretending to ponder, Y/n smirked, "The mayor? Or perhaps the postman?"

"Very funny," Brianna laughed, "Your very own elusive admirer. Mr. Tall, Dark, and Mysterious."

Even though this had become a daily ritual, Y/n's heart still fluttered with anticipation. She hastily grabbed the closest reflective surface—a polished silver spoon—and tried to assess her appearance. "Do I have any flour on my face?"

Brianna chuckled, pulling the spoon away. "You're picture-perfect, as always. Though I'm sure he wouldn’t mind even if you did."

Y/n paused, gathering a breath before her next question, one that had been burning within her. "Bri, does it seem odd that he hasn't made a move yet? No number, no date invitation?"

Brianna leaned against the countertop, contemplating. "Y/n, every person has their pace. Maybe he's from the old school—likes to take his time, savor the moments. Besides," she winked, "anticipation can be quite... enticing."

With renewed hope, Y/n whispered, "Maybe today will be different."

"Only one way to find out." Brianna nudged her forward, propelling her toward the bakery's main floor.

As Y/n stepped out, her eyes instantly found Henry. He sat ensconced in his favorite corner, the overhead lights casting a gentle halo around him. Though his cap shadowed his eyes, Y/n felt them on her, their warmth reaching across the room.

She decided to create a special platter for him today. A medley of freshly baked cookies, each one a testament to her evolving craft, inspired in no small part by his daily visits.

Plate in hand, she approached his table, the world around them blurring into a soft haze. "Henry," she greeted, her voice holding a hint of a tremor.

His lips curled into that familiar heartwarming smile. "Y/n, your presence always makes the day brighter."

Blushing, she playfully retorted, "Smooth talker. Do you say that, for every baker in town?"

His laughter, deep and genuine, filled the room. "Only for those who've enchanted me with their culinary magic. And that list is quite... exclusive." She giggled in response.

Their conversation flowed effortlessly, the world outside forgotten. Y/n shared stories of her family, her dreams, her love for Albridge. The town held a special place in her heart, with tales passed down from her grandmother about their ancestral bakery and the magic of this place.

Henry listened intently, his gaze never wavering. Every now and then, he'd share snippets of his own life, though always maintaining a shroud of mystery around his origins and profession. They soon transitioned to talking about the Royal family.

In a whispered confession, Y/n admitted, "Dont tell anyone but I might be a bit clueless about Albridge's high society. I wouldn't recognize the prince or princess even if they walked right in."

Henry's eyes twinkled with amusement. "Your secret's safe with me."

Their intimate bubble was punctured by the intrusive ring of Henry's phone. From Y/n's vantage point, she could see the caller ID read "URGENT." The color drained slightly from Henry's face as he answered, his voice hushed yet tense.

Y/n sensed his urgency, and although her heart sank, she quickly packed his cookies. On a whim, she tucked her business card inside, scribbling her personal number on the back.

"I have to go," he murmured, regret evident in his voice.

"oh. Okay," she nodded, trying to mask her disappointment. "Hope everything's okay."

He hesitated, then leaned closer. "I promise to explain someday. But for now," he glanced at the bag, then back at her, a soft promise in his eyes, "thank you."

With that, he rushed out, leaving Y/n with a myriad of emotions and questions. She clutched the empty plate, a gentle smile playing on her lips.

//

Upon returning to the palace, Harry gingerly placed the bag of cookies on his ornate desk. His princely duties called, and it was several hours of meetings and paperwork before he could think of relaxing. As evening fell, he retreated to the solitude of his chambers, his thoughts drifting to Y/n and the time they shared.

With a sense of anticipation, he opened the bag, his eyes drawn to a little card nestled among the cookies. Confused, he picked it up and inspected it. It bore the details of Y/n’s bakery on one side, and on the flip side, scribbled in elegant handwriting, was a number. A grin slowly spread across his face, his heart inexplicably racing.

Quickly he keyed in the number on his phone, pressing it to his ear.

A muffled shriek, followed by a giggle, sounded on the other end before a familiar voice answered, "Hello?"

"Is this the enchanting Y/n?" He teased, recognizing her voice instantly.

Her playful retort came quickly, "Depends on who's asking."

Feigning seriousness, he said, "I happened upon a card with a number in my cookie bag, and I must say that's a rather forward approach, don't you think?"

She chuckled, "Well, perhaps if a certain someone took the hint and asked for my number, I wouldn't have to resort to such tactics."

Henry laughed, "Has it been that obvious that my visits are less about the cookies and more about seeing you?"

She replied with a smirk evident in her voice, "Oh, completely. You make it so obvious by insisting that only I serve you. Though I must admit, I eagerly await your visits."

He could almost visualize her blushing. Taking a deep breath, he knew what he had to do next. "Y/n," he began, his voice suddenly more serious, "Would you do me the honor of joining me for dinner tomorrow evening?"

Her response came without hesitation, "I'd love to."

//

Cloaked in the dim, romantic lighting of the restaurant, hidden from the prying world outside, Harry sat, bereft of his usual incognito accessories — no glasses, no hat. His heart thrummed a nervous beat in his chest, the absence of his familiar disguise rendering him more exposed than he'd been in a long while. "What if she doesn't see me the same way?" This fear looped incessantly in his mind, the vulnerability raw and unyielding. He was acutely aware that his royal identity held no sway with Y/n, her American roots placing her pleasantly outside the sphere of his family's fame.

The antique door hinges emitted a faint squeak, heralding her arrival. Harry's breath hitched as he pivoted to face her. Y/n was a vision — her red dress clung to her in all the right places, accentuating her graceful silhouette, the rich color gloriously offsetting her smooth, dark skin. Her hair, pulled back in a playful ponytail, featured a red ribbon that danced as she moved. It was a simple touch but one that showcased her attention to detail, her personal flair.

"Henry, you're... wow, you're so handsome," Y/n breathed out, a hint of awe lacing her tone as her gaze took him in, unshielded for the first time. The genuineness of her compliment eased the tight coil of anxiety in his chest, even if just a little.

He couldn't help but smile, the gesture reaching his eyes, bright with appreciation. "Thank you, Y/n. But tonight, you're the breathtaking one." He motioned towards her chair, their hands brushing during the process — an electric moment of contact that sent a jolt through them both.

As they settled into their seats, Y/n's curiosity bubbled to the surface. "Henry, I've always wondered... why the mystery? You have these striking features, almost like those runway models."

His laughter was a nervous flutter in the air. "Oh, thank you. I guess I value my privacy more than most," Harry admitted, the truth but not the whole truth.

She reached across the table, her hand an anchor in the sea of his uncertainties. "Well, you're downright gorgeous, Henry."

Heart pounding louder, he met her sincerity. "I feel the same about you," he whispered, the words thick with unspoken emotions.

Their connection deepened as they delved into further conversation. However, Y/n's next question caught him off-guard, "This place is quite upscale, Henry. What do you do, if you don't mind my asking?"

A pause. A rapid calculation. "I work with the royal family," he said, each word carefully weighed yet truthful within its own context.

"That's fascinating! What's your role there?" she pressed, excitement tinting her words.

"I handle their public relations," he replied swiftly, relief flooding him as he realized his answer remained within the bounds of his actual royal obligations.

Eager to steer away from the precipice of his secret, Harry shifted topics. "Y/n, you once spoke of the precise science behind your baking. What's been your greatest challenge in that regard?"

