#and you can see them and their children and grandchildren missing from the population

[the-library-alcove]

Here's the deal with this graph. It's basically two bar graphs set on their sides, one for males, sorted by age, and one for females, sorted by age. They're fairly simple to read. From this, we can see that the Gazan population has an annual birth rate of about 70,000 babies born per year, with approximately 280,000 children between 0 and 4 years old, and similar numbers between 5 and 9, and 10 and 14, and about 250,000 between 15-19*, and the adult population steadily decreases from there, due to lower birth rates when they were born, plus normal adult mortality rates.

The thing is, the adults are a smooth and steady decrease; there's no significant surplus of either gender in any age bracket, nor are there "dents" that signify a major mass death event or other event that inhibits births.

Compare that to Russia's population pyramid, or Ukraine's, where you can clearly see the effects of WWII even 80 years later due to the loss of so many men on the battlefield, and in the case of Ukraine, the Holodomor.

You can see that both Russia and Ukraine lost a lot of people, especially men, during the period between 1920 and 1950, and that had knock-on effects further downstream (like that dip around the 1960s), where the decreased cohort of new parents, as they came of age, had resultingly smaller families than their predecessors or followers.

Rwanda has a distinct dent in its pyramid due to the Rwandan Genocide in 1994, both due to people being killed (with babies being the most vulnerable) and people not exactly having children in the middle of a war and genocide.

But Gaza, and the Palestinian population more generally?

No dents, no major losses of cohorts, just steadily large families, with a marked increase in their population growth in the 1980s. This is not the population pyramid that shows any effects of genocide or really any major fatalities--so the claim that they've been under the effect of genocide since 1948 isn't supported by the facts in any way, shape or form.

~~~

*It is worth highlighting that this fairly clearly means that the high birth rate dates from nearly exactly when Hamas took over the Gaza Strip--and remember that they're fundamentalists who basically view women as being breeding stock and that any form of birth control or family planning is sinful and verboten. These two points are correlated.

You know, for a population that has, ostensibly, been under continuous genocide for 75 years...

It's pretty impressive that the Gaza Strip has the 40th highest population growth rate in the world, and the 6th highest in the Middle East, with 70,000+ births per year, and no visible "dents" in their population pyramid that would be expected if they'd, yanno, suffered a mass death event over generations:

It's almost as if, instead of "Israelis are the New Nazis", instead, it's closer to "The amount of effort Nazis spent on hunting down and killing Jews is equal to the effort Israelis are expending to keep Gazans alive."

[nataliesnews]

A visit to three palestinian villages 6.7.2023

Yesterday was so hot and I was so tired both mentally and physically that after having  visited a sick friend I did what I have never done before but took a taxi home. I try to write about what we have seen but my words are so dry. Israelis should be brought in and forced to see what the settlers, guarded by the army, have done. I go to sleep tired and I wake up tired. It reminds me of the way I felt during the Yom Kippur war and the aftermath.

  I also ask how it it that only four settlers have been arrested. People were nearly burnt alive.  And yet at Ben Gurion nearly 50 demonstrators were arrested though the demonstration was not violent.  Yes people missed their flights and others coming back experienced great difficulty but no one was harmed physically.  Here a grandmother hid her children in the bathroom. Omar who was shot dead had already managed to get a grandmother and three of the children out of a burning house.  He went back to help someone who had been injured and was shot dead.  

  What can I say to you? So often I write with anger, with shame, with a feeling of hopelessness. But how can I write of hopelessness when the Palestinians stand  alone and not even their own in other Moslem countries try to protect them. At one time I went aside because I found that I could not stop crying.  Especially those of you who support the settlers, you must know that the terrorists were supported by the army and the police who did nothing to stop the attacks. In some cases they helped. And I look at the pictures from Jenin and see the Palestinians fleeing the city with nothing but the clothes they have on them and I am reminded of ourselves,  the Jews, in 1939. 

A delegation of about 30 Tag Meir activists today visited three villages that suffered violent attacks from dozens of Jewish thugs and terrorists. We started the day in the village of Turmus Aya where we met the head of the council in the city hall building and from there we continued to the streets where the Jewish terrorists rioted. This is a rich village as many of the people of the village live  and work in America and come back regularly to their village where they also build their homes. 

  We were greeted by burnt cars, which were only a hint of the difficult sights to come: three houses that were set on fire, two of them on their occupants. In the one the grandmother, after having been physically attacked by settlers, hid her two grandchildren in the bathroom. She managed afterwards to get away with them but the house was burnt down. We did not have time to see the  over 20 others which had been burned. In one of the houses, a bride and her attendants  were excitedly preparing for their wedding. Everything was burned. Outside the houses there was burnt furniture, inside the houses there was broken glass and a heavy smell of smoke. I spoke to one man who lives now in Ohio and he said ......and notice this....that in 1948 the Arabs fled but now they really have nothing to lose and are here to stay. This we hear time and again even from shepherds and farmers. 

  In more than one case, the settlers broke windows of houses which they could not get into and threw in Molotov cocktails.  I said to Gadi we have become like Nazis. 

 The settlers came in protected by army jeeps which threw gas bombs at the Palestinians.  There were between 200 to 300 settlers.  We were not only told these stories but shown videos which prove everything we told.

 When I saw the burnt trees at the side of the road I was reminded of a poem by Totius which I learned as a child. This poem was written in Afrikaans during the Boer War. Yes afterward the Afrikaner also oppressed the native population of South Africa but the Afrikaner never forgot the British occupation. Which just shows that also  we learned nothing from what was done to us.

.

  We continued to the village of Luban a-Sharqiya, where also Jews rioted and damaged property. We talked in the council building with the villagers, it was a charged conversation in which they expressed their frustration with the disturbances.   We visited other villages and in  one a man arrived and wanted to tell us what he thought of our condolence visit. I understood some of the Arabic and was very angry as I felt that the Palestinian who translated for us did not translate but tried to cover it up. I thought it important that we should have heard everything this man  had to say. We are always greeted with such politeness and I have often found myself wondering just what the Palestinians really feel under all that politeness. We often say to them that we thank them for agreeing to meet with us. The man said amongst other things that he appreciated our coming but all these years they have been under attack and where were we then which is true. In fact I felt that Gadi should have told him to translate word for word what the man was saying.

 This is part of what people managed to save. Some of the houses are so badly damaged that they cannot be rebuilt.

   We finished the day in Kfar Orif. There the  mosque has already been burnt down once and the settlers had tried to put the school on fire.  We, the people of the book, wish to stop others from studying.                                          They come in the early hours of the morning to attack.  The imam also told us  about  the rioters who entered the mosque with a dog and  tore up parts of the Koran and their holy writings.- which they keep. They bury the holy pages as we do from what we understood. 

  At the gates of the mosque, children and boys gathered who looked at us with suspicious and frightened eyes. At first they didn't want to talk to us at all. For them Jews are the ones who come with guns and shoot at them or desecrate the mosque, little by little curiosity overcame suspicion, they accepted candy and toys from us, took pictures of us with smartphones, smiled and even said goodbye: Goodbye they called towards us.

 I have been trying to write about this for two days now. I phoned the one man we spoke to who lives in Ohio and he said that the previous night the army had come in at about 2.30 again and woken the people and as we were speaking that they were again entering the city.

  The little thorn tree by Totius There is a thorn tree stood level by the road, where long ox teams go with heavy loads. And one day an oxcart passed, which  with its heavy wheels drive across the tree. "You have oh little thorn tree scratched me the other day; and therefore have my wheels your little crown trampled.” The bullock cart disappears again behind a hilltop, and slowly bends the little tree to bring his trunk up again. His beauty was marred; his bark was torn; in one place was the little  Stem so almost halfway through. But still that little tree did recovered slowly, because over his wounds drip the ointment of own gum. Also has the course of years erased the wounds - only one place remains a sign which is indelible. The wounds heal again as years come and go, but there the mark gets bigger and keeps growing. (Totius)

This poem was written in Afrikaans during the Boer War. Yes afterward the Afrikaner also oppressed the native population of South Africa but I can tell you that it left a scar on them which was never forgotten. As a child I spoke in Afrikaans at a school meeting about the concentration camps where many Afrikaner women and children died. Man does not learn. 

  This is such a dry report and I have tried for days to write it. But nothing can describe walking through these villages and seeing a pogrom and knowing that no  one is there to protect any Palestinian. As I said Israelis should be forced to visit it adn to see what is done in their name....I don't want to write what that sentence makes me think of. Who understands will understand. There are still things that my pen will not allow me to write.

[fundielicious-simblr]

Harvestfest

(Adalynn’s POV)

(Ignore the fact that some people are missing, in spite of having a detailed pose planned out I forgot to add some people and it was too late to go and add them, at the point I’d spent 4 days trying to get almost 50 people to pose and was at the end of my rope 😂)

Happy Harvestfest! It felt so good to gather with all my family as we focus on being together, being grateful, and sharing in the blessings the Lord has showered on all of us. With so many of us now married and having to split holidays between our family and our in-laws, we all sat down and decided that the holiday that would bring us all together at the big house in Newcrest would be Harvestfest, meaning that we’re left to be with our other family at Winterfest. This year there were 46 people to fill up my parent’s house, which just goes to show how much the Lord has blessed us in the past 12 years, before I got married there would only be the 15 of us around the table digging in to the 2 turkeys that us Zoe and I would wake up at 4am to pick fresh from the farm, sharing in the sides that Macie would prepare for the evening, and laughing and singing together. One thing I’m very grateful for are all the children that are running around again, growing up it would be Charles, Parker, and Ashton that entertained us all with their shenanigans, but once they grew up and grew out of it then we all missed the sounds of having children around the house. Now there are 22 children that run around and call my parents ‘grandma and grandpa’. 

(Updates on the family are under the cut!)

Allan (55) and Casandra (52) Collins

My parents are thriving in this season of life they’re in! This year they’ve completed 34 years of marriage, what a testimony! Dad is still the pastor at Newcrest Baptist, the Lord has blessed the church abundantly allowing for dad to hire on additional pastors, which gives him the chance to speak at various conferences whilst not having to worry about his congregation in Newcrest being left stranded. Mum has been finishing up school with Ashton, the last kid in the Collins Homeschool, can you believe it? She’s managed to successfully homeschool 13 children from Kindergarten all the way to the end of highschool, which is no easy feat considering how different we all are. At Ashtons graduation party we’re planning on honouring her for all that she did to homeschool us and how she did and continues to pour into all of us. Since Ashton is basically self sufficient with schooling, mum has a lot more time to travel around and visit her grandbabies, since Barrett and Kyleigh’s kids are the closest to us she’s always having them over at the big house or going over for a few hours a day to continue to pour into the lives of her grandchildren. She also gets invited to speak at different ladies’ meetings in the wider area, as well as joining our dad on speaking engagements, either accompanying him to speak at different churches or speaking with him at loads of different marriage conferences. It’s such a blessing to see my parents be so richly rewarded for their dedication to the Lord!

The Leonard Family - Mason (34), Adalynn (33), Noah (10), Luke (8), Aaron (7), Paul (6), Joshua (4), Caleb & Jonah (1)

We’re excited to be expecting baby number 8! As time passes and I’m blessed with more children, I’ve realised I have a very consistent pattern of getting pregnant when the youngest child is almost 2 years old. Well, since the twins 2nd birthday is coming up I decided on a whim to take a pregnancy test and it was positive! As usual we’re not finding out the gender until the baby is born, but with the current numbers I’ve got I’m going to guess that this baby is a boy. The boys are excited to have another sibling on the way, but while we wait for the new baby to join us I’ve got the boys focusing on their school work. The oldest four boys are steadily progressing in their work and are loving school, they also love working on gaining their scout badges before the end of the year so they can progress onto the next level. Another exciting thing in our house is the nativity play that our church is putting on this Winterfest, the boys are in the children’s choir meaning that all our music practice has turned into Winterfest practice. Mason’s sister Molly is getting married soon as well, so the family has been gearing up to host people at her wedding in the next few months.

The Collins Family - Barrett (31), Kyleigh (29), Chloe, Allan Jr & Benjamin (8), Rose & Violet (6), Daisy (6), Marigold (5), Olivia (3), Preston (1)

Barrett & Kyleigh are also expecting a baby, this baby joining the family will be baby number 10 with the gender being a surprise! They live in Newcrest so they’ve got the advantage of being by the big house and seeing my parents all the time, as well as all my siblings who still live at home. Kyleigh and I are in the same boat are up to our ears in school books, but when you add in the fact she’s got 2 extra kids than I do, it’s amazing how calm she is about it! You’d never know she’s actively homeschooling 7 children whilst also running after two toddlers, she makes it look so easy! With everything happening in their house they’ve got plans for even more disruption, an old family friend that owns a construction company has offered to add an extension to their house purely to be a blessing to them! They currently live in a 3 bedroom house and the current plan is to add a second floor to the house to give them more room to grow, and with them adding a new baby every year I can tell there is going to be a lot of growing for their family to do.

The Moreno Family - Francisco (33), Zoe (29), and Javier Jr (2)

Francisco and Zoe are also expecting, and when we were all together they shared that they were having a baby girl! They’re not sharing the name they’ve picked out now, so we’re all waiting for baby girl to make her appearance so we can hear the no doubt beautiful name they’ve picked out. Little JJ is growing in leaps and bounds, it’s so hard being far away from family, which makes us cherish these times that we get to be all together even more. In other news, they’ve officially moved out of Oasis Springs and are excited to be starting out this new season of life as they get settled in Windenburg. They’ll be stationed there for the next 2 or maybe even 3 years, meaning that Zoe gets a few years living close to our sister Amira as well as our cousin Brittany. 

The Wright Family - Shane (26), Maggie (25), Arlo & Iris (1)

Shane and Maggie are enjoying their new season of life with the twins growing into toddlers and enjoying the learning curve that comes with having not one, but two toddlers running all over the place. Shane continues to work at the design agency, and now that the twins are slightly older Maggie has started going back to doing more freelance photography jobs, and is hoping to start back at the office full time soon. Their current plans for the winter include a family skiing vacation at Mt Komorebi along with Reece and Stacie and their in-laws for Winterfest. 

The Collins Family - Reece and Stacie (24), Liam (3), Hazel (1)

Reece and Stacie are also enjoying life with their family of 4 after the addition of little Hazel. Liam is starting kindergarten which is keeping Stacie busy with them as they start an official homeschooling programme, with the addition of Hazel’s basic toddler care as she attempts to be like her big brother. As well as starting school, the mother’s at their church have created a play group to help the kids socialise with each other since most of the families homeschool their children, so Liam is making new friends at church too. Their plans for winter include a ski holiday in Mt.Komorebi with Maggie, Shane, and their in-laws as well as with Stacie’s mother and sister.

The Collins Family - Beckett (23) and Mandy (21)

Beckett and Mandy made the journey home from Selvadorada in time for Harvestfest with the entire family. There’s not pregnancy news on the horizon for these two, but their lives are full of blessings in other forms; They’re in the process of fundraising to continue to build a church in Selvadorada, they hope to be able to educate the Salvadoradian population on the ways of the Lord with this new church. Currently Beckett pastors at an old church building, with Mandy helping teach english and Bible at the local school, she also sometimes helps the local midwives with deliveries and aftercare for postpartum mothers. While they’re in Newcrest they’ll be travelling to various churches in the local and wider area to help fundraise, as well as catch up on all their shopping whilst they’re still here, they’ll also head over to Oasis Springs to see Mandy’s family before they leave. Over the winter they’ll be hosting Macie, Celeste, Annette, as well as other youths from Newcrest Baptist as they head over to Selvadorada on a missions trip! 

The Eichelburg Family - Thomas (23) and Amira (22)

Amira is also expecting! The couple announced their pregnancy to the family when they arrived at the big house, she’s currently in her second trimester and currently doesn’t know the gender of the baby. In Windenburg she helps with the children’s church programmes or volunteers at a local charity shop in her spare time whilst Thomas is at work, now with the pregnancy she’s got other things to keep her busy. She’s planning to have her baby shower in her third trimester, so that should happen sometime in the next month or so, it’ll definitely be easier for her with Zoe moving close to her now. Their winter plans include planning the baby shower, escaping on a quick babymoon, and preparing to welcome their new addition before the new year! 

The Roberts Family - Felix (25), Priscilla (20), and Andrew (1)

Priscilla and Felix are enjoying this new season of life with little Andrew, he’s definitely put Priscilla through her paces as she learns how to deal with a toddler that’s her own child and not a child she can give back to their parents at the end of the day. Felix is working at his father’s offices as an Attorney, so is kept busy during the day before coming home to Priscilla and Andrew in the evening. Whilst Priscilla is loving time with Andrew, she can’t deny that she’s definitely praying to get pregnant soon! Their winter plans include helping campaign for the local conservative candidate in the local primary elections, as well as Priscilla helping coordinate their church’s winter show.

Charles (19) and Lorilee Mitchell (18)

These two are engaged! Charles proposed to Lorilee just before Harvestfest, hence the now allowed hand holding. The family is so excited to have another boy get married, with the couple planning a winter wedding in the bride’s hometown of Windenburg. Charles finished up with his pilot’s license soon before he proposed and he’s started working with the missions centre attached to Newcrest Baptist to help with their ministry efforts. He’s saved up enough to buy a small house a few miles away from my parents, so the couple will have a house to move into after their wedding.

Macie (31), Annette (21), Parker (18), Ashton (16)

There are the current singles at home, Macie is still living at home but is making herself useful to those around her in an effort to be a blessing and to pour herself into others to glorify the Lord. When she’s home in Newcrest she helps Ashton with difficult work and cares for the garden, visits her local nieces and nephews, serves at church, and bakes goodies to gift different members of our church family with. When she’s not home she’s travelling to see her many siblings and nieces/nephews scattered around everywhere, she also leads programmes at various christian retreats for young ladies and older single ladies as well. This winter she’s travelling with others to Selvadorada on a missions trip and will stay with Beckett and Mandy, as well as helping to prepare for Charles and Lorilee’s wedding.

Annette is primarily works as a babysitter/mother’s helper for the different women at church, as well as helping babysit her nieces and nephews or even her cousin’s children. When she’s not doing that she’s travelling to women’s retreats with Macie to help run the programmes or work in the kitchen.

Parker has graduated highschool and has started working for a construction company that is owned by a member of Newcrest Baptist, he’s starting out as an apprentice and hopes to learn enough to make this a full time career.

Ashton is the youngest and is currently the last Collins child being homeschooled by Casandra, she’s working through her final year and is on track to graduate early in the spring. The family is planning a graduation party to celebrate the youngest child finishing school, and the official retirement of our mother as our teacher!

The four pregnancies

The four pregnant women got together for a picture, it’s such a blessing to be pregnant at the same time as my sisters and my sister-in-love! Between Zoe, Kyleigh, and I we’ve got a combination of 17 children, and we’re adding 4 more since we’re all having singletons. Once all these children are born my parents will have a total of 26 grandchildren, what a blessing!

