#Municipal Corporation meeting

[clarisse0o]

The Mayor - Chapter 1

Lucy Bronze x Ona Batlle

Alternate Universe: Mayor and Archiect

Words : 500

Masterlist

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Overwhelmed by the plans spread out on my desk in my downtown apartment, I decided to pour myself a glass of white wine. Sipping it on my balcony, I watched the sunset.

My name is Ona, and I’m passionate about my work: interior architect. After years of countless hours, I finally managed, with my associate Alexia, whom I met back in college, to open our own interior architecture firm. It’s a real achievement, but the work doesn’t let up. We’re beginning to build a solid reputation in the region. Alexia specializes more in minimalist and modern styles, while I lean toward a mix of old and modern. Working with her is a real joy; we have an incredible trust in each other. We’re both hardworking and enjoy going out on weekends with our friends. Especially me, since my breakup with Alessia, with whom I was in a five-year relationship. It was a mutual breakup, though still difficult. Our respective careers had pulled us apart—she’s a surgeon. It’s not uncommon for us to fall back into each other’s arms for a night, without any expectations.

I finished my glass of wine and motivated myself to complete the last plan I had been working on for three hours.

Monday morning, as usual, I headed to our office, located a 15-minute walk from my place. It was time for our daily meeting with Alexia and the two interns who were working with us. This morning, Alexia came straight into my office, an unusual smile on her face...

"Hello, gorgeous!"

"Hello, you! What’s that beautiful smile for?"

"Hmmm, I have something to tell you... So, I found out yesterday that I’m pregnant! We didn’t think the IVF would work with Olga ! But I am pregnant!"

Pregnant? Alexia? I couldn’t believe it—we had only just opened less than a year ago!

« But what about the office?" I managed to ask.

"Ona, I know… But I’m 36, I’m pregnant—it’s good news! We’ll reorganize for a short time! I’ll leave in my seventh month and come back soon, I promise—unless it’s triplets!"

I immediately laughed, feeling guilty for worrying only about the office.

"I’m so off-topic sometimes... Congratulations! I’m so happy for you, really! How far along are you?"

"Three and a half months!"

Alexia continued, "Alright, I’ll handle all the projects that wrap up within the next four months, but you know there’s one file you’ll need to take over..."

Oh yes, I knew... It was the Mayor’s file. She was renovating rooms in a house she had recently bought with her husband. Since he’s a corporate lawyer, money wasn’t an issue. The problem was that I had participated in the municipal elections on the opposing list… Not in a prominent position, but I was sure she’d remember. Besides, I found her rather arrogant: she was tall, with piercing green eyes and dark hair.

"Hmm, Alexia, I think the Mayor is going to hate this idea; you know I was on the opposition list in the last election. And from what you’ve told me, she’s redoing everything in a super-minimalist style—not my cup of tea!"

"You know very well that you adapt to any situation; everyone says so! As for the rest, just be pleasant! I’ll arrange a three-way meeting for us this week, okay? You need to take over the project quickly; she’ll understand!"

I wasn’t entirely convinced. Still, resigned, I replied, "Alright, but you know, I’m not sure where this is going to lead..."

[thehopefuljournalist]

Seed networks are community organizations that have multiplied in the past decade in different Brazilian biomes to collect, trade and plant native seeds in degraded areas.

In the Chapada dos Veadeiros area, in Goiás state members of seed networks from several parts of Brazil met for almost a week in early June.

Along with environmental organizations, researchers and government officials, they participated in discussions to boost Redário, a new group seeking to strengthen these networks and meet the demands of the country’s ecological restoration sector.

“This meeting gathered members of Indigenous peoples, family farmers, urban dwellers, technicians, partners, everyone together. It creates a beautiful mosaic and there’s a feeling that what we are doing will work and will grow,” says Milene Alves, a member of the steering committee of the Xingu Seed Network and Redário’s technical staff.

Just in 2022, 64 metric tons of native seeds were sold by these networks, and similar figures are expected for 2023.

The effort to collect native seeds by traditional populations in Brazil has contributed to effective and more inclusive restoration of degraded areas, and is also crucial for the country to fulfill its pledge under international agreements to recover 30 million acres of vegetation by 2030.

Seed collection for restoration in these areas has previously only been done by companies. But now, these networks, are organized as cooperatives, associations or even companies, enable people in the territories to benefit from the activity.

Eduardo Malta, a restoration expert from the Socio-Environmental Institute and one of Redário’s leaders, advocates for community participation in trading and planting seeds. “These are the people who went to all the trouble to secure the territories and who are there now, preserving them. They have the greatest genetic diversity of species and hold all the knowledge about the ecosystem,” 

.

The Geraizeiros Collectors Network are one of the groups that makes up Redário. They were founded in 2021, and now gathers 30 collectors from eight communities in five municipalities: Montezuma, Vargem Grande, Rio Pardo de Minas, Taiobeiras and Berizal.

They collect and plant seeds to recover the vegetation of the Gerais Springs Sustainable Development Reserve, which was created in 2014 in order to stop the water scarcity as a result of eucalyptus monocultures planted by large corporations.

“The region used to be very rich in water and it is now supplied by water trucks or wells,” says Fabrícia Santarém Costa, a collector and vice president of the Geraizeiros Collectors’ Network. “Today we see that these activities only harm us, because the [eucalyptus] company left, and we are there suffering the consequences.”

Costa was 18 years old in 2018, when the small group of seed collectors was founded and financed by the Global Environmental Facility. She says that working with this cooperative changed the way she looks at life and the biome in which she was born and raised. She describes restoring the sustainable development work as "ant work", ongoing, slow. But it has already improved the water situation in the communities. In addition, seed sales complement geraizeiros’ income, enabling them to remain in their territories.

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The Redário initiative also intends to influence public policies and regulations in the restoration sector to disseminate muvuca, the name given by the networks to the technique of sowing seeds directly into the soil rather than growing seedlings in nurseries.

Technical studies and network experiences alike show that this technique covers the area faster and with more trees. As a result, it requires less maintenance and lower costs. This system also distributes income to the local population and encourages community organizations.

“The muvuca system has great potential [for restoration], depending on what you want to achieve and local characteristics. It has to be in our range of options for meeting the targets, for achieving them at scale,” says Ministry of the Environment analyst Isis Freitas.

Article published August 3rd, 2023

[leon-stupid-kennedy]

Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles ➳ Archives ➳ Memories of a Lost City ➳ Files

Raccoon City September 9, 1998

An American Midwestern city situated in a basin surrounded by mountains with a population of more than 100,000. September 1998 Beginning with a string of cannibalistic murders which occurred several months earlier, unrest spread among Raccoon City's citizens until one night, violence broke out across the city, crippling the city's transportation infrastructure. Citizens descended into a state of panic, with all lifelines cut off. Despite rescue efforts on the part of the Raccoon Police and Fire departments, the situation continued to worsen. The city is eventually overrun with hoards of zombies, referred to as "the walking dead." This is where the fight between the Umbrella Corporation, the cause of this nightmare, and Leon begins.

Raccoon City Police Department

The city police department building was originally an art museum and is located in the center of the city. Despite its relatively small size, the Raccoon City Police Department is renowned for its squad of elite officers known as S.T.A.R.S.. After the "Arklay Mansion Incident", Chris Redfield and the few S.T.A.R.S. members who managed to survive began a thorough investigation to try to get to the bottom of what had happened. However, their investigation was hampered by police chief Brian Irons. Chief Irons, facing growing suspicion that he had dubious ties to the Umbrella Corporation, did his best to obscure the results of the investigation. Later, Chris decided to conduct his own investigation into Umbrella and traveled to Europe—to the main branch of the Umbrella Corporation. September 29 Raccoon City had lost all of its municipal functions and was now overrun with zombies. City police worked furiously to restore order. However, faced with unimaginably abnormal circumstances, their efforts proved ineffective and nearly all of them were killed. That day was rookie Leon S. Kennedy's first day on the job. Because of oversleeping and massive traffic delays, he didn't make it into the city until after sunset. He then found himself firmly planted into the middle of the chaos. He meets Claire Redfield who came to Raccoon City to find her brother, also a member of the Raccoon City police force. The two of them head towards their shared destination, the Raccoon City Police Department.

The Umbrella Corporation

The Umbrella Corporation is a major pharmaceutical corporation based in Europe. It has branches in countries all over the world, and is a ubiquitus supplier of an assortment of household medications. From pharmacies to convenient stores, their distribution routes are wide- ranging, and Umbrella is a household name. Raccoon City is home to one of Umbrella's North American branches. There is a large-scale research facility and manufacturing plant there. For all intents and purposes, Raccoon City is basically under the sway of Umbrella. Even the media and the city's central government would find it difficult to stand in opposition to the corporate giant.

Ben Bertolucci's Expose

With no hope of survival, I write in hopes that someone will be able to use this information. The beasts are everywhere... I can hear them in the darkness as I wait... for release. The chief is the one responsible. He conspired with the Umbrella Corporation... He knew of their experiments and turned a blind eye... for a price, no doubt. The station and the lower level lab at Umbrella are connected by the sewers. It is through there that they would transport test subjects... I suspect that is how the virus came to spread so quickly through the town. Relator, Ben Bertolucci Sep, 1998

G Virus

The powerful virus invented by Umbrella Corporation scientist and genius Dr. William Birkin. It gives the cells of the host to which it is administered magnificent vitality and regeneration capacity. Incomplete exposure will result in the host becoming a "G Organism" which is void of reasoning capacity and self-awareness. A "G Organism" is driven solely by survival instinct. The Umbrella Corporation hatches a plan to force scientists whose visions for the company are not in line with its own, to form recovery squads and capture Gs. These scientists, however, revolt and administer the G-Virus to themselves and undergo the G-Virus transformation. These scientists-turned-monsters, in their retaliation, nearly destroy the Umbrella Corporation. This dispute would later trigger the beginning of the explosive T-Virus outbreak that would infect all of Raccoon City.

