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primorcoin · 3 years

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Walmart is seeking a crypto product lead, the Dogecoin Foundation is active again after a long break, Coinbase has amassed a $4 billion cash-backed war chest: Holder’s Digest, Aug. 15-21

Coming every Saturday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link.

Top Stories This Week

Walmart seeks crypto product lead to drive digital currency strategy

On Aug. 16, it was reported that U.S. retail giant Walmart was seeking out an experienced crypto expert who can develop and drive a digital currency strategy and product roadmap for the firm.

According to the job listing, Walmart is looking for someone with a track record of leading and scaling businesses. They also want at least 10 years of experience in product/program management and tech-based product commercialization.

Ideally, the candidate should also know a thing or two about crypto, blockchain tech and why JPEGs of poorly drawn pet rocks are selling for absurd prices on Ethereum.

Walmart’s future digital currency and crypto product lead will be based in the company’s home office in Bentonville, Arkansas. The state has produced talents such as Billy Bob Thornton and Johnny Cash, along with Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Team officially reestablishes Dogecoin Foundation after 6 years

There was good news for Doge fanatics this week as the Dogecoin Foundation resurfaced after several years of total media silence.

According to an announcement on Tuesday, the foundation stated it was reestablishing itself in a bid to support the fiery-eyed Dogecoin (DOGE) community. The foundation also said it would be announcing new projects that are centered on encouraging adoption of DOGE and promoting its utility.

The project’s website lists Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, Dogecoin co-founder Billy Markus and Dogecoin Core developer Max Keller as advisory board members. Furthermore, Tesla CEO and DOGE proponent Elon Musk’s interests may be catered to from the shadows via Neuralink CEO Jared Birchall.

It is yet to be revealed if Musk’s “toddler hodler” son has loaded up on DOGE in light of the announcement.

Coinbase amasses a $4B war chest so it can outlast ‘crypto winter’

Coinbase, the top U.S. crypto exchange, has amassed a cash-based war chest worth $4 billion on the back of two very productive quarters for the firm.

The company reportedly expected to use the cash to cover costs incurred by a variety of factors, including conforming to new regulations handed down by the United States legislature.

Coinbase has also announced its official launch in Japan in partnership with banking giant Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, while also revealing plans to add $500 million worth of crypto to its balance sheet and invest 10% of all generated profits into digital assets moving forward.

Winners and Losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin is at $48,778, Ether at $3,282 and XRP at $1.28. The total market cap is at $2.09 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Avalanche (AVAX) at 105.79%, Arweave (AR) at 96.17% and Audius (AUDIO) at 93.78%.

The top three altcoin losers of the week are DigiByte (DGB) at -5.06%, Celsius (CEL) at -4.44% and BitTorrent (BTT) at -3.81%.

For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

Most Memorable Quotations

“Poly Network has no intention of holding Mr. White Hat legally responsible, as we are confident that Mr. White Hat will promptly return full control of the assets to Poly Network and its users. As we have stated in previous announcements and encrypted messages that have been made public, we are grateful for Mr. White Hat’s outstanding contribution to Poly Network’s security enhancements.”

Poly Network team

“Lawmakers and regulators must work together to properly balance protecting innovation with any new regulations to ensure the digital asset marketplace flourishes in the United States.”

Glenn Thompson and Patrick McHenry, U.S. representatives

“The most important thing that can be done today is moving away from the idea that coin voting is the only legitimate form of governance decentralization.”

Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum co-founder

“Here at home in America, […] our payments infrastructure is arguably the worst of any developed country in the world, and increasingly falling behind, while China is moving with determination and haste to build an infrastructure that will make the digital yuan a challenger to the dollar as the world’s reserve currency.”

David Marcus, Diem co-creator

“Ethereum is outperforming Bitcoin, and it can be expected to continue this trend for the rest of 2021.”

Nigel Green, CEO of DeVere Group

“This is all about DeFi. […] This is the Treasury Department trying to work out how to get jurisdiction over DeFi […] and also expand its warrantless surveillance over a peer-to-peer financial system.”

Jake Chervinsky, general counsel at Compound

“Frankly, as one of the first pilots, we have on the table the question of paying salaries to employees of the Ministry of Digital Transformation in electronic hryvnia.”

Mykhailo Fedorov, vice prime minister of Ukraine

“It’s important to remember that when we look at the business, the long-term arc of adoption of digital assets in crypto matters far more than the businesses we are building.”

Mike Novogratz, founder and CEO of Galaxy Digital

Prediction of the Week

Ethereum ‘liquidity crisis’ could see new ETH all-time high before Bitcoin — Analyst

Bitcoin, the crypto industry’s largest asset by market cap, and Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest asset, have both posted notable price recoveries over the past several weeks. Although BTC has yet to be surpassed as the crypto industry’s top dog, ETH might tap its own all-time price high near $4,400 sooner than BTC reaches its record level of nearly $65,000, according to thoughts from CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju.

“$ETH might reach its all-time high earlier than $BTC in the long term,” Ju tweeted on Wednesday. “Current $ETH price is closer to ATH compared to $BTC. Higher demand, lower supply. $ETH sell-side liquidity crisis still intensifies, while $BTC exchange reserve stopped its downward trend in May.”

On Friday, BTC fluctuated above the $48,000 mark, and ETH traded above $3,200 — which, however, are both still notably shy of their record highs.

FUD of the Week

JPMorgan Chase reportedly shuts down bank accounts of Bitcoin mining firm

On Aug. 19, U.S. banking behemoth JPMorgan Chase reportedly blocked all account activities of Bitcoin mining firm Compass Mining.

Whit Gibbs, the CEO of Compass Mining, took to Twitter to share the news:

“Shoutout to @Chase for shutting down @compass_mining accounts for doing our part to replace the old guard with self-sovereign, future-focused supporters of hard money. Get behind #Bitcoin or get out of our way.”

It is unclear if the temper tantrum will be enough to sway JPMorgan Chase to change its mind, and it is also unclear how shutting down banking services to one Bitcoin mining firm represents an attack on BTC in any way.

If anything, the banking giant has been upping its exposure to Bitcoin and the crypto sector in 2021.

Liquid exchange hacked to the tune of $80 million

Liquid, a Japanese crypto exchange, was the victim of a $80 million-plus hack this week which made the platform not so… liquid.

Cointelegraph reported on the news quickly after the exchange announced the attack, which compromised digital assets including BTC, Tron (TRX), Ripple (XRP) and Ether.

The exchange explained that only its hot wallets were affected and added that its assets were being moved into cold storage for security purposes.

The platform has since provided an update and revealed the hack totaled $91.35 million. The firm has urged users to not deposit any crypto assets in Liquid wallets until further notice.

T-Mobile looking into potential hack of data on 100 million customers

Speaking of hacks, U.S. telecom giant T-Mobile was looking into an alleged massive data breach at the start of this week that may have compromised the information of more than 100 million users.

According to Vice’s Motherboard, T-Mobile is looking into a potential data breach claimed by an author who posted details on an underground forum. A Sunday report said the hacker claims to have obtained data on more than 100 million customers from T-Mobile servers.

Unlike the Poly Network hacker, who syphoned $600 million worth of digital assets because “cross-chain hacking is hot,” the T-Mobile hacker seems to be displaying entrepreneurial instincts, as they were asking for 6 BTC — worth around $280,000 at current prices — in exchange for some of the data.