(AN) I just want to say thank you to everyone who left their condolences after I shared that we lost a friend, her funeral was last week and some friends were able to fly back to the states and see her laid to rest with full military honours. This is such a great community and I love being a part of it, thanks to everyone for being so great 💛

[dgchg]

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[alexsfictionaddiction]

Review: The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

I am a huge fan of Karen M. McManus’ YA thrillers, so I was delighted when I was invited on to the WriteReads blog tour for her latest. This is a complete departure from the characters of her other books, so you can pick this one up, having not read any of her others.

Milly, Aubrey and Jonah Story are cousins who haven’t seen each other for years and none of them have ever met their shared grandmother, who cut their parents off years before. Until they each receive a letter inviting them to work at their grandmother’s island resort with no explanation. The teens embark on a crazy, mysterious summer, full of secrets darker than any of them ever expected.

McManus sure likes stock characters! Her debut One Of Us Is Lying featured the five archetypal teenagers that are featured in The Breakfast Club and here we are again, dealing with a jock, nerd, princess and clown. The real secrets lie within the cousins’ parents’ generation and the chapters that flash back 25 years hold a multitude of clues as to how they all managed to become disinherited. I was trying to put the pieces together but there was always something missing, so yes, the twists continued to shake me! 

The resort itself is a classic setting for a mystery to play out. I’m sure there are plenty of secrets that it still hasn’t given up, due to its constantly revolving population and the ease that it is to completely disappear there. Like the Story family themselves, Gull Cove Island oozes carefully-crafted perfection on the outside but houses a multitude of messes once you start digging. 

We hear from all three of the cousins and they each have their own complex lives and relationships with their parents. Milly has a tricky relationship with her mother Allison, Aubrey has very little reason to respect her father Adam and Jonah has very little relationship at all with Anders. However, all of them are curious about why their parents were exiled from the family and why their grandmother has never shown any interest in meeting her grandchildren. They all possess a degree of courage that I think shows up their passive parents.

All four of the Story siblings have clearly grown into adults who struggle with the idea of family. They all seemingly resent or hold a great deal of disappointment towards their children. So much so that I knew that something majorly traumatic must have happened involving all of them. The pieces very slowly started to come together and they formed a pretty horrific picture.

The twists continued to slap me in the face and I honestly didn’t see a single one of them coming. McManus is so good at expertly laying out all the evidence while still concealing the truth. The final stretch of the book dealt with one final major curveball that took everything in a direction that I could never have predicted and I literally couldn’t put it down.

The Cousins tells the crazy story of a family who have harboured an enormous dark secret for decades. Full of haunted characters, plenty of intrigue and mysteries that keep rearing their heads, it’s the perfect, fast-paced YA thriller for the winter season.

The Cousins by Karen M. McManus will be published by Penguin Random House on 3rd December 2020.

[loyalflutist]

Fodlan Holy Grail War (Chapter 1)

Characters present: Edelgard, Dimitri, Claude, Hubert, Ferdinand, Petra, Dorothea, Bernadetta, Caspar, Linhardt, Ingrid, Felix, Sylvain, Dedue, Mercedes, Annette, Ashe, Leonie, Lorenz, Lysithea, Raphael, Ignatz, Hilda, Marianne, Rhea, Flayn, Seteth, Catherine, Hanneman, Manuela, Byleth Pairings: Felix x Annette, slight Hilda x Marianne, very slight Edelgard x f!Byleth (Edeleth)

A/N: So... this is a lengthy chapter... and I didn’t expect to become lengthy. Most of my old chapters in my old series range between 3k - 5k maximum. This? It was 6.8k+. It burnt me out, lol. However, I had fun sticking as many characters as I possibly can for the first chapter! Hope you all enjoy this. :) I had fun writing it. 

Previous Chapter: Prologue Next Chapter: Chapter 1

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“I hope my kid gets in.”

“He’s a commoner. You know they only enlist the richest of the rich.”

“Are you sure about that? There are some students who aren’t from nobility.”

“Yeah, but they have to have a Crest.”

“That’s wrong.”

“No, you’re wrong. They need to have the Crest.”

“My daughter will find a worthy partner!”

“You’ve got to be kidding me. Why not just marry her off to some rich noble?”

“My grandchildren’s future would be secured if they get in.”

“I can finally find a worthy opponent.”

“I’ll never get in…”

“Cheers!”

Commoners and nobilities mingled and exchanged powerful wishes and lamentations unto each other. Whether they spoke to those that wear their aromatic perfumes in large dosage or to those that wore nothing more than tattered rags, they chirped and frolicked like birds. It was as if a festival bloomed in all three nations simultaneously. Celebrations and haughty statements were tossed around like playthings. Anxiety and tears shed from the inevitable truths. Anticipations gnawed at their mangled souls.

Everyone knew what this month entails. Every five years, on the Guardian Moon (January), a letter from the archbishop would be sent to prospective students throughout the continent. Wings fluttered about over the population. Bells chimed in the background to signal the start of sunset. Stray feathers lazily descended upon the land from the orange sky. Children would squeal and leap, their hands outstretched to catch the pure object, the adults staring intently at the flock like predators. Many elders sunk to their knees, their clasped hands violently trembled, prayers muttered with incredible speed.

All for an invitation to Garreg Mach Monastery.

Its name easily rolls off from one’s tongue. Not more than 50 years had passed when the holy institution was instated as an academy for the continent, yet it managed to pridefully puff its chest. It is a prestigious academy so many yearned to attend. Only the best of the best was considered. After all, the monastery welcomed its gifted students with open arms for opportunities they would never get anywhere else. Future leaders and heroic warriors were products of the school’s program. Not a single student dropped out of each academic term. Everything must glisten in gold. Accepting mediocrity would sully their pristine image.

The Adrestian Empire, the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, and the Leicester Alliance were invited to send over their best civilians. Letters were mailed out by white owls to potential candidates; details about the invitations and academic programs sunk its sweet tooth into their recipients.

“Looks like things are about to get serious,” the brown-haired grinned, his scroll crinkled in his grip. He glanced at the wide-eyed bird. Still smiling, he slid over to his right, his hand outstretched to the thin utensil. “It doesn’t hurt to spend five years in training.”

It was as if he had outlined his course of action down cold. Hesitation was never his middle name, anyway. Past the basked warmth of his private quarters, into the corridor, Hilda peered from the corner like a Peeping Tom. Hark, she was not the only person guilty! Various members arched their neck, their head, their ears craving for delicious news.

Claude von Riegan snagged a nearby feathered pen on his desk. The young lad dipped its tip into an inkpot and fluidly circled his response on the smoothed letter. His wrist haphazardly flicked within seconds for a signature.

Submission of his response granted him the role of House Leader for the Golden Deer House from the Leicester Alliance. Hilda, Raphael, Ignatz, Marianne, Lysithea, Leonie, and Lorenz were chosen by the Church of Seiros to follow him that fateful day.

“My Lord, will you be going?”

Another young male held the letter. He shifted the crinkled paper, his bright hues aimed at his closest friend. Dedue’s inquiry caused a soft hum to sing from the blonde. At that same moment, the owl tilted its head, a soft coo harmonic.

“I will,” he twirled the feathered pen, his lips firmed, and his voice solemn. “If this will let me redeem the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus to its former glory, then I will attend.”

Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd pressed his utensil unto the thick parchment. There was a circular motion of his wrist, and, shortly afterward, zig-zagged it for a signature.

Submission of his response granted him the role of House Leader for the Blue Lions House from the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus. Felix, Sylvain, Ingrid, Ashe, Dedue, Mercedes, and Annette were chosen by the Church of Seiros to follow him that fateful day.

“Everything is falling in place,” the white-haired grimaced, her fingertips unsteadily smoothing amongst the moist palms. “I must accept the invitation.”

“Are you certain, Lady Edelgard?”

Hubert stood in her shadows. No— he is her shadow. His second posture flickered in time with the lonesome candle. She completely unfolded the scroll to the owl’s supervision. The feathered ally blinked once. She nodded. Then, the young gentleman rested a hand on his chest, the darkness discoloring the smooth beauty of his porcelain pale skin. He bowed deeper than any loyal retainer would to their lord.

Edelgard von Hresvelg stroked the application with grace and delicacy. Weaves danced upon the page in a singular motion of her wrist.

Submission of her response granted her the role of House Leader for the Black Eagles House from the Adrestian Empire. Dorothea, Petra, Hubert, Ferdinand, Caspar, Linhardt, and Bernadette were chosen by the Church of Seiros to follow her that fateful day.

Everything has been set into stone. Owls hooted their final call to the upcoming students, their wings flapped in tempo. Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude watched from high above, their pupils directed at the glistening land. The white bird was soon nothing more than a dot in the vast, orange sky. They shifted the weight on their feet, their grip tightening on the opened window's edge, their eyelids fluttered from the pleasant breeze flowing parts of their locks, all conducted simultaneously in a symphony. Now, the students must wait for the Great Tree Moon (April).

-----

Harpstring Moon (May). It has been one month since their arrival; one month at the famous Garreg Mach Monastery. Lengthy orientations and settlement were slowing to a standstill. Booming chatters and flurried excitement comfortably dipped into dignified and refined tranquility. Almost everyone had familiarized themselves with their surroundings and colleagues. Those that did not would quickly catch up.

Lady Rhea, standing in her bedroom, slowly exhaled. Birds chirped in volumes that penetrated the glassed barrier, their small bodies soaring to everlasting freedom. Tis’ the season for Spring to reach the finishing line. Their eventual retirement would pave way for the new, blistering season. She blinked. Both of her hands were raised, fingers intertwined, palms impressed, and head lowered; her silent prayers ushered into nothingness.

“Lady Rhea, how are you faring?”

Seteth stood at the doorway. Rigidity colored his posture, his bright hues gently lay to rest upon the holy maiden’s figure, to which it was drummed with the afternoon heat. She remained still and unmoving from her prayer. The same could not be said about her thin lips, its movement as casual as it could get.

“You need not worry about me, Seteth, but I am well.”

“I see.”

“How are the students?”

The songs from those birds increased in frequency. Melodies tinkered to their eardrums, their notes bouncing about within their heart, their natural passion embracing their souls. Seteth smiled in response.

“Noisy as ever.”

He could only use euphemism to describe it all.

The first month was beyond hectic. “Noisy” hardly captured the real image. Light tremors reverberated throughout the monastery. Overwhelming energy eradicated the lonesome premise once home to mere foot soldiers and bodyguards. Everyone had their eyes on each other. Crow’s feet were an epidemic as they exchanged formal greetings; some informal, such as Mercedes and Annette, where friendly hugs and kisses were given and received. An aromatic smoke wafted from the large cafeteria, sucking the population’s majority into its already-crowded site, the hopes of alleviating the chaos from outside.

“H-Hey! Linhardt, why aren’t you letting me grab thirds?!” Caspar’s reach trembled, his sight glued to the meaty target. “I’m really hungry!”

“Did you forget that there are other students in line after you?” Linhardt shook his head. “We need to leave some for them.”

“It’s a first-come, first-serve basis.”

“No, it’s not.”

“I’m going to starve!”

“You will not.”

“Yes, I will!”

“I suggest you change your eating habits then. It won’t hurt missing one drumstick from your diet.”

“LINHARDT!”

It is unfortunate traffic began to jam from the inside, its chaotic nature having shifted to a new location.

“Oi, are you both done yet?”

Felix felt his vein bulge from his head, his piercing eyes sparing no one. His metallic tray gloried its empty content before the bickering duo. Their shoulders slumped as their jaws clamped. Caspar would normally argue. It was his nature to counter a sharp response with another sharp response, albeit slightly weaker. Yet his blood stiffened at the sight. Linhardt shook his head again.

“Oh dear… It’s time we find a seat.”

An apology was delivered swiftly to his doorstep and they promptly removed themselves from the counter. The young male rubbed a couple of fingers against his temple, a huff escaping.

“Thank God they’re gone. They’re so annoying.”

“Felix, you shouldn’t say that!” Annette popped her head in with a bow. She gazed upon the sword-wielder with puffed cheeks. “Besides, they’re just getting food.”

“They were holding up the line, Ann.”

“You could’ve asked them politely.”

“Well, it’s too late for that now.”

“I think you should change your scary expression.”

“Oh, really?”

“I admit, it’s not as scary as Dimitri, but you should really smile more often.”

He scoffed. Felix plopped a chunk of sliced steak onto his newly placed plate riddled with greeneries and bread. His eyes slanted, turned towards Annette, and proceeded to drop a large quantity of meat onto her plate, despite her earlier objections.

“I would never be like the Boar Prince.”

“If you say so. I still think you should smile more in public.”

“…”

“Felix?”

“Annette,” the two have stepped away from the elongated counter, swooped down to press his lips upon her cheek. It left a tingly aftermath on Annette’s rosy cheeks, her feet tangled from an accidental crooked misstep. Felix freed one hand and intercepted her fall. Their faces were in short proximity, their breaths puffed amongst each other’s skin. Flames sharply ignited their skin with a roar as he whispered, “I want to shower you and only you with my smiles.”

“F-Felix…”

“Wow~ Take it to the bedroom, you two.”

Felix and Annette snapped their heads up. Seated from one of the table’s end, Leonie, Hilda, Marianne, and Ashe watched the two interact. Hilda smirked, her tongue holding no restraint. Besides her, the weary blue-haired student anxiously tugged on the pink-haired’s sleeve. Inaudible utters tumbled out of her parted lips, her pleas unheard by the female. As for Ashe and Leonie, they did their best to eat in silence, yet their ears perked for worthwhile events. Felix narrowed his eyes.

“You got a lot of nerve saying that to us, Hilda.”

“Felix—”

“Relax, Ann, I’m not going to hurt her.”

He approached the sitting Golden Deer. Though his hands were occupied, his mouth was not, and he happily made use of it. Verbiage intent on reprimanding filled the silent void Hilda purposely created. She plopped her chin on the palm of her hand, unblinking, and possibly bored out of her mind. Hilda did not bother to stifle her yawn either, letting it loose for the whole world to witness. Marianne felt parts of her soul fly out of her body, and dread shadowed over her eyes.

“Hilda, please apologize to him…” Marianne pleaded, her tugs becoming more apparent. “We… don’t want to cause trouble again…”

“Again…?” Annette raised a brow. “It’s only the first day we’ve been here.”

“Um… well… We accidentally broke a merchant’s axe…”

“How so?”

“Hil— I…. crashed into it—”

“Marianne! It was me, silly!” Hilda had done a complete 180 and swerved her attention to the shorter female. The energy that lay dormant bubbled to the surface, her arms pulling her friend into a tight embrace. Marianne felt her strength wither as her eyes widened. The sensation of her weight was still in her arms as Hilda glanced over at Annette. “It was me. I broke it. Not her.”

“…really?”

“Yes! I actually broke it with my bare hand!”

“Are you sure you aren’t covering up for her—”

“I. Did. It.”

“Hey! Why are you ignoring me!?”

“Pipe down, Felix,” Leonie waved her fork. “I’m trying to eat here!”

“Oi, Hilda started it!”

“And you continued!”

“Why are people so— You know what? Nevermind.”

“Hah? Could you elaborate on your unfinished statement?”

“I think this conversation is over, comrade.”

“Fine!”

Felix and Leonie fumed. Imaginary puffs of air emanated the dramatists. Soap opera would want to take note of their interactions for the next spectacular feature. Ashe began to laugh after settling the metallic mug onto the table.

“It sure is lively.”

“Lively? I think it’s outright noisy.”

The orange-haired promptly slugged his shoulder. Ashe ran out of language, incoherent sound effects elicited, and his hand furiously rubbing the affected area. His endurance is above average. He had an innate ability to run longer, burn faster, and bear far more than an ordinary boy similar in age and stature. If given the chance, his splendors would be renowned at the monastery. Yet he underestimated the power of a person called “Leonie.”

“Ow… You don’t hold your punches back, do you?”

“Why should I?”

“…”

Women are scary! Leonie especially! Such prowess that bundled and coiled in the young girl… How is that possible!? Sweat flew from his head dramatically as Leonie jabbed her fork into another piece of protein, its squelch muted from the rowdy setting. Felix fingers ran through his black hair, Annette appearing back by his side and pulling on his arm.

Ignatz and Raphael, who sat on the opposite end, pinned their gaze upon the small group. Flailing of arms, subjectless exclamations, and unnecessary lamentations painted the group as a form of entertainment.

“Ignatz, you think they’ll ever stop?”

“I don’t think so…”

“Why can’t they take it out on the training ground? I heard it’s good for sparring.”

The young boy shrugged his shoulders. As if on cue, the level of noise had risen. Vocals were lost amidst the background, his lips moving without sound.

“— - –—"

It went on for a couple of seconds, hinting of its lengthy content. Raphael was unable to grasp any of them; not a single peep was grasped and stuffed into his eardrums. He leaned forward, his muscular chest pressed upon the extended furniture, and tried to hear his artsy friend.

“——-—"

Raphael frowned. Under normal circumstances, one would speak up. This was not the case for the mighty brawn.

In contrast to their curiosity, Mercedes and Ferdinand could not bear to look. The mantle of responsible dependency rest over the duo’s shoulders.

“This is turning out to be a lively first day,” Mercedes giggled, her spoon scooping bits of the honeyed porridge. She tucked a stray strand behind her ear, her long eyelashes fluttering. “I hope it will stay this way for a long time.”

“It will happen if you strongly believe in it,” Ferdinand motioned.

His absurd confidence resonated in her heart, the healer shooting a glance. An amused hum stroked his taste buds once he took another bite from the salad bowl, oblivious to the probing gaze. She tilted her head. There had to be discrepancies with his proclamations and reality. Mercedes is a devout believer for religion and charity, but even she knows about the harsh conditions real-life posed.

“How could you be so sure?”

“Because I am Ferdinand von Aegir.”

“…oh! I… see.”

Did she expect something deeper from him?

“…”

He beamed. She reciprocated with a beam of her own. Maybe she was asking too much from him.

Nearby the four eaters, a black shadow zipped by. None of them had sensed the abnormality. Another shadow scurried after the first foreigner. That was when their sight and auditory senses kicked in.

“Was that Sylvain?” Raphael blinked. “What’s he doing?”

“I’m not too sure… It’s probably not something good, knowing him.”

“You think so too, Ferdinand?”

“I can attest to that, fufu~”

A shudder ran down Ignatz’s spine. “Y-You’re kind of scaring me, Mercedes…”

“PLEASE LEAVE ME ALONE!”

Students standing and nestled near one of the four doorways nearly went into cardiac arrest, their hands immediately resting over the wildly thumping organ. Glares and bewilderment shot at the fatigued girl. Bernadetta had burst from the cafeteria. Under normal circumstances, she would cower from their dagger-like stares. However, their eyes were the least of her problems…

“W-Where… Where can I go?!”

She had to run. She had to hide. She had to disappear.

Hot behind her trail was Sylvain. The young noble tossed his hand out to the doorway’s border. He grunted, his firm fingers curled inward, and swung his body out into the open with a sharp turn.

“Bernadetta!” he hollered. “Come back here, will you!?”