Her face transformed, the passion for her craft igniting her features. "Definitely the croquembouche. Mastering the caramel, achieving the flawless consistency... it was daunting but so rewarding to see the final structure."

Harry hung on her every word, her fervor, her dedication — it was enthralling. "You're a true artist, Y/n. Your commitment is nothing short of inspiring."

They wove through topics, from his 'studies' — a guise for his royal duties — to her culinary adventures. Laughter rang clear, opinions clashed and melded, and an unmistakable bond tethered them closer with each passing moment. Y/n's authenticity, her vivacious spirit, was a breath of fresh air in Harry's constrained, regal world.

As the evening's end drew inevitably closer, their departure loomed like a shadow, the joy of the night tinged with a hint of sorrow. Harry's heart felt heavy with unspoken truths, yet the warmth in her touch, the genuine affection in her smile, sparked a flicker of hope. Reluctantly, he escorted her to her car, each step punctuated with a silent promise to hold onto the night's magic just a little longer.

"Tonight was something out of a movie, Henry," she whispered, leaning casually yet alluringly against the driver's door, her eyes glistening under the starlit sky as she gazed up at him.

"And I, Y/n, am keenly awaiting the sequel," he replied earnestly, the depth of his emotions veiled beneath his words. He positioned his hand atop the car, his frame leaning towards her, an unspoken invitation hanging in the air.

"me too," she responded, her eyes briefly flitting to his lips, an action not missed by him. A subtle smirk graced his features; gently, he cradled her chin with his hand, drawing her in for a kiss. Their lips met, a perfect synchronization of breath and desire. As the kiss deepened, it surged with an intensity that was both thrilling and overwhelming, her arms winding around his neck, his finding a natural place around her waist.

Abruptly, Harry broke the kiss, the realization hitting him that despite the restaurant's exclusivity, they were still in a public place vulnerable to prying eyes.

"It's late; you should head home," he murmured, though the words tasted bitter, his own disappointment mirroring hers.

She gazed up at him, her eyes a mix of understanding and a hint of sadness. "Yes, you're right," she agreed softly, the reluctance evident in her voice as she slowly unwrapped her arms from his embrace.

"I promise, it's not about you," he reassured her, sensing her thoughts. His hand lingered on her waist for a moment longer before he stepped back, his lips pressing a tender kiss to her cheek. "I'm just a private person, love. But tomorrow, I'm all yours," he affirmed, opening the car door for her.

She nodded, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips, understanding yet yearning evident in her eyes. As she settled into the driver's seat, their eyes locked once more, a silent vow exchanged. With a final wave, she pulled away, and he stood there, watching the distance grow, their shared kiss a promise of what was yet to come.

//

The following day found Y/n in her bakery, the air sweet with the scent of pastries, but Henry was conspicuously absent. It was Sunday, and business hours were drawing to a close. Deciding to close up early, she sent her employees home, the clock ticking down the final ten minutes. Y/n tried to brush off the disappointment gnawing at her heart, but "a little upset" didn't begin to cover it. She felt a sting of abandonment. After a magical date, his absence felt like a stark rebuttal. Was he ghosting her? The thought nagged at her, an unwelcome lump forming in her throat.

The gentle tinkle of the entrance bell barely registered in her preoccupied mind. Without raising her eyes from the counter she was absently wiping, she called out, "I apologize, but we're closing. Please, feel free to visit us tomorrow when we—"

"But what if I'm acquainted with the owner?" a familiar voice interjected, its warm timbre instantly lifting her spirits.

Y/n's head shot up, her heart skipping a beat. There stood Henry, an apologetic smile playing on his lips. Relief washed over her, and she couldn't help but smile back.

"I was worried you'd decided to ditch me," she confessed, her voice tinged with residual concern yet a smile brightening her expression.

"Ditch you? I would never," he declared as he sauntered confidently toward her, coming around to her side of the counter. Without hesitation, he grasped the strings of her apron, tugging her gently but insistently closer, and sealed his words with a kiss.

"I've missed you immensely," he murmured against her lips, his breath warm and reassuring. "I haven't stopped thinking about you since last night, especially yearning for another kiss." He said, she pulled away slightly.

"How about we just retreat to my place and unwind with a movie?" she proposed, the corners of her mouth lifting in a hopeful smile. His response was a grin that didn't just reach his eyes but seemed to light them from within. "That sounds like an evening well spent, beautiful," he agreed warmly.

Thus, they transitioned from the day's close, with Harry lending a hand as Y/n locked up the bakery for the night. Together, they ascended the stairs to her apartment, nestled conveniently above her beloved shop. The door swung open to reveal a charming, intimately spaced two-bedroom abode, every nook a testament to Y/n's simple yet cozy taste.

Bri, her roommate, emerged from the kitchen, her attention glued to her phone screen. "Y/n, you're back earlier than I expected. I know you were upset that Henry didn't drop by today, but maybe —" Her words stumbled to a halt as her gaze flicked upwards, colliding with the sight of Y/n accompanied by an unfamiliar figure. The man's striking features were undeniably alluring, leaving Bri momentarily speechless.

"You're... you're Henry?" Bri stammered, her initial shock transitioning into a mix of surprise and immediate appreciation for his almost ethereal good looks.

"Yes, I am. It's a pleasure to meet you under more formal circumstances," Harry replied with a courteous smile. Though they'd crossed paths when he visited the shop, he'd always have on the shades, baseball cap, and a hoodie.

Flustered yet amused by the unexpected revelation, Bri quickly gathered herself. "Well, I'll just forget I was about to say anything. I’ll leave you two alone," she quipped, snatching a few snacks before darting a playful, exaggerated 'HE'S GORGEOUS!' mime to Y/n and scampering toward the sanctuary of her room.

Y/n rolled her eyes playfully, then gestured apologetically at Bri's retreating figure. "Sorry about her," she said, a sheepish grin tugging at her lips as she guided him to the living room sofa.

"Don't be. She seems wonderful," Harry reassured, his laughter a soft melody in the homely space. They settled into the couch, the familiar proximity a bubble of comfort. Y/n seized the remote, her fingers dancing over the buttons as she browsed through an extensive list of titles across various streaming platforms. Harry's gaze lingered on her, admiration evident in his eyes. Even in profile, she was a captivating canvas he couldn't draw his eyes away from.

"Alright, romance it is!" Y/n announced, her decision punctuating the comfortable silence. She selected a film known for its heartfelt narrative, the screen brightening as it played.

"You can never go wrong with a compelling love story," Harry concurred, his arm instinctively draping over her shoulders, drawing her into the curve of his side. Though she leaned into his embrace, her eyes were steadfast on the screen, a slight tension in her posture. He sensed a reticence in her, a vulnerability perhaps kindled by the day's earlier disappointments.

She was a tempest of emotions, desire mingling with the fear of rejection. So she fixated on the unfolding romance on-screen, a safe harbor in the storm of her heart — hoping the distance of her gaze would shield her from the urge to lean into the warmth of the man whose presence had become her solace.

Harry, intuitively attuned to her, couldn't help but notice the subtle rigidity in her posture, the way her eyes studiously avoided meeting his. He understood her unspoken hesitance, her internal struggle. Deciding to gently challenge the barriers she'd put up, he allowed himself a small, inward smirk before deliberately shifting his approach.

