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shop-korea · 8 months ago

Video

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HISPANICS - LITTLE GIRLS - HUGE

BREASTS - ALREADY - WOULDN’T

TRADE - PLACES - AS - THEY YES

SPEAK - 2 - EACH - OTHER - THEY

DON’T - MIND - THEIR - TALKING

THEIR - CONVERSATION - HEARD

AS - I - SANG - THEY - LOOKED AT

ME - HISPANICS - THINK SINGERS

‘MENTALLY - ILL’

SELENA - SHOT - 2 - DEATH

AMERICAN - SELENA QUINTENILLA

SHOULD - HAVE - CHOSEN 2 LEARN

FRENCH - SHE - WOULD - STILL - BE

ALIVE - TODAY - 4 - WHO APPLIES

AS - PRESIDENT - OF - HER - FAN

CLUB - WOULD - HAVE - SERVED

HER - WELL - PARIS - ESPECIALLY

SOCIALISTS - FR - BASTILLE - DAY

NOT - FIRED - FR - WORK

THEIR - INHERITANCE - 2

WHY - PARIS - MOST - VISITED

MOST - BEAUTIFUL - CITY - IN

THE - WORLD

SELENA - WOULD - STILL - B - ALIVE

TODAY - IF - SHE - SANG - FRENCH

SONGS - SAME - FASHION - ALSO

WITH - CHILDREN - BOTH - SPEAK’G

FRENCH - LIVING - ALSO - AS FAMILY

IN - FRANCE - PARIS - AND - LIKE - ME

BEST - REGION - THAT - FITS - THEM

SINCE - FRENCH - LINEN - FR - THEIR

REGION - OF - NORMANDY

SELENA - SEWS - SEWING - MACHINE

HER - SISTERS - AND - HER - LIVING IN

NORMANDY - LIKE

PRARIE COZY LINENS . com

CANADIAN - PRARIES

THE - DIY - MOMMY

NEW - WEBSITE - USD - US DOLLARS

SELENA - HOME - GOODS

LINENS - BY - SELENA - HER SISTERS

THEY - CAN - SEW - OR - JUST - HER

LINEN - BED SHEETS

LINEN - CURTAINS

ALLERGIES - ANTI-BACTERIAL

SELENA - CHOSE - THE - WRONG

LANGUAGE - INTO - TOUCHING AS

THEY - LIKE - BREASTS - AS - THEY

TOUCH - PENETRATE - AND LIKE IT

ITALY - WOMEN - STAY - AT - HOME

AS - MEN - AND - THEIR - BIRD BRAIN

THE - BREADMAKER - THE - MONEY

OF - THE - FAMILY

‘DON’T - LOOK - AT - HIS - WIFE’

VIOLENT - MEN - SLAPPING - THE

BUTTOCK - AS - HE - TOUCHED

LIKE - A - MADMAN - MY - LEGS

AS - SPECIAL - MARINE

I - WILL - SLICE - 2 - MANY - PIECES

THESE - SPANISH - MEN - WILL KILL

SLAUGHTER - THEM - WORLDWIDE

THANKS - 2 - KOREA

THE - BEAUTY - OF - THE - GIRLS OF

KOREA - LOST - ALL - INTEREST - IN

MEN - FOREVER

ITZY - AESPA - RED VELVET

TIK TOK - K POP - GIRLS - KR

LOST - INTEREST - IN - MEN - 4 EVER

KOREA - GIRLS,

WE - WILL - SING - AND - DANCE THIS

LIFE - ON - EARTH

BIBLE - SING - AND - DANCE - 2 - OUR

MOST - HIGH - GOD - SING AND DANCE

2 - THE - LORD - GOD

WE - LIVE - THIS - LIFE - IN - PRAISE

IN - SINGING - IN - DANCING - 2 OUR

HEAVENLY - FATHER

SO - SHE - SHARED - THE - LOTUS

HOUSE - NOBODY - TOLD - ME - ITS

ONLY - 4 - WOMEN - AND - CHILDREN

HUGEST - NUMBER - OF - HOMELESS

WOMEN - AND - CHILDREN - IN THE US

GUESS?

