#Physical copy questions bank

[sagarrachnagrp]

CBSE Class 10 English Communicative Physical + Digital Question Bank for 2024-25 Board Exams

Together with’ Class 10 English Communicative Physical + Digital Question Bank is a study supplement for CBSE board students. It is prepared by an expert team to meet all your CBSE English Communicative Exam needs. It is available in both physical and digital format. You can access the digital materials by scanning the QR code given in the physical copy questions bank.

[johnbrand]

Catch! (βΓΦ)

Have you ever taken a moment to consider how fraternities are still alive these days? We have seen them featured in movies, television, and more recently across social media, but what do they even stand for? Originally, they were built around the concept of brotherhood among younger men entering adulthood, inspiring “fraternal” bonds that could remain strong throughout their lifetimes. Now however, they seem to be constantly embroiled in controversy. Whether it pertains issues of hazing, rapid partying, or the classic sexual harassment, fraternities should be on their way out.

But somehow, they are still sticking around. And worse yet, they appear to be stronger than ever. Young men from around the country are flocking to these institutions–and with no common reason either. Everyone wants to find parties, but you can do that anywhere on a college campus. Everyone wants to make new adult friends, so why not join an extracurricular? Or hit up a peer in your class? There seems to be no valid excuse for all these students to be flocking towards an organized brotherhood. So that raises the question again, how are fraternities still around?

One may guess it is in the marketing. The rampant partying, the buff shirtless men, the fraternal bonds; all of these are enticing to the viewer. And to be granted all three in a package together is even more appealing. But it is much simpler than that. Thanks to modern technology–and fraternities' centuries-old bank accounts–brothers are able to recruit faster and easier than ever. Even if the public is hankering down on initiation rites, fraternities have grown past the point of lengthy periods. Their new members can join in under a minute.

Let us draw out an example. A few of fraternities sponsor a trip out to a private beach. They provide drinks, snacks, and entertainment. It is a common event, showcasing to new students some of the best aspects of being a brother. One of the fraternal brothers, Clay, is holding a football and searching for his next recipient.

A member of Beta Gamma Phi (βΓΦ), Clay is tall, buff, and hairy, a perfect image of masculinity. From his chiseled jaw and strong stance, one can tell he has it all (like every fraternal brother does). Eventually, he spots his target: a junior specializing in mathematics.

“Catch!”

It is a simple command, and quickly the football is flying through the air. The pigskin itself appears rather ordinary, but as was mentioned before, technological and hefty financial advancements have made it anything but. Once activated by a brother’s touch, the leather absorbs the genetic print, the internal system downloading an almost identical copy. Of course, that copy cannot be completely accurate, otherwise fraternities would be running around with a bunch of clones (although some argue they already do). The imprint is just a base code, enough to replace the recipient’s genetic mainframe. The fine details are then adjusted accordingly by utilizing and recycling the remaining DNA.

Anyway, returning back to the scene, the enhanced initiation object flies toward the lonely junior. Christopher had only come here because his friend had begged him too, stating there was no reason not to partake in the festivities. A smaller-than-average lad lacking a strong will, he could often be a pushover, both in physical and social regards. So when he heard the strapping brother’s command, he did not think twice about turning around. And to his own shock, Christopher was able to catch the football, surprising himself as the leather made contact with his skin.

Once the contact is made, the fate is sealed: Beta Gamma Phi has secured its next brother. Clay’s genetic code is then rapidly installed into Christopher’s mainframe, his biological firewalls useless against the technology. Over the span of seconds, Clay is able to watch as his program is rescripted for Christopher’s body. The junior’s height soars up, easily passing the pseudo-mandatory "six feet and over" rule that all brothers silently abide by. Once that is secure, the muscles begin to inflate.

Firm pectorals, sculpted abdominals, arms that appeared engraved into stone. Christopher’s hands bloat around the football as his bare feet bloat out into the sand. Thick calves, beefy thighs, a plumper pouch and plumper rear. As Clay gets closer, he can visibly examine the flurries of hair that arise across Christopher’s previously-naked skin. Wider neck to support a deeper register, wider jaw to support a more masculine facial structure. Even Christopher’s hair, although a blonder brown compared to Clay’s almost-black, gels up into Clay’s signature hairstyle (although it was often hidden beneath a backwards baseball cap, as it was currently).

By the time Clay approaches βΓΦ’s newest brother, his genetic print had successfully completed installation. Christopher, or Chris as he would now insist to go by, held a near-identical copy of Clay’s mainframe. He displayed Clay’s musculature and masculinity, just in his own genetic font. And his mindset, values, and goals now mimicked the fraternal brother’s too. Chris would find his new purpose relishing in sports, sex, bonding with his brothers, and continuing this pattern through a career in exercise sciences. 

With a broad, pearly white smile and the football still in his right hand, Chris would then accept Clay’s invitation to join Beta Gamma Phi. Thanks to the technology, Chris would never know that he had had not once dreamed of becoming a fraternal brother, that his whole life had not been dedicated to upholding traditional masculinity. And eventually, it would be Chris and his fellow brothers’ turn to keep the fraternities alive by financing any options that would help them gain new members.

[aesethewitch]

Hii so, I’m new to online witch spaces. I wasn’t aware there was any witch scams.

I might be a bit naive or have not ran across any luckily. But what are some ones to be wary of?

I apologize if this is a silly ask.

Hello! This is very much not a silly ask!! It's an important question to ask, and I'm glad that you have.

Yes, scams are everywhere. There have been scams in occult/spiritual circles since literally forever. Any space comprised of vulnerable, young, and hungry people is going to have people who want to take advantage. Online witch spaces are no different.

The big ones off the top of my head are:

People selling "witchy merch" like prints, bags, shirts, and other stuff like that using stolen art and AI-generated images

People selling crystals that are purposefully mislabeled as something they aren't, are made of glass/other material, or at an incredible mark-up for no reason (for example, "Lemurian Crystals" selling for hundreds of dollars on Etsy when they're nothing more than common quartz)

People selling same-day or even same-hour divinations -- when you think about it, isn't this kind of impossible? Check the volume of requests they get; if it's one or two people doing hundreds of these a week, either they're copy-pasting readings or they're using a GenAI to do the work for them. Either way, that's bullshit!

People selling spells which the buyer has no way of verifying -- think "energy work only" spells and the like; if the buyer gets no physical product in any way, and if they have no way of otherwise verifying the service has been done, how are they going to know it's legitimate? The answer is, they can't know, and the seller is banking on that fact

People setting up temporary shops that will disappear after selling a certain number of listings, not actually providing any services/products (or providing products that don't match their listings)

These are, I think, the big scam categories. A lot of them are easy to spot, with their copious typos and obvious AI images and buzzword-laden descriptions and reviews stuffed with fake five-star praises.

I would be wary of anyone whose entire online presence is dedicated to selling you something. I'd also be wary of people leaving information out of their listings, or who are obscuring what you're actually getting behind mystical language. And above all, be extremely wary of any shop you can't easily contact without running into chat bots. If you can't talk to a real person who's willing to answer your questions and address any concerns, they're either a scam or simply not worth your time.

When in doubt, get a second opinion. Ask someone else what they think about a listing or seller or shop. See if you can find someone who's actually gotten a service/product from that seller. Have someone else read the listing to see if they notice the same red flags.

And above all, don't let eagerness for results cloud your judgment. It's the number one thing these people prey on. They're banking on people to make impulsive, rash decisions, because it shields the seller's faulty practices from close examination.

[rifle-yes]

normally I love getting emails from students telling me my class helped or came up in their life in some way - but the number of emails I've gotten from students over the years telling me they used the evac shopping list or the bug out bags we made in my geo hazards class is pretty horrific and the reason I'm going to gently poke you all and ask you:

how much drinkable water do you have on hand if your water stops working? (aim for 3 gallons per person per day)

do you have a physical copy of a map with at least two evacuation routes should internet or your phones not work?

how much food do you have that is non-perishable and easy to travel with and are the expiration dates still good? (2k calories per person per day)

do you have at least two flashlights with fresh batteries and replacement batteries?

do you have a pair of more rugged clothes you can easily grab that you know will fit you and be weather appropriate for the season?

do you have a carrier(s) that fits (all) your pet(s) comfortably for long periods of time?

do you have a bag set aside with a dental hygiene and standard hygiene items you could easily grab?

is your first aid kid freshly stocked with more than just bandaids and checked for expired items? are your prescription meds easy to get to and add to this if needed? do you have pain killers, tummy trouble pills, antihistamines, splints, ACE bandages, medical tape, & alcohol wipes (these are my most used items in the field)

where are your important papers (passports, insurance papers, proof of ownership, birth certificates, important photos, etc) and are they ready to travel if need be?

if you're in an area with cold temps do you have thermal blankets or normal ones?

do you have toilet paper and menstrual items? because restroom restocking/cleaning is not a priority for most places in a disaster situation and sometimes you don't even get the luxury of having a restroom.

do you have a back up power bank?

weird items you might not have in your go bag but might want to consider:

PPE eye covers like lab goggles or even swimmers goggles if you're in fire zone - it can help prevent eye irritation in smokey areas

DUCT TAPE. DUCT TAPE. DUCT TAPE. ADD IT TO YOUR BAG NOW.

disposable face masks - don't breathe in smoke

silverware/utensils - you can eat food right from a can but silverware takes up minimal space

headlamps like hikers/bikers/ya girl uses - SUPER USEFUL and it keeps your hands free

a whistle

solar power stations (I have a Jackery brand solar power station for the field and this thing is a work horse - 10/10 do recommend)

chemical cold packs/hot packs

pocket knife

cash (apple pay and cards aren't always accepted in emergencies)

barter items (cash isn't always accepted or useful in emergencies) like tiny airplane bottles of booze, big bottles of booze, cigarette packs, extra medical supplies, batteries, duct tape, toilet paper)

pashminas/scarves/shemagh - useful in more than one way

& a question people sometimes forget: can you easily lift and carry the bag that contains these items? a 75lb/45kg bag of gear will do you no good if you can't pick it up and take it with you in an emergency.

[moderator-monnie]

Before The Ritual (A COTH Story)

Dr. Ivo Robotnik, otherwise known as Dr. Eggman, was currently sitting in his lab, infuriated as always. He threw some papers off his desk and sighed heavily.

One hand was on his chin, and the other was tapping against his table, mumbling some things to himself quietly.

"Drat that damn hedgehog... Always getting in the way of my plans, he is truly a worthy adversary, but if I want to get rid of him for good, I need the ultimate plan! What haven't I tried? What could I use? Now that is the question at the end of the day."

"Perhaps a doomsday device? Hmm, not too predictable. Maybe I could touch upon the metal virus in a new light? ... No. Not too dangerous. I made some mistakes with that attempt. I didn't even think about my own safety."

"Maybe upgrade Metal Sonic or bring Tails Doll and Mecha Knuckles out of retirement? Could I even make some robot copies of the rats' other friends? That lemur would make an interesting machine. NO NO, none of these plans work!"

He soon laid back in his chair, rubbing his temples. He didn't want to work himself, but Sonic was a powerful foe and quite intelligent too, even if Eggman wouldn't admit it out loud.

"Just what can I do? What would really wow him? WHAT CAN BEAT HIM FOR GOOD? THERE MUST BE SOMETHING I'VE MISSED, IN MY RESEARCH OF MOBIUS!!! AN ULTIMATE WEAKNESS!"

Suddenly, a red light flashed in the room, and Sage appeared, sitting on his work bench, kicking her legs before clearing her throat with a gentle smile and a wave and speaking. "Hello Father, I see you are stressed over finding a way to, and I quote, 'crush that blasted hedgehog' may I offer my assistance?"