Underground Research Facility

Built deep beneath the surface of Raccoon City, this laboratory was built for doing special clinical trials and developing pharmaceuticals. With its tight quarantine facility, experiments can be performed on various levels of viruses. General Umbrella employees do not even know of this facility's existence, let alone have opportunity to enter. This is where the physical containment level P4 laboratories are. Many high-level viruses capable of posing a biohazard threat are handled here. To enter this area, it is necessary to pass through 3 to 4 layers of additional security. But, as the people who work here use these viruses for their experiments on a daily basis, they have gradually become desensitized to the dangers that surround them.

Memo to LEON

To Leon S. Kennedy, Congratulations on your assignment to the Raccoon City police department. We all look forward to having you as a part of our team and promise to take good care of you. Welcome aboard! From all the guys at the R.P.D.

Evacuation Order

To the citizens of Raccoon City: This is an important bulletin from the Raccoon City Police Department. Incidents of riots and looting are being reported around the city at an increasing rate. We are doing all that we can to restore order, but we recommend that citizens evacuate the area immediately to ensure their safety. Please follow all orders and above all, remain calm. Raccoon City Police Department Deputy Chief Raymond Douglas

Film B

Pictured in front of the Arukas tailor. Mutated into a Zombie within two hours. Subject repeatedly complained about severe agitation of the epidermis in addition to feelings of nausea. Picture by Ben Bertolucci

Operation Report 1

-Operation Report-

September 26th The Raccoon City Police Department was unexpectedly attacked by zombies. Many have been injured. Even more have been killed. During the attack, our communication equipment was destroyed and contact outside of the city was lost. Those of us that remain have decided to enact our own contingenzy plan with the intent of rescuing any possible survivors as well as preventing this disaster from spreading beyond Raccoon City. September 27th 1:00 P.M. The west barricade has been breached and another exchange ensued. We sheltered the injured in the confiscation room on the first floor temporarily. Twelve more people were injured in the battle. Reporter: David Ford -Additional Report- However, its most distinguishing characteristic is its lance-like tongue which is capable of piercing even a police tactical vest. Their numbers as well as their location remain unknown. We have tentatively named this creature the "Licker" and are currently in the process of developing countermeasures to deal with this new threat.

Patrol Report

September 20th - 9:30pc Reporter: Sgt. Neil Carlsen We received a report of a suspicious individual skulking around the sewers on the outskirts of Raccoon City. I searched the area and located the individual, but he ran away before I had a chance to question him I recovered the following items: • A small amount of C4 plastic explosives • An electronic detonator • 9x19 parabellum rounds • Infrared scope (broken) End of report.

Marvin's Memo

This police station was originally used as an art museum. It closed in the late '80s and was bought cheaply by the RPD for use as a station because of its central location and ample parking space. Chief Irons himself is said to have been the mediator of the deal. The air conditioning ducts used during the building's time as a museum were no longer used after the renovation, but they are still intact. This might provide a way out. Of course, if we trust S.T.A.R.S. - No, forget it... There's no use grumbling. Anyway, there might be some chance of getting out with their help. Maybe I'll check it out. I certainly don't want to stay here and die.

Sewer Manager's Diary

June 23th It's been a while, but I saw Don today and we chatted for a while after work. He told me he hadn't been feeling well recently. Guess he caught something pretty nesty. Not really surprising given how long he's been working here and what we work with. He was sweating pretty badly and kept scratching all over. I asked if he was alright, but he didn't answer me. July 7th Chief Irons has been visiting the lab quite often lately. I don't know what he's doing over there but he sure doesn't look happy, whatever it is. He looks even more pissed off than usual, and that's saying something... My guess is that it's because of Dr. Birkin's impossible requests. The chief has sympathies... After all he's done for the town, he doesn't deserve this. July 21th Not much going on lately. Haven't seen Don for weeks. I wonder how he's doing. Hope the guy's alright.

Operation Report 2

-Operation Report-

September 28th - 2:30 A.M. Zombies overran the operation room and we lost four more people, including David. We're down to four people now, including myself. We failed to secure the weapons cache and any hope of escape continues to diminish. We can't last much longer like this... We all agreed to take our chances and will try to escape through the sewers. There's an underground path leading from the precinct to the sewage disposal plant. We should be able to access the sewers through there. The big problem here is that there is no guarantee the sewage disposal plant will be any safer. We know we're taking a big risk but anything is better than simply waiting here to die. I just hope that this report will be helpful to whoever may find it. I wish there was more I could offer but if you are reading this, you already how grim the situation. Recorder: Elliot Edward

United States Federal Police Department Internal Investigation

(*Faxed to the S.T.A.R.S office on September 29th) Mr. Chris Redfield - Raccoon City Police Dept - S.T.A.R.S Division As per your request, we have conducted our internal investigations and discovered the following information 1)Regarding the G-Virus currently under development by Umbrella Inc. So far it is unconfirmed that the G-Virus even exists. We're continuing with out investigation into this matter. 2)Regarding Mr. Brian Irons, Chief of Raccoon City Police Dept. Mr. Irons has apparently received several large sums of money from Umbrella Inc. over the last five years. From what we were able to discover, it appears Mr. Irons was directly involved in the Arklay mansion incident along with several other incidents which Umbrella appears to have direct involvement. To what extent he was involved in these affairs, we have not fully been able to ascertain at this point. We advise using extreme caution when dealing with this individual. Section Chief - Internal Investigation - United States Federal Police Department Jack Hamilton

Chris's Diary

August 8th I tried to talk to the chief again today, but he just shrugged me off. I know for certain that Umbrella conducted T-Virus research in that mansion. But the entire facility went up in the explosion, along with any incriminating evidence. Since Umbrella employs so many people in town, no one is willing to talk about the incident. It looks like I'm running out of options. August 17th We've been receiving a lot of local reports about strange creatures being spotted throughout the city. Looks like Umbrella is still at it. August 24th With Jill and Barry's help, I finally obtained the information I needed. We discovered that Umbrella has begun research on a new variant of the T-Virus which they call the "G-Virus". The three of us talked it over, and agreed that the only way to end this for good, was to take matters into our own hands. We're going to pay a little visit to Umbrella Headquarters located in Europe. I can't tell Claire about what I'm planning. If I told her, she'd just worry and probably want to come with us. I can't take that chance. I'm sure she'd understand.

Sewer Manager Fax

-User List of the Connecting Facility- On the first and third Wednesday of the month, Angelica Margaret, chief of maintenance, will make use of the facilities. Be sure to reduce the moisture levels in the facility by activating the fan, as the equipment she will be using is susceptible to the effects of water vapors. On the 28th of every month, the chemical transporter Don Weller will be using the facility. The chemicals he will be transporting are extremely volatile. Extreme caution should be observed throughout their transport. On the 6th and 16 th of every month, police chief Brian Irons will visit the facility to attend the regular meeting that take place in the lab. On the 4th Friday of every other month, William Birkin will use the facility to conduct a training seminar for the Chicago branch of Umbrella Inc. As the probability of an attack upon William Birkin will be high, we must take every measure conceivable to protect his safety. You will be informed of all other potential visitors and times they will arrive as needed. Guide these individuals to their destinations safely. We expect nothing but the best for you. Secretary Chief Umbrella Headquarters Charles Coleman

Sewer Manager's Diary 2

August 16th, Chief Irons came in late today, looking grimmer than his usual self. I tried to joke with the bastard to cheer him up but apparently he wasn't too amused. SOB pulled a gun on me and threatened to shoot me! Luckily I was able to calm him down, but seriously wtf!? Dude obviously has some SERIOUS anger management issues. What happened to "protect and serve"! He pulls that shit on me again and the next person he can scowl at will be at my lawyer. August 21st, William informed me that the police and media have begun an investigation on Umbrella's affairs. He said that the investigation will be citywide and that there is a possibility they'll even search the sewers. He asked me to suspend all Umbrella sewer facility operations until the investigation has concluded. The sewers will still be used for passage, but he stressed that I have to be extremely cautions and that I'd loose my job if anyone finds out about what's going on down here.

G-Virus Antigen

G-VACCINE CODE NAMED "DEVIL" Any subjects infected by the G-Virus will attempted to reproduce through the impregnation of an embryo into another living host not already infected with the G-Virus. Unless rejected by the hose, the embryo will undertake a process of gradual cellular invasion, infecting the host's cells on a molecular level as it rewrites their DNA. Once the metamorphosis is complete, the newly infected hose will be capable of continuing this cycle of self-replication. The duration of time for the process to run its course will vary from subject to subject. In the early stages of cellular invasion, it is possible to halt progression of the metamorphosis through the administration of the G-Vaccine antigen. The following procedure details its synthesis. The vaccine creation requires the base vaccine. As the synthesis of DEVIL is an extremely delicate process, the quality can vary with even the slightest alterations in environment and temperature. Careful handling is required for proper results.

