#SC candidate

[elaneducationloans]

An overview of the National Overseas Scholarship for SC candidates, covering eligibility, application process, and benefits for studying abroad.

[newsepick]

GATE 2025: Registration ends today

The application process for GATE 2025 closes tomorrow, October 7, at 11:59 PM. Candidates can apply with a late fee of ₹1,400 for SC, ST, PwD, and female candidates, and ₹2,300 for others. The regular fee was lower and closed on October 3. The exam is scheduled for February 1, 2, 15, and 16, with two shifts each day. Eligible candidates include those with degrees in various fields and third-year students. Required documents include photographs, signatures, and relevant certificates in specified formats. Details on the paper schedule and admit cards will be provided later. https://app.newsepick.com/details/gate-2025-registration-ends-today-apply-with-late-fee-at

[your-god-empress-lavender]

Okay, first off, i fucking hate that the little bar thing is on the side of my screen, not the top where it's supposed to be.

Second, i'm finally settled in my dorm which is great.

Third and what i came here to talk about is that i think, based on the reaction conditions and the findings detailed in a lot of the books on superconductors i've been reading recently, that the (hopefully STP superconducting) compound i produced (described in earlier posts) is in fact not using Cu+ as @mercurialbadger proposed but instead using Cu3+. It would be similarly if not more unstable in moist air, would be produced in the highly basic conditions, and apparently would be more favorable to the sort of molecular distortion that's expected to produce superconductivity than either Cu+ or Cu2+. I'm still not sure about much of this, especially since borate chemistry is kinda wild, but i further suspect that this compound has a crystal structure akin to the modified perovskite structures seen in other copper ion superconductors. Now, that might imply that Ca2+ is an important part of this, possibly acting like the Ba2+ in YBCO (perhaps following the trend of the smaller ions increasing Tc?) and similar high Tc superconductors, or perhaps it's an A3+ and B3+. I suppose it's obvious that i am still not super familiar with the field, especially since i'm drawing comparisons to YBCO despite the fact that the copper is only present in very small quantities, instead of representing 1/2 of all the present metal ions.

Anyway, all in all, little to add except that i will now finally be continuing research (hopefully with much better equipment) and i suspect the Cu is present in its 3+ state as opposed to the 1+ which was suggested earlier (naturally, i will still see whether the copper is truly necessary (i suspect it is, and can't imagine why it wouldn't be, but still) and then if it is, to see what oxidation state it's in).

[storkmuffin]

Unwarranted Thoughts about Mingi (1/n?)

I do not yet have an Ateez bias. I'm just going through each of them like I'm picking a different chocolate piece out of the box, and it's just Mingi's turn in my mouth now, is all. If he's your favorite darling about whom only your thoughts are correct I am going to say up front that you are absolutely right, perfect, and impeccable. I fully agree in advance that I have no idea what I'm talking about whatsoever, and you should stop reading right now.

Why is This Guy an Idol and How Does It Work

There are very specific appearance related fetishes that Koreans have. It's all relative and very painful, actually, because the standards are so strict, but I will say that Mingi does meet all of the criteria, at once.

Tall > Short, Long legged > Long Waisted, Pale > Dark, Angular > Round faced, Small Head > Bubble Head, Narrow > Wide.

A mutual asked how the talent company could've known to launch Mingi as opposed to other candidates (where talent isn't enough or, sad to say, necessary to launch a successful show business career), like, did they know that he was going to be able to carry out a sexy persona when he was a lanky teen?

I would say yes. From what I know of the Korean entertainment industry, they can look at a relatively small child, prepubescent, and accurately predict what that child will be capable of doing in show business ten or fiteen years down the line. It's a weird capacity they've perfected. There's also a system in place - physical trainers, dieticians, plastic surgeons, dermatologists, stylists, make up artists - that only require the basics (be a pale, small headed, angular featured, long legged, slender person) to be able to churn out a standard Idol.

It's actually still physically very rare for someone to have all these traits in one body AND also grow up to be a tall man AND with a bass voice who is ALSO capable of enduring the very intense training to be an Idol. (To be fair, the training to be anything at all in Korea is superfucking intense - scholar, scientist, accountant, lawyer, dentist, nurse, pharmacist, civil servant, run of the mill office employee of Samsung, Hyundai, SK Hynix, LG, etc etc). On top of very much wanting to do this work, for himself, then, Mingi would've been constantly told to keep at it and not give up, even as he spent long days being also told that he was doing it wrong. (This my personal impression of life in the arts - the better you get, the more talented and 'advanced' you are, the more time you spend being told that you're doing it wrong LOL).

The problem Mingi has as an Idol is the non-standard personality he keeps displaying. A lot of my mutuals clock him as being autistic-spectrum. What stands out to me is his unwillingness or inability to be pleasant even on camera. The first time I encountered Mingi as a person of note in this group was during one of the reality content for the Ice On My Teeth music video. The staff had all of them 'break' ice balls that had little challenges and messages frozen within, in order to 'win' dental care related products.

Mingi was visibly not having a good day, nor a good time.

The caption in the first thing says, "He's just melting some ice but Mingi is a little bit scary today" and the second caption says, "He's making a noir film by himself." FOR NO REASON is implied. They even tell him, in camera, that he's being scary.

"No but you're actually being really, uh, sc- sc- scary."

Koreans generally don't say things directly in a command format - which in this case would be "STOP BEING SO SCARY" (그렇게 무섭게 하지 마세요!) - unless they're much more powerful than you and can speak to you in this way (very rare occurrence) OR they're willing to back up the attitude with actual physical violence. So for KQ Staff, the emphasis by the (faked?) stuttering is meant to convey, STOP THAT RIGHT NOW. But he didn't. He stayed pissed the whole time.

Sidebar to say: I really hate the way the word 'film noir' which is a very specific term of art for a specific genre of film and 'noir film' - the Konglish neologism which means something quite different - are interchangeably used in Korean colloquialism.

Reaction from the Korean internet was pretty harsh, actually. They fault him for having a bad attitude, in comparison to the other members. He's rude, they say, and disappointing. (He also refused to take the admittedly silly dental care gift they gave him as a 'prize.')

The commenter @다다다다오오올 (top right) says something that is pretty typical of the demands made on Kpop Idols: "아무리 힘들고 피곤해도 카메라 앞에선 티��지 않는게 아이돌의 숙명 아니겠나요" No matter how tired or a hard time you're having, if you're going to be an Idol, it's your obligation to not seem that way on camera.

Mingi is very bad at fulfilling this requirement, and because I initially found him shouty in a subgenre of K pop music that was already very loud and noisy (and yet, compelling!), I wrote Mingi off, and it didn't feel like a loss. I already had Wooyoung who is emobodies Eager To Please at all times, as well as San and Seonghwa who don't know how not to be pleasant and spoke in my home dialect. I was good.

Then I got to the health check up Wanteez and we had the (in)famous "난 나오면 그냥 깬다니까" moment of Mingi coming out of anesthesia and being so extremely proud of himself, even as Wooyoung gets increasingly annoyed with him.

Mingi asks the nurse, Do you find me annoying? And Wooyoung, leaving, says 어 짜증나 너 - yah you're annoying. Look at Mingi! He really did get 'stabbed' by Wooyoung's words. They really do take over his whole world.