Eggman sat up in his chair, letting out a hearty chuckle before looking at his AI daughter. He took her words carefully and rubbed his chin before responding. "Ah, hello, Sage. Hello, it's nice to see you. You know what? You might just be what I need; a fresh eye on things would definitely help me figure out exactly what I need to defeat Sonic once and for all."

Eggman put his hands together, striking a pose. "You have access to my data banks along with the internet, correct?"

Sage nodded softly. She then teleported away, inserting herself into the main computer and combing through it rather quickly.

A sudden dinging noise was heard, and Eggman could see some files being downloaded, but he allowed time for Sage to explain what they were for.

"Father, I have discovered something you may have overlooked. You are aware of Grandfather Gerald Robotnik's research into the gods of Mobius and of humanity, correct?"

Eggman's eyebrows rose, wondering where his daughter was going with this, but he was quite curious as well. "Why, yes, Sage, I'm aware of all this; why did you bring it up? I've tried using god-like creatures against Sonic before, like with Dark Gaia and Chaos."

Sage soon pulled up some semi-corrupted files she had dug up. She is in the deepest parts of the internet, and Eggman's own files are on the main computer screen.

"Well, Father, you may have overlooked something. Its origins are not exactly clear. It's commonly unknown if humanity or Mobians discovered this entity, but unlike many other gods of Mobius and Earth, this one has not only been proven to exist to some extent."

"This God, or rather god-like entity, can control dreams themselves and is not physical, at least not without a host body to call its own; it has the ability to interact with solid objects, but with a host body, epically one with a high enough chaos energy.

And given enough time. This entity could possibly even put all of Mobius into a slumber of its own control, one they can't wake up from without its consent."

Eggman began to smirk very widely as he got up out of his chair and looked at the screen widely, seeing all the files Sage showed him.

"What a very interesting find, Sage! I'm very proud of you, but what makes you think we can control it and have it help us get rid of Sonic?"

Sage blushed. She had stars in her eyes for a moment; she was always happy to have her father be proud of her, but she soon cleared her throat and continued.

"Ahem, ah, right, you are father. The reason why I believe this entity would help us is due to its documented nature. It has been shown in the past to love pure chaos, and what would be more chaotic than helping you take over the world?

"Sonic would have no way to stop it either, due to it being far more powerful than him. And Sonic can't simply attack something while he's asleep now, can he, Father?"

He nodded along, listening closely before using a virtual glove he made to be able to pat Sage on the head softly, and then sat back down, carefully reading all the information Sage had brought up.

"Correct, you are Sage; that hedgehog would stand no chance of something he can't even interact with. I shall begin preparations. I see this 'god' has some ties to the chaos emeralds. 

So perhaps I can build a new robot, one that can harness chaos energy without directly needing the emerald, in order to create the perfect host for our friend to take possession of, and with us working together, friends can finally win! I'll need to be careful though and build in some safety features so I can control the robot once our friend takes it's new body."

"Though I shouldn't make the controls too obvious, otherwise strike this 'god's ire."

With a few clicks on the screen, a few images and historical documents showed up, revealing something quite interesting to the doctor himself.

A strange golden arch was under the site where Angel Island once stood, back when it was just a normal land mass.

"How in sweet mother Gaia did I ever miss such a thing during my many trips to Angel Island?"

He zoomed in on the photos, inspecting them closely, and wrote a few things down on his notepad. Not much information seems to be known about this historical sight, but a few tablets were recovered from the sight itself, written in a language similar to the ancients themselves but different.

All Eggman could gather from the rough translations he could figure out was one word: 'Zepperaith'. He would need to travel to the historical site, inspect this golden arch up close, and figure out its secrets.

"Zepperaith... I will unleash you upon this land, and SONIC THE HEDGEHOG WILL BE GONE FOREVER!"

Dr. Eggman began to laugh loudly, with Sage joining him quietly, with a new plan in mind. Perhaps this will be Sonic's downfall once and for all.

[dailyunsolvedmysteries]

What happened to Christine Walters?

Christine Walters, a 23 year old botany and ethnobotany student at the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point, set out for a trip to Portland, Oregon to visit a friend during the summer of 2008. She wouldn’t return home to Wisconsin, and in fact, would never be found. Christine, along with 4 other missing women that have been labeled “The Humboldt Five,” would vanish in California’s Emerald Triangle: an area in the northern part of the state famous for growing marijuana.

What was originally supposed to be a two week trip to Oregon turned into a more permanent move for Christine, who decided to take a leave from her studies at the University of Wisconsin and remain on the west coast. She moved to Humboldt County, CA in September 2008. There is very little information about Christine’s life in California; however, her mother and other friends and family in Wisconsin reported that her calls became less frequent, and being without consistent work, she would often ask for money. Her mother reported a series of concerning phone calls in the months leading up to her disappearance, and her requests to return home to Wisconsin were returned with “I’m not ready yet.”

Christine had a genuine love and admiration for the natural world and California’s landscape. Having taught yoga and Pilates in Wisconsin, Christine’s passion for the environment and living naturally would also bring her to the Green Life Evolution Center. Now defunct, the center was known for its environmentalism and promotion of living a natural, vegan life. On November 7th, Christine would attend a “tea ceremony” or “cleansing ceremony” sponsored by the Center. A private investigator later hired by the family learned that Christine and others at the ceremony had ingested ayahuasca, a South American psychoactive. Known for its potential to invite "spiritual revelations," negative physical side effects can include nausea, tremors, and vomiting.

Four days later, on November 11th, Christine appears naked and disoriented on a couple’s porch in rural Arcata, CA. While Christine has scratches all over her body and is severely dehydrated, she also appears extremely paranoid and confused. From this point forward, eyewitness accounts remark on Christine’s unusual behavior. Unfortunately, it is unclear if Christine’s paranoia began directly following the tea ceremony, or had been developing over several weeks or months.

The couple calls the police and Christine is taken to a nearby hospital where she becomes evasive and refuses to answer questions about her injuries. Instead, she reports that she has “walked a long way” and that “demons … were trying to get her.” She is released and taken to the Red Lion Inn, where she calls her mother several times and repeats the same concerns about being followed.

On November 14th, Christine is seen for the last time while visiting a copy center. Having lost her ID, her mother faxes relevant documents to the copy center for Christine. It’s her mother’s hope that she will be able to book a flight home once she has acquired a new ID. It’s also reported by some sources that her father wires her $1,000.00 at this point, which remains untouched in her bank account. At the copy center, Christine appears disheveled and acts paranoid; she repeatedly looks over her shoulders, and asks for directions to a DMV approximately one mile from the copy center. She is never seen nor heard from again, and is reported missing by her family on November 17th, 2008.

Later, Christine’s missing backpack – with her identification and cash – is located at Green Life Evolution.

If you know anything about the disappearance of Christine Walters, please contact the Eureka Police Department at (707) 441-4060 or the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office at (707) 445-7251.

[the-roo-too]

akiyama cocona x reader; idol au

warnings: the japanese part is copy pasted from deepl so it might be wrong lol

for quite a while now, you’ve had the pleasure of occasionally mc’ing on music bank with sullyoon. it was certainly an amazing experience, especially because you got along with the older girl so well.

you’re known as aespa’s youngest and you are one of the foreign members- an ’american’. you trained with yunjin (the american duo!), but you stayed to debut in the group when she left sm. you can safely say you’re both still besties, after all those years.

you just sat down in your chair, letting your stylist do her work with you, when sullyoon walked through the doors.

“yoona unnie!” you smiled at her happily. she waved at you softly, taking the unoccupied seat next to yours.

“are you excited, y/n-ah?” she cracked a smile when noticing how happy you looked. “i think it’s the first time we’ll be hosting xg, yes?”

“xg?” you hummed in thought, trying to look back at all the groups you hosted with the older girl. “i think i haven’t seen them ever.. what about you, unnie?”

“likewise. although i seem to remember kyujin mentioning something about them. i did listen to a couple songs though and i think they’re good!”

“really? i have to admit i only know left right because ning unnie was obsessed when it came out some time ago…” you laughed sheepishly. yoona smiled and rolled her eyes playfully.

she took out her phone and opened youtube. “let’s listen to the new songs then… they’ll be performing puppet show today i believe. would you like to watch the music video, y/n-ah?”

you denied her question with a soft shake of your head. “i’m good, unnie. i’ll have a surprise when i see them for the first time!”

sullyoon laughed along and played the song, letting stylist finish her work as you two were on in 10 minutes.

when the group walked to you and sullyoon to get their introduction filmed, you thought your heart would burst out of your chest.

for a brief second, you locked eyes with one of xg’s members and you had to physically stop yourself from squealing. the mere second felt like the greatest moment of your life.

sensing your state, sullyoon leaned to whisper in your ear. “are you okay, yn-ah? we’re starting in a minute.”

“i’m okay, unnie! j-just-“ you felt your cheeks heating up, and you could only hope your makeup would hide the redness.

“okay, everyone get into position!” the director yelled from behind the camera and you instinctively straightened your back.

sullyoon gave you a small, playful wink, before she started the introduction.

“gigi unnie!” you yelled, running into the dorms out of breath. during the whole transmission you were a little out of it and when you finally finished, you drove back to your group as fast as you could.

“what?” giselle peaked out from behind the counter where she seemed to be stirring herself some food.

“unnie!” you ran up to her and you had to lean on the table to catch your breath.

aeri giggled at your state and patted your head gently. “what’s up, y/nie? how was music bank with yoona?”

“good. great! not important. unnie, you speak japanese right?”

giselle stopped laughing and looked at you like you’ve grown a second head. “y/n, i am japanese.”

“perfect. hear me out, you know xg?”

“i think ning was obsessing over one of their songs a couple months ago… why?” she squinted at you when she noticed your eyes shining brightly in excitement. “what are you planning now?”

“so i was mc’ing with sullyoon unnie and theprettygirlscameandtheywereallprettybutilookedoneofthemintheeyesandshewassoprettyomgandshedidntspeakmuchonlyinjapaneseand-!”

“woah!” she interrupted your rant. “i don’t speak gibberish, y/nnie. can you repeats that, slower?”

“i was mc’ing! and xg came and omg!! and i caught eye contact with that pretty one and, and when we were recording she didn’t talk much, only in japanese! so i think she doesn’t speak korean or english all that much, and i don’t know japanese!”

“…and? you need me to teach you another language?”

“no! i need you to talk with her and set us up!” you made puppy eyes at the japanese member and pouted. “please?? pretty please??? with a cherry on top??”

giselle rolled her eyes halfheartedly but nodded her head. “whatever, i’ll talk to this girl i guess what’s her name?”

“what?”

“…y/n, the girls name? how am i supposed to talk to her?”

all colour drained from your face and aeri couldn’t hold herself from laughing. it turned out you had another barrier to overcome besides language.

what can’t you do with a little bit of browsing through the internet, right? kprofiles may not be the greatest source of information but when you just needed to put a name to a face, it was enough.

then, your plan was in action. back when you and yunjin were sm trainees, she was rooming with winter chaehyun. digging more through the web (you might’ve at this point became one of the stan accounts with the research you’d done on twitter), you found one of kep1er’s members was training with the xg girls at some point.

she had to have the girls number, or any sort of contact for that matter.

you just had to bug yunjin into giving you chaehyun’s number and then somehow get her to give you the girl’s contact info without sounding creepy… simple enough, right?

yeah, not really.

you were now one step closer to getting the girls number. you were now one step closer to getting the girls number. getting a girl’s contact info from another girl whom you didn’t know was totally normal and not suspicious.

totally.

giselle couldn’t stop laughing when you presented her all the information you acquired, and the things you had to do in order to complete your task.

“can’t believe you harassed a stranger to get this cocona’s number.” she chucked before typing the contact info into her phone.

you stood there, looking at her expectantly, making her quirk her brow. “what?”

“aren’t you going to call her, unnie?”