The fluttering of loose-leaf papers threatened to fly away like a bird from his grip, an entrapped victim desiring for release. Sylvain’s fast feet neared the writer, but he was careless. Smooth as the road may be, the pathways were littered with specks of debris, with some large enough to warrant a red flag.

“WHOA!”

He stumbled forward. Life danced before his eyes, Sylvain’s arms frantically mimicking wings, his frail balance with gravity fractured. Sweat poured from his pores and his breath hitched. Multiple half-steps pitter and pattered in front of one another while incoherent outcries sputtered. By the time he reconnected with the earth by kissing its pavement, the papers had all flown away to its yearnful freedom.

Bells chimed throughout the academic ground as tens of scribbled sheets scattered the clear blue sky. Day owls hooted, its wide eyes estimating the distance of its haphazard counterpart during its flight. Five of the wonderful creatures flapped and urged forward into the open plane.

High above the training ground, they traveled with sporadic battle shouts emitted from Ingrid and Petra. Two partners clunk and smacked their wooden sword.

“Haaaaah—!”

Petra swung the blunt end down. Ingrid immediately adjusted her posture, her knees bent, and her right foot slid backward. The knight raised her weapon vertically.

‘ CLUNK! ‘

Comma sweats crawled down to her chin as Ingrid felt her wrist creak. Petra’s feet returned back to earth, but not without applying an extra layer of pressure onto her opponent’s wooden sword, her arms shoved forward with a grunt. Ingrid nearly bit her lower lip, a tiny lump traveling down her throat. The Brigid princess is strong.

“Take this!”

The knight instantly reduced her strength. Petra’s figure lurched forward from the unexpected loss of equilibrium, her stability with gravity disrupted. Ingrid sidestepped to provide room for her fall. She elegantly twirled the training wood at hand and thrust it outward to “stab” Petra.

“Oh my gosh…” Dorothea watched from the distant, her hand covering her mouth. Petra had twisted her body enough during the collapse to avoid the assault. The songstress clutched her chest, small clumps of her brown hair clung to her moist forehead. “This is so stressful to watch.”

The two wonderful ladies sparred to test their might and the two had asked Dorothea to be the judge. But… who should she cheer for? Petra came from her house, but Ingrid was always there for her since the day they stepped foot. It didn’t help that they were both a beauty. Luscious hair, bountiful maturity, toned figures, delicate fleeting touches— Wait, why was she thinking about that?! She underwent her own mighty battle as the clunking of the wooden blades continuously overlapped.

Surprisingly, not one page had descended upon the monastery’s ground. The owls gave another hoot. High above the marketplace, they traveled and Lysithea, Lorenz, Hubert, and Dedue stood amongst the growing crowd.

“Ugh, I think that’s unfashionable,” Lorenz shook his head, his hand resting on his forehead. “I would expect better from you.”

“That’s rude to say that to them!” Lysithea elbowed the taller male. She furrowed her brows. “You know they’ve traveled far out here to sell their goods. Give them a break.”

“Unfortunately, if they were passionate, their products wouldn’t like this.”

“Lorenz!”

“It belongs in the U-category for ugliness.”

Unfortunately for the two, the merchant they were squabbling in front of began to see red. His shaky hands extended outward to the broom. The still shadow of fury washed over his eyes, his wooden stick slapped the stall’s pole. Both visitors felt beads of sweat fly out of their heads at the newfound sight. Death rarely crossed their minds, but today was one of them.

“It was nice visiting your shop, mister!”

Lorenz was about to follow the praising Lysithea when— oopsie! He was shoved towards the furious owner! A shriek slipped out after a narrow escape from certain doom, the stick walloped the ground mere centimeters from bodily contact.

“LYSITHEA!”

Hubert and Dedue glanced over to the rowdy Golden Deer.

“My, how unpleasant,” Hubert grumbled. He snapped shut one of the two spellbooks in his hands. “If Lady Edelgard would be disturbed by these silly activities, I would have to do something about it.”

“I object,” Dedue crossed his arms. “I understand where you are coming from, but that is not the correct way to serve your lord.”

“Excuse me, did I ask for your opinion.”

“No, but it is something I had to say.”

Hubert narrowed his eyes. “I think it would be wise for you to keep your opinion to yourself, Dedue.”

“…”

Dedue resisted the temptation to sigh. Out of all the students he had met, he knew they would have a rickety relationship. Perhaps they will never see eye-to-eye, and perhaps that will never happen. Nonetheless, their upmost loyalty to their lord was commendable. Hubert respected Dedue for serving Dimitri, and Dedue respected Hubert for serving Edelgard.

Past the students, more students arrived from all three nations like little ants through the gate. The gatekeeper’s cheerful “Welcome!” brightened their spirit for their new life. They were going to spend the next five years working, challenging, learning, loving, and forging bonds. It was an opportunity not many were granted.

They came in all different sizes and shapes. Some were from nobility. They were given special treatment by the Church, their accommodations sate the high-leveled expectations for their living conditions. Many possess some form of Crest, whether it be minor or major. Some were commoners. They were given resources by the Church, their accommodations sate their basic necessities for their living conditions. Very few possess any form of Crest.

House leaders were handpicked and determined by the archbishop, Lady Rhea, since day one. Edelgard von Hresvelg, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, and Claude von Riegan would act as this academic term’s house leaders.

Edelgard von Hresvelg would become house leader for the Black Eagles.

Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd would become house leader for the Blue Lions.

Claude von Riegan would become house leader for the Golden Deer.

“And so… we meet again, Dimitri,” Edelgard lowered her teacup. She sat opposite of the blonde, her lilac hues keeping tabs on his every action. “Though I cannot say I didn’t expect this.”

“I agree,” Dimitri chuckled. “Since you did not return to my kingdom, I predicted this might happen. You’ve changed though…”

“In what way?”

“Your hair—”

“That might be for another time.”

The abrupt cut off slashed hard. Dimitri blinked a couple of times in silence, his teacup returned to the clothed mat. Loveliest of all trees ruffled from overhead as a breeze smoothed their exposed skin. He lowered his eyes, a heavy weight nestled between his shoulder blades.

“Perhaps another time.”

Though silence should have followed, Claude intertwined his fingers, chin rested on them, elbows on the table, and tilted his head.

“What shouldn’t be saved for another time is how you both know each other. Spill me the tea.”

“I don’t know, Claude,” Dimitri bitterly smiled. “It’s a long story.”

“I agree. It might sour our teatime session too.”

“Aw, you’re both no fun,” the young man smirked. “Why not tell me? I promise to tell you something in exchange.”

“Like what?”

“Oh, I don’t know… Maybe about my past too.”

“Hoh… That’s quite a trade.”

“Trust me. Here, I’ll give you a little snippet, free of charge,” Claude straightened his posture and coughed into his fist. “Not too long ago, I bumped into two fabulous people. They were of nobility, yet they seem to know each other.”

“Claude…”

“One was a cute little princess, and one was a grumpy looking prince.”

“Claude.”

“And I hope we could become good friends.”

“CLAUDE.”

Edelgard and Dimitri overlapped, their cheeks flushed. Claude placed his hands behind his head and winked.

“It’s a good story, don’t you think?”

-----

Now, a month scampered forward, to where Seteth, Rhea, Flayn, and Catherine stood inside of the holy church ground. Seteth was bent down, his fingers brushing black ink on the pristine surface, faint squeaks occasionally cracking the still atmosphere. Flayn bent forward in a similar fashion, hands behind her back, and observing the process. Those paired bright hues, accompanied by a smile, flickered between her older brother and the ritual drawings.

“I’m excited to see who the new professors and staff are.”

Garreg Mach Monastery had a tradition every five years: the Garreg Summoning Ritual. Led by the Church of Seiros and its headmaster, Lady Rhea, this was one of the many options to tackle economical strategies. Funds from the Church were finite; there was only so much their nails could scrape in from donations. So they turned their heads towards a new shining beacon.

Three students from nobility, who would naturally become house leaders, were invited to complete the mandatory summoning ritual. Being chosen as house leaders were not an easy feat. The students had to derive from a long legacy of lineage fit to rise to the role. A large quantity of magical energy, called mana, was required to fulfill their position. This was so they can summon their professors.

Unlike other academic institutions, Rhea expressed this unique tradition for over 50 years. The act of calling forth their instructor would help bolster the students’ performances with a teacher fit for their personalities, attitudes, and beliefs. It was the perfect substitution for conducting costly background checks and hiring of adjuncts and tenures.

“To be honest, Flayn, I’m a little worried who they will be. I still cannot get over the fact one of the students summoned a thief!”

“He was stealing a lot of our supplies, wasn’t he?”

“Unfortunately.”

“If I hadn’t caught him, the church would have been in a pinch.”

Seteth paused. He glanced up from the fresh circle, his chuckle apparent. Catherine, on the sideline, cracked her knuckles.

“I would’ve pummeled him if it weren’t for Flayn.” No moral restraint… a rather prominent feature in very few warriors like her. “The fact that he would take Lady Rhea’s belongings deserved more than a simple execution.”

So long as it was in the name of Lady Rhea, she would chop up her limbs and offer it up to the holy maiden.

“I am certain that would not happen again.” Rhea stepped forward once Seteth rose from his crouch. “I have prayed to the Goddess for good fortune. I can sense that this year will be one that will forever be remembered.”

Catherine’s knuckles suddenly whitened, her grip tightening on the relic’s handle, and jawlines outlined from the smell of fresh meat purifying the distilled air. The double doors creaked. Sharp eyes penetrated the sturdy chests of the incoming house leaders. Claude and Dimitri each pushed one half of the majestic, tall barrier, Edelgard walking between the tall boys. It was picturesque.

Seteth and Flayn returned to Rhea’s side as the archbishop silently motioned her hand down to Catherine. A grunt as she eased her hold, but not without a displeased exhale. The top-ranking Knight served under the name of Seiros stepped back. Her eyes had not left the three students, however.

Archbishop bowed.

“Greetings, House Leaders. I hope you have familiarized yourself with the Officers Academy.”

“I think we’ve had plenty to check around,” Claude said. “One month is enough to make us experts for any visitors.”

His jokes were not received— Rather, Rhea rolled over and onward from his witty remark. She slowly looked at the marked ground.

“I have also requested that you participate in the Garreg Summoning Ritual. You all were required to bring three items that you wish to use for the tradition.”

Then, she returned her gaze to the trio.

“You will be their Master and they will be your Servant. But you will refer to them as your Professor.” Her eyes were crinkled. “Are you prepared?”

Dimitri, Claude, and Edelgard nodded. Their silence following afterward notion the archbishop to beckon them forth.

“Best wishes, my children. May the Goddess watch over you.”

One at a time, they stood in front of the archaic circle, their hands and pockets filled. Compatibility may play a heavy influence on their soulful incantations, but the students’ chosen objects held some degree of control over who their professor would be. They exchanged glances. The question now lies if Lady Luck would bestow her magic for them.

The first to stand is Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd. He pieced the three chosen objects with great care upon the circular design. A monocle, a parchment on tactics, and blood from a dying boar preyed the markings. His vial had tipped upside down after a complete stride. Dimitri stuffed the stained glass into his pocket, the metallic iron smeared his and his friends’ olfactory. The Prince of Faerghus raised his hand.

Stanza after stanza riddled the tense environment. Sky blue light illuminated beneath his feet, a gust of wind swirled around the noble, his navy cape flapping in the air. Searing heat crackled into the back of his hand, his brows scrunched, and his stifled cries noticeable. Dimitri’s chants maintain stability. There would be no interruption that would snaffle his delivery.

Bright light blinded everyone on the premise. Edelgard and Claude were forced to shield with their arms, their eyelids squeezed shut for good measures. Catherine, Seteth, and Flayn grimaced from it. Rhea calmly stood out with her holy demeanor. The entire church disappeared for a few seconds from their sight, the sky blue blanketed their vision.

Fine mist surrounded a tall man. The summoned Servant stroke his gray beard, his monocle glistening in-sync with the sunrays, and his thick coat covering all parts of his body, leaving very little room for skin exposure. He spotted the panting Dimitri, the mark of the command seal tattooed on his burning skin. Little attention was given to the others as the elder chuckled.

“So, it appears that I have been summoned by a young gentleman.” He bowed deeply. “I am Hanneman, Archer class.”

“An Archer, huh… You don’t look like one.”

“You think so?” Hanneman cupped his chin. “Then again, you speak of the truth. I am well-versed in the art of magic. As you can tell, I am nothing more than a scholar when I was alive.”

Dimitri nodded, his shaky hands coming to a standstill. It appears that the person he had summoned was not meant to be summoned into this class.

“Yikes… That’s one heck of an L you’re gonna have to take,” Claude shook his head. This bemused the new professor. Yet Dimitri responded in his place.

“I find possibilities where others see limitations, Claude. This is a gift from the Goddess.”

That earned Dimitri a whistle. The Golden Deer House Leader smiled—genuinely in fact—it stroked the blonde’s heart to a slight flutter!

“You might be right… this might be an impressive result in the end.”

Seteth proceeded to cleanse the circle in preparation for Claude as they continued their conversation. Edelgard, who had remained mute, stared down at the palms of her hands. They were violently trembling as if an earthquake descended. Was it from her nerves? She instinctively curled her fingers inward and jammed her nails. In the background, Dimitri pat Claude’s shoulder as he was next in line.

Claude von Riegan took out his belonging. A wooden flute, a package of herbal medicine, and an alcohol bottle. The first two objects held the least shock value compared to the third for both Dimitri and Edelgard. When they expressed wonderment, Claude responded with a playful tone, his hand cautiously spilling the alcoholic content.

“Random chance. I have a feeling this is going to go well.”

“I don’t think you should be horsing around with this…”

“Relax, Dimi, I got this.”

He mimicked his friend’s action after settling the empty container on the ground. Hand extended outward, his lips parted, and golden light circulated the ritual. The wind blew into their figures once again as his chants became louder. Compared to Dimitri, he was able to bear through the flaming sharpel from the forceful engraving of the command seal for the most part.

This time, the newcomer was a woman. Dressed to impress, her beauty radiating in conjunction with her angelic voice, the Servant boasts her skillsets to the witnesses.

“I am Manuela. Songstress, physician, Caster class, and available, I look forward to working with you, Claude.”

Boastful? Perhaps, but Claude sees the positive trait from it. Though some may think otherwise.

“How haughty.”

An unusual remark from Hanneman. Dimitri, Claude, and Edelgard diverted their attention to the older male, his features tinged with displeasure. Manuela felt a strong pulsation from the corner of her head. The Caster opened her mouth, paused, then clamped it close. She dryly swallowed and waved her hand.

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that, Hanneman. Wouldn’t want to look back in front of my new Master.”

Claude felt a nervous chortle erupt from his throat. His and Dimitri’s Servants are going to have a field day with each other… Their eyes shifted to the quiet female. Not a peep from the princess. Her nerves must have gotten the best of her, her figure stiff as a stick. They wonder… what could make her so nervous?

Their pondering continued as Seteth wiped and swept the remaining materials from the ritual. Rhea motioned once more for the final summoner. Edelgard inhaled deeply. She held it. Then, she exhaled.

Finally, it was Edelgard von Hresvelg’s turn. In her grasp were three items. Just like Dimitri and Claude, they were special in their own way. They picked it with careful consideration. For Edelgard, she had found these materials from the Red Canyon. Ferdinand and Hubert had accompanied her for the abrupt trip. Compared to Claude and Dimitri, she felt a strong, magnetic pull to the location. It was almost as if it were calling for her.

A rustic piece from a shattered sword, a torn patch from a dark overcoat, and… that was it.

“Let silver and steel be the essence. Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation Let my great Master Hresvelg be the ancestor”

Rhea widened her eyes when she spotted the white-haired unsheathing the dagger from behind.

“Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall Let the four cardinal gates close. Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate.”

Its slithering blade shone as Edelgard brought it high above her head. Catherine reached for her sword, her wrist prepared.

“I hereby declare Your body shall serve under me.”

The tip moved in a curvature. A crimson line was left in its wake, the blood oozing out of her self-infliction.

“My fate shall be your sword.”

She tilted her hand despite the throbbing aches scratching underneath her cut.

“Submit to the beckoning of the Holy Grail If you will submit to this will and this reason… Then answer!”

Gentle vermillion light encapsulated everyone present. Its rays brightened with each drip of her blood, her offering sating the slumbering Servant. At that same moment, a fiery ignition dragged burning hot iron on the back of her hand. Edelgard bit back a whimper. She grabbed ahold of her extended wrist with pinched features.

“An oath shall be sworn here! I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven. I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell!”

A gust far more powerful than that from previous sessions threatened to fling the students away. Seteth and Catherine had embraced Flayn and Rhea respectively, their feet rooted to the vibrating floors. Dimitri and Claude struggled to keep afoot. Their narrowed eyes peered through the slits as Edelgard forced herself upright. The grip that kept her wrist in place squeezed until her blood circulation drastically slowed.

“From the Heaven, attended to by three great words of power Come forth from the ring of restraints, Protector of the Holy Balance!”

Just like Dimitri and Claude’s session, white light enveloped their five senses.

“…”

Smoke lingered in the air, but at the center of the summoning circle, no one had appeared. Everyone waited with bated breaths. Seconds transitioned into a minute. The silence was all that resulted. She glanced down at the back of her injured hand. The aching red mark resembling that of an unknown Crest seared into her skin. Yet this excruciating process yielded no Servant.

“…why?”

Edelgard sunk to her knees.

Had she failed? Was this all a fluke in the end? Edelgard groveled at the tainted ground, her magma-red blood engulfing the entirety of her wounded palm in its flames. The command seal was still present. What did she do wrong? Tears spurted from her lacrimal glands, those salty substances hurried to separate from her skin and onto the flat surface. Claude and Dimitri exchanged worrisome glances.

“Edelgard…”

“Princess…”

They approached the withered youngster. They stood nearby but found the inability to engage sympathetically. After all, their Servants lingered from behind. The boys were able to call forth their professor, and Edelgard was unable to. They would never be able to understand her anguish.

“This isn’t fair…” she hoarsely whispered. “Did I do… Is this karma?”

“Karma? Don’t be silly,” Dimitri shook his head. He kneeled to her level and eyed the female. He was not sure what she meant by karma, but it crushed his heart to see his childhood friend defeated. “Your Professor might come. You still have your command seal.”

“That means nothing if they don’t appear.”

“Is this thing rigged?” Claude’s attention diverted to the older adults. He motioned towards the weeping girl. “This isn’t supposed to mess up, right?”

Rhea shook her head. “This is the first that had happened before. All professors were able to be summoned the past nine times.”

“You didn’t have to include that last part, you know.”

“Hey, don’t speak to Lady Rhea like that, young man,” Catherine stepped forward and viciously pointed his finger. “Know your place.”