With a feathery lightness, his hand found its way to her thigh, fingertips grazing the fabric of her black leggings in a slow, reassuring rhythm. He could feel the minute stiffening of her muscles under his touch, a silent acknowledgment of the unexpected contact.

"Is this alright, love?" he inquired, his voice low, a tender undercurrent beneath the words. She offered a mute nod, her gaze obstinately fixed on the flickering images on the TV screen, though he could sense her attention fracturing.

Respecting her boundaries yet wanting to bridge the chasm that had formed between them, Harry retracted his hand from her leg. With a gentleness that belied the strength in his fingers, he guided her chin, encouraging her face to turn towards his.

"I want to see your eyes when we're speaking," he murmured, the request uttered not as a command but as a plea laced with affection. The soft intensity in his voice coaxed her to swallow her uncertainties, prompting her to offer a timid nod and finally allow her eyes to meet his.

In the sanctuary of their shared gaze, he leaned forward, diminishing the space that separated them. And when his lips finally captured hers, it wasn't just a kiss but a communion, a silent reassurance that she was heard, understood, and cherished exactly as she was. His dominance making her wetter and wetter. His hand started to make its way in between her legs. Her pussy aching for his touch since last night. His hand slid in her leggings over her panties. His fingers slid over the slit. Feeling her wetness through the thin fabric. He pulled apart from the kiss and looked at her

"You're so wet love, all this for me?" He asked, there foreheads together. Looking into each other eyes.

"Yes, I've wanted you for so long." She said, he slid her panties to the side and he inserted his fingers into her. Causing her to gasp slightly.

"Mmm so wet and tight for me baby." He said as he slid in another finger.

"Ohh fuck. He-." He cut her off with a kiss. Not wanting her to say his fake name. He moved his fingers in her going a at a steady pace. Her hand found it way to his hair slightly tugging at his curls. She was so mesmerized by his fingers. She never had a man make her cum with his hand. His other hand slid behind her back. Grabbing her by her waist pulling her into his lap. Her to his chest as he continued to finger fuck her

"I-I'm gonna c-"

"Shh baby, just let it happen. Cum all over my fingers. " he whispered in her ear. She couldn't hold it anymore. She came all over his hand. He took his hand out her pants licking his two fingers clean. "You taste good." He whispered.

"Henry, you're so dominant. I wasn't expecting that at all." She said, getting off his lap right on side. Sitting on her knees to face him.

"Why didn't you expect it?" He asked raising his brow.

"You're very proper, you always look like you come from a polo match. And you speak like a thesaurus was read to you before you went to sleep." She said looking at him.

A genuine, light-hearted chuckle escaped him, the sound sophisticated yet endearing. "I can't decipher if I should be flattered or slightly affronted by that observation," he admitted, his lips twisting in a playful grimace.

"How about we forget what i just said pick up where we left off?" She said, leaning in for a kiss.

Their lips met, a brief but charged interaction. Harry, however, pulled back sooner than she anticipated. "I’m rather spent, my love. What do you say we retire for the evening?" His proposal was tender, his British lilt prominent, as he took her hand with gentle nobility. She nodded, laying on top of him. Her head snuggled on his shoulder.

//

The following day found Y/n steering clear of the bakery, opting instead for chores and errands — perhaps partly because she needed a distraction from Henry's absence. He'd informed her he wouldn't be around, tied up with obligations to the crown. The news had left a dull ache in her chest; she was already tumbling headlong into this unexpected romance.

While she was dusting, her phone hummed with an incoming email, pulling her attention. She tapped the notification hurriedly.

"Dear Y/n,

My name is Maria, and I serve as the primary event planner for the royal family. Your bakery has garnered quite the reputation as the finest in the city. We are thrilled to extend an invitation for you to showcase your renowned baked delights at the royal banquet this coming Saturday! Kindly respond at your earliest convenience so we may finalize the particulars.

Warm regards,

Maria"

Y/n's heart practically leapt out of her chest. Fingers flying, she crafted a prompt reply, her excitement bubbling over.

Meanwhile, Harry was waging a war within himself. He was drawn to her, undeniably, yet shackled by the weight of royal expectations. He understood all too well that his family would hardly endorse his entanglement with a baker, no matter her charm. They likely had grand matrimonial designs already in the works. However, in his mind's eye, it was a future with Y/n that he envisioned.

Dinner that evening was a formal affair, as always. Henry sat rigidly between his grandmother and father, his mind drifting incessantly back to the woman who was slowly but surely captivating his heart. He barely registered the meal served by the diligent staff, offering them a distracted word of gratitude.

The conversation inevitably veered toward his marital prospects. "Harry, time isn't on your side indefinitely. You must consider marriage," his father pressed, his tone brooking no argument.

But Harry, ever the "defiant" one in royal terms, wasn’t swayed. "The kingdom doesn't require a queen by my side to thrive," he countered calmly, though he could sense his father’s growing frustration.

"The royal banquet is this Saturday," his grandmother interjected with diplomatic timing, "We've arranged for you to be seated next to Princess Emma."

Henry exhaled slowly, a respectful bow of his head acknowledging her words, though it did little to quell the rebellion simmering within him. "As you wish, Grandmother." His acquiescence was polite, devoid of enthusiasm, his thoughts adrift with visions of a certain baker and the what-ifs she brought along.

[misfitwashere]

December 29, 2024

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

DEC 30

Former President Jimmy Carter died today, December 29, 2024, at age 100 after a life characterized by a dedication to human rights. His wife of 77 years, Rosalynn Carter, died on November 19, 2023; she was 96 years old.

James Earl Carter Jr. was born on October 1, 1924, in Plains, in southwestern Georgia, about half an hour from the site of the infamous Andersonville Prison, where United States soldiers died of disease and hunger during the Civil War only sixty years earlier. He was the first U.S. president to be born in a hospital.

Carter’s South was impoverished. He grew up on a dirt road about three miles from Plains, in the tiny, majority-Black village of Archery, where his father owned a farm and the family grew corn, cotton, peanuts, and sugar cane. The young Carters and the children of the village’s Black sharecroppers grew up together as the Depression that crashed down in 1929 drained away what little prosperity there was in Archery.

After undergraduate coursework at Georgia Southwestern College and at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Carter completed his undergraduate degree at the U.S. Naval Academy. In the Navy he rose to the rank of lieutenant, serving on submarines—including early nuclear submarines—in both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets.

In 1946, Carter married Rosalynn Smith, a friend of his sister’s, who grew up in Plains. When his father died in 1953, Carter resigned his naval commission and took his family back to the Carters’ Georgia farm, where he and Rosalynn operated both the farm and a seed and supply company.

Arriving back in Georgia just a year before the U.S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, Carter quickly became involved in local politics. In 1962 he challenged a fraudulent election for a Georgia state senate seat, and in the runoff, voters elected him. The Carters became supporters of Democratic president John F. Kennedy in a state whose dominant Democratic Party was in turmoil as white supremacists clashed with Georgians eager to leave their past behind. Kennedy had sent troops to desegregate the University of Mississippi.

Carter ran for governor in 1966, the year after Congress passed the Voting Rights Act. He lost the primary, coming in third behind another liberal Democrat and a staunch segregationist Democrat, Lester Maddox, who won it and went on to win the governorship. When Carter ran again in 1970, he emphasized his populism rather than Black rights, appealing to racist whites. He won the Democratic primary with 60% of the vote and, in a state that was still Democrat-dominated, easily won the governorship.

