#app development in phoenix online

[mariacallous]

American police departments near the United States-Mexico border are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for an unproven and secretive technology that uses AI-generated online personas designed to interact with and collect intelligence on “college protesters,” “radicalized” political activists, and suspected drug and human traffickers, according to internal documents, contracts, and communications that 404 Media obtained via public records requests.

Massive Blue, the New York–based company that is selling police departments this technology, calls its product Overwatch, which it markets as an “AI-powered force multiplier for public safety” that “deploys lifelike virtual agents, which infiltrate and engage criminal networks across various channels.” According to a presentation obtained by 404 Media, Massive Blue is offering cops these virtual personas that can be deployed across the internet with the express purpose of interacting with suspects over text messages and social media.

Massive Blue lists “border security,” “school safety,” and stopping “human trafficking” among Overwatch’s use cases. The technology—which as of last summer had not led to any known arrests—demonstrates the types of social media monitoring and undercover tools private companies are pitching to police and border agents. Concerns about tools like Massive Blue have taken on new urgency considering that the Trump administration has revoked the visas of hundreds of students, many of whom have protested against Israel’s war in Gaza.

404 Media obtained a presentation showing some of these AI characters. These include a “radicalized AI” “protest persona,” which poses as a 36-year-old divorced woman who is lonely, has no children, is interested in baking, activism, and “body positivity.” Another AI persona in the presentation is described as a “‘Honeypot’ AI Persona.” Her backstory says she’s a 25-year-old from Dearborn, Michigan, whose parents emigrated from Yemen and who speaks the Sanaani dialect of Arabic. The presentation also says she uses various social media apps, that she’s on Telegram and Signal, and that she has US and international SMS capabilities. Other personas are a 14-year-old boy “child trafficking AI persona,” an “AI pimp persona,” “college protestor,” “external recruiter for protests,” “escorts,” and “juveniles.”

Our reporting shows that cops are paying a company to help them deploy AI-powered bots across social media and the internet to talk to people they suspect are anything from violent sex criminals all the way to vaguely defined “protestors” with the hopes of generating evidence that can be used against them.

“This idea of having an AI pretending to be somebody, a youth looking for pedophiles to talk online, or somebody who is a fake terrorist, is an idea that goes back a long time,” Dave Maass, who studies border surveillance technologies for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, told 404 Media. “The problem with all these things is that these are ill-defined problems. What problem are they actually trying to solve? One version of the AI persona is an escort. I’m not concerned about escorts. I’m not concerned about college protesters. So like, what is it effective at, violating protesters’ First Amendment rights?”

Massive Blue has signed a $360,000 contract with Pinal County, Arizona, which is between Tucson and Phoenix. The county is paying for the contract with an anti-human trafficking grant from the Arizona Department of Public Safety. A Pinal County purchasing division report states that it has bought “24/7 monitoring of numerous web and social media platforms” and “development, deployment, monitoring, and reporting on a virtual task force of up to 50 AI personas across 3 investigative categories.” Yuma County, in southwestern Arizona, meanwhile, signed a $10,000 contract to try Massive Blue in 2023 but did not renew the contract. A spokesperson for the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office told 404 Media “it did not meet our needs.”

Massive Blue cofounder Mike McGraw did not answer a series of specific questions from 404 Media about how Massive Blue works, what police departments it works with, and whether it had been used to generate any arrests. “We are proud of the work we do to support the investigation and prosecution of human traffickers,” McGraw said. “Our primary goal is to help bring these criminals to justice while helping victims who otherwise would remain trafficked. We cannot risk jeopardizing these investigations and putting victims’ lives in further danger by disclosing proprietary information.”

The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office told 404 Media that Massive Blue has not thus far been used for any arrests.

“Our investigations are still underway. Massive Blue is one component of support in these investigations, which are still active and ongoing. No arrests have been made yet,” Sam Salzwedel, Pinal County Sheriff's Office public information officer, told 404 Media. “It takes a multifaceted approach to disrupting human traffickers, narcotics traffickers, and other criminals. Massive Blue has been a valuable partner in these initiatives and has produced leads that detectives are actively pursuing. Given these are ongoing investigations, we cannot risk compromising our investigative efforts by providing specifics about any personas.”

Salzwedel added, “Massive Blue is not working on any immigration cases. Our agency does not enforce immigration law. Massive Blue’s support is focused on the areas of human trafficking, narcotics trafficking, and other investigations.”

Law enforcement agencies have taken steps to prevent specifics about what Massive Blue is and how it works from becoming public. At public appropriations hearings in Pinal County about the Massive Blue contract, the sheriff’s office refused to tell county council members about what the product even is. Matthew Thomas, Pinal County Deputy Sheriff, told the county council he “can’t get into great detail” about what Massive Blue is and that doing so would “tip our hand to the bad guys.”

Pinal County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The Arizona Department of Public Safety said, “From what we can ascertain, Pinal County planned to implement technology to help identify and solve human trafficking cases, and that is what we funded,” but was unaware of any of the specifics of Overwatch.

While the documents don’t describe every technical aspect of how Overwatch works, they do give a high-level overview of what it is. The company describes a tool that uses AI-generated images and text to create social media profiles that can interact with suspected drug traffickers, human traffickers, and gun traffickers. After Overwatch scans open social media channels for potential suspects, these AI personas can also communicate with suspects over text, Discord, and other messaging services. The documents we obtained don’t explain how Massive Blue determines who is a potential suspect based on their social media activity. Salzwedel, of Pinal County, said “Massive Blue’s solutions crawl multiple areas of the Internet, and social media outlets are just one component. We cannot disclose any further information to preserve the integrity of our investigations.”

One slide in the Massive Blue presentation obtained by 404 Media gives the example of a “Child Trafficking AI Persona” called Jason. The presentation gives a short “backstory” for the persona, which says Jason is a 14-year-old boy from Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Ecuador. He’s bilingual and an only child, and his hobbies include anime and gaming. The presentation describes his personality as shy and that he has difficulty interacting with girls. It also says that his parents don’t allow him to use social media and that he hides his use of Discord from them. This AI persona is also accompanied by an AI-generated image of a boy.

The presentation includes a conversation between this AI persona and what appears to be a predatory adult over text messages and Discord.

“Your parents around? Or you getting some awesome alone time,” a text from the adult says.

“Js chillin by myself, man. My momz @ work n my dadz outta town. So itz jus me n my vid games. 🎮,” Jason, the AI-generated child, responds.

In another example of how the “highly adaptable personas” can communicate with real people, the presentation shows a conversation between Clip, an “AI pimp persona,” and what appears to be a sex worker.

“Dem tricks trippin 2nite tryin not pay,” the sex worker says.

“Facts, baby. Ain’t lettin’ these tricks slide,” the Clip persona replies. “You stand your ground and make ’em pay what they owe. Daddy got your back, ain’t let nobody disrespect our grind. Keep hustlin’, ma, we gonna secure that bag💰💪✨”

“The continuous evolution of operational, communication & recruitment tactics by bad actors drives exponential increases of threats and significant challenges in reducing demand,” says a one-page brochure provided to police departments that explains Overwatch’s functionality. “The Overwatch platform harnesses the power of AI & blockchain to scale your impact without operational or technical overhead.”

Jorge Brignoni took notes for the Cochise County, Arizona, Sheriff’s Office at a meeting with Massive Blue in August 2023, which 404 Media obtained. In the notes, he wrote that Overwatch does “passive engagement, then active engagement, towards commitment” with a “Bad Actor, Predator, DTO,” or drug trafficking organization. These targets are then “HAND[ed] OFF to L.E. [law enforcement] to arrest, indict, convict.”

“Why is he talking about converting folks into ‘buying something,’” Brignoni wrote. “So dumb. Talk about the widget, not how you’re selling the widget to L.E.”

According to Brignoni’s notes, in addition to collecting intelligence via these AI personas, Overwatch also leverages “Telco & Geo Data” and “Blockchain Data” in the form of “full transaction history, top associated wallet IDs, sending & receiving cryptocurrency, potential off-ramps (Exchange names).” The Cochise County Sheriff’s Office ultimately did not buy Massive Blue and did not provide answers to 404 Media’s questions about its meeting with the company.

Besides scanning social media and engaging suspects with AI personas, the presentation says that Overwatch can use generative AI to create “proof of life” images of a person holding a sign with a username and date written on it in pen.

The Massive Blue presentation gives an example of an “Overwatch Recon Report” based on “24 hours of activity across Dallas, Houston, and Austin.” It claims that Overwatch identified 3,266 unique human traffickers, 25 percent of which were affiliated with “larger sophisticated trafficking organizations” and 15 percent of which were flagged as “potential juvenile traffickers.” 404 Media was not able to verify what these accounts were and whether they actually engaged in any criminal activity, and Massive Blue didn’t respond to questions about what these accounts were and how exactly it identified them.

On top of the ongoing contract with the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office and the pilot with the Yuma County Sheriff’s Department last year, Massive Blue has pitched its services to Cochise County in Arizona and the Texas Department of Public Safety, according to documents obtained as part of this investigation.

In September 2023, Yuma County set up a meeting that was going to include federal law enforcement, but Massive Blue had to cancel the meeting: “That’s unfortunate, we had federal agents here that focus on human trafficking ready to go,” a Yuma County sergeant wrote in an email to Massive Blue CEO Brian Haley after Haley canceled the meeting.

Much of Massive Blue’s public-facing activity has been through its executive director of public safety, Chris Clem, who is a former US Customs and Border Protection agent who testified before Congress about border security last year and regularly appears on Fox News and other media outlets to discuss immigration and the border. In recent months, Clem has posted images of himself on LinkedIn at the border and with prominent Trump administration members Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Massive Blue has also relied on former Kansas City Chiefs kicker Nick Lowery to introduce and endorse Overwatch to police departments.

Clem and Lowery have spoken most extensively publicly about Overwatch, where they have described it as an amorphous “cyberwall” that can do everything from stopping human traffickers to preventing hackers from breaking into 401(k) accounts to taking money back from hackers who have stolen from you, though they provide no specifics about how that would work.

In a two-and-a-half-hour interview with podcaster Theo Von, Clem said, “My company Massive Blue, we basically use deep tech to identify the habits and process of you know, look, I worked on a physical wall, now we’ve created a cyberwall,” adding that he believed it would “save lives.”

Von asked, “OK, but how does your company do that?”

“Well, I’m not going to get into that too much,” Clem responded, adding that he is trying to sell the technology to US Border Patrol.

On June 5, a Pinal County Board of Supervisors meeting was asked to approve a $500,000 contract between the county and Massive Blue in order to license Overwatch.

“I was looking at the website for Massive Blue, and it’s a one-pager with no additional information and no links,” Kevin Cavanaugh, the then-supervisor for District 1, said to Pinal County’s Chief Deputy at the Sheriff’s Office, Matthew Thomas. “They produce software that we buy, and it does what? Can you explain that to us?”

“I can’t get into great detail because it’s essentially trade secrets, and I don’t want to tip our hand to the bad guys,” Thomas said. “But what I can tell you is that the software is designed to help our investigators look for and find and build a case on human trafficking, drug trafficking, and gun trafficking.”

Cavanaugh said at the board meeting that the basic information he got is that Massive Blue uses “50 AI bots.” He then asked whether the software has been successful and if it helped law enforcement make any arrests. Thomas explained they have not made any arrests yet because they’ve only seen the proof of concept, but that the proof of concept was “good enough for us and our investigators to move forward with this. Once this gets approved and we get them [Massive Blue] under contract, then we are going to move forward with prosecution of cases.”

Cavanaugh asked if Overwatch is used in other counties, which prompted Thomas to invite Clem to the podium to speak. Clem introduced himself as a recently retired border agent and said that Massive Blue is currently in negotiations with three counties in Arizona, including Pinal County.

“As a resident of 14 years of Pinal County I know what’s happening here,” Clem said to the Board of Supervisors. “To be able [to] use this program [...] to provide all the necessary information to go after the online exploitation of children, trafficking victims, and all the other verticals that the sheriff may want to go after.”

Cavanaugh again asked if Massive Blue gathered any data that led to arrests.

“We have not made arrests yet, but there is a current investigation right now regarding arson, and we got the leads to the investigators,” Clem said, explaining that the program has been active for only about six months. “Investigations take time, but we’ve been able to generate the necessary leads for the particular counties that we’re involved with and also in the private sector.”

The Pinal County Board of Supervisors concluded the exchange by approving payment for a handful of other, unrelated projects, but with board members asking to delay the vote on payment for Massive Blue “for further study.”

The decision not to fund Massive Blue that day was covered in a local newspaper. Cavanaugh told the paper that he asked the company to meet with supervisors to explain the merits of the software.