Laboratory Security Manual

-Security Measures in Case of an Emergency- In the event of an uncontainable biohazard outbreak, all security measures will be directed toward the underground transport facility. If any abnormalities are detected in the cargo in transit, all materials will automatically be transported from the loading zone to the designated contamination transport train. At that point, all materials will be isolated and disposed of immediately. In the instance of a Class 1 Emergency, the entire train will be purged and disposed of. In the event that the lab itself becomes contaminated, the northen most route currently used to transport materials to and from the facility will be designated as an emergency escape route. This route will secure passage to the relay point outside the city limits. Disclosure about any information regarding research conducted here, or the existence of this facility, is strictly prohibited. Since it it top priority to keep all research classified, escape access may be denied under certain extenuating circumstances.

Mail To Chris

(*Faxed to the S.T.A.R.S office on September 29th) Mr. Chris Redfield - Raccoon City Police Dept - S.T.A.R.S Division As per your request, we have conducted our internal investigations and discovered the following information 1)Regarding the G-Virus currently under development by Umbrella Inc. So far it is unconfirmed that the G-Virus even exists. We're continuing with out investigation into this matter. 2)Regarding Mr. Brian Irons, Chief of Raccoon City Police Dept. Mr. Irons has apparently received several large sums of money from Umbrella Inc. over the last five years. From what we were able to discover, it appears Mr. Irons was directly involved in the Arklay mansion incident along with several other incidents which Umbrella appears to have direct involvement. To what extent he was involved in these affairs, we have not fully been able to ascertain at this point. We advise using extreme caution when dealing with this individual. Section Chief - Internal Investigation - United States

[dailyanarchistposts]

1. The Silver Dollar.

At the termination of our civil war, silver, either alone or conjointly with gold, was almost universally recognized as legal tender money for unlimited amounts. True, England had demonetized it sixty years ago, but it is only in very recent years, and through her influence, that other great nations have been led to follow her example. The United States, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Turkey, Portugal, Egypt, Japan, Brazil, and a large number of smaller states, mainly within this period have been induced to demonetize silver and inaugurate the gold standard. In 1874, immediately following the action of Germany and the United States, Holland, and the states comprising the Latin Union—France, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy and Greece, though maintaining the double standard, yet restricted the coinage of silver.

The inevitable effect of these concurrent proceedings has been to induce an almost general system of contraction throughout both America and Europe, whereby their productive industries and commercial relations were obliged to readjust themselves to the new standard. The increased demand thereby created, by devolving upon gold alone the functions before performed by both the metals, has caused gold to rapidly appreciate in value as measured by its purchasing power of other commodities.

At an early period in our late civil war it was seen to be impossible to carry on the government by dependence upon coin. To meet the exigencies of the case a national legal tender money—the greenback—was issued interconvertible with an interest bearing bond. The 5–20 bonds when first issued were expressly understood to be redeemable in this legal tender. In 1869, “a bill to strengthen the public credit” was enacted, making the bond indebtedness of the United States payable in coin. At this time, and in fact from the organization of the government until February 12, 1873, silver was a circulating medium and a legal tender for all debts, public and private. The demonetization of silver was carried through Congress, strange as it may seem, without the apparent knowledge of its members, or even of the entire committee having the bill in charge; even seven months after the bill, in which this provision was incorporated, had received the President’s official approval we find Gen. Grant (in a letter written to Mr. Cowdry, Oct. 3, i873) evidently ignorant of the fact.

That the disuse of silver has directly appreciated the value of gold in the markets of the world by increasing its purchasing power is not a mere matter of opinion, but sustained by incontrovertible facts. The proportion of silver to gold in use as money in Europe, was very nearly three of silver to five of gold; at least two-thirds of this silver being an unlimited legal tender. By the demonetization of this two-thirds, (one-third being still in use as subsidiary coins), we have withdrawn one quarter of the entire quantity of metallic money. Consequently on the remaining three-fourths must fall the power of expressing values, that is, its value would be increased twenty-five per centum. It must also be borne in mind that this new standard applies to all preexisting debts and contracts; obligations contracted under the double standard being, on maturity, expressed in the enhanced value of the single standard.

Lord Beaconsfield, with that all comprehensive vision that characterizes the statesman, clearly saw this result in 1873, and thus expressed himself in his speech at Glasgow:

“When the various States of Europe suddenly determined to have a gold standard, and took steps to carry it into effect, it was quite evident we must prepare ourselves for great convulsions in the money market, not occasioned by speculation or any old cause which has been alleged, but to a new cause with which we are not sufficiently acquainted, and the consequences of which are very embarrassing.”

Our entire debt, national, state and municipal, with corporate and private indebtedness, is estimated to aggregate fully one-third of all the property of the country. To meet this load of obligations made upon the basis of gold, silver and greenbacks, we have first demonetized silver, and secondly, pledged ourselves to cancel the greenbacks. In effect, we enter the money markets of the world with this vast indebtedness to compete with Russia, Austria, Turkey, Italy, Spain, and other debtor nations for the purchase of gold, thus vastly increasing the demand. While our abilities to meet obligations have thus suffered such a violent contraction, there has been no contraction in the obligations themselves. Preeminently the debtor nation of the world, we enter into a league with the creditor nations to increase the demand for gold, so that by all ways possible the coin left to measure debts shall be raised to the utmost limit.

Gold being the standard of valuation, the effect is only seen in the corresponding depreciation of products, labor, and property of every description. Nor is this the full extent of the damage, for this tampering with the value of the monetary unit operates in so insidious a manner that soon all species of productive industry are deranged and paralyzed, but this is precisely where falls the burden of the enhanced value of all indebtedness.

This course of reasoning while irresistible in itself is borne out fully by an appeal to facts. It is now a matter of demonstration that with the ten per centum depreciation, as measured by gold valuation, silver has really appreciated in value as measured by its purchasing power of all other commodities. That is, the demonetized silver dollar of to-day exceeds in purchasing power more than ten per centum the silver dollar of five years ago, with the exception of the commodity gold. While silver has fallen ten per centum measured by gold, the average fall in the price of commodities in England since 1872 shows conclusively that the purchasing power of gold is there greater by nearly twenty-five per centum. In other words, while all other commodities measured by the gold standard have fallen from twenty to twenty-five per centum, silver has fallen only ten per centum. Further, if instead of commodities, we take land, we will find that measured by the same standard there has been a fall of fifty per centum; and in labor, which in the words of Adam Smith, “is the real measure of the exchangeable value of all commodities,” there has been a still further depreciation of from fifty to one hundred per centum. Instead, therefore, of the charge being true that the debtor seeks to meet his obligations with a ninety cent dollar, he is only protesting against the extortion of a. 125, 150, or even a 200 cent dollar made by his creditor.

In India, however, where silver alone is the standard, we have the testimony of the Governor and his council, that there has been no fall in the value of silver measured in commodities other than gold. We invite attention to the following brief extract from their report to the Home government, under date of Sept. 22, 1876. The Governor-General says:

“The prices of commodities and precious metals in London and India witness to a considerable rise in the value of gold since March, 1873, and especially since December, 1875, and do not show any fall in the value of silver measured in commodities other than gold.”

In 1877 we have further testimony to the same effect. Silver is the measure of value throughout Asia (Japan excepted), and the same fact proved by trade in India is also verified in China and throughout the entire Asiatic continent.

As the demonetization of silver by so many governments has led to its depreciation, it is confidently alleged that its remonetization with full legal tender qualities will enhance its value. France, with a double standard, stands almost the solitary exception to the worldwide depression of business; maintains a silver circulation of $300,000,000 at par with gold, yet its silver possesses a valuation equal to but 400, instead of412% grains to the dollar. By being restored to its full legal tender qualities, we not only tend to undo the mischievous legislation of 1873, restore silver to its time-honored place as an American coin, but thereby set into operation natural causes that must eventuate in its appreciation to par value with gold.

After this summary of the facts and figures bearing on the silver question, it will need no further remarks to show that there is due from the government “honor and good faith” no less to its citizens than to professed money lenders.

[bangla24]

"Navigating Financial Markets: A Beginner's Guide to Investment Success"

Financial markets refer broadly to any marketplace where securities trading occurs, including the stock market, bond market, forex market, and derivatives market. Financial markets are vital to the smooth operation of capitalist economies.

What Are Financial Markets?

Financial Markets include any place or system that provides buyers and sellers the means to trade financial instruments, including bonds, equities, the various international currencies, and derivatives. Financial markets facilitate the interaction between those who need capital with those who have capital to invest.

Types of Financial Markets

There are several different types of markets. Each one focuses on the types and classes of instruments available on it.The following are different types of financial markets:

Stock Market.

Bond market.

Foreign Exchange Markets.

Commodity markets.

Derivative Market.

Futures Market.

Over-the-counter (OTC) Market.

Stock Market

Perhaps the most ubiquitous of financial markets are stock markets. These are venues where companies list their shares, which are bought and sold by traders and investors. Stock markets, or equities markets, are used by companies to raise capital and by investors to search for returns. Most stock trading is done via regulated exchanges, which plays an important economic role because it is another way for money to flow through the economy.

Bond market

Bonds are issued by corporations as well as by municipalities, states, and sovereign governments to finance projects and operations.For example, the bond market sells securities such as notes and bills issued by the United States Treasury. The bond market is also called the debt, credit, or fixed-income market.