Claude huffed. He shrugged his shoulders and abandoned insanity. “I apologize. I’m a bit frustrated too for Edelgard—”

‘ BANG! ‘

It was immediately accompanied by a distant crackling of heavy logs tumbling on top of each other. Students and staff alike perked their ears. Claude and Dimitri immediately assisted in Edelgard’s recovery, their Servants swiftly turning to the source. Precautions were taken as their chosen Class weapons were pulled out. Catherine completely unsheathed her Thunderbrand, its electricity crackled and popped without restraint. Seteth shielded both Flayn and Rhea with his arms, his body ready to absorb any potential damages.

Once the dust had settled before them, they were greeted with a spectacular sight. The Goddess Seiros must have shone her lucky stars to the warrior. Stones and obliterated woods formed as a piece of disheveled furniture. Arms resting on the natural armrest, palm pressed on the Sword of Creator’s hilt, and cheek leaning on her elbowed hand, she slowly opened her eyes.

“…”

Could this be…? Edelgard’s jelly legs wobbled as she approached the arrogantly seated woman. The roles were reversed. Edelgard collapsed onto one knee, head raised to the female like a Servant as the Servant exerted regality like a Master. Navy hues dragged its gaze to the fallen. She examined the student with scrutiny.

“Your blood…” The newcomer had gotten up from her seat, kneeled, and instantly greeted the magus with a kiss on the gash. Normally, this would be viewed as romantic, but not a lick of emotion crossed. When she parted, sticky fluid clung to bits of her chin. “I’m bad at healing, but this is the least I could do.”

Perhaps this is part of an innate skill the Servant has. The shallow infliction had dissipated, leaving behind a bloody mess of leftover iron.

Then, she got up, sword still at hand. Edelgard watched in awe from below as the Servant quietly spoke,

“Byleth. Saber class. Tell me… are you my Master?"

[rjzimmerman]

Thinking about conservation,  preservation and use of land

Yesterday, I meandered through the Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, which is locate a few miles north of Palm Springs. The Preserve is within the Sand to Snow National Monument, created by President Obama. I visit and hike in the Preserve generally twice a year, once in spring to enjoy the wildflower bloom and then again in the autumn for the fall colors. I usually “hike,” but this time, although I walked along the trails and probably foot powered through about 5 miles, I “meandered” and “wandered,” because I was focusing on little things and using my senses. The journey was the purpose, not the destination. I observed rocks, grasshoppers, little lizards (they should be close to hibernating), giant ant mounds, seed pods, autumn flowers, birds, a damn mylar balloon remnant up on a cliff where I couldn’t go to retrieve it without hurting myself (age = balance impaired). I experienced the smells of the plants and sand and gravel cooking under the sun. I heard the sounds of the wind blowing through the trees and grasses and branches on trees creaking in the wind. 

At one point, I sat on a rock under a big old cottonwood tree. In this photo, which I took in the spring 2019, the tree is on the left. A few boulders, perfect for sitting, are located at the base of the tree. You see one of the trails I had been using on the right.

I greeted other hikers on the trail. I, like them, use the trail for recreation. However, as an educated guess, I’d bet that the trail has been here for a very long time and was used by the Native Americans (Cahuilla, Morongo, Chemehuevi, and others) who lived in the area, to traverse between the lower desert surrounding Palm Springs (the Sonoma/Colorado Desert) and the area within the Preserve, or higher up in elevation into the Mojave Desert, roughly where Joshua Tree National Park is located. Tectonic activity forces the groundwater beneath the Preserve toward the surface, making the area a Native American equivalent of a supermarket with plenty of water, plants for food, medicinal and ritual purposes, and wildlife for hunting. 

I’m sure the trail was also used by the earliest settlers from Europe for the same purposes: commerce, most likely using horses rather than foot power.

Native Americans weren’t exploiting the land. They were using its bounty to support their lives. They may not have been thinking of conservation and preservation, but I have to believe they were smart enough to realize that they harvest what they need, and nothing more, so that next year the supermarket is still open (seasonal rainfall permitting), and that their children, grandchildren and future generations can find and take what they need in the future.

Today, we use the trail for recreation, not commerce, harvest or hunting. Many of us are active generally in preserving and conserving the local land, so we pick up trash, avoid taking anything, and as the saying goes, leave only footprints and take only photographs. We restore what is missing, repair after damage, and maintain without disrupting. Our purpose is to use the trail for those limited purposes, which differs dramatically from uses by the Native Americans. We don’t need to harvest or hunt here. We have other places and outlets for those purposes.

Did the Native Americans have plots around here for cultivating crops? Did they have livestock? If so, they certainly were using the land for purposes other than harvesting the native plants as and where they grew. But because of the absence of modern farming techniques, I have to believe that they were using the land sustainably, and not depleting it and compromising its future for the purpose of enhancing the current crop.

Earth is now supporting 7.7 billion people. In 1950, the global population was 2.6 billion people. Did we increase our numbers by 5.1 billion people because farmers and ranchers were producing so much food, encouraging population growth? Or did the farmers and ranchers produce more food as the population grew, knowing they could make money off that growth. In other words, applying supply and demand, did the supply of nutrition grow the population, or did the population grow, demanding nutrition? Did the Native Americans who lived here in Big Morongo perhaps cultivate the land because they could exchange it for other goods from other tribes? Or for their own use? Was supply and demand part of a conservation/preservation ethic back then? I don’t know. When did Adam and Eve leave paradise and become merchants?

As I was getting ready to sit up and continue my wandering, and pretending my imagined story was reality, I was grateful to the Native Americans for creating and using this trail and to the early European settlers and those who came after them for not wrecking it. I learned a while ago that one of the major oil companies had been considering developing an oil pipeline pumping station on the site of the Preserve. I don’t know why that didn’t happen, but I have to believe that the locals objected, and that ended that project before it got started. One of my purposes, right now, is to make sure that future generations also get to use this trail for the same purposes as I am using it. (Even though I took a sparkling rock to show my grandson; apologies to the rock deities, volunteers and rangers.)

[philippmichelreichold]

#scifi #Review Barrington J Bayley's Collision Course daw books

#scifi # Review Barrington J Bayley's Collision Course

I first read Barrington J. Bayley's Collision Course/Collision with Chronos more than thirty years ago. I must have given my first copy to the Goodwill. I searched for years before finding my current copy at Haslam's Books in St. Petersburg, Florida. They are the best. Collision Course is the sort of story you want to not lose.

Bailey follows a fairly unique approach to time travel stories. The vast majority deal with an alterable timeline that must either be changed or preserved to save the viewpoint character's way of life, the universe, etc; or with a multiverse where myriads of ways unfold and whatever decision a character might make, other versions of that character are deciding to do the same thing or its opposite. One example of the former is  Poul Anderson's Time Patrol stories. There are many examples in Star Trek with its time loops and Predestination Paradoxes and Chiefs O'Brien averring their hatred for Temporal Mechanics.  Larry Niven's All the Myriad Ways is an example of the latter.  Catch that Zeppelin by Fritz Lieber and Joe Haldeman's Manifest Destiny offer alternate time lines within a multiverse. Another approach, my personal favorite, is that you can't change the past. This the premise of By the Time We got to Gaugamela by R Garcia y Robertson. You can go back, but whatever is about to happen has already happened. To paraphrase, all the history books agree that Alexander the Great is going to be alive tomorrow, but no such assurances are available for the time traveller in question. Bailey takes a totally different tack from any of these, one ""so original that it avoids all (most?) time-travel clichés".

According to The Newsletter of the Council for the Literature of the Fantastic, Bailey followed the ideas of J. W. Dunne set forth in An Experiment with Time. Time travels as a wave or a torrent through six dimensional space in a local region of what we perceive as three dimensional space, creating and carrying life and consciousness with it as side effects. The future is dead and decayed, the past dead-- a collection of insensate automatons. You can build a machine to carry a bit of time with you ahead of or behind the time wave, but it won't do you any good. Times finger, having writ, moves on and you cannot change a word, act or dead. The trouble comes when two different time streams are headed along the same planet in opposite directions, like a pair of locomotives rushing along a track on a collision course set to arrive at a fatal destination. Life-consciousness-intelligence, it cannot be over emphasized, are byproducts of the time stream/wave/torrent.

And so it is in Collision Course that two time streams associated with Earth will crash together in about 200 years, with serious effects noticeable in about 100 years. Collisions of this nature must occur with some frequency as the International Space Society Retort City, located many light years from Earth and populated by the descendants of Chinese emigrees, has recently had a near miss with an entity whose time stream is situated obliquely to that of Retort City. The inhabitants of Earth are just beginning to understand time travel. The inhabitants of Retort City can literally run rings around the Earthers, and the Oblique Entity has nearly godlike (not Godlike as it points out) powers. The abilities of Retort City's scientists and the Oblique Entity, combined with obliqueness of their paths, allowed them to avert total disaster. Even so, things got pretty bad. The Oblique Entity and a researcher on Retort City have been watching events on Earth unfold with detached insouciance and mild concern. Time travellers from Retort City rescue stranded time travellers from Earth and offer to help.

Matters are not so straight forward at this point as one might hope. ISS Retort City was established 5000 years before the setting of the story, which is many thousands of years ahead of our own time. The races of man on Earth bare little physical resemblance to the people of our times (the "Chinks" of Retort City are a legendary race on Earth). The dominant race on Earth, led by the Titanium Legions (think SS), follows an Earth Mother religion. They believe with all the fervor that religious conviction can bring that they, True Man, are Earth's true sons and all the other races are defiling deviants whom they must expunge. There are archaeological ruins of alien design scattered about they believe support these beliefs.

The Titans see these ruins as proof of Alien Interventionalists who diabolically caused the rise of the Deviant races to destroy True Man. Never mind that there had been nuclear wars in the past with radioactive fallout to increase background radiation levels and thereby raise the mutation rate and never mind that the new races arose isolated from one another for a long time. Natural selection and niche filling divergence don't fit their self image or self interests. Or their self serving propaganda. Genocide is something the Titans have been quite successful at with only a few remnants of the other races remaining on reservations. The Titans have roving "experts" that can tell at a glance if someone is "racially impure". There is of course opposition and an underground which is losing faster each day. When the Titans learn of the ISS, with its wondrous technology and mighty industrial capacity, the natural recourse is to mount an invasion.

Retort City is designed as a double retort with the retorts set end to end. Lower Retort/Production Retort is devoted to industry and production. The mastery of time is so complete that different sections of a ping pong table can have different time streams moving at separate rates. Production lines can be run through time loops so that an artefact that was months in the making can be available hours after being ordered. The two halves are offset by about 34 years, so direct travel between the two halves is futile. Manufactured goods travel along a time gradient to the other half of the city and always arrive just in time. So great is Production Retort's efficiencies that it has greater industrial capacity than all of earth. The workers there are wholly devoted to their work. Their absorption with work is so great that off duty conversation often centers on how and where work is going. To them any other way of life would be a waste. "Technology was, after all, their life."(pg 54)

Life within Upper Retort/Leisure Retort is more luxurious, more devoted to subtle esthetics, and "was probably the most refined culture the galaxy had to offer". (pg 57) It's inhabitants are wholly absorbed in advancing the arts and sciences, so absorbed that they tend to objectify people and ignore any human factor not connected with the research that holds their attention. (So self absorbed that the sounds of fighting with the Titanium Legions is less a survival threat than an annoying distraction.) Little physical labor is performed directly, there being machines to handle that sort of thing. The apparent social disparity between the two halves of Retort City is solved by their mastery of time. Envy is avoided by the Exchange of Generations. One sends one's children by way of a temporal differential tunnel to the opposite half of Retort City and receives one's grandchildren in return. Robert Gibson hits the nail firmly when he says the equanimity of the arrangement eliminates jealousy between Retort City's two halves. The Leisure Retort's inhabitants are not so self absorbed as to not offer to help the inhabitants of Earth deal with the impending collision.

Once again, nothing is easy. An evacuation of refugees is impractical on religious grounds. The Titan dominated society could never abandon Mother Earth. It is unfeasible logistically as not Retort City lacks the lift capability. Diverting the time streams is beyond their science. They are not sufficient to the task and must ask the Oblique Entity for its help-- a sort of deus ex machina.

Aliens are described in some stories as being too alien to comprehend. Most human motivations/conflicts begin with food safety and shelter and proceed along Maslow's hierarchy to greed status fulfilment and pleasure seeking. Niven's Kzinti are motivated by status and the desire to acquire estates on which to hunt and raise families. The alien empires in Star Trek seem involved in dominance games characteristic of humans. I don't recall hearing an explanation for the behavior of the aliens in Independence Day unless it was pure revulsion. Certainly hatred was evident. All understandable as human like. The Oblique Entity may be beyond human comprehension by nature. No human definition fits and description is based only on vague and fleeting perceptions. No words suffice for it to explain its nature to humans. One common trait comes through clearly-- the enjoyment of entertainment. One of the human time travelers implores its assistance in saving the Earth. How does one obtain aid from someone who finds great entertainment value in the unfolding drama of one's plight?

For that matter, how does one convince someone that their murderous hatred is misplaced and futile? The Titans and the lemur like creatures in the approaching time wave ignore the fact that consciousness/life/intelligence are but byproducts of time. Even if one group succeeds in exterminating the other, the 2 time waves will still crash together ending time and life. (It is a theme of the story that despots and tyrants and haters ignore any information that contradicts their dogma and preconceived notions.) Effort and time that would be better spent working together for mutual survival are wasted on hydrogen bombs and plague weapons. As the Oblique Entity says, the final Battle of Armageddon must be fought.

Collision Course is tightly written, fast paced story that wants to be read all the way through without a break. As one reviewer puts it, "Bayley packs more into under two hundred pages than most authors come up with in a lifetime". The characters are sketched in quickly, but you know them as well as need be to follow the plot. The unique approach to time travel and the unique solution to the class struggle make it well worth reading. The ending of the story is fitting as the major conflict is resolved to the satisfaction of all concerned, even if they don't all know it. It is not a sugar coated resolution and conclusion, but the Titans would not have had it any other way, "with their cargos of death, death, and more death." I first read the story when I was in my late teens and then reread it some 30 years later. I enjoyed it as much this time as I did the first time. It is not currently available as e-text, but there are paper copies still available.

Selected dramatis personae:

•Leard Ascar- Earth's leading time scientist

•Chairman of Panhumanic League

• Grandfather of Hue Su Mueng

• Herrick- Amhrak scientist inventor of remote, intferometry-based remote viewing

• Rond Heshke- prominent archeologist

• Hue Su Mueng- disgruntled Retort City malcontent

• Hueh Shao father of Hue Su Mueng

• Hwen Wu- Leisure Retort prime minister and old friend of Hueh Shao

• Layella- Sobrie's "racially impure" girlfriend

• Leader Limnich- leader of Titanium Legions and de facto ruler of Earth

• Li Kim- friend of Hue Su Mueng

• Li Li San- Retort City envoys to future Earth aliens

• Blare Oblomot- assistant to Rond Heske at Hathar Ruins. brother of Sobrie. member of Panhumanic League

• Sobrie Oblomot- member of Panhumanic League

• Shiu Kung Chien- Retort City's leading expert on time. in contact with the Oblique Entity.

• Titan-Lieutenant Gann- time travel tech officer

• Titan-Lieutenant Hosk- time travel tech officer

• Titan-Captain Brask

• Titan-Major Brourne

• Whang Yat-Sen Retort City envoy to future Earth aliens

Further reading about Barrington J. Bayley, Collision Course/Collision with Chronos

•  COLLISION WITH CHRONOS on Ovias

•  Astounding Worlds of Barrington J Bayley on Ovias

• Review of Collision Course on Science Fiction Ruminations

• Wryte Stuff-- Politics with a Difference - Science-Fictional Constitutions

•  Jesse's Review on Goodreads

•  Barrington J Bayley on Wikipedia

•  Barrington J Bayley # ISFDB

• Barrington J. Bayley: Science-fiction writer who treated the human condition as a puzzle that must be solved

• Book Review: The Fall of Chronopolis, Barrington J. Bayley (1974)

• Book Review: Star Winds, Barrington J. Bayley (1978)

• Book Review: Empire of Two Worlds, Barrington J. Bayley (1972)

• The Zen Gun-Barrington J. Bayley (1983)

• Review: Let the Galaxy Burn - Warhammer 40k Anthology

• Obituary: Barrington J. Bayley

• Barrington John Bayley on Fantastic Fiction

Creative commons 4.0 

Credit cover art image under fair use for review. contact publisher for reuse 

[sunmarketing]

Long Island, New York

In this episode: FAQ is: Are cruises safe from covid or not?

Today’s Destination is Long Island, New York

Today’s Mistake- Sailing on a Catamaran

Travel Advice:  Use your airline points now or risk losing them

   FAQ is: Are cruises safe from covid or not?

  Answer: The CDC has lifted the restrictions, but that doesn’t mean it’s over. The reporting of additional outbreaks is still happening. Don’t let that keep you from your cruise. Check the color status of your ship before you embark. Show notes have links to some helpful tips on staying safe.

  Follow the requirements before boarding which include vaccinations and testing protocol. These are all subject to change.

https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/cruise-ship-color-status.html

  https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2022/03/30/1089748769/cdc-cruise-travel-covid

  Today’s Long Island, New York

I was raised on Long Island, New York and I had an accent back then. I’ve worked hard to lose it, but it comes back when I visit. I also say funny words, like Orange and Florida.

What’s it like on Long Island? It’s a step one or two destination. Here are some things you may know and may not know about it. 

It’s the longest and the largest island in the contiguous United States, Long Island extends 118 miles (190 km) eastward from New York Harbor to Montauk Point.

  Long Island is densely populated with 8 million people in all. Along its Atlantic coast are Jones Beach State Park, Fire Island and Montauk Point State Park, at the end of the fork. 

  As kids, my parents took us to these places often. My mom told a story about almost drowning in the ocean there, but all went fine. 

  Long Island is home to the late-1700s era Montauk Lighthouse. On the east end, the North Fork is home to wineries and the East, South, and West Hamptons, characterized by upscale homes, trendy restaurants and antiques shops. When I grew up there, I never knew it was trendy.

https://www.discoverlongisland.com/

https://www.longisland.com/

On Long Island there are Kings or Brooklyn and Queens, plus Nassau and Suffolk counties, split into two forks. North and South Fork.

There are wineries, farm stands, theaters, country clubs and well known beaches like Jones Beach, Robert Moses and more.

Plan a day trip. Choose one central location. Then plan activities around it. See what you can and come back again. 

  Today’s Mistake- Sailing on a Catamaran

I rented a sailboat, a catamaran on Mission Bay for an afternoon. I thought I was a good sailor at the time. I had finished a sailing safety course and knew a lot of the theory. But in practice, I was lousy. I invited my friends to join me on the boat and I tipped it over and could not get it back up again. That was a disaster. Don’t do what I did with a sailboat. Know your sailing and winds before you go. 

Today’s Travel Advice- Use your airline and hotel miles now

  If you have travel points or miles on an airline, use them up. I believe that soon we will see these rewards change to a new type of value, called tokens. The token economy is heading our way, and loyalty will look much different. Donate miles to a charity if you can. Give them to your children and grandchildren now, while they still have some benefit. They are not “your” owned items, as they belong to the carrier. They have the right to change the rules anytime, with you missing out.