“The State of Arizona has provided a grant, but grant money is taxpayer money. No matter the source of the funding, fighting human and sex trafficking is too important to risk half a million dollars on unproven technology,” he said. “If the company demonstrates that it can deliver evidence to arrest human traffickers, it may be worthwhile. However, it has yet to achieve this goal.”

404 Media’s public record requests yielded several emails from Cavanaugh’s office to IT professionals and other companies that provide AI products to law enforcement, asking them if they’re familiar with Massive Blue. We don’t know what was said in those meetings, or if they occurred, but when the Pinal County Board of Supervisors convened again on June 19 it voted to pay for Massive Blue’s Overwatch without further discussion.

“Supervisor [Cavanaugh] ultimately voted for the agreement because Massive Blue is alleged to be in pursuit of human trafficking, a noble goal,” a representative from Cavanaugh’s office told 404 Media in an email. “A major concern regarding the use of the application, is that the government should not be monitoring each and every citizen. To his knowledge, no arrests have been made to date as a result of the use of the application. If Overwatch is used to bring about arrests of human traffickers, then the program should continue. However, if it is just being used to collect surveillance on law-abiding citizens and is not leading to any arrests, then the program needs to be discontinued.”

In an August 7, 2024, Board of Supervisors meeting, Cavanaugh asked then-Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb for an update on Massive Blue. “So they have not produced any results? They’ve produced no leads? No evidence that is actionable?” Cavanaugh asked. “That would be public knowledge, that would be public information.”

“I think there’s a lot of ongoing investigations that they’re not going to give you information on, and we’re not going to give you information on,” Lamb said.

[positivelybeastly]

From the Ashes Infinity Comics #15: Pygmalion, Part 1

So, for those who are not aware - Infinity Comics are online-only comics distributed through Marvel Unlimited, their subscription based app and browser collection of comics. Regarded as 'inessential,' but still very much canon, the raft of Infinity Comics coming out of From the Ashes have been quite good, but I haven't seen fit to comment on them for a bit, until now, because . . .

Let's go.

For those not aware, Pygmalion is a famous novel by George Bernard Shaw, detailing the attempt by a phonetics professor called Henry Higgins to 'elevate' a Cockney flower-girl named Eliza Doolittle.

Intrigued by a bet that he could pass her off as a duchess through careful schooling, he decides to take her on, and though he succeeds, she ends up feeling marginalised and overlooked, treated as an object of gambling and curiosity rather than an individual in her own right, and though the play is best known for the 'culturing' of Eliza Doolittle, it is as much about the arrogance of Higgins, who is a thoroughly unpleasant and rude individual, in thinking that he has any ownership over Eliza for his education of her. He may have 'created' her, but he does not control her.

The Factory that the X-Men are living in at present must have really good central heating for Cyclops to be wearing basketball shorts and a crop top that short.

Beast is currently investigating some kind of issue with Magneto's chromosomes - to put it succinctly, he appears to be ageing rapidly, and does not have access to his X-gene at present. This is a continuation of the storyline in the previous Infinity arc, which focused on Magneto.

Something worth noting - this is the first acknowledgement of the fact that though Hank's body may be of roughly the same physical age as his original, his mind is considerably younger, situated at some point in his mid 20s. For someone who was always the oldest of the original X-Men, this is fairly significant.

Also worth noting - Hank joins the ranks of superheroes who are actively seeking therapy for their problems! Good on you, Hank! And good on you, too, Scott, for suggesting it. Though, perhaps, given recent developments in the mainline X-Men comics, you should take your own advice . . .

The fact that Hank refers to himself as the only one left seemingly confirms that X-Force took care of the Beast clones who Beast Prime planted around various landmarks as part of the Ghost Calendars arc. Though they were defeated in their respective future timelines, I wasn't quite sure if they had been taken care of in the present as well. This seemingly confirms that they were.

Hank's therapist is Dr. Andrea Sterman, a supporting character from Jed MacKay's Moon Knight run, and a member of the Midnight Mission. Given that the writer, Alex Paknadel, confirmed on Twitter that he talked with Jed MacKay about making sure all the details for Hank's storyline would line up with the mainline X-Men book, I can only imagine this was done as a rather fun continuity nod.

Hank also refers to a Shi'ar warship, an avian alien race that the X-Men deal with on a regular basis. This makes sense, given that Hank was beamed aboard the Shi'ar imperial flagship during the events of Dark Phoenix Saga in 1981 - ancient history for us, but relatively fresh in Hank's mind, given his memories come from 1985.

Hank, naturally, does himself a disservice here. Dark Beast was, assumedly, abducted at a relatively young age from his human parents, and indoctrinated by Mister Sinister as something of a protege - a protege living in perpetual fear of his mentor. He probably didn't have a chance to develop any kind of moral code divorced from the social Darwinist hellhole that is the Age of Apocalypse.

That being said, Hank probably lacks that context, and Dark Beast is unique among Age of Apocalypse denizens, not just for his unerringly cruel nature, having never shown any altruistic tendencies (unlike, say, AoA Cyclops or Nightcrawler), but also for his resilience. He persists, even now - though last seen in Immortal X-Men #9 as a head in a jar, he has come back from the dead at least twice before, and it is unlikely he is gone for good.

Fun fact - his appearance here is based on the costume he wore during his scrap with Emma Frost's X-Men team in a confrontation with Spider-Man and the Lizard. Though the X-Men naturally encountered him after this point, it's fun that this appearance by Dark Beast is considered iconic enough to be the 'definitive' look for him by this comic.

Hank's final remark, about 'Henry McCoy plus time equals atrocity,' is a sentiment often repeated on social media boards, and it's interesting to see it being internalised by Hank himself, given his unique perspective on the events that created his future self and the other potential timelines the X-Men files likely refer to.

Mm. A lot to unpack here.

Hank's relationship with his X-gene has always been complicated, and the way he views it here, as essentially morphing him into a shape that he finds abhorrent, predatory, and beyond his control, is consistent with how Hank seemed to see himself during his feline mutation, which lasted from 2000 to 2013.

Though his feline phase is not referenced in this comic, beyond the 'over time, and with a little help, these became more pronounced,' (probably a reference to Sage's jumpstarting his secondary mutation) it assumedly would be in the files Hank has been using to catch up, and one has to wonder if he's been repeating some of the thought processes that made feline Hank such a uniquely neurotic version of the character.

It's also nice to see a canonisation of my long held fanon that Hank's X-gene is actively attempting to craft a form for him that is best suited for survival, a belief that Hank only hinted at back in Morrison's New X-Men, but which made sense, given the circumstances of his mutation in X-Treme X-Men.

That being said, Hank's own mind seemingly strays back to the night his furry mutation first manifested at the Brand Corporation in Amazing Adventures, where he flew into a berserker rage and nearly killed Carl Maddicks, which always seemed a little incongruous with how Hank was written in subsequent appearances in Avengers and Defenders, but which now seems to be retroactively made an expression of the brutality he was capable of during his feline phase.

The 'violent upheavals' Hank refers to here are likely his initial secondary mutation, and then his near-death experience when said mutation randomly destabilised in All-New X-Men. It could also be a reference to his numerous genetic troubles during X-Factor volume 1.

His opining that he found refuge in the life of the mind is very reminiscent of Hank's desire to find meaning in poetry, literature, art, humanity, in the wake of the changes in his body in both X-Factor and New X-Men. X-Factor #33 and New X-Men #117 both specifically reference his delight in the freedom to think, in opposition to the clouding of the mind that came with his Pestilence inflicted dumbing down, or his newly awakened predatory impulses.

Ironically enough, Magneto is, aside from Simon Williams, the character with whom this version of Hank has shared the most panel time and dialogue, between his conversations in X-Men and previous From the Ashes Infinity Comics. It would appear that Max's need for a cure for his condition are fostering a necessarily stronger bond than Hank and Max have ever shared before in canon.

Precisely where the rest of the team is during the course of these events is unknown. If I had to guess, it's possible this might be set during the events of X-Men #2, where the rest of the team was attending to a mutant rescue in San Francisco, accounting for the lack of availability of the Marauder and a reliance on an old Quinjet.

Quite how Hank got his hands on said Quinjet is unknown, though it's possible it might be a holdover from Hank's Defender days, where he would regularly borrow a Quinjet from the Avengers, for purposes ranging from actual superhero missions to attending Patsy Walker's wedding.

Though this Hank's memories originate in closest proximity to the Defenders, and though that team did enjoy some degree of notoriety under Hank and Candy Southern's stewardship, the Avengers have always been where Hank was most popular in-universe, and he has had a habit of using that association to smooth things over in mutant related books, such as in X-Factor volume 1 and the 90s X-Men run.

Unfortunately, mutant rights are in a more dire state than ever before, with things having seemingly gotten only worse for them since the 1980s, and it's likely Hank didn't expect this level of hatred from normal civilians.

I have, unfortunately, run out of images, so I'll be posting the last of this issue and my final thoughts and predictions in another post.

[drkarenhawk]

Mental Health in the Digital Age: Dr. Karen Hawk’s Perspective

Technology has transformed the way we connect, work, and entertain ourselves, but it has also introduced new challenges for mental health. The digital age brings instant access to information, social media interactions, and virtual connections, yet it also contributes to stress, anxiety, and feelings of isolation.

Dr. Karen Hawk, a clinical psychologist in Arizona, shares her insights on how digital advancements impact mental health and provides strategies for maintaining emotional well-being in today’s hyper-connected world.

The Double-Edged Sword of Technology

Technology offers undeniable benefits—greater access to mental health resources, online therapy, and opportunities for social connection. However, excessive digital engagement can also lead to:

Increased anxiety and stress – Constant notifications, online comparisons, and digital overload can contribute to heightened stress levels.

Depression and loneliness – Despite online connectivity, many individuals report feeling more isolated due to a lack of meaningful real-life interactions.

Sleep disturbances – Excessive screen time, especially before bed, disrupts sleep patterns, leading to fatigue and mental exhaustion.

Reduced attention span – The fast-paced nature of digital media can make it harder to focus and engage deeply in tasks.

“The digital world is a tool—it can either enhance or hinder our mental well-being depending on how we use it,” Dr Karen Hawk psychologist explains. “The key is mindful consumption.”

The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health

Social media has become an integral part of modern life, but it can also shape self-perception and emotional health in profound ways.

The Dark Side of Social Media

Dr. Hawk highlights several ways social media negatively impacts mental health:

Comparison Trap: People tend to showcase only their best moments online, leading to unrealistic comparisons and self-doubt.

Cyberbullying: Online harassment and negativity can significantly affect self-esteem and emotional well-being.

Addiction to Validation: Constantly seeking likes and comments for validation can create dependency on external approval.

“A curated online world isn’t real life,” Dr Karen Hawk psychologist Phoenix says. “It’s important to remember that what we see on social media is often a highlight reel, not the full picture.”

Using Social Media Mindfully

To mitigate the negative effects of social media, Dr. Hawk suggests:

Limiting screen time – Set daily limits on social media usage.

Curating your feed – Follow accounts that inspire and uplift rather than trigger self-doubt.

Engaging with real-life connections – Prioritize in-person relationships over digital interactions.

Taking social media breaks – Regular detoxes from social platforms can improve mental clarity and emotional health.

Managing Digital Overload and Anxiety

Technology has made it easier to stay constantly plugged in, which can lead to digital fatigue. Dr Karen Hawk psychologist emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries to protect mental well-being.

1. Establish Screen-Free Zones

Designate areas in your home, such as the bedroom or dining table, as tech-free zones to encourage meaningful interactions and relaxation.

2. Schedule Digital Detoxes

Taking intentional breaks from screens—whether for a few hours or an entire weekend—can reduce stress and help reset the mind.

3. Prioritize Real-World Activities

Engage in offline hobbies, outdoor activities, or face-to-face conversations to maintain a healthy balance between digital and real life.

4. Practice Mindful Tech Use

Use apps that track screen time, disable unnecessary notifications, and engage in digital activities that add value rather than cause stress.

The Rise of Online Therapy and Mental Health Apps

One of the most positive developments in the digital age is the accessibility of mental health resources. Online therapy platforms and mental health apps provide support for individuals who may not have access to traditional therapy.

Dr Karen Hawk psychologist acknowledges the benefits of these digital tools:

✔ Convenience and accessibility – Therapy is now available to those who live in remote areas or have busy schedules. ✔ Anonymity and privacy – Some individuals feel more comfortable seeking help online rather than in person. ✔ Self-help tools – Meditation apps, mood trackers, and online support groups offer additional mental health support.

“Technology has made therapy more accessible than ever, which is a step forward in breaking mental health stigmas,” Dr. Hawk notes. “However, online resources should complement—not replace—professional guidance when needed.”