Foreign Exchange Markets.

The Foreign Exchange Market (commonly known as the Forex Market or FX Market) is a global decentralized marketplace where currencies are traded. It is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily trading volume exceeding $7 trillion as of recent estimates. The Forex market operates 24 hours a day, five days a week, enabling participants from different time zones to engage in trading activities continuously.

Commodity Markets

Commodities markets are venues where producers and consumers meet to exchange physical commodities such as agricultural products (e.g., corn, livestock, soybeans), energy products (oil, gas, carbon credits), precious metals (gold, silver,platinum).

These are known as spot commodity markets, where physical goods are exchanged for money.However, the bulk of trading in these commodities takes place on derivatives markets that utilize spot commodities as the underlying assets.

Derivative Market

Derivatives are financial instruments whose value is derived from an underlying asset or a group of assets. These assets range from stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates, or market indices. The derivatives market is a financial marketplace where derivative contracts are bought and sold.

A derivative is a contract between two or more parties whose value is based on an agreed-upon underlying financial asset (like a security) or set of assets (like an index).Rather than trading stocks directly, a derivatives market trades in futures and options contracts and other advanced financial products that derive their value from underlying instruments like bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates, market indexes, and stocks.

Futures Market

Futures markets are where futures contracts are listed and traded. Unlike forwards, which trade OTC, futures markets utilize standardized contract specifications, are well-regulated, and use clearinghouses to settle and confirm trades.

Options markets, such as the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), similarly list and regulate options contracts. Both futures and options exchanges may list contracts on various asset classes, such as equities, fixed-income securities, commodities, and so on.

OTC Market

An over- the- counter (OTC) market is a decentralized market—meaning it does not have physical locations, and trading is conducted electronically—in which market participants trade securities directly (meaning without a broker).While OTC markets may handle trading in certain stocks (e.g., smaller or riskier companies that do not meet the listing criteria of exchanges), most stock trading is done via exchanges.

Certain derivatives markets, however, are exclusively OTC, making up an essential segment of the financial markets. Broadly speaking, OTC markets and the transactions that occur in them are far less regulated, less liquid, and more opaque.

Examples of Financial Markets

The above sections make clear that the "financial markets" are broad in scope and scale. To give two more concrete examples, we will consider the role of stock markets in bringing a company to IPO and the role of the OTC derivatives market in the 2008-09 financial crisis.

How Do Financial Markets Work?

Despite covering many different asset classes and having various structures and regulations, all financial markets work essentially by bringing together buyers and sellers in some asset or contract and allowing them to trade with one another. This is often done through an auction or price - discovery mechanism.

What Are the Main Functions of Financial Markets?

Financial markets exist for several reasons, but the most fundamental function is to allow for the efficient allocation of capital and assets in a financial economy. By allowing a free market for the flow of capital, financial obligations, and money, the financial markets make the global economy run more smoothly while allowing investors to participate in capital gains over time.

The Bottom Line

Financial markets provide liquidity, capital, and participation that are essential for economic growth and stability. Without financial markets, capital could not be allocated efficiently, and economic activity such as commerce and trade, investments, and growth opportunities would be greatly diminished.

Many players make markets an essential part of the economy—firms use stock and bond markets to raise capital from investors. Speculators look to various asset classes to make directional bets on future prices.

At the same time, hedgers use derivatives markets to mitigate various risks, and arbitrageurs seek to take advantage of mispricings or anomalies observed across various markets. Brokers often act as mediators that bring buyers and sellers together, earning a commission or fee for their services.

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Steps to Begin Investing in Financial Markets

Educate Yourself:

Learn the basics of financial instruments and how markets operate. Books, online courses, and tutorials are excellent resources.

Set Clear Goals:

Define your investment objectives, whether it’s saving for retirement, purchasing a home, or building wealth.

Determine Your Risk Tolerance:

Assess how much risk you’re comfortable taking. Younger investors might take more risks, while those nearing retirement may prefer safer investments.

Choose the Right Market:

Decide whether to focus on stocks, bonds, forex, or a mix, depending on your goals.

Open a Trading Account:

Select a reputable broker or trading platform that aligns with your investment preferences and provides user-friendly tools.

Start Small:

Begin with modest investments to gain experience and confidence.

Monitor and Adjust:

Keep track of your portfolio’s performance and make adjustments as needed to stay on track with your goals.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Lack of Research:

Investing without understanding the market or the asset can lead to losses.

Overtrading:

Frequent buying and selling can erode returns due to fees and poor timing.

Ignoring Risk Management:

Always set stop-loss orders and consider hedging strategies to limit potential losses.

Chasing Trends:

Avoid following market hype without assessing its long-term viability.

Neglecting Diversification:

Overconcentration in a single asset or sector can magnify risks.

Conclusion

Financial markets are the backbone of the global economy, providing a platform for investment, risk management, and wealth creation. Understanding their structure and dynamics is essential for anyone looking to navigate the world of finance effectively. Whether you’re an investor or simply curious about the markets, staying informed is the first step toward making confident and informed decisions.

Navigating financial markets may seem challenging at first, but with education, clear goals, and disciplined strategies, anyone can become a successful investor. Start small, stay informed, and focus on long-term growth to make the most of the opportunities financial markets offer. Remember, investing is a journey, not a sprint, so approach it with patience and confidence.

[beardedmrbean]

More than 249,000 veterans will receive part of the $6 billion lawsuit settlement against 3M as part of the Combat Arms Earplug settlement announced in 2023, corporate officials announced.

The figure represents more than 99% of all of the claimants who filed suit against the manufacturing company, accusing them of causing hearing damage in troops through faulty production of military-grade hearing protection.

The earplugs, produced by Aearo Technologies before that company was bought by 3M in 2008, were sold from 1999 to 2015 and used extensively by troops deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as other locations.

The high-profile legal fight has been grinding through courts for years, with a handful of individual claimants winning their cases against the company. In summer 2023, attorneys involved in a class-action lawsuit against the company announced plans to end all outstanding action against 3M if at least 98% of claimants agreed to the $6 billion settlement.

Of the nearly 300,000 cases filed against the company, more than 41,000 were thrown out by the court overseeing the agreement, 3M officials said. Those dismissals allowed lawyers to meet the threshold for triggering the agreement.

3M, based in Minnesota, has not acknowledged flaws with the earplugs.

In past statements, officials from the company have said the equipment is safe and effective “when used properly.”

Veterans involved in the lawsuit will see payouts between now and 2029. Exact amounts will depend on the severity of their injuries, but the total payouts 3M will be liable for will not exceed $6 billion.

In summer 2023, 3M reached a separate $10 billion settlement with numerous municipalities to resolve pending claims over the company’s alleged contamination of drinking water systems through their manufacturing processes.

More information on the settlement is available through an information site set up by the company.

[prapasara]

Udon Thani

Udon Thani

Udon Thani (Thai: อุดรธานี, pronounced [ʔù.dɔ̄ːn tʰāː.nīː]) is a city in Isan (Northeast Thailand), the capital of Udon Thani Province and the sixth largest city in Thailand. The city municipality (thesaban nakhon / city proper) had a population of 130,531 people as of 2019, while Udon Thani's urban area, Mueang Udon Thani, has a population of approximately 400,000. Udon Thani is one of four major cities in Isan, the others being Nakhon Ratchasima, Ubon Ratchathani, and Khon Kaen. Together they are known as the "big four of Isan".

Location

Udon is approximately 560 km from Bangkok. It is a major official and commercial center in northern Isan, Thailand, and the gateway to Laos, northern Vietnam, and southern China.

History

The city's economy was boosted by the proximity to Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base during the Vietnam War and retains reminders of that time in the form of bars, coffee shops, and hotels. "Udon sort of became like Pattaya when the GIs arrived," said a local architect.  "Restaurants serving Western cuisine, hotels and nightclubs sprouted up everywhere to meet their needs. It was an extremely busy city back then." 

The BBC has reported that Udon Thani's Royal Air Force Base was the site of a CIA black site, known to insiders as "Detention Site Green", used to interrogate Abu Zubaydah, Saudi-born Palestinian, believed to be one of Osama bin Laden's top lieutenants. In December 2014 the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) published an executive summary of a secret 6,000-page report on CIA techniques. The report alleges that at least eight Thai senior officials knew of the secret site. The site was closed in December 2002. 

Earlier reports alleged that a Voice of America relay station in a rural area of Udon Thani Province, Ban Dung District, was the CIA black site.

Administration

Udon Thani town municipality (thesaban mueang) with an area of 5.6 km2 (2.2 sq mi) was established on 15 March 1936.  On 27 May 1953, the area covered by the municipality was increased to 8.3 km2 (3.2 sq mi).   As a result of the town's continuing growth, the total area of the municipality was enlarged for the second time to 47.7 km2 (18.4 sq mi). on 31 December 1993.  On 25 September 1995 Udon Thani was upgraded to city municipality (thesaban nakhon),  and is divided into 21 sub-districts (tambons), which are further subdivided into 248 villages (mubans). (chumchon), 130,531 people in 60,659 households.

Transport

Udon Thani International Airport, close to the city centre (within the ring road), serves a number of domestic airports: Chiang Mai International Airport, U-Tapao International Airport (Pattaya), and Phuket, with approximately 24 daily flights to Bangkok (Don Mueang International and Suvarnabhumi Airport).   During the 2020-2021 COVID-19 pandemic flights were reduced to 10-14 daily to  Bangkok airports only.