If you notice the long legal disclaimers on these programs give all rights to them, and there are no rights to members.

Connect with Dr Travelbest

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Check out this Dr Travelbest episode!

[youremyonlyhope]

Children of Earth: Day Four

AKA Wow, things get even worse. You don’t think it’s possible, but here we are.

OR: This episode is so relevant to this week that it was physically painful to watch and I’m even more mad at Trump than ever before.

I’m not ready for this.

Been super busy the last 2 weeks, gonna watch this episode now. Who knows when I’ll get to Day 5. Maybe over the weekend if I’m lucky. Doubt it.

See, I know how intense Day Three is since I literally just watched it a few weeks ago, but somehow I blocked it out over the last 2 weeks. And the “Previously...” reminded me. Oh god. THIS IS WHY I REFUSED TO REWATCH THIS SEASON. Why is this episode an hour long why do you need to add MORE time to my pain? Oh... Gareth’s name on the opening credits for the last time... I’m sad. “In 1913 the Spanish flu killed something like 5% of the human race.” “I know, I was there.” Ok, taking a second to pull focus from this horrible thing they’re doing to say how much I love Jack’s little “LOL I remember that” “But that was 100s of years ago” “Haha, yeah...” moments throughout Torchwood. They’re my favorite things. Also, I had forgotten that they gave them the 10 kids in return for a cure to save 25 million people... I mean... it’s still horrible... but for all these years I hadn’t remember any type of justification. For some reason I was thinking they were just doing it because the aliens asked and they didn’t want angry aliens coming at them, not that it was because of an actual deal made. It doesn’t make it... that much better... but it’s not as bad? I guess? I don’t know. I guess I’m relieved I remembered it wrong. Also hi Sophie! I remember when Benedict married her I was like “I know her... I KNOW I know her...” and sure enough, Torchwood. Britain has 5 actors, and they’ve all been in the Whoniverse. “Just 12? Sounds like a good deal.” Oh Jack... oh Jack oh Jack oh Jack... I mean he’s in such a tough situation, but also I wonder if his immortality skews his judgement. Not even wonder since we know it does sometimes. More like I wonder if this is one of those times. “They say they’ll live forever” Ohhhhh god they kept their promise. Oh god. “Actually, we need someone who doesn’t care.” OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH. SEE. IMMORTALITY. SKEWING JUDGEMENT. THEY KNOW. THEY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT. JACK. GROUND YOURSELF MORE.

Ugh. My episode’s frozen after Gwen says “You just handed them over and hoped for the best?” but if I go 1 second ahead of that it’s fine. What is wrong with this 1 second that keeps freezes?

I wonder if there was something that drew the kids in? Because even though Jack is super charismatic, and kids are super obedient and trusting, they wouldn’t just walk into a bright light because a guy told them to... or at least I hope they wouldn’t... Well at least Jack’s super mad about it. I mean, they shouldn’t have even attempted to stop Clem from shooting. That’s the good thing about Jack, you can keep shooting him and killing him over and over again until you get all your anger out, and there are no consequences.  Especially since Jack already hates himself enough to agree with you for whatever reason you’re shooting him. Wow I hate Torchwood. “Can’t believe you didn’t mention this before.” Ianto, all of your scenes last episode had me going “WHY ARE YOU TWO ONLY JUST TALKING ABOUT THIS STUFF.” so there’s sooooooooo much you don’t know. I can’t tell if Johnson asking about Steven not knowing who Jack really is is her genuinely being interested in the situation, or if she’s mocking them. It could go either way. Part of me feels like I remember her being redeemed, I hope I’m right because I REALLY want to like Johnson. Wait why did the computer sound like it was combined with Bridget’s voice? Does it assume she’s a woman so it adds a woman’s voice over the computer voice? Or were the editors just lazy and altered Bridget’s actress’ lines instead of rerecording them with a computer voice? Oh deep breaths. I can’t handle this. JUST THE STUPID SMOKEY BOX MAKES ME ANXIOUS. I love that Frobisher mentioned the Prime Minister. I know it’s not him outrightly telling everyone that the Prime Minister’s a part of it, but still it’s more recognition than the PM wanted so I’m glad Frobisher brought him up, even in that way. And only mentioned him. He could have said “The Prime Minister, an American General, and a UNIT Colonel are watching.” but no, he said “The Prime Minister of this country is watching.” Yes. I love it. Who is this brave soul walking into the box though? What’s his story? I love Lois getting closer and Bridget giving her a “What is this girl doing?” look. Oh god the child. And the Prime Minister’s like “Oops I’ve been caught” AND I’M LIKE STOP BEING SO SELFISH YOU IDIOT THERE’S A CHILD IN THERE AND YOU’RE CARING THAT IT’S PROOF AGAINST YOU. WHAT ABOUT THE CHILD WHO’S STILL A CHILD 44 YEARS LATER AND HOOKED UP TO STUFF? DON’T YOU WANNA KNOW IF HE’S OK? Oh I don’t think I noticed Ianto’s tears before... baby no... “Do you think he knows? Is he conscious?” Wow Rhys asking a good question. Is it better if he’s not in pain? Oh Lois no don’t cry no this hurts. I FORGOT ABOUT THE 456 JUST BEING LIKE “LOL BUT I THOUGHT YOU GUYS WANTED THIS OFF THE RECORD LOL WELL YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE COME IN LOL” THAT’S BOTH HILARIOUS AND HORRIFYING. “What does it want them for?” “Bit late to ask now.” OOOOh Rhys I love you. Asking good questions, calling out Jack. Love love love the American General. Right now. I think I remember ending up hating everyone in that room debating which kids to take. But right now, love him. And the Prime Minister’s an idiot. But we knew this already. Old news.

OH MY GOD. Oh my god. Watching this season in the midst of the outrage over Trump’s family separation policy... just... it all suddenly hit me really hard. Wow.

“I’ve only just scraped the surface, haven’t I?” Unfortunately, yes.

Jack: I’ve gotta go, I won’t be long. Me: Here we go again. Running away. Ianto: You’re doing it again. Me: GOOD. CALL HIM OUT.

Yes, Jack, it’s ok to call Frobisher. It’s smart to do it far away so it can’t be tracked. Just TELL them you’re going to do it. Once again, even just shouting it as you run off is better than nothing. Wow ok now Jack’s spilling everything. I do love that coat though. Jack’s iconic coat. I know I just ruined an emotional scene, but since losing the original coat I REALLY appreciate the new one, ok? It’s his thing. That picture they pulled up of Jack is from They Keep Killing Suzie when they all arrive all dramatic and we are introduced to my queen, Detective Swanson. Did they just pick that episode for everyone’s pictures? Owen’s official picture’s from that scene too. Also, still super disappointed we never got more Detective Swanson. She was the BEST. Love her. HEY, PRIME MINISTER, FROBISHER NEEDS A NAP. PRIME MINISTER. STOP BRINGING FROBISHER INTO THIS. DEAL WITH STUFF FOR YOURSELF FOR ONCE. STOP SAVING YOURSELF. THINK OF THE ENTIRE POPULATION OF THE WORLD. OR AT THE VERY VERY LEAST THINK OF FROBISHER. “Unaccompanied asylum seekers awaiting deportation.” Guys. Guys. This is getting too real. This was too real in 2009 when it aired. This was too real in 2013 when I watched it for the first time. And this is WAY TOO REAL IN 2018. “Orphans in ‘65, asylum seekers today. There’s progress for you.” Uugggghghhhhhhh “And no one would miss them.” Wow all of this is too real why are we here why are we at this point. Calling them units instead of kids to make it easier. THEY’RE ALL SAYING DIFFERENT NUMBERS? THE 456 KNOW EXACTLY HOW MANY FROM EACH COUNTRY THEY WANT? OH GOD. 2,340,000 from America oh god. “325,000 is 10% of the childr- the, uh, units in this country.” WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY. WHO IS THIS DUDE SAYING “OH IT’S WORTH CONSIDERING COMPLYING” STOP IT. RICK. STOP IT. Also apparently he’s played by Nicholas Briggs aka the Daleks and Cybermen so hiiiiiiiii nice to see your face! NOW, TELL YOUR CHARACTER TO STOP SUGGESTING GIVING AWAY THE CHILDREN. Also this is Infinity War too. Dwindling resources. Instead of finding a way to make more resources, just kill people so whoever’s left can have more. Perfectly logical. If you’re Thanos. Come on Johnson. Come on girl. Start snooping into your bosses. “We are now facing the worst-case scenario.” Yep. From now on, they can’t call anything else the worst-case scenario. Nothing is worse than this. PM. DUDE. STOP PUTTING ALL OF THIS ON FROBISHER. “Which is out of my hands, over to you, sir.” Subtly fighting back just a little teeny tiny bit. Not letting him put anything else onto him. Good. IF ONLY YOU WOULD JUST QUIT AND WALK AWAY AND SHOUT ON THE STREETS WHAT THE PRIME MINISTER DID TO YOU AND IS PLANNING TO DO TO EVERYONE ELSE. I like the guy who wants it to be random. Dalek-Rick gave the genius suggestion of doing it alphabetically. Wow. Just get him out of here. Convincing the PM to go through with it, suggesting doing it alphabetically. Why is he here? Every second-born child? So I’d be taken since I’m a twin who was born a minute later than my brother by chance. But also I was 13 in 2009 so I wouldn’t have been considered, but STILL. SECOND-BORN IS DUMB. ALL OF THIS IS DUMB. “If this... this lottery takes place, my kids aren’t in it.” Uggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I mean, I get not wanting your kids to be taken from you, but just ughghghhghghghhhghhghghhhhhhhhh YOU’RE NOT BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE. “I’m sure the families of Gold Command will be exempted anyway.” “In fact isn’t that official policy?” Why are we here why are we here “Whatever happens, the children and grandchildren of everyone around this table will be exempt.” Oh, but everyone except Frobisher? Right? Ok but lady, I bet you anything your brother’s kids are not as bright as you assume they are. Not as “valuable.” You just have more investment in them than kids you’re not related to. What if you brother’s kids were evaluated and seen to not be valuable? Denise talking about good schools and failing schools while NYC has a debate over the SHSAT is also too real. Frobisher’s the only one horrified. Oh god oh god Jack and Ianto are going to Thames House oh no oh no no no no no no no. She’s been wearing those contacts for nearly 24 hours now oh god. See, I want to see what kind of outrage there was when someone finally figured out what the number meant and it spread to the general public. Oh Trinity Wells. She’s one of my favorite characters in the Whoniverse honestly. Love her. Just gonna leave a parked car in the middle of gridlocked traffic. Great. “This goes to you people listening in on the wire too.” IANTO YES. This scene where he tells Rhiannon how much he loves her and the kids is so much worse knowing Ianto’s about to die... Oh wow. I went from smiling to my face just dropping as I remembered. Ok Frobisher, I will admit that’s a well thought out plan to get out of this and avoid the blame. I will give you that much. BUT I STILL HATE THAT THIS IS HAPPENING AT ALL. “No one in this room is a willing accomplice.” Ehhhhhhhhhhh you’re the highest on the list since you enjoyed not having your name on this and never intended to take any credit. You had no stakes for a while while you gave Frobisher orders. So shut up PM.

OH GOD JUST POOR LOIS. GIRL SHOWS UP, THINKING SHE HAS A NICE LITTLE SECRETARY JOB FOR A SMALL BRANCH OF THE GOVERNMENT. GETS PULLED INTO A INTERNATIONAL AND INTERSPECIES CRISIS. AND IS NOW COMMITTING TREASON IN AN ATTEMPT TO SAVE THE WORLD. I LOVE HER. SHE’S BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH. AT LEAST TORCHWOOD AND FROBISHER AND THE PM KNEW ALIENS EXISTED AND WERE READY (to an extent) TO DEAL WITH IT. LOIS WAS JUST THROWN INTO IT ON HER FIRST DAY. And she’s handled it so well. God. Lois deserves all the appreciation.

God. Just watching her, I’m getting that feeling I get when I talk in class. The nerves, feeling all warm like I can feel the blood in all of my veins. Oh god I can’t imagine how she feels. “Oh yeah, you and whose army?” “Torchwood.” LOVE LOVE LOVE LOIS. LOVE LOVE LOVE THEIR SHOCKED REACTIONS. My girl Lois. Blackmailing the entire British Government. Your fave could NEVER. Oh god 13 more minutes in the episode. I wonder if Dekker and Jack ever met in 1965. Wait nooooo is Dekker about to die?!?!??!??!?!?!??!?!?! HE’S IN THE BUILDING. NOOOO DEKKER NO. Also yeah, the “computer lip reading” is just them editing the actors’ voices. Try harder Torchwood, you have Nicholas Briggs right there! The king of robotic alien voices! 10 feet away! Ooooh nooo Dekker why must you be in the building. “Happy now?” PRIME MINISTER. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO BE SPEAKING. THERE ARE MAYBE A COUPLE HUNDRED PEOPLE IN THAT BUILDING, DYING OF A VIRUS, AND YOU’RE ACTING LIKE IT’S WORSE THAN THE MILLIONS OF CHILDREN YOU ARE HANDPICKING AND PLAN TO GIVE AWAY TO BE USED AS DRUGS!??!?!!?!? GET OFF YOUR IMAGINARY HIGH HORSE. Ugh stupid bulletproof glass. Last time, I didn’t think Ianto was actually dying and barely reacted. It’s because I spoiled myself and saw that the only original Torchwood actors in Miracle Day were John, Eve, and Kai. But I thought Kai was Gareth’s name, and I assumed Ianto would be in Miracle Day, so I didn’t take his death seriously. This time, my eyes are a little wet. I rarely cry. Didn’t cry over either of Owen’s deaths, Tosh’s death made me shed one tear and then her goodbye video made me shed another. So. I’m not shocked I didn’t cry. But I actually felt sad this time instead of going “No, but he’s supposed to be still alive next season?” the whole scene. Frobisher. This is where you quit. This is where you get up, and walk away. Oh god poor Jack, remembering what happened. Ok. Ok. Gwen crying nearly got me. I got very close to crying just then. Gwen. Girl. Why you gotta make me sad?

Yeah so... everything sucks.

And I really did not believe that Ianto was dead. I was like “Ok but he’s gonna be back” and then I watched Day 5 and Jack flew away or whatever he does and then Gwen and Rhys go off with the baby and Ianto was still dead and I was like “...WHAT.” And then I reread the Tardis Wiki page for Torchwood (That’s what spoiled me) and saw it said “Kai Owen” and I clicked on Kai and I was like “...Oh... Kai’s Rhys not Ianto...” SO it was my own stupidity. BUT IN MY DEFENSE: I had been watching Torchwood nonstop for 3 days by this point. I had only taken breaks to sleep and eat (sometimes eating while watching). I did not look into any of the actors until after I finished Children of Earth. I don’t know when I had the time to look at the Tardis Wiki, but I did at some point in season 1, yet Tosh and Owen’s deaths at the end of Season 2 still felt like they came out of no where even though I should have known they’d be gone by Miracle Day.

See, when my brother watched Titanic for the first time, he’d managed to make it 16 years without being spoiled for the movie. Me? I’ve never seen it, but I was spoiled a long time ago and I don’t feel like putting myself through that pain so I kind of refuse to watch it. But he didn’t know what was coming at all. Apparently, halfway through the movie, he was so into the story that he forgot they were even on a boat, let alone the TITANIC, so once everything started flooding it was like he was slapped in the face by reality. That was me with Torchwood. I knew that Stolen Earth and Journey’s End only had Gwen, Jack, and Ianto since I watched Doctor Who first, but I didn’t really comprehend that that meant something had to have happened to keep Tosh and Owen away from that episode. And when they died it was like “Oh yeah. They’re on the Titanic.” except it was “Oh yeah. They weren’t in Journey’s End.” Kind of the same thing happened with End of Time Part 2. I didn’t question why Jack was on his own and would be single and therefore interested in Alonso, but once I watched Day 5 I was like “Oh yeah. Jack’s on his own and single by End of Time part 2.”

Basically, my horrible memory spares me from spoiling myself sometimes. Funnily enough, I saw the ending of Journey’s End when it aired because my mom watched it. I remember asking her why there were 2 Doctors, but didn’t remember until I was watching the scene myself after starting the show from the beginning years later. And when I saw the scene where Donna was forced to forget the Doctor, I remember saying to mom “Wait, what? Why did she just introduce herself?” and mom saying “He took away her memories of him” and once again, I didn’t remember that I’d already seen the scene until it happened.

So yeah. Everything about Day 4 is way too real. Especially because of what’s been happening this week. I’m almost glad I had to wait 2 weeks to watch it because the fact that this is kind of happening right now made everything SO MUCH MORE PAINFUL. BECAUSE IT’S NOT FICTIONAL. WHY IS THE WORLD THIS WAY? WHY DID PEOPLE LET TRUMP WIN?

Ok. So that’s it for Day 4.

Oh my god. 5 years ago this week, I watched Torchwood for the first time. I forgot to commemorate my 5th anniversary... I had planned to, but was too busy. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I missed it. June 15-18th (maybe early morning of the 19th) was when I watched Torchwood for the first time. Over 3 very, very, VERY intense days.

Also, every single shoutout goes to Lois Habiba. She’s the MVP. Love her so much.

AND IS DEKKER OK?

Update: pressed post before watching the preview. Dekker’s ok! Which doesn’t make sense since he should have been exposed long before he put on the suit, but whatever! Also. I’m not emotionally ready for Day 5.

[patriotsnet]

Is Congress Made Up Of Democrats Or Republicans

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/is-congress-made-up-of-democrats-or-republicans/

Is Congress Made Up Of Democrats Or Republicans

How Are The Results Reported

Ryan Grim: The GOP Made A Titanic BLUNDER In Blowing Up Kyrsten Sinemas Vacation

The election results on this page are reported by the Associated Press . AP call the winner in a state when they determine that the trailing candidate has no path to victory. This can happen before 100% of votes in a state have been counted.

Estimates for the total vote in each state are also provided by AP. The numbers update throughout election night, as more data on voter turnout becomes available.

Isan Mix Of The House By State

As of July;30,2021:

State ranked in partisan order Percentage OH-11: Vacant following Congresswoman Fudge‘s resignation Mar. 10, 2021.OH-15: Vacant following Congressman Stivers‘s resignation May 16, 2021. Texas FL-20: Vacant following Congressman Hastings‘s death on Apr. 6, 2021. Georgia State ranked in partisan order Percentage

Annual Congressional Competitiveness Report 2020

Ballotpedia’s Annual Congressional Competitiveness report for 2020 includes information on the number of elections featuring candidates from both major parties, the number of open seats, and more.

HIGHLIGHTS

More U.S. House races were contested by members of both major parties than in any general election since at least 1920, with 95.4% of races featuring major party competition.

Of the U.S. Representatives and U.S. Senators who were eligible to run for re-election in 2018, 55 of them did not appear on the general election ballot in 2020.

In the 53 open seats where an incumbent either did not seek re-election or was defeated in a primary, there were 13 races where the incumbent’s district overlapped at least one pivot county in 2008 and 2012, before switching to support President Donald Trump in 2016).

