#What would a second trump term look like | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

yesornopolls · 3 months ago

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The article is under the cut because paywalls suck

This is an edited transcript of an audio essay on “The Ezra Klein Show.” You can listen to the conversation by following or subscribing to the show on the NYT Audio App, Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.

If you want to understand the first few weeks of the second Trump administration, you should listen to what Steve Bannon told PBS’s “Frontline” in 2019:

Steve Bannon: The opposition party is the media. And the media can only, because they’re dumb and they’re lazy, they can only focus on one thing at a time. … All we have to do is flood the zone. Every day we hit them with three things. They’ll bite on one, and we’ll get all of our stuff done. Bang, bang, bang. These guys will never — will never be able to recover. But we’ve got to start with muzzle velocity. So it’s got to start, and it’s got to hammer, and it’s got to — Michael Kirk: What was the word? Bannon: Muzzle velocity.

Muzzle velocity. Bannon’s insight here is real. Focus is the fundamental substance of democracy. It is particularly the substance of opposition. People largely learn of what the government is doing through the media — be it mainstream media or social media. If you overwhelm the media — if you give it too many places it needs to look, all at once, if you keep it moving from one thing to the next — no coherent opposition can emerge. It is hard to even think coherently.

Donald Trump’s first two weeks in the White House have followed Bannon’s strategy like a script. The flood is the point. The overwhelm is the point. The message wasn’t in any one executive order or announcement. It was in the cumulative effect of all of them. The sense that this is Trump’s country now. This is his government now. It follows his will. It does what he wants. If Trump tells the state to stop spending money, the money stops. If he says that birthright citizenship is over, it’s over.

Or so he wants you to think. In Trump’s first term, we were told: Don’t normalize him. In his second, the task is different: Don’t believe him.

Trump knows the power of marketing. If you make people believe something is true, you make it likelier that it becomes true. Trump clawed his way back to great wealth by playing a fearsome billionaire on TV; he remade himself as a winner by refusing to admit he had ever lost. The American presidency is a limited office. But Trump has never wanted to be president, at least not as defined in Article II of the U.S. Constitution. He has always wanted to be king. His plan this time is to first play king on TV. If we believe he is already king, we will be likelier to let him govern as a king.

Don’t believe him. Trump has real powers — but they are the powers of the presidency. The pardon power is vast and unrestricted, and so he could pardon the Jan. 6 rioters. Federal security protection is under the discretion of the executive branch, and so he could remove it from Anthony Fauci and Mike Pompeo and John Bolton and Mark Milley and even Brian Hook, a largely unknown former State Department official under threat from Iran who donated time to Trump’s transition team. It was an act of astonishing cruelty and callousness from a man who nearly died by an assassin’s bullet — as much as anything ever has been, this, to me, was an X-ray of the smallness of Trump’s soul — but it was an act that was within his power.

But the president cannot rewrite the Constitution. Within days, the birthright citizenship order was frozen by a judge — a Reagan appointee — who told Trump’s lawyers, “I have difficulty understanding how a member of the bar would state unequivocally that this is a constitutional order. It just boggles my mind.” A judge froze the spending freeze before it was even scheduled to go into effect, and shortly thereafter, the Trump administration rescinded the order, in part to avoid the court case.

What Bannon wanted — what the Trump administration wants — is to keep everything moving fast. Muzzle velocity, remember. If you’re always consumed by the next outrage, you can’t look closely at the last one. The impression of Trump’s power remains; the fact that he keeps stepping on rakes is missed. The projection of strength obscures the reality of weakness. Don’t believe him.

You could see this a few ways: Is Trump playing a part, making a bet or triggering a crisis? Those are the options. I am not certain he knows the answer. Trump has always been an improviser. But if you take it as calculated, here is the calculation: Perhaps this Supreme Court, stocked with his appointees, gives him powers no peacetime president has ever possessed. Perhaps all of this becomes legal now that he has asserted its legality. It is not impossible to imagine that bet paying off.

But Trump’s odds are bad. So what if the bet fails and his arrogations of power are soundly rejected by the courts? Then comes the question of constitutional crisis: Does he ignore the court’s ruling? To do that would be to attempt a coup. I wonder if they have the stomach for it. The withdrawal of the Office of Management and Budget’s order to freeze spending suggests they don’t. Bravado aside, Trump’s political capital is thin. Both in his first and second terms, he has entered office with approval ratings below that of any president in the modern era. Gallup has Trump’s approval rating at 47 percent — about 10 points beneath Joe Biden’s in January 2021.

There is a reason Trump is doing all of this through executive orders rather than submitting these same directives as legislation to pass through Congress. A more powerful executive could persuade Congress to eliminate the spending he opposes or reform the civil service to give himself the powers of hiring and firing that he seeks. To write these changes into legislation would make them more durable and allow him to argue their merits in a more strategic way. Even if Trump’s aim is to bring the civil service to heel — to rid it of his opponents and turn it to his own ends — he would be better off arguing that he is simply trying to bring the high-performance management culture of Silicon Valley to the federal government. You never want a power grab to look like a power grab.

But Republicans have a three-seat edge in the House and a 53-seat majority in the Senate. Trump has done nothing to reach out to Democrats. If Trump tried to pass this agenda as legislation, it would most likely fail in the House, and it would certainly die before the filibuster in the Senate. And that would make Trump look weak. Trump does not want to look weak. He remembers John McCain humiliating him in his first term by casting the deciding vote against Obamacare repeal.

That is the tension at the heart of Trump’s whole strategy: Trump is acting like a king because he is too weak to govern like a president. He is trying to substitute perception for reality. He is hoping that perception then becomes reality. That can only happen if we believe him.

The flurry of activity is meant to suggest the existence of a plan. The Trump team wants it known that they’re ready this time. They will control events rather than be controlled by them. The closer you look, the less true that seems. They are scrambling and flailing already. They are leaking against one another already. We’ve learned, already, that the O.M.B. directive was drafted, reportedly, without the input or oversight of key Trump officials — “it didn’t go through the proper approval process,” an administration official told The Washington Post. For this to be the process and product of a signature initiative in the second week of a president’s second term is embarrassing.

But it’s not just the O.M.B. directive. The Trump administration is waging an immediate war on the bureaucracy, trying to replace the “deep state” it believes hampered it in the first term. A big part of this project seems to have been outsourced to Elon Musk, who is bringing the tactics he used at Twitter to the federal government. He has longtime aides at the Office of Personnel Management, and the email sent to nearly all federal employees even reused the subject line of the email he sent to Twitter employees: “Fork in the Road.” Musk wants you to know it was him.

The email offers millions of civil servants a backdoor buyout: Agree to resign and in theory, at least, you can collect your paycheck and benefits until the end of September without doing any work. The Department of Government Efficiency account on X described it this way: “Take the vacation you always wanted, or just watch movies and chill, while receiving your full government pay and benefits.” The Washington Post reported that the email “blindsided” many in the Trump administration who would normally have consulted on a notice like that.

I suspect Musk thinks of the federal work force as a huge mass of woke ideologues. But most federal workers have very little to do with politics. About 16 percent of the federal work force is in health care. These are, for instance, nurses and doctors who work for the Veterans Affairs department. How many of them does Musk want to lose? What plans does the V.A. have for attracting and training their replacements? How quickly can he do it?

The Social Security Administration has more than 59,000 employees. Does Musk know which ones are essential to operations and unusually difficult to replace? One likely outcome of this scheme is that a lot of talented people who work in nonpolitical jobs and could make more elsewhere take the lengthy vacation and leave government services in tatters. Twitter worked poorly after Musk’s takeover, with more frequent outages and bugs, but its outages are not a national scandal. When V.A. health care degrades, it is. To have sprung this attack on the civil service so loudly and publicly and brazenly is to be assured of the blame if anything goes wrong.

What Trump wants you to see in all this activity is command. What is really in all this activity is chaos. They do not have some secret reservoir of focus and attention the rest of us do not. They have convinced themselves that speed and force is a strategy unto itself — that it is, in a sense, a replacement for a real strategy. Don’t believe them.

I had a conversation a couple months ago with someone who knows how the federal government works about as well as anyone alive. I asked him what would worry him most if he saw Trump doing it. What he told me is that he would worry most if Trump went slowly. If he began his term by doing things that made him more popular and made his opposition weaker and more confused. If he tried to build strength for the midterms while slowly expanding his powers and chipping away at the deep state where it was weakest.

But he didn’t. And so the opposition to Trump, which seemed so listless after the election, is beginning to rouse itself.

There is a subreddit for federal employees where one of the top posts reads: “This non ‘buyout’ really seems to have backfired. I’ll be honest, before that email went out, I was looking for any way to get out of this fresh hell. But now I am fired up to make these goons as frustrated as possible.” As I write this, it’s been upvoted more than 39,000 times and civil servant after civil servant is echoing the initial sentiment.