YOU - STAY - IN - THE - SHELTER UNTIL

HOUSE - 2 BEDS - IN - 1 ROOM - MIAMI

AT - LEAST - LOCKER - AND - I - CAN

LEAVE - MY - THINGS - IN - MY TARP

CURFEW - IS - 9P - DAILY

MEALS - SHOWERS - DAILY - FREE

NO - MONEY - GIVEN

TOLD - THEM - CHAPMAN - PARTNERSHIP

80% - OF - SSI - GIVEN - 2 - THEM

ILLEGALLY - EVERY - MONTH - IN - BLANK

MONEY - ORDER - THAT’s - ILLEGAL - PER

SOCIAL - SECURITY - NO - SAVINGS - YES

ALLOWED - SSI - DISABILITY - SURVIVORS

VETERANS - HE - SAID - NO - MONEY - $$$

GIVEN - SHARED

CAMILLUS HOUSE - 1 NIGHT - WE - OUT

EMERGENCY - SHELTER - 1 BACKPACK

I - CAN - BRING - MORE - THAT - THAT

WITH - LOTUS - HOUSE - BUT - I - CAN

LEAVE - MY - THINGS - INSIDE MY TARP

BUT - SHELTER - UNTIL - THEY - FIND ME

HOUSING - FASTEST - IS - SHARED - THAT

IS - OKAY - 4 - ME - THAN - MILITARY TENT

1 YEAR - ONLY - NEXT - LAND - DONATED

FOR - 1 YEAR - CAMPING - GROUND

3 MEALS - ONLY

$30 MILLION - INCLUDES - THEM

MISSIONARIES - OF - MOTHER - TERESA

4P - UNTIL - 5A - EXIT - 6:27A - DAILY

TOLD - HER - OFFICER - HISPANIC - GIRL

NO - AIR CONDITIONING - LARGE - FANS

THAT’s - ILLEGAL

TOILET - NOT - ALLOWED - TOILET PAPER

POOP - IN - THE - TRASH - CAN - NOT YES

CLEANED - HOURLY - ILLEGAL - BUT TRUE

PLACED - BACOPA - IN - THE - FOOD

RED - BLOOD - DRIED - AROUND MY NOSE

3 WEEKS - ONLY

THEN - HOMELESS - AGAIN

WOMEN - KIDS - BOYS - AGE 9 & YOUNGER

IT’S - UNDER - AGE 9

SHE - SUGGESTED - LOTUS - HOUSE

WOMEN - AND - CHILDREN

THEIR - APARTMENTS - 2 PEOPLE YES

ONLY - ME - AND - ANOTHER - WOMAN

SO - MALE - DRIVER - TALKED - 2 - ME

HE - SAID - I - LOOKED - AT - APP

BY - BUS - JUST - 16 MIN - AWAY

REAL - NEAR - THE - LOTUS - HOUSE

WOMEN - ONLY - AND - CHILDREN

HE - SAID - I - STAY - THERE - UNTIL

HOUSING - IS - FOUND - 4 - ME - THE

ONLY - ONE - ALL - ARE - TEMPORARY

NOT - WITH - LOTUS - HOUSE

WOMEN - CHILDREN

UNTIL - HOUSING - IS - FOUND - 4 - ME

HOORAY

FASTEST - IS - APARTMENT - SHARED

BY - ANOTHER - LOTUS - HOUSE - YES

FINDS - APT - SHARED - BY - 2 WOMEN

FASTEST - AND - CHEAPEST

APT - SHARED - BY - 2 - WOMEN

50% - EACH

SO - I - GAVE - MY - FIRST - LAST - NAME

MY - BIRTHDAY

TOLD - HIM - I’M - AGE 58 - NEXT - MONTH

APRIL - MY - 59TH - BIRTHDAY

LAST - 4 NOS - OF - MY - SSN

SOCIAL - SECURITY

I SAID - I’M A - NATURALIZED US CITIZEN

APRIL - ARIES - ALWAYS - COMPETITIVE

LOOKED - AT - WEBSITE BY SMARTPHONE

WHAT - I - GAVE - HIM - ALL - I - NEEDED

THEY’RE - GOING - 2 - CALL - ME

BOOST - INFINITE - TEL NO

LOTUS - HOUSE

NO - ONE - SAID - IS - ONLY - 4 - WOMEN

AND - CHILDREN - NO - ONE - SAID THAT

THEY’RE - 4 - THE - HOMELESS

LARGEST - GIVER - OF - SHELTER IN USA

HOUSE - THOUSANDS - OF - WOMEN AND

KIDS - HOORAY - NO - MONEY - REQUIRED

THE - ONLY - ONE - THEY - WILL - NOT

LET - YOU - OUT - AGAIN - IN THE - YES

STREETS - UNTIL - HOUSING - FOUND

JESUS - IS - LORD

BRINGING - MY - DUFFLE - BAG - AND

LOCKER - 4 - MY - BACKPACK

MY - HP LAPTOP - TABLET - SMARTPHONE

HE - AGREED - I - CAN - LEAVE - MY STUFF

IN - MY - BLUE - TARP - ON - SW 2 ST YEAH

LOTUS - HOUSE

ALSO - HELPS - THEIR HOMELESS

WOMEN - AND - KIDS

EDUCATION - AND - EMPLOYMENT

SERVICES - 2 - BRING - THEM JOBS

AND - CONTINUE THEIR EDUCATION

OVER - 88% - WITH - THEIR APARTMENTS

HAVE - REMAINED - HOUSED AND NEVER

WENT - BACK - 2 - HOMELESSNESS

THEIR - SUCCESS - RATE

SO - WHEN - I - LOOKED - AT THEIR ROOMS

MOST - ROMANTIC - YET - LIKE - ROMANCE

NOT - SHABBY - CHICK

THEY - HAVE - LOTUS - THRIFT - STORES - 2

ADDING - 2 - THEIR - INCOME

I’M - EXCITED - CAN’T - WAIT - 4 - THEIR CALL

BUT - 9P - CURFEW - AS - I - CHECK - MY YES

THINGS - 5 INCH - EXERCISE - MAT - 2 - TRUE

JUST - RELAX - BECAUSE - IF - I’M - ALLOWED

CAN - BLEACH - MY - HAIR AT - LOTUS HOUSE

I - DO - THAT - NOW - AT - MIAMI - BEACH

BLEACH - BLOND - FASTEST - & EASIEST

WHITE - COUPLE - LEAVE - 4 - BOSTON

TOMORROW - SAW - THEM - AS - WE

GOT - OUR - FOOD - PARKIN LOT 14

HUGGED - HIM - MONDAY - TOMORROW

THEIR - EXIT - FR - CONTROLLED BY THE

REPUBLICAN - PARTY - OF - FLORIDA

STRONGER - GUN - RIGHTS

AS - THEY - VIOLATE - IN - FLORIDA

14TH - NO - STATE - CAN - DEPRIVE

A - PERSON - OF - LIFE - ILLEGALLY

ARMED - OCCUPATIONS

POLICE - SHERIFF - SECURITY

ILLEGALLY - ARMED

SO - THEY’RE - STAYING - IN - BOSTON

MA - SNOW - FREEZING - MASSACHUSETTS

AS - HOMELESS BETTER - LAWS - ORIGINAL

13 STATES - CAMBRIDGE - HARVARD - YES

UNIVERSITY - 6 MONTHS - UNTIL - NEW HS

HOUSE - IS - BUILT - 4 - THEM - THEIR - YES

STOCKBROCKER - MALE - FRIEND - COOL

BED - AND - BREAKFAST

ROCK - & - ROLL - AT - BACK

AT - SAN DIEGO - BEACH

A - BEACH - HOUSE - PAID - AND - FREE

4 - THEM - HE - COOKS - ANYWAY ALSO

2 - HUGE - LUGGAGE - READY - 4 - YES

BOSTON - MA - TOMORROW

CONGRATULATIONS - 4 - THEM

WELL - I - THINK - GOING - BACK - NOW

BECAUSE - WILL - HAVE - MORE - JUST

A - LITTLE - LATER - CAN - FEEL - THIS

SIGNING - OFF - GOOD - MORNING KR

GOOD - MORNING - KOREA

PRAY - LOTUS HOUSE - 2 - HELP - ME

AS - I - LAUNCH - MY - SHOPIFY

ONLINE - STORE - ALSO - SHARED

WITH - FEMALE - OFFICER - THAT

TRY VIRAL VAULT . com

1 MALE - 1 PRODUCT - SHOPIFY

MADE - $1 MILLION - LESS THAN

1 YEAR

SHARED - KAI - 1 MALE - TIK TOK

FREE - ADDED - 2 VIDEOS DAILY

NOT - LONG - MADE - PROFIT OF

$4,000 - DAILY - NEVER - WENT

LOWER - THAT’s - MORE THAN

ENOUGH - BRICKELL - APARTMENT

APARTMENT - APP - 1 MONTH FREE

FREE - ELECTRIC - PLUG

FREE - OVER - 3 HRS - RIDE

NO 1 - ASIAN - ELECTRIC - CAR R - SIDE - DASHBOARD - VOICE

COMMAND - YOUTUBE

NCT 127 - ‘BOOMBOX’