I DID NOT REALIZE until I got to the end of this entire video that this kid, who gets so, so crushed that his cranky ass teammate calls him annoying, was the same person who was clearly contemplating shoving the ice ball he was told to make fun content with up someone's nostril.

His reaction, which is just to be crushed, as Yunho (who came to check on him) folds in half laughing (Mingi makes Yunho fold in half a lot by the way) at the situation, is so different from how all the others would react. If the roles were reversed, with Mingi calling Wooyoung "annoying," Wooyoung would probably just leap on Mingi and bite through his shoulder. San would say something. Seonghwa would smack. I don't even want to see Jongho's reaction. And so on.

Mingi has no filter, and I guess like many things in life, this is simultaneously his great weakness and his great talent. He's just so responsive. This is the answer then, for me. Mingi is an Idol because he has the unusual combiation of physicla traits and a unique sounding voice but above all is extremely expressive.

When something is funny, it's SO funny to him he hurts his hand smacking the table. He almost dislocates his jaw. He also has what I consider (as a desk bound person) a dancer reaction of expressing the amusement he feels with his whole body. He gets up out of his seat, involves his whole body in it. (Yunho, who is much more in his head even though he's a dancer, tries to understand and puzzle out a situation even as he reacts with laughter).

Mingi goes all out. That seems to be his artistic self. He doesn't have layers of self protective filter and cover between his artistic expression and the outermost layer of his skin.

Because of his big, generous, unfiltered expressiveness, if you don't go with the visuals and just listen to the Ateez songs, actually, it becomes increasingly clear that the most important singer in the whole group is Mingi.

Yeah I said it.

Mingi is musically the most important singer in Ateez.

It's not only because he has the most distinctive voice in Ateez.

Yeah I said it x2.

Mingi has the most distinctive voice of everyone in Ateez.

Ateez's songs are often excessively dramatic, and most of it sounds like Christian rock to me, with the overt Christianity subsumed under the extremely complicated, dystopic savior-fantasy lore they have going on as a narrative device. Mingi coming on like St. Jerome, like Elijah yelling out in the desert, is essential for Ateez to pull this off. He's the least reliant on the different noise sound effects (the kettle coming to a boil, the space ship engines, the train bell ringing past) that the production liberally deploys.

Take for example, Man On Fire. The one who carries the song is Mingi. Unless you're very very familiar with their individual voices, Yeosang sounds very similar to Seonghwa, and WooSan sound like one man, and Yunho, with his great facility for being husky and tenor interchangeably, just blends in with the rest. Jongho has a strong voice but it's not terribly expressive or flexible in the way he's asked to use it in these group songs. It's Mingi who sounds actually desperate, who actually sounds like he might set things (or himself, or uh, you) on fire, who knows what that feels like.

Both Hwa and San acknowledge that he owns the song.

The combination of his untrammeled personality and the hugeness of his voice makes Mingi a very unusual asset for Ateez. It doesn't hurt that he's striking looking with a model's height and build, and that he wants to be a star badly enough to avoid pasta so long he starts crying about it on camera, of course. But his specialness comes from his expressive capacity, and his capacity to be excessive, which is so difficult for any Korean to do. Mingi can scream and cry, despair and beg and rage, and not be ironically distanced from any of these feelings.

This is why he's an Idol, I think.

And apparently, in person, in performance, Mingi has something, that makes him undeniable to even those whose ults are someone else. Below is a youtuber whose ult is Yeosang, but after seeing the End of Year 2024 Ice on My Teeth performance live, she spends the majority of her review talking about Mingi. How he's really dangerous and She can't stop thinking about him even though he was too much and annoying and anyway Yeosang is her favorite, he really is, but all she can say about Yeosang is that he was very kind to fans, was very beautiful and cute, and ... nothing else. She couldn't even remember what he wore exactly, but she could remember each and every too much and annoying comment that Mingi made on stage.

By the way, if you speak any amount of Korean, I really recommend the 자매다만세 youtube channel that specializes in Ateez lore. They're charming and funny as fuck but also have the longest and most thorough Ateez lore video ever, which was apparently personally vetted and endorsed by Yeosang.

[simonrilee]

Okay. So I was on Instagram, as one is, and I saw a reel essentially asking, of the four who who you would chose to protect you from the other three (who are hunting you for some reason). However, I lost the fucking reel and I'm so pissed because I was going to leave an in depth comment.

I then remembered that Tumblr exists. So you guys are going to get my in depth response to that question because I have thoughts about this.

I'm by no means an expert on fighting or battle strategy or whatever so this may be completely incorrect but this is who I would chose, as a laymen, and why, or why not.

First off, Barrage. Immediately eliminating him from my pool of potential protectors. Mostly because I don't know enough about him, and what I do know doesn't inspire me with much confidence. He's just some sc operator. He's not particularly special. All the sc operators have this skin in the campaign, he's technically not even his own person, or his own character. I'm going based off of the assumption that he is just a boot on the ground, grunt type of guy that became part of a PMC after his time in the military. Pitting him against three special forces guys does not seem like a smart move. Sorry Barrage.

Now it gets interesting. Three spec ops dudes.

We'll start with Horangi. I do not think he is to be underestimated, in any capacity. A lot of the comments I saw underneath the original reel lumped him in with Barrage as being useless. Which is absolutely absurd. If you know anything about him you know that he was a part of the ROK's 13th Special Mission Brigade. Also known as The Decapitation Unit. These guys are fucking hardcore. They take out high value targets (like military and political leaders! well protected targets), and they do it efficiently. He clearly has to have a level head for this sort of job. Horangi is a great candidate.

Next is König. His backstory has had some changing around, but I'm going to go based off of him being Austrian and part of the Jagdkommando. Like other special forces units, they undergo intensive training. We take into account now König's role in the Jagdkommando. He's big, and brash, and his job is being the spearhead, the battering ram. I don't think he's very concerned with being sneaky, and probably has a rather aggressive approach. This may work in some situations, but if I'm being chased and have to hide, I don't know that he's my first choice. He's still a decent candidate, he's clearly skilled at what he does, I'm just not sure that in this hypothetical scenario, that he is what I need.

Lastly, we have Ghost. Now, we know the most about him, which makes him easier to dissect as a choice. Obviously, as a part of the SAS, he has undergone rigorous training, same as the others. What gives him an edge, is that Ghost is a lot more precise, and strategic about everything he does. Whereas I think König is more of a 'brute force' type of guy. Ghost would also have the skillset to take out high value targets quickly, quietly, and efficiently. A skill he shares with Horangi.

In the end, it really boils down to Horangi or Ghost for me. This is when I start looking at more of the intricacies. Horangi's job was to eliminate high value targets. Ghost does that too. However, Ghost also has experience in protecting targets, and dealing with hostage situations. So, my final answer is Ghost. Horangi as a close second, though.

Feel free to add your two cents to this, I just needed to yap.

[sl-newsie]

American Woman (Thomas Shelby x American OC) Ch. 73: Left In Silence

Masterlist: https://www.tumblr.com/sl-newsie/739551758747090944/american-woman-thomas-shelby-x-american-oc?source=share

Ring! Ring!