Best Cointelegraph Features

Shanghai Special: Crypto crackdown fallout and what happens next

Owning Bitcoin isn’t banned, but many fear for the future of regulations in China. Here’s a look at where we stand and where we might be headed.

Poly Network hack exposes DeFi flaws, but community comes to the rescue

The DeFi hacker’s initial intentions remain unclear, but they refused to accept a $500,000 bounty after returning all funds.

The perfect storm: DeFi hacks will advance the crypto sector moving forward

There is a silver lining from the DeFi hacks as new tech develops to protect the sector: “DeFi will be much safer in 12 months from now.”

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#Blockchain #Coinbase #CoinbaseNews #Crypto #CryptoNews #DOGE #DogeCoin #ElonMusk #RippleNetwork #TraedndingCrypto #TronNetwork #TRX #XRP

#Blockchain #Coinbase #coinbaseNews #Crypto #CryptoNews #DOGE #DogeCoin #ElonMusk #RippleNetwork #TraedndingCrypto #TronNetwork #TRX #XRP #CryptoPress #Trending Cryptos

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didanawisgi · 5 years

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Phi in the human body1.- Introduction

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, Roman architect (c. 25 B.C.), remarked a similarity between the human body and a perfect building: "Nature has designed the human body so that its members are duly proportioned to the frame as a whole." He inscribed the human body into a circle and a square, the two figures considered images of perfection. It is widely accepted that the proportions in the human body follow the Golden Ratio. In this article we will review some studies on the subject. We will show the nineteenth century findings of the Golden Ratio in the human body by Adolf Seizing, actually approximated by a Fibonacci sequence of measures. Then we will examine the Golden proportions of the human body proposed by architects Erns Neufert and Le Corbusier in the twentieth century. Finally we will show how a common study with a german and an indian population samples confirmed the presence of the Golden Ratio in some proportions of the human body.

2.- Golden proportions in the human body found by Adolf Zeising

Adolf Zeising's main interests, back in the nineteenth century, were mathematics and philosophy. But after having retired he began his researches on proportions in nature and art. In the field of botany, he discovered the Golden Ratio in the arrangement of branches along the stem of plants, and of veins in leaves. From this starting point he extended his researches to the skeletons of animals and the branchings of their veins and nerves, to the proportions of chemical compounds and the geometry of crystals, etc., and finally to human and artistic proportions. The title of his first publication in 1854 declares his program: New theory of the proportions of the human body, developed from a basic morphological law which stayed hiherto unknown, and which permeates the whole nature and art, accompanied by a complete summary of the prevailing systems [1]. That universal law was, in efect, the Golden Ratio. There he presents his own proportional analyses of the human body (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Golden proportions in the human body found by Zeising [1].

Zeising divides the total height of a man's body into four principal zones: top of head to shoulder, shoulder to navel, navel to knee, and knee to base of foot. Each zone is further subdivided into five segments, which are arranged symmetrically within each zone: either following the pattern ABBBA or the pattern ABABA, but always summing up 2A+3B. By the way, the 3/2 proportion in each zone is a Perfect Fifth in the equal temperament musical scale. Is music involved in the design of our own body?

On the right of Figure 1 you can see the Golden proportions present in each of the segments, and between them, at different scales. Zeising's proportions of the human body are a beautiful example of how Nature closely approximates the Golden Ratio by means of a Fibonacci sequence of measures. Zeising erroneusly substitutes 90 for 89 in his measures, but we have used the exact value in the following calculations. The Fibonacci numbers present in his scheme, explicitly (green) or implicitly as grand totals (magenta), are the following:

Grouping consecutively each pair of adjacent measures one obtains an iterated division of the big segment (987) into consecutive Fibonacci numbers that closely approximate the Golden Ratio (Figure 2a). This reminds us the power of the Golden Ratio for consecutively dividing a segment with simple additions and substractions after the first split (Figure 2b). This sequence of Golden Ratio divisions also reminds us of the fractal nature behind the design of our body, because the same Golden proportion is repeated at all scales.

Figure 2: Iterated division of a segment according to (a) the numbers in the Fibonacci sequence and (b) the Golden Ratio.

3.- The Golden proportions proposed by architects Neufert and Le Corbusier

In the twentieth century the architect Erns Neufert (1900-1986) propagated the Golden Ratio as the architectural principle of proportion in the human body. Neufert did not strictly follow Zeising's human Fibonacci proportions, but introduces the exact Golden Ratio instead [2] (Figure 3). For him, the Golden section also provides the primary link between all harmonies in architecture.

Figure 3: Golden Ratio proportions of the human body after Ernst Neufert [2].

There is another great system of body proportions of the 20th century known as the Modulor, proposed by Le Corbusier (1887-1965). In his manifesto Vers une architecture, he presents the Golden Ratio as a natural rhythm, inborn to every human organism. For details on the historical origin and developement of Modulor I and II systems you can examine the excellent summary by architect Manel Franco [3]. Figure 3 shows the essential proportions proposed by Le Corbusier for the human body:

Figure 3: Simple sketch and main Golden proportions in the human body proposed by Le Corbusier [3].

In his final version, the Modulor II system proposes two Golden progressions of measures for the human body (Figure 4a). Returning to the style of Zeising, these progressions are actually two Fibonacci sequences of measures (Figure 4b). That is to say, each measure is obtained by the sum of the two preceding ones. Therefore, the ratio of any pair of consecutive values in these progressions closely approximates the Golden Ratio.

(a) Golden proportions in the human body proposed in Le Corbusier's Modulor II.(b) Detail of the red and blue progressions (in mm) in Modulor II. The ones in italic slightly deviate (1mm) from an exact Fibonacci sequence

Figure 4

4.- A field study

T. Antony Davis, from the Indian Statistical Institute (India) and Rudolf Altevogt, from the Zoologisches Institut der Universitat (Germany) conducted a study where they measured 207 german students and 252 youg men from Calcutta [4]. The measures taken A, B, C, D and E are shown in Figure 5a. In their results, they were able to confirm that the total height of the body and the height from the toes to the navel are in Golden Ratio (ratios D/C and E/D). Figure 5b summarizes their main results. They obtained the almost perfect value of 1.618 in the German sample (this value held for both girls and boys of similar ages) and the slightly different average value 1.615 in the Indian sample.

(a) The measures taken in the study [4](b) Resulting average ratios, classified by population groups [4].

Figure 5

5.- References

[1] Zeising, Adolf: New theory of the proportions of the human body, developed from a basic morphological law which stayed hiherto unknown, and which permeates the whole nature and art, accompanied by a complete summary of the prevailing systems. (In German).

[2] Neufert, Ernst: Architects Data.

[3] Franco, Manel: El Modulor de Le Corbusier (1943-54)

[4] T. Antony Davis and Rudolf Altevogt, "Golden Mean of the Human Body".

#phi #golden mean #golden ratio #sacred geometry

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awesomecolorfulcollectorwombat · 6 years

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Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

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Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

Welcome to Seeking Alpha’s Stocks to Watch – a preview of key events scheduled for the next week. Follow this account and turn the e-mail alert on to receive this article in your inbox every Saturday morning.

Investors will be looking for some soothing signs of global cooperation next week amid the continuing erosion of equity markets. In Europe, U.K. and European Union leaders are scheduled to meet for more Brexit talks at a special summit that begins in Brussels on November 25. Meanwhile, the highly-anticipated G-20 meeting in Buenos Aires begins on November 30, headlined by the planned meeting between President Trump and Chinese Premier Xi Jingping. As for the sharp drop in crude oil prices, while there’s some debate on if global growth concerns are a bigger factor than Saudi Arabia production levels, you can’t overlook the wildcard of having Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Trump all in Argentina at the end of the week.