AUTO - REPEAT

AS - U - CONTINUE - 2 - DRIVE

VOICE - ACTIVATED - CHEAPEST

CAR - IN - UNITED STATES

ESURANCE - CHEAPEST - CAR

INSURANCE - CREATED - BY

ALLSTATE - ‘YOU’RE - IN - GOOD

HANDS’ - YOU’RE - SET - IN MIAMI

2 - IKEA - BY - 2 BUSES

1 HR - 41 MIN

LARGEST - MALL - FLORIDA

AVENTURA MALL

OVER - 1 HR - ALSO

ELECTRIC - CAR - FASTEST

FREE - ELECTRIC - PLUG SO

FREE - RIDE - 2 - AND - FROM

ELECTRIC - CAR - MY - FUTURE

WHAT - A - LIFE - AND - STARTS

WITH - SHOPIFY

$4,000 - DAILY - IS - MORE THAN

ENOUGH - $1 MILLION - LESS THAN

1 YEAR - PAY - IN - FULL - ELECTRIC

CAR - NO - REPOSSESSION - PAID 2

WHAT - A - LIFE

REMINDED - HER - BRICKELL

SW 13 ST - MY - LARGE - PUBLIX

SELF - SERVICE - CHECK OUT

1 EXIT - METRORAIL - BRICKELL

2 - THE - LEFT - 2 - SW 13 ST

SHARED - AGAIN

NEW - SOMA - AT - BRICKELL

CHEAPEST - AND - BEST

BROWN - COLOR - ALSO

MOST - BEAUTIFUL - KITCHEN

NEW - LARGE - WASHER AND

DRYER - 1 BEDROOM - 1 BATH

MY - FUTURE - BRICKELL

SHARED - AGAIN - SO I’M

LEAVING - SOON

GOOD - MORNING - KOREA

PRAY - 4 - ME - HOORAY - 4

LOTUS - HOUSE

WOMEN - AND - CHILDREN

HOMELESS - SOUND GOOD

9P - CURFEW - DAILY - TRUE

HOORAY

UNTIL - THEY - FIND - HOUSING

4 - ME - I STAY - SHELTERED BY

THEM - HOORAY - PRAY - 4 - ME

MIAMI - FLORIDA - 5:55P EST

SUN - 10 MAR 2024 - FL - USA

#youtube

0 notes

eirikrjs · 2 years ago

Note

"Let’s not even get into the length or formatting of Persona character pages" but that's the first most noticable thing about the wiki. It's a Persona wiki first, an SMT one second, maybe third.

Yeah, it's quite revealing when you look at the trending pages, which Fandom wikis now force on you when you search.

The MT wiki has been some kind of configuration of the above for most of its existence, just with terms and characters swapped out for the latest iteration; SMT5 stuff managed to trend to the top for a couple weeks at least. Is any of this the least bit surprising? Not at all.

But perspective is only attained when you compare to other wikis' trends; from the other two I use the most:

Obviously also a bit affected by the latest game. FF also gets new games/updates more frequently than Megami Tensei. But still, people gotta get all that latest Cid info.

Star Wars hardly represents the latest. Revan's Legends page also likely contains enough text to match the total of all Persona characters on the MT wiki combined.

But these comparisons don't really mean anything. These trends are probably pulled from narrow timeframes, daily or even hourly. But Megami Tensei is more clearly defined by its limited trends than the other franchises. it can be a bit suffocating at times.

Other than that, I just wanted to complain that these trending searches are pushed on you, lol. Another way Fandom sucks.

#smt #persona #final fantasy #star wars #fandom wiki

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comrade-meow · 4 years ago

Link

Soviet anti-prostitution poster: “After the destruction of capitalism — the proletariat will abolish prostitution — the great scourge of humanity!”

In the first part of this series, we deconstructed the notion that “transwomen are women” from a Marxist perspective. In that piece I said that notion is perhaps the most destructive facing the left today, but I’m going to have to reconsider that assertion as we tackle the next anti-feminist/anti-Marxist “big lie” facing the left today, the notion that “sex work is work”. Marxism has always recognized prostitution as one of the vilest forms of exploitation; every major Marxist revolutionary has condemned it in unequivocal terms. The Communist Manifesto openly proclaims that the socialist revolution will do away with “prostitution both public and private.”[1] In her first major work, Nadezhda Krupskaya, described how revolutionary workers, during one night of major labor strikes, also directed their rage at the brothels, destroying eleven of them in a single night.[2] And, yet, despite this damning and overwhelming Marxist condemnation of prostitution, the left has started to drink the “sex-work” Kool-Aid. This ranges from assertions that prostitution (and pornography, which is just filmed prostitution) is just a job like any other to outright proclaiming it liberating for women, a strike against bourgeois moralism! Pimps have become re-cast as “managers”, and johns as “clients”. Some so-called “Marxists” have even come out in support of collectivized brothels under socialism! Unsurprisingly, most of these declamations are being made by men who, distraught that the revolution wants to take away “their porn” and “their women”, are now trying to have their cake and eat it too by twisting the Marxist notion of free love and the Marxist attacks on bourgeois morality to suit their own exploitative ends. In this they are assisted by the “PhD Prostitutes”, well-off bourgeois women, often holding advanced degrees, who engage in prostitution as a lifestyle “choice”. Joseph Goebbels would be proud.

But for now, we will leave these reactionary elements to stew where they are. First, it is incumbent to debunk the central assertion behind all of this, that “sex work is work”. To tear this apart, we need to first answer the question, what is labor? In his first major published work, The German Ideology, Marx defines labor as such:

“The first premise of all human existence and, therefore, of all history, [is that humans] must be in a position to live in order to be able to ‘make history’. But life involves before everything else eating and drinking, a habitation, clothing and many other things. The first historical act is thus the production of the means to satisfy these needs, the production of material life itself. And indeed this is an historical act, a fundamental condition of all history, which today, as thousands of years ago, must daily and hourly be fulfilled merely in order to sustain human life.”[3]

To put it in more succinct terms, labor is the process by which human beings create, and facilitate the use, of products of social value. Does the act of sexual intercourse in of itself have social value? Does pornographic material have social value? The answer is no. Sexual intercourse is not a fundamental human need in the way food, water, clothing, and shelter are. Nor does intercourse in of itself help us interpret and understand the world in the way that science and art do. Intercourse does take on social value when its purpose is reproduction, in that case it becomes reproductive labor. It also holds social value when it becomes a means of interpersonal communication, such as intercourse between lovers, but that is not necessarily labor as it does not produce anything of wider use for a community. In Prostitution and Ways of Fighting It, Alexandra Kollontai said, “prostitutes are all those who avoid the necessity of working by giving themselves to a man, either on a temporary basis or for life.”[4] She is clearly separating it from labor, rather defining it as the last act of the most desperate and rejected members of society. What does prostitution create, then? It creates, and increases, alienation and exploitation of the worst kind. Kollontai also railed against prostitution because it “threatens the feeling of solidarity and comradeship between working men and women, the members of the workers’ republic. And this feeling is the foundation and the basis of the communist society we are building and making a reality.”[5]