Another phone call means more potential trouble. If that’s Michael again I’m going to ask Polly to start visiting his dreams!

“Verena?” Ada’s voice asks. 

Why would she be calling again? We just talked last month. Lord, is someone else dead?

“Hello, Ada. Is everything oké?” I ask uneasily.

“You should be here,” she begs, her voice raising. “I told Thomas I didn’t want any more of his business. Guess what? He just had me chat up Mosley’s bitch of a mistress! If they commented on coat prices one more time I swear I was so close to hurling my glass at them!” She lets out a scoff. “I actually preferred Nelson. So blunt and to the point.”

It takes a second for me to catch the name. “Ada, I- Wait. This was a meeting with Jack Nelson? Why would Thomas send you?”

There’s a long-term silence. Did I say something wrong? Is there something I don’t know?

“Because, well… Ruby is sick with consumption.”

The image of the smiling girl lying in a hospital bed sends me stricken with sudden familiar sadness. How did this happen? She looked perfectly healthy when I met her. 

“Dear Christ. Do they know the prognosis?”

“Nothing so far. But until she’s cured Thomas has some plan to fix things. Don’t ask.” Ada adds before I can speak. “I don’t know either.”

No, no. This is not the time for one of his plans. “He needs to be with Lizzie. She must be devastated.”

“She is.” Ada takes a breath. “Temporarily, I’m in charge. Things could use a woman’s touch. And I know a certain American who would be a prime candidate.”

I can’t help allowing a smirk to creep onto my face. “Oh, lovely. I’m sure Gina will agree.”

“Do not mention that bitch again,” Ada bites and tries asking again. “Verena, please. I know you and Tommy are on rocky grounds but-”

“No,” I answer firmly. “No. I really am sorry about Ruby. If I were Thomas I would be worried too. But I can’t risk another loss. Every time I come back, somebody dies. I’m trying to build a life for myself here. Call it selfish, but I will not abandon that all for Thomas.”

“So who’s the lucky one? The Polish man?” Ada asks expectantly. 

“He, um… He didn’t like hearing about my work history,” I utter darkly. “I don’t know if you lot get treated differently but when he heard about my connection to the Peaky Blinders he immediately wanted nothing to do with it… or me. So instead I’m helping Uncle Colon’s bookkeeping for my vader’s whiskey shipments throughout the Great Lakes.”

“You can’t replace work with love!” Ada implores. “Do you know who you sound like?”

Yes, and unlike him I am not going to drown myself in bought love and liquor. I help out with my familie’s kids, and if that’s all I’m supposed to receive in this world then I need to accept it. I still pray for those who hurt me, because somehow I know it was all supposed to happen. No, I do not think I am being punished for being a part of that gang. If anything, those years gave me more wisdom and religious proof than I ever had before. And now if I could choose I would go back and do it all again, even if Liam still couldn’t be saved. Somewhere in those years God hid a path for me, so here I am waiting for the next milestone.

“I appreciate the concern, Ada. But right now you need to help Lizzie. Let me handle my own worries instead of thinking you have to step in. Please tell them my prayers are with Ruby.”

We end our conversation and I’m left thinking about Lizzie. No, we never got along, but that familie has already seen so much unhappiness. What might be the reason that her daughter must be struck with such a terrible disease?

“Verena! Phone for you!” Charlotte calls down the hall. "Someone called Ada!"

“Um, kinda busy!” I yell back, my hands covered in flour.

“She says it’s important!” My nicht whines. What an adolescent.

“Fine!” I yell and storm towards the scowling teen, dusting my hands off before taking the phone. “Hello?”

“Ruby is dead.”

Another switch is flicked on. My anger melts into shock and I stand there gaping at the wall.

“Oh my God. Ada…" I hold a hand over my mouth to keep from breathing too loud. "How is Lizzie?”

“Not doing so well. I think Ruby’s passing broke part of her. Thomas was already breaking away.”

I swallow. “And Charlie?”

“He’s still stunned,” Ada whispers, although she sounds unsure. “From the outside he looks like the one that’s stayed kept together.”

“Thank you for keeping me informed. Is there any other news?”

“Well… There is some good news,” the Shelby zuster admits. “Finn finally took a wife. Her name is Mary.”

Finn, a married man. Hopefully he took my advice and found a suitable wife. If I ever have the guts to venture overseas again I might try to visit.

“It’s about time. I’m glad he’s doing well, and… Please send my condolences to Lizzie and the others. Gecondoleerd.”

By now I might not even recognize them. Each call seems to alter how I remember Ada’s voice. There’s no telling how much things have changed over there. I deeply wish I could go there; to offer proper sympathies instead of hiding here, so I could tell Thomas and Lizzie how sorry I am to hear Ruby is gone. But I have to put my foot down, even if I don’t always agree to it.

General POV

Damn him. Damn Tommy Shelby. 

The gangster curses himself over and over, his fingers digging into the desk’s wood as he leans over. As if fate hasn’t been cruel enough. Now his precious girl has been taken. 

“C’mon, Tommy,” Arthur tries to uplift him. “You need to move forward, eh?”

“Ruby’s gone,” the Peaky Blinder groans. “Lizzie is leaving, Charlie basically hates me, Michael is still planning to kill me, and you’re telling me to move forward? Forward to where, Arthur?! A prison? A madhouse? A grave?” 

He sinks into his chair and runs his hand over his head. The place where the wicked thing is growing inside him. Ironic. After all he’s fought through, all the threats, firefights, and duels, it’s fucking cancer that ends him. His own body, turned against him.

“A grave will be here for me soon enough,” Thomas murmurs to himself and looks up to Arthur. “All I can hope is that God has enough patience to hold an audience with my soul… and to grant me one last request.”

He reaches into the desk drawer for some paper and pulls out his glasses. Would it be worth the risk? Probably not. It probably won’t even be opened. Why would she? 

“What are you going to do, Tom?” Arthur asks from across the room as he reaches for a bottle.

Thomas takes a shaky breath and stares at the blank page. “What I should have done four years ago, Arthur. I need to write a letter. To a good friend.”

Verena’s POV

“How’s the West’s business been?” Uncle Colon asks. 

“Quickly processed, although I’m afraid transactions have changed to a slower amount. People still want to drink but they’re starting to run out of money.”

We continue along the docks and the wind starts to pick up. For the next week I’m home in Brooklyn, taking in inner-city business and discussing matters with vader and Uncle Colon while Nicolaas holds down the fort in Grand Rapids.

“Well, we can’t change that overnight,” Uncle Colon thinks out loud. “For now let’s continue with the fact that the world continues to spin on, eh?”

We round a corner towards the shop and- And come across a face I never thought I’d see in America.

“Ah, good day, Verena,” a familiar gangster greets, tipping his hat.

“Hello, Mr. Solomons,” I greet, bewildered. “What brings you to this side of the pond?”

“I’m meeting your previous boss up north. I am here now ‘cause I’ve just acquired half of Boston and would like to inspect my new empire, and thought of paying your uncle a visit.” He nods at Uncle Colon, who goes on ahead into our pub. “Oh, and I’m showing my new wife around as well.”