In 20 races, only one major party candidate appeared on the general election ballot, the lowest number compared to the preceding decade.

Four U.S. senators and 36 U.S. representatives did not run for re-election.

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Th Congress 2009 And 2010

White House: Democrat

House: Democrats held 257 seats, Republicans held 178 seats

Senate: Democrats held 57 seats, Republicans held 41 seats; there was one independent and one independent Democrat

*Notes: U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter was reelected in 2004 as a Republican but switched parties to become a Democrat on April 30, 2009. U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut was reelected in 2006 as an independent candidate and became an Independent Democrat. U.S. Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont was elected in 2006 as an independent.

Th Congress 2011 And 2012

Members of the 112th Congress were elected in a 2010 midterm election “shellacking” of the Democratic Party. Republicans won back the House two years after voters handed control of the White House and both chambers of Congress to the Democrats.

After the 2010 midterms, Obama said:

“People are frustrated. They’re deeply frustrated with the pace of our economic recovery and the opportunities that they hope for their children and their grandchildren. They want jobs to come back faster.”

White House: Democrat

House: Republicans held 242 seats, Democrats held 193 seats

Senate: Democrats held 51 seats, Republicans held 47 seats; there was one independent and one independent Democrat

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Us Election : Democrats’ Hopes Of Gaining Control Of Senate Fade

Democrats are rapidly losing hope of gaining control of the US Senate after underperforming in key states.

Controlling the Senate would have allowed them to either obstruct or push through the next president’s agenda.

The party had high hopes of gaining the four necessary seats in Congress’s upper chamber, but many Republican incumbents held their seats.

The Democrats are projected to retain their majority in the lower chamber, the House, but with some key losses.

With many votes still to be counted, the final outcome for both houses may not be known for some time.

Why don’t we have a winner yet?

Among the disappointments for the Democrats was the fight for the seat in Maine, where Republican incumbent Susan Collins staved off a fierce challenge from Democrat Sara Gideon.

However, the night did see a number of firsts – including the first black openly LGBTQ people ever elected to Congress and the first openly transgender state senator.

The balance of power in the Senate may also change next January. At least one run-off election is due to be held that month in Georgia, since neither candidate has been able to secure more than 50% of votes.

This year’s congressional election is running alongside the battle for the White House between Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden.

Of the 35 Senate seats up for grabs, 23 were Republican-held and 12 were Democrat.

Senators serve six-year terms, and every two years a third of the seats are up for re-election.

What Does The Republican Party Stand For

The Republican Party was initially created to advocate for a free-market economy that countered the Democratic Partys agrarian leanings and support of slave labour. In recent history, the Republicans have been affiliated with reducing taxes to stimulate the economy, deregulation, and conservative social values.

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Diversity Of The Freshman Class

The demographics of the 116th U.S. Congress freshmen were more diverse than any previous incoming class.

At least 25 new congressional representatives were Hispanic, Native American, or people of color, and the incoming class included the first Native American women, the first Muslim women, and the two youngest women ever elected. The 116th Congress included more women elected to the House than any previous Congress.

Compromise Of : The 1876 Election

Texas Democrats Ramp Up Fight Against New GOP Suppression Attempt

By the 1870s, support was waning for the racially egalitarian policies of Reconstruction, a series of laws put in place after the Civil War to protect the rights of African Americans, especially in the South. Many southern whites had resorted to intimidation and violence to keep blacks from voting and restore white supremacy in the region. Beginning in 1873, a series of Supreme Court decisions limited the scope of Reconstruction-era laws and federal support for the so-called Reconstruction Amendments, particularly the 14th Amendment and 15 Amendment, which gave African Americans the status of citizenship and the protection of the Constitution, including the all-important right to vote.

Did you know? After the most disputed election in American history, the Compromise of 1877 put Rutherford Hayes into office as the nations 19th president; outraged northern Democrats derided Hayes as His Fraudulency.

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Read Also: When Is The Last Time Republicans Controlled Congress

Senate And House Elections : Full Results For Congress

As well as electing the US president, the country has been voting for senators and members of the House of Representatives. Here are full results from all 50 states

Mon 9 Nov 2020 09.44;GMT Last modified on Tue 15 Dec 2020 14.28;GMT

Mon 9 Nov 2020 09.44;GMT Last modified on Tue 15 Dec 2020 14.28;GMT

The US legislature, Congress, has two chambers. The lower chamber, the House of Representatives, has 435 voting seats, each representing a district of roughly similar size. There are elections in each of these seats every two years.

The upper chamber, the Senate, has 100 members, who sit for six-year terms. One-third of the seats come up for election in each two-year cycle. Each state has two senators, regardless of its population; this means that Wyoming, with a population of less than 600,000, carries the same weight as California, with almost 40 million.

Most legislation needs to pass both chambers to become law, but the Senate has some important other functions, notably approving senior presidential appointments, for instance to the supreme court.

In most states, the candidate with the most votes on election day wins the seat. However, Georgia and Louisiana require the winning candidate to garner 50% of votes cast; if no one does, they hold a run-off election between the top two candidates.

The First Hurdle Is The Organizing Resolution

Incoming Democratic Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and outgoing Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will have to agree on a set of rules, known as an organizing resolution, which governs how the Senate works. The organizing resolution determines everything from committee membership and staff budgets, to who gets the best office space.

Even with Harriss tie-breaking vote, Schumer will need McConnells support: passing the organizing resolution requires 60 votes. As a result, Republicans will likely end up with much more power than a minority would usually hold.

The last time the Senate was split 50-50, in 2001, lawmakers agreed on an organizing resolution that allowed both parties to share power. Under that deal, the parties agreed to split committee memberships and staff equally and changed the rules, making it so that if a tie vote prevented a measure from moving out of committee, either the majority or the minority leader could bring the bill to the Senate floor.

Schumer and McConnell may take a cue from that 2001 agreement, but Senate observers note that, in these hyper-partisan times, agreeing on even the rules of the road may be tricky. As partisan as it was in 2000, things have become even more partisan, says Sarah Binder, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution.

Read Also: When Did Republicans And Democrats Switch Platforms

A Coalition To Protect Its Self

The modern-day 1st District can trace its origins to the 1960s.

As former Congressman Bill Clay explained in his book,13 Black legislators, 57 Republicans and nine white Democrats from rural areas voted to establish a St. Louis-based district that would be highly possible for an African American to win. In the book, Bill Clay: A Political Voice at the Grassroots,he said the unusual coalition held strong to protect its self-interests.

The newly drawn congressional districts provided representation in the cotton-driven, agricultural economy of the Bootheel section of the southeastern part of the state, maintained a substantial number of Republican voters in the suburban area of St. Louis County, and created a Black-majority district located mostly in the city of St. Louis, Clay wrote. Democrats and Governor , a Democrat, opposed the redistricting proposal. They filed a lawsuit supporting a plan to place the Black population in three separate districts. However, the U.S. Supreme Court thwarted the will of the Democrats and ruled that the district drawn by legislators was legal.

Bill Clay was elected to the 1st Congressional District in 1968. No white candidate has even come close to prevailing in that district since that election. And because of the Voting Rights Act, lawmakers cannot draw the 1st District in a way that diminishes the ability of a racial or language minority to elect its candidates of choice.

Important Dates And Deadlines

The table below lists filing deadlines and primary dates in each state for Democratic Party and Republican Party candidates for congressional and state-level office.

Primary dates and filing deadlines, 2020 State Filing deadline for primary candidates Primary date 04/21/2020 & 05/08/2020 08/04/2020 04/24/2020 & 6/12/2020 05/05/2020 & 06/02/2020 09/01/2020 06/24/2020 07/10/2020

The congressional approval rating indicates public satisfaction in the job performance of the members of the United States Congress. It is the percentage of people polled who responded favorably toward the work of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

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Districts That Flipped In 2018

The map below highlights congressional districts that changed party control in the general elections on November 6, 2018.

The following table lists congressional districts that changed party control in the general elections on November 6, 2018. It also includes 2020 general election race ratings from three outlets.

Flipped congressional districts, 2018

Democrats’ House Targets Vanish As Gop Redraws New Maps

Many of the districts Democrats have contested in recent elections will become safer Republican holds under new GOP-drawn congressional maps.

State Sen. Sollie Norwood points out his district on a poster-sized map in the Capitol rotunda in Jackson, Miss., Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021. |

09/15/2021 04:30 AM EDT

Link Copied

House Democrats spent the past two elections crowing about ousting Republicans from longtime red districts that had suddenly grown competitive. Now, Republicans are about to make many of those targets disappear from the battlefield entirely.

GOP mapmakers are readying to shore up more than a dozen of the most hotly contested House battlegrounds from the past four years, narrowing Democrats path to maintain control of the House, as they prepare for midterm elections that are historically tough for the party in power.

Democrats got their first taste of a shrinking playing field on Tuesday, when Republican state lawmakers in Indiana unveiled a draft congressional plan that would transform the state’s most competitive district into a relatively safe red seat by siphoning off voters in deep-blue Marion County, whichincludes Indianapolis.

Just like that, Indiana’s 5th District, where both parties spent well over $10 million last year, became an easy hold for freshman GOP Rep. Victoria Spartz.

By HEATHER CAYGLE, SARAH FERRIS and ALLY MUTNICK

By ALLY MUTNICK

But new district lines will ease their path to their reelections, at least for the next few elections.

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Senate Republicans Arent Interested In Compromise It May Be Time For Democrats To Use Plan B

No one would think of blaming Sen. Joe ManchinJoe ManchinOvernight Energy & Environment Presented by the League of Conservation Voters Biden, Xi talk climate at UN forumElection reform in the states is not all doom and gloomManchin presses Interior nominee on leasing program reviewMORE for shrinking West Virginias population by 3.5 percent since 2010, one of only three states that lost people over the last decade. There are lots of economic and demographic dynamics that accounted for the drop.

But given that the Mountaineer State will lose a House seat and an electoral vote, one should question whether Manchin should be determining the fate of multiple bills in the U.S. Senate. For the record, I really dont mind that Sen. Manchin says he only wants to make sure that West Virginia has a seat at the table. What I do mind, and what every American concerned about our democracy should mind, is that he now apparently thinks he gets to decide what everyone at the table will eat.

In The Federalist Papers, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton wrote that while the Senate was designed in a way to ensure that the majority didnt ride roughshod over the minority , those two Founding Fathers insisted that the majority must eventually always win; that minority rule was antithetical to a democracy. Common sense tells us that this is still the case in 2021, Trump Nation notwithstanding.

Yarmuth represents the 3rd District of Kentucky and is chairman of the Budget Committee.

Since 1: Contemporary Era

GOP lawmaker: Democrats turned impeachment into a big political fiasco

From 1970 to 2009, the House expanded delegates, along with their powers and privileges representing U.S. citizens in non-state areas, beginning with representation on committees for Puerto Rico’s resident commissioner in 1970. In 1971, a delegate for the District of Columbia was authorized, and in 1972 new delegate positions were established for U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam. 1978 saw an additional delegate for American Samoa, and another for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands began in 2009. These six members of Congress enjoy floor privileges to introduce bills and resolutions, and in recent Congresses they vote in permanent and select committees, in party caucuses and in joint conferences with the Senate. They have Capitol Hill offices, staff and two annual appointments to each of the four military academies. While their votes are constitutional when Congress authorizes their House Committee of the Whole votes, recent Congresses have not allowed for that, and they cannot vote when the House is meeting as the House of Representatives.

Read Also: Who Is Right Republicans Or Democrats

Can Democrats Reclaim The House

Despite the large Republican majority in the House, a major collapse due to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign could have put the House back in play in 2016. This section highlights what was said by pundits on the possibility of Democrats gaining control of Congress.

John Sides – October 18, 2016: “This model currently predicts that the Democrats will control 204 seats after the 2016 election. That is 16 more than they had after the 2014 election. The margin of error associated with that is plus or minus 8 seats. That forecast implies a very small chance less than 1 percent that the Democrats could win the 218 or more seats needed for a majority.”

Sean Trende – October 8, 2016: “Whats more interesting is the House. When Trump first secured the nomination in March, analysts speculated that he could flip the chamber to Democrats. That speculation subsided over the spring and summer, as Trumps vote share held and Democratic recruiting efforts sputtered. As of today, RealClearPolitics has Republicans favored to lose about 15 House seats a significant loss, but not enough to flip control.”

Jeff Stein – October 8, 2016: “But one political analyst I interviewed earlier this campaign thinks an epic Trump collapse might be enough to overcome that built-in advantage. Geoffrey Skelley, of the University of Virginias Center for Politics, argues that a Clinton victory of 6 points or more might be enough to put the House back in play.”

Incumbents Who Sought Other Offices

U.S. House members who ran for President

1 Democratic member of the U.S. House

Running for president, 2020

U.S. House members who sought a seat in the U.S. Senate

2 Democratic members of the U.S. House

3 Republican members of the U.S. House

Running for Senate, 2020

U.S. House members who ran for governor

1 Republican member of the U.S. House

Running for governor, 2020

U.S. House members who ran for another office

2 Republican members of the U.S. House

1 Democratic member of the U.S. House

Running for another office, 2020 Name No

Also Check: When Did Republicans And Democrats Switch Platforms

[your-dietician]

China fails to meet promises on missing Xinjiang children

New Post has been published on https://tattlepress.com/latest/china-fails-to-meet-promises-on-missing-xinjiang-children/

China fails to meet promises on missing Xinjiang children

Over the past two years, the Chinese authorities have repeatedly promised to help trace any children reported to be missing in Xinjiang, to prove that they haven’t been forcibly separated from their parents. Those promises have not been met, reports John Sudworth.

The first time China made a public promise to help find Kalbinur Tursan’s children was in 2019.

“If you have people who have lost their children, you give me the names,” China’s then-ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming, told the BBC in a live television interview in July that year.

Mr Liu denied that China’s policies in its far-western region of Xinjiang could be leading to the large-scale separation of children from their parents but, he said, if we had any such evidence, he would investigate.

“We’ll try to locate them and let you know who they are, what they’re doing,” he said.

Kalbinur – a member of Xinjiang’s largest Turkic ethnic group, the Uyghurs – now lives in Turkey, working late into the night in her tiny one-room apartment sewing clothes to support what is left of her shattered family.

She arrived in 2016, eight months pregnant with her seventh child, Merziye, conceived in violation of China’s family-planning laws.

“If the Chinese authorities had known I was pregnant they would probably have forced me to abort my baby,” she told me.

“So, I prepared my body by wrapping my belly to hide the bump for two hours every day and we managed to pass the border control like that.”

Although Kalbinur had applied for passports for all of her children, China’s tough restrictions on travel for Xinjiang’s ethnic groups meant that only one – for her two-year-old son Muhammed – was granted.

With time running out, she had little choice but to leave the others behind, hoping they could follow with her husband once they’d been given their documents.

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As she boarded her flight, she had no idea that she wouldn’t see them again.

Kalbinur, pictured with Merziye, sews clothes to support what is left of her shattered family

Out of sight, sweeping silently across China’s vast western region, a campaign of mass-incarceration had already begun with a rapidly expanding network of what were, at first, highly secretive “re-education” camps.

A parallel network of boarding schools was also being built with the same aim; the forced-assimilation of Xinjiang’s Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other minority groups whose identity, culture and Islamic traditions were now seen as a threat by the ruling Communist Party.

Xinjiang

One policy paper, published the year after Kalbinur’s departure, made clear that the purpose of such boarding schools was to “break the influence of the religious atmosphere” on children living at home.

A few weeks after her departure, her husband was detained and – like so many thousands of other members of the Uyghur diaspora watching their family members disappear from afar – she found herself in exile.

Almost overnight, even calling relatives became impossible because, for those still in Xinjiang, any overseas communication was seen as a potential sign of radicalisation and a key reason for being sent to a camp.

Facing almost certain detention if she returned to Xinjiang, and with her children now parentless, she’s had no contact with them at all – except for one shocking discovery.

Kalbinur has had almost no news about her missing children in years

Searching online in 2018, she came across a video of her daughter, Ayse, now two years older than when she’d last seen her, in a school more than 500 kilometres from the family home.

With her hair shaved short, she was with a group of children being led in a game by a teacher speaking not in Uyghur – her mother tongue – but in Chinese.

For Kalbinur, the video brought both relief – a tangible link to at least one of her lost children – and deep anguish, as a painful, visual reminder of the guilt and grief that have never left her.

“Knowing she was in a different city made me think it’s impossible to find my children, even if I do go back,” she told me.

“To my children, I want them to know that I didn’t abandon them, I had no choice but to leave them behind, because if I had stayed their new-born sister wouldn’t have lived.”

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Kalbinur’s story is just one of a large number of similar accounts of missing children gathered by the BBC from members of Xinjiang’s Uyghur and Kazakh diasporas in Turkey and Kazakhstan.

Having first sought their permission, we sent Ambassador Liu Xiaoming the details of six of our interviewees, and attached copies of passports, Chinese ID cards and last-known addresses.

Three of the cases involved parents who had reason to believe their children were now in the care of the Chinese state.

Although his 2019 TV-appearance marked China’s first public promise to investigate, similar assurances had already been given in private a few months earlier, when the BBC was taken on a government-organised tour of the camps in Xinjiang.

China’s network of “re-education” camps has drawn intense international scrutiny

The initial secrecy had given way to a new strategy, with China insisting that the camps were, in fact, vocational schools in which those under the influence of separatist or extremist ideology willingly had their thoughts “transformed”.

The Deputy Director of Xinjiang’s Publicity Department, Xu Guixiang, denied that a generation of Uyghur and Kazakh children were being effectively orphaned as whole extended families – including all adult caregivers – were detained or stranded overseas.

“If all family members have been sent to education training centres, that family must have a severe problem,” he told me.

“I’ve never seen such a case.”

But when we passed on the details of some of our cases – again, with their prior permission – the officials promised to look into it.

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One of the cases – handed to the officials in Xinjiang and sent to Ambassador Liu – involved not only missing children, but 14 missing grandchildren.

Originally from the village of Bestobe in the county of Kunes in northern Xinjiang, 66-year-old Khalida Akytkankyzy – like many ethnic Kazakhs – had family ties across the border in Kazakhstan.

In 2006 she and her husband, along with their youngest son, decided to emigrate, leaving her other three sons – already married and with children of their own – in Xinjiang.

But in early 2018, the relentless machinery of mass internment caught up with them too.

Khalida Akytkankyzy left Xinjiang in 2006

Khalida received news that her three sons and their wives had all been detained “for political education”.

She tried desperately to get information, including calling the Communist Party official in her old village, but no one would tell her who was looking after her grandchildren.

By 2019, when China began claiming that the camps had been successful in combating separatism and terrorism and that almost everyone had “graduated”, for Khalida the news only got worse.

Khalida Akytkankyzy not only misses her sons but her 14 missing grandchildren too

With the massive, parallel increase in Xinjiang’s formal prison population continuing unabated, her two eldest sons, Satybaldy and Orazjan, were sentenced to 22 years each, and her third son, Akhmetjan, to 10 years.