But if prostitution is not labor, what is it? The answer is simple. Sexual slavery; contractual rape. Continuing on her points already made, Kollontai reasoned that “Prostitution arose with the first states as the inevitable shadow of the official institution of marriage, which was designed to preserve the rights of private property and to guarantee property inheritance through a line of lawful heirs.”[6] This is a summation of what Engels described in The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State; that prostitution allowed for men to engage in carnal relations outside of their marriage. In the society that gave birth to prostitution, women were either the de facto property of men, or their de jure property, as in the case of wives. The prostitute was essentially a slave, with no rights or autonomy of her own; her entire existence was devoted to serving men. This continued in the age of feudalism, where prostitution was highly organized and ubiquitous, in order to maintain the chastity and faithfulness of men’s daughters and wives, who remained their property. But it is capitalism that has brought forth the full horrific nature of prostitution, where now the whole lot of woman is threatened with prostitution if they cannot afford to feed themselves and their families, or pay their bills, afford an education, or any of the other necessities working people struggle to obtain and secure. Again we see the separation of prostitution from labor; the prostitute in capitalist society is the woman who cannot make an existence by labor alone. The prostitute is not even considered a human being, but rather a commodity. They are below even the lumpenproletariat, that great mass that contains both those almost totally squeezed dry by capitalism, as well as the criminal element of society, which are still recognized as human. This is the class to which the pimp belongs to.[7] The pimp is a parody of the parasitical capitalist who profits off the labor of the working class; in the case of the pimp, he profits off the dehumanized woman turned commodity.

The industrial and technological revolutions that have occurred under capitalism have only made the prostitute’s life worse. With the advent of mass pornography, especially in the modern age of mass and instant communication, the prostitute is no longer the commodity of just one john, but of millions of johns, who fuck her by proxy; in turn the pimp’s profits are doubled, tripled, quadrupled beyond anything they ever were. And not just women now, but also homosexual and gender non-conforming men, who as “exiles” from the community of men are increasingly finding themselves subjected to the lot previously reserved almost exclusively for women. Almost every pornography website has a section for “transsexual” porn. In prostitution we see the development of patriarchy and capitalism in microcosm; the mass dehumanization of human beings aimed at smashing our solidarity with one another, leaving us increasingly alienated and isolated, viewing one another not as comrades in a common struggle, but vessels to derive selfish pleasure.

The pro-“sex work” advocates would have one believe that entering prostitution is a “choice” freely made on the part of the prostitute, and to deny this is to deny the prostitute’s “agency”. To illustrate their point, they trot out the “PhD Prostitutes” mentioned above. But Marxists should know better than to take such evidence at face value. The Marxist method looks not at the conditions of individuals isolated from society as a whole, but at the individual within the larger social context they exist in. A study conducted by the Soroptimist International, “an international volunteer organization working to improve the lives of women and girls, in local communities and throughout the world” found that most prostitutes “were sexually and physically abused as children, deprived and pushed into selling sex at age 14, on average.” It also goes on to say:

“In one study of prostituted women, 90 percent of the women had been physically battered in childhood; 74 percent were sexually abused in their families, with 50 percent also having been sexually abused by someone outside the family. Of 123 survivors at the Council for Prostitution Alternatives in Portland, Oregon (an agency offering support, education, shelter and access to health services to clients of all sex industries), 85 percent reported a history of incest, 90 percent reported a history of physical abuse, and 98 percent cited a history of emotional abuse.”

The study also notes that women of color, women from the third world, and indigenous women are even more likely to be forced into prostitution.[8] Additionally “71 percent reported being physically abused and 63 percent reported being raped by a customer. In a rigorous study of pimps in seven cities in the United States, 58 percent of prostitutes reported violence, while 36 reported having abusive clients.” It also challenges the notion that “high-class” “call-girl” prostitution is safer than street prostitution, finding that escorts will be abused by johns at least twice a year. But perhaps the most damning evidence presented in the study to the “choice” argument, is the evidence that “more than 90 percent of prostituted women in various surveys want to leave prostitution, but lack viable options.”[9]

Despite this, the pro-“sex work” crowd insist that prostitution is not contractual rape, because prostitutes are giving their consent. But how can “consent” obtained under economic coercion truly be consent? This sounds like arguments put forward in defense of capitalism as a whole; for example, that workers who do not like the conditions of their work or their wages can always “choose” to get a different job. Marxists rightly recognize this argument as a diversion, because of the external circumstances that prevent individuals from just easily choosing the job they want to do. It is the same with the prostitute; her “consent” is only a passive consent, not the active consent that recognized as being necessary for a truly consensual sexual relationship. The “PhD Prostitutes” who are able to freely choose and screen their “clients” represent an incredibly small minority, and perhaps cannot even be considered prostitutes, but bourgeois dilettantes “playfully” aping the suffering of the classes beneath them.

Similarly, abolitionists have come under attack from the “sex work” crowd, being accused of moralism and puritanism. They argue that criminalization only worsens the plight of prostitutes, whereas bringing them into the recognized workforce through legalization and unionization will ease their suffering. In this first part, they are correct. The criminalization of the prostitute is an expression of not just bourgeois, but patriarchal hypocrisy, because the prostitute is essentially punished for trying to survive, punished for fulfilling the desires of the ruling class. The second part, however, is dead wrong. The countries that have legalized prostitution have seen a dramatic increase in human trafficking, because contrary to the free choice arguments of the “sex work” hypocrites, there exists nowhere near enough women who want to commodify themselves to meet the demand.[10] In Australia and New Zealand, legalization has decreased the agency of prostitutes, and increased the power of pimps, by introducing the “all-inclusive”, a single fee paid to the pimp instead of directly to the prostitute, essentially depriving prostituted women of what little power of negotiation they had.[11] In Germany, a pregnant prostitute was coerced into having group sex with a bunch of men who “wanted” a pregnant woman; under German law, this was perfectly legal. The prostitute in question said she felt like she had no power to say no, as her agency had been usurped by the brothel.[12] Similarly, the “sex worker unions” advocated for by the “sex work” activists are another vehicle for pimps and their supporters to exercise their dominance; the Scarlet Alliance, Australia’s largest “sex worker union” even harassed survivors of the sex industry.[13] Rosa Luxemburg did advocate for the formation of revolutionary unions of prostitutes, but not to “regulate” prostitution, but to smash it. In fact, the advocates of full legalization (with or without regulation) belong in the company of fascists, not revolutionary socialists. The Nazis established an extensive and centralized system of brothels in cities and military camps, as well as in the concentration camps themselves. When Franco seized power in Spain, he overturned the abolitionist reforms of the Republic, and re-legalized prostitution so that men were guaranteed their brides were virgins and not “spoiled goods”.[14]