My face lights up. “Congratulations!”

The Jewish man gets a twinkle in his eye and looks down. “I see no ring on your finger. No lucky man’s won you over yet?” He waves it away. “Don’t bother. We both know who you’re thinking of.”

My face twists into an awkward frown and I look down. The envelope is still crammed in my dresser. Now in addition to dreading phone calls I have to keep alert for postage too.

“I received a letter from him last week. I haven’t opened it yet. I’m afraid it might stir up memories I’d rather keep buried.”

Mr. Solomons takes his time playing with his cane before he offers a response. “Well, if you won’t do it for yourself, do it for an old Jewish gangster who wants to see his friend find forgiveness.” He pats my shoulder. “Do it for dear old Alfie, eh? Even if you don’t like what it says, you can still toss it, right?”

“Um, I mean- Well, I could- Uh-” 

I stutter to come up with an answer as he slips inside after Uncle Colon. He keeps a sly smile on his face, leaving my mind scrambled. Are he and Thomas in kahoots against me? Did Ada tell Thomas I won’t accept a call and to send a letter instead? I mean, I can’t keep the letter stored away forever. Even if I don’t dispose of it, one of my broers will find it and read it for me. 

I take a deep breath and start marching back home. Alright, that’s it. No more hiding. Alfie’s right. Even if I don’t like what I read I can always burn the letter and Thomas will never know. 

Back in my room I pull open the drawer and stare down at the crumpled envelope. My heart stings at the sight of Thomas’ familiar handwriting more than I’d care to admit. I slowly pick it up and slip out the letter. Here we go…

Verena-

I know if I call you then you will immediately hang up. I don’t even know if you will actually read this letter or immediately burn it. All I can pray for is that you read it before destroying it. 

I need to talk to you. At first I wanted to write out a full apology but words aren't enough. I understand if you wish to never see me again. Anyone I touch gets hurt. I never wanted to hurt you. But that does not mean I can forget you. I want to make amends. Please call me so I can hear from you one last time.

-Thomas

What are the chances? Thomas nearly read my mind. And yet… I don’t feel the burning rage I expected. His words don’t sound condescending or overly perceptive. They sound… sad. Thomas, you can fire me. But don’t deceive me by writing like you still care. He should just let me go, just as I am letting him go. Trying to let him go.

In the corner of the room the telephone waits, tempting me. No. No… No? Lord, I really am pathetic! One short letter sends me running back again! But, I mean, he did reach out to discuss forgiveness, like Alfie said. If this is the last time we communicate at least it will resolve any last concerns.

Time seems to slow as I reach for the receiver. Only a few dials and I’ll be talking to the man I swore to never crawl back to. But this isn’t crawling back. This is one final goodbye.

Ring. Ring. Ring. Please pick up-!

“Hello?” A gruff voice crackles over the line.

Thomas. My heart beats faster. He sounds older. I can tell he’s trying to hide the fact that his world is changing. He’s masking his voice and he doesn’t even know it’s me yet. Keep it together, Steenstra.

“Thomas, I got your letter. What’s wrong?”

A few seconds go by.

“Christ. It’s you,” he whispers, letting his facade slip for a moment before resuming his bland tone. “You assume something’s wrong?”

No beating around the bush this time! “You won’t talk to me unless there is something wrong. Everyone keeps telling me how your life’s gone to Hell in a handbasket. Now spill.”

It hurts me to sound this cruel and heartless, especially since he’s just lost his dochter. But I can’t slip up again. He was urgent enough to write to me so this call is all I’m allowing.

“Right,” he rambles, remembering what I’m calling about. “Um- It’s good to hear you-”

“Thomas Shelby.”

“Right. It’s- Um… I know it’s been a while since you were here-”

“Four years,” I recall bluntly. Get to the point, Thomas!

“Yes, well… I’d like to see you again.”

Is he serious? He has the audacity to tug me around like this? If he believes I’m going to literally crawl back to him after all this time he really has gone mad! He asked me for a phone call and that’s all I’m giving him!

“I’m busy over here-”

“It’s not work. I- Please, I’ll explain later.”

My grip on the phone tightens. “I’m not skipping over the pond again for you to yell at me and then push me away. If I recall right, it was you who fired me.”

His voice is starting to break. “Verena, please. I- I…”

“Get to the point. These calls aren’t cheap.” Not a complete lie but I’m getting tired of this!

“I’ll send for you.”

I roll my eyes and bark directly at the receiver. “If you need me so much, why don’t you come here yourself? Too busy with your empire? Or did you let Michael ruin that too?”

“Verena-” Thomas pleas.

“No, I’m serious. You’re the one who runs the show, the one to blame for how your life is. I will not be pulled into it anymore, nor will anyone else in my familie.”

Suddenly there’s a commotion on the other end. It sounds like Thomas is struggling. But with what? Or who?

“Verena, please, I am begging you!” He gasps. “Please forgive me!”

I’ve never heard him so desperate. One would think he’s at Death’s door. Or maybe he’s still mourning Ruby. Either way, this is a side of Thomas that is rarely let out. Ada was right. He does sound like a stranger to himself.

“Are you alright?” I ask in disbelief, my anger mixing with worry.

I hear him gasp for breath again. “I need to see you-!”

Thud.

“Thomas?” My voice grows louder. “Thomas? Thomas!”

Click.

The line goes dead, leaving an eerie silence in its wake. That was not normal. Thomas might be an oddball but he never abruptly ends conversations like that, at least not with me. Something is definitely wrong. Between my visions of Polly and now this… Pathetic or not, old habits are tempting me to not let go. I might have to put my fears aside.

I redial the phone and wait a few seconds. Lord, I hope she hears me out.

“Hello?”

“Lizzie. It’s Verena. I heard about your dochter.” I pause to think over my words carefully, surprised she hasn’t hung up already. “I am so, so sorry. Words cannot amount to the right way to express sympathies for the loss of a child. I’ve been praying for Ruby. For all of you.”

“At least you’ve turned to proper ways of hope,” Lizzie snaps, her voice cracking. “All Tommy did was wander around looking for fucking Gypsy curses.”

He really has turned desperate. But there’s something he’s not telling me, and I’m not waiting around for an answer.

“Lizzie, I’m thinking of catching the next boat to England. I need to know that you are fine with me coming over. I know you don’t like me being around but-”

“You can come,” she scoffs. “I don’t fucking care anymore. I left him.”

My jaw drops. “You…?”

“I want a normal life. Not the one he’s given me. If I have to attend another fucking social gathering I’m going to throw up.” She takes an uneven breath. “He’s not the same man anymore. He’s not been well. Doesn’t sleep. I’ve had to wake him up from spasms. All he claims is that after this deal with Boston everything will be over. Fucking lies.” She lets out a muffled scream. “He won’t fucking stop! This life- It took my Ruby! I’m done with it. All this madness- This fucking Gypsy stuff! You can keep it.”

Clang!

She slams the phone down and I’m left with more silence. Now Lizzie has fallen too. In spite of how proud she was to have won Thomas, she lost part of her life. All the glamour and sex was all for a loveless marriage that took her dochter. Never did I think she would have the nerve to leave all that she fought for, but death can make us reevaluate things.