“no? i’m going to introduce myself and hope she doesn’t think it’s creepy.” seeing as she had a fair point, you deflated a little, a pout tugging at your lips.

“i hope she doesn’t think i’m creepy… i just think she’s very pretty…”

giselle’s gaze softened slightly at your words and she smiled at you. “i’m sure it’ll be fine… although i would find you creepy if you did that to me.”

“yah! unnie!”

“i’m joking! …no i’m not.”

clearly the gay gods were on your side because the pretty girl agreed to go out with you! (giselle couldn’t stop laughing when she said that, but you ignored her)

now, you were bugging your poor roommate winter with helping you choose a perfect outfit for the date. (no one else thinks it’s a date but they’re just haters.)

“for the third time, the blue sweater is fine, y/n.” the older girl rolled her eyes at your distressed state.

“you don’t understand, unnie! i need it to be perfect, not just fine!”

“y/n.” winter stood up to face you with a blank face. “i don’t think you can scare her off with clothes more than you already did with the stunt you pulled.”

“i did it for love!”

“y/n i am appointing you into a mental hospital.” she sat back down, going to scroll through tik tok. “i’ll get ning there while i’m at it.”

“you’re no help, unnie!” you huffed, glancing down a the pile of clothes spread on your floor. this was far more stressful than it should be.

“…the black pants will look nice with the sweater.” you heard winter mumble.

smiling brightly, you put on the outfit and threw yourself on the older girl, making her yelp. “yah!”

“thank you, unnie! you’re the best!”

“i know i am. now go away, i’m resting.”

you giggled softly at her, hugging her one last time before you left your shared room. you ran towards the doors, seeing giselle and karina chilling by tv.

“oh, good luck on your outing with cocona, y/nnie!” aeri yelled at you, gaining jimin’s attention.

“cocona? isn’t that the xg member?”

“yes! we’re having a date!” you replied proudly and karina would’ve bursted out there and then if it wasn’t for the japanese to hold her back.

“WHAT?”

“i mean, i haven’t told her it’s a date-“

“WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON THAT GIRL-“

“RUN, Y/N!”

cocona was supposed to be waiting for you at a nearby park, which would be hopefully empty at this hour.

from far away, you saw a figure standing there in a cosy hoodie. you ran up there, hoping it was the girl of your dreams.

“こんにちは！” you yelled out shyly in whatever broken japanese you could muster up and bowed to the girl. “私は y/n l/nです-“

“it’s cute that you got your japanese member to talk to me…” cocona spoke in english, shocking you visibly. “but i know my english quite well.”

she smiled at you and you couldn’t help but hide your face in your hands in embarrassment. all that for you to find out she can speak english…

“hey, don’t be embarrassed, cutie!” she laughed softly and wrapped her arms around you in a gentle hug. “i told you, i think it was cute.”

“…really?”

she nodded again and you smiled back at her.

“so.. how about that date?” she asked after a while. you couldn’t help but blush at the suggestion, nodding your head quickly.

“i-i would like to formally take you out on a date, cocona!”

“sure. only if i can pay tho.”

“hey!”

“don’t fight me on that. im paying you back for this whole situation~” she smirked cheekily and you had a feeling she wouldn’t forget that for quite a while.

but you didn’t really mind. if embarrassing yourself a little scored you a chance with a pretty girl, then so be it.

cocona took your hand gently in hers and started walking with you through the park. her eyes were shining as she looked at you with that soft smile on her face.

you knew this would blossom into something more. all of this, it was now worth it.

[kpoploverfrevr]

SM Entertainment Accused Of Taking Away Red Velvet Irene’s Music Show Win

Red Velvet Irene’s solo debut has been a commercial hit since its release last month, but one accolade “Like a Flower” has missed out on so far is a music show win — and fans say SM Entertainment is to blame.

From the moment Irene’s debut mini-album, Like a Flower, was released, it’s been racking up album sales achievements. In its first day alone, the record sold over 250,000 copies, achieving the seventh-highest first-day sales for a female K-Pop soloist on the Hanteo chart. With just one day of tracking, Irene also recorded the highest first-week sales for an SM Entertainment female soloist.

Naturally, with such accomplishments in hand, fans had high expectations for Irene to become the first Red Velvet member to achieve a win on a music show. In particular, ReVeluvs worldwide went full force with their efforts on KBS’s Music Bank. After an intense period of voting, fans even managed to break the app All Chart’s record for the highest vote total of all time at 983,504, giving her the number one spot in the pre-vote.

However, despite fans’ tireless efforts, when Music Bank aired on November 6, Irene was not nominated at all. Although she received the maximum score of 2,000 for the pre-vote, her final total was 5,768, putting her in third place on Music Bank’s ‘K-Chart.’

The reason? A discrepancy in her album sales, which fans are calling “sabotage.”

The root of the issue lies in the difference between the Hanteo chart and the chart Music Bank uses for its tally: Circle. In a nutshell, Hanteo counts retail sales, tracking albums purchased by customers both offline and online. Circle Chart, on the other hand, records the number of albums shipped to retailers, before they’re even sold to individual customers.

As such, Circle Chart figures are usually higher than Hanteo, as they include stock that has been distributed to stores but not yet sold. However, in a shocking turn of events, Circle reported that Irene had only sold 164,802 copies across all versions by the end of the music show tracking week on Sunday — a striking difference from Hanteo’s figure of 288,911.

This meant that more than 120,000 sold albums were missing from Irene’s sales figures. In contrast, the two groups nominated for the win (WayV and TWS) had approximately 8,000 and 31,000 more sales on Circle than on Hanteo respectively. In the end, this meant that Irene was allocated just 914 points for physical album sales on Music Bank.

Had her Circle sales figure matched her Hanteo sales, Irene would have scored around 1,600 points in the physical sales category: enough to push her final points to over 6,400. This would have placed her above the eventual winner, WayV, whose total was 6,354 points, giving her the win

Naturally, the gap between what could have been and what happened left fans furious at SM Entertainment. Across social media, ReVeluvs accused the company of failing to support Irene’s solo debut properly, or even intentionally sabotaging it.

Questions arose about why her Circle chart sales were so low, with theories ranging from delayed album shipments to errors in reporting figures. Many pointed out the stark contrast between Irene’s case and that of WayV, whose sales were accurately reflected on Circle despite both artists being under SM Entertainment with albums distributed by Kakao Entertainment.

Irene’s visible dedication to her debut only added to the heartbreak. The star had been working on the album for several months, including in the midst of the group’s Asia fan concert tour. In a recent vlog with fellow member Seulgi, fans also noticed dark bruises on Irene’s legs, making the agency’s lack of support even harder to accept.

Now, fans are calling for SM Entertainment to explain and apologize for what happened.

[gatekeeper-watchman]

Should Christians Prepare for a Global Monetary Crash?

Is Bitcoin Real Money? What about Gold and Silver?

A Looming Global Monetary Crash Coming Soon?

All the top financial experts are predicting a soon coming global stock market crash that will include bank closures, as they see a total collapse in the entire financial system that could result in a change to the entire monetary system of America. They see this crash happening not only the USA, but one that will affect the entire world. The root cause of this crash is attributed to the printing of trillions of dollars of paper money that will result in deflation of the dollar which will lead to a depression world-wide, since most of the nations are all doing the same thing. (I will address more about this below.)  The majority of well-known financial experts all agree about the crash coming, they just do not know when it will happen. Most think it is imminent.  Where they disagree, is in their approach as to what we should do about it.

Many financial speculators are giving financial advice and telling people to protect their life savings and move their cash to Bitcoin or silver and gold or real estate or hard assets. Is all their advice scriptural? Is some of it good?  There is talk of governments moving to a cashless society and using crypto and/or digital currencies. What is real money?  What are crypto currencies? Is Bitcoin a safe investment?  How will these things affect us? Will there be inflation and a depression?  Is there something we can do to protect our life savings? As Christians, who can we trust? Should Christians even be involved in this discussion? When will this happen? Is the new administration making plans to change our entire financial system? I will attempt to answer some of these questions in this article by sharing my personal opinions after some research and study and scriptural advice from the Word of God. The most important thing will be our faith in God to sustain and protect us and lead us in these matters.

What are Christian Leaders Saying about a Stock Market Crash?

News about a crash is not just coming from secular people and financial advisors and experts, but many Christian leaders are voicing their concerns as well. Some Prophets of God are prophesying this crash, as well. One major prophetic voice, the late David Wilkerson, has been predicting a great depression for years.  He wrote a book entitled, “God’s Plan to Protect His People in the Coming Depression.”  The last time I checked, this book was out of print and there were only a few copies for sale on the Internet and they were going for over $100.00 each. Here are two quotes from David from this book:

“One third of the world is now suffering economic depression! No one will ever convince me that America can avoid a full-blown depression. In fact, I believe it has already begun.  Soon the financial bubble will burst and we are going to be shocked by the blindness and ignorance of our leaders and financial experts. They have no idea of the severity and suddenness of the coming storm. Soon the cry will be: Was there nobody in charge? How did this happen?”

“Those, who right now, are setting their hearts to seek God with all their being and are saturating their hearts and minds with the Word of God are better prepared for the coming storm than anyone. They are safer and more protected than those in the world who have made all kinds of physical preparation. The only trustworthy preparations are those for the heart, not the body. This is where all preparations must begin. However, a servant of God loses nothing by storing a supply of food. If chaotic conditions are indeed ahead, our food supply will allow us to be prepared just as Joseph in the Bible was. You may ask, what if no such crisis comes to pass? The answer is simple: We can simply use the food later or, better yet, give it away to needy families, to God’s glory.”

Both camps (secular and spiritual) are predicting a crash with a depression, but they just give their own opinions and advice as to what they believe you should do about it.  Some are investing in gold and silver and others real estate. Some are listening to the speculators and are moving their funds to Bitcoin which is considered very risky by most investors.  Some are investing in food reserves, hard assets, etc.  I am not a financial advisor but feel led to share with you a lot of the information that I am hearing about on the news and the Internet. I want you to be aware of these dire predictions, so you can pray and ask God if you need to do anything. As a Christian, the first thing I do is to pray about things and take my questions to the Lord and look to the Word of God to answer them.

Bitcoin and the Stock Market

Since there is so much in the news about Bitcoin right now and I did not feel good about it, I started praying and asking God about the subject, along with doing some research.  I wanted an answer from God, as I have friends invested in this and some have asked me what I thought about it.  (Just for the record, I do not own any Bitcoin stock or any other stock for that matter.) I am not against people investing in the stock market if they are led of the Lord to do so, but since the stock market and Wall Street promote so much lust and greed it is wise to seek God when handling things in the world.

Here is an excerpt from a previous article I penned a number of years ago on this subject:

“What the Bible Says about the Stock Market”

The Bible actually does not say anything specifically about the Stock Market. However, it is full of principles that directly affect any kind of investing. The basic principle of the stock market is not wrong if it is followed properly.  What is that principle? When a man or a group of men have a good and righteous business or company that benefits humanity; yet they lack funding to make that business productive, it creates a need for another’s help. If another man or a group of men (investors) have surplus funds and could use the monies as additional or future support, it also creates a need for another’s help. When the one group physically does the work and the other supports that work with his funds, it becomes mutually beneficial for both parties. However, today, many people invest without any research in the company they are investing in. They do not know if the company policies are based on good Biblical principles. They know nothing as to how their employees are treated. They know nothing of the history of the company. They do not know the character of the ones running the business; whether they are honest, reliable or trustworthy, etc. They know nothing of their alliances (do they support or promote unholy causes such as pornography, abortion, etc.). Sad to say, but most of the stock market is run by lust and greed, instead of wise investment and helping one another.