Udon Thani railway station in the city centre receives four trains daily from Bangkok railway station (Hua Lamphong) including overnight sleepers.

Economy

Mining

 

Asia Pacific Potash Corporation (APPC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Italian-Thai Development PLC, owns the concession to the Udon North and Udon South potash mines and plans to develop them.  Potash deposits in northeast Thailand are believed to contain the world's third-largest—after Canada and Russia—unexploited potash reserves.  Potash is one of the main components of agricultural fertilizer.

Climate

Udon Thani has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classification Aw). Winters are fairly dry and very warm. Temperatures rise until April, which is hot with the average daily maximum at 36.2 °C (97.2 °F). The monsoon season runs from late-April through early-October, with heavy rain and somewhat cooler temperatures during the day, although nights remain warm. The range of reliably recorded temperatures in the city is from 2.5 °C (36.5 °F) to 44.1 °C (111.4 °F).

Udon Thani  ,  Thailand   ,  Udon Thani Province  ,   อุดรธานี

CR    ::    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Udon_Thani  ,  https://prinkotakoon.blogspot.com/2024/09/udon-thani.html

[todaysdocument]

“How much this whole situation is the result of fear of the policies of the new administration is further indicated by a short review of the five distinct periods in recent economic history.” 

Pres. Hoover’s analysis of the origins of the Great Depression, February 21, 1933. 

Collection HH-FESS: Simeon D. Fess Papers

Series: Simeon D. Fess Papers

Transcription: 

THE WHITE HOUSE

WASHINGTON

February 21, 1933

The Honorable

Simeon D. Fess

United States Senate

My dear Mr. Senator:

I am glad to respond to your request that I put in writing for your records, the statement I made to you yesterday as to the economic situation at the moment, and the causes thereof.

   Today we are on the verge of financial panic and chaos. Fear for the policies of the new administration has gripped the country. People do not await events, they act. Hoarding of currency, and of gold, has risen to a point never before known; banks are suspending not only isolated instances , but in one case an entire state. Prices have fallen since last autumn below the levels which debtors and creditors can meet. men over large areas are unable or are refusing to pay their debts. Hundreds of millions of orders placed before election have been cancelled. Unemployment is increasing, there are evidences of the flight of capital from the United States to foreign countries, men have abandoned all sense of new enterprise and are striving to put their affairs in defense against disaster.

Some days before election the whole economic machine began to hesitate from the upward movement of last summer and fall. For some time after election it continued to hesitate but hoped for the best. As time has gone on, however, every development has stirred the fear and apprehension of the people. They have begun to realize what the abandonment of a successful program of this administration which was bringing rapid recovery last summer and fall now means and they are alarmed at possible new deal policies indicated by the current events. It is this fear that now dominates the national situation. It is not lack of resources, currency or cr dit(sic).

   The incidents which have produced this fear are clear. There was a delay by the President-elect of over two months in willingness to cooperate with us to bring about order from confusion in our foreign economic relations. There have been a multitude of speeches, bills, and statements of demo-

[page 2]

cratic members of Congress and others proposing inflation or tinkering with the currency. My proposals for reduction of expenditures have been ignored to the extent of over $200,000,000 by the Democratic House of Representatives. The differences between Democratic leaders and the President-elect over the basis of taxation with which to balance the budget caused them to reject balancing of the budget. The publication by Democratic leaders of the House of the Reconstruction Corporation loans has caused runs on hundreds of banks, failures of many of them, and hoarding on a wide scale. There have been proposed in the Congress by Democratic leaders and publicly even by the President-elect, projects involving federal expenditure of tremendous dimensions which would obviously lie beyond the capacity of the federal government to borrow without tremendous depreciation in government securities. Such proposals as the bills to assume Federal responsibility for billions of mortgages, loans to municipalities for public works, the Tennessee improvement and Muscle Shoals, are all of this order. The proposals of Speaker Garner that constitutional government should be abandoned because the Congress , in which there will be an overwhelming majority, is unable to face reduction of expenses, has started a chatter of dictatorship. The President-elect has done nothing publicly to disavow any of these proposals.

The Democratic House has defeated a measure to increase tariffs so as to prevent invasion of goods from depreciated currency countries, thus stopping increased unemployment from this source. There have been interminable delays and threatened defeat of the Glass Banking Bill, and the Bankruptcy bill.

How much this whole situation is the result of fear of the policies of the new administration is further indicated by a short review of the five distinct periods in recent economic history.

The first period began with the financial and monetary collapse of Europe in the last half of 1931 culminating in October, bringing contradiction of credit and reduction of exports, falling prices of both commodities and securities, followed by great fear and apprehension in the people which was promptly represented by hoarding, bank failures, flight of capital, withdrawal of foreign gold balances with final interpretation in decreased employment, demoralization of agriculture and general stagnation.

The second period following the approval by Congress of our measures of reconstruction in early February 1932 was a period of sharp recovery over a period between 60 and 90 days; during this period public confidence was restored, prices of commodities and securities rose, currency began to return from

[page 3]

hoarding, gold shipments abroad were greatly lessened, bank failures practically ceased and the whole country moved upward.

The third period began in April and continued through July. This was a period of a sharp debacle which was brought about by the Democratic House by the same character of proposals we now see again, that is by the original failure of the revenue bill, the failure to reduce expenditures recommended by the Executive with consequent fear that the movement toward balancing the budget would not be successful; the passage of a group of inflationary measures including the Patman Bill, the Goldsborough Bill, etc. The passage of a series of projects which would have required greater issues of government securities than the Treasury could support including the Garner Bills for gigantic public works and unlimited loans by the Reconstruction Corporation, etc. Public confidence was destroyed; hoarding, withdrawal of foreign gold, decrease in employment, falling prices and general economic demoralization took place.  

The fourth period began about the adjournment of Congress when it was assured that these destructive measures were defeated and that constructive measures would be held. This period extended from July until October and was a period of even more definite march out of the depression. Employment was increasing at the rate of half a million men a month, bank failures ceased, hoarded currency was flowing back steadily and gold was returning from abroad, car loadings, commodity and security prices and all other proofs of emergence from the depression were visible to every one. Fear and despair had again been replaced by hope and confidence.

The fifth period began shortly before election when the outcome became evident, and has lasted until today. I have already recited its events.

The causes of this terrible retrogression and fear in this fifth period have an exact parallel in the third period of last spring. The fact that there was no disavowal of the actions of last spring by the Democratic candidates during the campaign lends added color and alarm that the same actions and proposals which are now repeated in this period positively represent the policies of the new administration - and the people are seeking to protect themselves individually but with national damage. The movement forward in recovery of our people is again defeated by precisely the same factors as last spring and again emanating from the Democratic leaders.

In the interest of every man, woman and child, the President-elect has, during the past week, been urged by the saner leaders of his own party such as Senator Glass and others, by myself,

[page 4]

and by Democratic bankers and economists whom he has called on for advice, to stop the conflagration before it becomes uncontrollable, by announcing firmly and at once [illegible insertion] that the budget will be balanced even if it means increased taxation; (b) new projects will be so restricted that government bond issues will not in any way endanger stability of government finances; (c) there will be no inflation or tampering with the currency; to which some have added that as the Democratic party coming in with an overwhelming majority in both houses, there can be no excuse for abandonment of Constitutional processes.

The President-elect is the only man who has the power to give assurances which will stabilize public mind as he alone can execute them. Those assurances should have been given before now but must be given at once if the situation (would [struck out]) is to be greatly helped. It would allay some fear and panic whereas delay will make the situation more acute.

The present administration is devoting its days and nights to put out the fires or to localize them. I have scrupulously refrained from criticism which is well merited, but have instead been giving repeated assurances to the country of our desire to cooperate and help the new administration.

What is needed, if the country is not to drift into great grief, is the immediate and emphatic restoration of confidence in the future. The resources of the country are incalculable, and available credit is ample but lenders will not lend, and men will not borrow unless they have confidence. Instead they are withdrawing their resources and their energies. The courage and enterprise of the people still exist and only await release from fears and apprehension.

The day will come when the Democratic party will endeavor to place the responsibility for the events of this Fifth period on the Republican Party. When that day comes i hope you will invite the attention of the American people to the actual truth.

Yours faithfully,

[signed] Herbert Hoover

[reidio-silence]

When poor tenants were faced with the decay of their buildings and the disruption of services as the abandonment rate accelerated during the late 1960s, some, rather than suffering in silence until the situation became unbearable and then moving, turned to the central strategy of the tenant movement, the rent strike. However, many of those facing incipient abandonment did not achieve the results they hoped for from the withholding of their rents: rather than giving them the leverage to persuade their landlord to improve their living conditions, this strategy often hastened his exit, leaving the tenants still cold in winter but with a large collective bank account. By 1969-1970 some building organizations were responding pragmatically to this situation by spending the rents they had collected to buy oil and make urgent repairs. However, since the experienced leaders of tenant organizations -- notably those associated with Met Council -- initially regarded such tenant seizures of de facto control as too risky, this strategy was not fostered or publicized at that time. Later, as experience in these isolated buildings taught movement leaders that tenants were not, through this strategy, inviting eviction, its use spread rapidly until, by the mid-1970s, it was the most common form of rent strike.