In Iowa this week, Democrats flipped a State Senate seat in a district that Trump won easily in 2024. The attempted spending freeze gave Democrats their voice back, as they zeroed in on the popular programs Trump had imperiled. Trump isn’t building support; he’s losing it. Trump isn’t fracturing his opposition; he’s uniting it.

This is the weakness of the strategy that Bannon proposed and Trump is following. It is a strategy that forces you into overreach. To keep the zone flooded, you have to keep acting, keep moving, keep creating new cycles of outrage or fear. You overwhelm yourself. And there’s only so much you can do through executive orders. Soon enough, you have to go beyond what you can actually do. And when you do that, you either trigger a constitutional crisis or you reveal your own weakness.

Trump may not see his own fork in the road coming. He may believe he has the power he is claiming. That would be a mistake on his part — a self-deception that could doom his presidency. But the real threat is if he persuades the rest of us to believe he has power he does not have.

The first two weeks of Trump’s presidency have not shown his strength. He is trying to overwhelm you. He is trying to keep you off-balance. He is trying to persuade you of something that isn’t true. Don’t believe him.

You can listen to this conversation by following “The Ezra Klein Show” on NYT Audio App, Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. View a list of book recommendations from our guests here.

#not a poll #current events #everything is an illusion of power

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netscapenavigator-official · 6 months ago

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Listen. I hope I’m wrong. I hope in 1-3 days you all can point at this post and be like “look at this idiot for being paranoid.” I do. But I feel like the writing’s on the wall. There are no paths forward without Pennsylvania, and that gap is too large.

I hope the non-voters are happy. Legitimately. I hope the Green Party is happy. For real. I hope this outcome brings them the joy they hoped it would. I hope they don’t come to regret the next 2-4 years. I hope they’re at peace.

I hope Europe isn’t forced to change their stance on Ukraine like many Prime Ministers have warned they would. I hope there are Palestinians left in Gaza to liberate after Trump “finishes the job” and gets his real estate property. I hope the number of queer folk killed, whether individually or systematically, in the coming years is minimal. I hope the number of women killed by inaccessibility to medical care is minimal. I hope the number of disabled people who face financial hard times is minimal. I hope we genuinely can cruise through these next 4 years. I hope I’m still around to try and fix this in 2-4 years.

I hope the message the non-voters and Green Party sent is actually received. I hope they didn’t send the message to Democrats that conservatism is the way to win and what we should be embracing.

I hope that nothing in Project 2025 is completed. I hope we win at least one branch to throw a stick in the gears of fascism. I hope Trump bombs his second term so poorly that 2026 wipes the GOP out of the House and Senate.

I hope there’s still a global superpower to fix in 4 years. I hope that the corruption we’ve allowed to thrive tonight doesn’t infect our neighbors across the Atlantic like they fear it will.

I still hope for a better future. But I don’t believe that future is going to happen this time. I’m going to try to go to bed.

#rambles #politics #american politics #elections #election #election 2024 #us elections #presidential election #general election #2024 election #2024 presidential election #democracy #green party

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ms-demeanor · 6 months ago

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hi, hopefully this isnt a stupid question -- this is only my second election i'm voting in, and i'm a little confused about results. is it actually confirmed that trump has won, or is it just almost certain based on the counted votes? bc i know that provisional ballots (like mine) probably arent immediately counted, and there was that thing about votes needing to be verified because of signatures, plus to my knowledge the electoral college doesnt vote til december? i'm probably just grasping at an infinitesimal chance of things not being shit, but also i do actually want to understand and google is not helping :( if you can't explain no worries, you just seem to be knowledgable & willing to answer questions haha

This is absolutely not a stupid question.

So everything is currently pointing at what is most likely, not at what is 100% certain, but it's like 99% certain. There are still votes being counted, but in the states where the election has been called it has been called either because enough of the ballots have been counted that the remaining count wouldn't change the results, or that the area is historically so strongly in favor of one party that it's exceptionally unlikely that they'd flip the other way (for example, they're still counting california's ballots but you're more likely to get struck by lightning five times today than california is to flip red in this election). The places that have not yet been called do not have enough electoral votes for Harris to win the election.

The electoral college is exceedingly unlikely to flip their votes against the state/district vote; "Faithless electors" is the term for members of the electoral college who would vote against the vote they are committed to for their region. It was something discussed in both the 2016 election and the 2020 election and flipping the electoral college without winning the election was the motivation behind J6. As shitty and bullshit as I think the electoral college is, if you're going to have one and you're going to have the rule of law, you can't hope for faithless electors because what you're hoping for at that point is that the people representing you are acting directly against the choice of the voters.

I want you to listen to me. I have been voting in presidential elections since 2004. Presidential elections always suck. Who the president is does matter, and does impact your life, but you genuinely do not have a ton of influence over that so you can't let it throw you into despair and inaction, because we should be active and political and protesting the wrongs of the world even if your favored political party wins. Vote in local elections, work with your local community, and if your local community sucks too, work with online communities to both give and get support.

Whenever something like this happens, people pass around the Mr. Rogers quote about looking to the helpers. I like that quote. I think it's good, I think it's hopeful, I think it helps! But I also think that sometimes it's even more effective if you look for how to help. Who are you the most scared for after this election? Who are you worried about in your community or among your friends? What can you do that might make their life easier? What can you do to protect people like that in your community? What don't you know that might make you better prepared to help them in the future?

One thing that I think is a fantastic way to prepare to help is to either begin or continue learning a language that you don't know. I am working hard on my Spanish because I live in California and there are a ton of Spanish speakers here who I might be able to help. Is it directly aiding anyone right at this second that I'm practicing conjugation? No. But it might help someone who is being harassed by a cop, or who is unhoused and needs help, or who is being abused by an employer at some point in the future, and I can get myself ready to help. Learn how to use naloxone and pick up up an inhaler; you might not need it now, but it'll make you ready to help someone who does need it. Order free covid tests every chance you get, even if you don't need them, because then you can give them out to people who do need them. Plan B has a multi-year shelf life. Pick some up so that you've got some on hand if someone needs it.

Maybe there's nothing you can do right at this exact second (though if you are able to donate to gender affirmation fundraisers, border kindness, abortion funds, bail funds, etc., you can absolutely do that), but you can get ready to help someone who will need you someday.

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smitethestate · 6 months ago

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So in terms of what we need to look out for first with the new Trump presidency, I think the first threat to a huge number of people is going to be mass deportation efforts.

One thing to consider about Trump and Project 2025 is that Trump's first priorities will be himself, his money, his power, and his ego. He doesn't care about anyone or anything but himself. He doesn't care about Project 2025. So what comes first will be about his image and what the people who can bribe him the most want.

Immigration is a huge thing with him, tied up in his ego and his racism. All immigrants, even those who have gained US citizenship, are at risk.

If you are an immigrant or have loved ones who are, look up organizations like the Immigrant Defense Project. Find immigrant defense lawyers in your area. Know your rights and which of them will be stripped when he invokes the Alien Enemies Act on 1798. The ACLU and other human rights orgs will be fighting him every step of the way, but prepare for anything. He will be giving ICE a lot more power. He says he won't tag in the military for this but don't believe a word he says, ever.

For the rest of us, if you're looking to help, you can join or revive local groups that work to alert people to ICE arrests and move to intervene. Forming crowds around arrest vehicles has worked many times to stop arrests from happening. That rules.

If you can't or don't want to join an org, get in touch with your immigrant neighbors, coworkers, etc. Start chatting with them, let them know you want them to stay and you're available to help. We must be in community with our migrant neighbors to effectively help them.

Start thinking about what you're willing to do. All the way to do you have an attic or other hidden space in your home where you can hide people? Are you willing and prepared to be arrested? Defying the government puts you at risk of imprisonment, and you need to be prepared for what that means, both in a practical sense and mentally/emotionally.

Speak with your partners, roommates, friends, and comrades about this. Know who is at the most risk to be arrested and what they will likely experience in prison. For example, BIPOC and disabled people are at a much higher risk when dealing with police and ICE agents. Under no circumstances would I recommend trans women/transfemme folks risk jail or prison time. Be prepared to risk sustaining psychological trauma. Draw and maintain the boundaries you need around any activism, resistance, or revolutionary activity.

I'll go more in depth on what migrants have to expect during the first 100 days of the second Trump term in a later post.

Please add more ideas and resources below if you have them, or make your own post and alert me so I can boost.

#project 2025 #trump presidency #mass deportations

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terras-domain · 10 months ago

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can you tell me on how bad you want Sullyoon? what'll you do if she gives you consent?