Should I tell anyone about the call from Thomas? Lord, I dare not even think of mentioning it to moeder or vader. I could tell Uncle Colon, but he'll probably side with my parents and want to hide me away from any more affiliation with Thomas. If this is a mission I will choose, I will have to do it alone. Should I even gamble to risk it?

I step over to my bedroom window and peer out at the open night sky. Is Thomas looking up at these stars right now too? Instead of kindling the anger from the past all I can think of is how isolated he must feel. 

@sherbitdibdab @meadows5

[walks-the-ages]

Before you scream and cry "who else can we vote for except Genocide Joe Biden??? 😭" How about you actually do some research into different candidates who are on your state's ballot?

[ID: a graph of the USA state map, with most states deep green, one light green state, two purple states, one orange state, and the rest of the states in yellow.

Deep Green states have the Green Party on the ballot, and are: ME, MI, WV, NC,SC, GA, FL, MS, AR, LA, TX, NM, AZ, CO, UT, NV, CA, OR, MT, and WI.

Light Green states have Jill herself on the ballot instead of the Green party, and is: ID.

Purple States have the ballot awaiting certification, and are NY and AK.

Orange States are building a team, and is OK.

Yellow States are actively petitioning to get the Green Party/Jill on the Ballot, and are: WA, WY, ND. SD, NE, KS, MN, IA, MO, IL, IN, OH, KY, TN, AL, PA, VT,NH, MA, CT, NJ, MD, and VA.

End ID]

Instead of voting for "99% Hitler who is currently commiting genocide", have you considered voting for someone ELSE who actually opposes genocide and actually cares about all the issues that Democrats claim to care about but usually do the opposite of when they gain office?

Did you know that the minimum wage in the United States of America is still $7.25 per hour

($3.34 an hour for disabled workers, and $2.13 an hour for tipped workers)

despite "Fight for $15" movement starting Twelve Fucking Years Ago in 2012???

Did you know that even if they made the federal minimum wage $15 tomorrow, that still over a fucking decade outdated and the current livable wage is over $20, especially if you're trying to raise kids??

Jill Stein wants to raise the minimum wage federally to $25 an hour.

From the $7.25 that it's been stuck at for fifteen years and it wasn't realistic even then?

[hopeymchope]

I wish Spike Chunsoft would just go full "Persona" with Danganronpa and milk it with tons of spinoffs.

I'd be there for every goddamn one of them on DAY ONE, you know. Pick your genre! The minute they figured out how to make a decent third-person DR action game with Ultra Despair Girls, that should've opened the floodgates wide IMO. In fact, if you take any given Persona spinoff, I can tell you how easily/naturally they could develop (and I could get super-hyped for) a Danganronpa equivalent.

Danganronpa Arena is SO obvious. It's the MOST obvious spinoff, and it has been sitting there waiting to be creating for seven goddamn years now. Ever since Kodaka said he wants a DR fighting game. Hey, remember that official DR3 Staff Book art that showed Nanami dreaming about it? Many of us have shared fan ideas for the story and/or for character moves. COME ON, y'all. What's the holdup?? DO IT! DO IT NOW!

Danganronpa: Dancing? FUCK YAS. I mean, there's already some wicked dance remixes of the game soundtracks in that Crypt of the Necrodancer DR content, so why the hell not?? And I recall that @dreamrlu did some great fanart (1) for how the (2) V3 crew could dress (3).

Danganronpa Q, a dungeon crawler? Despair Dungeon already exists, so it's COMPLETELY NATURAL. It's just a higher-quality production of that same concept! And if you haven't seen that fanmade version of the first "Persona Q" opening where it's the casts of DR1 and DR2 meeting up? It's AMAZING.

Danganronpa Tactica? Imagine leading squads from the Future Foundation (including DR1 and DR3 cast members) in missions against remaining Remnants of Despair. I've been playing a lot of tactical RPGs lately, and there's a lot of room to tell a ton of story in this format... plus it's not like you even have to make complex graphics to make it work, so SC doesn't have to worry about struggling with 3D renders if they don't want to. Just consider how Digimon Survive pulled this off with 2D sprite art!

Danganronpa Strikers is, uh, maybe the hardest to justify — but if you set it in the virtual world, that could make it easy! Since Danganronpa S already took place entirely in VR and contained a load of combat encounters, why the hell not do a similar setup for an action game? And if you prefer to keep in the real world, there are still a number of characters I could easily justify making playable in such a scenario — Genocide(r), Sakura, Asahina, Mondo, Nekomaru, Peko, Akane, Great Gozu, Seiko, Munakata, Maki, Gonta, etc. I can even picture some more-unlikely candidates such as Kimura slotting into the roster. I don't even like musou games that much, but ofc I'd play the SHIT out of this one.

Look: I know I'm an insatiable fan who just wants more precious content with these characters. But you can't convince me that these things wouldn't also SELL. The brand reached new heights of awareness and sales with V3, and they haven't really capitalized on that at all aside from giving us "Danganronpa S." We haven't even gotten a new anime since DR3, FFS! And I'm confident that any one of the ideas listed above would sell far better than a weird digital board game with RPG combat set inside VR, frankly. :P

[stained-glass-cicada]

one of my nearly line by line posts about sayer and brady's interaction in Episode 66- Developer's log

sorry

"Are we getting the staff I requested?" "I suppose that likely depends on your responses to the aforementioned follow up questions. Wouldn't you think? ...Oh, your extensive list of ideal candidate qualities was noted and, I'm even told, briefly perused."

AKDHDGASJA it is MEAN today

"Okay, SAYER, [Laughs] you're coming in a little hot here, uh, I'm sure the higher ups have questions, but I also bet those questions don't come with all this snide judgement that you're slinging. Is there something about this project in particular that's causing this?"

okay so Brady knows SAYER well enough to be unsurprised by SAYER being mean, knows its intentional (not just it being too blunt or logical as a machine), and knows there's a feeling underlying that.

"Dr. Brady, I apologize if you have misinterpreted my statements as judgemental. Or rude. I am simply acting as a facilitator of communication in this situation and do not have enough specifics on your current project for it to be a significant factor in my behavior. I know my relative level of autonomy is frustrating for you, Doctor. Your pet on earth serves as the sole evidence needed of that."

hooo okay 1) sayervoice: I'm Not Mad >:// 2) wow that's how it sees speaker, lacking autonomy, a pet, more tethered than even itself 3)'relative level', it's really feeling its restraints this season

"Ah. So this is about SPEAKER. uh- I'd ask how your feeling about its installation, but I know that's not how you work. uhm- What is it about SPEAKER that's causing this negativity? Do you think its installation endangers your ability to perform the tasks you are assigned?"

he's genuinely trying to ask it whats wrong without it shutting down the line of inquiry or being insulted.

"Recruitment is on the rise... It has been suggested, by those who would know, that this would imply a need for advancement here as well. I do not think i would like to be replaced."

I think about that last bit daily. It feels like such a show of vulnerability.