But when Carter took office in 1971, he abandoned his concessions to white racists and took a stand for new race relations in the United States. “I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” he told Georgians in his inaugural speech. “No poor, rural, weak, or Black person should ever have to bear the additional burden of being deprived of the opportunity of an education, a job, or simple justice.”

His predecessor, Maddox, had refused to let state workers take the day off to attend services for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral; Carter pointedly hung a portrait of King—as well as portraits of educator Lucy Craft Laney and Georgia politician and minister Henry McNeal Turner—in the State Capitol.

Carter brought to office a focus not only on civil rights but also on cleaning up and streamlining the state’s government. He consolidated more than 200 government offices into 20 and backed austerity measures to save money while also supporting new social programs, including equalizing aid to poor and wealthy schools, prison reform and early childhood development programs, and community centers for mentally disabled children.

At the time, the state constitution prohibited Carter from reelection, so he built recognition in the national Democratic Party and turned his sights on the presidency. In the wake of the scandals that brought down both President Richard Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew, as well as many of their staff, when it seemed to many Americans that all of Washington was corrupt, voters welcomed the newcomer Carter as an outsider who would work for the people.

He seemed a new kind of Democrat, one who could usher in a new, multicultural democracy now that the 1965 Voting Rights Act had brought Black and Brown voters into the American polity. Like many of the other civil rights coalitions in the twentieth century, Carter’s supporters shared music reinforced their politics, and Carter’s deep knowledge of blues, R&B, folk, and especially the gospel music of his youth helped him appeal to that era’s crucially important youth vote. Bob Dylan; Crosby, Stills & Nash, Nile Rodgers, Willie Nelson, and Johnny Cash, as well as the Allman Brothers, all backed Carter, who later said: “I was practically a non-entity, but everyone knew the Allman Brothers. When they endorsed me, all the young people said, ‘Well, if the Allman Brothers like him, we can vote for him.’”

Elected by just over 50% of American voters over Republican candidate Gerald R. Ford’s count of about 48%, Carter’s outsider status and determination to govern based on the will of the people sparked opposition from within Washington—including in the Democratic Party—and stories that he was buffeted about by the breezes of polls. But Carter's domestic policy advisor Stuart Eizenstat once said that Carter believed an elected president should “park politics at the Oval Office door” and try to win election by doing the right thing. He took pride in ignoring political interests—a stance that would hurt his ability to get things done in Washington, D.C.

Carter began by trying to make the government more representative of the American people: Eizenstat recalled that Carter appointed more women, Black Americans, and Jewish Americans to official positions and judgeships “than all 38 of his predecessors combined.”

Carter instituted ethics reforms to reclaim the honor of the presidency after Nixon’s behavior had tarnished it. He put independent inspectors in every department and established that corporations could not bribe foreign officials to get contracts. He expanded education programs, establishing the Department of Education, and tried to relieve the country from reliance on foreign oil by establishing the Department of Energy.

Concerned that the new regulatory agencies that Congress had created since the mid-1960s might be captured by industries and that they were causing prices to rise, Carter began the deregulation movement to increase competition. He began with the airlines and moved to the trucking industry, railroad lines, and long-distance phone service. He also deregulated beer production—his legalization of homebrewing sparked today’s craft brewing industry.

But Carter inherited slow economic growth and the inflation that had plagued presidents since Nixon, and the 1979 drop in oil production after the Iranian revolution exacerbated both. While more than ten million jobs were added to the U.S. economy during his term—almost twice the number Reagan added in his first term, and more than five times the number George H.W. Bush added in his—inflation hit 14% in 1980. To combat that inflation, Carter appointed Paul Volcker to chair the Federal Reserve, knowing he would combat inflation with high interest rates, a policy that brought down inflation during the first term of his successor, Ronald Reagan.

Carter also focused on protecting the environment. He was the first president to undertake the federal cleanup of a hazardous waste site, declaring a federal emergency in the New York neighborhood of Love Canal and using federal disaster money to remediate the chemicals that had been stored underground there.

Carter placed 56 million acres of land in Alaska under federal protection as a national monument, saying: “These areas contain resources of unequaled scientific, historic and cultural value, and include some of the most spectacular scenery and wildlife in the world,” he said. In 1979 he had 32 solar panels installed at the White House to help heat the water for the building and demonstrate that it was possible to curb U.S. dependence on fossil fuels. Just before he left office, Carter signed into law the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, protecting more than 100 million acres in Alaska, including additional protections for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Coming after Nixon’s secret bombing of Cambodia and support for Chile’s right-wing dictator Augusto Pinochet, whose government had systematically tortured and executed his political opponents, Carter’s foreign policy emphasized human rights. Carter echoed the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights established by the United Nations, promising he would promote “human freedom” while protecting “the individual from the arbitrary power of the state.” He was best known for the Camp David Accords that achieved peace between Israel and Egypt after they had fought a series of wars. Those accords, negotiated with Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Menachem Begin of Israel paved the way for others. Carter credited the religious faith of the three men for making the agreement possible.

Carter also built on his predecessor Nixon’s outreach to China, normalizing relations and affording diplomatic recognition of China, enabling the two countries to develop a bilateral relationship. While commenters often credit President Reagan with pressuring the Soviet Union enough to bring about its dissolution, in fact it was Carter who negotiated the nuclear arms treaty that Reagan honored and who, along with his national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski, saw the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 as a major breach in international relations. He cut off grain sales to the USSR, ordered a massive defense buildup, and persuaded European leaders to accept nuclear missiles stationed in their countries, which Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev said was a significant factor in the dissolution of the USSR.

To Carter also fell the Iran hostage crisis in which Muslim fundamentalists overran the American embassy in the Iranian capital Tehran, seizing 66 Americans and holding them hostage for 444 days, in return for a promise that the American-backed Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, whom Carter had admitted to the U.S. for cancer treatment, be returned to Iran for trial. Carter immediately froze Iranian assets and began secret negotiations, while Americans watched on TV as Iranian mobs chanted “Death to America.” A secret mission to rescue the hostages failed when one of the eight helicopters dispatched to rescue the hostages crashed, killing eight soldiers. Before he left office, Carter successfully negotiated for the hostages’ return; they were released the day of Reagan’s inauguration.

Carter left office in January 1981, and the following year, in partnership with Emory University, he and Rosalynn established the Carter Center, an Atlanta-based nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization to advance peace, health, and human rights around the world.

The Carter Center has supervised elections in more than 100 countries, has helped farmers in 15 African countries to double or triple grain production, and has worked to prevent disease in Latin America and Africa. In 1986, when the Carter Center began a program to eradicate infections of the meter-long Guinea worm that emerges painfully from sufferers’ skin and incapacitates them for long periods, 3.5 million people a year in Africa and Asia were infected; in 2022 there were only 13 known infections, in 2023 there were 14. So far in 2024, there have been 7, but those will not be officially confirmed until spring 2025. In a 2015 interview, Carter said he hoped to outlive the last case.