AN OFFER I CAN'T REFUSE

Male Reader X Seol Yoon-A (Sullyoon)

Tags: Rich Male Reader, Bratty Sullyoon, Unhealthy Spending, Lip Gloss, Cumshot, Voyeurism

terra's note: hello! Been a while since I've been writing huhu ;-;. Hope you're all doing well. I got quite a line of requests on hold so I better get to it haha. Sorry to the anons waiting for me to actually move my lazy ass, I'll try to set a little time frame for me to do these requests so I can actually write stuff I've been having in my mind. In any case, enjoy~! (And I love you all <3)

"Oppa~! I told you I want to go out shopping again~"

My thumbs could only rub my temple, trying to make sense out of her words. This is her third time this month where she's on a shopping spree. And Sullyoon's shopping addiction isn't any normal addiction, she could range from a thousand to probably fifty thousand dollars just in one day. I might have the money for it, but if she keeps doing this, time will only prove my girlfriend's shopping addiction could only make me go bankrupt.

"But babe...you just went shopping last Wednesday no?" I asked, resting by the couch and stretching my arms to wrap it around Sullyoon. The bratty Yoon-A pouted in dissatisfaction. Honestly it's very cute when she does that face, but it's just not a good day when she keeps nagging and whining about me not giving her enough money to feed her crippling addiction with designer clothes and expensive bags that she barely ever uses. "I know, but oppa. Today there's a special event at the Chanel boutique at the mall. And I want it!" Her eyes starts to pull her trump card, puppy eyes with her soft face resting on against my chest, almost like cat begging for food by purring at me. "Fuck, this brat really doesn't let up easily!" If only I had the guts to say that out loud. Only monologues from the voices inside could be made as a response. "Fine. We can go and take you shopping." Sullyoon's crocodile tears almost got sucked back into her retina from how happy she is to hear the news, smiling ear to ear in victorious. "Yeaaaay~ I love you oppa!"

"But..." I cut off her victory celebration, smirking as I looked back at my girlfriend's pretty face. "Only if you agree to my terms." I continued, making the ecstatic Sullyoon puzzled. "What is it oppa? What's your rule?" "You can spend as much as you like baby. I'll treat you like a princess. But I want to have you as mine 100% today, and you can't say no~" My face looked back at Sullyoon, knowing this type of offer would definitely make her have second thou- "Sure, no problem!" Her quick answer shocked me. Without a single hesitation she wants to take the deal so easily.

I brought her to the bedroom, handing over a small well decorated box, containing a buttplug inside it. "I want you to wear this babe." I ordered, which created a smirk on Sullyoon's face as she laid in bed, spreading her legs as she slowly pushes the sex toy inside her anal hole. "Happy now, baby?" She asked, an eyebrow raising high up, showing this is light work for her. "Oh Sullyoon I love it," I smiled, pecking a kiss on her lips as I rubbed her back door, pushing her buttplug a bit deeper inside while I caress her smooth silky cheeks. "But we're only getting started~"

I asked Sullyoon to come to the mall in a crop top, which of course she has to oblige from the rules we set up together. Though as much as I want to make it a challenge, I couldn't dare to leave her out cold in the mall while shopping, so I lent her my cost to wear while we walk around and look what her lust for expensive products lead her to. She first went to a an SK-II outlet, looking for some beauty products, particularly a new makeup set. It's not like she ran out of them, she just wants a new colour.

Sullyoon tested out a new cherry pink shade on her plump lips, slowly filling in her lushes lips with the colour. It made me hard from how she's so attentive when doing so, causing me to pitch up a tent underneath my pants. "Ughhhh babe...you look hot as always~" I grunted, looking at her painted mouth, smiling back at me as the staff starts to approve how pretty Sullyoon is wearing it. "Thanks baby, it's special edition lipstick by the way. Hope you don't mind that." FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS. God she's really trying her best to drain every penny out of my wallet or something. "Fine...you can buy that-" I surrendered. It was a good colour on her, and it looked so hot I can't say no to that. "but only if you suck me off while wearing those lipstick hehe"

I dragged Sullyoon with me towards a shelf where people don't check out much. Pushing her down on her knees I pulled out my cock to let it land on her face. "Wait...bae not here" Sullyoon pleaded, the shame kicking in as she doesn't wanna get caught, she's an idol after all. My face didn't change expression at all, not even an ounce of my body cared about her pleads. "Well you're not shy using my money." I replied while my hand reached the back of her head. "So you better keep up the shameless act, slut!" I continued as my hand pushes Sullyoon's gorgeous face to take my cock, forcing it in her throat. "Ughh.... mmmhhhh!" Sullyoon groaned in retaliation, but not for long. This isn't the first time Sullyoon suck my boner, so it's not hard for her to take it in and work me up.

"Ughhhh just like that Sullyoon baby. Keep going babe." I grunted as Sullyoon's mouth got to work, her lips locking my cock between them, her tongue swirling on my tip. It's so good I couldn't help but let a few moans escape my mouth, immediately covering up my mouth hoping nobody hears us. "Mmmh nghhh~" Sullyoon's eager slurping kept my mind occupied, enjoying the sensation of her mouth working up my cock just like she does it every other night. The way her round pearl like eyes stare at me so innocently whilst her mouth work my cock like a pro, it's enough to make me lose my mind. "Ughhhh baby I wanna cum." I groaned, not like Sullyoon can stop me from cumming. We had a deal, and I want to get as much of from it! I started to cum, blasting rope after rope of cum in her mouth, shooting it inside her throat. "Mmmmh~ ghhhhck!" Sullyoon grunted, trying to avoid gagging as she receives my thick load of semen deep in her mouth. It felt too good, I accidentally shot my cum on her pretty cherry pink lips as I pulled out. "Oppa....the lipstick" she looked up, disappointed and shocked. " Awwww don't worry baby, I got some paper towels to clean you. And we can go buy that lipstick now hehe~"

Beep

And there goes a 5000 dollars. All for her lipstick. Well it doesn't really matter, since I got a good blowjob from Sullyoon thanks to it. We kept walking around the mall when Sullyoon pulled me towards a boutique. "C'mon oppa. I wanna look here next!" She dragged me in, and just like that I could already feel my money flowing out of my pockets.

The best part of shopping for Sullyoon's clothes is watching her obsession with clothes. The tight and short shirts she wore, exposing her smooth and silky tummy just gets me going. I just watch as she picks one shirt after the other, pairing her crop tops with skirts and jeans, her eyes couldn't stop looking at them. It felt like forever, but it was all worth it to see Sullyoon's beauty with her fashion sense, changing from one pair of clothing to another like it's a fashion show. Not only did I enjoy watching her having fun trying out all these clothes, my cock also was enjoying the sights of her visuals entertaining and her sexy body exposed.

"...and that's the last one." Sullyoon giggled, twirling as she shows off the last piece of clothing she was trying on and got in the fitting room to change up. I couldn't keep myself calm anymore. Following her inside, I could see her slowly undressing herself, dropping her skirt down to reveal her round butt. Smirking, my hand swings towards her left cheek, smacking her ass which make her jolt. "Ngaah~! Oppa-" she couldn't finish her sentence, my hand already on her mouth, covering up her moans with my palm. With my cock twitching, itching to penetrate her, I couldn't care less of where I am, and how wrong it is to do this. My cock immediately pushed it's way inside Sullyoon's tight pussy. The sensation of her cunt taking in my thick rod made me grunt in pleasure, slowly putting up to a slow speed while my hand kept covering her soft tender lips, making sure she doesn't let out any loud moans to attract the staff or other customers of our little party in the fitting room.

"nghhhh mmhhh~" Sullyoon's muffled moans vibrate on my palm, heating up from the breath of her moans. As much as this must be embarrassing for her, I know she's loving it, enjoying the sensation from getting fucked in standing doggy position and being able to see her reflection of her getting railed in front of her. "Are you enjoying it baby?" I loosened up my hand, letting her finally speak when it looked like she can control her moans for now.

"Aaah~ aaah~ fuck" Sullyoon's moans were audible if someone walked near the fitting room. Thankfully the day wasn't too busy and not many customers were around. "Oh Sully look at you taking this cock like a good girl~" I grinned, pistoning my cock hard inside her, causing her moans to be a bit louder, but she did well to suppress them. With my rod fully indulged in Sullyoon's tight cunt, my grunts were also inevitable. Our moans together inside that small room, with the thought of getting caught was so hot.

I tried to push my luck harder, unlocking the fitting room door and opening it wide, letting the view of me being inside Sullyoon up to anybody that is remotely close to it. "Oppa! What're you doing?" Sullyoon wanted to scream, it was obvious. But she also didn't wanna get caught, so she said that in a whispering yell. "Oh baby~ don't tell me you're not into it~ you're getting wetter already." I smirked, with my cock getting harder for her as I thrust in and out of her, Sullyoon doing her best to cover up her moans from being pounded from behind. Sullyoon could feel my cock growing bigger inside me, knowing what's about to come. "Oppa, if you wanna cum, please cum inside. I can't get caught with my body covered in cum again." She begged, with her cute face doing puppy eyes at me. Adorable.