The most effective method of combatting prostitution has been the Nordic Model, which is made up of two components: 1) The decriminalization of selling sex, and the criminalization of pimps and johns; and 2) The creation and strengthening of state resources, such as education, professional training, counseling, and community support, to help prostitutes make a safe exit from the industry. Countries that have adopted the Nordic Model, such as Sweden, Norway, and Iceland have seen dramatic reductions in prostitution. The Swedish Ministry of Justice found that since the adoption of the Sex Buyer Law in 1999, prostitution has fully halved, and continues to decline.[15] Additionally, no evidence has been found that prostitutes are being forced underground as a result of this policy.[16] And most importantly, not a single prostitute has been murdered by a john since the law came into effect. What the pimps, johns, and their apologists cannot stand about the Nordic Model is that it ends their monopoly on power, and actually punishes their exploitation of women, all while empowering their former slaves. This is why they always try to erect obfuscations against the Nordic Model, even outright crying about how it victimizes the “poor johns”. Some of the more cunning faux leftists argue against the Nordic Model on the basis that it increases the power of the bourgeois state and police; or they claim that there is no use in combatting prostitution since no reform under capitalism will eliminate it. On the contrary, the Nordic Model represents a perfect example of a transitional demand. Trotsky defined the transitional demand as being a bridge between the minimum demands of social democracy and the maximum demands of revolutionary socialism; demands that would allow the oppressed to win not just key reforms, but also to increase their strength and confidence against the capitalist state. Transitional demands are not just calls for reform, but calls for openly revolutionary action that will spark reforms and strengthen existing ones. The Nordic Model is a perfect example precisely because it is a reform that strikes at the heart of the patriarchal and capitalist system; it allows the masses to see just who supports and benefits from prostitution. Eugene Debs, when he was city clerk of Terre Haute, advocated for a kind of proto-Nordic Model, refusing to assess fines on prostitutes, because the police took no action against the pimps or the usually wealthy johns. As for the false concerns about increasing the power of the bourgeois state and police, the Nordic Model, like any good transitional reform, forces the state and the police to actually work for, not against, the people they claim to represent. Would these same “socialists” so worried about the cops being unleashed on pimps and johns have cried the same tears when Eisenhower sent in the National Guard to enforce the desegregation of schools in the Jim Crow south? It would, at the very least, be amusing to see a socialist cite this as an example of giving the bourgeois state “too much power”.

To reiterate, every socialist revolution has struck with the full force of its power against prostitution and the sex industry. Every major socialist revolutionary has recognized the emancipation of women from sexual slavery as one of the basic tasks of the revolution. These “sex work socialists” are more than just hypocrites and revisionists, they are outright misogynistic reactionaries. The degeneration of the revolutionary left in the western world, especially in the Anglophone world is what has allowed these trends to sprout and grow. The pernicious influence of neoliberalism and postmodernism have infected the body of the revolutionary left; slowly eating away at it like gradual poisoning. The Marxist concept of free love aims to eliminate the current patriarchal system of sexual coercion and exploitation, and replace it with a humane and open system of actively consensual intimacy. Those who believe otherwise would best be served by dropping the act, and joining the Libertarian Party, because that is where their politics truly lie. The left needs to remember its mission; the liberation of the oppressed peoples of the world, and take an active stand against the pimps and johns playing dress-up as communists.

#Anglo.txt

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tellywoodtrash · 4 years ago

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immj2 19.04.21 lb

here's what you "missed" (lbr tho, not watching tellywood is not called MISSING, it's called "FREEDOM") last week on this shitshow:

kabir pehla mauka dekh ke vatttt liya. #livefree my love.

kiara died the most inglorious death - forcefed a peanut butter milkshake.

riddhima as per usual, the moment someone drops dead in their vicinity, turned to vansh and was like:

ghar mein saaaaare 90s bachche start playing CID-CID. kaabil detectives watching this bs like......

besttttt part is that none of these dumbasses are ANYYYYYYYYYY closer to opening the damn black box than they were 2 weeks ago.

meanwhile someone keeps threatening riddhima ki they're gonna tell vansh the whole 6 hours secret. ho hum. sansaaaar ko khatam ho jaana hai lekin yeh manhoos raaz nahi khulna.

aslkdjaslkdjlsakjdlaskjd anu mom and her new-found spirituality and daily meditation is actually sending me.

mummyji being super helpful and telling riddhima ki dadi has the torch now. love how the whollllllle family is just playing passing the parcel with this thing, getting their grubby fingerprints all over it, as if it's NOT A VALUABLE PIECE OF EVIDENCE IN A MURDER.

dadi meanwhile is burning a hole in her phone screen staring at kiara's tattoo. bachchon se leke buddhon tak sabne isko ghoora hai, lekin majaal hai, inmein se ek ko bhi kuch samajh aaya ho. why can't y'all just accept that maybe it means nothing, it's just one of those dumb foreign language tattoos, that probably say "ek plate gobi manchurian" or some shit.

riddhima's here asking for the torch and dadi is just like BHAKKKKK NIKAL YAHAAN SE while having flashbacks to brandishing the mashaal like some crazyass charlotesville nazi.

another flower delivery for riddhima that vansh is receiving at the door, and sis loses it. runs like PT USHA and grabs the flowers and note outta his hand thinking it's another threat and tears it up.

vansh here like:

but also she cut her hand so ofc he's using mauka to suck on her finger. MAN IN THESE CORONA TIMES, Y'ALL REALLY KILLING ME WITH THIS GANDAAAAAA NON HYGENIC BEHAVIOURRRR.

lmao the bouquet was from vansh, as an apology (for what? no like, we've lost count of all the shit you do on an hourly basis, so which exact thing are you saying sorry for right now????)

also what adbhut new way of being pregnant is this that the immj2 ladies have cracked, ki inka itnaaaaaa se bhi pait nahi nikalta????

anyway, some blah blah cutesy romance bakchodi that no one has time for. i liked it better when y'all were constantly horny.

angre as usual here with some manhoos khabar that has vansh frowning and storming away.

police aayi hai. excuse you, we don't recognize any cops here but our one and only KABIR. HAIN KAHAN HUMAARA LADKA??? MISSING HO RAHI HAI YAAR?!?!!!? KYUN LAGA RAKHA HAI FALTU KA YEH SHOW WITHOUT THE BEST CHARACTER THAT EXISTS IN IT?

anyway police is like we heard there was a murder here, and vansh is like huh whaaa here no??? no dead ppl here, no sir. you may leave. police waale bhaiyya is like bhak chutiye, aise thodi hota hai, warrant laaye hain, hatt saamne se.

angre taking out a rolled up carpet, a trick outta the vihaan book. but it's too small to have anything rolled up in it, so.......

doesn't stop the police from making a big deal of searching it though, while vansh side mein se taane maarta hai. waise bhai kaaafi good mood mein hai aaj kal. looks like someone's been taking their meds these days.

riddhima just randomly falling down behind them. like..... ???????

this police is literally too dumb to function. THEY CAME WITH A WARRANT TO SEARCH THE WHOLE HOUSE, JUST LOOKED INSIDE THIS ONE ROLLED CARPET (THAT TOO AFTER GETTING DISTRACTED BY RIDDHIMA'S RANDOM GIRRNA) AND WERE LIKE OK DONE THERE'S NOTHING HERE BYE. LMAO WHAT THE HELL, MY CAT PLAYS HIDE AND SEEK WITH MORE FOCUS AND PURPOSE THAN THIS.

husband wife and anu mom giggling over how riansh ke do takke ka pyaar is enough to chutiya banaofy everyone. kya hi bakwaaas.

the slightest of movement and vansh is dizzy. lol is he severely anemic like me???? join the club, bitch. we have iron supplements.

oh boy, cut to a while later and bro don't look too good. he's still smiling at riddhima's banter and all, but.......... idk man, he looks like he's having a daura of some sort.

riddhima's amazing medical knowledge (or just plain common sense???) finally kicks in and she's like, u ok dude? imma call a doc. and he's like nooooooo i'm fiiiiiiiiiiiine. ok whatever. maro apne iss stupid secret container room office mein. bewakoof.