President Carter said, “When I was in the White House, I thought of human rights primarily in terms of political rights, such as rights to free speech and freedom from torture or unjust imprisonment. As I traveled around the world since I was president, I learned there was no way to separate the crucial rights to live in peace, to have adequate food and health care, and to have a voice in choosing one’s political leaders. These human needs and rights are inextricably linked.”

In 2002, Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” When journalist Katie Couric of The Today Show asked him if the Nobel Peace Prize or being elected president was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to him, Carter answered: “When Rosalynn said she’d marry me, I think that’s the most exciting thing.”

In his Farewell Address on January 14, 1981, President Jimmy Carter worried about the direction of the country. He noted that the American people had begun to lose faith in the government’s ability to deal with problems and were turning to “single-issue groups and special interest organizations to ensure that whatever else happens, our own personal views and our own private interests are protected.” This focus on individualism, he warned, distorts the nation’s purpose because “the national interest is not always the sum of all our single or special interests. We are all Americans together, and we must not forget that the common good is our common interest and our individual responsibility.”

Carter urged Americans to protect our “most precious possessions: the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the land which sustains us,” and to advance the basic human rights that had, after all, “invented America.” “Our common vision of a free and just society,” he said, “is our greatest source of cohesion at home and strength abroad, greater even than the bounty of our material blessings.”

—

[daimonclub]

Quotes and aphorisms on animals

Quotes and aphorisms on animals Quotes and aphorisms on animals by famous authors, writers, artists and men of science to remind us the importance of animals for our lives and our planet earth. World Animal Day is an international day of action for animal rights and welfare. It is celebrated on October 4 each year, the feast day of Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. The elephant, not only the largest but the most intelligent of animals, provides us with an excellent example. It is faithful and tenderly loving to the female of its choice, mating only every third year and then for no more than five days, and so secretly as never to be seen, until, on the sixth day, it appears and goes at once to wash its whole body in the river, unwilling to return to the herd until thus purified. Such good and modest habits are an example to husband and wife. St. Francis De Sales Animals, in their generation, are wiser than the sons of men; but their wisdom is confined to a few particulars, and lies in a very narrow compass. Joseph Addison Of all the wonders of nature, a tree in summer is perhaps the most remarkable; with the possible exception of a moose singing "Embraceable You" in spats. Woody Allen Man is an animal endowed with reason, but also with much stupidity. Carl William Brown At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst. Aristotle Drinking, when we are not thirsty and making love all year round, madam; that is all there is to distinguish us from other animals. Pierre De Beaumarchais The dog is the god of frolic. Henry Ward Beecher I shoot the Hippopotamus with bullets made of platinum, because if I use the leaden one his hide is sure to flatten em. Hilaire Belloc

Quotes on animals Scientific laws are still a product of man, that's why I, first of all, dedicate myself to the study of this amazing animal. Carl William Brown A peasant becomes fond of his pig and is glad to salt away its pork. What is significant, and is so difficult for the urban stranger to understand, is that the two statements are connected by an and not by a but. John Berger Politicians are none of my business… I was struck by the fact that they live a dog's life without the manners of a dog. Rudyard Kipling Bats have no bankers and they do not drink and cannot be arrested and pay no tax and, in general, bats have it made. John Berryman A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself. Josh Billings A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg. Samuel Butler If you take a starving dog and fatten him up, he will not bite you. That is the main difference between a dog and a man. Mark Twain The road to understanding man passes through understanding the animal, just as the road to the birth of man undoubtedly passed through the animal. Konrad Lorenz Brothers, love the beasts: God has given them the beginning of thought and peaceful joy. Do not torment them, do not disturb them, do not take away their joy, do not oppose the purpose of God. Man, do not exalt yourself above the animals. F. Dostoevskij Man is the only animal that can remain on friendly terms with the victims he intends to eat until he eats them. Samuel Butler The poor dog, in life the firmest friend. The first to welcome, foremost to defend. Lord Byron Humans are the only animals that have a highly developed brain; perhaps that is why they are so avidly aggressive. Carl William Brown Animals awaken, first facially, then bodily. Men's bodies wake before their faces do. The animal sleeps within its body, man sleeps with his body in his mind. Malcolm De Chazal Always remember, a cat looks down on man, a dog looks up to man, but a pig will look man right in the eye and see his equal. Winston Churchill Poor little Foal of an oppressed race! I love the languid patience of thy face. Samuel Taylor Coleridge Shall we never have done with that cliche, so stupid that it could only be human, about the sympathy of animals for man when he is unhappy? Animals love happiness almost as much as we do. A fit of crying disturbs them, they'll sometimes imitate sobbing, and for a moment they'll reflect our sadness. But they flee unhappiness as they flee fever, and I believe that in the long run they are capable of boycotting it. Gabrielle Colette For the warriors of the pre-Christian era, a dragon was a fairly dangerous animal; for the students of the 21st century after Christ, a wasp is a very dangerous beast. Carl William Brown A fence should be horse high, hog tight and bull strong. Author Unknown Animals are such agreeable friends, they ask no questions, they pass no criticisms. George Eliot Who can guess how much industry and providence and affection we have caught from the pantomime of brutes? Ralph Waldo Emerson Be as a bird perched on a frail branch that she feels bending beneath her, still she sings away all the same, knowing she has wings. Victor Hugo Animals are in possession of themselves; their soul is in possession of their body. But they have no right to their life, because they do not will it. Georg Hegel Animals are stylized characters in a kind of old saga -- stylized because even the most acute of them have little leeway as they play out their parts. Edward Hoagland Animals used to provide a lowlife way to kill and get away with it, as they do still, but, more intriguingly, for some people they are an aperture through which wounds drain. The scapegoat of olden times, driven off for the bystanders sins, has become a tender thing, a running injury. There, running away is me: hurt it and you are hurting me. Edward Hoagland Nothing to be done really about animals. Anything you do looks foolish. The answer isn't in us. It's almost as if we're put here on earth to show how silly they aren't. Russell Hoban Animals often strike us as passionate machines. Eric Hoffer From the oyster to the eagle, from the swine to the tiger, all animals are to be found in men and each of them exists in some man, sometimes several at the time. Animals are nothing but the portrayal of our virtues and vices made manifest to our eyes, the visible reflections of our souls. God displays them to us to give us food for thought. Victor Hugo The better I know men the more I admire dogs. Author Unknown I have enforced the law against killing certain animals and many others, but the greatest progress of righteousness among men comes from the exhortation in favor of non-injury to life and abstention from killing living beings. King Asoka of India Cats and monkeys; monkeys and cats: all human life is there. Henry James Don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful. Ann Landers Be a good animal, true to your animal instincts. D. H. Lawrence I distrust camels, and anyone else who can go a week without a drink. Joe E. Lewis Animals are considered as property only. To destroy or to abuse them, from malice to the proprietor, or with an intention injurious to his interest in them, is criminal. But the animals themselves are without protection. The law regards them not substantively. They have no RIGHTS! Shirley Lord Eagles do not beget Doves. Motto The cow is of the bovine ilk: One end is moo, the other, milk. Ogden Nash We know what the animals do, what are the needs of the beaver, the bear, the salmon, and other creatures, because long ago men married them and acquired this knowledge from their animal wives. Today the priests say we lie, but we know better. Native Americans I fear animals regard man as a creature of their own kind which has in a highly dangerous fashion lost its healthy animal reason -- as the mad animal, as the laughing animal, as the weeping animal, as the unhappy animal. Friedrich Nietzsche Happiness to a dog is what lies on the other side of a door. Charleton Jr. Ogburn The owl of ignorance lays the egg of pride. Author Unknown Four legs good, two legs bad. George Orwell In a few generations more, there will probably be no room at all allowed for animals on the earth: no need of them, no toleration of them. An immense agony will have then ceased, but with it there will also have passed away the last smile of the world's youth. Ouida Nothing can be more obvious than that all animals were created solely and exclusively for the use of man. Thomas Love Peacock There is something in the unselfish and self-sacrificing love of a brute, which goes directly to the heart of him who has had frequent occasion to test the paltry friendship and gossamer fidelity of mere Man. Edgar Allan Poe The zebra told the white horse, "I am white," and told the black horse, "I am actually black." African Proverb The fatter the flea the leaner the dog. German Proverb Who loves me loves my dog. Latin Proverb Cows are amongst the gentlest of breathing creatures; none show more passionate tenderness to their young when deprived of them. And, in short, I am not ashamed to profess a deep love for these quiet creatures. Thomas De Quincey No matter how eloquently a dog may bark, he cannot tell you that his parents were poor, but honest. Bertrand Russell Man is a clever animal who behaves like an imbecile. Albert Schweitzer What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone, man would die from a great loneliness of spirit. For whatever happens to the beasts, soon happens to man. All things are connected. Chief Seattle Those who wish to pet and baby wild animals, "love" them. But those who respect their natures and wish to let them live normal lives, love them more. Edwin Way Teale The keeping of bees is like the direction of sunbeams. Henry David Thoreau What is a country without rabbits and partridges? They are among the most simple and indigenous animal products; ancient and venerable families known to antiquity as to modern times; of the very hue and substance of Nature, nearest allied to leaves and to the ground. Henry David Thoreau An eagle does not catch flies. Author Unknown If it wasn't for dogs, some people would never go for a walk. Author Unknown Animals have these advantages over man: They have no theologians to instruct them, their funerals cost them nothing, and no one starts lawsuits over their wills. Francois-Marie Arouet de Voltaire They do not sweat and whine about their condition, they do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins, they do not make me sick discussing their duty to God, not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with the mania of owning things, not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that lived thousands of years ago. Walt Whitman The best thing about animals is they don't talk much. Thornton Wilder Quotes by authors Quotes by arguments Thoughts and reflections Essays with quotes Read the full article