Bitcoin versus Cash Money

Now this brings me to the subject of should one take his cash out the bank and invest in Bitcoin? People should remember their savings accounts in banks are insured by the FDIC, while there is no insurance in Bitcoin. It is a speculative investment with risk. However, before this answer can be fully considered, we need to get a definition of what is Bitcoin and what is money?  Let’s begin with defining what Bitcoin is since people investing in Bitcoin believe they are exchanging their cash money for another form of money called Bitcoin. Then, we will look at the definition of money.

Bitcoin and Crypto Currencies

Below is the Definition of Bitcoin posted on the Internet

Decentralized cryptocurrency

Bitcoin (₿) is a cryptocurrency invented in 2008 by an unknown person or group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto and Martti Malmi and are said to be the creators of Bitcoin. The currency began use in 2009 when its implementation was released as open-source software. Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency, without a central bank or single administrator that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries. Transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockchain.

Because some people have asked me what I thought about Bitcoin.  Here are my deductions (I first must state that I am not a monetary counselor, but have read and studied what God says about money and finances in the scripture.) People have already have made and lost money with their Bitcoin investments, just as those who have invested in other speculative stocks.

What is Bitcoin?

From my research here is my definition of Bitcoin. First of all, it is not a literal coin. It is being sold and used online as a crypto currency. However, it is not considered a currency by some because of its limited use and has even been banned in some nations. Currently it is being used to transfer money between negotiating parties that have the application (App) from Bitcoin that allows trades.  In its current state, it cannot be used in a traditional way that money is used, as most businesses do not take it as cash or money.  It uses “Blockchain technology which is a specific database that stores information in blocks that are chained together. Primarily the most common use so far has been as a ledger for transactions which Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are using. Blockchain technology, in itself, is being used by a number of businesses in processing their transactions so Blockchain is a useful tool for secure monetary digital transactions. The technology itself can be useful for online business transactions, so I am not talking about block chain in this article but rather, Bitcoin cryptocurrency itself (although it uses block chain technology.)

I copied this definition of Bitcoin from the Internet at http://factmyth.com/factoids/bitcoin-is-an-actual-coin/

“Bitcoin isn’t a literal coin; it’s a list of transactions recorded on a shared digital public ledger called a “block chain”. All “coins” are stored in digital bitcoin “wallets” and can be verified against the ledger. Verifying transactions is done using cryptography in a process known as “bitcoin mining”. Bitcoin is set to allow one block to be added to the chain every ten minutes by miners. When transactions are added, new coins are created and paid to miners. This process helps control the rate at which new currency is introduced to the bitcoin economy and helps protect against fraud.

What is Fiat Money?

Now my questions arise as to how this money was created in the beginning as I simply could not understand Bitcoin from the videos I watched and how it is still being created today.  If it is along the lines that our government creates our current fiat money by using printing presses to print it out of thin air, then Bitcoin would fall into the same category that our government is doing, which is, in my opinion, creating counterfeit money. Why do I say this?  Because all paper money that has no gold or asset backing is simply what we call “fiat money.”  Fiat money refers to any currency lacking intrinsic value that is declared legal tender by a government. As valid currency solely by virtue of a government declaration, fiat money, is not backed by any commodity, such as gold, but only by the faith of the bearer. The only thing that gives worth to our paper money is the confidence that the people have in it.  If, through inflation or other means, it loses its value it will no longer be worth anything. It is currency that is not based on intrinsic money that should be created by labor.  I will now have to give a definition of what true money should be.

Definition of Real Money

It helps to understand the properties and functions of money.

The item serves as a medium of exchange. In order for an item to be considered money, it must be widely accepted as payment for goods and services.

The item serves as a unit of account. In order for an item to be considered money, it must be the unit that prices, bank balances, etc. are reported in.

The item serves as a store of value. In order for an item to be considered money, it has to (to a reasonable degree) hold its purchasing power over time.

As these properties suggest, money was introduced to societies as a means of making economic transactions simpler and more efficient, and it mostly succeeds in that regard. In some situations, items other than officially designated currency have been used as money in various economies. In biblical times, coins of silver and gold were used as that medium so the oldest medium used for the longest length of time has been gold and silver; therefore, silver and gold fit this definition. My question does Bitcoin fit this description?  Bitcoin only has a short history.  Will it be accepted or rejected by the majority of the public as a new medium of exchange?   Bitcoin is not a proven form of currency, like gold or silver which has been established as a form of money since Bible days.

Here is a list of reasons I am having issues with accepting Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as a means of monetary exchange:

Bitcoin…

Is Not Real Money: In my opinion, Bitcoin is not real money, but rather a digitized form of money, as true money (a means of exchange) is something you can hold in your hand. i.e.: gold and silver coins or paper money backed by gold. Of course, our money in the United States today is no longer backed by gold, so it is not real money either. (The government removed the gold backing policy during President Nixon’s presidency. It is now called fiat money, but is considered legal tender by the US government and accepted by the general public.)

Is a Crypto Currency Investment with Risk: Bitcoin is traded on centralized and decentralized crypto exchanges. Investing or trading Bitcoin only requires an account on an exchange, though they have nearly the same level of features as their stock brokerage counterparts.  Bitcoin being an investment is similar to stock investments with the potential risk of losing your investment.  That being said, I would not want to invest in something unless I thoroughly understood it and knew the background of the people and technicians who developed it. With every stock investment, a person should investigate and vet the owners as to their integrity and company management guidelines and policies. Sadly, most stock purchases are more speculative and more like gambling than investing. (See my article on “What Does the Bible Say about the Stock Market?”)

I learned something from a book I read years ago entitled, “Business by the Book” written by Larry Burkett. He cautioned people not to invest money into something they did not understand, no matter how excited the seller or others might be about it.  Here is a quote from that book: Get-rich-quick thinking leads to three basic errors: (1) Getting involved with things you cannot understand; (2) Risking funds you cannot afford to lose, that is, borrowed funds, and (3) Making hasty decisions. Each of these actions violates one or more biblical principles…Together they constitute a sin called greed.”  Larry Burkett with Christian Financial Concepts.

This information saved Bud and me from putting money into questionable things over the years. Now in regard to Bitcoin, I did some research by reading and watching videos so I could understand how it operates.  Even though I do have quite a bit of IT understanding and a computer background now, I still have only a partial understanding of Bitcoin. I have researched Bitcoin thoroughly, I just do not have the technical knowledge to fully understand how it operates. Here is a link I found that has a 5-minute video explaining how Bitcoin works.  If you understand it after watching it, then I would appreciate you writing me with an explanation in lay terms to help me understand it.

Explanation of Bitcoin in a 5-minute video

Has a Record of a Short History: Bitcoin (and other crypto currencies) only have a short history or record that is available for valuation, while gold and silver have been proven as a medium of exchange and used in most cultures down through the centuries.

Comes with Loss of Privacy with Monetary Transparency Revealed to Others: With Bitcoin you also have reduced privacy with every transaction as they can be tracked and are transparent to others in the Network. This creates a loss of your financial privacy. Do we really want others to have the ability to see our personal spending records?

Requires Dependency on 4 Things: To use Bitcoin which is a “digital currency” or “crypto currency” you must have four things to make it work. These are a computer or cell phone, electricity, the software and technology and system it functions on, plus faith in the tech giants that operate and manage it. It will not work without all these things in place. How will the poor of the world be able to use it? (Perhaps governments will take care of the poor in a meager way in exchange for their votes?) What happens if you need funds and the electricity or internet is not functioning? What if there is not a cell tower in your area? What if their servers crash with all of your transaction records on it? Who manages the backups? How long will it take to recover your records?

Requires Faith and Trust in the System Managers: It is a peer-to-peer technology system that was created by IT gurus, so we must be able to trust them that they know what they are doing. They claim that Bitcoin is operated by a network and do not name an individual or individuals who now manage the system, but claim all members are managers. My question is who is head of all the members? (I have my doubts about turning my money over to a network (networks are made up of people and who are these people?). Should we trust our money to them? Are they trust worthy? They would have to be people with technology backgrounds who really understand it. .  We are seeing what other tech companies are currently doing, in that they are making the decisions as to who can use their systems and who cannot use them. Will they decide to cancel people in the future? Remember we are seeing tech giants using the “Cancel Culture” to determine who will and who will not be allowed to use their systems.) Who is really at the root of Bitcoin and the group of people who are operating the entire system?  It cannot just be a nebulous “network” run by every member. That is my question. Maybe I just do not understand such a complicated system.  I read some advice years ago, about investing and what it said was, “If you do not understand it, do not invest in it.”

Is Mostly Available to the Very Rich: At the present Bitcoin is used more for national and global trading and not available for wide spread local purchases, so it is limited to the very rich and not the ordinary person.

Is Still More Like a Speculative Stock Investment: I do know people have and will make money investing in Bitcoin to some degree; however, as with any speculative stock, no one knows when to get in and when to get out and those that are investing large amounts of their savings could very well lose it all, as some have already lost large amounts of money in Bitcoin when it nosedived in the past. Bitcoin at the present moment is not regulated by the government (although it could be in time). This being true many feels like some criminal elements are using it to launder money online and that is one reason the government has its eyes on it.

Is Being Touted as a Safe Haven for Savings as Fear of a Crash Looms Over the World: The reason Bitcoin is even being considered right now, is people are getting afraid they may lose their money, because they realize that the banks could fail and we could have an enormous stock market crash any time, so they are looking for places to put their life savings. Many are in their 401(K) Savings Plans. Some financial advisors are telling people that Bitcoin is the place to put those funds. However, better advice would be to leave their funds intact in their 401(K) or IRA plans and just change their stock investments into the purchase of gold and silver. Financial advisors can help people switch to investments in gold instead of stocks in their 401(K) s if they are concerned about a stock market crash. The main thing is that you must hear from God what you are to do personally.  I am not a financial advisor. I am just sharing information with you.

Wrong Financial Advice Can Generate Fear: Fear should never motivate a Christian. We need to ask God for His Wisdom regarding the future. Since most people think that the stock market is “the only game in town” for investments, they do not know what to do with their money. This is the time we need God to guide us. There are other investments such as using funds to get totally out of debt, paying off your home, purchasing real estate in the country, purchasing gold and silver, purchasing hard assets, food stores, tools and equipment and things people will need in the future, investing in helping people, helping the poor, investing in helping others establish small businesses outside of the stock market and investing in the Kingdom of God. If we commit all to God, He will guide us in what we need to do with our money.

Has Money Ever Failed in a Society in the Bible?

Yes, there is a record of money failing in a society in the Bible.  You can read the story in Genesis Chapter 47.

Genesis 47:15  “And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.”

There was a famine in the land during the time that this happened.  However, God had raised up a man named Joseph who was the Pharaoh’s right-hand man and he had wisdom from God and had stored up food for hard times for the people of the land, since he was given knowledge from God that the famine was coming and how long it would be. Today, there are Prophets and people of God that are telling people there will be food shortages and they should store up food now while we have a window of time to do so.  In the coming days food could be more valuable than gold or money.

Yes, God will take care of His children no matter what happens, but perhaps He wants to help us prepare ahead of time, so we will not be a victim of what the devil is planning and it will be easier for us than those who do not prepare or plan ahead. Preparing in advance is one way God protects us.

China has implemented a crypto currency in some of their cities, but it comes with the cost of the total loss of financial privacy and government control. The same plans are in the making for our country. China, being a communist country, has always restricted freedom, so it was easy for their government to manipulate the masses there, in order to implement this new monetary system. However, we are a free nation and it will be harder for the government here to deceive the masses, but people are vulnerable when it comes to the need for money and food.  There are a number of Christian business people in our nation who are aware of these plans and are positioning themselves not to become a part of it.  There are also a number of moral people who feel the same way as they have a common-sense approach. As Christians, we have an advantage because we have access to the “mind of Christ” so we should pray for this, regarding our finances. Just beware of Satan s lackeys in office.