ISKE BEECH MEIN BHI ROMANCE. BHAAD MEIN JAO YAAR TUM LOG.

asldkjaslkdjlaskdjlaskdj angre ne laash ko vyom ke ghar rakh diya. as if there aren't enough creepy things lying around in there in the first place.

ok vansh seems to be getting real breathless and sickly.

meanwhile idhar angre is doing some kinda depraved play with kiara's laash and........... man everyone in this show is a fucking psychopath.

also it's now been like 3, 4 days since the chick died and ..................... body's not smelling ripe yet?

vansh coughing his way through opening that stupid orange coloured black box and.......... abbe chutiye, zinda rahoge toh khol paoge?????????

anyway the tattoo code whatever only has 5 digits and he needs 6 and meanwhile anu mom has come yelling about how siya's gone missing. great. ek pallllllll ka chain nahi is pagal-khaane mein.

find some letter in her room. vansh's coughing is getting worse and worse. bro, time to get a covid test.

at least siya was helpful enough to tell everyone she's going to saste!bhaiyya.

asli bhaiyya is understandably very very upset. and thus coughing and huffing puffing even more. SOMEONE TAKE THIS DUDE TO A DOCTOR THIS IS GETTING DISTRESSING TO WATCH OML.

anu mom toh is full-on ignoring vansh actively dying in front of her rn and is like OH GOD SIYA KAHIN KOI "NAADAAANI" MEIN ZINDAGI KHARAAB NAA KAR BAITHE (meaning: OMG VIRGINITY KHATRE MEIN HAIIIIII!!!!!!!!)

riddhima is like dude you're not fucking ok and he's still like I'M FINE I'M JUST WORRIED FOR SIYA. idk man i'd be more worried about your obviously failing phepdein and dil than your sister's hymen, but that's just me i guess.

riddhima is calling vyom and threatening him, and nothing gets vyom hornier than being threatened, so ofc, bhai mood mein hai.

vyom, unlike all other tellywood baddies (and even goodies), is a big believer in consent. good on him. 10 points to him over every other chutiya man in this show.

he's informing her about how vansh thikaane lagaofied the laash at his place. oufffffff, y'all need to respect poor dead kiara instead of just shuffling her body back and forth like this. uski aatma tum logon ke upar mandaraaayegi, dekhna.

riddhima's like idc about all this i just want siya to be safe and he's like too late babe. sardi, khaasi, na malaria hua; humko love love love loveriaaaaa huaaaa.

vyom's like siya aayi apni marzi se hai, par jaayegi meri marzi se. guess he don't believe in consent so much anymore. (revokes the 10 points i gave hm earlier. also taking away 50 points for this uglyass suit. bhai tu shirt utar, wohi behtar hai.)

vansh has now progressed to coughing like the people from the pre-movie anti-tobacco ads now.

hides the orange black box in yet another secret room hidden behind some panel, where all the raisinghania wealth is hoarded like pirate's booty in all these crates. y'all crazy, its 2021, put that shit in offshore bank accounts you dumbasses.

anyway he tells angre all this shit kaafi detail mein, and lord idk how angre ke neeyat doesn't phisalofy to just off this fucker and take over the whole thing himself. zero ambition this boy has. ishani hoti isske jagah, toh pakka karti. precap: riddhima trying to console vansh about siya; vyom being a creepy ass monologuing loser as per usual; vansh pays a visit to vyom exuding hella lotta sexy energy.

#ishq mein marjawan 2 #immj2 #immj2 lbs #episode liveblogs

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anomov · 3 years ago

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Let's talk about Ovenbreak.

So, this is kind of a "Final goodbye." I'm finally having to delete it fully off of my phone because it's quite literally taking up too much space. Under the cut I'm going to talk about what I liked, what I disliked, and just general thoughts.

Let's start off with the basics, I've been on-off playing ovenbreak since around 2018. I enjoyed it as a game - But over the years it got... Significantly less fun for me. To the point where, up until now, all I ever did in it was guild related things.

When I first got it, I really enjoyed its setup, and it was fun! It had good events, good rewards for things done, and generally was just- Fun! But I feel like after the storymode update that all changed.

One of the first things, before the storymode update, that I started to dislike was the ovenbreak and special levels themselves - Once the daily/hourly rewards were removed, I felt like I had NO reason to play them more than once every week or so. It was just - Unfun. I feel like the rewards really made me want to play.

The trophy race began to feel extremely unfair - It says it pairs you with people around your level, but I feel like I'd end up loosing or getting to a place where I'd loose trophies constantly, and that was EXTREMELY unfun for me. It ended up as something I dreaded, not something I enjoyed.

Then, there was storymode - Which in my opinion sparked the worst of it.

Let's start off with storymode itself - It absolutely sucks. It's not fun, it doesn't feel rewarding - Especially to someone whose been playing for years - and the story feels... Bland and overused, to say the least.

But the update that came with storymode also just- Messed up everything else, we'll say. The interface is - Weird. I personally liked it much better the old way, but then there's all the cookies that have been released.

It feels like they're releasing so many that you can't keep up with who the new released cookie is. And their events are starting to feel bland and overdone, too. The storytelling in the events seems bland, as well. It just doesn't feel- Fun. None of the game feels fun anymore.

I used to be excited to check in every day, and now it just feels like a task that I HAVE to do. It's not fun.

I love cookie run as a series, I love kingdom, but Ovenbreak has just gotten to the point it's so terribly boring and tiring that I feel I just can't play it.

this was all a rambled mess, but thanks for reading through it, i guess?

#rambles #cookie run #crob #ovenbreak #cookie run ovenbreak #not win #Blue

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major-of-bajor · 5 years ago

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Chamomile

Kathryn drummed her fingers on the lip of the tub. With a sigh, she arose from the bath and wrapped herself in a fluffy towel. Usually she counted on a good bath to provide some measure of comfort, but how could she relax when she knew what the rest of the ship was going through?

At least 20 percent of her crew had contracted the disease. It started in the transporter room, where the away team presumably trailed it back from the planet surface. It had to be something pernicious. Something that escaped the biofilters. First Harry began coughing. Then Tom. B’Elanna.