[fatehbaz]

In April 2024, scientists from the Natural History Museum of Jamaica and The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus accepted a very rare and historic specimen: a 16-inch lizard called the Jamaican giant galliwasp (Celestus occiduus). It had previously been stored in the Hunterian museum at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. “‘Celeste’ is home!” announced one Jamaican news outlet [...]. Celeste was collected in the 1850s and represents a species that was endemic to Jamaica but is now classified as critically endangered and possibly extinct. Scientists in Jamaica, who have never seen or handled one of these lizards, are elated [...]. As scholars of Jamaican landscape histories who are interested in environmental justice, we believe this repatriation illustrates important truths about colonialism and its legacies.

Celeste’s 170-year residence in a Scottish university collection speaks to uncomfortable connections between colonialism and natural history.

---

[O]fficials, physicians, naturalists and amateurs from Europe traveled across the colonized world, collecting local plants and animals [...]. Many objects they brought back [...] are housed today in European libraries and museums. [...] “The Civil and Natural History of Jamaica,” by Patrick Browne, published in 1755, was the first text in the English language to use the system of classifying plants developed by Carl Linnaeus. The book shows how major advancements in natural history, botany and biology relied on field work conducted far beyond metropolitan Europe. [...] Exploration and collecting specimens often relied on the knowledge and labor of enslaved persons who acted as field assistants and guides – but the historical record has little to say about their roles. Today, organizations such as Kew Royal Botanical Gardens in England and the New York Botanical Garden continue to rely on the knowledge and collections derived from colonial-era tropical botanical gardens in places like the Caribbean islands of St. Vincent and Jamaica.

In Jamaica, there was a direct relationship between geological exploration and the plantation system. The first geological surveys of Jamaica were conducted by naturalist Sir Henry De la Beche, the son of a Jamaican plantation owner and first director of the Geological Survey of Great Britain.

British physician and naturalist Sir Hans Sloane’s extensive holdings of books, manuscripts and specimens became the founding collection of the British Museum. [...] His collections include more than 1,500 plant specimens from Jamaica, which he acquired there from 1687 to 1689. After England gained formal possession of Jamaica in 1670, it established monoculture production of sugarcane across the island. Extensive land clearance, damage to local ecosystems [...] exacted a heavy toll. Some of the plant and animal specimens that collectors extracted and exported abroad may be the only ones that exist today.

---

Colonizers also introduced harmful species, such as the Indian gray mongoose (H. edwardsii), which was brought to Jamaica to prey on rats in plantation sugarcane fields. [...] The Indian grey mongoose quickly became a major threat to numerous species, including the Jamaican giant galliwasp.

It remains a key adversary today in the struggle to stabilize the population of the critically endangered Jamaican iguana. [...]

The Jamaican giant galliwasp’s classification as possibly extinct in the wild reflects optimism from the almost unbelievable rediscovery of the Jamaican iguana (Cyclura collei). Prior to 1990, this species was presumed extinct, but then scientists discovered a remnant population in the island’s Hellshire Hills.

---

All text above by: Alex A. Houghton and Thera Edwards. "Returning a 170-year-old preserved lizard to Jamaica is a step toward redressing colonial harms". The Conversation. 3 June 2024. At: theconversation.com/returning-a-170-year-old-preserved-lizard-to-jamaica-is-a-step-toward-redressing-colonial-harms-229339 [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me. Presented here for commentary, teaching, criticism purposes.] Image and caption are shown unaltered as they originally appear published with the article. Image is CC BY-ND 4.0, available at biodiversitylibrary.org/page/188786.

[antebellumite]

top 5 antebellum politicians, not including presidents

For the sake of not making this response boring, Im going to personally remove all three of the triumvirs from the running. All three of them are now in Spot 0. Benton and Hayne can be there too.

Which leaves five spots for...

John Randolph of Roanoke literally the MOST fascinating guy. Hes wilder than a herd of horses hoarse on meth. literally created a slur. he brought dogs into congress and stripped in the house of reps and got into verbal and physical fights. he dueled everyone to the point where his contemporaries commented that he should be in a straightjacket. he asked the cousin of the person he was dueling with to be his second in the same duel. he was a dramatic bitch who ordered a european badge of honor to be made for him in honor of that duel. he bemoaned that no one would care about him when he died. when he was near death he painstakingly made his way to the us congress gallery to hear henry clays beautiful voice one last time. whenever the wife of a congressmen he was insulting was in the gallery he doubled down on his insults. when he died he freed the people he enslaved but he did a piss poor job so everything just fell apart. he has tuberculosis but it was contained solely to his dick and so he suffered an inferiority complex and an inability to progress past puberty because of it. and also maybe he had klinefelter syndrome bc of a imbalance either ways, my name on discord is john randolph hrt not because i GENUINELY think he would support hrt, but because the fact that there is a CHANCE he would is still higher than the rest of his colleagues.