Final Thoughts: Striking a Healthy Digital Balance

The digital age presents both opportunities and challenges for mental health. While technology can offer valuable resources and connectivity, excessive reliance on screens and social media can negatively impact emotional well-being.

Dr. Karen Hawk encourages individuals to take a mindful approach to technology, using it as a tool for personal growth rather than a source of stress.

“Balance is key,” she concludes. “By setting boundaries, engaging in meaningful interactions, and using technology intentionally, we can protect our mental health while still benefiting from the digital world.”

By practicing digital mindfulness, individuals can navigate the modern landscape in a way that fosters both mental well-being and a healthy relationship with technology.

[udo0stories]

– The thing that drew me to early retirement is freedom, and that’s still the best part of it.  Back in 2005, the primary reason for this freedom-seeking was being able to devote my best hours to being a dad. I had a feeling my career in tech would be too demanding to sustain once the full-time job of raising children kicked in. Eighteen years later, wow, has that guess ever turned out to be right? Early retirement has proved to be the most amazing and worthwhile adventure, and it’s still just getting started. I wrote to you an amazing thirteen years ago, when Little MM was just starting kindergarten. Now, he has graduated from high school. I have been able to take advantage of a lot of new experiences, work hard and play hard when needed, and slow down when needed to overcome some true challenges and develop as a person. ow, with that chNow that the parenting phase is finally almost over, I am using some of those Freedom Chips to make a really big change: I am spending the winter in a warm, sunny place to try out a new life in Culdesac Tempe, the walkable, bikeable, car-free community you have probably heard me talk about a lot in the past.r, I’So, on December 1st, I will be loading up the Model Y with my best mountain bike and all the necessities for the incredible road trip across the mountains, along with tools and gadgets. ming Colorado winter. And my son will be joining me for the trip! Looking for updates? I have added a separate tracker page here. Heading West… We’ve booked ourselves a spacious two-bedroom apartment there for four full months. Little MM will be roughly alternating his months between Arizona and Colorado so he can still have time with both parents, while I’ll be there the whole time.  A big part of the fun is that this will force me to invent a whole new life for myself, away from the easy comforts of the big community and plentiful construction sites that keep me so busy here.  It will be both a big change and a significant challenge, which is exactly what all of us need on a regular basis to keep life full of meaning and joy.  So, what are you going to do in Arizona? I look forward to replacing this with a real Arizona mountain biking picture I will be taking soon. The exact details are still in the works, and I’d love to hear your ideas and feedback (see the “get in touch” note below). But here’s what I’ve got so far: Meet as many new people as possible and answer the burning question we all have: what kind of people choose to move to a car-free neighborhood in the center of a super-car-based metropolis? And, of course, hang out with existing friends who live in the area. Did you know our own Coverage Critic (aka Chris Smith) already lives in Culdesac? Share some of the experiences, whether good or bad, here on MMM and on places like Twitter and Instagram so you can live vicariously through this experience. Use my newly liberated extra free time to visit their kickass on-site gym to get in extra good shape.  Use more of that free time to write more blog posts and sweep some of the cobwebs off of this neglected online persona of mine. Look at the weather app on my phone periodically to cackle at the blizzards I’m missing in Colorado and celebrate my good fortune in comparison (the typical “winter” day in Tempe is typically in the mid-70s, which means sandals and palm trees and outdoor dining the whole time) Host a few meetups in Culdesac’s outdoor plazas, like we did last March Start a quirky free handyman business where I help new residents set up their IKEA furniture, move heavy stuff, and hang paintings, as a combo of meeting people, being useful, and exercising my compulsion to build stuff. Ride bikes! A lot. Explore the distant corners of the Phoenix metro area and the surrounding desert valley and mountain trails on mountain bikes, regular bikes, and the e-bike that comes included with the first 200 Culdesac apartments. And perhaps most importantly, help my almost-adult son get all sorts

of new experiences during his visits by living in a brand new city for the first time since he was born, way back in the same era as my own early retirement. One of Culdesac’s main “parking lots”, adjoining a restaurant patio My future gym (sAlright, you have caugThis is another instance where There is a reason other than simply journaling my personal life that I am going to go to the trouble of typing shit into the computer and sharing it with you.other than just journaling my own personal life, and this is another one of those cases.  First of all, there are the first-layer selfish goals: I want to have the best winter ever, meet a bunch of smart new people, and I also want Culdesac to be a huge success so they will build more neighborhoods like this around the country and set an example that permanently improves the way US cities build and expand themselves in the future. Much Better than Parking Lots But even if you don’t care about all that, I also want to use this as a little statement about trying to make deliberate life changes. By throwing myself into a new community that aligns so nicely with my own values, I hope to serve as a reminder that maybe you might want to try the same thing. Or just try anything new. In a comfortable, prosperous country like ours, some of the built-in tendencies of Human nature tend to work against us, saying, “Hey – I’ve noticed we have plenty of food and reasonable shelter, and that’s good enough. So let’s just double down on Netflix, comfort foods, and occasional luxury purchases, and that will keep us safe.” Instead, I want you to set your life treadmill to just a bit of a steeper, healthier incline setting. That means questioning the status quo and doing your best to keep at least one little experiment on the go in the background. Maybe that means forcing yourself to move to a better place or taking steps towards getting a new job that gives you a better work-life balance. The biggest move I ever made was leaving family and friends and my old job behind to move to the US alone, at age 24. Looking back, I’m shocked I had the courage (and the organizational skills) to pull that off back then. I’ve become older, a bit slower, and so comfortable that it’s hard to imagine doing something so bold now. But even today, 24 years later, I thank my past self every single day for doing it. My present life is an incredibly different and better thing because of that past bit of courage. The spirit of positive experimentation might also mean starting to challenge your body more regularly, giving it harder work, and exposing it to a wider swath of temperatures and movements. Or joining new Meetup groups to expand your circle of friends and experiences.  It doesn’t really matter exactly what you do, as long as you point your feet in what feels like a good direction and just start moving. Create some purposeful change, which will surely feel a bit difficult simply because change is hard. And hard things are good.  Future Arizona Neighbors: I’ll see you in four weeks! Further reading: I’ve been reading books, doing life experiments, and writing about the value of strategic hardship for a while now. But the latest is a book called Dopamine Nation by a talented psychiatrist and author named Dr. Anna Lembke. To summarize, your brain creates a baseline for happiness based on the hardest thing you do and then compares everything else to that. So if you do hard things, life in general seems fantastic because of this perspective. If you eliminate all hardship, suddenly even the pleasures of life seem bland, and you live a spoiled and unmotivated life. To get in touch, send me a DM on Instagram or use the email address “newsletter” at the domain of this website. (Newsletter subscribers can also just reply to this post if you received it via email.) Interested in stopping by for your own mini-Culdesac experiment? They have a few short-term rentals available at rather reasonable rates (less than nearby hotels); check em out at book.culdesac.com

What will you do with your car? I’m bringing the car as a convenient electric moving truck to carry two people and four months of living supplies. Once I get there, I’ll find a safe place to park it offsite and live the full car-free lifestyle of Culdesac, much like I do when I’m here at home. I typically only use cars to carry really heavy stuff or for trips to other cities and states, but it’s even easier to accomplish this in Tempe with its location right on the light rail and with their onsite bike, scooter, and even car sharing lots. What about your house? My place in Colorado is currently set up as a two-bedroom house on the main floor plus an apartment with a separate entrance on the walkout lower level. When I’m at home, I use the whole thing as one home—the apartment just makes a great place to host a fairly constant stream of visiting friends. But for the winter, I’m hoping to rent out one of these spaces to a friend or trusted acquaintance who will take good care of everything, while I leave the other section free for the occasional visits I’ll be paying to this area over the winter. Aside from keeping an eye on the place, it will be a great way to practice the age-old Mustachian technique of making money while taking vacations! What Happens at the End of March? As it stands, I have no plans beyond this point. I’ll head back to Colorado for my home base, but with this being a new phase of life, I’ll be layering on new adventures. Aside from the two mountain properties that I’ve been helping to build out, I just teamed up with a friend to help him create an intentional (and somewhat experimental!) living community in Denver called Wild Life Ranch.  We’ll have to cover more of that in a future article, but the basic idea is that he is converting a 13-acre former horse ranch in a relatively prime part of the Denver area into a future village of higher-end tiny houses and other dwellings. These will be arranged around nice common amenities with a big emphasis on people actually enjoying the process of living together, as opposed to just living side-by-side as we tend to do in normal neighborhoods.  

[raazraza47]

Top 5 digital marketing agencies in Bangalore

1. SocialOrange.in:

We assist you in creating branding and digital marketing campaigns with a return on investment to create leads and new clients on all digital channels. Services: PPC Lead Generation, Website Design, E-commerce Advertising, and Search Engine Optimization. Located in Chennai & Bangalore. Customers: Armour Digital OOH, Knowledgehut, Agile Labs, Ciel HR, Kings Scantuary, OyeExpress Contact: hello@socialorange.in or +91-8618893861

2. Proaddo digital marketing agency:

Proaddo Digital Marketing Agency stands out as a shining example in Bangalore's busy digital landscape, where companies are continuously fighting for online visibility. Proaddo is a leading provider of digital marketing services for companies looking to improve their online visibility and achieve measurable outcomes. Their all-inclusive Search Engine Optimization (SEO) solutions are the core of their business. Proaddo goes above and above to make sure their clients' websites appear highly on search engine results pages, from thorough website audits to in-depth competitor analysis.

Their skilled staff carefully develops keyword strategies, focusing on image and URL optimization in addition to optimizing titles, descriptions, and alt tags for websites. Proaddo prioritizes improving user experience by implementing structured data markup and enabling smooth page redirection as needed. Their knowledge goes beyond conventional SEO to include local SEO via the management and enhancement of Google My Business listings. Additionally, Proaddo goes above and beyond SEO by fostering and growing their clients' online presence via social bookmarking, article submissions, and smart link building.

Proaddo's pricing approach, which offers incomparable value with a monthly retainer charge of INR 15,000 plus 18% GST, reflects their commitment to quality. Proaddo Digital Marketing Agency is a leader in results-driven strategies, experience, and dependability in a field where digital marketing is critical.

3. FoxyMoron: 

FoxyMoron was founded in 2008 as an experiment by just 4 friends, and since then, it has grown to become one of India's top independent digital firms. They have contributed to numerous cutting-edge, memorable, interactive, and award-winning campaigns. Services: Print campaigns, games and app development, social media, SEO, SEM, website design and development, and public relations Situated in: Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai Customers include, but are not limited to, AXN, L'Oreal, High Street Phoenix, VIP, Parle, Cadbury Bournville, Starbucks, and ITC

4. Dentsu Webchutney:

Dentsu Webchutney has collaborated with a number of top Indian businesses. For their clients, they have developed several memorable and award-winning campaigns that have aided in the establishment and maintenance of relationships between the brands and their target audience. Services: Search engine optimization, analytics, social media, mobile marketing, website design, search engine optimization, and application development. Located in Bangalore, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Delhi. Customer list: P&G, Airtel, Unilever, Wipro, HDFC, Titan, Microsoft, and many others Awards: For its work on Remit2India, Standard Chartered, and Cleartip, Web Chutney has been recognized with DMAI awards.

5. WATConsul:

 WATConsult, India's Digital and Social Media Agency Concerning the business A full-service digital agency, WATConsult helps businesses succeed at every point of the value chain, from going online to increasing their exposure and bringing in leads and sales. Services Digital analytics, digital videotape production, social media marketing, mobile marketing, and search marketing. situated for visitors from Bangalore, Delhi, and Mumbai Nikon, WarnerBros., Phoenix Marketcity, Sony Six, Godrej, ONLY, and Vero Moda are a few of them. Awards The BestSeller Group received the IAMAI Digital Award for its stylish social media campaign; Jack & Jones received the Youth Marketing Award for its stylish disruptive digital campaign; and Reliance Group received the DMAi Gold Award for its lead- based hunt campaign.