Meanwhile, several activist professionals -- priests and lawyers -- had suggested that one solution to the abandonment problem was to cede abandoned buildings to their tenants, thus creating low-income cooperatives. They raised the hope that owner occupancy could reverse decay and even curb the prevailing civil unrest by giving the poor and alienated a stake in the system. Some of these professionals, each originally acting in isolation, took the initiative in putting these ideas into action. The first low-income conversion to tenant ownership was initiated by a Harlem church in 1963; the second, sponsored by a lawyer, commenced in 1967; others followed rapidly. At this point the concept attracted the attention of the city administration, and in mid-1969 Jason Nathan, HDA administrator, created an exploratory cooperative unit within the Office of Special Improvements (OSI) and staffed it with eight college interns -- but gave them no resources, budget, or support staff.

In February 1970 Robert Schur, a West Side lawyer who had been prominent in promoting the plan, was appointed head of OSI and, having secured the promise of a budget for the purpose, pledged to get a co-op program off the ground. Schur utilized the Municipal Loan Program, which had been designed by the city to help landlords rehabilitate their buildings, and the federal Model Cities Program, to provide loans to tenants for the purchase and rehabilitation of deteriorated buildings. This cost was to be paid off, at low or no interest, by the new tenant cooperators. The extent of rehabilitation was usually curtailed -- "moderate" rather than "gut" -- in order to limit costs and typically was restricted to the "major systems" -- plumbing, wiring, heating, the front door, and roof. All the co-ops were required by the city to incorporate as Housing Development Fund corporations, which imposed income limitations. However, the majority did not take the second step of registering with the attorney general as formal cooperatives and thus avoided the costs of issuing a plan/prospectus and of allocating shares. Content to remain informal co-ops, they granted all tenant cooperators an equal vote at meetings. With Schur, able and committed, in command of an enthusiastic staff, the flow of would-be co-ops in the pipeline strengthened considerably.

— Ronald Lawson, The Tenant Movement in New York City (1986)

[voipexperts]

VoIP Conference Calls: Benefits to Your Business

VoIP for Business is a staple in the market. The majority of businesses are using it because they recognize the benefits that it brings. VoIP for Business has been proven to be beneficial by the increase in remote work and working at home after the pandemic. This has led to a greater need for videoconferencing as a corporate communication medium.

Until recently, an employee was unreachable when they left the office, except for the occasional evening spent at home or their accommodations on the road. Communication between the staff, office and other employees was difficult.

Business VoIP solutions has revolutionized the way we do business. With Business VoIP's built-in video-conferencing capabilities, you and your team will never be out of touch, whether inside or outside the workplace. Mobility is now possible.

The benefits of conference calling to a company are indisputable if we expand the traditional definition of conference call, which is a group of people using tabletop cameras and microphones, to include group video calls with smart devices.

Cost Benefits

VoIP Conferencing is much more cost-effective than video conferencing between employees at different locations. Toll charges are avoided in many cases because the calls are made over the Internet and not the PSTN. This is especially useful for conferences that involve long-distance or international connections.

Staff mobility and accessibility has been improved

Video calling via WiFi is supported by smart devices such as tablets and smartphones, which has great advantages in terms of accessibility and mobility.

On their smart device, a member of staff can receive and make voice and video calls and take part in individual and group video conferences just as they would if seated at their desk. This can also include VoIP features like call forwarding, pick-up and voicemail retrieval, depending on the capabilities and smart device.

WiFi is becoming more accessible to remote workers in both public and client spaces. The majority of businesses offer WiFi and many public places, like shopping malls, now offer free WiFi either through their tenants or themselves. Many hotels offer free WiFi and some municipalities also provide this service.

By using public WiFi, remote workers and mobile employees can connect to the corporate network anywhere that there is WiFi.

The full integration of mobile and remote workers in the workforce has now become a reality.

Teamwork can be improved

Instead of using a cellphone or PSTN, staff can make voice and video call and conference calls with smart devices connected to a WiFi network. The ability to communicate visually with another member of staff can improve teamwork. Communication errors and misunderstandings can be reduced.

This allows mobile and remote workers to take part in teamwork, teamwork events and other teamwork activities as if they were onsite with the rest of their team.

VoIP Conference Calls are a great way to bring together teams from both local and distant locations in order to solve a problem.

The response time and quality of the responses improve. Staff can be more responsive when they are able to contact colleagues or customers at any time.

They can be more productive without worrying about losing touch with their team members.

Workplace efficiency can be improved

Staff no longer have to arrange meeting locations. All participants can take part in video conferencing from wherever they are.

Staff being available for group video calls to customers and other staff members at any time and anywhere, improves workplace efficiency.

Business VoIP can bring tangible benefits for an organization. It reduces communication costs and keeps staff in contact. It is difficult to measure the intangible benefits that improved communication brings, such as increased teamwork and morale.

[momentary-ecstasy]

Saffi prompt: first time Seven meets Gabe.

The impending implosion of FreeCloud could wholly be attributed to a lack of care with municipal utilities and maintenance. The money on FreeCloud went straight to corporations and individuals instead of expanding services for the ever growing population on an already overpopulated planet. A chained explosion of reactors was imminent and the more Starfleet dug into the problem at the request of a bewildered Chairman who didn’t actually live in FreeCloud, the more it became clear that outdated technology, undertrained technicians, and general neglect were a problem too far gone even for the best scientists and engineers in Starfleet. 

As with most ships in the area, the Titan had been requisitioned to move refugees from FreeCloud to a neighboring planet a few systems away. 

Seven moved through the lower decks inspecting the new quarters for the people being relocated. The hallway bunks that the ensigns slept in were cleared out of personal effects and were being sterilized for the refugees coming aboard. There wasn’t time for a refit of anything so they were making due with what they had. The entire crew on the ship with the exception of the bridge crew were sharing quarters on the upper decks and sleeping in shifts. 

In a show of camaraderie with her fellow shipmates, Seven had given up her personal quarters for the duration and was sharing a double room that had two beds with five other officers who slept in shifts as well. She couldn’t complain so far. Her sleep shift roommate was quiet and kept to himself. He didn’t snore and kept his belongings confined to his bed. 

Her comm badge chirped, signaling one final meeting before they arrived at FreeCloud.

She met with the rest of the bridge crew in the ready room and took her place next to Shaw. Shaw didn’t stand up and gestured to the screen facing the table. “We’ll be getting a briefing from the mission commander. Then we’ll be providing security while the first wave of ships takes on refugees.”

Seven wasn’t sure why she was surprised that the mission commander was Raffi. She had moved millions of Romulans before the supernova with a laser precision against political backlash and red tape in every direction. She watched Raffi give a very concise briefing to all the crews about the order of ships to take on refugees. Apparently she had already been on the ground in FreeCloud for a week organizing relocation efforts before the ships arrived. 

The report painted a grim picture of the wealthy leaving the planet to burn while the workers and poorer of the planet were left to the mess the pleasure and entertainment centers of the galaxy had created. 

For the briefest moment, the most selfish part of Seven wondered if Raffi could see her on screen. If she could pick her out of the probably hundreds of tiny faces on the screen. Seven wondered if she even cared to. 

Seven was brought back to the briefing as Raffi’s face changed from professional neutrality to professional neutrality with a hint of worry. Something most people wouldn’t be able to pick out. “There are a few different factions trying to use this emergency as a cover for smuggling or assassination of rivals. We need to be vigilant.” She nodded to herself and everyone else before her attention was taken for a brief moment. “Send me whatever questions you have. I’ll send out the order of ships to enter orbit. Engineering is estimating detonation in five days and the plan is to have this planet barren in four. Good luck everyone. Stay safe.” Then the screen went black.

“You heard her,” Shaw stayed in his seat. “We’ve been assigned perimeter security. Go start scans and map out a perimeter.” The bridge crew all started to leave. He reached out a hand and said, “Hang back, Seven.”

Seven sat back down and waited for the room to clear. Then looked at Shaw. 

“Is that going to be a problem?” he asked, pointing to the screen where Raffi had been. 

It took Seven a moment to register what he asked and then a moment to be offended. Then she answered, “Was it when we were saving Starfleet from the Changlings?” 

“Fair point,” he nodded. Then added, “How is the morale in the lower decks?”

“Everyone is ready to help,” Seven got past the personal question he had asked and moved into XO mode, “They can survive in close quarters for a week.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “I think the addition of several thousand refugees will make tensions rise.” He took a deep breath. “I’ll send a memo to the rest of the crew to remember their plight and attempt to remain sympathetic. I hope I can count on you to help monitor the situation.”

Seven nodded. “Of course.”

He sat in silence again as he sometimes did, thinking on the situation at hand. Seven was getting good at knowing when he wanted her to go and when he wanted her to stay and currently, he wanted her right where she was. 

“Have you read the briefing?” he asked, though he knew the answer. 

She nodded. “Several times.”

He finally started moving out of his thoughtful sitting position and hit his Comm badge, calling his Security Officer into the ready room. He wanted to go over the dangers of this mission and he wanted Seven’s opinions and for them both to instruct the Security Officer together.

Continued on AO3

[opinions-about-tiaras]

I work at the coal face here, so I feel like I have some things to add.

By "at the coal face" I mean "I am employed in a technology role at a company that is essentially the platonic ideal of the business use-case for LLMs." (I try and avoid calling them "AI" because they're not, but I suspect I've lost this philological battle.)