"Hmmm that sounds like a good idea babe~" I pondered on it, before finally I pulled out. " But I think I'm the only one able to make the calls here~" I giggled as I started to rub Sullyoon's clit, massaging it while my finger pushes inside her, fingering her. It made the cute Nmixx member to moan loudly for a second before being covered by her two hands. I kept going, moving my fingers in a frenzy inside her pussy, making her legs shiver. "Mhhhh, nghhhh-!" Sullyoon's muffled sounds was all over the place as her eyes rolled back, and her legs now tremble as she cums, dripping out her climax from the pleasure of my hands finishing her off. "That's a good girl Sullyoon~" I praised her, letting her take her time to grasp herself. While she's doing that, I kept jerking off, stroking hard as I take aim on her nice bubble butt. "Fuck I'm gonna cum-" I grunted, shooting rope after rope of cum on her ass cheek, covering her with my cum as her bodily liquids drip from her pussy to her thighs.

And there goes more of my money, spent for Sullyoon's lust for fashion. "That was fun, wasn't it baby?" I asked Sullyoon, who was getting exhausted from getting railed. Her face a bit pale from exhaustion, but she looked happy with the stuff she bought. We both walked out of the mall and got in my car to reach home. "I'm just happy it's all over" Sullyoon sighed in relief, leaning to her seat. "Oh? Who said it's over? I think the deal was 24 hours~" I reminded her, which made her look at me in shock. "You're not gonna be shopping for a while when this day ends, babe hehe~"

#nmixx smut #sullyoon smut

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dostoyevsky-official · 3 months ago

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“Treasury has been denying that they gave Marko write access, but I am looking at his access request right now”

So they have “read and write” access, or even “read only” access, why do we care? What are the possible consequences?

1. Musk, Trump and their respective cronies have unrestricted access to your social security numbers, your confidential bank information, your confidential medical information and so much more.

This is true with just “read only” access. This is why the burgeoning media war (that currently “read only” is winning unfortunately) is something of a red-herring. It matters, don’t get me wrong. As a source yesterday said, Apocalyptic. But that source also said that “read only” was “catastrophic”. If the smash and grab operation commences just as stupidly, quickly and dangerously as it has so far, this could easily become identity theft by an untold number of people using their personally identifiable information within weeks.

This kind of information can also be used to target enemies and, if they get operational control elsewhere, the capability of using the Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Know Your Customer (KYC), & the Combating the Finance of Terror (CFT) laws to target political enemies. Of course, these laws have already been used to target political dissidents; but we are talking about something of an incomprehensibly larger scale. As one long time payments lawyer wrote to me: “Is DOGE using its own, non-OFAC definition of ‘terrorist group’ that has no basis in law?” In this sense, the Democratic party has fully and unequivocally participated in building the apparatus that is showing to be extraordinarily easily weaponized against them. In short, they can not just steal money but eliminate the financial existence of anyone they felt like, if operational control gets sufficient. The week Trump won his second term, I told a room full of Democratic party operatives that “if the Democratic Party really believed Trump was a fascist, they would destroy the servers containing all the surveillance data.”

2. Creating “backdoors” into the Treasury’s multi-trillion dollar payment system

I’m running short on time (it's late at the time of writing) and I have to get up in the morning and be prepared for another round of intensive interviews so this will have to be more carefully detailed in the future. But these are extremely sensitive systems, and complicated systems. All the factors that slow them down in taking over the system are also the factors that would make it hard to find intentionally hidden code to their benefit that could give them ongoing access to the system even if they are removed. I need to do more reporting on this one but it is something many, many sources have mentioned

3. Subordinate the judicial system to the Trump Administration/DOGE

This one has been hard to get across to readers. As you can imagine, the overwhelming social media response to this reporting has focused on the absurd illegality of the actions. Asking for judicial intervention. But as I covered in my piece Friday, the constitution is not self enforcing and the supreme court is unlikely to step in, or to step in a positive way. In my Friday’s piece I unfortunately presciently asked:

As a famous twentieth century statesman might have said in this situation "...and how many divisions does the Constitution have?”

What happens if they are just embedded so deeply in the heart of government payments that there is no mechanism to dislodge them? Court Injunctions are not self enforcing either My longtime payments lawyer source agrees with this point, which I also tried to articulate Monday:

Chokehold to stop or delay any and all payments initiated by federal agencies, and potential mechanical method to thwart judicial rulings when a judge/court says “You as the Executive Branch cannot stop federal grants/payments lawfully approved and directed by Congress.”

As we’ve seen, there are no armed law enforcement figures coming in to save the day and if Musk's DOGE get deep enough into the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, the only way to enforce the law is through street actions.

4. Elon Musk can use this system against his enemies.

It almost feels quant to say because the timeline of so many of the other possibilities are so immediately and dramatically dire that this one almost feels hopeful in comparison in that it implies “competitive position” being something that is very meaningful. Nevertheless, it should be obvious that this information, which includes information on all businesses the Federal Government does business with, is ripe to be used to kneecap competitors. Specifically my longtime payments lawyer source brought up just outright putting competitors on the “do not pay” list. The “good case scenario” may just be an economy increasingly dominated in all corners by Musk and/or Trump through a sprawling network of business ventures with the greatest possible advantages.

5. The New American Payments System, X the Everything App

For this one I am just going to quote my longtime payments lawyer source at length. They’ve got it and note this is a “read only” issue. Imagine the worst case of paying your taxes on X payments, or “receiving” your social security payments there.:

Obtaining access to and potentially exfiltrating data sets from BFS that may be characterized as “anonymized” (in order to evade criticism about potential violation of privacy laws), but could give insight into payment patterns and payment system strengths, weaknesses and behaviors:

1. Such information obtained on an inside track by DOGE would be very helpful, for example, if you are an entity like X Payments LLC and are currently licensed as a money transmitter in 42 states with plans to launch as-yet-to-be specified payments and financial services.

2. It is unclear whether there are any limitations on DOGE personnel transferring payment information to X Payments LLC in order for that company to gain proprietary information regarding federal payments in an anti-competitive manner compared to its fintech competitors currently in the marketplace.

3. Such single-sourced information not available to other market competitors would provide an anti-competitive jump for X Payments LLC on ApplePay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay (mobile wallets) and a host of other fintech companies in the marketplace backed by venture capital and private equity funding.

6. Ability to pick and choose who gets public money, regardless of congressional directives

I covered the constitutional aspects of this crisis Friday. The payment aspects I covered Monday. Without Judicial ability or willingness to sanction Trump & Musk, There is very little left of congress. The “power of the purse” is central to the rule and authority of congress. The decentralized (in relative terms) nature of administrative agencies means that there are enormous opportunities for agencies to follow the law. This is a place to skip past all those headaches.

7. Subordinate the judicial system to the Trump Administration/DOGE

As a famous twentieth century statesman might have said in this situation "...and how many divisions does the Constitution have?”

8. Elon Musk can use this system against his enemies.

9. The New American Payments System, X the Everything App

10. Ability to pick and choose who gets public money, regardless of congressional directives

11. Catastrophic failure of the payments system.

Even a disruption for a day would be a disaster. A disruption on longer timescales would have unimaginable knock on effects. The Treasury could involuntarily default because of operational issues. The worst case scenarios, which are completely and utterly plausible at the time of writing, would be a catastrophe without precedent. No typical economic calamity like the Great Financial Crisis or even the Great Depression would be comparable.

#tankus

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cosmowgyral · 3 months ago

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"The Vicious Wildcat is Clumsily Affectionate"

▪︎ Kagari's 1st Birthday

This is a fan translation so please don't expect it to be 100% accurate. Creative liberties have been taken. All content belongs to Cybird. Reblogs are appreciated. Hope you enjoy!

This is my very first time translating/reading a Kagari event and since he is not yet out in the EN server, there might be terms that will turn out different than what I have used here when he is finally released.

Chapter 2

Man with a horrid appearance: What is with this guy?

Emma: I…I won’t let you take even one step beyond this point!

In a back alley, isolated from the hustle and bustle of the town people, I came across some tough-looking men.

I gasped at the weapons hanging from their waists, but I unsheathed the sword that Prince Kagari had given to me.

Man with a horrid appearance: I don’t really get it, but you know us, don’t you?

(…..No, I have no idea.)

Man with a horrid appearance: Let’s go.

The men drew their swords laughing vilely.

They were real ones, different from my replica.

The blades were aimed at me- but before anything could happen, the man at the front was crushed by a shadow that fell from the sky.

Man with a horrid appearance: What?!

Kagari: It’s a shame.

In the blink of an eye, the men were blown away along with their swords.

They got slammed into the wall and fell to the ground with their eyes rolled up.

The fight was over within seconds, without Prince Kagari having to draw out his sword.

(I will never get used to seeing his extraordinary strength.)

Kagari: I don’t feel any sense of accomplishment. I wanted to face enough strength to draw my sword.