[vipinterventional]

Mental Health Innovations We Can Expect in the Next 5 Years

The field of mental health is continually evolving, and by 2028, we can expect several innovative developments to improve mental health care and support. Here are some mental health innovations on the horizon for the next 5 years: Teletherapy and online mental health services will become more advanced and accessible. Virtual reality (VR) therapy sessions could offer immersive and effective therapy experiences, making mental healthcare more engaging and convenient. Artificial intelligence (AI) will very probably play an increasingly significant role in mental health diagnosis and treatment planning. Machine learning algorithms will analyze vast amounts of data to provide personalized treatment recommendations and predict mental health trends. Non-invasive neurofeedback techniques, minimally invasive vascular treatment options and advanced brain stimulation technologies, like transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), will continue to be further developed and refined. They can already be used to treat conditions such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Tailored treatment plans based on an individual’s genetic and neurobiological factors will likely become much more common. This approach aims to improve treatment outcomes by matching interventions with a person’s unique needs. Prescription digital therapeutics (PDTs) could also gain regulatory approval for conditions like substance use disorders and insomnia. According to a insightful fibroid specialist in Phoenix, these apps and programs will be prescribed as standalone treatments or as part of a broader mental health plan. Online peer support networks and communities will continue to grow, offering individuals living with mental health conditions a platform to connect, share experiences, and access emotional support. The post Mental Health Innovations We Can Expect in the Next 5 Years appeared first on blog.vipinterventional.com. Originally published here: https://blog.vipinterventional.com/mental-health-innovations-we-can-expect-in-the-next-5-years/

[socialvinod]

The List Of 15 Best Digital Marketing Companies In Bangalore

SocialOrange.in — We help you design ROI based Digital Marketing Campaigns and Branding Campaigns to generate leads and new customers across all digital platforms. Services: Search Engine Optimization, PPC Lead Generation, Ecommerce Ads, Website Design. Located at: Bangalore & Chennai. Clientele: Knowledgehut, Agile Labs, Ciel HR, Kings Scantuary, OyeExpress, Armour Digital OOH Contact: +91–8618893861 / hello@socialorange.in

FoxyMoron About the company: Established in 2008, FoxyMoron was started by just 4 friends as an experiment and now that experiment has converted into one of the India’s leading independent digital agencies. They have worked on many innovative,impactful, interactive and award winning campaigns. Services: Website Designing & Development, SEO, SEM, Social Media, Public Relations, Games and App development, Print campaigns Located at: Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru Clientele: AXN, L’oreal, High Street Phoenix, VIP, Parle, Cadbury Bournville, Starbucks, ITC among the others

Dentsu Webchutney — has worked with some leading companies in India. They have created some award winning and memorable campaigns for their clients that have helped the brands to build and sustain relationship with their audience. Services: Online advertising, Website Designing, Mobile Marketing, SEO, Analytics, Application Development and Social Media. Located at: Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore. Clientele: Microsoft, P & G, Airtel, Unilever, Wipro, HDFC, Titan and many more Awards: Web Chutney has won the DMAI awards for its projects for Remit2India, Standard Chartered and Cleartip.

WATConsult — Digital Agency and Social Media Agency India About the company: WATConsult is a full service digital agency that delivers across the value chain right from launching a brand via digital to building a brands salience via digital to driving business leads and sales for a brand. Services: Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Search Marketing, Mobile Marketing, Digital Analytics and Digital Video Promotion. Located at: Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore Clientele: Nikon, Warner Bros, Phoenix Marketcity, PVR Pictures, Sony Six, Godrej, ONLY, Vero Moda among the others Awards: Some of their awards include DMAi Gold Award for Lead based search campaign (Reliance Group), Youth Marketing Award for Best Disruptive Digital Campaign (Jack & Jones), IAMAI Digital Award for best social media campaign (BestSeller Group)

Pinstorm About the company: Founded in 2004, Pinstorm ranks among the leading digital advertising companies in the world. They have adopted an approach that sees strategy, user experience, research, web design, mobile-friendliness,advertising,viral videos, search optimization, Facebook campaigns, Twitter updates, real-time listening and responses as a seamless set of tactics that stem from one overarching brand strategy. Services: Search Engine Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, viral advertising, Online Reputation Management etc. Located at: Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Zurich and Santa Clara. Clientele: Walt Disney, Yahoo, Canon, HSBC, Café Coffee Day, ICICI, ET Now, GQ among many others

Social Wavelength | Social Media Agency of the year Aout the Company: Social Wavelength is a Social First Digital Agency that has worked with some of the largest brands and companies around the world to help them embrace Social and Digital platforms. Services: Digital Strategy, Social Media Communications, Social Media Listening, Media Buying, Content, Analytics etc Located at: Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad Clientele: Idea, HDFC, HUL, Nokia, Franklin Templeton Investments, Star Plus, Just Dial among many others.

Digital SciFi If you are looking to take your brand out there then look no far than Digital SciFi. Operating out of Hoodi, they offer SEO services, create a brand, developing a brand, and also generate leads for your brand. They also research and identify ways to reach potential customers and generate revenue.

DigitalLove DigitalLove, a digital marketing company located in Bangalore, Domlur is an old hand when it comes to digital marketing services. Their unique way of formulating a marketing strategy focused on optimising profits have worked well for their customers. They also provide SEO and SMO training. They are also a Google Certified Partner with decades of experience in Market research, SEO Ranking, lead generation, and conversion.

DigiCliff A relatively new addition, this seven-year-old digital marketing company has already worked with many big names in the market. Located out of New Thippasandra, they take on an innovative approach by focussing on adding value to their customer’s organizations. They have a well-proven track record in providing web, social media and mobile solutions.

0AliveNow AliveNow, a digital marketing agency based out of Bangalore, Indira Nagar was started in 2009. Since then, the SEO agency and its owner has scooped up many awards. They have worked with many international names as well as small local businesses too. If you want your name alongside Nandos, Hard Rock Cafe, ITC, Hyundai etc., you might want to check them out for your needs

Webenza Webenza, the newcomer in this list has just crossed three years since its inception. They have managed to garner a corner for themselves in the area of digital marketing where the competition is pretty strong. They provide SEO services, blogging and social media marketing. This relatively small company of just 50 professionals have managed to outdo many larger companies with a much bigger workforce.

AdSyndicate AdSyndicate is one of the oldest digital marketing agencies in India with around offices in 25 cities. This digital marketing company provides Digital Marketing, Social Media management, Search Engine Optimization, chatbots and lots more. Their client list is varied including Union Bank of India, Hyundai, and Western Digital etc.

CPCLabs offers excellent digital marketing services including lead generation, email campaigns, social media management and optimization. They have a team of experienced professionals who can help your business achieve success in online marketing.

AdRoll is an excellent company for online marketing and lead generation.

Keen SEO Agency, New Krishna Park Road Keen SEO Agency is all about using SEO to increase visibility. They’re experts at providing SEO based website building, website Auditing, and keyword research strategies to bring more consumer engagement. Solid proof of how Bangaloreans top anything that involves a lot of traffic’, whether online or on-road.

Bright Ads, Geddalahalli One of the top agencies that provide digital marketing in Bangalore, Bright Ads is well-known for its creative team. From product design to copywriting, from animation to 3d modelling. They do it all. Also, their office is equipped with the latest tools and computers. So you won’t have to keep getting annoyed at your design softwares crashing again and again (thanks to your 100 year old laptop).

Related Post: Click Here

[scarlettmusicstore]

How to Run Android Apps in your PC

According to Apkflyer.com We can use either the apps or the emulators. There are some Extensions provided by Google. These extensions are more easy to use to Run Android Apps on your PC. Some common emulators are: Bluestacks, Genymotion, Nox, Prime OS, and Citra emulator. Except that, we can use Surface Duo and ARCWelder as well.

Emulators and Extensions  are the elements to convert Android files to use on windows. You can run your Android phones on the PC by using emulators apps. Moreover, there are many apps developed to use as an emulator.

How to Run Android Apps in your PC

We can choose any one of them to install as i mentioned above. Here I am going to explain the process to run Android Apps on the PC. 

Emulator

Bluestacks and Genymotion are the common Emulators to use. They come with a bit different downloading process but nearly the same. In case of Bluestacks, its graphical user interface lets the user use an Android environment on the PC. You can download and create a shortcut on your PC’s home screen. Open it, you will find the Apps from Android. For Phoenix OS and Bluestacks you need to change the secure boot setting and allow all the permissions it requires. 

Extensions

You can use Extensions from Google such as Google extension and Android Online emulator. In this process we run Android Apps on the PC without an emulator. Search for the Extension like Momentum or Android emulator extension. After that, click Add to chrome  button.You will see the added extension on the top right corner of chrome with the other. Then run it and you will be able to use it as normal android device on the PC

Apps

Apps are the easiest way to use as an emulator. Some Apps really work great. Such as,

ARChon, Bliss OS, MEmu, NetEase, MuMu Player and more. But Their downloading process differs from others. But most of them are simple to download as any other apps. These apps give you full access to Android from your PC.   

Android-86

It is well featured and an open sourced project that ports Android to the Android-86 platform. Allows you to run it on your computer instead of an ARM based phone or tablet. As it gives you an Android Environment.

Conclusion

Some phones have advanced features to connect with PC By USB cables. Which enables the PC to use Android Apps. Also, you can cast your screen by “Mirror” to use apps on the PC. Moreover, Professionals can make their own emulators by using a virtualbox. But without tutorials it is hard for the beginners Tutorials are available here on Apkflyer.com  . As technology is being upgraded, we may not need these apps or emulators in the future. Because the advanced technology will make a bridge to access between Android and Windows. Thus the ways to run Android Apps on the PC.

[vettingsanders]

Vetting Bernie Sanders

Sanders the Politician

Voted five times against the Brady Act which required universal background checks and a waiting period to buy firearms https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/oct/13/hillary-clinton/hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-voted-against-brady/

Voted against the AMBER Alert System http://archive.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles/2006/09/21/sanders_vote_on_amber_alert_emerges_as_key_campaign_issue/

Voted in favor of dumping nuclear waste on the poor and predominantly Latinx community of Sierra Blanca, Texas https://www.texastribune.org/2016/02/28/Sanders-Nuclear-Waste-Votes-Divide-Texas-Activists/

When asked if he would visit the site in Sierra Blanca, answered “Absolutely not.” https://archives.texasobserver.org/issue/1998/09/11#page=11

Voted against the Iraq War in 2002 but voted to fund both the Iraq War and the war in Afghanistan https://www.alternet.org/2015/05/bernie-sanders-troubling-history-supporting-us-military-violence-abroad/

Voted for the 1994 crime bill https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/bernie-sanders-has-dodged-criticism-crime-bill-vote-while-others-n1020726

Touted his vote for the crime bill on his website at least until 2006, as proof he was “tough on crime” and “strong on the cops” https://web.archive.org/web/20061018180921/http:/www.bernie.org/truth/crime.html

Supported primarying President Obama in the 2012 election cycle https://www.thenation.com/article/yes-bernie-sanders-wanted-obama-primaried-in-2012-heres-why/

Signed a resolution as mayor of Burlington affirming that marriage is between “husband and wife” https://www.washingtonblade.com/2016/02/06/clinton-surrogates-pounce-on-sanders-over-82-marriage-resolution/

Argued same-sex marriage was a states’ rights issue in 2006 https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=57&v=kej9QAsS3uI&feature=emb_logo

In 2006, after same-sex civil unions had been legal in Vermont since 2000, responded to a reporter asking if same-sex marriage should be legalized in Vermont with “Not right now,” after the “very divisive debate” preceding the civil union legislation https://web.archive.org/web/20160407064606/http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060607/NEWS/606070302/1003/NEWS02

Has passed three bills in his twenty-nine years as a Congressman, two of which renamed post offices: https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/browse?sponsor=400357#current_status[]=28&enacted_ex=on

Is nicknamed “the Amendment King” for his reputation of sponsoring roll call amendments to bills during his tenure in the House of Representatives, but came second in House amendments passed during that time period to Rep. James Traficant, whose tenure was 5 years shorter than that of Sanders: https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/mar/24/bernie-s/bernie-sanders-was-roll-call-amendment-king-1995-2/

In total, has introduced 513 amendments in 29 years in Congress (averaging 17.69 per year) in comparison to senior Vermont Senator Leahy’s 942 amendments in 44 years (21.41 per year avg.), Secretary Clinton’s 296 amendments in 8 years (37 per year avg.), Senator Warren’s 180 amendments in 6 years (30 per year avg.), Senator Klobuchar’s 254 amendments in 11 years (23.09 per year avg.), and Senator Booker’s 140 amendments in 6 years (23.33 per year avg.) https://www.congress.gov/member/bernard-sanders/S000033?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Bernard+Sanders%22%5D%2C%22type%22%3A%22amendments%22%2C%22sponsorship%22%3A%22sponsored%22%7D

Oversaw the Department of Veteran Affairs as Senate chairman of the Veteran Affairs Committee during the 2014 scandal in which dozens of veterans died while waiting for medical care from Phoenix Veterans Health Administration Facilities https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-veterans-scandal-on-bernie-sanderss-watch

Sanders Campaign 2016

Breached the Clinton campaign’s voter data and harvested and stored voter information https://time.com/4155185/bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton-data/

Received a 645 page letter from the FEC detailing the campaign’s finance violations https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/05/the-bernie-sanders-donors-who-are-giving-too-much/482418/

Paid a $14.5 K fine to the FEC after receiving donations from non-citizens https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/376373-sanders-campaign-pays-145k-fine-to-settle-fec-complaint