I work at a major (Fortune 1000) real-estate services, property tax services, and credit analytics company. Literally 100% of our work is gathering and analyzing data and providing conclusions, business plans, recommendations, professional and legally actionable tax advice, and other related services based on that analysis... but we are not, ourselves, a tech company, despite an intense branding push on the part of our corporate masters. We have specialized in-house algorithms that have proven to be effective at things like "analyzing and pricing flood risk better than those of competing companies" but that's about it.

You'll not the highlighted part of my last paragraph. I'll come back to that.

Like everyone else in the world, our leadership is going pretty hard in on LLMs. Because we're an ideal use-case for it, right? We do nothing but mess with data.

We struck a major deal with Microsoft for a huge implementation of Copilot, there are trainings and seminars like I've never seen to teach people what it is and how to leverage it, etc. We're spending a lot of money on this.

The results so far?

I'm going to give Copilot credit; it's fantastic at automating away a lot of basic clerical work. It can write lengthy emails that are meant to be nothing more than straightforward conveyances of information like nobodies business if you feed it the information. It can take notes on meetings in a quick and effective manner, its algorithms having a decent understanding of what bullet points to distill out of a ten-minute conversation. We've even been having it work the camera at major company presentations and its better at it than most people are, certainly better than prior "tries to focus on the speaker and their presentation automatically" pieces of software are. A bunch of other things that have to be done but are basically busywork.

This is all very useful. But that's about where its usefulness ends.

The actual BUSINESS business side of things is struggling mightily to find uses for the thing despite massive corporate pressure to do so. And the issues there are twofold.

The first is that the analytical tools we use primarily spit out data... but the core of our business is interpreting that data accurately, and continuing to insure that the data, itself, is accurate. I mentioned flood risk previously? Part of what we do is that every couple of years or so, the guys over in Business Intelligence need to actually start going through the real-world records for what floods happened and where, running them against our algorithms and models, and tweaking them to make sure they continue to be accurate. This task has been automated to the greatest extent it can be already. They are deeply hesitant to let Copilot automate it even more, because Copilot cannot think and render judgments, and thinking and rendering judgments is what we sell.

They would love if it it could automate shit like "contact various municipal authorities to get their publicly-available data on disasters in their area" but it actually can't; or rather, they don't trust it to do so. Early attempts to try and train it on this have produced results that are sufficiently variable and require so much human cross-checking as to not be worth it. And even if it COULD do that, analyzing that information is a whole other deal.

So that's one barrier. But the main barrier, the BIG one?

We are to a great extent legally responsible for the information we convey to our customers. Our recommendations for customers that make use of our more in-depth services to them aren't protected in this way; we've been wrong before, often to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. And we'll be wrong again! Our customers have no recourse on "we thought this was a good idea but it wasn't."

But we are absolutely liable that the data we base those wrong conclusions on has been crunched and analyzed and sourced in the ways we are contractually obligated to do so. Our work is warranted.

For our tax services, that goes one step further. Tax services are serious fucking business. The tax services we provide expose us not just to angry customers walking away or potentially suing us, they expose us to actual-factual criminal liability in the case of certain screwups. That information has to be gathered, stored, and processed properly. We can and have automated a lot of that. But the actual work work there is done by humans. Those humans use analytical tools, some quite powerful, but the work needs to attach to a human whose ass is on the line.

So far nobody whose ass is on the line has been willing to entrust much of this to Copilot.

That's what it comes down to for just about everything. The upper management folks are big-picture guys who look at LLMs and are dazzled by the possibilities. The line workers, like myself (I'm in a technology support role) basically don't get a say and largely don't care, they do what they're told with what they have.

But the specialists and middle-managers? Those are the guys whose name is on the work and who get in trouble if it isn't done properly. Those specialists are professionals in their fields often with many years of experience, and the tax guys in particular are sharp. Those middle-managers have the job of telling the UPPER management folks when they're off the rails and they cannot, if acting as directed, guarantee that our work will be warranted and not expose us to legal liability, and that's something upper management actually does pay attention to.

Does this mean the business side can't get use out of LLMs? No, of course not. But it does mean that they can't utterly transform the business based on what LLMs can do. What they provide is the easing of a lot of basic clerical work and that's it.

This is probably not worth the immense sums of money dumped into LLMs, or what we're paying for Copilot.

It's liability. These LLMs are just tools. They can't be held accountable, not for anything. When a tool is used, and things go badly wrong, you hold accountable the person using the tool. You can't indict a shovel; you CAN indict a guy for using a shovel to beat a man to death.

And again, we're an ideal use-case scenario and this is the barrier we're running up against.

Now, I'm sure there are companies that are going "fuck all this" and just charging ahead with LLMs anyway. That's absolutely happening.

A bunch of those guys are gonna go to jail, and when they're hauled away they're gonna bleat "It wasn't me, I just did what the machine said!"

If anyone wants to know why every tech company in the world right now is clamoring for AI like drowned rats scrabbling to board a ship, I decided to make a post to explain what's happening.

(Disclaimer to start: I'm a software engineer who's been employed full time since 2018. I am not a historian nor an overconfident Youtube essayist, so this post is my working knowledge of what I see around me and the logical bridges between pieces.)

Okay anyway. The explanation starts further back than what's going on now. I'm gonna start with the year 2000. The Dot Com Bubble just spectacularly burst. The model of "we get the users first, we learn how to profit off them later" went out in a no-money-having bang (remember this, it will be relevant later). A lot of money was lost. A lot of people ended up out of a job. A lot of startup companies went under. Investors left with a sour taste in their mouth and, in general, investment in the internet stayed pretty cooled for that decade. This was, in my opinion, very good for the internet as it was an era not suffocating under the grip of mega-corporation oligarchs and was, instead, filled with Club Penguin and I Can Haz Cheezburger websites.

Then around the 2010-2012 years, a few things happened. Interest rates got low, and then lower. Facebook got huge. The iPhone took off. And suddenly there was a huge new potential market of internet users and phone-havers, and the cheap money was available to start backing new tech startup companies trying to hop on this opportunity. Companies like Uber, Netflix, and Amazon either started in this time, or hit their ramp-up in these years by shifting focus to the internet and apps.

Now, every start-up tech company dreaming of being the next big thing has one thing in common: they need to start off by getting themselves massively in debt. Because before you can turn a profit you need to first spend money on employees and spend money on equipment and spend money on data centers and spend money on advertising and spend money on scale and and and

But also, everyone wants to be on the ship for The Next Big Thing that takes off to the moon.

So there is a mutual interest between new tech companies, and venture capitalists who are willing to invest $$$ into said new tech companies. Because if the venture capitalists can identify a prize pig and get in early, that money could come back to them 100-fold or 1,000-fold. In fact it hardly matters if they invest in 10 or 20 total bust projects along the way to find that unicorn.

But also, becoming profitable takes time. And that might mean being in debt for a long long time before that rocket ship takes off to make everyone onboard a gazzilionaire.

But luckily, for tech startup bros and venture capitalists, being in debt in the 2010's was cheap, and it only got cheaper between 2010 and 2020. If people could secure loans for ~3% or 4% annual interest, well then a $100,000 loan only really costs $3,000 of interest a year to keep afloat. And if inflation is higher than that or at least similar, you're still beating the system.

So from 2010 through early 2022, times were good for tech companies. Startups could take off with massive growth, showing massive potential for something, and venture capitalists would throw infinite money at them in the hopes of pegging just one winner who will take off. And supporting the struggling investments or the long-haulers remained pretty cheap to keep funding.

You hear constantly about "Such and such app has 10-bazillion users gained over the last 10 years and has never once been profitable", yet the thing keeps chugging along because the investors backing it aren't stressed about the immediate future, and are still banking on that "eventually" when it learns how to really monetize its users and turn that profit.

The pandemic in 2020 took a magnifying-glass-in-the-sun effect to this, as EVERYTHING was forcibly turned online which pumped a ton of money and workers into tech investment. Simultaneously, money got really REALLY cheap, bottoming out with historic lows for interest rates.

Then the tide changed with the massive inflation that struck late 2021. Because this all-gas no-brakes state of things was also contributing to off-the-rails inflation (along with your standard-fare greedflation and price gouging, given the extremely convenient excuses of pandemic hardships and supply chain issues). The federal reserve whipped out interest rate hikes to try to curb this huge inflation, which is like a fire extinguisher dousing and suffocating your really-cool, actively-on-fire party where everyone else is burning but you're in the pool. And then they did this more, and then more. And the financial climate followed suit. And suddenly money was not cheap anymore, and new loans became expensive, because loans that used to compound at 2% a year are now compounding at 7 or 8% which, in the language of compounding, is a HUGE difference. A $100,000 loan at a 2% interest rate, if not repaid a single cent in 10 years, accrues to $121,899. A $100,000 loan at an 8% interest rate, if not repaid a single cent in 10 years, more than doubles to $215,892.

Now it is scary and risky to throw money at "could eventually be profitable" tech companies. Now investors are watching companies burn through their current funding and, when the companies come back asking for more, investors are tightening their coin purses instead. The bill is coming due. The free money is drying up and companies are under compounding pressure to produce a profit for their waiting investors who are now done waiting.