The village official told her they’d been convicted for “praying”.

If there were other reasons for their imprisonment then the authorities have provided no details.

China is accused of linking ordinary religious expression in Xinjiang to extremism or political separatism

China’s UK embassy confirmed receipt of the letter and documents we’d addressed to Ambassador Liu but, although we sent follow-up emails in November 2019 and again in February 2020, our questions remained unanswered.

The officials in Xinjiang told us there was a “discrepancy” in the information we’d handed to them, and advised us to tell our interviewees to contact their nearest Chinese embassies instead.

In July 2020, Ambassador Liu appeared again on the same, live television programme, and was asked what had happened to his promise of a year earlier.

“I never received any names since our last show,” he told the interviewer, Andrew Marr.

“I hope that you can give me the names, we certainly will get back to you.”

He went on to suggest that his counterparts in Xinjiang would be able to facilitate such requests with ease – “they respond to us very quickly,” he added.

So, we followed up again, sending emails in August and September 2020 and in January 2021.

“Chase-up email received,” reads the latest response from an official at the embassy. “I regret no progress has been made so far.”

Nowadays, Khalida wakes early and takes a number of interconnecting buses to the Chinese consulate in the city of Almaty, just as the officials had advised us to tell her to do.

Carrying photographs of her three sons, however, she finds her daily attempts to seek answers blocked by a line of police.

“It’s not just to me,” she said in a video interview from her home.

“I’m often there with 10-15 other people and the Chinese consulate doesn’t give any information to anyone.”

In Turkey, Kalbinur is also still fighting for information about her husband, Abdurehim Rozi, and her five missing children, Abduhalik, Subinur, Abdulsalam, Ayse and Abdullah.

Kalbinur organised a 400km walk from Istanbul to Ankara in a bid to break the silence of the Chinese authorities

She recently took part in a 400km walk from Istanbul to Ankara with other Uyghur mothers, in a bid to break the silence of the Chinese authorities about their relatives.

Her campaigning has at least prompted a limited response, in a press conference – chaired by Xinjiang’s deputy propaganda chief, Xu Guixiang – denying that her daughter is in a boarding school and insisting instead that the children are being looked after by a relative.

But Kalbinur is still unable to contact them and so China’s claims are impossible to verify.

“I want the authorities to let me see my children,” she told me over a video call as she took a break from her protest walk at the side of a busy highway.

“In this information age, why can’t I contact my children?”

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One of the cases we sent to Ambassador Liu did not involve missing children, but a missing mother instead.

In 2017, Xiamuinuer Pida, a 68-year old retired engineer with a long service record at a Chinese state-run company, was sent to a camp, where she was interned for 18 months before being released.

Her daughter, Reyila Abulaiti, who has lived in the UK since 2002, says the authorities are still refusing to grant her mother a passport, keeping her – like many other former camp inmates – under close surveillance in her home.

Reyila Abulaiti was born in Xinjiang, and now lives in the UK

During our 2019 visit to Xinjiang, Chinese officials insisted that she was entirely free but simply suffering from ill health, with one of them telling us that many elderly Uyghurs suffer dietary problems – “too much meat and milk,” he said.

It was a suggestion that infuriated and saddened Reyila, who told me that her mother had, in fact, lost 15kg (33 pounds) in weight as a result of the harsh conditions during her incarceration.

“They’re trying to hide what they are doing,” she replied, when asked about the authorities’ failure to explain why Xiamuinuer had been sent for re-education.

“She’s a well-educated, retired woman, she doesn’t need vocational courses. She’s been in a camp and they don’t want my mum to speak out.”

Earlier this year, Liu Xiaoming completed his tenure as Chinese ambassador to the UK, with an online farewell to British politicians and dignitaries and with his promise still unmet by the Chinese authorities.

Meanwhile, I’ve been forced to leave China as a result of the increasing pressure from the authorities over my journalism and, in particular, a growing number of threats to sue me over my reporting on Xinjiang.

Liu Xiaoming has now completed his tenure as Chinese ambassador to the UK

Some of those threats have come directly from Xu Guixiang, the official I’d interviewed two years previously in Xinjiang.

The BBC had produced “fake news” and violated professional ethics, he told China’s Communist Party-run media.

Yet despite the continued insistence of Chinese officials that – if we provided names – a quick search would easily disprove that families were being forcibly divided, they have offered only silence.

In addition to those already mentioned, we’re still waiting to learn the whereabouts of a number of other children, including those of Yasin Zunun, who suspects that Muslima, Fatima, Parhat, Nurbiya and Asma are in a boarding school.

Merbet Maripet has heard nothing from her four children, Abdurahman, Muhammad, Adila and Mardan since 2017, and also believes they’re now in the care of the state.

We asked the Chinese Foreign Ministry why no branch of government has been able to deliver on the clear promises to provide information about the missing individuals.

No response was received before this report was published.

Producer: Kathy Long

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[everthegirlanachronism]

Haitians in smaller states highly engaged in elections, despite lack of data

Bianca Shinn-Desras walks door-to-door in Stamford, CT educating her community on the importance of voting. Photo courtesy of Bianca Shinn-Desras. 

By Larisa Karr

As Nov. 3 fast approaches, Connecticut resident Bianca Shinn-Desras is doing everything she can to galvanize the state’s Haitian-American community. Taking a boots-on-the-ground approach, Shinn-Desras and other volunteers are knocking on doors in the state’s small Haitian enclaves to provide information on how to vote, combating misinformation on Facebook and WhatsApp and working with pastors to deliver useful updates to their congregations.

“Connecticut is one of 10 states in the U.S. that has a large Haitian population,” said Shinn-Desras, who lives in Stamford. “It’s often neglected because it’s not Florida or New York, but it is in that corridor — between New York, Massachusetts and the Northeast — and that’s powerful.”

At an estimated 20,000, Haitian-Americans in the Constitution State are small in number compared to New York and Florida. Still, as with other states where they are not as visible a voting bloc as New York and Florida, Connecticut’s dynamic Haitian-American residents are intensely involved in turning out the vote in their communities.

Without accurate, easily accessible data to support their participation, however, numerous advocates and academics have said, the community will miss out on resources it is due. Census data, they say, is only a starting point and doesn’t reflect the actual, larger figures. Nor do local institutions.

The lack of data has left many, like Shinn-Desras, who is an associate data strategist for a non-profit, calling for a deeper level of detail about voters.

“This is inequity in data collection,” said Shinn-Desras, 39. “You have a population that you’re not gaining information about, not providing open data, and it’s a problematic practice.”

Feeling invisible

Statistics from election boards in nine states with large Haitian populations, as well as official numbers by the U.S. Census Bureau, do not reflect the visible political participation of Haitian-American communities across the country. The majority of local and statewide election boards only record voter statistics by race, not by ancestry or ethnicity.

In politically active Connecticut, the state only provides a voter’s gender.

The absence of data on Haitian-American voters feels as though Connecticut is treating them like a forgotten population, Shinn-Desras said. Were these statistics to become available, she would use them in promoting political discourse and engagement throughout her community.

Shinn-Desras visits homes in the small Haitian enclaves of Connecticut’s third-largest city. Photo courtesy of Bianca Shinn-Desras. 

“In the future, we definitely have to be able to capture the data because, while we are Black Americans, our ethnicity is still very important,” Shinn-Desras said. “We need to be able to capture that and I think by not having that, we’re losing momentum.”

Others say different generations participate in politics in their own way, making the need for data a necessity to guide effective voter outreach toward each group. The methods used across generations, for one, could be adjusted with the appropriate data to support outreach.

“There is the question of transnational identity, where many Haitian immigrants continue to remain focused on Haiti and not on the realities in America,” said Georges Fouron, a professor at SUNY Stony Brook who has written about Haitian political participation in the United States. “This is not the case with the second and third generation. I’m not basing my hope on the immigrants themselves, but instead on the children and grandchildren.”

Increased visibility and participation

Despite feeling overlooked, many Haitian-Americans actively work to influence voter turnout by mobilizing the community here and even by working through loved ones in Haiti.

In South Carolina, with an estimated 1,106 Haitians, Patrick Gue is currently in the process of helping to form an association, tentatively known as the American Haitian Organization, to start combining political participation efforts by individual Haitians.

“Our Haitian community has to continue to call each other in our state and in our country to motivate us to vote,” said Gue, a Greenville County pastor. “We are even calling people in Haiti to reach out to their friends and family who are U.S. citizens to encourage them to vote.”

In Georgia, which has a Haitian-American community of 30,763, Haitian-Americans were intensely focused on completing the Census as one way to build cohesion across the state.

“We’re engaging with voters by ensuring that we can count them,” said Saurel Quettan of the Georgia Haitian-American Chamber of Commerce.

With people living in the exurbs, the lengthy commutes make uniting the community a challenge, Quettan said. Nonetheless, the Atlanta resident said, he is optimistic about the growing level of Haitian-American political engagement.

An increasing number of Haitian-Americans are beginning to run for office as commissioners and mayors in small cities he said. And recently, community members walked to a polling site to encourage participation in the elections.

Such increased visibility is part of the solution to be recognized as a significant voting bloc.

“We need to [focus] on ourselves here and encourage each other to vote, so we can continue to participate in the political arena,” said Gue, a Cap-Haïtien native. “If we are organized and start to do things in the community, politicians will see that and come to us.”

This article was originally published in The Haitian Times.

[xxbalamazxx]

Downfall Of Democracy In The West

I have said it for years now, the writing has been on the wall. Democracy is crumbling around us all. It is shattering into grains smaller than that of sand. Yet the people seem to be ok with it, blinded by their rage, their misunderstanding. Popularism seems to be the new trend, it seems to be the core of what society wants. Popularism, however, is not a system of governance. Rather it is a mere opinion or feeling, a social condemnation for anything shunned, it doesn't matter if it is right or wrong... It is easily manipulated and worse than mob rule… It is the voice of celebrity and notoriety seekers over the want and demand of the masses. It holds no gain other than that of the select few…. Often leading the suppression of one's rights for the obtaining of personal wealth…

Democracy is failing my friends, it is crumbling unto dust. For the first time, we see the vote of people being undone. The rights to privacy, the freedom of speech, the will of the people being abridged. Not to any measurement of justice, nor any measurement of will, rather for the select power acquisition of a few celebrities or corporate powers… It is crushing what once made the west great. is obliterating our system of law. Each generation has its battle, ours has been masked from us. It has been confused with civil movements, and seeking more “Rights” for the few whiles ripping them from others… While in the dark the powers that be move against us… Its time to wake the hell up. How is this occurring?? What is going on? It is simple, democracy is being subverted, the vote of the people is being overturned and not just in one country either.

Step 1: In the United States, a president comes into power, he takes his oath and is sworn into office. Within moments protest start in the streets. Riots break out all over the USA. The president came to power via the system, yet it was not good enough for the masses. For the first time in the history of the USA social media is used by those whom were denied power to disrupt the rightful process of what should have occurred. It immediately becomes normalized. The rule of law becomes undone. The Media immediately starts to report it as a resistance, encouraging for more to join in. Treason to the president, to the government, openly heralds. Yet how did this occur? I am still scratching my head trying to figure it out. While I did not oppose nor support Donald Trump in the elections (I am an independent). It is clear something is a miss, on both sides… To the left ( The Democrats) we had a woman “ Hillary Clinton” seeking power. Openly she commits over 300,000 acts of treason to the USA. Enough to have had her shot before a firing squad. Yet the FBI covers for her. Witnesses “Mysteriously” hang themselves the night before testifying before Congress. Openly her people call for revolt, open violence against the government as she lost the election. She accuses the system of being corrupt, rigged… Yet the system was good enough to get her bigoted husband Bill Clinton into power… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ULl41fNBLA To the other side, President Donald Trump begins to undo years worth of bills that were put into place to help those whom needed help. Overnight corporate power grows, the richer become richer and the poorer becomes poorer. Each side blames each other… Yet they seem to be working together to divide the population and conquer. After all, all bills that are passed by Trump help the Clinton's, and all actions Hillary openly declares, adds more fuel to trumps fire… One sits in the literal office, while the other controls the nation and its media through popular control... Using social media to challenge every bill the president passes, criticizing his actions until the country is divided… Openly weak, openly fractured to all that dare looks towards it… Over the next term, for the first time, singular un-elected groups have sway over the government, policy and more importantly the people…. Step 2: In the United Kingdom the people go to the vote as the largest exercise of democracy takes place in a referendum to leave or stay in the EU “Brexit”. With in the first few months of the exercise, the Media begins to report that Brexit will fail. They push with all their might to sway the people. For the first time openly the Media in the UK begins to attempt to sway the people in another Popular exercise of control. They parade celebrities on T.V, they condemn anyone that would oppose their view as “insane” “unstable” and “racist”, even in some cases calling for violence… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSBAYP-BKbg Yet as the voting day draws near like the election in the USA something unexpected occurs. Instead of following the popular opinion of celebrities and the press, the people vote to leave the EU. Overnight the news, the media and the government begin to insult and punish the people… For the first time, direct cuts are targeted against the poor in a cruel retaliation. The government attempts to drop benefits on the lowest of the poor that would see them impoverished to destitution. This, however, was blocked by the House of Lords. Yet to subvert even the most basic checks and balances, the government then brings universal credits to implement the cuts. The Bank Of England increase mortgage rates to apply pressure to the Nation. Guilds and Large corporations raise the prices of food and what the people now deemed Project fear begins… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJRQO50VTKU Un Investigates Uk Poverty With already obscenely high taxes, increases in food& basic's pricing. The threat of the loss of jobs and an economy deliberately destabilized by the unhappy elite the government of the united kingdom announces an apocalyptic view of a post Brexit environment. Immediately a repeat of the USA drama plays out on the world stage. To the left the “ Labour” they openly condemn Brexit, demanding a re-vote. ( Similar to Hillary Clinton in the USA election.) They accuse the government of being corrupt tyrannical, all while voting up bills that harm the population. Jeremy Corbin calls for resistance condemning the Tories... Openly a Popular plot is launched. Every attempt to negotiate a deal with Europe is trampled by the Labour Party. They subvert the mass vote by going to the courts, calling on the queen, and even going to the house of lords ( which labor has condemned as being unelected officials each time they don't agree in their favor). In the past two years, the Prime Minster changes hands not once but two times. From David Cameron to Theresa May. From Theresa May to now Boris Johnson. Much like the despicable acts in the USA, each leader is deemed Tyrannical, Racist, bigoted, and downright nasty by the populist elite. They are targeted, discredited and driven from office… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkgWsJPA_B8 Jeremy Corbyn once again tries to change Prime Minister Now three times Democracy has been directly subverted in the courts of the United Kingdom. Each time by a private citizen using the supreme court to overrule actions, suing for openings of parliament. And abusing the democratic process. While I hold no opinion as a Resident of the UK and Not a citizen. The People voted, yet subversion of the vote is blatant. The Entire government works against the will of the people… And I wished, I truly do that it just ended there, but it does not. Step 3: In France, the people riot as their rights are being trampled over. The minimum wage is not enough to live on. Yellowjackets ( workers) take to the streets in protest. In a direct statement of defiance, the government condemns them as unlawful, even terrorist and begin using the military. Chemical weapons are deployed to suppress the movement. In the United Kingdom, the movement spreads and to Holland and Germany, each countries government follows suit… Condemnation erupts, the will of the people is openly oppressed… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw-9o0GXrns It does not seem to matter where you are in the west at the moment, laws violating privacy have become commonplace, with little retaliation from the population, other than “ If you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear!”. Yet our forefathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and uncles died for that right to privacy… They died for the right to be at peace… Even worse the freedom of speech and that of the press now goes silenced… Due to popularism, social media pressure and a new generation who do not understand the importance of the right to say a word. The freedom of speech is being slowly oppressed. In the United Kingdom and��all of the EU you can be arrested for saying the wrong word, and serve years. Even in the USA now due to social media pressure ( Most of it not even being of western descent.) The rights of the singular person are now trampled on for what is often mislead ideals of the larger sum. The mere words uttered of “ That Offends Me” Are grounds to summon the law… This is what our governments have wanted for a while. An excuse to silence all that oppose them. With offense everywhere and arguments such as Corporate rights, company rights, governmental rights. You can be deemed a sense offender at any time… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnIQalprvR8 From fear-mongering & stripping away rights. To open full-blown governmental rebellion, to that of party politics committing both mass conspiracy and downright treason. Democracy is openly and utterly being subverted at its core. Yet the people seemed to be more concerned by who is offending whom. They seem to be more concerned by someone's right to use whatever bathroom they want to, over the rights that will be left for their children and grandchildren. The reality of things is that it's becoming Orwell's 1984. The people ignore the facts, suffering has erupted on a global scale due to the great division of western nations. Children starve, innocent women and men are detained for merely uttering their desires to have what many of us would so easily give up. In just and Inhuman wars are being ignored without western intervention. Yet it is our duty, our mandate to secure and protect the people of all nations. Not just the ones that are white of skin or western in idealism. But all nations in which a people want to be free… Yet the word of a Russian condemning US or EU forces actions is so easily repeated by our children that are already out of control. The violence spreads through our streets as foreign agents subject the minds of our people with dissidents, simply by using an account on Facebook that says Alabama on its location… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QoTHQV0Dts Sinister forces are implementing plans that are dividing the west while the east unifies. During this process of the last four years Russia, China and Iran have formed a coalition that has thrived off western division. Yet internally nothing is done about it, the people forget that it is through the actions of previous generations that we have lived good lives. That it is was through their sacrifice that we obtained wealth. Yet now the people wag their finger at every success the west has had. They trust in foreign conspiracies than the words of our men and women that were there… It is as if they are looking for a reason to betray, any reason what so ever. We simply stare at our phones and condemn anyone that would speak up against it… As if we are already occupied. Dictators have arisen to the world stage, yet the west continues to focus on which is the best YouTuber while Russia veto’s every and all action to help those in need. For anyone who speaks up about this tyranny, Russia needs not do a thing, for it is commonplace for children and Internet trolls to recite law and give up all morality or virtue… Chemical weapons are used on UK soil by Russian agents, that is backed by Dutch chemists who prove the compound. The people scream “ Leave Russia alone” as if they had done nothing wrong, yet victims lay dead. It is as if some mental illness has taken hold. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZf8FwIPAuc Ukraine has an entire province annexed after being threatened by Russia for years. We, their allies abandon them due to the calls of communists in our streets. Russia uses an excuse that there are Russians their so they have the right to take the land by force… Yet in the defense of Ukraine, the law does not apply? Again our people remain silent and do nothing. Three years after Russia uses its hold on the region to choke trade ships and bully the international stage… Russia openly admits to interfering in elections all over the world. It admits to global espionage, yet the modern population sticks its nose up. The only time that matters is when their populist leaders make a point of it. The fact that this level of espionage is back indicating that the west is again on the brink of another cold war… Yet instead of acting, instead of stripping an international threat back down to size… The social influence, the populist elite rather wait until the threat becomes all too real… Until we are again at full-blown war… Because to do nothing today will make them a few more bucks, and it is not their children who will die tomorrow… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHzwMLx-rKc Elected officials in all offices are being run out of power by the minority view votes, well not votes, rather demand made from the sum of losing parties. In the USA the democrats accuse men and women of rape, incest, bigotry and acts of legal violations to grip hold. While in the UK similar processes are occurring. Each is a subversion of the will of the masses. It is as if someone wrote a bad play and we no longer care as we are fixated on celebrities, drama, and perceived special rights for said groups… It is as if not being offensive is more important then protecting our rights and thus protecting our children, our grand children's and their children. For if we are the generation that does nothing… It is us to blame for when they have nothing. How long will this last? How long till we no longer can call ourselves democracies? How long till our old enemies march to our doorstep? How long till we see that the ancient old trick of Divide and conquer is being used upon us today... Rather it is by sinister forces in our governments such as Jeremy Corbin, a known communist, and socialist sympathizer. Or Hillary Clinton who openly committed treason by releasing classified secrets. And perhaps the President of the USA whom is believed to have colluded with Vladimir Putin himself. Or that of foreign powers growing by the day. How long till we wake up? When is it too late to stand up for the rights and ways that our forefathers and mothers fought for? How long till we lose our democracy completely? Will it take another Pearl Harbour for you to finally see? Read the full article

[philippmichelreichold]

                                          Barrington J. Bayley, Collision Course/Collision with Chronos</tite> </head>< body><!--'"

I first read Barrington J. Bayley's Collision Course/Collision with Chronos more than thirty years ago. I must have given my first copy to the Goodwill. I searched for years before finding my current copy at Haslam's Books in St. Petersburg, Florida. They are the best. Collision Course is the sort of story you want to not lose.