If you are concerned about inflation and your investments, I would encourage you to do your homework in researching some good videos that will enlighten you to some of the things that are going on right now. Ask God to lead you to the videos and books that reveal God’s financial strategies regarding protecting your savings and investments. While the systems of the world will be crashing, God will be establishing His Word in the earth and raising up His system. He will speak to you what you need to do. Since Bud’s passing to heaven, I have had the time to pray more and review and research a number of YouTube videos and sermons. The Lord has led me to some very revealing things that are going on right now in financial circles that need immediate prayer. Many other things are happening as well, that confirm we are in those perilous times mentioned in the Bible. We are definitely in the time of the end right before Jesus comes to this earth again.  But remember that day comes after a period of great tribulation according to Matthew 24.

2 Timothy 3:1-5:

1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.   2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,  4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;  5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

YouTube Interviews Warning of the Coming Collapse

We need to check the stability of our banks and insurance companies, as many of these are currently failing at this time. Perhaps the Lord will lead you to transfer your funds to a more stable bank? Many financial planners are telling people to get out of the system since the Feds have a Master Plan regarding the soon collapse of the monetary system which will cause many people to lose their entire savings (or a big portion of them). The government then wants to lead the masses into surrendering the control of their money to them. 

This explains why the central bank is getting prepared because they expect to lose control of inflation soon. Many banks are investing in gold as they fear the dollar is going to lose its value. This new system will enable the Fed to control money directly and give them absolute control of their policies. This coming monetary scheme will be the fuel that starts the hyperinflation fire since we are a consumer-driven economy. They want us to spend and consume and not save and to keep going into debt for things. Getting out of debt is the wisest thing we can do at this time. There are many ministries that can help God’s people get out of debt including a plan for getting your mortgage completely paid off so you are debt free and owe no man anything.

Also, if you want an understanding of why the nation (and the world) is on the brink of a total financial collapse there are many videos on You Tube that explain our fiat banking system.  Basically, God is shaking everything that is not built on His Word and our biggest problem financially is that we, as a nation, are headed for bankruptcy without a divine intervention from God. It is because of the enormous amount of debt we have with no way to pay off. Simply put, the outgo is more than the income. Record-high government debt is projected to hit $33 TRILLION by 2030.  This is impossible to sustain in the natural. Only God can save us. He is waiting on us to individually and corporately repent of our sins so He can show us the way out of destruction.

Banks have collapsed before and what happened in Greece is an example of what could happen to depositors where it to happen again. For the sake of brevity, during the years of 2009 to 2016 Greece faced a national bank crisis which led to it facing a total bank collapse. Greek voters said “no” to austerity measures (cutting back on spending), so instability created a run on the banks. Greece sustained extensive economic damage during the two weeks surrounding the vote. Banks closed and restricted ATM withdrawals to 60 euros per day. They were not allowed to withdraw their money from their checking and savings accounts. Their withdrawals were suspended.  Instead, the bank proposed they would give them only a portion of their deposited monies and would give them bank stock for the rest of their funds in order to keep the bank from going totally bankrupt.  The people had to accept this deal or they would have not received any of their money at all.  Could this happen in the United States? We certainly need to pray and ask God what we should do with our money. FDIC does not have the funds to bail everyone out, only those that are first in line will be helped. You can research this on the Internet and will find this to be true.

“The Fall of a Democracy” Quote

Quote below by Alexander Fraser Tytler, Lord Woodhouselee who was a Scottish advocate, judge, writer and historian who served as Professor of Universal History, and Greek and Roman Antiquities at the University of Edinburgh

“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years. Great nations rise and fall. The people go from bondage to spiritual truth, to great courage, from courage to liberty, from liberty to abundance, from abundance to selfishness, from selfishness to complacency, from complacency to apathy, from apathy to dependence, from dependence back again to bondage.”

The government and corporate greed and lust, with no restraint, has led us to this place. It is only a matter of “when this will happen,” not “if it will happen.”  Our government has broken all the biblical financial laws, especially in the area of debt, so this federal system can no longer stand. If we personally break those same financial laws, we too will fail financially.  Our individual debt can also bring destruction on our nation. Debt is not sinful, but failing to repay our debts is. We can sin by not obeying God with our money. If you are having financial difficulties, there is a check list on this page as to what you may not be doing regarding your finances.

One major financial sin Christians are committing is their failure to tithe and give to the works of God.  Sin has led us to this place and only repentance will save us. However, God has a remnant of people who are hearing His voice and God will save them as He did Noah and his family in the time of the flood that swept away that violent society. (Genesis 6 & 7). Right now, the devil is trying to set up people for the future “mark of the beast.”  Things are now unfolding rapidly that were predicted in the Bible thousands of years ago. Men will be marked in their minds long before they will be marked physically, unless they are putting the Word of God into their hearts and minds.

I have spent the day writing this, as it was urgent on my heart.  I do not know how much time we have before these events begin to unfold, it could be days, weeks or even a year or two. Since God is merciful, He gives us more time to repent and obey Him when we pray and seek Him.  I just know the Lord wants to help us get ready in the natural, as well as get ready in the spirit, as well. Please pray about how the Lord wants you to respond to the information I have shared with you in this article. As I said, I am not a financial counselor, but I have learned and practice what the Bible says about finances so I am not afraid as I know the Lord will not only provide for us in hard times, but will also use His people to help others in the days ahead.  I am thankful that I am completely out of personal debt and so is the ministry. All glory goes to God! He is sending His glory on His people in the days ahead to show Himself as the mighty God Who preserves His people. We are shifting into supernatural guidance and provision for all who are fully committed to the will of God. I am listing some additional links below that you might want to read as well.

        A Warning to Rich Men Who Look to Their Riches Instead of God

James 5:1-8:

1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.  2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. 3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.  4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.  5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.  6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.  7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.  8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

Bottom Line

If none of this applies to you or has spoken to you, my last word on this subject is this.  No amount of money will save any of us in the days ahead. If we are trying to protect our money, without submitting completely to the will of God (being willing to go anywhere, give up anything and do anything He asks of us); then we shall surely lose our worldly possessions. He wants us to trust Him. God is dealing with lust and idolatry in the hearts of His people and He loves us enough to chastise us so we do not end up backsliding or miss our blessings or even end up in hell. Remember the parable of the “Ten Virgins” in Matthew 25. Five of them could not enter into the wedding chamber with Jesus. This chapter also talks about those who hid the Lord’s money and what happened to them.

I guarantee you will be able to hear God once you commit totally to Him.  Bud, my late husband, gave one of his testimonies along those lines.  He said when he first came into the spirit filled walk, he kept hearing people say, “The Lord spoke to me about so and so.” Yet, he said he never heard God say anything to him.  Then when he got down on his knees and totally surrendered to God one night alone in a motel, telling God he would go anywhere and do anything He wanted him to do, even if it meant being a preacher; that is when he heard God audibly speak to him what He wanted him to do. This was before we were married.  The words Bud heard God say to him the next day was, “Buddy, ask Betty to marry you.”

God wants you to hear from Him regarding all things, so I encourage you to surrender totally and unconditionally to Him today.  He wants to make you into His image and cause you to overcome all things that are hindering your walk with Him.

For those who are overcomers and make up His bride, He has great things in store for them. One of those is that He wants to make us ruler over all of our goods according to Matthew 24:42-47:

42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.  43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.  44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the son of man cometh. 45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?  46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.  47 Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods. Good Morning World 11/12/2024 6:15:05 AM Jacksonville, Florida USA From: Steven P. Miller, @ParkermillerQ,   gatekeeperwatchman.org  TM ‎Founder and Administrator of Gatekeeper-Watchman International Groups. #GWIG, #GWIN, #GWINGO. www.facebook.com/gatekeeperwatchnan www.facebook.com/ Instagram: steven_parker_miller_1956

[hoffmansnightmare]

Keep Away From the Edge

Chapter 3

Pairing: Mark Hoffman x Emmy Hodges

Trauma, hint of torture, hint of depression. Nothing too crazy in this one boys.

You can read part one here and part two here

You can also read it here! Keep Away From the Edge

The Media had found her. It was immediate. Emmy went to sleep on Thursday night, then Friday morning reporters with notebooks and camera men at their backs were clambering on her front lawn. Emmy took one look out her bay window, shook her head, then closed the curtain. There was no way. 

She stayed in her house for the rest of the weekend. She ate a lot of ramen noodles, when she could eat. There were still random crying fits, and naps because she wasn’t getting the best sleep at night with the nightmares still haunting her (and the voice, always there at the end). Come Monday they were still there, and Emmy had to go to work. She considered calling in, saying it was a mistake to think she could come back. Then she considered the alternative, staying in this empty house another day, walking from room to room like a ghost trying to find its purpose. 

So she threw on some clothes that had actually been washed and grabbed her car keys. The crowd was on her as soon as she opened the door, cameras in her face, asking her the same question the cops had. Emmy pushed past them, head down, not saying a word. She almost closed the door on one guy's camera and sent him the nastiest glare she could manage when he yelled at her. She pulled out, determined to run anyone over if they were dumb enough to stand in her way. Thankfully no one was. As she drove away one pair caught her eye, maybe it was the shock of red hair, curlier and more orange, unlike Emmy’s deep mahogany red. Or maybe it was the fact that they looked a little shabbier than the others. The camera the man was holding was smaller than the big budget ones the news people had. 

Emmy didn’t dwell on it too long, hitting the gas and getting out of there. They’d probably be there when she got back too. She didn’t even notice the unmarked police car parked down the street from her house as she drove by it.

The office fell deadly quiet as soon as Emmy was through the door. She could feel every set of eyes on her as a physical weight as she made her way to her desk. Almost worse was that the entire thing was covered in flowers, some in vases already while others were gorgeous bouquets. Her throat grew tight. Dead center on her desk was a first edition copy of Misery's Quest, the first in the Misery Chastain series by Paul Sheldon, Emmy's absolute favorite author.

The gifts were beyond thoughtful. Emmy cleared enough of the flowers so that she'd be able to work, but she was interrupted before she could even sit down.

"Welcome back!" It was her boss, a man named Jeremy Henson. He was older than her, although not by much, later 30's or early 40's. Emmy had never asked his age. He approached her now with a sheepish smile on his face. "You were very missed."

"I see that." Emmy looked pointedly at the mass of flowers surrounding her desk. "And this is too much," she said, placing her hand on the book. Her cheeks grew hot with embarrassment. She didn't deserve all this.

"Don't worry, the books from me, and I found it in a thrift place of all things! They had no idea what they had. Trust me I didn't break my bank." Jeremy said with a playful wink. 

Emmy smiled her first genuine smile in what felt like an eternity. He knew she didn't like people spending a lot of money on her. She hoped he was telling the truth about thrifting in. 

"You even kind of look like her." He said, tapping the cover.

Emmy's cheeks grew warm. "Yeah, some of my friends even call me Misery. They like to joke that I only started reading them because I looked like the main character."

Jeremy grinned at her. "And did you?"

"No." Emmy shook her head, but she was still smiling. "I'd liked all of Paul Sheldon's previous stuff, so I just picked it up." She leafed through the pages, breathing in the smell of the pages as it wafted up. "It's just a happy coincidence."

Jeremy nodded, then leaned in so he could whisper. "Are you sure you're alright? I can't imagine what you're going through."

"I'm fine. Really I need to be here. I was going crazy at home with nothing to do." Emmy said, forcing more conviction into her voice than she really felt.

Jeremy looked her up and down, a small frown pulling at the corner of his lips. "Alright, but please, if you need to leave, just go. You have plenty of PTO to use. Don't push yourself."

Emmy smiled again, sinking into her chair. "Thank you for worrying about me, but I'll be fine. I promise."

He finally smiled back at her, then excused himself so that she could actually start working. 