The Nevada campaign director sought to rig the state’s caucus by urging staffers to buy double-sided coins for tie-breaking coin tosses http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/sanderss-nevada-director-floated-two-sided-coins-for-tiebreaks-report/ar-AAhHiAI?getstaticpage=true&automatedTracking=staticview

Initially decried superdelegates as “undemocratic” (https://www.cnn.com/2016/02/23/opinions/superdelegates-democratic-party-kohn/) before attempting to persuade them to go against the primary’s outcome and back Sanders instead of Clinton https://www.npr.org/2016/05/19/478705022/sanders-campaign-now-says-superdelegates-are-key-to-winning-nomination

The Mueller Report confirmed that Russian interference in the 2016 election boosted Sanders’ campaign as well as Trump’s https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/politics/read-the-mueller-report/

Had no reasonable path to victory after Super Tuesday (https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/was-the-democratic-primary-a-close-call-or-a-landslide/) yet insisted on taking “our fight” to the DNC convention four months later https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/bernie-sanders-vows-continue-fight-convention-n588011

The campaign was accused by staffers of sexual harassment, demeaning treatment toward women, and pay disparity by gender https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/02/us/politics/bernie-sanders-campaign-sexism.html

Weeks before the 2016 general election, Jane Sanders retweeted a video from an April town hall of her husband telling an attendee to “make these decisions yourself” regarding whether or not to vote third party if Secretary Clinton won the primary https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/politics/2016/09/26/retweet-bernie-sanders-wife-jane-raises-questions/91140254/

Sanders Campaign 2020

Appointed Russian interference denier and Jill Stein 2016 voter Briahna Joy Gray as the campaign’s National Press Secretary https://twitter.com/briebriejoy/status/888555665865814017?lang=en

Following promises to run a civil campaign, hired David Sirota, a man who’d spent months attacking other primary contenders online, as a speech writer.  The campaign also confirmed that Sirota had already been serving in an advisory role prior to his official hiring https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/03/sanders-promised-civility-hired-twitter-attack-dog/585259/

Press Secretary Briahna Joy Gray called for the doxing of a Sanders critic on Twitter. If there was any repercussion for this behavior, it has never been made public. https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/8/14/1879124/-Bernie-Sanders-s-Campaign-Doxed-a-Critic-on-Twitter

Hired and fired YouTuber Matt Orfalea within 24 hours after being alerted of his sexist, racist, homophobic, and ableist content, suggesting he was not vetted before his hiring https://www.dailydot.com/layer8/bernie-sanders-matt-orfalea-mlk-youtube-video/

Hired and fired Darius Khalil Gordon after two days after being alerted of his sexist, racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, and ableist Tweets https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2019/12/bernie-sanders-new-head-organizer-called-people-fgs-bhes/

Sanders National Campaign Co-Chair Nina Turner claimed that Biden’s strong support among Black voters is due to the voters’ “short memories” and “not a true understanding of the history” https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/473161-top-sanders-officials-hits-biden-over-riding-on-obamas-coattails

Paid staffers working 60 hours a week an average of 13 dollars per hour despite Sanders campaigning on a 15 dollar per hour minimum wage https://www.vox.com/2019/7/20/20700841/bernie-sanders-minimum-wage-staff-pay

Sanders Himself

Two days before the 2016 general election, Sanders tweeted “I do not believe that most of the people who are thinking about voting for Mr. Trump are racist or sexist” https://twitter.com/berniesanders/status/794941635931099136?lang=en

Unsuccessfully and habitually ran for office from 1972 until his election as mayor in 1982, during which time he held no steady job and could not afford to pay child support for his son Levi.  In 1974, Levi’s mother Susan Mott was quoted in a Burlington Free Press article stating that she was refused apartments because she was a single mother on welfare: https://twitter.com/m_mendozaferrer/status/1093295853907922946

Despite conceding the 2016 primary and stating that “Secretary Clinton has won the Democratic nomination and I congratulate her for that” (https://www.cnn.com/2016/07/11/politics/hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders/index.html), he later made the Trump-esque statement “Some people say that if maybe that system was not rigged against me, I would have won the nomination and defeated Donald Trump.” https://www.newsweek.com/bernie-sanders-defeat-donald-trump-2016-rigged-primary-dnc-nbc-kasie-hunt-1446116

Stole electricity from his neighbors in the 70s https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/07/bernie-sanders-vermont-119927

Stole food from the refrigerator of the Vermont Freeman’s publishers https://newrepublic.com/article/122005/he-was-presidential-candidate-bernie-sanders-was-radical

Was asked to leave a hippie commune in 1971 due to sitting around engaging in “endless political discussion” rather than working https://freebeacon.com/politics/bernie-sanders-asked-leave-hippie-commune/

At age 28, wrote an article for alternative newspaper Vermont Freeman entitled “Cancer, Disease, and Society.”  In the article, he argues that sexual repression can cause cancer, and women who are virgins, have fewer orgasms than their peers, or simply don’t enjoy sex are more likely to develop cervical cancer.  The article includes statements such as “the manner in which you bring up your daughter with regard to sexual attitudes may very well determine whether or not she will develop breast cancer, among other things” and “How much guilt, nervousness have you imbued in your daughter with regard to sex?  If she is 16, 3 years beyond puberty and the time which nature set forth for child-bearing, and spent a night out with her boyfriend, what is your reaction? Do you take her to a psychiatrist because she is “maladjusted” or a "prostitute," or are you happy that she has found someone with whom she can share love?”  He also argues that the education system contributes to cancer, as does having “an old bitch of a teacher (and there are many of them).”  https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2157403-sanders-cancer.html

Appeared to still hold these views as of 1988, when he stated "I have my own feelings on what causes cancer and the psychosomatic aspects on cancer." https://time.com/4249034/bernie-sanders-alternative-medicine-cancer/

Called Planned Parenthood “part of the establishment” for endorsing Secretary Clinton https://www.politico.com/story/2016/01/planned-parenthood-bernie-sanders-218026

In his 1998 autobiography, quoted an article calling his 1996 primary opponent Susan Sweetser “too brassy, too bitchy” https://books.google.com/books?id=_2YjBm2_JGUC&pg=PA173&lpg=PA173&dq=sanders+too+brassy+too+bitchy&source=bl&ots=SWrIR5Xa8m&sig=ACfU3U2-Hj1-UXIOM0Zz274h6_Nu8juoBg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjHhtObq6LmAhWvUt8KHc8mDVUQ6AEwA3oECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=sanders%20too%20brassy%20too%20bitchy&f=false

In the same autobiography, repeatedly used the n-word and chose to keep the word in the text when republishing the book in 2015.  Note that Lyndon B. Johnson was able to make this same point in the sixties without needless slurs https://www.inquisitr.com/5620596/bernie-sanders-under-fire-for-use-of-n-word-in-2015-book-clip-from-audiobook-version-goes-viral-friday/

After saying millionaire senators are immoral (https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/24/politics/bernie-millionaire-senators-immoral/index.html) and railing against millionaires and billionaires in his 2016 campaign, Sanders responded to criticism of his millionaire senator status by saying “if you write a best-selling book, you can be a millionaire, too.” https://theweek.com/speedreads/834228/bernie-sanders-says-millionaire-like-write-bestselling-book

Was booed by women of color at the She the People presidential forum by being unable to say anything of substance regarding racial issues, instead just constantly reminding everyone that he marched with MLK Jr. https://www.thedailybeast.com/bernie-sanders-met-with-boos-after-name-dropping-martin-luther-king-at-she-the-people-summit

As mayor of Burlington, fired the assistant city treasurer when she was jailed for an anti-war protest https://academic.oup.com/publius/article-abstract/21/2/131/1917641?redirectedFrom=PDF

Despite participating in a civil rights protest, never bothered to vote until he ran for election and voted for himself: https://imgur.com/gallery/mmS40Gq#460q6bS

Repeatedly accuses his female opponents of campaigning on identity politics, from saying “It is not good enough for someone to say, 'I'm a woman! Vote for me!” regarding Secretary Clinton’s campaign (https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/21/13699956/sanders-clinton-democratic-party), to his 1986 governor race against Madeleine Kunin, who stated, “When Sanders was my opponent he focused like a laser beam on “class analysis,” in which “women’s issues” were essentially a distraction from more important issues. He urged voters not to vote for me just because I was a woman. That would be a “sexist position,” he declared.”  https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2016/02/04/when-bernie-sanders-ran-against-vermont/kNP6xUupbQ3Qbg9UUelvVM/story.html

Upheld a ban on rock concerts as mayor of Burlington like a Footloose villain https://i.redd.it/atpybo1rcwa31.jpg

Had a heart attack at age 78, making his continued life expectancy 3.1 years https://www.cardiovascularbusiness.com/topics/acute-coronary-syndrome/study-65-older-mi-patients-die-within-8-years

[archiveddvrpg]

Congratulations, CARA! You’ve been accepted for the role of HIPPOLYTA. Admin Julie: Cara, you’ve once again blown us away with your app. From your plots, to your para sample, to the reason why you were drawn towards Halcyon, everything about the woman we see here is incredibly human in a very gripping way -- and we know that’s not easy to pin down when it comes to Halcyon. It was a joy to read. The additional writing sample especially drew me in, and by the end of it, I was totally hooked. We’re thrilled to see you bring her to our dashboards once again, and we cannot wait for you to put what you have planned for Hal into play on the dashboard. Set her loose! Go wild -- we’re watching with anticipation. Please read over the checklist and send in your blog within 24 hours.

OUT OF CHARACTER

Alias | Cara

Age | 34

Preferred Pronouns | She, Her

Activity Level | Please describe how active you think you’ll be in a few sentences. - I’m able to get online everyday and do replies. Depending on how many and the length, I can write one to three replies perday. I do have a busy schedule during the weekend, so these would be my less active days.

Timezone | EST

How did you find the rp?  | I’ve been aware of it since it’s first run and was happy to see it back last year. I’ve been checking in often, waiting for the right moment to apply. And now, after being inactive, I’m back.

Current/Past RP Accounts |

https://ofhippclyta.tumblr.com/

https://laraxrutherford.tumblr.com

https://theninalowell.tumblr.com/

IN CHARACTER

Character | Hippolyta, Halcyon Santos

What drew you to this character? | I’ve been eyeing Diverona since it opened and the character I always come back to is Hippolyta.

To say she’s resilient would be an understatement. There’s something amazing in her, in a woman who falls from grace like her, someone who had everything and still defied the odds and wanted her own path. Her label being the Phoenix is only proof of that. Halcyon is a woman who sacrificed a lot to the idea that others had of herself, who she was or should be. Being good of heart, like she once was, doesn’t make it less a sacrifice. Halcyon existed for others only for a long time, something that she didn’t challenge. Her purpose served others until her time came.

The strength she showed since Cosimo came after her is not something she showed before. Not in such a raw way. It was one of the most determining moments of her life, when she asked to be taken to him, and it was her first taste of another kind of power. She didn’t accept death because there’s something stronger inside of her, a  will to live on her own terms. She had nothing left to lose, she had been betrayed by everyone she ever loved and trusted. She saw an opportunity and took it, something that is very interesting to her. She has the ability to see steps ahead, of being able to size her opponents the minute she sees them. It’s something that most likely comes from all her years of sitting quiet, of observing the world around her without making a move.

Halcyon is a complex person, with two sides. She is kind, something that hasn’t changed in all those years, surprisingly. Her kindness is mostly shown through her work for the Church. Halcyon always had a want and a need to help those who were less fortunate than she and she’s still doing it. But that kindness has hardened over the years. Halcyon has been holding her breath for so long, that when her husband died and she knew the Capulet would come for her, in a way, she started to breathe again. His death was the final push she needed to let go of the life she lived and to forge a new one.

What is a future plot idea you have in mind for the character? |

Rising higher. Halcyon is ambitious, there’s no denying. She is deeply loyal to Cosimo and Vivianne but what about the others? How far will her ambition take her? I would like to have her be confronted with the opportunity to do something, maybe double-cross one of her own, in order to rise higher. Or even be faced with the choice of choosing between Vivianne and herself. Because as much as Halcyon isn’t selfish, how far would she go, in terms of sacrificing herself? Her loyalty to Cosimo is strong but weaker than the one to herself. Breaking away from the Capulets wouldn’t be easy, if even doable, but if her life was at stake,, or if Cosimo betrayed something she strongly believed in, she  would try to keep her head high and rise from the ashes of that betrayal, one again.

The ties that bind. When it comes to Halcyon, blood doesn’t run deeper than water. At least not anymore. Her parents caused her too much pain. But could she go as far as hurting them? Halcyon cares deeply about Verona, but what if her parents stood in her way? She never fully let the darkness and ugliness stain her, but would going as far as to cast out her own blood be the thing to push her over the edge? Killing for others is easy, but killing for oneself is harder. In a moment of anger, Halcyon would be confronted with the ghosts of her past and seize that opportunity to completely severe her current life from her past life. Because there is a darkness inside of her, despite all her goodness, and having that balance tip when it comes to her parents specifically would be something that completely unleashed that darkness inside of her.