Notable earnings reports: Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM), Momo (NASDAQ:MOMO) and GameStop (NYSE:GME) on November 27; Box (NYSE:BOX), J.M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) and Dick’s Sporting Goods (NYSE:DKS) on November 28; Splunk (NASDAQ:SPLK), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ), Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR), Workday (NYSE:WDAY) and Palo Alto Networks (NYSE:PANW) on November 29. See Seeking Alpha’s Earnings Calendar for the complete list of earnings reporters.

IPOs expected to price: No new action anticipated.

IPO lockup expirations: Hancock Jaffe Laboratories (NASDAQ:HJLI) on November 27 and Ambow Education (NYSEMKT:AMBO) on November 28.

Analyst quiet period expirations: Axonics Modulation Technologies (NASDAQ:AXNX), Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) and Orchard Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ORTX) on November 26.

Projected dividend changes: Disney (NYSE:DIS) to $0.90 from $0.84, McCormick (NYSE:MKC) to $0.56 from $0.52, Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) to $0.35 from $0.30, Cantel Medical (NYSE:CMD) to $0.10 from $0.085, J&J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF) to $0.48 from $0.45, La-Z-Boy (NYSE:LZB) to $0.13 from $0.12, Neenah (NYSE:NP) to $0.45 from $0.41.

Cyber Monday: Updates on Cyber Monday sales could come in during the week from Wayfair (NYSE:W), Shopify (NYSE:SHOP), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY). Last year, the companies all posted dazzling growth, although their reports on activity ranged from very detailed (Wayfair) to somewhat vague (Amazon). The catch-all investment for online shopping is the Amplify Online Retail ETF (NASDAQ:IBUY), which has seen some volatility this year. IBUY closed up 0.9% on Friday after Black Friday online sales reports came in strong, but trades 23% below its 52-week high.

Mars: NASA’s planned landing of the Insight spacecraft is a huge moment for Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT). The lander built by Lockheed is due to touch down in the Elysium Planitia region of Mars at around 3:00 p.m. ET on November 26. A Lockheed mission operations team based out of Denver will support science collection through the life of the mission, estimated to last approximately two Earth years or one Martian year. Investors are looking for a little Mars magic, with shares of Lockheed Martin down 8.0% YTD.

Food for thought: Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) holds its shareholder meeting on November 29 amid a raging proxy battle with Third Point. Shares of Campbell Soup are up 3.5% since the company reported better-than-anticipated Q3 results, but the food company still has some work to do. Wells Fargo points to the new CEO selection, Lance-Snyder integration and soup turnaround as some big hurdles that need to be cleared. It’s hard to say if any M&A news will come out of the Campbell meeting, but food names such as J.M. Smucker (SJM), Farmer Bros. (NASDAQ:FARM), General Mills (NYSE:GIS), Flower Foods (NYSE:FLO), Kellogg (NYSE:K) and Hostess Brands (NASDAQ:TWNK) have been perky off of Campbell developments.

Los Angeles Auto Show: The L.A. Auto Show running from November 30 to December 9 will have a heavy focus on Automobility, including speakers on the topic from Ford (NYSE:F), General Motors (NYSE:GM), Magna International (NYSE:MGA), Lucid Motors, Honda (NYSE:HMC) and even an Amazon Alex exec. Visa (NYSE:V) will also be represented on an Automobility panel. Notable models debuting at the show include the 2020 Toyota (NYSE:TM) Corolla hybrid, BMW (OTCPK:BMWYY) X/5/X7 Sport Activity and 2020 Kia (OTCPK:HYMLF) Soul Crossover – as well as surprise models from Porsche (OTCPK:POAHY) and Nissan (OTCPK:NSANY).

Carvana in focus: Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) is scheduled to host its analyst day event on November 29. Wolfe Research has tipped that the event could be a catalyst if the company clears up the visibility on its long-term margin profile.

New Jersey: Keep an eye on the Garden State, with the New Jersey Senate Budget and Appropriations committee and the Assembly Appropriations committee set to meet on November 26 to discuss four marijuana-related bills. If legislation is to move forward, lawmakers will have to work out a tax rate for marijuana producers and retailers in the state. Good news out of New Jersey could provide a little lift for Cronos Group (NASDAQ:CRON), Aurora Cannabis(NYSE:ACB), Aphria (NYSE:APHA), Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC), Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) and gang.

FDA watch FDA decision are due on Loxo Oncology (NASDAQ:LOXO)-Bayer ‘s (OTCPK:BAYRY) larotrectinib tumor treatment and Catalyst Pharmaceutical’s (NASDAQ:CPRX) Firdapse treatment for Lambert- Eaton myasthenic syndrome. There could also be FDA action on the resubmitted application from Celltrion-Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE:TEVA) on the Truxima biosimilar.

Evercore ISI HealthcareX: One of the bigger healthcare conferences of the year is scheduled to run from November 26 to November 29. Presenting companies include Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A), AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV), Arena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARNA), Alexion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALXN), Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB), bluebird bio (NASDAQ:BLUE), CVS Health (NYSE:CVS), GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK), Illumina (NASDAQ:ILMN), Incyte (NASDAQ:INCY), Qiagen (NASDAQ:QGEN), Charles River Laboratories (NYSE:CRL) and Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA).

M&A tidbits: The window-shopping period on the American Railcar Industries (NASDAQ:ARII) merger with ITE Rail Fund expires on November 26. American Railcar trades slightly below the $70 deal price. Shareholders at LaSalle Hotel Properties (NYSE:LHO) and Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE:PEB) vote on their proposed combination on November 27. If approved, the merger is slated for November 30. The deadline on the first phase of the European Commission review of the PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP)-SodaStream (NASDAQ:SODA) deal is November 30.

Consumer heat check: The Deutsche Bank Gaming, Lodging, Leisure & Restaurants One on One Conference is scheduled to take place in Scottsdale, Arizona from November 29-30. Presenting companies include BBX Capital (NYSE:BBX), Bluegreen Vacations (NYSE:BXG), Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD), Avis Budget (NASDAQ:CAR), Caesars Entertainment (NASDAQ:CZR), Eldorado Resorts (NASDAQ:ERI), Cedar Fair (NYSE:FUN), Golden Entertainment (NASDAQ:GDEN), Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT), International Game Technology (NYSE:IGT), MGM Resorts (NYSE:MGM), Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NASDAQ:NCLH), Penn National Gaming (NASDAQ:PENN), Playa Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:PLYA), Red Rock Resorts (NYSE:RRR), Scientific Games (NASDAQ:SGMS), Extended Stay America (NYSE:STAY), Marriott Vacations (NYSE:VAC), Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:WH), Wyndham Destinations (NYSE:WYND) and Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN).

Spotlight on industrials: The Credit Suisse Industrials Conference runs in Palm Beach, Florida from November 28-29. Expect to hear views on the macroeconomic climate and impact of tariffs from a list of heavy hitters that includes ADSW, Canadian Pacific (NYSE:CP), Eaton (NYSE:ETN), Fortive (NYSE:FTV), Jacobs Engineering (NYSE:JEC), Kansas City Southern (NYSE:KSU), 3M (NYSE:MMM), Mastec (NYSE:MTZ), Quanta Services (NYSE:PWR), United Continental (NASDAQ:UAL), Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT), Cummins (NYSE:CMI), Covanta (NYSE:CVA), Fluor (NYSE:FLR), Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) and SPX (NYSE:SPXC).