"Given our recent discussion, wherein Dr. Young attacked my impeccable reasoning, and proposed I was out of touch with humanity's delicate need to be coddled, you might understand why I have my reservations about his current work. He is unpredictable. I find him complicated to interact with."

it was so hurt by the conversation in The Games You Play. It does not know what to do with Young and the constant maneuvering he does. Its also being so open with Brady. It's scared and it needs someone above Young to offer reassurance.

"I want you to know, we're not working on replacing you. I don't know what role we're building this new entity to fill, but its not going to be on-boarding, alert broadcasting, task management... If you'll pardon the analogy, if this thing is a ninety thousand PSI water-jet, you'd be the Mississippi river. Kay? Same basic pieces, wildly different function."

very logic and function based reassurance. because that's what SAYER would accept? or because he ultimately sees it as a tool? regardless its effective enough for now

"You are attempting to mirror human development with this synthetic entity... This seems unnatural..."

Interesting, not sure what to make of this, is this why it sought to ruin FUTURE? Not *just* to get back at Young, but to prove how easy it would be to ruin an AI being trained like this?

"I'm willing to work with whatever situation"

Conceded to SAYER's and/or higher up's judgement , a good move, Doesn't act like he knows best

"Thirty three hours ago Dr. Young submitted a request... In the future, please remember all such requests should come directly from you as team lead. Anything else could imply a certain level of disorganization within your team."

I read this as less a threat and more a warning. You gave me information, I know You at least don't intend to replace me, even if I know Young does. Here's how he's screwing you over.

[frostythefrostedfox]

Don't you worry, you'll be to told exactly what to do I give my people the lives they need The righteous will succeed

You know what I don't like about rebel stories like Hunger Games and Divergent? That we never get the opposite, how about a compliance story?

Something that always bothered me about certain videogames is how they never ever, not even for one second, entertain the thought that you might not agree with them, they all follow the same formula

MC is respected member of [SOCIETY] > MC has encounter with bad side of [SOCIETY] > MC is told not to question things > MC questions things > MC turns sides > MC opposes and wins against [SOCIETY]

But what if I don't wanna? Why do we never get a videogame like that?

I want a game where the MC discovers the truth about the place they live in, and even with that knowledge they stand up and say "Ok and?" and carry on with their life; and that's how this fella was created

My young impressionable mind was exposed to Syndicate (2012) in 2013, the cover looked so cool and all the promo material online was great, it even had the theme song done by Skrillex, Nero, Flux Pavillion and Digitalism (for the people that likes real music and is reading this, that used to mean a lot, they were huge and everywhere for us noise-enjoyers), but the late part of the game and the ending never really... caught my attention, I always found the introduction of the game a loooot more enjoyable, before Kilo becomes a rebel and fights Eurocorp.

And that is why I created this fella. You can even call it a semi faceclaim.

Just like Kilo, born to a syndicate to serve the syndicate, except that i wasn't Eurocorp, it was Cayman Global, following their in-universe explanation that DART-6 has not been reverse engineered by any company and is propietary software of Eurocorp, Cayman decided to try their hand at it with what knowledge they have on it, and that is how they came up with the idea of Speciality Chips, or S.C, they work similarly to DART-6, with its own schizophrenia inducing voice interface and all, except that they don't enhance every single part of a 'soldier', instead they are using to make people 'better' at their jobs, depending on the role and occupation chosen for them at birth.

Fake memories of a fake family and a fake childhood, an AI prompt fed into his brain by the SC as a child to mould his personality to what Cayman needed it to be, with fake hardships to strenghten his character and fake triumphs to make him proud and happy. And every single thing he remembers doing as a child was a stage play to nurture and test his abilities, a continious selection program where only the best move on to the next phase while never aware that they are competing; every single one of those kids he beat at Spelling Bee as a child were just like him, and their failure meant their removal from the program, another job at Cayman Global will be found for them that fits their skillset, same thing for karting tournaments, academic score, everything.

His parents are just company employees told to act a certain way to incite certain reactions, records of who he was born to are probably kept somewhere, but who cares anyways, for as long as he believes those are his parents, they will do.

The only thing that makes him a somewhat rare candidate is that he is not a single child, he has a sister, also put throught the same program as him, just for another role, using a different version of the chip for a completely different purpose.

After years of serving Cayman Global and earning his Black Stripe clearance, one of his missions has his evacuation transport crash and drop him into the sea, after his chip entered power saving mode due to not consuming enough food or water, it was the first time he ever experienced fully thinking for himself, not having his thoughts molded, suggested or coerced by any company directive, and he found those thoughts to be quite similar to the ones he had before, questioning the methods of execution of Cayman Global, but not their ideals or beliefs. Why was he floating in the sea for so long? Shouldn't they pick him up as soon as his signal dissapeared? If the SC is an AI, do they all have different personalities and voices? Is his specially made for him?

Upon arriving Someplace, Somewhere in [COUNTRY], his chip came back into service, except that now they had a different set of information and ideas, his head filled with questions that the SC couldn't answer, but none of these doubts ever put his allegiance into question, so none of them got reported back, which would have ironically gotten him rescued faster.

Eventually he came across some locals, his uniform and armor damaged, no longer sporting any visible mark of his employer, they took him in, unaware of who he was; they certainly wouldn't have if they knew he was working for the exact same company responsible for making their life so miserable.

Time passed, he learned things from the locals and the locals learnt from him, all of his training was very real, and it showed, a trained agent like him could do things these guerrilla fighters only dreamed of, eventually being a prominent voice in this little tribe that nursed him back to health, he got a taste of what being in power was like, and he liked it, and his SC was taking records of it.

This sudden change in approach to a more professional and organized course of action peaked the interest of the tribe's enemies too, they couldn't have learned these things overnight, someone was helping them, their first thought was a rival syndicate, and so they dispatched a whole bunch of agents to deal with the new threat, ironically one of these agents being his sister.

The two were fated to encounter, and that is exactly what happened, just not the way they expected it, and certainly not the way they wanted it, and totally against the syndicate's wishes. Their SCs mark each other as [RELATIVE], but they don't know this other animal in front of them, how could these two different animals could have come out of the same mother, they are not the same species, she's a bird, he's a fox, he has a marksman tag, she has a bruiser tag, they look nothing alike, they are nothing alike.

Cayman Global originally thought of this as an inconvenience that should be dealt with immediately, but latter settled on exploring the possible opportunities of letting their bond be known to each other, and more importantly, the opportunity to gain an insider with access to the locals. And they had a lot to know about each other, their customs, their way of doing things, their likes and dislikes.

This only led to more question appearing on his head, why was everything at Cayman so peaceful, why can he just solve problems with his sister so easily, while the locals have all of these problems, tribes not settling in on one thing, having to constantly ask for things, changing their minds, disagreeing, fights; maybe they had so much problems with the syndicates because of their ways, if they could understand each other, things could probably be solved quicker.

But the tribes didn't wanted that, and rightfully so, they did not wanted to surrender their freedom, their land and everything they own to a company to manage and do as it pleases with, it was theirs.

You can't teach an old dog new tricks, he and his sister were raised by the Syndicate, to them these ideas the locals speak of were nonsense, all of this chaos and problems that could be easily fixed, why wouldnt you want to fix it?

And that's when his SC, for the first time in forever, came up with its own idea, not something fed by the mainframe. Betray the tribes.