Henry Wise also the most insane guy of the time period. like jror, got into fights, but this was way more about slavery. he picked fights with jqa all throughout the gag war. surprisingly woke on several topics including thanksgiving and the rights of native americans. he says some of the funniest things ever sometimes. he thinks abolitionist is a slur. he became a general in the confederate army but got kicked out for being a bitch. somehow flip flopped between every. single. political. party. of his era. including almost becoming a republican near the end of his life. his irreverence for law and order is astounding. he bullied john tyler and literally everyone in congress. the fact that he was drinking buddies with franklin pierce and got him elected but also got pierces friend killed in the cilley graves duel is insane. the fact that in order to try and get henry clay the presidential nomination he literally bent his knee at hugh lawson white and did the equivalent of the uwu face is insane. the fact he more or less murdered john brown is insane. the fact that ralph waldo emerson said that if brown and wise were in a different life, they could have been friends is even more insane. like damn ralph waldo emerson now is NOT the time to be shipping abolitionist john brown and the slavery supporting secessionist governor of virginia who murdered him together. also not going to lie the fact that he never sought a pardon after his involvement in the confederacy is actually a breath of fresh air for this time period. go girl acknowledge that you are undeserving of a pardon or forgiveness for your crimes. i honestly cant do this guy justice without just telling you gto look at my #the field of blood tag. this guy. also i will not lie i did not actually understand his violent tendancies (which to his credit he wasnt like a maniac or anything ) until i saw his photograph. and uh yeah. shaking hands meme between jror and henry wise and the connecting factor is looking feminine and having a serious complex because of it.

Hugh Lawson White his hair. the way hes the only antebellum politician whos wikipedia page actually says what his personality and style was like. fascinating.

Charles Sumner hes such a loser. he deserved so much better. once he fell of a train. he was called his great impotency. he got caned one time and thats all everyone ever remembers about him. his main biographer did him SO DIRTY. he might be ace he might be gay. the hermaphrodite by julia ward howe is probably about the love triangle between julia him and samuel howe, julias husband. he has incredibly modern beliefs about things! hes funny and he has a three way benign rivalry betwen himself seward and douglas. he waxed poetic about daniel websters head and then felt betrayed by him. he once stroked his own head glumly. his eyebags. he got hit with a brick once. his handsomeness is the work of legends. hes awkward and gentlemanly and depressing and optimistic and so many many things its beautiful and he was beautiful and i love him so much! i love his friendship with mary todd lincoln and the way he was basically looming in abraham lincolns window every other night throughout the civil war.

William Plumer Jr. LITERALLY my guy!! his anecdotes are all so fascinating. the time he had a very dramatic meeting with daniel webster about Fate and Destiny. his involvement with preserving american history from the very beginning. just lovely and wonderful and i basically yassify him whenever i imagine him in my head. just wonderful. and these are basically all of them i think, though i like a lot of congressmen of this era.

Bonus, have a drawing of henry wise, a calhouny hugh lawson white for some reason, and fem plumer!

[tacticalhimbo]

REMEMBERING PULSE NIGHTCLUB - COMMUNITY COALITION AGAINST ONEPULSE

The only prominent post going around about the Pulse Nightclub shooting in 2016 is my own, and is unfortunately cursed to the fate of receiving reblogs of an inaccurate version. So, 8 years later, I'm doing the right thing and making a new post to properly honor the victims and their families.

May these beautiful souls rest in peace, and may we never forget their names (not in picture order, afaik):

Stanley Almodovar III, 23

Amanda Alvear, 25

Oscar A Aracena-Montero, 26

Rodolfo Ayala-Ayala, 33

Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21

Martin Benitez Torres, 33

Antonio D Brown, 30

Darryl R Burt II, 29

Jonathan A Camuy Vega, 24

Angel L Candelario-Padro, 28

Simon A Carrillo Fernandez, 31

Juan Chevez-Martinez, 25

Luis D Conde, 39

Cory J Connell, 21

Tevin E Crosby, 25

Franky J Dejesus Velazquez, 50

Deonka D Drayton, 32

Mercedes M Flores, 26

Peter O Gonzalez-Cruz, 22

Juan R Guerrero, 22

Paul T Henry, 41

Frank Hernandez, 27

Miguel A Honorato, 30

Javier Jorge-Reyes, 40

Jason B Josaphat, 19

Eddie J Justice, 30

Anthony L Laureano Disla, 25

Christopher A Leinonen, 32

Brenda L Marquez McCool, 49

Jean C Mendez Perez, 35

Akyra Monet Murray, 18

Kimberly Morris, 37

Jean C Nieves Rodriguez, 27

Luis O Ocasio-Capo, 20

Geraldo A Ortiz-Jimenez, 25

Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36

Joel Rayon Paniagua, 32

Enrique L Rios Jr, 25

Juan P Rivera Velazquez, 37

Yilmary Rodriguez Solivan, 24

Christopher J Sanfeliz, 24

Xavier Emmanuel Serrano Rosado, 35

Gilberto Ramon Silva Menendez, 25

Edward Sotomayor Jr, 34

Shane E Tomlinson, 33

Leroy Valentin Fernandez, 25

Luis S Vielma, 22

Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37

Jerald A Wright, 31

Will it gain the traction it needs? Probably not. But I'm not as... distant, about today, as I have been over the years. Because let's face it... This hits close to home for me. I said this in my original posting, too:

As someone who lives relatively near Orlando, I remember this day so vividly and I still feel a lot of pain for the victims even five years later.

I remember biting back tears in my living room because I wasn't out of the closet, and couldn't let my family know just how much this hurt me. I remember breaking down that night while scrolling the headlines, watching as the number of fatalities kept climbing. I remember staring at the button on Facebook asking me if I was safe.

And to this day, even with those involved and responsible gone... I still do not feel safe as a queer man in this state or in this country.

More importantly, though, it's important to highlight the community impacted by it, and the way onePULSE and its founder (Barbara Poma), the city of Orlando, and the State of Florida have exploited and continue to exploit the deaths of these individuals.

Information from here on out will be taken from the Community Coalition Agaisnt a Pulse Museum's official website, which can be found at the following link: [ LINK ]

The Community Coalition Against a Pulse Museum (CCAPM) is a group of surviving victims, family members of victims, activists, and scholars who have banded together to fight against the onePULSE Foundation's privatized memorial and museum complex. Our position is that money raised in the name of the mass shooting should go to the continued care of survivors. A public memorial park that does not seek to capitalize on the mass shooting in any way is the only option for a just memorial.

In addition, we seek justice for mass shooting victims by exposing the history and scope of unpermitted renovations and code violations at Pulse, which impaired the escape and rescue of shooting victims. We believe that Pulse owners Rosario Poma and Barbara Poma should be held accountable for these violations, rather than continuing to profit from a tragedy that was exacerbated by their illegal business decisions. We also want to see the City of Orlando held accountable for their continued failure to enforce the law and bring the business into compliance.

So what are the prominent issues?

WE ARE AGAINST COMMODIFYING MASS MURDER

The onePULSE Foundation has placed a gift shop feet away from where 49 people were murdered on the site of the interim memorial. We firmly renounce putting any price tag on the murder of our loved ones. The proposed museum is also slated to have a gift shop and a price of admission.