Box office: Movie theater operators Cinemark (NYSE:CNK), AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC), Reading International (NASDAQ:RDI) and Marcus Corporation (NYSE:MCS) are looking for a big office weekend, with strong forecasts in for Disney’s (DIS) Ralph Breaks the Internet ($49M), MGM’s Creed 2 ($36M), Warner Bros. (NYSE:T) film Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald ($30M) and Universal’s (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch ($27M). The YTD U.S. box office is up 10.2% to $10.43B through November 19.

Barron’s mentions: The plunge in Target’s (NYSE:TGT) share price makes it a bargain, reasons Jack Hough. Is a 5.1% increase in same-store sales and 49% pop in e-commerce sales all that bad? It’s seen as more than a little interesting that Berkshire Hathaway ([[BRK.A)]], BRK.B) is plowing money into big banks, investing more than $4B in JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) in Q3 and $6B in Bank of America (NYSE:BAC). Buffett also holds stakes in Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), PNC Financial (NYSE:PNC), and Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE:BK). Andrew Bary notes that even though the yield curve has been narrowing, banks have been reporting wider net interest margins. Tae Kim looks at the FAANG stocks one by one. Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) is called the most attractive, while too many clouds are seen with Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX).

Sources: Nasdaq, EDGAR, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg

Editor’s Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

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metallresearch · 4 years

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My MetALLtribe! We got a recommendation from our dear friend Will Wulff about the latest work of the Brazilian band from Sao Paolo, @claustrofobia_official ; by the name of 'Riff Cult'. This song is a sonic assault to our ears with a very fresh rebranding of Ol' Death Metal blended with Trash Metal. These fellas have been in the trenches since 1993 and have never disappointed their Cult of followers, a world-class band true & true who has toured the world alongside many Death Metal icons, including the one and only Master. They know how to keep busy during COVID times, they get tattoos and make badass music; as you can appreciate in the video clip of this song, Marcus D'Angelo getting the tattoo Riff Cult on his fingers, with alternated images of them shredding in the garage with more fury like never before, instead of crying over the spilled milk they are taking application into Riff Cult!!! JJG https://youtu.be/4Bs-b6yIf2s #metallresearch #metallmusic #usa #metalltribe #claustrofobia #master #deathmetal #jjosegonzalez #ejspeiro #DianArguinzones #rlmmarcos #brazilianmetal #braziliandeathmetal #nashvillemetal #TNmetall (en Nashville Tennesee) https://www.instagram.com/p/CKXerOXpN7O/?igshid=11jidmmcy7lve

#metallresearch #metallmusic #usa #metalltribe #claustrofobia #master #deathmetal #jjosegonzalez #ejspeiro #dianarguinzones #rlmmarcos #brazilianmetal #braziliandeathmetal #nashvillemetal #tnmetall

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smartwebhostingblog · 6 years

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Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

New Post has been published on http://affordablewebhostingsearch.com/stocks-to-watch-eyes-on-cyber-monday-argentina-and-mars/

Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

IPOs expected to price: No new action anticipated.

IPO lockup expirations: Hancock Jaffe Laboratories (NASDAQ:HJLI) on November 27 and Ambow Education (NYSEMKT:AMBO) on November 28.

Analyst quiet period expirations: Axonics Modulation Technologies (NASDAQ:AXNX), Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) and Orchard Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ORTX) on November 26.

Sources: Nasdaq, EDGAR, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg

Editor’s Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

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lazilysillyprince · 6 years

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Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

New Post has been published on http://affordablewebhostingsearch.com/stocks-to-watch-eyes-on-cyber-monday-argentina-and-mars/

Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

IPOs expected to price: No new action anticipated.

IPO lockup expirations: Hancock Jaffe Laboratories (NASDAQ:HJLI) on November 27 and Ambow Education (NYSEMKT:AMBO) on November 28.

Analyst quiet period expirations: Axonics Modulation Technologies (NASDAQ:AXNX), Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) and Orchard Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ORTX) on November 26.

Sources: Nasdaq, EDGAR, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg

Editor’s Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

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hostingnewsfeed · 6 years

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Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

New Post has been published on http://affordablewebhostingsearch.com/stocks-to-watch-eyes-on-cyber-monday-argentina-and-mars/

Stocks To Watch: Eyes On Cyber Monday, Argentina And Mars

IPOs expected to price: No new action anticipated.

IPO lockup expirations: Hancock Jaffe Laboratories (NASDAQ:HJLI) on November 27 and Ambow Education (NYSEMKT:AMBO) on November 28.

Analyst quiet period expirations: Axonics Modulation Technologies (NASDAQ:AXNX), Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) and Orchard Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ORTX) on November 26.