And betray the tribes they indeed do, Cayman agents agreed to the plan after a lot of favours being called and some heavy bargaining in the form of his sister's fists. An easy pick for the tribes, a Helibird crashed into the desert after a sandstorm, few survivours and a delayed rescue team due to the poor visibility, the perfect chance to pick up resources; but the only thing they picked up was a fight they couldn't win.

And so he triumphantly returned to his home, Cayman Global headquarters, but his new... Ideas... were not popular with all of his superiors, but those that agreed with him were not afraid of showing his support.

That's how he met Moon, someone that has been sitting near the top for way too long, and no longer thinks the head should be doing the thinking, and she was ready to make a play for it, playing with some strings here and there to have the siblings end up under her supervision, she could train and explore where these ideas of theirs really led to, what did they meant.

He gave a new name to his SC's voice, Lightning, and she liked it, it was nice to be her own thing, not just another chip, and in return, he let her take control over bits and pieces of his brain that none of the chips should have access to.

Little by little, Moon slowly revealled what the syndicates were up to, a second syndicate war was brooding up, and it was going to be way worse than the one they had in 2049, and she remembers that one pretty well, she was still an active agent back then. She allowed him to take a peek behind the curtain, how his memories were manipulated and changed in order to fit a narrative created by the syndicate, how his upbringing was all fake, how he was monitored and sought after like a guinea pig.

And he had absolutely no problem with any of that, his mind was so deeply consumed by the company's mindset that he couldn't even begin to understand how could any of those things were bad, he never questioned his position or his role in Cayman Global, instead he just wanted more, his last adventure made him hungry for things he should have never tasted, the company's propaganda kept him docile and happy, but also kept him compliant and safe, and he wanted none of the latter, having power is great, being in charge is amazing and telling other people what to do feels good; and Lightning agreed with it, why should she be a simple voice on his head, when she could control all the other voices on everyone's head.

That is where their real 'adventure' begins, not to destroy a corrupt syndicate, not to make the world a better place, not to make it fairer, is to put themselves on top, be the one that cuts the cake instead of being the one receiving a slice.

Thank you for coming to my OC rant

[endcant]

Crossposted from my Tumblr Community: The Trans South

--

The Trans South Monthly Bulletin Board

Our pinned post for the month of November, 2024.

comment anything you want to add, and i'll add what fits in this month's post. i'll be making a new post each month, so you may need to resubmit any links that are applicable for multiple months. check the comments for anything i missed!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

the bright side:

the fact that you're alive is good news to me!

"Good News: Some States Passed Protections for Abortion Access, Marriage Equality, and More" | Here is an article with some upshots and progress from the 2024 election.

"Lipstick Lounge Owners Break Ground on Sports Bar Venture" | "The Lipstick Lounge is one of only 32 open and operating lesbian bars in the United States registered with the Lesbian Bar Project."

"Florida's LGBTQ+ community defies queer repression with advocacy & preservation" | "I will not paint a desolate picture of the state. And, there still is hope."

"The Candy Shop: Columbia SC Rallies to Honor Landmark Black Gay Bar" | "Researchers and preservationists at Historic Columbia have joined the struggle to correct the way the club has thus far been "written over" in the historical record."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

TTS crowdfunds:

help fellow transgender people in your community today!

Catgirl-smash needs help with bills and moving!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

fun links:

things that gave me dopamine and kept me going

Read "When We Call a Place Home" by Chinelo Onwualu | "A utopian tale of historical memory, the dangers of forgetting…and vampires."

WEBFISHING | "WEBFISHING is a multiplayer chatroom-focused fishing game! Relax and fish (on the web!)"

Memory Games | I've been using these memory games to try to heal my brain a bit from long covid brain fog.

Mahogany's List of Black Banned Books | Read some books they don't want you to read!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

useful links:

interesting resources and organizations you should know about

Trans Reads | "Trans Reads is an ambitious project created by and for transgender people to openly access writing related to our communities."

Southerners On New Ground | "SONG is a home for LGBTQ liberation across all lines of race, class, abilities, age, culture, gender, and sexuality in the South".

Winners from The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund | Check out this list of winning LGBTQ+ candidates for various political offices from around the U.S. who were supported by the Victory Fund.

Lambda Legal's Help Desk | "a resource for the community we serve in providing general legal information and resources relating to discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, and HIV status."

Every State has a DD Council! | Did you know that it's federal law that every state must have a council whose job it is to hold their state accountable on behalf of developmentally disabled people?

Help the Palestinian People with a Click | "Your free click generates donations from our sponsors. Remember, you may click once a day, every day. Donations raised will go to UNRWA to assist the Palestinian refugees."

--

If you're an adult trans person in the U.S. South, join my Tumblr Community: The Trans South.

If you're a teen trans person in the U.S. South and you create a youth community for trans southerners, let me know and I'll link to it in The Trans South.

[mariacallous]

Republicans are thrashing around trying to get themselves out of the abortion ban they have tried to win for so many decades. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was the first. In the fall of 2022, just months after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, he proposed legislation calling for a national abortion ban after 15 weeks. So far, this bill has gone nowhere. Then, in 2023, gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin of Virginia put the 15-week abortion ban at the center of his campaign to help the GOP take full control of the Virginia legislature. Rather than holding one house and picking up the other, he lost both. Recently, former President Donald Trump—who often brags about appointing the three Supreme Court justices who made possible the repeal of Roe v. Wade—offered his own way out of the thicket by applauding the fact that states now can decide the issue for themselves. And in Arizona, the Republican Senate candidate, Kari Lake, is trying to rally the party around the notion of a 15-week ban instead of the 1864 near total ban their court just affirmed, even though she’s facing criticism for this on the far right. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal came out with a poll showing that abortion was the number one issue—by far—for suburban women voters in swing states.

In each instance (and there will be more) we find Republicans desperately trying to find a position on the issue that makes their base and the other parts of their coalition happy.

It doesn’t exist, and here’s why—abortion is an integral part of health care for women.

Since 2022, when the Supreme Court eviscerated Roe in the Dobbs case, we have been undergoing a reluctant national seminar in obstetrics and gynecology. All over the country, legislators—mostly male—are discovering that pregnancy is not simple. Pregnancies go wrong for many reasons, and when they do, the fetus needs to be removed. One of the first to discover this reality was Republican State Representative Neal Collins of South Carolina. He was brought to tears by the story of a South Carolina woman whose water broke just after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Obstetrics lesson #1—a fetus can’t live after the water breaks. But “lawyers advised doctors that they could not remove the fetus, despite that being the recommended medical course of action.” And so, the woman was sent home to miscarry on her own, putting her at risk of losing her uterus and/or getting blood poisoning.

A woman from Austin, Texas had a similar story—one that eventually made its way into a heart-wrenching ad by the Biden campaign. Amanda Zurawski was 18 weeks pregnant when her water broke. Rather than remove the fetus, doctors in Texas sent her home where she miscarried—and developed blood poisoning (sepsis) so severe that she may never get pregnant again. Note that in both cases the medical emergency happened after 15 weeks—late miscarriages are more likely to have serious medical effects than early ones. The 15-week idea, popular among Republicans seeking a way out of their quagmire, doesn’t conform to medical reality.