You get enshittification. You get quality going down and price going up. You get "now that you're a captive audience here, we're forcing ads or we're forcing subscriptions on you." Don't get me wrong, the plan was ALWAYS to monetize the users. It's just that it's come earlier than expected, with way more feet-to-the-fire than these companies were expecting. ESPECIALLY with Wall Street as the other factor in funding (public) companies, where Wall Street exhibits roughly the same temperament as a baby screaming crying upset that it's soiled its own diaper (maybe that's too mean a comparison to babies), and now companies are being put through the wringer for anything LESS than infinite growth that Wall Street demands of them.

Internal to the tech industry, you get MASSIVE wide-spread layoffs. You get an industry that used to be easy to land multiple job offers shriveling up and leaving recent graduates in a desperately awful situation where no company is hiring and the market is flooded with laid-off workers trying to get back on their feet.

Because those coin-purse-clutching investors DO love virtue-signaling efforts from companies that say "See! We're not being frivolous with your money! We only spend on the essentials." And this is true even for MASSIVE, PROFITABLE companies, because those companies' value is based on the Rich Person Feeling Graph (their stock) rather than the literal profit money. A company making a genuine gazillion dollars a year still tears through layoffs and freezes hiring and removes the free batteries from the printer room (totally not speaking from experience, surely) because the investors LOVE when you cut costs and take away employee perks. The "beer on tap, ping pong table in the common area" era of tech is drying up. And we're still unionless.

Never mind that last part.

And then in early 2023, AI (more specifically, Chat-GPT which is OpenAI's Large Language Model creation) tears its way into the tech scene with a meteor's amount of momentum. Here's Microsoft's prize pig, which it invested heavily in and is galivanting around the pig-show with, to the desperate jealousy and rapture of every other tech company and investor wishing it had that pig. And for the first time since the interest rate hikes, investors have dollar signs in their eyes, both venture capital and Wall Street alike. They're willing to restart the hose of money (even with the new risk) because this feels big enough for them to take the risk.

Now all these companies, who were in varying stages of sweating as their bill came due, or wringing their hands as their stock prices tanked, see a single glorious gold-plated rocket up out of here, the likes of which haven't been seen since the free money days. It's their ticket to buy time, and buy investors, and say "see THIS is what will wring money forth, finally, we promise, just let us show you."

To be clear, AI is NOT profitable yet. It's a money-sink. Perhaps a money-black-hole. But everyone in the space is so wowed by it that there is a wide-spread and powerful conviction that it will become profitable and earn its keep. (Let's be real, half of that profit "potential" is the promise of automating away jobs of pesky employees who peskily cost money.) It's a tech-space industrial revolution that will automate away skilled jobs, and getting in on the ground floor is the absolute best thing you can do to get your pie slice's worth.

It's the thing that will win investors back. It's the thing that will get the investment money coming in again (or, get it second-hand if the company can be the PROVIDER of something needed for AI, which other companies with venture-back will pay handsomely for). It's the thing companies are terrified of missing out on, lest it leave them utterly irrelevant in a future where not having AI-integration is like not having a mobile phone app for your company or not having a website.

So I guess to reiterate on my earlier point:

Drowned rats. Swimming to the one ship in sight.

[news365timesindia]

[ad_1] GG News Bureau Mumbai, 11th Feb. The Maharashtra Health Department has reported a total of 192 suspected cases of Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) in the state, with 167 cases confirmed so far. Officials have also recorded seven deaths, of which one was confirmed as GBS-related, while six remain under investigation. The cases are distributed across various regions, including 39 cases from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), 91 from newly added villages in the PMC area, 29 from Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), 25 from Pune Rural, and 8 from other districts. As per the latest update, 48 patients are currently in Intensive Care Units (ICU), 21 are on ventilators, while 91 have been discharged after treatment. Authorities Intensify Surveillance The Maharashtra health authorities are closely monitoring the situation and have intensified surveillance in affected areas. In response to the outbreak, on February 6, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) sealed 30 private water supply plants in Nanded village, Dhayari, and surrounding areas on Sinhgad Road, identified as the epicenter of the outbreak. PMC officials took action against these water plants after testing samples, which were found unfit for consumption due to contamination. Several plants were operating without proper permission, while others were found to be contaminated with Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria. Some also failed to use necessary disinfectants and chlorine to control contamination. Central and State Governments Step Up Measures On February 3, the Union Health Minister held a high-level meeting with key Maharashtra health officials and medical ministers to assess the ongoing outbreak. Discussions focused on public health measures, patient testing, and treatment strategies to contain the spread of GBS. Understanding Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) Guillain-Barre Syndrome is a rare autoimmune disorder in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the peripheral nervous system, leading to symptoms like muscle weakness and, in severe cases, paralysis. The exact cause remains unknown, but infections, including bacterial and viral illnesses, are known triggers. With the outbreak being closely monitored, authorities urge residents in affected areas to follow safety advisories, consume only safe and tested water sources, and report any symptoms to healthcare professionals immediately. The post Maharashtra Reports 167 Cases of Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Seven Deaths appeared first on Global Governance News- Asia's First Bilingual News portal for Global News and Updates. [ad_2] Source link

[news365times]

[ad_1] GG News Bureau Mumbai, 11th Feb. The Maharashtra Health Department has reported a total of 192 suspected cases of Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) in the state, with 167 cases confirmed so far. Officials have also recorded seven deaths, of which one was confirmed as GBS-related, while six remain under investigation. The cases are distributed across various regions, including 39 cases from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), 91 from newly added villages in the PMC area, 29 from Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), 25 from Pune Rural, and 8 from other districts. As per the latest update, 48 patients are currently in Intensive Care Units (ICU), 21 are on ventilators, while 91 have been discharged after treatment. Authorities Intensify Surveillance The Maharashtra health authorities are closely monitoring the situation and have intensified surveillance in affected areas. In response to the outbreak, on February 6, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) sealed 30 private water supply plants in Nanded village, Dhayari, and surrounding areas on Sinhgad Road, identified as the epicenter of the outbreak. PMC officials took action against these water plants after testing samples, which were found unfit for consumption due to contamination. Several plants were operating without proper permission, while others were found to be contaminated with Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria. Some also failed to use necessary disinfectants and chlorine to control contamination. Central and State Governments Step Up Measures On February 3, the Union Health Minister held a high-level meeting with key Maharashtra health officials and medical ministers to assess the ongoing outbreak. Discussions focused on public health measures, patient testing, and treatment strategies to contain the spread of GBS. Understanding Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) Guillain-Barre Syndrome is a rare autoimmune disorder in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the peripheral nervous system, leading to symptoms like muscle weakness and, in severe cases, paralysis. The exact cause remains unknown, but infections, including bacterial and viral illnesses, are known triggers. With the outbreak being closely monitored, authorities urge residents in affected areas to follow safety advisories, consume only safe and tested water sources, and report any symptoms to healthcare professionals immediately. The post Maharashtra Reports 167 Cases of Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Seven Deaths appeared first on Global Governance News- Asia's First Bilingual News portal for Global News and Updates. [ad_2] Source link

[armandcorporation]

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[insteading]

Yes, state-level environmental orgs, but also, hear me out: local government. It's where your best leverage is, both because you're directly impacted by its decisions and have skin in the game, and because so few people show up where decisions are made.

I think the part of Robin Wall Kimmerer's Braiding Sweetgrass that often gets ignored is the part where she extols the virtue of going to the damn meeting. Learn what departments are in charge of planting municipal shrubs and trees, and when their public meetings are. And then go! (Maybe Parks and Rec, maybe Public Works, maybe something else.) Go advocate for native plants that feed native pollinators. Or for other climate-resiliency measures-- wetlands near the coast, or respecting the flood plain.

If your city or town, like mine, has historically concentrated tree planting and parkland in whiter neighborhoods, and simultaneously concentrated heavy industry in historically Black neighborhoods, learn about and support the existing efforts of your neighbors to redress that inequity. (My city has a working port, and the neighborhood adjacent to the port has much higher rates of asthma than neighborhoods up in the hills, because of idling diesel trucks. Neighbors who took particulate readings every week for years helped get legislation passed that is starting to fix the problem.)

If your city, like mine, has police aircraft that surveil neighborhoods from overhead all the damn time, find out the cost of staff time, fuel, and maintenance per hour in the air, and the emissions impact, and be an absolute mosquito about repeating it at every meeting where something vaguely related is on the agenda.

And hey: if you've got research skills and an inherent nosy streak? Consider helping investigate where political contributions come from, to see which of your elected officials at the local level are taking money from people who want a coal terminal, or who want to release Chevron from their responsibility for shitty air quality. (Sometimes local newspapers will do this, but hey, Richmond California's local news was literally bought by Chevron, and investigative reporters can only do so much if their publishers and editors will kill stories critical of their funders.) Learn about power mapping and how to do it!

These examples are all ones that stem from my daily experience living where I live. Yours might be different. This is just to say: environmental action can and should include your city, your neighborhood, your block, and the organizations and people you're already invested in.

Hey

Hey Americans.

The federal government is about to get useless for at least a bit. This is a GREAT time to get involved in state level environmental orgs. That's where you're gonna be able to do the most for the next few years. Even a bit of casual volunteering can make a big difference.

I've done this off and on for years and when we go local we WIN. And friends winning feels good. This is how a lot of progressive agendas have won in this country. The whole US isn't out of this. People ARE still fighting climate change all around you.

You could be one of those people, in community with other people who are doing something.

doom and gloom "oooh everything is pointless oooh I'm so deep and edgy because I love trying to be the death of hope" people will just get blocked. I'm not talking to your crab-bucket ass.