Sources: Nasdaq, EDGAR, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg

Editor’s Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

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brookstonalmanac · 6 years

Text

Events 8.23

30 BC – After the successful invasion of Egypt, Octavian executes Marcus Antonius Antyllus, eldest son of Mark Antony, and Caesarion, the last king of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt and only child of Julius Caesar and Cleopatra. 20 BC – Ludi Volcanalici are held within the temple precinct of Vulcan, and used by Augustus to mark the treaty with Parthia and the return of the legionary standards that had been lost at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BC. AD 79 – Mount Vesuvius begins stirring, on the feast day of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire. 406 – Gothic king Radagaisus is executed after he is defeated by Roman general Stilicho and 12,000 "barbarians" are incorporated into the Roman army or sold as slaves. 476 – Odoacer, chieftain of the Germanic tribes (Herulic - Scirian foederati), is proclaimed rex Italiae ("King of Italy") by his troops. 634 – Abu Bakr dies at Medina and is succeeded by Umar I who becomes the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate. 1244 – Siege of Jerusalem: The city's citadel, the Tower of David, surrenders to Khwarezmian Empire. 1268 – Battle of Tagliacozzo: The army of Charles of Anjou defeats the Ghibellines supporters of Conradin of Hohenstaufen marking the fall of the Hohenstaufen family from the Imperial and Sicilian thrones, and leading to the new chapter of Angevin domination in Southern Italy. 1305 – Sir William Wallace is executed for high treason at Smithfield, London. 1328 – Battle of Cassel: French troops stop an uprising of Flemish farmers. 1382 – Siege of Moscow: The Golden Horde led by Tokhtamysh lays siege to the capital of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. 1514 – The Battle of Chaldiran ends with a decisive victory for the Sultan Selim I, Ottoman Empire, over the Shah Ismail I, founder of the Safavid dynasty. 1521 – Christian II of Denmark is deposed as king of Sweden and Gustav Vasa is elected regent. 1541 – French explorer Jacques Cartier lands near Quebec City in his third voyage to Canada. 1572 – French Wars of Religion: Mob violence against thousands of Huguenots in Paris results in the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre. 1595 – Long Turkish War: Wallachian prince Michael the Brave confronts the Ottoman army in the Battle of Călugăreni and achieves a tactical victory. 1600 – Battle of Gifu Castle: The eastern forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu defeat the western Japanese clans loyal to Toyotomi Hideyori, leading to the destruction of Gifu Castle and serving as a prelude to the Battle of Sekigahara. 1614 – Fettmilch Uprising: Jews are expelled from Frankfurt, Holy Roman Empire, following the plundering of the Judengasse. 1628 – George Villiers, the first Duke of Buckingham, is assassinated by John Felton. 1650 – Colonel George Monck of the English Army forms Monck's Regiment of Foot, which will later become the Coldstream Guards. 1655 – Battle of Sobota: The Swedish Empire led by Charles X Gustav defeats the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. 1703 – Edirne event: Sultan Mustafa II of the Ottoman Empire is dethroned. 1775 – American Revolutionary War: King George III delivers his Proclamation of Rebellion to the Court of St James's stating that the American colonies have proceeded to a state of open and avowed rebellion. 1784 – Western North Carolina (now eastern Tennessee) declares itself an independent state under the name of Franklin; it is not accepted into the United States, and only lasts for four years. 1799 – Napoleon I of France leaves Egypt for France en route to seizing power. 1813 – At the Battle of Großbeeren, the Prussians under Von Bülow repulse the French army. 1831 – Nat Turner's slave rebellion is suppressed. 1839 – The United Kingdom captures Hong Kong as a base as it prepares for war with Qing China. The ensuing three-year conflict will later be known as the First Opium War. 1864 – American Civil War: The Union Navy captures Fort Morgan, Alabama, thus breaking Confederate dominance of all ports on the Gulf of Mexico except Galveston, Texas. 1866 – Austro-Prussian War ends with the Treaty of Prague. 1873 – Albert Bridge in Chelsea, London opens. 1898 – The Southern Cross Expedition, the first British venture of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, departs from London. 1904 – The automobile tire chain is patented. 1914 – World War I: The British Expeditionary Force and the French Fifth Army begin their Great Retreat before the German Army. 1914 – World War I: Japan declares war on Germany. 1921 – British airship R-38 experiences structural failure over Hull in England and crashes in the Humber Estuary. Of her 49 British and American training crew, only four survive. 1923 – Captain Lowell Smith and Lieutenant John P. Richter performed the first mid-air refueling on De Havilland DH-4B, setting an endurance flight record of 37 hours. 1927 – Italian anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti are executed after a lengthy, controversial trial. 1929 – Hebron Massacre during the 1929 Palestine riots: Arab attack on the Jewish community in Hebron in the British Mandate of Palestine, continuing until the next day, resulted in the death of 65–68 Jews and the remaining Jews being forced to leave the city. 1939 – World War II: Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression treaty, the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. In a secret addition to the pact, the Baltic states, Finland, Romania, and Poland are divided between the two nations. 1942 – World War II: Beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad. 1943 – World War II: Kharkiv is liberated after the Battle of Kursk. 1944 – World War II: Marseille is liberated by the Allies. 1944 – World War II: King Michael of Romania dismisses the pro-Nazi government of Marshal Antonescu, who is arrested. Romania switches sides from the Axis to the Allies. 1944 – Freckleton Air Disaster: A United States Army Air Forces B-24 Liberator bomber crashes into a school in Freckleton, England, killing 61 people. 1945 – World War II: Soviet–Japanese War: The USSR State Defense Committee issues Decree no. 9898cc "About Receiving, Accommodation, and Labor Utilization of the Japanese Army Prisoners of War". 1946 – Ordinance No. 46 of the British Military Government constitutes the German Länder (states) of Hanover and Schleswig-Holstein. 1948 – World Council of Churches is formed by 147 churches from 44 countries. 1954 – First flight of the Lockheed C-130 multi-role aircraft. 1958 – Chinese Civil War: The Second Taiwan Strait Crisis begins with the People's Liberation Army's bombardment of Quemoy. 1966 – Lunar Orbiter 1 takes the first photograph of Earth from orbit around the Moon. 1970 – Organized by Mexican American labor union leader César Chávez, the Salad Bowl strike, the largest farm worker strike in U.S. history, begins. 1973 – A bank robbery gone wrong in Stockholm, Sweden, turns into a hostage crisis; over the next five days the hostages begin to sympathise with their captors, leading to the term "Stockholm syndrome". 1975 – The Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan has opened. It is 30 miles south of Detroit, Michigan 1985 – Hans Tiedge, top counter-spy of West Germany, defects to East Germany. 1989 – Singing Revolution: Two million people from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania stand on the Vilnius–Tallinn road, holding hands. 1990 – Saddam Hussein appears on Iraqi state television with a number of Western "guests" (actually hostages) to try to prevent the Gulf War. 1990 – Armenia declares its independence from the Soviet Union. 1990 – West and East Germany announce that they will reunite on October 3. 1991 – The World Wide Web is opened to the public. 1994 – Eugene Bullard, the only African American pilot in World War I, is posthumously commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. 2000 – Gulf Air Flight 072 crashes into the Persian Gulf near Manama, Bahrain, killing 143. 2006 – Natascha Kampusch, who had been abducted at the age of ten, escapes from her captor Wolfgang Přiklopil, after eight years of captivity. 2007 – The skeletal remains of Russia's last royal family members Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia, and his sister Grand Duchess Anastasia are discovered near Yekaterinburg, Russia. 2011 – A magnitude 5.8 (class: moderate) earthquake occurs in Virginia. Damage occurs to monuments and structures in Washington D.C. and the resulted damage is estimated at $200 million–$300 million USD. 2011 – Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is overthrown after the National Transitional Council forces take control of Bab al-Azizia compound during the Libyan Civil War. 2012 – A hot-air balloon crashes near the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana, killing six people and injuring 28 others. 2013 – A riot at the Palmasola prison complex in Santa Cruz, Bolivia kills 31 people.

#Events

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pen-masta · 8 years

Text

Brotherly Love Part 3: Big is Mean

Part three below the jump.

Warning: Bullying and abuse

1 2 3 4A 4B

Castel sits on the steps happily playing with Wolfie and his toy cars, playing in his imaginary world. Completely unaware of the three young boys walking towards him.

“Hey small fry,” the one boy says causing Castel to jump a little.

He turns to see three older boys standing over him. Ben, Teddy, and Marcus they were some boys in the neighborhood who were four years older than Castel and had never ever approached him before. Although he’d never had any contact with these boys before, he knew by the tone in Ben’s voice and the evil smirk on his face that the events to follow were not going to be good.

Although he is slightly frightened by Ben’s tone Castel gives the boys a friendly smile.

“Hello,” Castel greets the group.

“What are you doing?” Teddy asks eyeing Castel’s toy cars and Wolfie.

“Playing imagination,” Castel says proudly. “See the car drivers are in a race and Wolfie is the referee and they have to—”

“That’s stupid!” Ben laughs and picks up one of the cars—it was Castel’s favorite blue car with the flames on the side; Daddy had bought it for his birthday last year. “You still play with these dinky little things?” Castel, hugging Wolfie tightly, nods causing all the boys to laugh.

“That’s so dumb! They’re for babies!” Marcus says

Feeling threatened Castel jumps to his feet on the porch, furrows his brow and clenches his one fist while the other hugs Wolfie.

“They are not!” Castel says and looks at the other boys. Standing up now he can see just how much bigger they are.

Castel was small to begin with, but in comparison to these boys he seems three times smaller. Although Castel was six-years-old he still has the body of a four-year-old. His doctor told his parents that he was completely healthy and nothing was wrong, he was just growing a little slower than a normal six-year-old. She said it happens in a lot of her patients and she predicted that it only meant he’d have a lot of growth spurts; that he’d grow very tall when he was older, even taller than his daddy! But for now Castel was a six-year-old trapped in the body of a four-year-old.