Bailey follows a fairly unique approach to time travel stories. The vast majority deal with an alterable timeline that must either be changed or preserved to save the viewpoint character's way of life, the universe, etc; or with a multiverse where myriads of ways unfold and what ever decision a character might make, other versions of that character are deciding to do the same thing or its opposite. One example of the former is Poul Anderson's Time Patrol stories. There are many examples in Star Trek with its time loops and Predestination Paradoxes and Chiefs O'Brien avering their hatred for Temporal Mechanics. Larry Niven's All the Myriad Ways is an example of the latter. Catch that Zeppelin  by Fritz Lieber and Joe Haldeman's Manifest Destiny offer alternate time lines within a multiverse. Another approach, my personal favorite, is that you can't change the past.  This the premise of By the Time We got to Gaugamela by R Garcia y Robertson. You can go back, but whatever is about to happen has already happened. To paraphrase, all the history books agree that Alexander the Great is going to be alive tomorrow, but no such assurances are available for the time travailer in question.  Bailey takes a totally different tack from any of these, one ""so original that it avoids all (most?) time-travel clichés".

According to The Newsletter of the Council for the Literature of the Fantastic, Bailey followed the ideas of  J. W. Dunne set forth in An Experiment with Time. Time travels as a wave or a torrent through six dimensional space in a local region of what we perceive as three dimensional space, creating and carrying life and consciousness with it as side effects. The future is dead and decayed, the past dead-- a collection of insensate automatons. You can build a machine to carry a bit of time with you ahead of or behind the time wave, but it won't do you any good. Times finger, having writ, moves on and you cannot change a word, act or dead. The trouble comes when two different time streams are headed along the same planet in opposite directions, like a pair of locomotives rushing along a track on a collision course set to arrive at a fatal destination. Life-consciousness-intelligence, it cannot be over emphasized, are byproducts of the time stream/wave/torrent.

And so it is in Collision Course that two time streams associated with Earth will crash together in about 200 years, with serious effects noticeable in about 100 years. Collisions of this nature must occur with some frequency as the International Space Society Retort City, located many light years from Earth and populated by the descendants of Chinese emigrees, has recently had a near miss with an entity whose time stream is situated obliquely to that of Retort City. The inhabitants of Earth are just beginning to understand time travel. The inhabitants of Retort City can literally run rings around the Earthers, and the Oblique Entity has nearly godlike (not Godlike as  it points out) powers.  The abilities of Retort City's scientists and the Oblique Entity, combined with obliqueness of their paths, allowed them to avert total disaster. Even so, things got pretty bad.   The Oblique Entity and a researcher on Retort City have been watching events on Earth unfold with detached insouciance and mild concern. Time travellers from Retort City rescue stranded time travellers from Earth and offer to help.

Matters are not so straight forward at this point as one might hope. ISS Retort City was established 5000 years before the setting of the story, which is many thousands of years ahead of our own time. The races of man on Earth bare little physical resemblance to the people of our times (the "Chinks" of Retort City are a legendary race on Earth).  The dominant race on Earth, led by the Titanium Legions (think SS), follows an Earth Mother religion. They believe with all the fervor that religious conviction can bring that they, True Man, are Earth's true sons and all the other races are defiling deviants whom they must expunge. There are archaeological ruins of alien design scattered about they believe support these beliefs.

The Titans see these ruins as proof of Alien Interventionalists who diabolically caused the rise of the Deviant races to destroy True Man. Never mind that there had been nuclear wars in the past with radioactive fallout to increase background radiation levels and thereby raise the mutation rate and never mind that the new races arose isolated from one another for a long time. Natural selection and niche filling divergence don't fit their self image or self interests. Or their self serving propaganda.  Genocide is something the Titans have been quite successful at with only a few remnants of the other races remaining on reservations.  The Titans have roving "experts" that can tell at a glance if someone is "racially impure". There is of course opposition and an underground which is losing faster each day.  When the Titans learn of the ISS, with its wondrous technology and mighty industrial capacity, the natural recourse is to mount an invasion.

Retort City is designed as a double retort with the retorts set end to end. Lower Retort/Production Retort is devoted to industry and production. The mastery of time is so complete that different sections of a ping pong table can have different time streams moving at separate rates. Production lines can be run through time loops so that an artefact that was months in the making can be available hours after being ordered. The two halves are offset by about 34 years, so direct travel between the two halves is futile. Manufactured goods travel along a time gradient to the other half of the city and always arrive just in time. So great is Production Retort's efficiencies that it has greater industrial capacity than all of earth.  The workers there are wholly devoted to their work. Their absorption with work is so great that off duty conversation often centers on how and where work is going. To them any other way of life would be a waste. "Technology was, after all, their life."(pg 54)

Life within Upper Retort/Leisure Retort is more luxurious, more devoted to subtle esthetics, and "was probably the most refined culture the galaxy had to offer". (pg 57)  It's inhabitants are wholly absorbed in advancing the arts and sciences, so absorbed that they tend to objectify people and ignore any human factor not connected with the research that holds their attention. (So self absorbed that the sounds of fighting with the Titanium Legions is less a survival threat than an annoying distraction.) Little physical labor is performed directly, there being machines to handle that sort of thing. The apparent social disparity between the two halves of Retort City is solved by their mastery of time. Envy is avoided by the Exchange of Generations.One sends one's children by way of a temporal differential tunnel to the opposite half of Retort City and receives one's grandchildren in return.Robert Gibson hits the nail firmly when he says the equanimity of the arrangement eliminates jealousy between Retort City's two halves. The Leisure Retort's inhabitants are not so self absorbed as to not offer to help the inhabitants of Earth deal with the impending collision.

Once again, nothing is easy. An evacuation of refugees is impractical on religious grounds. The Titan dominated society could never abandon Mother Earth. It is unfeasible logistically as not Retort City lacks the lift capability. Divertimg the time streams is beyond their science. They are not sufficient to the task and must ask the Oblique Entity for its help-- a sort of deus ex machina.

Aliens are described in some stories as being too alien to comprehend. Most human motivations/conflicts begin with food safety and shelter and proceed along Maslow's hierarchy  to greed status fulfilment and pleasure seeking. Niven's Kzini are motivated by status and the desire to acquire estates on which to hunt and raise families.  The alien empires in Star Trek seem involved in dominance games characteristic of humans.  I don't recall hearing an explanation for the behavior of the aliens in Independence Day unless it was pure revulsion. Certainly hatred  was evident. All understandable as human like. The Oblique Entity may be beyond human comprehension by nature. No human definition fits and description is based only on vague and fleeting perceptions. No words suffice for it to explain its nature to humans. One common trait comes through clearly-- the enjoyment of entertainment. One of the human time travelers implores its assistance in saving the Earth. How does one obtain aid from someone who finds great entertainment value in the unfolding drama of one's plight?

For that matter, how does one convince someone that their murderous hatred is misplaced and futile? The Titans and the lemur like creatures in the approaching time wave ignore the fact that consciousness/life/intelligence are but byproducts of  time. Even if one group succeeds in exterminating the other, the 2 time waves will still crash together ending time and life.  (It is a theme of the story that despots and tyrants and haters ignore any information that contradicts their dogma and preconceived notions.) Effort and time that would be better spent working together for mutual survival are wasted on hydrogen bombs and plague weapons. As the Oblique Entity says, the final Battle of Armageddon must be fought.

Collision Course is tightly written, fast paced story that wants to be read all the way through without a break. As one reviewer puts it, "Bayley packs more into under two hundred pages than most authors come up with in a lifetime". The characters are sketched in quickly, but you know them as well as need be to follow the plot. The unique approach to time travel and the unique solution to the class struggle make it well worth reading. The ending of the story is fitting as the major conflict is resolved to the satisfaction of all concerned, even if they don't all know it. It is not a sugar coated resolution and conclusion, but the Titans would not have had it any other way, "with their cargos of death, death, and more death." I first read the story when I was in my late teens and then reread it some 30 years later. I enjoyed it as much this time as I did the first time. It is not currently available as e-text, but there are paper copies still available.

Selected dramatis personae:

Leard Ascar- Earth's leading time scientist

Chairman of Panhumanic League

Grandfather of Hue Su Mueng

Herrick- Amhrak scientist inventor of remote, intferometry-based remote viewing

Rond Heshke- prominent archeologist

Hue Su Mueng- disgruntled Retort City malcontent

Hueh Shao father of Hue Su Mueng

Hwen Wu- Leisure Retort prime minister and old friend of Hueh Shao

Layella- Sobrie's "racially impure" girlfriend

Leader Limnich- leader of Titanium Legions and de facto ruler of Earth

Li Kim- friend of Hue Su Mueng

Li Li San- Retort City envoys to future Earth aliens

Blare Oblomot- assistant to Rond Heske at Hathar Ruins. brother of Sobrie. member of Panhumanic League  

Sobrie Oblomot- member of Panhumanic League

Shiu Kung Chien- Retort City's leading expert on time. in contact with the Oblique Entity.

Titan-Lieutenant Gann- time travel tech officer

Titan-Lieutenant  Hosk- time travel tech officer

Titan-Captain Brask

Titan-Major Brourne

Whang Yat-Sen Retore City envoy to future Earth aliens

Further reading about Barrington J. Bayley, Collision Course/Collision with Chronos

COLLISION WITH CHRONOS  on Ovias

Astounding Worlds of Barrington J Bayley on Ovias

Review of Collision Course on Science Fiction Ruminations

Wryte Stuff-- Politics with a Difference - Science-Fictional Constitutions

Jesse's Review on Goodreads

Barrington J Bayley on Wikipedia

Barrington J Bayley # ISFDB

Barrington J. Bayley: Science-fiction writer who treated the human condition as a puzzle that must be solved

Book Review: The Fall of Chronopolis, Barrington J. Bayley (1974)

Book Review: Star Winds, Barrington J. Bayley (1978)

Book Review: Empire of Two Worlds, Barrington J. Bayley (1972)

The Zen Gun-Barrington J. Bayley (1983)

Review: Let the Galaxy Burn - Warhammer 40k Anthology

Obituary: Barrington J. Bayley

Barrington John Bayley on Fantastic Fiction

[ugdigital]

[EXCLUSIVE] KIMBERLEY T. ZULKOWSKI: GRANDMA'S HOUSE

Kimberley Zulkowski is well on her way to becoming a powerful name in Hollywood film. Her name and brand is behind the film, Grandma’s House, which is currently being featured at the Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival. Starring Loretta Devine, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Jordan Calloway, Paige Hurd, Coco Jones, Alex Thomas, Flex Alexander, and so many other powerful Hollywood figures, the films aims to pay tribute to the many grandmothers who assume the position of “mom” for their grandchildren, and their communities around them.

 Truly a story that will resonate with many, Grandma’s House is screening this week in Cleveland, Ohio for GCUFF’s annual event. 

   We had an opportunity to sit and talk with Kimberley about the film, and the mark she was hoping to make. Check out the story below!

  U.G. Digital Mag: Thank you so much for the opportunity. Your film immediately struck my attention. 

 Kimberley Zulkowski: You’re welcome, thank you. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: You have an amazing project here. Congratulations are in order for getting it to the festival. 

 Kimberley Zulkowski: Thank you. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: Is this your first time doing GCUFF?

  Kimberley Zulkowski: This was my first film, and it’s in memory of my grandmother who took me in at 14 out of foster care. It’s based on her life and the pillar she was in the community. During those times, the grandmothers really took care of children, and it’s very different now. You don’t have that dynamic anymore because the grandmothers are still dating like the daughters and grandchildren are dating. There’s no sense of morals and values, like cooking in the kitchen with grandma, peeling potatoes and making homemade food, and her teaching you. I felt like our generation this day and age needed a reminder. It’s also to honor those who go unnoticed and work so hard to care for their grandchildren as their own. It was a tribute to my grandmother, and grandmothers everywhere. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: It’s an awesome story. Comedians make reference to this type fo story in their routines all the time, but it’s never been covered this way. My grandmother carried the same nurturing spirit. You have such an amazing cast involved, from Loretta Devine and Alex Thomas to Stephen Bishop and Wendy Raquel Robinson. How did you determine who you wanted?

 Kimberley Zulkowski: Well, for Ms. Loretta Devine, it was a given. I wrote this script with her in mind. Seeing the characters she’s played in her career, she’s been the grandmother for so many people. If there was anyone to bring my grandmother back to life on screen, it would be her. I reached out to her agent, letting them know this script was made for her to play this role. We were not interested in anyone else. She read the script and she could relate, saying it reminded of her own grandmother. She was all in. She has been amazing. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: That had to be a good feeling, not just reaching out to someone you’ve admired, but having that person even agree to do it. 

 Kimberley Zulkowski: Yes, and she’s been great. She came to the red carpet premiere we had in Milwaukee, and she’s just been amazing. Her heart is really in the project. For Wendy Raquel Robinson, I wanted her to bring out the many personalities that my aunts had. She represented multiple people with her situation, her recovery, and wanting her children to not struggle with relationships. I’ve seen what she has pulled off on television, and thought it would be an appropriate role for her. We approached her agent, and they went with it. Same thing with Alex Thomas and Jaszmin Lewis. The great thing with Alex is this was his first feature film. He did an amazing job. It was a different character for him to play. I was very pleased with his performance. Coco Jones was a big Disney star. Actually, I wasn’t sure who I wanted to play her, which was a portrayal of me. My children were saying “mom, you have to get Coco Jones”. She was interested. It was a matter of putting together a solid script where all the characters were just as important as the matriarch. They realized they would get adequate exposure. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: It’s amazing. I look at all of the characters, and even the ones we didn’t mention and realize how big this will be. I almost missed Flex Alexander as well. What did you want to get out of this film?

 Kimberley Zulkowski: I wanted to take people down memory lane in a good way, and remind them of the individuals who took the time to take care of them. It gives them an opportunity to do it for someone else. You’ll see in the film that grandma Margie is everyone’s grandma, including foster kids. Her home is a safe haven, and she doesn’t judge you. You can make your mistakes, and when you fall, she’s there to pick you up. That still is not to be abused, because she may not always be there. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: This will open a lot of eyes. There’s a lot of people who think it’s easy to get to this point with a film, especially when there’s a lot of big names. Why was it important for you to connect with GCUFF?

 Kimberley Zulkowski: It’s still very difficult for us. We don’t have the distributors knocking down our doors, or the same platforms that our counters have when they make a film. There are very few black festivals. You want your film to be seen and shown, but you have yo go back to your people for it to happen. The urban film festival is our voice. I’m grateful for GCUFF because it’s a way for exposure that our films, sadly, will not get because it isn’t a studio film. There aren’t millions of dollars to advertise. It’s a work in progress, and a lot of people wish they could wake up and be a Tyler Perry, or have their own network like Oprah. It’s few and far between for us to have that platform. It’s still a white dominated industry. I don’t say that negatively, but it’s time for that tie to be split equally. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: I think it’s reality and you make many great points. This is definitely a way for people to see your product. We’ve had so many come and do this festival, big and small. It’s an amazing avenue. I would love for readers to know more about additional projects that you have in the works. 

 Kimberley Zulkowski: Absolutely. We just finished editing a project called 53206 Milwaukee. It’s extremely special and dear to me. It’s about the struggles we face in the inner city. 53206 is the worst zip code in Milwaukee. There are homicides here in the city every day, and people don’t know about it. You think Milwaukee, and you think dairy land. There’s a black population falling every day. We are a minority of less than 200,000, and we are being shot and killed everyday. A study came out showing it as the worst place for black people to live. It’s the most segregated city there is. We are ten times more likely to be shot and killed there than Chicago because of the population ratio. So, what I did was take the homicide stories within a year, and represent those stories, talk about those victims, and show the world what we’re going through in Milwaukee in the eyes of our youth. Three weeks ago, I buried a little boy who was ready to go fishing with his father. He was running in the house to tell him mother they were leaving. A shootout happened and he was shot In the head. Four months before that, we buried a nine year old little girl. Our children aren’t making it to teenagers, let alone adulthood. This film talks about what’s happening, but also represents all urban zip codes in the world where violence is increasing, and the victim’s voice s not being heard. One of the great things is I took all cast from the city of Milwaukee. I brought an acting coach down from L.A. who taught them how to act and do the scenes. They did an mazing job. You would never believe these individuals have never acted before. Only people who have been through it can tell a story the way that we told it in this film. We had extras show up while filming because the entire city was excited. Even two of those extras during the process of editing were killed. Melanie was 14, sitting in her kitchen. She was killed in a shootout. Clinton Washington was in one of our scenes, and he was killed two weeks after we did a picture wrap. It’s very real, and something we hold to show the world what’s going on in the urban inner city, and the talent that goes unnoticed. If someone took notice of that talent and grabbed hold of these children, the result would be a feature in Hollywood like what we made. 

 U.G. Digital Mag: It’s amazing to hear that. I had no idea this was the way it was in Milwaukee. When do you see it becoming available to everyone?

 Kimberley Zulkowski: We just submitted it to Sundance, and now we are making it available to all other festivals. We literally just submitted to Sundance. Sadly, my producers feel like they have to accept the film; I err on the side of caution, and ask why would they? Perhaps they should, but how many of our films do we ever see there? I’m going with a plan B and making it available to all the other festivals.  

 U.G. Digital Mag: I look forward to seeing the full film. Are there any final words?

 Kimberley Zulkowski: I want to thank everyone involved with GCUFF. Without festivals like these, people like me would not have a platform. This is important and needed. I’m thankful to everyone, and grateful to be a part of it, and to the participants and viewers who will watch. I look forward to the feedback.