(…..I wonder how many people exist in Kogyoku who are worthy of being a match for Prince Kagari.)

When I came to my senses and tried to pull out my fake sword, Prince Kagari spun around and grabbed my hand.

Kagari: Princess, the correct stance is this.

Emma: I see…

Kagari: Also, being hesitant amidst a battle is prohibited.

Emma: I didn’t notice.

Kagari: I thought so. Even in the guise of a subordinate, you look weak.

Emma: ….Sorry

(I’m only an amateur so please forgive me.)

(I never thought I would be asked to help with a capture.)

While holding my hand, he puts his other palm on my waist.

As I straightened my back with effort, Prince Kagari looked satisfied despite his expressionless face.

Cat: Meow…

Kagari: Ah, wait.

(A cat?)

A cat appeared out of nowhere and rubbed against Prince Kagari’s feet.

He knelt down, patted his head, and gave him a small folded piece of paper.

The cat quickly picked up the paper and left.

Emma: That was…

Kagari: Mike no. 1

(That’s a weird name.)

Kagari: He often wanders around the town. If you want to contact me, you can rely on him.

Emma: Not a carrier pigeon….but a carrier cat.

Kagari: Yeah

(He’s a good cat. I’ll remember him.)

Emma: The paper you gave him….

Kagari: I called my subordinates. It is always a pain to clean up afterwards.

Prince Kagari answered calmly as he stood up and looked down at the men lying nearby.

Kagari: This is a ‘present’ given to me every year amidst all these birthday celebrations.

Kagari: I was hoping for a worthy opponent, but I got disappointed again this year.

(Someone sends him assassins on his birthday?)

Prince Kagari is the faction’s main fighting force and the trump card of this territory.

As long as Kogyoku’s yasha is present, the safety of the territory is guaranteed, so it’s no surprise that there are people who would attempt to breach the ironclad defense.

(But to target him even on a special day like this..)

Kagari: Princess

Prince Kagari presses his thumb between my eyebrows.

(….I wonder if my eyebrows were furrowed.)

Kagari: You will still be my subordinate.

Emma: Are you okay with such a weak subordinate?

Kagari: This will make it easier for them to attack.

Kagari: You’re the only one who can be such a tempting bait.

(If being together like this helps Prince Kagari….)

Emma: I’ll do my best as a bait.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ㅤ𔘓 ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Men in town: Happy birthday, Prince Kagari!

Town woman: Dorayaki is being baked all over town today. In fact, there’s hardly a single store that isn’t baking them….!

As soon as he stepped onto the main street, Prince Kagari was swarmed by townspeople.

Kagari: ..Yeah

He shows no interest in the wishes and gifts that shower him, and his reaction is just as empty as it was at the castle.

(Everyone is smiling and their words sound sincere, so why do I feel something strange in their attitude?)

I need to listen more carefully and pick up words.

Men in town: It’s thanks to Prince Kagari that we can live in such peace.

Town woman: Please protect us forever. We will do anything to achieve this…!

(…..)

(Oh, I see. This is….)

(It’s just a way to win over Prince Kagari’s favour.)

(Everyone is celebrating because he is essential to the peace of this territory.)

(But it is still a celebration….)

Town woman: By the way, Prince Kagari, have you received greetings from Emma yet?

The sound of my name made me leap.

Kagari: I haven’t received it.

Town woman: In that case, I’ll make sure to tell her to wish you the next time we meet.

Town woman: I have no doubt that her wish will please you the most.

Knowing people’s thoughts, I started to realise the full amount of the pressure I was under to celebrate the Yasha.

(…I don’t think celebrations should be forced.)

What welled up inside me was more than just frustration; it was a feeling of sadness.

(I hesitated to celebrate earlier because Prince Kagari didn’t seem interested in the celebrations at all….)

(I think we should celebrate him properly. Not to appease him or anything like that….)

Emma: Prince Kagari

To get through the crowd quickly, I casually grabbed his hand.

Men in town: By the way, Prince Kagari, it seems you have brought along an aide we have never seen before.

Kagari: He’s my new subordinate and is also quite a skilled swordsman. You all should be careful.

Kagari: If he draws his sword, he can easily cut off your heads.

The lie delivered with a straight face seemed incredibly effective; so I took advantage of them being flustered and hesitant, and quickly pulled Prince Kagari’s hand and left the place in a hurry.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ㅤ𔘓 ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

After receiving several more ‘presents’, Prince Kagari headed to the banquet as the sky began to darken.

Kagari: I had an appointment today.

[Chapter 1] [Masterlist] [Chapter 3]

#ikemen prince #ikepri kagari #kagari amagase #ikepri translations #ikemen prince translations #ikepri #ikepri jp #ikemen series #cybird ikemen #cybird otome #d: omiresources

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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 6 months ago

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Maybe you’ve been asking yourself:

1. “How could Donald Trump have won 51 percent of the popular vote?”

2. “How hard is it to immigrate to New Zealand?”

3. “What the actual fuck?”

Fair questions. Let’s try a thought experiment. Could Tuesday’s election results have been any worse?

Well, what if, instead of 51 percent, the Republican nominee had won 59 percent? Or 61 percent? And what if he had won 49 states?

Those aren’t hypotheticals. Those were the results of the 1972 and 1984 landslides that reelected Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan.

With thumping victories like those, what could possibly go wrong for the winners?

If history’s any guide, some nasty surprises await Donald Trump.

In 1972, the Democratic presidential nominee, George McGovern, won just 37.5 percent of the vote, carrying only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia for a total of 17 Electoral College votes. He didn’t even win his home state, South Dakota.

In 1984, Democrat Walter Mondale did carry his native Minnesota, but that was as good as it got for him. In the Electoral College, he fared even worse than McGovern, with a whopping 13 votes.

In the aftermath of these thrashings, the Democratic Party lay in smoldering ruins, and Republicans looked like indestructible conquerors.

Now, some might argue that those GOP victories, though statistically more resounding than Trump’s, weren’t nearly as alarming, because he’s a criminal and wannabe autocrat.

But Trump’s heinousness shouldn’t make us nostalgic for Nixon and Reagan. They were also criminals—albeit unindicted ones. And they were up to all manner of autocratic shit—until they got caught.

The Watergate scandal was only one small part of the sprawling criminal enterprise that Nixon directed from the Oval Office in order to subvert democracy. For his part, Reagan’s contribution to the annals of presidential crime, Iran-Contra, broke myriad laws and violated Constitutional norms.

The hubris engendered by both men’s landslides propelled them to reckless behavior in their second terms—behavior that came back to haunt them. Nixon was forced to resign the presidency; Reagan was lucky to escape impeachment.After the Watergate scandal forced Richard Nixon from office, this bumper sticker helped Massachusetts voters brag that they handed him his only Electoral College loss in 1972.

Of course, Trump would be justified in believing that no matter how reckless he becomes, he’ll never pay a price. He’s already been impeached—twice—only to be acquitted by his Republican toadies in the Senate. And now that the right-wing supermajority of the Supreme Court has adorned him with an immunity idol, he’ll likely feel free to commit crimes that Nixon and Reagan could only dream of. Who’ll stop him from using his vast power to persecute his voluminous list of enemies?

Well, the enemy most likely to thwart Trump in his second term might be one who isn’t on his list: himself. The seeds of Trump’s downfall may reside in two promises he made to win this election: the mass deportation of immigrants and the elimination of inflation.

Trump’s concept of a plan to deport 20 million immigrants is as destined for success as were two of his other brainchildren, Trump University and Trump Steaks. The US doesn’t have anything approaching the law-enforcement capacity to realize this xenophobic fever dream.

And as for Trump’s war on inflation, the skyrocketing prices caused by his proposed tariffs will make Americans nostalgic for pandemic-era price-gouging on Charmin.

It's possible that Trump’s 24/7 disinformation machine, led by Batman villains Rupert Murdoch, Tucker Carlson, and Elon Musk, will prevent his MAGA followers from ever discovering that 20 million immigrants didn’t go anywhere. And it’s possible that if inflation spikes, he’ll find a scapegoat for that. (Nancy Pelosi? Dr. Fauci? Taylor Swift?)

And, yes, it’s possible that Trump will somehow accomplish his goal of becoming America’s Kim Jong Un, and our democracy will go belly-up like the Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City.

But I wouldn’t bet on it. I tend to agree with the British politician Enoch Powell (1912-1998), who observed that all political careers end in failure. I doubt that Trump, with his signature blend of inattention, impulsiveness, and incompetence, will avoid that fate.

And when the ketchup hits the fan, the MAGA movement may suddenly appear far more fragmented and fractious than it does this week. You can already see the cracks. Two towering ignoramuses like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert should be BFFs, but they despise each other—the only policy of theirs I agree with.