The height difference alone is enough to frighten Castel, but he stands his ground against the bullies.

“Come on Ben it’s fun to play pretend,” Teddy says and takes the car from Ben. “Look I can imagine this car is a spaceship,” Teddy swings the car around making a whooshing sound. “And look it really flies!” Quickly Teddy pivots around and flings the car into the air as hard as he can.

“No!” Castel shouts in protest and watches as his favorite car flies through the air and lands on the pavement of the road. It bounces a few times and a wheel pops off before it rolls to a stop, just in time for the passing truck to run it over smashing it into little tiny pieces.

The boys laugh and Castel feels the tears welling up in his eyes and he hugs Wolfie tight, burying his head into Wolfie’s fur.

“Wow you’re right Teddy that was fun!” Marcus laughs and looks back at Castel. “I want to try.” He reaches the red pick-up truck Castel got from Grandpa last Christmas.

“No!” Castel shrieks and throws Wolfie to the ground before yanking the car away from Marcus. “They’re mine and you guys broke the last one and, and, and…you didn’t ask!” Castel cries out hugging his truck to his chest.

“Fine keep it brat,” Marcus rolls his eyes. “I’ll just play with this.” Before Castel can stop him Wolfie is in his hands.

“No! Let him go!” Castel yells and runs to grab Wolfie from Marcus’ hands.

Marcus laughs and holds the stuffed animal out of Castel’s reach, “Jump for it shorty!”

Desperately trying to get his beloved best friend back Castel jumps and tugs at Marcus shirt trying anything to get within Wolfie’s reach. Ben and Teddy laugh and watch the struggle.

“Hey Marcus toss it!” Ben yells from the porch.

Marcus throws the stuffed creature to Ben with complete ease. Castel whips his head around and races after Wolfie, only to run into Ben. Ben laughs and tosses it to Teddy, who tosses it to Marcus and soon little Castel is running around in circles trying to catch his beloved toy.

“Monkey in the middle!” The boys taunt and tease Castel; each one holding Wolfie just at his reach for a moment as he runs towards them, and then tossing it to the next person. Castel’s face turns red with frustration and exertion as he runs around in an endless circle.

Meanwhile in the kitchen behind the heavy wooden front door, the commotion outside is nothing but a muffled sound of yelling, but it catches Zack’s attention as he fills the backpack with their lunch.

“Hey Mikey!” Zack yells up the stairs to his brother

“Yeah?” Mikey yells down from Castel and Zack’s room.

“Do you hear something outside?”

“No why?”

“It sounds like someone is in the front yard.”

“Cassie is out there.”

“It sounds like more kids are out there though.”

“The neighborhood is filled with children Zack,” Mikey laughs and walks down the steps carrying some blankets and a few of Castel’s toys and books.

“I know that,” Zack rolls his eyes. “But listen, it sounds like they are right in the front yard.”

“Give Wolfie back!” Castel screams and stomps his foot as Ben holds the wolf over the little boy’s head.

“Oh you want him back?” Ben asks in mock surprise, “Well I want to play with him too, so here let’s share!” And with that Ben rips Wolfie’s head from his body in the blink of an eye. Castel’s face fills with horror as all he can do is watch. “Here you take this half.” Ben laughs and shoves the head of the stuffed animal into Castel’s hands.

Castel sniffles and hiccups as he stares into the brown button eyes of his best friend, his mouth still grinning and his pink tongue still sticking out, but his stuffing is falling all over Castel’s feet.

Hot tears begin to run down Castel’s cheeks and he hears more laughter.

“Oh look you’ve upset him Ben.” Marcus smirks.

“Aw is baby gonna cry?” Teddy sneers

“Go ahead baby cry, cry baby cry!” Ben laughs taunting Castel.

Filled with rage Castel throws the head down and charges at Ben. He tries to fight, he tries to kick him, he tries to hit him, but he’s just too small. Ineffectively Castel pounds his tiny fists into Ben’s stomach, which to Ben is nothing more than an annoying beat. They all laugh at Castel’s poor attempt to avenge his Wolfie, until Castel really lands a good kick to Ben’s shine. Ben cries out in pain and shoves Castel away.

“Why you little snot nosed punk,” Ben growls. “I’ll teach you to kick me!”

Ben shoves Castel hard, causing Castel to fall to the ground on his side, scraping his knee through his jeans. He winces in pain and bites his bottom lip trying to hold back his yelp. He looks up at Ben just in time to have Ben yank him by the collar of his t-shirt and land a punch into the child’s face. Castel screams out in pain and covers his face as his tears and hiccups become uncontrollable. Peering through his fingers he sees Ben pull back his fist to hit him again and Castel sobs in pain from the hit he is anticipating…but the hit doesn’t come. There’s something he hears over the laughter of his tormentors and his own wailing that stops the uproar.

“THAT IS ENOUGH!” A deep voice rips through the air and all three boys turn silent.

Castel blinks through his tear filled eyes to see his big brothers standing on the porch filled with rage at the sight before them.

“Get your filthy hands off my brother!” Mikey growls fire blazing in his eyes.

“Scram!” Ben yells and the three boys take off down the yard.

But they only make it half way to the street before they are yanked by the collars to a halt by Zack and Mikey.

“Like heck you’re leaving you cowards!” Zack hisses down to the boys before him.

The three boys are dragged back to the porch and are sat down at the outside table. Mikey stands before the three males who a few moments ago seemed to be all big and bad, but are now trembling with fear under Mikey’s glare.

Zack picks up his baby brother from the stop on the lawn that he’s curled up in and sees the remaining pieces of Wolfie spread all over the grass. Feeling the two strong arms encase him Castel immediately wraps his arms around his brother’s neck tightly, burying his head into Zack’s neck while he sobs. To make sure the three offenders can’t get away Zack sits on the steps blocking the only exit. He rocks Castel and rubs his back, whispering softly that it was over and he was alright and it’ll be ok over and over and over again trying to get the babe to calm down. Resting his chin on Castel’s mop of curls he watches as Mikey paces back and forth on the porch trying to control his temper.

They’re only kids Mikey don’t yell, be stern and scary but don’t yell, Mikey tells himself as he looks up at the three boys. He takes a breath before walking back to the table and staring down at the three children. You’re studying child psychology, no need for threats and yelling, just go all psychological on their bullying butts!

“Ben, Teddy, and Marcus,” he says and shakes his head. “What’s happened to you kids?” Mikey says as calmly as he can, his big brother instincts wanting to pound each one of them for even touching his baby brother. “I watched you kids grow up, you three used to be such sweet kids…and now you’re beating up someone who is FOUR year younger than you? That’s really sad.”

Teddy and Marcus exchange a glance before turning to the leader of the pack, who right now is visibly shaking in fear.

“I’m not going to yell at you,” Mikey says specifically aiming the statement at Ben. “You’ll get enough of that when you get home I’m sure, but right now I want to talk. I want to know why? Why did you pick on and hit Castel?”

All three boys stare at each other then back at Mikey. Mikey clenches his teeth a little, “That wasn’t a rhetorical question, I want an answer. Now.”

The boys look at each other again then at Mikey and shrug, fearing to even speak.

“Ben,” Mikey sighs and turns to the boy. “You seem to be running this circus, give me an answer.” Mikey crosses his arms and sits on the table placing himself directly in front of Ben.

“I-I-I-I don’t know,” Ben says in a small voice.