Mark watched Emmory leave for work, stoutly ignoring the press as they clambered for her attention. He ducked down as her car passed his, then he waited a few seconds before starting his car up and following her. He'd been checking in on her all weekend, but it looked like she never left the house. Mark would check in on her in the morning, then at night on his way home. He'd become a regular at Lavender Tavern Syndrome too, stopping to make sure she still hadn't relapsed. He sat for as long as it took to finish one drink, then headed home. 

It wasn't until Monday that she did anything, and Mark assumed she was headed to work. Sure enough he followed her to a gray, unassuming office building. She was part of accounts receivable for some big company. He couldn't remember the name off of the top of his head, but he was pretty sure it was a third party logistics company. It was all in her file, which he'd studied religiously before catching her, but now it was mostly old information he didn't need. Now he was mostly just checking in to see how she was holding up, taking notes for John whenever he returned.

Which should be soon. Mark had found everyone John had asked him to, except for one. Parker Sears was far too elusive. The man knew how to stay hidden, undetectable. He told John he'd have to find another way to get to him. John hadn't seemed too worried about it, the old man had only asked him about Henry.

"Got him nailed down." Mark had told him. "I can get him as soon as you're back."

"Perfect." Was all John had said before hanging up.

Mark didn't bother parking at the office building, driving past it. He didn't need Emmory noticing that he was following her. Hebwanted her to trust him after all. They hadn't spoken since he dropped her off, but Mark thought they'd be seeing eachother soon if Kerry got her way and pulled Emmory into the station for more questioning. That was fine. Kerry wasn't going to get much more out of her than they already had. 

For now he went to the precinct and pretended to do his job. His hands were tied for the most part until John came back. John hadn't asked about Emmory yet, and probably wouldn't until he was done with whatever he had planned. That was fine with Mark. He was perfectly content to keep an eye on her without John and Amanda badgering him in each ear. So far she was doing just fine. Mark found it pretty admirable that she was trying to go about her normal life so soon, just like she was picking up right where she left off, save for the drunk nights out. There was still time for her to relapse. Plenty of it. She was still in the honeymoon phase of having made it out alive. How long until that faded? 

Mark was back on her street that night, waiting for her to come home, around 6 she drove back into her driveway, just to be greeted by the mass of reporters all clambering for her to say something, anything, about her ordeal. Just like this morning she ducked her head and rushed inside. He waited a while longer to see if she left? Then started his car back up and headed home himself when nothing changed.

Wednesday morning John called him to let him know they were on their way back. They'd be home early Thursday morning. Wednesday night Mark was walking up to Emmory's front door. She'd been home for maybe an hour, and the press had just dispersed. Mark wasn't sure what his goal was with this visit, he just found he wanted to see how she was doing up close. He told himself he was only checking in on her so he'd have more to report to John when he inevitably asked about her. In the back of his mind, though, he knew he wanted to talk to her. He had no idea what she was like as a person, only as a test subject.

Emmory opened the door with a deep scowl on her face, probably expecting one of the reporters to have mustered up enough audacity to knock on her door. When she registered it was him her eyebrows turned up in confusion.

"Detective Hoffman?"

"Sorry for the intrusion, Ms. Hodges. I just wanted to check in with you and see how you were doing?" He gave her his most charming smile. One he used to use all the time when he was a beat cop. It wasn't very genuine, and Emmory didn't look impressed. Her eyes were staring into him, almost through him. 

"I'm doing about as well as I can be." It was very much a non-answer. "I don't really have anything else if that's what you're here for."

"No, I simply wanted to make a friendly visit. It's not in the job description, but you survivors are so rare." He widened his smile, showing his teeth. "The department worries. You know?"

She seemed to consider this, then stepped back, turning to the side. "Why don't you come in? I think I have some coffee to make…" 

Mark did just that, stepping past her doorstep like a vampire that had been invited inside. Emmory hurried into the kitchen and started opening up cupboards, eventually finding a tin of coffee. 

Mark ambled his way toward the kitchen, taking in her home as he did. It was modestly furnished, a couch facing a TV with a coffee table in front of it, very standard stuff. Some house plants added color to the space. Or they had at one point. Most had long since started turning brown. What caught his eye the most was a large bookshelf stuffed to the brim with books. On the top shelf, proudly displayed, were the Misery books, all neatly placed in order. Mark dragged his finger along the spine reading Misery's Triumph. He dragged it out carefully to see a woman that looked strikingly like Emmory. It looked like a bodice ripper romance. If the way the heroine was being held by the man on the cover was anything to go by.

"You must really like to read." He called over to Emmory, carefully replacing the book back into its place.

Emmory looked up at him from the coffee machine she'd been fighting. "Oh." Her cheeks colored a rosy pink. "Yeah. I'm a big Paul Sheldon fan."

Mark took in the other books and saw that not only did Paul Sheldon write the Misery books, but he probably had written half of Emmory's collection. "The guy writes a lot."

The sound of the coffee maker actually starting almost drowned her next words out. "Well he really started writing more after he went through this horrible incident."

Mark moved to join Emmory in the kitchen. She looked normal, not exactly happy, but keeping herself together. It could all be internal of course, but most of her bandages were off, the many smaller cuts healing well, and the deeper lacerations looked pink around the edges. They'd leave scars, but it was all fading on her skin already. "What happened to him?"

"No one knows the full story but him." Emmory got out two mugs. "But we do know a fan of his found him after he wrecked his car in Colorado during a snowstorm. He'd broken both of his legs horribly. She'd bandaged him up, had apparently been a nurse for several years, then she held him hostage for several months." She moved over to the book shelf and pulled out Misery's Return. "Apparently she forced him to write this book because she didn't like how the last book ended."

Mark took it from her. The same woman of course decorated the front cover, but in this one, instead of swooning with a man, she stood straight, covered in bees from head to toe with only her eyes visible. In the background there was the face of a woman idol carved out of a mountain. 

"It's one of his best." Emmory continued, "but I feel horrible that he had to write it while being held hostage."

Mark handed her the book back. "He never wrote about his experience."

Emmory slid the book back into its place, shaking her head. "No. I don't think he could. I think after he got out he tried to escape the memories as much as he could. That's why he wrote so much…or still writes. He loses himself in his stories."

She turned away from the bookshelf, looking lost all of a sudden. It was like she'd sunken into her own memories, probably reliving her own horrible experience in that moment.

"Hey, I think the coffee is done brewing." He said, trying to gently bring her back to the present.

Emmory gave a little start. "Oh right." She hurried to go grab the pot, filling both mugs. "Do you like sugar? Cream?" She checked the fridge. "Oh uh…sorry I don't have any cream…that's good anyway."

Mark got a glimpse of the barren fridge before she closed it, going back to her cupboards, which all looked equally empty. Her spice cabinet was stocked enough, and the sugar was there in a clear container. She let out a relieved noise and brought him both the sugar and the mug full of coffee, setting them on the kitchen island. Mark sat on the stool in front of his mug. "Thank you" and he spooned some sugar into his cup. Usually he drank it black, but she'd looked so panicked looking for it.

"Of course." She retrieved her own mug and joined him at the island, sitting on the stool opposite of him.

Mark took a sip of the coffee. It tasted burnt and the sweetness from the sugar didn't help any. Emmory held hers in her hands, eyes empty again, staring down into the countertop. She didn't attempt to break the ensuing silence, probably wasn't present enough to do so. He should know what to say to her, how to talk to her as a victim of a horrible crime. He'd been a cop for so long. So many horrible things happened to so many perfectly good people. But looking at her, knowing he was the one who had done it to her…Mark found he was at a loss.

His eyes drifted to the rest of her kitchen, the empty cupboards and barren fridge. "You need to go to the store."

Emmory came back, blinking her eyes, her mind turning back on. "Yes…I'd needed to go before-" She stopped, swallowed, "I haven't had the energy. I'd have to fight the reporters all over again."

Not to mention she was probably afraid of being surrounded by so many strangers. "They're gone now." He said. "Let me take you."

Emmory stared at him for several seconds. "Take me to the store?" She asked. When he nodded in return she set her still full mug down. "Oh no. You have much more important things to do, I'm sure."

"I'm off duty. Unless I get a call." And he wouldn't get one. John wasn't due back until the morning, and Mark had busied himself with Emmory. "It's been quiet. So I have time. You need to eat." 

"I don't know…"

Mark stood, rattling his keys in his pocket pointedly. "Now I'm insisting. Look I won't pay for them if that bothers you, but I can at least go with you. Moral support."

She stood with him automatically, still looking unsure. “It’s so late.”

Mark held up his keys. “Come on, you take much longer and I’ll cook dinner too.” 

That got her moving. She was a bright red as she grabbed her jacket, “but I’m no one-”

“Don’t say that.” Mark rounded on her, turning away from her front door. “That isn’t true-”

“I meant I’m no one to you.” Emmy insisted, meeting his eyes. That had him turning back to the door. He couldn’t stand being in the direct line of her gaze. The blue threatened to suck him in. 

“Look, stop arguing with me. I offered, don’t make me contemplate how much free time I have anymore alright?” Right, make it sound like he had nothing better to do. It distanced himself from her, but the fact that he was still doing this for her would stick in her mind. 

She shopped quickly, staying away from anything fresh and picking out prepackaged meals. When he suggested she get something that didn’t require the microwave she was hesitant. She wouldn’t say it out loud, but Mark knew she was considering whether or not she’d actually cook anything. He didn’t push her too far, eating anything was better than nothing. He pushed the cart for her, which he could tell was driving her nuts. It made him smile to see her squirm every time he denied her trying to take the cart from him. 

Mark wondered if she had always hated people doing things for her, or if this was a new development. He also realized he was busying his mind with puzzling her out instead of examining why exactly he was doing this. Knocking on her door was bad enough. Now he was…what? Playing house with her?

No, he was just making sure she ate. He told himself John had practically adopted Amanda. Mark was just making sure his test survivor had food in her house. Mark hadn't been watching her long, but he was pretty sure she wasn't cut out for what they were doing. He didn't want her to become and apprentice. There was a hope in him that she would heal, move on, live as full of a life as she was capable.

On the drive back to her place Mark asked her what she did for fun. Or how she filled her days.

"Oh…mostly I work. During the week I don't have much free time." Emmory kept her eyes looking out of the window. She avoided looking him in the eyes as much as he did her, it seemed. "I used to play a lot of video games. I still do. People say it's for children. But I like them."

Mark thought that explained her choice of bar. She was lucky to have one like that so close to home. "Anything else."

"Hmm" She said. "It's kind of embarrassing…but I try to write sometimes."

“Like Paul Sheldon?” Mark smiled, mostly to himself as she was still turned away from him. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye to see that her cheeks were pink again.

“K-kind of.” She squirmed a little in her seat, folding her arms over her chest. “I mostly write short stories, but just for myself. I’ve never done anything with them.”

“Are they good?” Mark asked, more of a tease. She looked at him then, brows furrowed down. There was a lightness to the expression though. 

“I don’t know. I’ve never had anyone read them. Let alone someone who knows if it’d be good.”

“Maybe I could read one. See what it’s like.”

Emmory turned a bright shade of red. “No way!.” 

Mark laughed at that, a hearty one from his belly. It shocked him. He didn’t remember the last time he’d felt mirth like that. 

Once they returned to her home he helped her put the groceries away, and when that was done Mark found himself running out of excuses not to leave. He could tell Emmory was getting tired as well. She hadn’t eaten yet, but he was probably pushing his luck if he did actually try to feed her. She’d probably chase him out with a broom. 

So, with everything put away, he excused himself. 

“It was nice having you.” Emmory said as she walked him to her door.

Mark puffed out air through his nose. “You don’t have to be so polite.” 

She smiled at him. It wasn’t as empty as her expressions had been before, which filled Mark with hope. “No, really. It was nice.”