If things really go south, expect MAGA Republicans to devour each other as hungrily as the worm who feasted on RFK Jr.’s brain—and that, my friends, will be worth binge-watching. I’m stocking up on popcorn now before Trumpflation makes it unaffordable.

One parting thought. Post-election, the mainstream media’s hyperbolic reassessment of Trump—apparently, he’s now a political genius in a league with Talleyrand and Metternich—has been nauseating. It’s also insanely short-sighted. Again, a look at the not-so-distant past is instructive.

In 1984, after Reagan romped to victory with 59 percent of the popular vote and 525 electoral votes, Reaganism was universally declared an unstoppable juggernaut. But only two years later, in the 1986 midterms, Democrats proved the pundits wrong: they regained control of both the House and Senate for the first time since 1980. Those majorities enabled them to slam the brakes on Ronnie’s right-wing agenda, block the Supreme Court nomination of Robert Bork, and investigate Iran-Contra.

The lesson of the 1986 midterms is clear: the game’s far from over and there’s everything to play for. If we want to stem the tide of autocracy and kleptocracy, restore women’s rights and protect the most vulnerable, we don’t have the luxury of despair. The work starts now.

Andy Borowitz

#Borowitz Report #political #politics #history #Regan #Nixon

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mrs-stans · 5 months ago

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Sebastian Stan Talks ‘The Apprentice’s Uphill Battle, Double Golden Globe Nomination, Lily James Reteam ‘Let The Evil Go West’ & Upcoming Cristian Mungiu & Justin Kurzel Projects

By Matt Grobar

On Monday, Sebastian Stan pulled off a rare feat, scoring Golden Globe nominations for Lead Actor in both Drama and Musical/Comedy categories. Following the announcement, Stan got candid about upcoming projects with Cristian Mungiu, Christian Tafdrup and Justin Kurzel, his experience on the awards circuit with his nominated turn as Donald Trump in The Apprentice, and more.

In discussing his upcoming slate, Stan seemed particularly excited about a project not yet announced with Cristian Mungiu, the Romanian filmmaker behind Palme d’Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, which he expects to shoot next year.

“I was born in Romania. I still speak the language, and I’ve been trying to find a project where I can go back and tap back into that history that I have,” said the actor, “so I’m excited about working with him, and hopefully that’s going to come together.”

A second project on the docket is Let the Evil Go West, a horror thriller from buzzy Danish filmmaker Christian Tafdrup, which reunites him with Pam & Tommy‘s Lily James. The film centers on a railroad worker driven to madness after coming upon a fortune, and his wife, who believes an evil presence has attached itself to their family.

Stan came to the project after seeing Tafdrup’s “unbelievable” horror thriller Speak No Evil, which Universal just remade. “This is a project that’s been going on for a while, and it always gets tricky. It’s about finding the right scheduling and the right time to do it,” said the actor. “But that’s something I’m really excited about.”

While he didn’t get into details, Stan also confirmed that he’s attached to star in Burning Rainbow Farm, a film that The Order‘s Justin Kurzel has in development. Plot details are unconfirmed, but we hear it’s inspired by true events, involving two marijuana advocates who face off against the FBI in a tense five-day standoff in Michigan, culminating in tragedy just days before 9/11.

Stan’s Globe nominations this morning came for Briarcliff’s The Apprentice, which examines Trump’s rise in the 1970s and 1980s New York real estate scene, as well as A24’s A Different Man. Hailing from filmmaker Aaron Schimberg, that title has him playing a man with a disfigurement who undergoes an experimental facial reconstruction surgery, before spiraling into a psychological crisis.

“Stunned and incredibly ecstatic,” Stan shared that the nominations are gratifying given the risks he took with each project and the uphill battles faced with each — The Apprentice, in particular, which struggled to secure financing, and later, distribution, amid the threat of a lawsuit from Trump himself. The project is one Hollywood didn’t seem to know what to do with, both leading up to and in the aftermath of a polarizing, pivotal election.

Sharing that he had “extreme trepidations” about playing Trump — in part, because many in the industry advised him not to — Stan reflected this morning about a disclosure of his that went viral: that while he intended to appear on Variety’s video series Actors on Actors in support of The Apprentice, no actor would step up to talk with him about his project, presumably out of fear of saying the wrong thing.

“For me, the Variety thing was just unfortunately another example of the uphill battle that the movie had been facing since Cannes, that there was some hesitancy and some fear around it…But it wasn’t my intention to point a finger or blame anybody else,” Stan said. “It was just simply saying, ‘Hey, we should be mindful of things that feel fearful.’ Because as artists, we have to hold ourselves as sort of the ambassadors of the truth, in a way…Today, of course, is a big day, in terms of hopefully allowing people to feel like they have permission, to talk about this film, and look at the work and have a conversation about it.”

From Stan’s perspective, we as a society need “all kinds of movies” and “have to try to not ever discriminate against any movie,” even if it’s something as polarizing as The Apprentice. In terms of the current climate of fear among Hollywood stars, when it comes to addressing certain topics, Stan’s feeling is that “there’s always a conversation that we can have about the work and what goes into it.”

A recent speech on Stan’s mind, when it comes to this, is the one given by honoree Richard Curtis at the Governors Awards. “He went up there and said, ‘Look, I am grateful to be standing up here and be recognized this evening. Buts also, I want to say, we love good ideas and we love embracing good ideas, but we also have to follow through on the action of it, even when you get to the last one-yard line, trying to get past it,'” the actor recalls. “Because I know the intentions are always good, and I believe that movies can inspire. I think they can reveal things sometimes that we have a hard time maybe understanding or communicating about in day-to-day life.”

In reflecting on the bold and diverse resume he’s carved out over the last decade-plus, Stan gave credit to his “Marvel family” for being an “incredibly supportive,” consistent presence in his life over the last 15 years, which has allowed him to “go out there and find other projects that allow me to kind of change it up and challenge myself.”

This, he says, is what he wants more than anything. “I’ve always tried to find other actors to learn from and grow from, and I want to be part of something meaningful,” Stan says, “and maybe that’s just me getting older. You want the work to have meaning and to stand for something.”

#DEADLINE #Sebastian Stan #A Different Man #The Apprentice #Upcoming Project #Romanian Movie #Romania #Cristian Mungiu #Let The Evil Go West #Christian Tafdrup #Burning Rainbow Farm #Justin Kurzel #Richard Curtis #New Movies #mrs-stans #Golden Globes

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justinspoliticalcorner · 3 months ago

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Emily Singer at Daily Kos:

After illegally axing USAID and drafting plans to do the same with the Department of Education, President Donald Trump and his unelected co-president, Elon Musk, have now set their sights on decimating the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the federal scientific agency that helps forecast the weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditions, and manages the protection of marine life. "Hearing reports that Musk’s cronies are targeting NOAA—infiltrating key systems & locking out career employees," Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland wrote on X. "NOAA is vital for weather forecasting, scientific research & more. Their critical work saves lives. My team and I are looking into this & we will not stand for it." As of Wednesday morning, parts of the NOAA website appear to be down, including the Global Monitoring Lab, which conducts research on greenhouse gasses. Greenhouse gasses lead to global warming and climate change, which Trump and the GOP deny are real, despite the scientific consensus otherwise. What's more, Trump on Wednesday nominated Neil Jacobs to lead the NOAA, the same guy who was reprimanded in June 2020 for "Sharpiegate"—when Trump used a sharpie to alter the path of Hurricane Dorian on an official map to say it would impact Alabama and Florida when it was not projected to. In fact, the report finding that Jacobs violated scientific ethics with his involvement with Sharpiegate is now offline, replaced with text saying, “These are not the sites you are looking for” (a reference��to the film “Star Wars”). However, the report can still be accessed through the Wayback Machine, an internet archive that helps preserve websites even if they are removed.

[...] Ultimately, getting rid of NOAA is a goal of Project 2025, the far-right Heritage Foundation’s roadmap for a second Trump term. On last year’s campaign trail, Trump claimed he had nothing to do with that agenda, but it is now clearly driving the actions of him and his administration. Project 2025 also calls for privatizing the National Weather Service, which helps forecast major events like hurricanes, wildfires, blizzards, and flooding. That would make it harder for Americans to get accurate (and free) information about impending storms. Experts say that privatizing the NWS would make hurricane preparation and clean up even harder.

Not even the NOAA is safe from the dangerous un-American Musk Coup. #MuskCoup

See Also:

The Guardian: Doge staffers enter Noaa headquarters and incite reports of cuts and threats

#DOGE #Department of Government Effiency #Project 2025 #NOAA #Musk Coup #Neil Jacobs

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chronicmusicnerd · 3 months ago

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On government propaganda (essentially, TikTok’s “savior”)

TikTok is back, but it really wasn’t ever gone. According to TikTok, they worked with “President” Trump to reinstate the app in America. This is bold-faced, textbook propaganda.