Greatness. I see Halcyon has still being adored, even if not as much as she used to be. Those who watched her fall and get up, more than once, might have even more faith in her. But I want that faith the people have in her, the symbol they made her be, to eventually fade, either because they turn their backs  on her or because she did. Though I imagine if they knew what she was really up to, they would be the ones to cast her out. It would also test her faith, and that’s something I’d like to have happen to her, to wonder who or what she is without God.

Are you comfortable with killing off your character? | Yes. Death is needed for this kind of group and while I adore Halcyon with all my heart, killing her would be a good plot. I would just like her to have been developed and written a bit before, so that her death could be more meaningful and that she would have her moment to shine.

IN-DEPTH

In-Character Para Sample: Again, write as much or as little as you need to get your interpretation across.

SAMPLE I

It had been a strange request, to dye a wedding dress in red, but the Santos name held too much for the tailor to turn it down and the hush money helped too. “Why do you need two dresses?” her future husband had asked, his tone bored. It was an arranged wedding for him as well, and he hoped to gain a dutiful bride. He had been assured that it would be the case.

Halcyon and Callum had gone on a few very public dates, the wedding being regarded as the event of the year. The Santos and Pardi, united as one. Halcyon Pardi, the woman hated the sound of that. Where Celia had insisted they both keep their maiden name, Halcyon was expected to shed hers as soon as the vows would be pronounced. Nonetheless, she smiled on these outings, nodded when he talked and voiced the right opinions only when prompted. She knew that her life would be just like that and she wanted to feel Celia one last time, to feel passion before losing it forever. And so, she had Celia’s wedding dress dyed crimson, a sign of the fire that burned her and the blood her heart had bled.

“Everyone except me to have one for the wedding and another for the ceremony. A woman has to be trusted on these things dearest.” The words sounded sweet, they all did when they came out of her. But they tasted bitter to Halcyon, bile rising into her throat. They ached, every single one of them. They cut through the very fabric of her soul. And she bore them, like the children she would never give him, refused to give him. She was thankful for the pills she could take, until she wasn’t fertile anymore, so that she would never give this man and her parents what they hoped; an heir. Her two biggest rebellions, she thought as her finger ran through the fabric of the dress, now tucked away in her closet, never to be worn again. Celia was gone and she was now someone’s wife.

A voice was heard and Halcyon rushed into the master’s bathroom, avoiding the man she kissed every night. His voice sounded angry and she knew he was talking about them again, the Capulets. Her husband was greedy, money wasn’t enough, he wanted power. And the Capulets had the one thing he really wanted, Verona. Halcyon ran the bath’s water, creating a diversion. She played the almost empty headed wife so well, he often forgot she even had thoughts that weren’t his. Callum felt safe around her, too safe. Pressing her ear against the shut door, she could hear everything he was saying. He had been trying to buy the police department lately, thinking that if he had them in his pockets, the rest would follow easily. But they were not easy to bribe and he was going at it all wrong. He was playing a dangerous game, pretending to help Cosimo while working against him. He wanted to be mayor and he needed more than the few businessmen that stood in his corner.

Halcyon could see all this unfolding before him and the man still thought he was on top of everything. Every little mistake he made, she predicted, finding some sick joy in it, in watching him be a fool. She kept quiet and maybe, just maybe, if he didn’t expect her to be nothing else than an accessory, would she have helped him see what was coming. But with every day that passed, he kept asking why she wasn’t pregnant when it was all she had to do. He kept treating her as if she was failing at the only thing she was supposed to be good at, bearing children. She pretended to cry and despair as he badgered her about it. But that was her secret, at least one of the many she was starting to collect.

As she stood there, holding her breath so that not even that would make her miss a word, she could see too well the choices she had in front of her. If she talked, if she said it all, surely he would understand his mistakes and be able to stay alive. And wasn’t that her duty, as a wife, to help her husband? Hadn’t she vowed, in the Cathedral, to stand by his side, for better or worse? It was a holy bond and Halcyon respected the Church. But she knew her words had been empty then, they meant nothing if they weren’t spoken to the woman she loved. It was there, in their bathroom, that she was conscious, for the very first time, that she would let this man walk into his death. From the outside, it would look as if she had been passive in all this, not involved. But the reality was different, every moment she chose to stay quiet was bringing her one step closer to her freedom and she knew that.

Maybe one day she would understand that he had been her first kill, her first taste of the darkness that was buried inside herself. And years later, when Vivianne would suggest she infiltrated the police department, she would smile, knowing that she would succeed where a man failed.

SAMPLE II

A delicate flower, that’s what they had built her to be. They gave her poise and grace, told her she was the best and deserved the world. And in return, she smiled, nodded and extended her hand to those who needed it. She had walked among them, an angel, her light inspiring others. Never did Halcyon let it alter her, her heart remaining pure. She had loved, believed in it. Like an innocent girl, not yet the woman she was today, she was bound to wed. The fire that consumed her gave her strength, made her better. Halcyon was naive, she believed that everyone was like her, good, or at least, that those who raised her were as good as she saw them. She had been wrong, fooled by her faith. When her fire ended in ashes, she had to get up. She rose above herself with a burnt mark that would always follow her, a scar forever etched on her heart. Had it been a mistake, to nurse her broken heart and not turn the city upside down looking for her missing  half?

No matter how deep the bullet lay, reality was ugly. The woman she loved could be bought. And by none other than her parents. It was with trembling hands, already feeling the blow in her heart, tears coming down, that she had taken the note that was left with the wedding dress. A soft finger ran  over it, even when she couldn’t see the words anymore obscured by her vision. That’s when the light had gone out. There was rage that first night, something that she was ashamed of. She had sought out her confidante the next morning, feeling herself calmer in the hot air of the Cathedral. She was told that God had a plan for her and she believed it.

Halcyon draped herself in her sadness, coming out of it even more beautiful than before. Her failed engagement wasn’t a secret, the Santos’ were well-known in the city. And it wasn’t long before talk of another wedding ran through the streets.

“I can’t,” she cried many times. “Please don’t make me do this.”

“You’re marrying him. We gave our word.”

“Mama, please,” she appealed to her mother, the one who had nursed her, taken care of her.

“Listen to your father. He knows what’s best.” And Halcyon knew, she had left her mother’s womb for good.

“Stop being a child, Halcyon,” her father snapped. His final words on the subject.

She smiled the day of her wedding, she was gracious to the guest, she played her part. And she played it well. There had been too many tears, too much pleading that had lead to this moment. Her parents had as good as killed her the day they gave her hand away, sealed her faith in a magnificent ceremony, a funeral where she was dressed in white. It wasn’t the fact that she didn’t love him. It was the fact that they extinguished her light, put her in a cell and threw away the key. Halcyon didn’t exist, the shadow that walked this world instead was not her. And they didn’t care, for they all had what they wanted. Her parents gained more money and her husband gained the most beautiful woman in the city. A trophy, polished regularly, something that people took pride in, a simple object. Never did she let others see  any of this. She was only his wife, but she was a good one, a dutiful one. Devoting herself to charities, the only thing she was allowed to do, and the halo on her head grew bigger. Little did they know, her hands would soon be bathed in crimson. When her husband was killed, the tears weren’t for him. They were for her, for finally being free from him and from her family.

Halcyon knew Cosimo’s men would come for her. Against everything, she hadn’t fled the city. Verona was her home and like a Queen, she would never leave it behind. Her blood would soil the city if needed, her pain and anguish visible for everyone. A martyr. She had left the door unlocked, knowing there was no need to try and protect herself. Cosimo was powerful and a locked door would not stop him or those who worked for him. Her back was to them when they came in as she looked at the city she called her own all her life. It would all be over soon. “Please,” she started. Make it quick. Her life flashed by, the faces of those she helped and of those who caused her pain. But what troubled her, even more, were the words she heard all her life. Fragile. Useless. Deviant. Wife. Martyr. Fiancée. Beautiful. Kind. Icon. Weak. One word was missing, one word had never been spoken to describe her. Determined. Never before had she felt such courage, or rather, had she been aware of it. “Take me to him.” The words were said as she turned to face them, an angel awaiting her death.

All her life, Halcyon had stood by, quiet, observing. The world unfolded in front of her and she watched it, in awe. Never before had she thought that all her observing would pay off for her, that being quiet would serve her. A presence quick to be forgotten, a pretty face deemed nothing more, the woman has listened. And learned. Until this moment, until her life hung in the balance, she never understood how precious that gift had been. It paid her in information. Her husband was dead, killed by the Capulets. And they thought, foolishly, that all of his secrets were buried with him. They had been wrong. Information was precious, the most powerful currency there was. Information would be her most powerful weapon. “There’s more he doesn’t know.” The words were a whisper as the woman slowly found her voice, the one that had been muffled all her life. She could be valuable, something she saw for the first time in her life. Every moment led her to this, right now, she could finally see it. They thought they had put her down for good, but she got up, stronger than ever. The shackles  on her hands were gone.

SAMPLE III

It hadn’t been long, or so it felt like, since Vivianne was in the hospital and now it was Halcyon’s turn to be freshly out, or almost. The days following her release had been spent trying to patch the hemorrhage, a word that could be taken to its most literal meaning. The Capulets were bleeding despite all their physical wounds being, at last, and yet things still felt too fragile. The capitana could be seen at all hours at the headquarters, working relentlessly to find a way to make the Montagues pay double for their actions. Halcyon herself had come close to losing too much, with Theo laying unconscious in a hospital bed for days, a player so precious to the woman, she had been on edge. A short breath of relief had been exhaled when she learned to other had woken up, something she felt on more than one level, some form of friendship forming with the informant.

It was late at night and when everything had started to blur she silently made her way to her dear friend and underboss’ office. On a night like this, exhausted like she was, it was the comfort of the friend she was seeking and not the advice of the leader she blindly followed. “Posso entrare?” May I come in? Tired words that followed a soft knock on Vivianne’s door. Something in Halcyon’s voice had the woman looking up from the reading she was doing and beckoned her to the more private area of her office.

There had been whispers of the state the underboss had been in when she learned that Halcyon and not come back from the mission, something she had seen, in parts, herself when she was finally alone with the older woman. Halcyon had seen changes, subtle ones, in her mentor since she got out of the hospital as if a confidence she once paraded so easily was no longer so strong. Maybe the capitana was reading too much into all this, a trick her own emotions were playing on her. It was, after all, so small what she thought she saw. If only she was not looking at the other so often, maybe they would not be here tonight.

The two women shared a bond, everyone knew it, but it was not something that was openly discussed between the two. Halcyon would die for Vivianne, in a heartbeat. But the moments when they talked about how much the friendship meant were rare. Tonight, the younger one needed that, for herself, but she sensed also for the underboss. As they sat down, closer than usual, an action that was deliberate on her part, a soft sigh escaped her. “Too much has been on your mind.” It wasn’t a question, a simple fact that was uttered as big brown eyes searched the blues she dreamed of losing herself into.

It was a rare occurrence, a hand brushing the other, waiting to see if part of the skin she felt like she craved at times would shy away. When it did not, Halcyon’s hand became heavier, a gesture that was meant to let Vivianne know she was there. But suddenly, it did not seem enough. Amidst the chaos, this simple hand, one that would follow the other woman anywhere, felt too little. “Whatever it is, whatever you’re keeping, you are stronger than it.” Without thinking, something she would never do usually, Halcyon let go of the woman’s hand. Light fingers followed by warm palms went to the underboss’ visage. For a woman who could be ruthless, there was genuine care for those she cared about, many of whom had been targeted lately.  “You won’t lose us. You won’t lose me.” They were so close and the touch felt like everything that could soothe Halcyon’s tired body and mind. But Halcyon did not dare allow herself to go further, to let the sudden flushing of her cheeks get what drove the blood there. She did not close the small, too small, space between their lips.

SAMPLE IV

Location: Halcyon’s house

Date: March 25th, 2019

Ever since the hospital, the Capulet forged a second layer around her, another armour that guarded her from the outside. The physical wounds were something she could take, another symbol of the war she was fighting. But the emotional ones were something she tried to shield herself from, marks that were carved too deeply into her soul. Wounds that followed her everywhere, even in her sleep. Days were long, the list of things that had to be done to contain the hemorrhage the Capulet had been cursed with in recent months and the woman always came home later than usual, long nights working at the Cathedral. Some nights she even prayed, the Faith that had been testing her for years never too far. The lights were not turned on as she walked into her penthouse, the dark soothing for the headache that had been building all day. Heels were carefully discarded, joining others that were in the entrance, forming a delicate line. Never would she dare say the words out loud, but there was loneliness lately in coming home to such an empty place, a longing for something more, something well beyond her reach. Her hand could extend, fingers grasping into thin air, and never would she reach what was missing.