WE ARE AGAINST TURNING A PUBLIC TRAGEDY INTO PRIVATE PROFITS

Pulse nightclub owner, Barbara Poma, refused to sell the property to the City of Orlando for a public memorial. Instead, she created the onePULSE Foundation and has taken an executive salary in her self-made position as CEO. Perks have also included national recognition, celebrity, political connections, and undeserved accolades as an LGBTQ+ ally.

WE ARE AGAINST TURNING A MASS SHOOTING INTO A TOURIST ATTRACTION

The onePULSE Foundation has received a $10 MILLION tourism development tax grant from Orange County for the building of a museum. The tax application shows how the proposed memorial/museum complex has been intended to increase tourism during the off-season. The corporate Board of Trustees also reflects the local tourism industry.

WE SUPPORT INVESTING IN THE CONTINUED CARE OF SURVIVORS

Money raised in the name of the mass shooting at Pulse is going to multi-million dollar buildings rather than the continued care of the people who were directly affected. Available services and organizations have not provided adequate care to survivors and the onePULSE Foundation has not stepped in to fill any gaps; focusing instead on cultural and "educational" programs, while ignoring the ongoing needs of survivors.

WE CALL OUT A CHANGING MISSION

For years, the onePULSE Foundation raised funds for community grants for victims' families and survivors. In 2019, "community grants" were removed from the organization's mission. According to the released 2018 990s, only $1k was spent on community grants. People have donated money to the organization thinking that they were helping survivors.

WE ACKNOWLEDGE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

onePULSE Foundation CEO Barbara Poma is currently being sued by survivors and victims' families as part of a security negligence lawsuit. This lawsuit also alleges the illegal transfer of the Pulse nightclub property which was transferred via quit claim deed in the months after the shooting to two other LLCs owned by Barbara and Rosario Poma. Funds raised by the non-profit are being invested in the Pulse property that the Poma's still own.

As of 2024, this case is still pending, with the latest service list being posted on the docket as of June 11. The case number is publicly available (2018-CA-006102-O) and is searchable via the Orange County Clerk of Courts Record Search.

WE AFFIRM A PUBLIC MEMORIAL PARK IS STILL POSSIBLE

Public memorial parks have been the overwhelming response to mass shootings around the country, including Aurora, Columbine, Las Vegas, and Newtown. Most have been built by volunteers, with no executive salaries. The OnePULSE Foundation's proposed museum attraction seeks to unnecessarily turn the shooting into a spectacle and requires merchandising the tragedy. Mass murder is not for sale!

WE CONTINUE TO EXPOSE UNPERMITTED RENOVATIONS AND CODE VIOLATIONS

Public records affirm that Pulse Nightclub was a death trap due to its unpermitted renovations and code violations. Documents show that these issues affected the both the escape and rescue of Pulse survivors on June 12, 2016. We continue to collect, document, and uncover these issues since the City of Orlando has still not released all relevant records to the public.

Survivors of the incident, as well as their families and those who have faced similar tragedy, have also signed an open letter [ LINK ] calling attention to these issues, provided documented evidence of the above claims [ LINK ], and have also been running a petition since 2019 to call attention to the matter:

Of course, it is important to note that the individuals mentioned (Barbara Poma, the Orlando City Council, etc.) are not the only ones involved in making this state an unsafe place for its queer community.

As noted in my original posting as well, the unsafe nature of this state runs through its government. The fight for our rights, our recognition, and our safety still continues. Here are some facts from the original post (dated June 12, 2021):

In June 2021, the Governor of Florida vetoed an "item-lined budget bill" - that legally provides mental health, counseling, and compensation directly towards victims of the June 2016 Pulse nightclub Orlando shooting.

While they cannot be enforced, sodomy laws still exist in Florida to this day. Every year, we are still criminalized by a technicality.

In many places, same-sex domestic partnerships are still not granted. It is only viable in approximately nine counties, thirty cities, and one town.

It took until 2016 for same-sex couples to be granted the same parental rights during in vitro fertilization and surrogacy as opposite-sex couples. Before then, the non-biological mother and father was not the child's legal parent nor guardian.

The state's "hate crime law" only accounts for sexual orientation, and does not protect victims who were attacked for their gender identity.

Anti-discrimination laws for sexual orientation and gender identity are not state-wide nor equally applicable within each county/town.

On June 1, 2021, Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis signed a bill to exclude transgender women from participating in sports designated for female students. This bill passed because of a last-minute legislative "procedural maneuver". The HRC is currently establishing a campaign to try and stop the law from going into effect (called "nullification") on midnight July 1.

Gay-panic and Trans-panic are still viable legal defenses, resulting in these abhorrent hate crimes to be decreased from murder to the lesser charge of manslaughter.

Conversion therapy against minors is not banned state-wide, and is still legal within many areas of the state. In fact, in some areas, a ban on the practice is deemed "unenforceable".

And that is just the tip of the iceberg, because if you've been active in your advocacy for the community (or at the very least, following me for a decent period of time)... Then you know just how unsafe Florida has become. You know how, even under the Biden administration, people like Governor Ron DeSantis have gone unchallenged in their writing and enforcement of vile legislation. You know how this legislation has begun creeping its way up to the top, to the federal level, and remained unchallenged the whole way up.

Here are some more "fun facts" about just how much we must fight against in the wake of this tragedy:

States like Florida have eliminated 80% of all trans adult care (SB 254), adults can be thrown in jail for using the bathroom of their gender identity (SB 1674), and trans people with correct gender markers on their drivers licenses can be charged with fraud (Florida Dept. of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles memo).

The State of Florida has had several travel advisories issued against it by local LGBTQ+ organizations (e.g., Equality Florida) and national organizations (e.g., Human Rights Campaign).

Likewise, many social media laws targeting "adult content and pornography" (HB 3) include sneaky, vague language that will very much target the existence of queer folk using the internet in this state.

More states within the United States are explicitly passing anti-trans legislation than not, and moreso now than ever [ source; dated June 4th ].

The time for relying on those above us is over. We MUST kill the plague of individualism and build community. If we don't support one another, nobody will. No amount of pinkwashing, placation, or sanitation will change that.

We are here. We are queer. We will never forget, and we cannot allow ourselves to.

[buds-and-baubles]

26. Whos your favorite batgirl?

45. Kara Zor-El, Stephanie Brown or Cassie sandsmark?

47. If you could have any characters powers who’s would you have?

48. Favorite villain?

26. cassandra cain, the goat. not that babs as batgirl wasn't significant, but i love how much she flourished under oracle. i also say steph really deserved more time to shine as batgirl before flashpoint but her as spoiler is a special place in my heart.

45. oh jeeze, this is a hard one. i'd have to go with cassie sandsmark! i haven't seen much of her journey yet but i understand the struggle of trying to conform to what others want you to be with a mountain of expectations left by those who came before you.

47. kon-el's superboy! sunlight would no longer be my enemy, i'd have an awesome fantastic ability like tactile telekinesis, i could fly, i could pick up anything, etc. what is not to love there? sure, i'd have trauma from growing in a lab but medical trauma isn't something new to me 😎👍

48. henry bendix. imagine a lex luthor who never had superman to stop him from the beginning, who successfully created his version of a justice league and when that failed, lead a UN sponsored team to 'oversee superhuman events'. he had eyes all over the entire world. for every goal that lex luthor was stopped by heroes, henry bendix won.

he is worse than lex luthor because there was less people to stop him and less people to succeed in stopping him. his meticulous descent into villainy had me at the edge of my seat.