First: Trump was not President of the United States until after that message was sent out. Whether the message intended to gloat or assert power, I am not sure. However, I am nearly positive that neither Trump nor TikTok would make a mere mistake in the timing of that message.

Second: Anyone who is saying Shou (TikTok’s CEO) is being a great man and saving free speech is wrong. It is clear that he and Trump has planned such an event, and even if they didn’t, Shou himself does not have great morals. Should one look at his reposts, they would see a video of Charlie Kirk. For those unaware, Charlie Kirk is a conservative debatist who is anti-LGBTQ, anti-abortion, basically anything anti-traditionalism. Also, if one looked at how he described Trump, they would likely see some cultish admiration in his words. I myself saw him talk of Trump, and I got this odd uncanny valley effect. It felt as though his praise was being scripted behind the camera.

Third: The return of TikTok was never meant to be a return. Trump obviously wants his citizens to stay docile, to keep from rallying against his tyranny. If he could somehow prove he was on their side, the people would come crawling back to him. Enter: pretend to ban TikTok and bring it back, so his people come back.

The government of the United States has never been opposed to toying around with what it tells its citizens, so we know we need to be vigilant. Unfortunately, Trump’s method of making himself appeal to the younger generations on TikTok most certainly worked on some people, and it is likely that this may have swayed their perception of him.

Let me make this clear; Trump is an awful person and an even worse leader. He has said during real interviews that if his daughter was not his daughter, he would date her. He has made comments about her body in a sexual manner, and agreed with such comments made by others. He has openly groped women, stated that he is against abortion, against members of the LGBTQ community, and so much more. If anyone is able to recall, the wall he had proposed to build between the US and Mexico, to deter immigrants from crossing borders illegally?

Trump is a propaganda weapon, and cannot be trusted at his word. Therefore, it is my belief that the TikTok ban was a ploy to sway young people into voting Republican, and to cool down the fire that would have certainly burned at his inauguration otherwise. This “ban” may even be something for the public to watch anxiously, while the government is safely able to plot worse things to announce for a new day. This was not the end of Trump’s awful leadership, it is only the beginning. The only bright side to this is that Trump will no longer be president, ever, after his term.

#tiktok ban #writers on tumblr #artists on tumblr #politics #rant #tiktok #idk how to tag this #i need engagement pls guys #im tired #donald trump #trump #fuck trump

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addysadness · 3 months ago

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Debunking common Lando Norris hate / misconceptions :)

Lando “bottles” starts / turn 1 - This is so overly misused and has led to so much ridicule, hate and toxic memes and harassment. What most people who use this don’t know or bother to look into is that Lando’s reaction times were actually always consistently in the top few times compared to the other drivers. For example, throughout the 2024 season, the commentators (helped by the AWS stats) noticed that Lando’s reaction times were on par with his rivals. However, the gears made a strange sound and indicated that, although the MCL38 took time to launch, it was not due to LN’s reaction time or start but rather related to the car. (See Zandvoort) Mclaren realised that the MCL38 had a glitch that had occurred in multiple races and events across the 2024 calendar: ”It wasn’t the smoothest of starts to the race for Lando, though, as he experienced a small glitch finding second gear during his acceleration from pole,” said Mclaren. Despite Mclaren’s eventual recognition of the mechanical fault they didn’t help dissipate the “bottler” narrative and continued to paint Lando in a negative, blaming light as seen in multiple points and situations throughout the season.

The “its luck not talent” comment from Brazil 2024. THIS WAS TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT BY THE MEDIA, He was not referring to Verstappen. Even if it was, Lando retracted the comment or rather the media twisting it in the FIA gala. And even talking about his win in Miami being lucky because of the safety car

The situation with Tr*mp in Miami, it was a bad situation all around however what do people expect him to do? All of the drivers are trained in PR and have to be careful and measured in response to the media and guests. Tr*mp was having a Republican party conference in the Paddock suite and visited Mclaren due to the location of their hospitality and garage. He also posed with several high ranking F1 officials including Lando’s direct boss Zak Brown and the heads of the FIA and F1. No person would risk speaking out when multiple people with authority over your job and status are interacting - specially in a time of high political divide. Also, Lando has mocked and expressed his hate for Tr*mp multiple times on stream in the past. He has also gotten in trouble for speaking about social issues in the past (along with Lewis and Seb) as the FIA have barred drivers from talking about their political beliefs and stances.

This is a good article by Planet F1 with more information and a good perspective on the way that Lando would have to be: “his comments sounded like a young sportsman desperately trying to stay neutral and not come down anywhere but sitting straight on the fence.” :

The truth behind Donald Trump’s Miami GP visit in a tale of unfortunate events

People calling Lando unsportsmanlike and not a Team player. Lando has always been extremely team centric and has said for years that he is motivated by his team and making his team proud. He has a very close relationship with a lot of his mechanics, often getting them tickets that they struggle to get, taking them out for dinner and keeping an eye on personal life details such as noticing when one of his mechanics got a dog. LN always thanks Oscar when he has the opportunity in both post race debriefs and pre podium interviews (see Singapore 24 and many others). In the 24 season he did multiple things for Oscar in terms of giving him points, wins and helping defend to protect Oscar’s position (In Baku 24, he held Perez off). In the Qatar Sprint Race, he unprompted and, actually against team direction, gifted Oscar the win as well and ensuring Oscar was in P2 in the first place by slowing down to give him DRS Slipstream the whole race. I personally don’t think Lando should have done this but it shows his good character - even in Hungary he did give Oscar the win.

And despite the horrific treatment and emotional manipulation by his team he still congratulated Oscar after the race, praised his talent and DID spray him with champagne despite popular misconception.

He regularly shows respect for all the drivers, having good rapport with most of them. And doing things like having a meeting with Franco Colapinto and his manager in Brazil and trying to help him with easing into the expectations and spotlight of being a F1 driver.

Lando isn’t perfect, he has done things that aren't ideal but he tries to learn from them. Most of the times he has acted imperfectly - like the Hungary cooldown room comment - was when he was coming down from an adrenaline high after a race where he was treated horribly by his team. In fact, Lewis said later he saw no harm in it.

Lando has always done a lot of charity work, raising money for causes like Dementia, deaf and blind children, BLM (e.g. "I’m Happy They Unfollowed Me"- Lando Norris Bashes His Racist Fans - EssentiallySports), NHS, and Mind (mental health awareness), despite receiving a lot of backlash because of this. He has spoken up about women in motorsport and his company Quadrant have multiple female members and recently posted a blog about Women in motorsport on their website:

THE WOMEN SHAPING MOTORSPORT: LOTTE VAN DRUNEN AND RUTH BUSCOMBE – Quadrant

Let’s be as kind as we can as we all love this sport and should be united by this not the opposite. Just because we prefer some drivers doesn’t mean we have to hate the rest.

#lando norris #formula 1 #be kind

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oldguardleatherdog · 4 months ago

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Today's Wall O'Text:

GEAR UP AND GET READY TO ACT, folks. At least 100 executive orders are gonna be sprung on America right out of the gate, obscure unheard-of laws will be leveraged against us, these bastards will try to drown us in a deluge of shit. STAY STRONG. STAY SMART. KEEP YOUR HEAD TOGETHER. We will not lose heart, we will not give up, we will fight, we will endure, we will prevail.

From the article: "During a two-hour meeting with Senate Republicans, Trump said he plans to immediately enact his MAGA vision instead of waiting for Congress to act, according to a new report in the Wall Street Journal. He has already prepared about 100 executive orders, and he has no qualms testing the legal limits of presidential authority, he said. "For months, Trump’s aides have been looking at obscure laws passed about 50 years ago that he can invoke to unilaterally carry out his plans and bypass congressional funding limits. Instead of feeling preemptively constrained by constitutional checks and balances, he plans to do what he wants and take his chances with the courts, the Journal reported.

"For example, to help pay for his mass deportations, he plans to use the 1976 National Emergencies Act, which he also used to fund parts of his border wall during his first term. Previous presidents used the act to fund things like the response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks—not to fund something Congress had explicitly declined to pay for, the Journal noted.

"Trump is also eyeing a provision in the 1944 Public Health Service Act called Title 42 that lets the government expel migrants coming from countries with communicable diseases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention used it to lock border entry during the COVID-19 pandemic, and now, Trump is disease-shopping to find a new excuse to invoke it."

[Emphasis added.]

Hunter Thompson's words come roaring to mind: no one wanted this, but it's here now, so let's get it on. ***

The statue of Congressman Phillip Burton of San Francisco, seen here at the Great Meadow of Fort Mason in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, reminds me of what it takes to get good things done in this country. From the NPS website: "Powerful, Profane, Brilliant, Fierce. Phil Burton wasn't a moderate man. Elected to Congress from San Francisco in 1964, he fought for workers' rights, for seniors and people with disabilities, and for the impoverished and under-privileged. Once convinced that creating national parks close to where people live would improve their lives, he fought for park legislation. He fought and he won." In the right pocket of his suit jacket, there's a note with a partial Burton quote visible: "The only way to deal with exploiters is to" -

the full quote: "The only way to deal with exploiters is to terrorize the bastards."