After the first few cases, the doctor strongly recommended quarantine before the mysterious illness spread through the senior staff. Everyone was sealed in their quarters until further notice. The doctor was working day and night on a solution. Kathryn had faith in him; he’d pulled the crew through much worse. He provided her hourly updates on his progress, but she had to admit, her anxiousness for a solution was getting the better of her. As a scientist herself, of course she understood that real, dependable solutions take time. But with the health and possibly the lives of her crew at stake? How could she possibly be patient?

Chakotay checked in with her a couple times a day via vidscreen.

“The crew can handle it,” he assured her. “Most of us went through Starfleet training; the whole ship is prepared for this sort of thing. Besides, it’s not as if you couldn’t use a break,” his lip twitched up at the corner, in that way she didn’t realize she could miss seeing this much. “We’ve all been operating at maximum for months; we can use this time to rest and relax. I, for one, plan to catch up on some of the anthropological journals Starfleet sent through in its last transmission.”

“Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out,” Kathryn said.

His face took on a more somber expression. “We’ll get through it, sooner or later. There’s nothing we can do to help at the moment but trust in the doctor, so I hope you’ll get some rest and take care of yourself.” He nodded, and ended the call.

She tried to take his advice. Broke into the books she hadn’t touched since she came onboard. She couldn’t seem to make her attention stick to the page. She talked over vidscreen with members of the crew. Especially the ones with symptoms. They seemed tired, but glad to hear from the captain. Each call ended with a black screen, and somehow left her more exhausted than a simple conversation ought to.

After a good soak, she was feeling only nominally better. She rubbed the back of her neck as she stepped across her quarters in her bathrobe. How could she be spending all day, every day here, not doing much of anything, and still be so tired and sore?

As she crossed the room, the replicator suddenly whirred with light and produced a steaming coffee cup.

“Strange,” she said to herself. She’d had half a thought to order an afternoon cup of coffee, but hadn’t said the thought aloud. Had she?

She tiptoed nearer for a closer look. The steam from the cup wafted enticingly in her direction, bringing a strange, sweet herbal scent. Tea?

She grasped the cup by the handle, holding it away from herself as if it might explode. Was this some kind of replicator malfunction? Was it related to the disease?

A sudden chirp from the computer demanded her attention. An incoming message. She cautiously carried the hot cup over to her desk and seated herself to take the call.

“Onscreen,” she told the computer. A video image appeared on the screen: Commander Tuvok. His uniform and stern expression made him appear just as businesslike as usual.

“Have I disturbed you at a bad time, Captain?”

He glanced at her silky bathrobe. Not exactly regulation wear, but this was the new normal, it seemed.

“Not at all, Tuvok. What’s on your mind?”

“I see you already have your tea. I did not mean to alarm you, but I arranged for your replicator to deliver a cup of chamomile tea to your quarters. I am familiar with your affinity for coffee, but large amounts of caffeine are not ideal for the human immune system at this time. Herbal teas such as chamomile have superior health benefits.”

Kathryn’s eyes softened toward her Vulcan commander.

“How thoughtful, Commander. I appreciate the gesture. But I haven’t had any symptoms and the doctor says I’m clear.”

“Nevertheless, it is best to treat one’s health considerately during this time,” Tuvok said. “Stress can have many negative effects during uncertain times.”

Kathryn gritted her teeth. “Is it that obvious?”

“It is a natural human biological reaction to adversity of this nature,” Tuvok said.

“Spoken like a true Vulcan,” Kathryn said. “How are you holding up? For a Vulcan, I’d think isolation would be a welcome break.”

“On the contrary, Captain.”

“Oh?”

“As you are aware, routine is an important component of my daily lifestyle. My usual routine and duties have been severely disrupted, as have those of my crewmates. Although I cannot contract the disease which threatens the human members of the crew, it is not ideal to function with such fear and uncertainty in our midst.”

“Why Tuvok, you sound positively congenial,” Kathryn teased.

“Humor aside, Captain, it is logical to be concerned about the wellbeing of my crewmates, as it directly influences the shared quality of life aboard the ship. Which includes my captain, of course.”

“If I didn’t know better Commander, I’d think you were taking the long way around to say you care about me.”

“It is an inelegant phrasing.”

“But you don’t deny it.”

Tuvok raised an eyebrow and tilted his head; a look she’d seen a thousand times. An irrepressible smile crept across her face.

“Thanks for the tea, Tuvok. Take care.”

The screen blacked out, and she cupped her hands around the warm tea, inhaling its sweet, earthy aroma for a moment before she took the first sip.

#star trek #voyager #ficlet #janeway #tuvok #quarantine

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5-falsehoods-phonated · 4 years ago

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(Prompts with boxes have been taken, highlighted have been written.)

I have requests and ideas for all of the prompts, so no more requests from this card will be accepted. I’m planning on writing and posting all of these within the month of December and probably a bit into January. If you don’t want to see these stories, block the tag #false bthb, if you would like to be tagged in future stories shoot me an ask!

This prompt got away from me a bit so it’s split into two parts. The prompt comes into play in the second part. Requested by @atlasistryingherbest I hope you enjoy it, the second part will be up tomorrow!

General tagging: @im-an-anxious-wreck (you're gonna be tagged in mostly bthb this month as that's the project I'm working on, so if you'd like this changed to only the multichapter fics or general one shots please let me know. Thank you again for the interest!)

My Sunshine Part 1

Summary: Patton thinks he’s finally caught the break he needs when he finds and falls in love with Roman. Ignoring the warning signs until it’s too late Patton ends up losing more than he had dared to gain.

Warnings: more for part two but story contains human trafficking, implied non consensual sex and starvation

Prompt: Denied food as Punishment

Ships: Royality, Patton x Roman

WC: 4, 166

Patton skirted around another group of students, clutching his rather heavy school bag and trying not to bump into anyone in his rush to his bus. The college campus wasn’t exactly large but the crowds remained a nuisance no matter how small the classes were. Seeing the bus start to pull up to the sidewalk for its hourly trip into the downtown area he quickened his pace, desperate not to miss it again. Thankfully getting to the back of the waiting line with time to spare he took a breath and finally managed to zip his bag closed, hoisting it over his shoulders and looking around to see if he could recognize anyone from his classes.

Having just moved into town for school a month ago Patton didn’t really have any friends yet, just people who would occasionally ask him for a pencil only to not give it back- but that was fine! Whenever he ran out of pencils to give he could just ask them for one and he would know they’d have one since he had given so many of his away. If nothing else he figures a missing pencil was as good an ice breaker as any to start a conversation with somebody.