“You don’t know?” Mikey blinks in surprise, “You mean you don’t know what compelled you to take your fist and slam it into my baby brother’s face. You had absolutely no ideas running through your head as you did so? Or how about when you ripped Wolfie in half? Yeah, I saw that. You had no thoughts at all in your head?” Mikey says growling a little, the anger inside him dying to take over but is held at bay.

Ben shakes his head slowly, “N-n-no I don’t t-t-think so.”

“You don’t think so? Hm.” Mikey looks over to Zack who is cradling Cassie in his arms. He listens for a moment to Cassie muffled sobs before turning back to Ben, “Was it fun?”

Ben blinks up at Mikey, “W-what?”

“Was it fun?” Mikey repeats, “Did it make you feel big? Did it make you feel tough and strong to tear Castel down like that? To make him mad and frustrated and upset, to make him cry did it make you feel happy that you were the one who made Castel cry?” Mikey sees the struggle in Ben’s eye of how to answer, “You can tell me the truth Ben, I won’t get mad you have my word.”

Ben looks up at Mikey then down at his hands and sighs, “I…I guess it kind of…did.”

“Kind of? Ben it either did or it didn’t there is no in between,” Mikey sighs.

Ben hesitates before nodding slowly and saying very quietly, “Alright then…it did.”

Mikey nods and scans the young boy over for a moment. He notes the small freshly scabbed over cut on his one arm and the hint of a bruise peeking out from under his shirt collar. If he had not known who Ben is and his family history, Mikey would never assume what he did just now. Ben’s father, Tod, was a drunk and Mikey had seen firsthand that he was a very angry drunk. Tod and his daddy had been partners for a while at the police station—that and being neighbors ment Tod and his daddy had hung out a lot while Mikey was growing up. Tod was a nice guy…when he was sober.

Mikey remembers the first time he’d seen Tod drunk, he remembers being afraid. He had woken up late one night to the sound of arguing; at the time he and five-year-old Zack were sharing a room, and Mikey made sure Zack was still asleep before heading downstairs to see what was going on. When he made it down to the living room he saw his mommy standing behind his daddy at the door, and saw Tod on the other side. His daddy kept saying he wasn’t allowed in the house “like this”, and he kept putting his arms up to block Tod from entering.

He looked disheveled his hair was a mess, his shirt was half untucked and he kept wobbling slightly. He kept yelling incoherent words and trying to push his way in, every once in a while a normal word left his lips and Mikey was able to gather an idea of why he wanted in the house. It had something to do with the party earlier that night, one of the guys at work had a birthday and everyone at the police station had gone out to eat and celebrate. Daddy and mommy had gone out for a few hours but came back before Grandma and Grandpa had put Mikey and Zack to bed.

Tod was there but had stayed a little longer than daddy and mommy and for some reason before they left daddy had taken Tod’s keys. At the time Mikey didn’t know about alcohol and drunk driving and didn’t understand why daddy had taken Tod’s keys, but he knew that his daddy did everything for a reason and that reason was always right; so if he had taken the keys it must have been the right thing to do. But Tod didn’t seem to think so and was yelling that he wanted his keys back, that he was fine, that he didn’t need Mikey’s daddy “mothering” him.

But daddy refused to give him his keys or let him in house to get them himself. This angered Tod even more and he actually took a swing at daddy. Mikey had gotten really scared and screamed, running to his daddy’s aid to stop Tod. But he was yanked back by his mommy and held. Tod and daddy fought for a while on the lawn as his mommy yelled for them to stop and Mikey had cried begging his mommy to let him go help; she rocked him and told him, as kindly and calmly as she could, that it would be alright and that daddy was fine he didn’t need help. Soon Zack was awake and in his mommy’s arms as well, frightened by the fight.

After a few minutes, daddy had finally beaten Tod and he stood panting as blood dripped out his nose, Tod lied on the grass moaning in pain.

“You’ll get your keys back in the morning Tod.” Daddy had said sternly to his friend and stood up straight, “You’re drunk you can’t drive, go home and sleep it off.” Daddy had glanced back at mommy and Mikey before looking back at Tod. “Congratulations you’ve woken up both of my sons. It’s time for you to go Tod. Get. Off. My. Property. Now.” Daddy said sounding very angry but very controlled.

It took a few more minutes before Tod had actually left and mommy had taken care of the cuts and bruises daddy had gotten form the fight, and even though daddy and mommy assured Mikey daddy was okay…Mikey was very shaken up and very frighten by Tod. He remembered that was the first time in a long time he and Zack had asked to sleep with their parents the rest of the night. Tod was very scary when he was angry and even more so when he was drunk.

Mikey’s expression relaxes in sympathy for the young boy before him. He had learned about abuse at school and what it does to a child mentally, he could feel his anger fleeting and what replaced it was compassion and a new anger at Tod.

“Where did you get that bruise Ben?” Mikey asks quietly

Ben rolls his eyes and crosses his arms, “I fell off my bike.”

Mikey watches the boy’s body language, it said everything was fine it seemed even boarder line annoyed by the question, but when Ben met his eyes Mikey saw the hidden fear and panic.

“You fell?” Mikey asks and hesitates before continuing, “Or were you pushed?”

The hidden panic and fear appeared on Ben’s face for a moment before he managed to swallow it again. Mikey had learned that there were many reasons for why kids bully, sometimes it’s to get attention, other times it’s because they are jealous of someone else so they tear that person down to make themselves feel better. But in this case Mikey would bet dollars to donuts that it is projection of something at home.

With a small sigh Mikey kneels down to be at eye level with Ben, he can see the young boy has begun to tremble again. Even though Ben has hurt Cassie, Mikey feels an overwhelming sense of compassion and forgiveness for this little lad. He also feels a need to protect him, Mikey never liked to see anyone hurt especially kids because…why would you want to hurt something so little and innocent? He felt a need to protect Ben from Tod the same way he protected Zack and Cassie and it hurt his heart knowing he was essentially useless in this situation.

Maybe he couldn’t be there physically for Ben, but he could be there emotionally.

“Ben if something is going on that is upsetting you, you need to tell someone.” Mikey says quietly trying to have a private moment with Ben…well as private as he could with four other people around. “Hurting others because you’re hurt and upset is not the answer, it only causes more problems.” He waits to see if Ben will look at him, when he doesn’t Mikey continues. “Ben even though you hurt my brother I want you to know you are welcome here anytime,” Ben had looked up then.

His eyes are big, shining with unshed tears, and he clenches the hem of his shirt in anticipation of the answer when he asks quietly, “Really?”

Mikey smiles a little and nods, “Only if you are sorry and do not hurt Castel again do you understand?”

Ben nods rapidly and Mikey smiles. Maybe he wouldn’t open up to him now, but Mikey could let Ben know that he could if he wanted to.

Clearing his throat Mikey says, “And Ben you can talk to any of us. Me, Zack, our parents even Cassie if you want to. You can tell us what’s up and we’ll do everything we can to help alright? You’re safe here and anything you tell us will stay in this house.”

Ben blinks and quickly wipes his nose on his sleeve before nodding. Mikey smiles and stands up looking at the other two boys. He tries to think of something else to say about what happened earlier and how to explain what they did was very wrong, not only does he not what them hurting Castel again but he also doesn’t want them hurting someone else. A memory flashes in his mind of something his daddy had said to him when he was younger and he smiles a little deciding now would be a good time to pass on the knowledge.