“Should I stop by again another time?” Mark asked with a raise of his brow and a small smile. He was teasing her, but she nodded.

“I’d like that.”

Detective Hoffman visiting had been weird, it was somehow refreshing. In the week that Emmy had been home she hadn’t spoken with anyone. Her friends had called her, but explaining what had happened, and then listening to them express how sorry they were that it had happened to her, was exhausting. Her one local friend, a woman named Holly that she had met through a previous job, had offered to come over multiple times. All of which Emmy had declined. She was quite close with Holly, but she knew Holly wouldn’t know how to act around her, or how to even talk to her now. Emmy knew Holly would try to act normally for her sake, but there was no normal…not yet anyway.

Hoffman already knew exactly what had happened to her, and had plenty of experience being around and talking to people like her. She found him easy to exist with, and genuinely hoped he would come back around. She knew he must be swamped, being a homicide detective in a city plagued by the Jigsaw Killer, but he’d made time for her once…

By Friday Emmy noticed the crowd of reporters was thinning. They were getting bored with her. Soon she might actually have peace when she left for work. Work itself could be better. Most of her day was spent trying to stay focused. Emmy still wasn't getting much sleep, the nightmare ever present, and probably not going anywhere any time soon. She was behind on her work. Her email inbox was filled with annoyed clients and exasperated colleagues. No one in her office knew what happened to her and Emmy refused to tell them, worried it would come off as an excuse.

Every evening, once she was finally home from a long day at work, she'd stand in the doorway of her office, thinking if she just sat down, she could write. It had been ages since she'd written anything, long before she'd even been captured. She used to love to write, and had once wanted to be a writer. Maybe not as good as Paul Sheldon, but the idea of having her own book published had always been a dream of hers. When she'd told Hoffman she wrote some, it reminded her how much she missed it. 

She always ended up walking away and to the couch to watch mindless TV, or she would crack open one of her books. Her first edition copy of Misery's Quest got a special place on her bookshelf, and she had pulled out her other copy to reread. 

Facing Saturday was the most daunting task, having nothing to fill her day with was surprisingly intimidating. She stayed up late Friday night, wanting to avoid the nightmares for as long as possible, and slept in as slate as she could stand. Emmy couldn't stay in bed all day, however, and dragged herself from out of the covers. The last, lingering, fog of the nightmare was beginning to slip away. The voice she always heard fading from her mind. 

Emmy made herself coffee and toast to the background noise of the press on her lawn. She had to force the toast down, but wanted to try to actually start eating. With mug in hand she went to stand in the door of her office again. There was the whole day ahead of her, plenty of time to write at least a little. Just do it. Emmy made her feet move to her desk, sat her butt in the chair, and turned on her computer.

Emmy had never written seriously. Mostly she just wrote whatever came to mind, and had never expanded any of her ideas into larger narratives. At best she’d done short stories that then just sat in her machine, never to see the light of day. She considered trying to write a romance, like the Misery novels, but she was so unsure of her writing ability. Emmy had been writing since she was a preteen, filling notebook after notebook. Once she became an adult, moved out, and had to start supporting herself, the energy to keep writing simply slipped between her fingers. Sometimes she still managed to type up a few paragraphs, however she missed the frenzy she used to write in when she had no other responsibilities aside from her school work.

Slowly her fingers started tapping keys. She wasn’t trying for anything specifically. Just a stream of conscience, to write something, anything. Eventually Emmy lost herself in her writing, letting herself fall into it and just keep her fingers moving across the keys.

“You all set?” Mark asked John as the older man slid into his passenger seat. John had placed something in his back seat. It looked to be the device that John had planned for Henry. 

“Yes.” John said as he settled in. “You already have him?”

“He’s sleeping in our favorite bathroom as we speak.” Mark checked his watch. “He should be out for a while longer. No need to rush.” 

John nodded. “You must have enjoyed the quiet while we were away.”

The old man was joking and Mark snorted. “It was a real treat.”

John chuckled then asked; “How did your first test alone go?”

Mark had really been hoping John would have forgotten, or would be too preoccupied to ask. For some reason he felt uneasy discussing Emmory with him. He shouldn’t. She was just another of their subjects, but he wanted to keep her away from this, from what they did. “It went fine.”

John leaned forward so that he could see Mark’s eyes, which he was keeping firmly on the road ahead of him. “How did she do?”

“Passed.” Mark pulled in a large breath. “She did really well. No panic, straight into survival.” He glanced at John, giving him the eye contact Mark was certain he wanted. “You would have been proud.”

John leaned back against his seat. “Good, and you’ve checked on her since then?” 

“Yes.” Mark gripped the steering wheel tighter. “I’ve been keeping tabs on her. She’s doing fine.” 

The conversation died there and Mark was relieved John hadn’t asked to speak to her. Mark had already had to yank the phone out of Kerry’s hand multiple times, trying to buy Emmory just a little more time before his fellow detective started hounding her for everything she knew. He didn’t need John sticking his nose in too. 

Mark parked in front of the warehouse. It was the dead of night, no light around save the one directly above the heavy metal door that served as their entrance. “Well, let’s see if Henry has what it takes.”

[sawyerquinnbrown]

Spotlight on Captain Cobalt vs. the Sinister Scientist

Here's the cover for one of my published plays, Captain Cobalt vs the Sinister Scientist, which is available for purchase at Next Stage Press!

A vaudeville-style comedy straight out of Saturday morning cartoons. This play has 18 characters and is intended to be performed by only 2 women. Captain Cobalt is an up-and-coming superhero trying to balance her heroic deeds with her secret identity, Cyanna Conda, the lowly pet store clerk. She battles everything from giant squid monsters to cheese-themed supervillains, encountering any number of bystanders (and a love interest) along the way. The final showdown, however, is with Captain Cobalt’s nemesis, the nefarious Dr. Killington, the mad scientist who insists that SHE is the hero of the story. Captain Cobalt et. al. encourage lots of audience interaction (cheering and booing especially) along the way. The set can be as stripped-down or elaborate as the production pleases, but the most important part…all the props are bananas. (Yes, actual literal bananas. The kind that pop when you throw them.)

I'd greatly appreciate a reblog to spread the word about my play, and it's available for purchase here, $5 for a digital copy and $10 for a physical copy that you can hold in your hands and put on your bookshelf and feel so cool that you know the playwright.

Click through the Read More for a sample of the script!

(Josh, an Obnoxious Little Kid, comes onstage, playing a handheld video game/banana.)

JOSH. What are you, some kind of a stupid superhero?

CAPTAIN. No, I am an intelligent superhero. Captain Cobalt! What is your name, young...child?

JOSH. Josh.

CAPTAIN. So...how old are you?

JOSH. Old enough to know you’re a stupidhead. My mom says--

CAPTAIN. Doesn’t your mother tell you not to be rude? Or not to talk to strangers?

JOSH. MY MOM SAYS that superheroes destroy too much stuff in the city.

CAPTAIN. Any damage that I might incur is caused in the name of justice and righting wrongs!

JOSH. There’s a kid at my school named Justice. 

CAPTAIN (thrown). Really?

JOSH. Yeah. (They stare at each other.) Are you...are you fightin’ an’ stuff for him?

CAPTAIN. I...yes. In a general sense. I’m fighting for everyone, so I suppose, while I fight for justice for all, I am also, yes, somewhat fighting for a small child named ‘Justice.’ Since he is part of ‘all,’ and thus, under my purview. (Josh is clearly confused.) Umbrella. Under my...yes, under my umbrella. The umbrella that encompasses all of this city, and eventually, all of the world. With my magnificent powers, I can defend all those who need defending!  The older gentleman selling newspapers on the street-corner! The women waiting in line at a bank! Janitorial staff! Socialites! Troglodytes! Optometrists! Soccer moms drinking smoothies in minivans! From the nonagenarians in retirement homes...all the way to the tiny children asking rude questions of superheroes in the street. (She gestures to Josh.) All are under my metaphorical umbrella...of justice! (She poses.)

JOSH. You took Justice’s umbrella?

CAPTAIN. No, I--

JOSH. I don’t think it’s very nice of you to take Justice’s umbrella.

CAPTAIN. It’s not a real umbrella.

JOSH. Did you break it?

CAPTAIN. What? How dare you --

JOSH. Did you break the umbrella. My mom says that it’s not nice to take other people’s things--

CAPTAIN. I don’t even know this ‘Justice’ person!

JOSH. You took his umbrella.

CAPTAIN. I didn’t.

JOSH. Yes, you did.

CAPTAIN. No! I didn’t!

JOSH. Yes, you did! (He blows a raspberry, turns to go, then turns back.) Oh, and also? You smell like dead fish. (Turns to go, turns back.) Oh, and also? You look like a dead fish. (Turns to go, turns back.) Oh, and also? (He pauses. Captain Cobalt waits expectantly. Finally) I forgot what I was going to say. (He finally leaves.)

---

Read the rest of the first act for free on Next Stage Press!

Once again, I'd super appreciate a reblog, and even a follow of my writing blog if you're feeling generous and would like to see more comedic writing!

[moonsidesong]

A question before I do the Hacking. Can I still safely transfer my old pokemon from bank to home on a hacked device? Not sure if it requires internet connection, if that changes anything, and the games they're from are physical copies. Actually, can I still connect on hacked 3/2ds? (Sorry if you don't know, I don't know/follow anyone else I could reliably ask)

pokemon data seems to be a thing a lot of people are concerned with (totally understandable, i was too!!!) but unless you're doing some dodgy online game cheating you are absolutely fine to go online. here's a pic of me on pokebank on my hacked 2ds if it makes you feel better! (connected to my ultra moon cartridge)

[amukmuk]

Hi amukmuk, I'm very excited for the Chiss Ascendancy zine and would be willing to help mod, but I haven't worked in a zine before - what's the expected time commitment and actual tasks of the mods? I do have a busy schedule and wouldn't want to be forced to back out on you if I can't meet that commitment!

Heyo!

Full disclosure, I also have a crazy busy schedule so I plan to have long timeframes just so nobody feels like they have to crank something out in a week.

I've also separated out tasks below. Hopefully we'll have enough mods to do something like this!!

1. Social Media

In charge of posting informational and promotional material(s) to the zine's social media accounts, responding to asks/messages as well as keeping all pages up to date.

Should have experience and knowledge in posting on Tumblr/Instagram/Twitter as well as the common practice of tagging and etiquettes in Star Wars fandom spaces.

2. Shipping

Will survey the costs and suitability of plans for physical items and receive samples and final products from the manufacturers, repack for our buyers and then ship the packages.

Must have current residence in the USA.

Experience in shipping domestic and international packages from the USA is a huge asset.

Must have a printer.

You will work closely with Finance Mod.

3. Finance

Will receive and keep money from preorders and overstock sales in a bank account until it is donated. 

Will purchase all products and pay all site and transaction fees out of the money received (you will not be spending your own money up front) and will track all income and expenses and keep digital receipts accessible.

Must have a debit card, a credit card, a PayPal business account (or a PayPal that you are willing to upgrade to a business account), a valid billing address and a social security number from the country of your residence.

You will work closely with shipping mod.

4. Layout

Will design the layout for the zine, how many pages, size of pieces, word count etc.

Will be communicating with the other mods and contributors to reconfirm the suitability of pieces, do readjustments where necessary etc.

Will also work with Graphics Mod where necessary.

5. Writing

Will moderate writer applications and the progress of written pieces for the zine.

Must be open to checking out contributors' progress and help them stay on schedule.

Might also become a default second copy editor.

Will also work with Copy Editor where necessary.

6. Copy Editing

Will help writers with their written pieces and become their beta readers once their work is ready -- especially for the writers who do not have beta readers.

Must have experience in writing and editing fiction -- must have a strong grasp of spelling, grammar, pacing techniques etc.