The television was turned on, the channel already on Rai News24. It casted a glow in the living room and she went to the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea, the background noise eased part of the storm inside of her. The Santos name was heard distantly just as the kettle started to boil, the whistle of it drowning the noise. Not that it mattered, her father’s business was often in the spotlight. The name barely registered, too preoccupied with the day she had, going over every little detail of everything that was said to her, trying to see if she had missed anything. Absent fingers were running along the edge of her tea cup as she walked back to the living, only then looking at the screen in front of her. Strangely enough, the news was still talking about her father. Breaking News were not words that were usually associated with any of his activities. The images did not make any sense, neither were the words. Was this really how Halcyon Santos was to learn of her father’s death? Not by her own mother but by the coldness of the television. The cup she was holding dropped to the floor, shattering in tiny fragments. Slowly walking closer to the object that was turning her world upside down, finger gently brushing a picture of her father that came with the segment. The woman crumbled on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. Halcyon didn’t know if she was crying because her cage was finally broken for good or if it was because the man she once held so high would never be redeemed in her eyes, breaking her heart forever.

Extras: If you have anything else you’d like to include (further headcanons, an inspo tag, a mock blog, etc), feel free to share it here! This is OPTIONAL.

Headcanons

Training Halcyon was easy. Her years of ballet made her graceful and athletic. Hand- to- hand combat came easily to her, it was another form of dance. The woman surprised everyone by how easily and quickly it came to her and soon, she was able to  best more experienced fighters.

She started at the bottom and rose rather quickly because of how determined and dedicated she is. Halcyon directed all her energy and emotions into the tasks that were given to her, breathing and living solely for the Capulets. She was running and quick-thinking, able to see many outcomes unfolding before her. Her charm and apparent sweetness fooled more than one and it played at her advantage.

Halcyon is still nursing her broken heart. Celia was the great love of her life, up until this point. She was a burning fire and Halcyon gave herself completely to her lover., The woman always knew she was attracted to other women. And to men at times, something that was very confusing for her Catholic soul. Never before Celia had she been so open and free with another person . It was Halcyon, timid and fair compared to her passionate lover, who proposed. The ring was exquisite and when Celia said yes, Halcyon thought she could never be happier. In the days and weeks leading to Celia’s departure Halcyon could feel something had changed. She thought it was the wedding’s excitement, as the day was nearing. But when she came home to an empty house and saw the dress, she knew. Her heart hasn’t mended since].

The first tasks she had when she joined the Capulets were easy enough. Her first kill wasn’t. It was a conflicting moment, one where her soul fought the two sides of her, the light and the darkness. Never before did she thought she would or could kill another. But when the moment came, it felt…easy. There was half a confession to Hugo, Halcyon talking of a great sin without naming it. But she found that once you committed something that seemed hard, the next times were easier, until it came almost naturally. There was a war to fight and she was now part of it.

[lovehaswonangelnumbers]

New Post has been published on https://lovehaswonangelnumbers.org/the-new-moon-in-scorpio-the-ultimate-shift-from-dark-to-light/

The New Moon In Scorpio ~ The Ultimate Shift From Dark To Light

The New Moon In Scorpio ~ The Ultimate Shift From Dark To Light

by Conscious Reminder

The New Moon will occur in Scorpio on 27th-28th October. It is bringing waves of positive energy to us. The skies are all in turmoil and change is coming.

The New Moon is looking to make us face some uncomfortable truths. They may come suddenly but this information might help you turn to a completely new direction.

Remember this point – it is a new vantage point. Use it well and it might define your future.

When we are experiencing something new, it can shock us. However, it actually forces us to see things in a new light. It changes our perspective.

However, while it might seem unexpected, it is not completely so. There are clues present inside you – you just have to reach within and try to find them out. If you can trace the clues properly, you can understand your developments.

The New Moon is bringing a new development in your life. It wants you to examine the larger picture and make changes in your life accordingly.

Sometimes, when we are embroiled in a certain situation, we lose sight of the larger picture. Now, that’s going to change. You will start looking at things differently now.

You may not know the beauty of things. There are many elements present in our life that can confuse us.

But then, if we look within, we might be able to understand what they are – separate the ones that are real from the ones that are just imaginary. The other archetypes are the Phoenix and the Eagle.

The archetype of Scorpio is the Scorpion. It is bringing in necessary transformation. Scorpions tend to be defensive and can sting when instigated. Eagles soar high and look at the bigger picture. The Phoenix rises from the ashes and becomes new.

These are all different metamorphoses. It’s time for the transformations to come in our favor.

Now is the time to move from our dark caverns into the light of spiritual wisdom. And that wisdom can bring many jarring truths. The New Moon is full of erratic energy. You can feel overwhelmed at first but then, you can rise up again.

There will be power struggles during this period. So, protect yourself – the power dynamics can be brought into your favor if you use the lunar energy well. The New Moon energy can be harsh because sometimes harshness is necessary for intense change.

All of us wish to remain centered, however, we can’t limit ourselves. The dark Moon makes us stronger; it awakens us from the softening phase and propels us to the awakening phase.

We live a dual world – on one hand, there is the beauty of the rainbow while on the other hand, there is pain and suffering. We need to find a balance between the two.

The Scorpio New Moon brings about self-acceptance and an acknowledgment on our part. We realize what role we play in our lives.

Scorpio is actually a water sign. It is like the flowing emotions. The energy can get intense at times, but remember, it can change too. Water becomes intense when it is transforming landmasses around it. It is important to be aware of the changes around us.

The New Moon is helping us to be born again. You will keep growing. You will still question and be shocked by the answers.