“Alright listen all of you, I want to tell you something about this world.” He says taking a seat at the table. “There are two kinds of men in this world. There’s the man who thinks he is big and the man who is big. The man who thinks he is big will push others down and stand up for only himself. That way when he looks around everyone he’s pushed down is smaller than him and he thinks he is big—but when others look at him he is very, very small.” Mikey glances at each boy seeing that he’s got their full attention. “But the man who is big doesn’t push others down, instead he helps those who have fallen back up. He doesn’t stand up for only himself, but he stands up for others as well. He cares for them and helps those who have been pushed down by the man who thinks he is big. And even though when he looks at himself he can’t see how big he is, everyone around him does. They see his kindness and his care for not himself but others, and that’s what him big and strong.” Mikey leans back in his chair a little before finishing with, “Now the question is which man are you right now?”

All three boys look down into their laps and stay silent for a while, until a small squeak comes from Teddy.

He raises his head a little to look at Mikey and says in a small voice, “The one who thinks he is big.”

“I’d agree,” Mikey nods and can see all three boys slump their shoulders and hang their heads. “But that doesn’t have to stay the same forever.” Three pairs of eyes look up at him and he smiles a little. “Right now you think you are big that’s true, but my next question is which kind of man do you want to be?”

Marcus is the first to answer, “The man who is big.”

“Those are only words Marcus,” Mikey says, “they only mean something if you make them true. You want to be the man who is big show it in your actions.” And with that Mikey stands up from the table and walks over to Zack and Cassie, who has by now calmed down and is sitting in Zack’s lap, staring up at Mikey and listening to his words as well. “I will not tell your parents what happened today it will be our secret. But what I want is for you three to think about the man you want to be and how to become that man. Understood?”

Teddy and Marcus nod, stand up from the table and utter an apology to Castel before leaving. Ben still sits at the table staring at his hands for a moment before standing up. Without a word he walks over to Zack and Castel and stares down at the younger boy. He looks at the damage he’s done to the boy, noting the bruise forming on Castel’s cheek. He bites his lip and closes his eyes for moment.

Zack watches him warily and looks up at Mikey to see he is as calm as could be. Ben kneels down in front of Castel and without a word wraps his arms around the little lad. Castel hugs him back and smiles a little knowing Ben was sorry even if he didn’t say it in words.

Ben stands back up and looks up at Mikey wiping his eyes quickly before hugging Mikey as well. Mikey smiles and gives the boy a tight hug letting him know it was alright. Ben smiles a little at Zack before leaving. Once all the boys are gone Mikey and Zack take Castel inside to fix him up.

Castel tells them everything that happened as Mikey ices his bruised cheek and puts a Band-Aid on his cut knee. Zack helps Castel into a new pair of jeans while Mikey picks up the remains of Wolfie from the yard. Although Castel is no longer mad at the three boys he’s still very upset about his car and Wolfie and new tears fill his eyes upon seeing his shredded friend. But his brothers assure him that Wolfie will make a full recovery and will be better before they get home from the park.

Mikey leaves Wolfie on the kitchen table with a note and they head off to the park as planned. It is the perfect distraction for young Castel, what with him playing on the Jungle Jim, swinging, and playing with his big brothers it is not long before the bad memories of earlier have been forgotten. The three of them play around for a while before stopping to have lunch.

Castel, being the picking eater he is, is done with his lunch first and runs around the field chasing some butterflies as his brothers finish their lunch and watch him happily.

Zack smiles at the sight of Cassie, he liked seeing his baby brother happy more than he liked seeing him hurt. Hurt? That reminds me…

“Hey Mikey,” Zack turns to his brother. “What was that all about back there?”

“What do you mean?” Mikey asks biting into another apple slice.

“I mean I thought at first you were gonna pulverize those kids.”

“Well I wanted to at first, I really did,” Mikey chuckles a little, “but that’s just thing Zack…they’re just kids. They’re still learning, they still need to be taught. And sometimes depending on the situation they are in what’s wrong seems right, and what’s right seems wrong. They just need a little help clearing the fog.”

Zack smiles a little more, “Those child phycology classes are paying off huh?”

Mikey laughs and nods, “I guess so.” He smiles before sighing a little and saying quietly, “I just hope I got through to them.”

Zack looks at his older brother then back at his younger brother. He watches as Castel chases after a blue butterfly, in his run he trips and falls only to stand back up giggling and continuing his chase. Zack smiles again and looks back at Mikey, “I think you did, Bear. I really think you did.”

Mikey looks at Zack and smiles a little, “Thanks Lion.”

Zack nods and pauses a moment before asking, “He where’d you get that story about the two types of men?”

Mikey smiles more, “Daddy told me that.”

“When?”

“Shortly after that night Tod showed up drunk at our door.”

“Oh…I remember that night.” Zack pauses again, “Hey Mikey you don’t think Tod is—”

“I do,” Mikey cuts his brother off and nods slowly.

Zack looks down at his lap before looking back at Mikey, “I do too.”

Mikey turns to Zack and sees the sympathy in his eyes. Mikey looks back at Castel before saying, “Well…we just gotta wait for him to come to us, and be there for him when he does. It’s just him in there, he doesn’t have anyone to talk to about what’s happening.”

Zack nods slowly before saying, “Well…now he has us. And we’ll be there for him, just like…if it were Cassie…right?”

Mikey looks back at his brother and smiles a little before ruffling Zack’s hair, “Right.” Zack laughs and pushes his hand away and fixes his hair again.

Later on Mr. and Mrs. Cubs get home to find the house is still empty. Mikey had texted both of them that the boys were headed to the park for the afternoon and would be home for dinner. The two hang up their coats before heading to the kitchen to start getting dinner ready.

“I’m thinking spaghetti?” Mr. Cubs says filling a pot with water.

“But there’s no time to make meatballs,” Mrs. Cubs says her accent very thick as she smiles at her husband.

“Well we have meat right?” He asks

“Oui.”

“Who says it has to be in a ball?” He grins, “I say we start a new food combination. Spaghetti and meat loaf!” He says proudly and smiles when his wife laughs.

“Alright Su Chef, we’ll invent the new dinner idea.” She says taking the meat out of the fridge.

“Hey I’m Head Chef,” Mr. Cubs chuckles

“Dear I’ve seen your macaroni, green bean, cheese casserole,” she smiles teasingly, wrinkling her nose a little at the memory. “You’re Su and I’m Head.”

Mr. Cubs laughs and rolls his eyes, “It was not that bad.”

“Sweetie the outdoor cats wouldn’t even eat it.”

He growls playfully at her, “Oh stop your growling and make the spaghetti.” She giggles and sticks her tongue out at him.

“Fine,” he says sighing dramatically earning another giggle from his love. He turns to say something else to her when something on the table catches his eye. “What’s that?”

Mrs. Cubs turns and sees the object on the table. They both look at each other before walking over to the table. As the object comes into view they see that a massacred Wolfie lay on the table with a little note next to him.

I had an accident today, few boys were picking on my friend and I tried to help but I got hurt. My friend is alright though, he has a bruise and a cut knee but don’t worry his big brothers took care of the mean boys. They won’t pick on him anymore I promise. He’s really upset that I got hurt, so if you guys could give me a quick surgery before he gets home I know he’ll be very happy. If you could tie a blue ribbon around my neck it will cover the stitches and give me a really cool collar! :)

Thank you Mom and Dad

- Wolfie

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