Will work with Writing Mod where necessary.

7. Art

Will moderate art pieces from applications and the progress of art pieces for the zine.

Must be open to checking out contributors' progress and help them stay on schedule.

Must be polite when giving out suggestions/criticism (only when sought by the artist) -- help the artist focus on their strengths etc.

8. Discord Server

Will be moderating and supervising the zine server, answering questions from contributors, enforcing rules and regulations, mediating conflict between server members, bring up questions or attention on certain issues to mods where necessary. 

Must remain rational, objective and professional while communicating with contributors or while mediating conflicts -- regardless of differences in views/opinions.

Experience in moderating servers is a huge asset.

[empress-leo]

AI art from the perspective of someone who's degree was based around AI

I realise not many people are going to read this, but want to talk about this because I both need somewhere to collect my thoughts an somewhere to comment on things.

Firstly I want to say, if your gut reaction to seeing the phrase "AI Art" is to get angry and blurt out "AI art isn't real art" or something to that effect then you really should read this, and I would ask you read all of it before you make a comment like that.

Now I'm not generally prone to sharing personal details online, but just to mention some things about my background. My paternal Grandparents are retired Art teachers and professional artists. My grandad in particular taught me how to draw. My father is a computer scientist and has done a lot of work in the field of AI. Myself, I studied art and computer science up to the end of High-School, and for my undergraduate degree I did Computer Science and AI. My entire family is either in the field of Art (My cousins run a firm of lawyers for artists and own a gallery) or computer science (My Uncle worked with banking systems mergers before he retired). It is because of these interactions with Art and Computer science all my life that I consider my opinion on AI to hold a slight bit more weight to it than the layman's.

First off, AI's are tools, no more or less than the paintbrush or digital pen, and just as you cannot ask paintbrushes or digital pens to be responsible for the art they create, nor do I think you can blame the AI. Now what I do think is that you can absolutely blame the user creating Art with the AI. If a user puts a prompt into the AI and selects an image to upload to a social media and pretends they drew it themselves, that is unethical at best. It takes no more skill to do that than a toddler scribbling lines on a paper with crayons. However technically, both are still art as the art (AI creation/Crayon Scribble) was made by someone (User/Toddler) with a medium (AI program/Crayons). Calling AI Art 'not real art' will have major implications for the abstractionists or surrealists, fields which are still considered to be art despite the amount of physical effort that goes into them. Of course the debate about what makes something 'art' is centuries old at best, and if you're not careful with your definitions then people who you didn't intend to be caught up in your campaigns will be. I would posit that rather than calling AI art 'not real art' it should be called 'low-effort Art' instead.

Secondly, I would like to address the 'AI art is stealing' complaint (this section will get a bit philosophical). Now whilst it's true that an AI model is built on hundreds of thousands of sample images (some of the modern ones use millions) the more images get sampled, the harder it is to recognise who the artists that were sampled were. My question to you would be where is the line drawn between an AI sampling hundreds of thousands of images to produce a piece of work, and an artist training themselves on previous artists works and references until they can confidently produce their own work? In the 19th Century the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, the most prestigious art school in the world at the time, had a curriculum which involved copying drawings and paintings from other artists. The students were taught to copy the master's methods of producing light and shading and other techniques. Can it not be argued that this is a more streamlined version of what AI art is doing? And remember, many artists are able to be described as being 'influenced' by certain other artists, because the hallmarks and styles of one artist can clearly be seen in the other's works. One of the biggest complaints with AI art is that it doesn't reference the artists it's sourced from, but under plagiarism law, if you cannot identify any particular part of the work the was expressly copied from your art, then you cannot sue someone for plagiarism. Plagiarism law is doubly complicated in the realm of fine art, as copying a work but labelling it as a copy doesn't necessarily count as plagiarism in most cases, whereas copying an artist's style but not any specific piece then labelling it as theirs and selling it does count as stealing/fraud in most cases. (The specifics vary and I don't have time to get into all the nuances of Art Law here, but it should give you some idea of the difficulty in regulating it.) Now obviously there's a difference when you can clearly tell that the AI art was 'inspired' by some human artist's work. I see this most often in programs that are designed to take a 2D image and make a 3D model out of it. In those situations yes, the AI artist (especially if they're trying to pass it off as their own work) should be called out for their scumbaggery, though again, whether or not it really counts as stealing is dubious.

Regarding copyright, I don't think art produced solely through the medium of AI should count for copyright. Now whilst I acknowledge the existence of the Naruto case, I don't think it's the best long-term solution for copyright law. (specifically because classifying all art done as human or non-human with non-humans not being able to hold copyright will have serious implications for transhumanists and any theoretically sentient aliens that might have developed their own cultures) In my opinion a better solution would be to say that unless a piece of art is reproducible by the artist, then copyright should be withheld until an artist can reproduce the image (with about 5% tolerance). Of course the implication this has is for photographers. If you're taking a photograph of something like a thunderstorm then it's nearly impossible to recreate that image exactly. I admit I don't have a perfect solution for this, though one thing I can imagine is if the photographer takes two photos, then the metadata will show that the two photographs are technically different, but still look the same. Of course this wouldn't work for non-digital photographs, which is why I said it's not a perfect solution.

I would also like to propose two hypothetical situations, and whether or not the AI art would be considered unethical in those contexts.

A community of artists get together and produce enough works of art that they are able to create an AI art Generator based solely on their works. No works from outside the community are ever used in the AI training and every artist in the community agrees to let their works be used for the AI training. Any time a piece of art is created with the AI, part of the metadata includes a list of every artist in the community. Is producing art with this specific AI program still unethical?

You have trained an AI program to produce art based purely off your own work. No other artist has influenced the AI program. Now, anytime you get asked for a commission you simply ask the AI program to create the art for you. Is this unethical?

Now these hypotheticals may be unrealistic, but that's the point of hypotheticals. And frankly I don't think they're that unrealistic.

Lastly, I would like to remind people that the creators of these AI systems did not intend to create this problem. The reason these AI systems were created in the first place (not counting Midjourney and programs like that) was either to test theories about computing, to see if we could create AI that could recognise things we couldn't, and frankly just to see if we could. I can 100% promise you that no-one working on these projects wanted to harm you or your livelihood. To show an example of this let me share with you a short story about one of my friends and classmates who now works for a company that produces system to create AI art.

He initially joined the company right out of university. He didn't apply for the job, a member of the recruiting team came around to see his end of year project during a fair and after a short talk, hired him on the spot (unusual but not unheard of). The company he then went to work for was building AIs for medical imaging, hoping to create an AI that could recognise cancers and other abnormalities faster/better than humans could. He was doing this for 5 years and they were getting fairly far with the prototypes. It had been successfully used to detect cancer that a doctor had missed. They were working on creating a streamlined interface and controls so it could be used with minimal training and (hopefully) minimal understanding of the English language. They were hoping that by supplying this product to third-world countries that have less skilled doctors, they could dramatically increase the detection rate of cancers and thus survivability. They were being funded by a few wealthy backers plus some research grants. Then COVID hit. In order to just keep their staff employed the CEO made the descision to make the company go public. Within days, 51% of their stock had been purchased by a 'serial entrepreneur' and started to make changes. He cancelled the medical detection technology, and instead forced the company to start work on generative systems. (AI Art, AI writing, etc.) He was planning on selling it as a service to mega-corps like Disney so they could cut back on writing staff. However it was taking too long to implement and so in order to recoup the costs hey dismantled the company, selling off computers and data and laying off all the staff. My friend is okay with this. He hated working for the tech bro and hated working on generative systems. (He's currently trying to rebuild the medical detection system with the data he has at the moment).

My point of the story is that it's not always easy to change fields, especially with something as specialised as AI development. I would also like to make it clear (if it wasn't) that the skills needed to build a system to make AI art are the same ones needed to build medical imaging systems, so don't go hating and brigading against anyone involved in AI.

I suppose my overall point would be that AI systems are far more complex and multi-faceted than simply "AI art bad", and anyone trying to get you to rally behind actions based one that one statement alone probably either doesn't know what they're talking about, or are trying to get you to do something much more malicious than simply protect artist's rights. Treat every case you see individually. Some use of AI art is entirely harmless. An artist using it to get a bit of inspiration, or someone sharing some funny images with friends is all completely harmless. Don't just look at the people involved with AI art and immediately hate, that's a horrible way to live and only serves to divide us as a species.

[ultramaga]

"Hi, Canadian here: someone with universal healthcare"

Oh yes, the Canadian Health System. The Australian government has been talking about copying that here, to kill the sick and the elderly - I mean, to gently ease the suffering of their existence. Forever. And make a tasty food snack you just can't beat! "It does work." So long as the United States is subsidising it by paying for your defence. But I can tell you we have it here too, and it works less and less. For example, I know an octagenarian diabetic. Suddenly the blood testers they used were not available. They've been registered with the government for twenty years, but someone in the beauracracy decided to stop access to them. The person in question had to desperately re-submit paperwork. They were told they would have a two week wait to see a GP, then it would have to be sent up to the government again to be re-evaluated, resigned, resent back to the chemist, filed and forgotten. These things cost a few dollars and had no possible non-medical use I can conceive of, but the government blocked access, because ... When you depend on the government you are a liability, a drain, expendable, undesirable. You are Soylent Green Fodder. The government forces you to pay for medicare here, but it gives less and less.

Doctors locally largely quit. It just wasn't worth it. This literally kills people. Pensioners, the disabled and the elderly, had to move here when mass migration drove up the housing prices. We had to move out to semi-rural locations with neither the benefits of country or suburb or city. But all the medical experts hate it here, and they move to the cities, which are a minimum of two buses, then possibly another, then a train, then a train, then a taxi to get to - and all that trip back again. Growing up, medicare was great, but as Thatcher said: Socialism is wonderful until other people's money runs out.

And it did. The money took to house the poor? It's gone. The waiting list was five years. Reached five. They changed it to ten. Reach ten. They put a plus next to the ten. Turns out the housing is allocated according to intersectional Feminism. ABC AUSTRALIA, the government broadcaster, boasted that an aboriginal woman had a maximum of a two year wait for such housing, and when they showed it, I could have wept. It was like a mansion. The stuff they give white people, well, it's slums if you are lucky, I can tell you from experience. Leftism is in power, and that means everyone is taxed, but services are allocated on the basis of sex, race, and sexuality. If you are a trans lesbian aboriginal, presumably they just carry you about on a ruby throne or something. Because when the government takes your money - it becomes THEIR MONEY - and they will spend it as they please. They don't have to keep promises. They will tell you to vote for the opposition if you don't like it - and by some strange coincidence, the opposition has exactly the same policies. And between them, no other party is allowed. The media colludes to crush true opposition. The Oligarchs remain in power, always. And they absolutely will kill you if they can get away with it.

"“We’re at the point where clients on these programs are telling us they’re considering medically assisted death or suicide because they can’t live in grinding poverty anymore,” she said in the Maclean’s report. “A client in our Food Bank 2 Home delivery program told one of our staff that they’re considering suicide because they’re so tired of suffering through poverty. Another client asked if we knew how to apply for MAID (medical assistance in dying) for the same reasons.”" Tell me again how the Canadian Health System just works. Hey, did you know the Nazis did the same thing? They loved killing the cripples, it wasn't just Jews, it was anyone considered a burden.

[sagarrachnagrp]

‘Together with’ Physical + Digital Books offer Learning via Digital Tools

The physical + digital edition textbooks, sample papers, and question banks offered by Rachna Sagar are aligned to NEP and are digitally accessible. The availability of physical and digital content helps students understand the key concepts of their subject better. The e-content is available by simply scanning the QR codes given in the physical copies. With digital learning tools such as video, audio, and digital exercises, students can map their progress and prepare for the exam.