Over in Arkansas, a Republican state representative learned that his niece was carrying a fetus who lacked a vital organ, meaning that it would never develop normally and either die in utero or right after birth. Obstetrics lesson #2—severe fetal abnormalities happen. He changed his position on the Arkansas law saying, “Who are we to sit in judgment of these women making a decision between them and their physician and their God above?”

In a case that gained national attention, Kate Cox, a Texas mother of two, was pregnant with her third child when the fetus was diagnosed with a rare condition called Trisomy 18, which usually ends in miscarriage or in the immediate death of the baby. Continuing this doomed pregnancy put Cox at risk of uterine rupture and would make it difficult to carry another child. Obstetrics lesson #3—continuing to carry a doomed pregnancy can jeopardize future pregnancies. And yet the Texas Attorney General blocked an abortion for Cox and threatened to prosecute anyone who took care of her, and the Texas Supreme Court ruled that her condition did not meet the statutory exception for “life-threatening physical condition.”

So, she and her husband eventually went to New Mexico for the abortion.

Obstetrics lesson #4—miscarriages are very common, affecting approximately 30% of pregnancies. While many pass without much drama and women heal on their own—others cause complications that require what’s known as a D&C for dilation and curettage. This involves scraping bits of pregnancy tissue out of the uterus to avoid infection. When Christina Zielke of Maryland was told that her fetus had no heartbeat, she opted to wait to miscarry naturally.

While waiting, she and her husband traveled to Ohio for a wedding where she began to bleed so heavily that they had to go to an emergency room. A D&C would have stopped the bleeding, but in Ohio, doctors worried that they would be criminally charged under the new abortion laws and sent her home in spite of the fact that she was still bleeding heavily and in spite of the fact that doctors in Maryland had confirmed that her fetus had no heartbeat. Eventually her blood pressure dropped, and she passed out from loss of blood and returned to the hospital where a D&C finally stopped the bleeding.

These are but a few of the horror stories that will continue to mount in states with partial or total bans on abortion. As these stories accumulate, the issue will continue to have political punch. We have already seen the victory of pro-choice referenda in deep red conservative states like Kansas, Kentucky, Montana, and Ohio; and in swing states like Michigan and in deep blue states like California and Vermont. In an era where almost everything is viewed through a partisan lens, abortion rights transcend partisanship.

And more referenda are coming in November. The expectation is that at least some, if not most, of the pro-choice voters likely to be mobilized by the abortion issue will help Democrats up and down the ballot. As a result, Democratic campaigns are working hard to make sure the public knows that Republicans are responsible.

[centrally-unplanned]

If given unlimited power to dictate US domestic policy, what would be your top three projects?

(An ask from my long "things to respond to" list lol) Well this depends on what we mean by "unlimited". Like if you actually get handwave away the constraints of legitimacy and rivals to power, then in a certain sense politics is solved-by-cheat-code. If that applied I would simply become dictator for life with a democratic succession in place (since my predecessor won't have my magic) and rule amazingly, everyone would be better off, and they would not invent reasons to undermine my vision because I have "unlimited power", right?

So setting that aside, let us instead say I have a window of opportunity of a unified Congress & court system for my agenda, but within the normal constraints, will fade quickly, etc. I would primarily aim for structural changes - I would reform Congress & the Supreme Court, for one. Abolish the senate, implement voter reform (I think I keep candidate-voting over party voting, since I want to work "in the system" and I think it is fine, so stuff like rank-order ballots and multi-member districts). If I can swing it, I repeal the 10th Amendment - the default state should be the federal government has the authority to do things, times change, all state authority should derive from federal authority, not vice versa.

I pretty radically reform the Supreme Court - no more lifetime appointments ofc and all that, sure, but I also structure it to be more directly integrated into the government. If congress is debating a bill, the SC will directly consult on its legality, and when it is passed its constitutionality and major "points of debate" will already be decided. The "adversarial" legal system, while fine enough for criminal law, is awful for governance - I would do away with it for consultative approaches. But to go deeper than specific SC/Congress would, imo, but overly ambitious, and start breaking things.

Even though these are pretty radical if Congress & the governors all agreed to do it a la this magical premise, wider society wouldn't push back that. Most people either don't care about this stuff, or in fact actively don't like the current system. They would be more likely to stick, unlike "open borders" which would immediately face wide revolt.

That probably counts as three, but if not just for fun I abolish local zoning in its entirety and just copy-paste the Japanese zoning code system onto ours and have a central ministry control zoning for the entire country. Primarily for revenge.

[ralfmaximus]

The Wisconsin Supreme Court will decide if erstwhile presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. should remain on the state’s ballot in November. The state’s highest court granted a request on Friday from the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) to weigh in on if Kennedy’s name should be removed from state’s ballots, per his request.

In this week's episode of the dark comedy series RFK Jr., our protagonist desperately tries to have his name removed from ballots in Trump swing states, but according to the rules, it's too late.

So now he's appealed to Wisconsin's Supreme Court for a last minute overturn of lower courts' findings that nope, you're screwed pal. Will that SC save the day? Tune in next week soon to find out!

In a hilarious post-credits scene it was revealed that absentee ballots with his name on them have already been mailed to voters.

[i-am-irish1993]

Funny how people see an intrusive candid photo and immediately create a some bs that fits their narrative. Let’s be real here. They were having a conversation and it’s one split second picture. He went to her Arizona show right after he was done with his shows and now he’s with her SC, which says it all. Can we stop trying to make it seem like famous men hate their partners? Because that’s clearly not true here. You can gesticulate and look serious in conversations not everything is so dramatic. To even suggest that they were arguing is ridiculous. I know people don’t like her but Hugh has looked so happy lately. Sorry but some of these takes are so ridiculous. No life behind his eyes? It’s giving teenage fangirls being in denial that their fave is happy in a relationship. This is a middle aged man. For some reason his fanbase has become so parasocial it’s weird.

I’m just taking it as I see, you’re right it’s a candid photo. I’m just saying my interpretation of the photo is that something was going on, but that’s just how I see it.

There are lots of people who don’t want to see their favorite celebrity in a relationship, I get that. I know that could be the case for some, but I think people are more upset at the (rumored) questionable things that they have both done in the last few years. I think Hugh’s fans want him to be happy, just with a good person.

Yes, I do have my own thoughts on this whole situation, but those are just my thoughts. I love answering asks and seeing the “drama” but it isn’t something I hyper fixate on. I just see people talking about it and I like to put my opinion out there too.

[bballlvr8]

Can I say something? I’m here for trash talking I mean it’s sports, people feel passionate about their teams. Kayla has to realize she can’t post everything that comes to mind. As far as fans going after Faith, UConn has yet to beat any team that is considered final four candidates ex. USC, ND and still have SC to go. Granted they didn’t have all their players and those matchups could have went their way with everyone healthy,however, there are some glaring issues that a great team like SC will exploit and beat them with ease if those issues are not corrected.

yep, I had literally just made a post about how they still have two ranked matchups coming up and nobody knows how those games are going to go so there’s no reason to make a post like that setting up your friends literally 

I also just don’t understand why they’re going after faith when she did nothing..like it’s so weird