But growth is inevitable and the Scorpio New Moon is bringing that to you.

  ~~~~~~~~~

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Feel Blocked, Drained, Fatigued, Restless, Nausea, Achy, Ready to Give Up? We Can Help! We are preparing everyone for a Full Planetary Ascension, and provide you with the tools and techniques to assist you Home Into The Light. The First Contact Ground Crew Team, Will Help to Get You Ready For Ascension which is Underway. New Spiritual Sessions have now been created for an Entire Family, including the Crystal Children; Group Family Healing & Therapy. We have just began these and they are incredible. Highly recommend for any families struggling together in these times of intense changes. Email: motherofallcreation@lovehaswon.org for more information or to schedule an emergency spiritual session. We can Assist You into Awakening into 5d Reality, where your experience is one of Constant Joy, Wholeness of Being, Whole Health, Balanced, Happy and Abundant. Lets DO THIS! Schedule Your Session Below by following the Link! Visit:  http://www.lovehaswon.org/awaken-to-5d/

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[fahrni]

Saturday Morning Coffee

Good morning! 🌄

We had a super soaker of a Friday so it looks like I’m not doing yard work today. Maybe I should haul my dumpster bike out and work on it, work on Stream, or maybe sit on my butt and watch TV all day? Decisions, decisions. 🤔

Better let the coffee do its job. ☕️

Rush Blog

Rush’s Signals 40th anniversary box set officially releases today and is now available for purchase via this link, or via Amazon and other online retailers.

The Rush geek in me wants this, now.

I’ve mentioned it before, Signals was one Rush album I ran into the ground. It was my portable cassette player all the time. I’d list to it on the bus or walking around town. It’s a magical album for me.

Also, 40 years? I’m old. 😳

Swift.org Blog

I’m pleased to announce that a preview of the future of Foundation is now available on GitHub!

It’s nice to see Apple continuing to push deeper and deeper into Swift. I’m very interested to see if Swift will ever become a first class citizen on Windows. That might make getting Stream onto Windows quite a bit easier. Of course bringing the underlying bits to Windows is much easier than wrapping all of WinUI 3 in Swift.

The one downside is its dependency on the Swift 5.9 toolchain which is still in development.

The Mary Sue

After being shouted down by Republicans while trying to debate a harmful anti-trans bill, Zooey Zephyr has again come into the GOP’s crosshairs. But this time, they are not willing to listen to anything she has to say. And to ensure that, they have banned her from speaking on the legislative floor.

Oh, Montana GOP, why? Why do y’all have to be so cruel? Believe it or not our country is made up of a diverse set of people. No, all Americans don’t have to be white cis folks.

Try as you might to eliminate Zooey’s voice, you’ve just amplified it on the national stage.

GitHub Blog

In this blog, we’ve compiled some important tricks and commands that every developer should know from GitHub’s own engineers.

Knowing how to use a terminal — shell — is important for every developer. I love having beautiful UIs to help me do my work but sometimes it’s just a lot quicker to type. a post,l New Republic

Washington State Bans AR-15 Sales: “No Reason Other Than Mass Murder”

Welp, that headline says it all. Assault weapons were made for killing large numbers of people. It’s time we have a nationwide ban on them again. If you want to play with guns join the military. At least they’ll train you how to use them.

The Verge

Apple’s App Store can stay closed but developers can link to outside payments, says appeals court

Emphasis is mine. Even though Apple is being forced to allow outside payments you and I know they’ll still want their cut. Instead of they’re usual 15-30% cut they’ll take 27%. It’s what they did in the Netherlands for dating apps. Don’t expect anything less here in the States.

Semafor

Phoenix Mercury player Brittney Griner, who was wrongfully detained in Russia for possessing vape cartridges containing cannabis, said Thursday that she would no longer play basketball abroad unless it was for the U.S.

Here’s hoping Ms. Griner has a long happy life free of that kind of nightmare.

The Hollywood Reporter

Dune: Part Two is coming into focus, with filmmaker Denis Villeneuve and stars Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya showing off a new trailer for the Warner Bros. and Legendary sequel at CinemaCon Tuesday.

BRING ON PART TWO! Look, this thing better be epic given Mr. Villeneuve felt the need to split it in two. The first installment was a wonderful film but definitely left me wanting.

It’s been so long since I read the book details have faded and I’ve honestly forgotten how it ends. I can remember the ending of the 1984 version but I don’t remember if it held true to the book?

I enjoyed the ‘84 version and I hope the new one blows it out of the water. ⏳

Wired

By 2018, the city and Ford Motor Company were ready to tell another story. That year, Ford announced that it had acquired the station and the area surrounding it, a monument to the kind of transportation past that the automaker and its manufacturing brethren had all but killed.

Detroit was such a beautiful city at one time and it’s great to see Ford invest in its recovery given cars helped destroy it.

I wish I had a bunch of time to go explore the city and its burnt out neighborhoods and buildings.

CNN

CNN has parted ways with longtime host Don Lemon. The announcement Monday came without explanation and astonished the media industry.

This caught me off guard as I’m sure it did many others. I hope MSNBC picks him up. 😃

Also, another “news” organization fired their white supremacists “talent.” Good riddance.🫏

[phoenix-sa]

Services for Mental Health and Its Significance

Mental health services refer to a range of support and treatment options designed to improve mental well-being and alleviate the symptoms of mental health conditions. These services can be provided by a variety of healthcare professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, counselors, and other mental health specialists. Mental health services are essential for promoting mental wellness, preventing mental health problems, and treating mental health disorders.

There are many different types of mental health services available, depending on the individual's needs and the severity of their condition. Some common mental health services include psychotherapy, medication management, support groups, and case management. Psychotherapy involves talking with a mental health professional, such as a psychologist or counselor, to explore and address mental health concerns. Medication management involves prescribing and monitoring medication to treat mental health symptoms. Support groups provide a safe and supportive environment for individuals to connect with others who have similar experiences. Case management involves coordinating and accessing a range of services to address mental health needs, such as housing, employment, and healthcare.

Mental health services can be accessed in a variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, community centers, and private practices. Many mental health services are covered by insurance, including Medicaid and Medicare, and many providers offer sliding scale fees or other financial assistance to help make mental health services more affordable.

Unfortunately, there are still many barriers to accessing mental health services, including stigma, lack of insurance coverage, and limited availability of services in some areas. However, there are many efforts underway to improve access to mental health services, including increasing public awareness of mental health issues, expanding insurance coverage, and increasing funding for mental health programs.

It is important to note that mental health services are not just for individuals with diagnosed mental health conditions. Everyone can benefit from taking care of their mental health, and mental health services can help individuals develop coping strategies, improve their relationships, and enhance their overall well-being.

In addition to traditional mental health services, there are also many online and mobile mental health resources available. These resources include self-help apps, online therapy platforms, and virtual support groups. While these resources may not be appropriate for everyone, they can be a convenient and accessible option for individuals who may not be able to access traditional mental health services.

In conclusion, mental health services are essential for promoting mental wellness, preventing mental health problems, and treating mental health disorders. While there are still many barriers to accessing mental health services, efforts are underway to improve access and reduce stigma. Mental health services are not just for individuals with diagnosed mental health conditions; everyone can benefit from taking care of their mental health. With the increasing availability of online and mobile mental health resources, individuals now have more options than ever before for accessing mental health support and treatment.

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Enjoying and developing Visual Novels with the Web

I likes me a visual novel. A visual novel differs from a traditional novel by being semi-interactive software that is presented with a lot more imagery. My favourite series is the Phoenix Wright Series pictured above, but these are titles developed by big studios and released on expensive hardware, and the gaps between releases are years long. Are there any web based alternatives? Do they all come free or is there a market for this medium? Is there a big indie scene. Let's explore.

The most famous recent example of a visual novel has to be "Doki Doki Literature Club!"

Despite running on the open source "Ren'Py" Python Visual Novel Engine that allows for web deployment, it is only available as a downloadable app. It is still worth a look though, and is available for free. On the surface it appears to be one of those creepy 'dating sim' visual novels, but this is merely subversion; a theme popular in indie games in the mid 2010's, as their indie nature allowed them to present as one thing while in fact being something totally different; like the series "Five Nights at Freddies", which I talked about on this blog before. It's worth checking out. (https://teamsalvato.itch.io/ddlc/)

The best new title I discovered while writing this blog post was-

This was a really polished title. Great art direction, character design, and character animation, 30 minute run time, and interestingly, displayed in a vertical orientation for smartphone use. A few months ago I wrote an essay about digital methods for the cognitive behavioural therapy of panic and anxiety disorders (https://medium.com/@fullstackcreative/digital-methods-for-the-cognitive-behavioural-therapy-of-panic-and-anxiety-disorders-344c5012d357) and while this title is not psychoeducational per se, it is a fantastic example that I missed during my research for that.

Depression Quest is a little different but is still worth a mention, and also about mental health.

Technically it's more of a 'choose your own adventure' title, but this one does run in a web browser, and can be played for free (http://www.depressionquest.com/)

Here are the best web platforms I found for free Visual Novels-

The web also allows access to a number of Visual Novel development tools, a number of which are free and open source. The two most famous examples would be Twine (http://twinery.org/) and the afformentioned Ren'Py (https://www.renpy.org/). Other free options are Tuesday (https://kirill-live.itch.io/tuesday-js), Novelty(http://www.visualnovelty.com/index.html) and CloudNovel (https://cloudnovel.net/). Steam offers many paid apps and content packs as well (https://store.steampowered.com/search/?term=visual+novel+maker+studio&supportedlang=english&ndl=1).

So regardless of whether you want to experience or develop visual novels, there are a range of options available.

[bitcofun]

This is a viewpoint editorial by Roy Sheinfeld, the cofounder and CEO of Breez, a Lightning Network mobile app. A variation of this post was initially released on MediumIt's practically tautologically real that expertise within a social system increases with elegance. Increasing expertise might be one method to specify social elegance.Example One:Our worldwide society is quite advanced. I understand how to produce items, ace a trivia object to about "The Wire" and discover the very best shawarma joints in Tel-Aviv, however I have no concept how to knit, create an effective solar battery or where to go rock climbing up around Maputo. We're all specialists at something, finding out more and more about less and less. Compare that with hunter-gatherer societies, where everybody can essentially do whateverEverybody can weave a basket, capture a fish, light a fire, sing a tune, recite the guidelines of the people, make a shelter, and so on. Their worlds are complicated, their societies are basic, with extremely little internal distinction or expertise.Example Two:In the early days of the web, business like CompuServe and AOL were essentially one-stop online stores. They were ISPs offering standard connection: e-mail; social networks (i.e., chatroom); material in the type of news, weather condition and so on; and search, typically in the type of a real curated directory site. As the web has actually ended up being a lot more intricate, we engage with several business for each of those functions. Consisting of all the writing, modifying, commenting, modifying and so on-- even an easy post like this one will include the services of a couple of ISPs, a couple of e-mail suppliers, a couple of cloud storage platforms, a couple of cloud full-screen editor, a couple of image repositories and who understands the number of background services.And now it's taking place to the Lightning Network. Like any social system, our network is continuously developing, and it looks extremely various now compared to how it searched in the start. Activity associated to Lightning is ending up being more specialized, which expertise is both a sign of and driver for the development of the network.What the innovation of the very first internet need to have appeared like. How far we've come ... (Image: Hans Splinter.And after that There Was Lightning, And It Was GoodBack in the early days of Lightning (we're talking, like, 2018), there were generally just 2 type of business. Were the facilities business that constructed the early executions of the network. Lightning Labs began early with lnd. More north on the exact same coast, Blockstream was dealing with c-lightning, which it has actually considering that rebranded as Core LightningHalf a world and a hop or more away, Flash was emerging in France. There were the"wallets," which was available in approximately 3 tastes. The early custodial wallets, like Wallet of Satoshi and BlueWalletprovided relatively-simple UXs, however they took custody of users' funds. The early non-custodial wallets, like Flash Zap and SBWprovided the opposite tradeoff: complete user custody with an in some cases rocky UX. The second-generation wallets, like Phoenix and Breez followed close behind, and they began dealing with the user experience holistically, thinking about both users' desire to self-custody their bitcoin and to move it without by hand opening, financing and balancing channels.This was Lightning's proof-of-concept stage. We advocates of Lightning were declaring that it was peer-to-peer cash-- bitcoin for daily purchases-- and these were the fundamental innovations required to move bitcoin from one peer to another over the network. If the wallets and procedure executions had actually shown impractical, there would have been little point in continuing. In impact, it was a neighborhood of lots, perhaps numerous individuals, everybody understood everybody else, and we were all dealing with the exact same, reasonably basic issues.

It was a basic social system, and there was little internal distinction. We hunted. We collected. Domesticating The NodesAround 10,000 years back, our hunter-gatherer forefathers got ill of going after the animals and plants they required to endure. And who could blame them? Speak about stressful. They changed tack and began domesticating plants and animals to have them closer to house. It needs to have been an excellent concept since it took place individually in a number of areas worldwide. And this modification had memorable repercussions: the steepest development in population ever, the introduction of civilization (in the sense of a city-based society) and a surge of innovations from the wheel and architecture to centralized political systems and composingThe standard concept is that when individuals tame their environments, they have more time to deal with complex things like tax codes, crash diet and open procedures. Lightning users' environment includes nodes due to the fact that nodes moderate all the inter/transactions on the network. Domesticating them was the next action in Lightning's development.As soon as you begin domesticating, it's tough to stop-- by the way another case of vertical expertise. (Image: Cinty Ionescu.Simply as those early wallets were getting steam, node-management tech for complete nodes began to appear. Some, like ThunderHub and Flight The Lightningto name a few, were successfully second-layer, node-management tech, assisting users perform operations and change the setup of their nodes. Others, like RaspiBlitz and Umbrelwere developed to assist users set up and set up nodes. Such node-management tech is simple to neglect in the advancement of Lightning, however it's crucial due to the fact that it promotes decentralizationwhich is a worth in itself and a crucial ways of preserving the network's effectiveness.And the next stage of that development has actually currently emerged. Voltagefor instance, uses scalable, enterprise-grade cloud nodes. Rather of a helpful tool to run a node, business can now lease a totally functional node with the capability and connection they require as needed.Keep in mind that the advantages of node-management tech are mainly unexpected. Much like whoever developed the wheel did not have high-speed rails and Swiss watches in mind, those who began dealing with node-management tech most likely simply desired more functions for their own usage. They're helping with brand-new network functions that are essential to Lightning's toughness and development (liquidity triangles LSPsnot to point out how they flatten the discovering curve for inbound users.Similar to hunter-gatherers accomplished a quantitative and qualitative leap in the intricacy of their societies when they tamed the important things their societies depended upon (plants and animals), the 2nd stage in the advancement of Lightning was a procedure of domesticating the nodes upon which our network depends.Going VerticalEarly in the agrarian transformation, and in lots of locations worldwide today, farmers really improve their own items. That is, a shepherd household may make and offer yarn, leather, milk, cheese, meat, sausages and so on that they make themselves. Usually however, the very best sausage maker and the very best cheese maker specialized to much better serve their particular markets. After a couple of generations, neither can shear a sheep, however together they can make up a charcuterie board that would have surprised their forefathers with its decadence and improvement.The fruits (and meats! and cheeses!) of vertical distinction and expertise. (Image: Shelby L. Bell.After a couple of more generations, we have the present circumstance where I can not make cheese or sausage, however I can debug in 7 various languages.Simply as civilization undoubtedly went through (and is constantly going through) a procedure of vertical distinction and expertise, that makes it more advanced, the existing, anticipated

and essential pattern in Lightning is that business are focusing on ever-smaller specific niches to offer ever-better user experiences. These specific niches are both practical and geographical. OpenNode rapidly included a Lightning point-of-sale (PoS) mode to its existing on-chain offering. We followed not long after with our non-custodial, point-of-sale mode back in early 2020, and a couple of months later on there was a little cadre of point-of-sale options for merchants who wished to accept bitcoin over Lightning. After a bit more elegance, the 2nd stage of structure facilities started, and ever-more facilities business developed in ever-more vertical specific niches. Some deal PoS with fiat on-ramps (e.g., Strikeand fiat off-ramps (e.g., CryptoConvert IBEXand so on). There are likewise self-hosted, bitcoin-only, PoS services ran in your area (e.g., lnbits BTCPay LNPayand so on).To serve the variable quantities of liquidity that merchants and users may require (believe Spirit Halloween in April versus in September), liquidity markets have actually opened. Bitrefill's Thor started offering channels rather early on. Now, liquidity management and channel financing have actually ended up being a home market in their own right, counting such individuals as lightning network+ Lava from Amboss and Lightning Pool Synonym's block tank is on track to end up being a multi-purpose Lightning company (LSP) with a broad combination of services. And bolt.observer is a service customized to LSPs that assists them to keep track of the state of their nodes.The very same thing is occurring to:Video gaming (e.g., Zebedee, THNDR GamesStreaming media (e.g., Breez Wag Lake Water fountainMonetary trading (e.g., LN Markets Collisions LoftChat and social networks (e.g., Sphinx Zion StarbackrNews and commentary (e.g., Stacker NewsBeyond the practical distinction, there is likewise geographical expertise, that makes sense offered regulative distinctions and localization requirements. Bitcoin Beachthough not precisely a business, notoriously assisted to cultivate the adoption of bitcoin as legal tender in El Salvador by priming the regional circular economy in El Zonte Bitnob is assisting Africans stack sats and accept remittances. Vietnam is leading the world in bitcoin adoption for the 2nd year in a row, and one factor is that Neutronpay has actually been feeding the marketplace with Lightning-based services. In South East Asia, Pouch.ph has actuall y been bringing Lightning to the Filipino masses.Where is this pattern of increasing expertise leading?It's no exaggeration to state that there are now more vertical marketseach including numerous business, in the Lightning environment than there were Lightning business just 5 years earlier. As a social system-- an innovation and organizational structure through which we connect with each other-- Lightning is ending up being even more advanced.The Future Of Functional DifferentiationExpertise is so extensive in social structures due to the fact that it increases effectiveness and efficiencywhich in turn cultivates development. The web of 1995 was structurally far easier than the web of 2005 or 2015, it ended up being simpler to utilize with each passing years. As an outcome, the swimming pool of 16 million early adopters grew by an even billion in a years, and now almost 70% of the world's population utilize it routinely It may sound counterproductive, however higher expertise and elegance feeds development.Multiplying verticals and practical distinction are needed since her issues are not my issues, however we both require Lightning. (Image: Arian Zwegers.And it's how Lightning will grow too. As a growing number of specialists from increasingly more various fields of activity find Lightning and incorporate it into the services they're supplying anyhow, increasingly more users will be onboarded-- frequently without even understanding about it. Take Synota . They link Lightning payment apps to wise meters to assist make energy payments rapid, last and based upon real-time costs.

Gas and electrical power circulation in one instructions, sats circulation in the other. It's a terrific concept, whatever implies of exchange it utilizes, and it simply occurs to make more sense with Lightning. If they can provide effectiveness gains to their users, then they'll be onboarding individuals onto the network who might have never ever become aware of Lightning and not care in the least about multipath payments or anchor channels.For us on the Lightning side, the difficulty is going to be making adoption simple without compromising the technological stability of our options and to keep the barriers as low as possible for all inbound users, be they LSPs, merchants, customers, Lightning wizards or total n00bs. Obviously, one method to fulfill this difficulty is with more expertise-- various offerings for various user groups. If we get this right, development will come naturally, naturally and undoubtedly.This is a visitor post by Roy Sheinfeld. Viewpoints revealed are completely their own and do not always show those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine. Find out more