[photo: Gerald Winsor/Google Images]

#it's a fucking battle cry #he fought and he won #we will fight and we will win #we do not lose heart #grampa mutt is on the march #hold my leash and march with me

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lavaringx · 3 months ago

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My thoughts on Palestine

I haven't made a post about Palestine yet on Tumblr, but I feel I need to speak up on all my social media because things can't go on like this anymore. Israel's goal, or at least the goal of the governing far-right, is to deport all Palestinians to Jordan. That's why they don't see West Bank settlement expansion as a demographic threat to their country. If you've ever seen any memes by pro-Israel people that say "Jordan is Palestine," that's what they mean. Currently Palestinians live in segregated West Bank islands with no rights in Israel and no state of their own. Yes, I'm aware that there are Palestinian citizens of Israel, but there are also 3 million West Bank Palestinians and 2 million Gazans who are not. Israel cannot annex the West Bank unless it either a). Gives up its Jewish majority, b). maintains the current system of segregation with Palestinians as second class citizens or c). Orders a mass expulsion of Palestinians, which is the goal.

The only solution to this that doesn't involve the destruction of Israel is the two-state solution, which I support, but the U.S. government does not. With the exception of a few brave souls on the left end of the democratic party, most U.S. politicians are perfectly content to allow the status quo to continue, with some Republicans even openly calling for Israel to just annex the West Bank, destroy the Al-Aqsa mosque and build the third temple, Palestinians be damned. I haven't forgotten how Biden disgustingly vetoed a U.N. resolution that would have granted the Palestinians full U.N. membership, and we all know that Trump is going to be even worse. The U.S. wants a one-state Israel, regardless of what the politicians lie through their teeth.

I understand the Israeli position, I really do. You are afraid that, if given the chance, Palestinians will launch another, even bigger October 7th against your people. But you must understand that Palestinians have human rights too, and those human rights are currently being violated by Israel. I have no love for Hamas or Hezbollah. They are backed by Iran's tyrannical theocracy, which, because I am consistent in my belief in human rights, I too oppose. But Palestinian human rights are routinely violated on the dime of the U.S. taxpayer, and that's the difference. The Palestinian situation represents a moral failure on the part of the West, much like the Vietnam War and the Iraq War, that makes it hard for the rest of the world to take us seriously when we (rightfully) call out the human rights abuses of Iran, Russia or North Korea.

Things look pretty bleak right now. The only way to make Israel accept a two-state solution is to deny them aid unless they end West Bank settlement expansion, but neither party has the moral fiber necessary to make such an ultimatum. Even if we get lucky and a progressive is elected President at some point, a future Republican or Centrist Democrat could undo it four years later. It is entirely possible that under Trump, the Israeli far-right plan to expel the Palestinians in the West Bank will come to fruition, snuffing out the Palestinian cause forever. But somebody has to take a stand. Perhaps it's the Irish blood in me, but I can't just sit by and watch my country commit a gross injustice. My conscience wouldn't be able to take it if I remained silent. If the worst comes to pass, at least I tried.

Edit: I want to make it crystal clear that I do not support Hamas. The October 7th massacre was evil and I condemn it in the strongest possible terms. The I'm a two-state solution believer through and through. Even many Palestinians in Gaza are rising up against Hamas. I made this post because I am frustrated with people saying that all the Palestinians should be deported to Jordan every time I ask what the endgame is for the West Bank. Deporting all Palestinians to Jordan would destabilize Jordan's Hashemite monarchy and turn Jordan into Iran 2.0.- a former pro-western absolute monarchy replaced by a terror state.

#original post #Palestine #Two-State Solution #Save Palestine #Gaza #Israel #ceasefire #free palestine

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the-zenith-calls · 3 months ago

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So as of right now (1:43 EST), TikTok is back in the United States. At least for some of us. And if you don't trust that post I can currently access it and I'm American. I doubt anyone will actually take the time to read this, but there's a wild comparison I want to make here so stay with me.

In 1979, the Iranian hostage crisis happened. Fifty-three American diplomats were held hostage until 1981. At the time, Jimmy Carter was president, and no one really liked him. So obviously he and the government were trying to negotiate with Iran to give our people back but Iran wouldn't comply. So, Jimmy Carter ended his only term as president in a very bad light, and Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election. Iran waited until Jimmy Carter was out of office and Reagan was sworn in to agree to release the hostages on January 20, 1981, Inauguration Day. This made Reagan look amazing.

Back to the present, we were told that TikTok would be banned on January 19. Well, today is the day and it's back. They banned it yesterday, actually, at like 10:30pm, and we got this popup. First of all, the words "fortunate" and "President Trump" should never be in the same sentence unless it's his obituary. Second, this makes him look fucking amazing. Obviously, this wasn't as high stakes at fifty-three people literally being held hostage halfway across the world, and as far as I know the hostage crisis wasn't orchestrated by Reagan to get him elected, but I just really wanted to point out the similarities of benefiting the American people on or around your Inauguration Day. Imagine your first act as president of a global superpower is benefiting 170 million people. The real kicker is that he isn't even president yet.

What I really want to point out is that Trump created this crisis when he wanted to ban TikTok back in 2020. It was never about securing our data, it was about cutting us off from the rest of the world. And now they say he fixed it. This is what he's going to do while he's in office. He'll create problems and fix them again and anyone who says anything about it will be disregarded because of his weird cult followers. If this sounds familiar, something similar happened in 1930s Germany.

Semi-related, in his fare well speech, President Biden warned us of an incoming oligarchy. I just wanted to put that out there.

Finally, if I see a single one of you celebrating that the ban went through, even though it was for less than a day, I will commit unspeakable acts. It wasn't only about losing entertainment, it was about our freedom of speech. You don't have to like the app but I'm willing to bet you hate it less than losing our First Amendment rights.

#tiktok ban #tiktok #us politics #donald trump #i don't usually get political on here but i had things to say

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thankskenpenders · 10 months ago

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I know Ken is notorious for his, um, odd creation habits, but even I’m shocked that it’s been over 10 years of work and THIS is all he has to show for it. I would maybe be a bit more lenient if each new page was hyper detailed or something like that, but as you pointed out in your review, he reused the same images across plenty of panels and so many of his backgrounds are just stock photos. The only way I can reconcile this to myself is wondering if maybe a bunch of that time was eaten up by extensive rewrites to his plans for the whole series, but even then, I’ll be even more shocked if the next volume ever comes out.

So I didn't get into this in the review because I really just wanted to focus on the book and the weird copyright situation that led to its creation, not Ken's personal life or his other endeavors, but he did make something else in the time since The Lara-Su Chronicles' announcement 13 years ago. That being his independent film: The Republic. Because after he left Archie Ken figured he'd move on to a career in Hollywood.

I think this was originally supposed to be a TV show, the pilot episode for which was released in 2010, but then in 2016 he decided to retool it as a commentary on Trump's immigration policies. I think the movie is still somehow not out despite being shot a few years ago, but he put out a trailer here:

youtube

Yes, the trailer really opens with 30 seconds of footage of Trump from CNN. I know writers who use subtext and they're all cowards etc. etc.

At least the cast is clearly trying their best in spite of the material. It's not Birdemic bad. And yes, that's Sean Young. THE Sean Young! Rachael from Blade Runner! I guess Ken's really eager to flex the fact that he's friends with a couple lower-level Hollywood producers.

Anyway, I think he's still looking for a distributor for this. It's truly a mystery why no one was eager to pick this up.

Ken's also said some stuff about how he waited years to put out TLSC: Beginnings as part of the 4D chess game he's playing with the copyright stuff. He has a general idea of what he can do based on the terms of the settlement, but he's eager to push it as far as he can. He tested the waters with things like a few small pieces of TLSC merch and an NFT announcement, to see if Sega would take legal action. In particular, the announcement that he was going to sell an NFT of Shade from Sonic Chronicles was a stunt designed to see if Sega would challenge his claim that Shade is legally the same character as Julie-Su. Since they haven't gone after him, and now it's been a few years, he's taking that as evidence that Sega isn't actively exercising those copyrights and isn't going to fight for this stuff.

There's some logic here. Part of the reason Dan DeCarlo lost his battle with Archie over the rights to Josie and the Pussycats is that he didn't take action against them sooner for making merch and whatnot. It's "use it or lose it" with copyrights. But it mostly just comes off as an excuse. If it was purely a waiting game and he had all this extra time, why did he need to recycle art so much in Beginnings? Why is he only releasing 30 new pages of material instead of a whole graphic novel? Where's the app? Why didn't he spellcheck the damn book?

#ask #anon #tkp asks

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