Lost as he was in his thoughts he immediately snapped out of it when he caught sight of one of the cutest men he had ever seen. Tall, dark and handsome didn’t even begin to cover it when he saw the stranger laugh at whatever the person next to him was talking about and reach up to push longish, curly hair out of his eyes. The stranger seemed to suddenly become aware that he was being stared at, turning his head and somehow immediately locking eyes with an extremely flustered Patton. Offering a king smile and a small wave Patton was sure he turned at least ten different shades of red before he managed to tear his eyes away and trip up the stairs to the bus to plop tiredly in the first empty seat he could find.

Burying his face in his hands he groaned at his own stupidity, lamenting the fact that he had been caught ogling someone he didn’t even know or recognize from any of his classes. He had seemed so nice though, not even seeming fazed at being stared at- though with such a confident air that he seemed to have Patton thought maybe he was used to it by now. All he could hope was that he’d never see the stranger again and if he did he wouldn’t remember Patton as that creepy guy in the bus line who probably looked half dead for as much coffee he consumed to keep up with his life.

Deciding not to dwell on it too much he grimaced as he hoisted his pack up yet again as his stop came into view, dreading another afternoon spent on his feet trying to hear people’s orders and write them down correctly while the general noise of the restaurant made it a challenge to get his own forcibly friendly “Hello, what can I get for you?” to be heard. Shuffling off the bus with everyone else he quickly jogged down the block and around the back of the restaurant he worked at, swiping his apron on in the same motion of throwing his bag down and scooting it under a table and out of the way. Smoothing his hair bag and rubbing what he hoped was most of the tiredness from his eyes he put on his best smile and waltzed his way out onto the main floor, tagging out his shift swift for which he was barely acknowledged before they gestured to a family just getting comfortable for him to service.

Squaring his shoulders and taking one more deep breath he began walking over to them. It was just a five hour shift, he could handle a five hour shift.

-----

He could barely handle a five hour shift.

Frowning down at his bag that contained his barely started on homework his fingers fumbled with the knot of his apron as he desperately tried to work it off. Huffing in frustration he bent his neck painfully to get the top part off and shimmied hip hips while yanking the bottom part until he was finally able to kick it into a wall. Dragging a hand over his face he snatched it up and hung it up rather aggressively before getting his bag and hurrying out the back door to catch the bus back to his run down apartment. The ride was as uneventful as ever but he almost missed it when he finally reached his apartment only to see a corner of an envelope sticking out from under the door that would undoubtedly contain the rent bill he would have to scrape together enough change to meet again.

Although he was grateful to be away from his family and that he had been able to get into college in the first place it was an expensive path in life that he had to work hard at two jobs to maintain, still barely managing to scrape by each month. Since switching campuses to be closer to work opportunities it had only seemed to get worse. If he had a roommate it might be different, at least taking some of the financial burden off his shoulders but he didn’t know anyone in this town enough to ask and he definitely didn’t want to invite people he didn’t know into his life with an ad in the newspaper calling for a roommate- who knew if they’d even pay rent or pick up after themselves or leave his things alone. No, Patton was a little too paranoid for that. Flopping face down onto his couch he wormed his way half under the back cushions and seat cushions until it was just a little too tight and sighed contently, letting his eyes finally drift shut as he gave his legs a rest. His stomach growled not ten minutes later however, making him groan and debate whether making something would actually be worthwhile. Realizing he still had work to do anyway he carefully got up and rolled up his sleeves, wondering if that frozen pizza in the freezer was still good.

A little while later with pizza in one hand and a pencil in the other he worked his way through his math and science homework, stacking them to the side as he made way for the english paper he had yet to start. He was still trying to work through basic classes before he got to...whatever it wsa he would decide he wanted to major in, though sometimes he was intimidated but the already nearly overwhelming workload he had to tell himself it would all be worth it. He just had to smile through it and push through until he came out the other side with a bright a nd shiny degree and an even brighter future. Of course, that optimism could only take him so far as he stared at the book report he was supposed to be at least outlining, a quick glance at the clock telling him that if he wanted to shower, now would be the time if he didn’t want to be late for his stocking job. Working at a warehouse form one to seven in the morning definitely wasn’t ideal but it paid well and it was just enough to keep him floating while he worked his way through school. Wincing as he stood up on wobbly, half asleep legs he dumped his plate in the sink and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower before he had to be at the warehouse for his shift.

Stumbling out of his apartment complex still struggling to get his jacket on he happened to look up and see an unfamiliar car parked across the street. I wonder if someone else is moving in, he thought, squinting in the darkness of the early morning to try and make out details. He thought he saw movement in the drivers side but the beeping of his watch let him know he had a very limited amount of time now to get to where he was going, so turning on his heel he booked it to the warehouse a few blocks down, any other thoughts drowned out by the apprehensionsion of the promised monotony to come.

-----

Patton was dead on his feet by the time his shift ended and he made it back to his apartment. Making side eyes at the couch wit his notes still scattered on the coffee table he shook his head and went down the short hallway to his bedroom instead, peeling off his shirt and pants as he went and flopped onto the box spring, flopping his arm around for his treasured dog plushie before curling onto his side and beginning to snore within minutes. When he woke up to his insistent alarm five hours later he groaned and threw the plushie at the offending machine to no avail. Stretching out his stiff muscles he reached over and pressed the button to get the thing to shut up while rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Another day, another...well just another day really. He had half an hour to make himself somewhat presentable and make coffee, maybe try to scratch out part of that english outline before heading off to class and repeating the daily routine of rushing around and catching quick ten minute naps when he could. Thankful today was Wednesday, meaning he had two more regular days and then Saturday he only had to get through his warehouse shift before he was free for the weekend. He made a face at the dust clinging to nearly every surface in his room.. Maybe he’d use that weekend to clean a bit.

Coffee brewing, face washed and toast wolfed down he did actually manage to get a quarter of his outline done before he had to gather everything up and leave. Taking a thermos of caffeine for the road he made it out in record time to catch the bus, idly noting the car from last night was still parked across the street, though it was clearly empty now. A dark blue Sudan with tinted windows from what he could. Shrugging he went to wait in line with everyone else; what he wouldn't give for his own car.

----

It wasn’t until the following week that he saw the car in a different place, this time parked in front of his restaurant. The only reason he really noticed it was because he had honestly been wondering when the thing would be toed considering it never seemed to leave the same spot from across the street. Shrugging the fleeting interest off he quickened his pace and got his apron on, shimmying the bottom part over his head since he hadn't got the knot undone and bending his neck forward to properly don the front loop. Smoothing himself out while shoving his bag under the table and fishing for his notepad and pen he stretched his face into yet another believable smile and pushed his way out of the kitchen and to his shift switch, only to freeze in place when they gestured to a table with a lone figure sat at it.

This cannot be happening, he thought with dismay. At the table sat the very stranger who had smiled at him after catching him staring last week. He was just as cute as ever and had a relaxed, easy smile on his face that Patton instantly felt himself melt for. Now is not thee time Patton, he scolded himself as he straightened his apron and walked over, palms sweating an embarrassing amount with knees he hoped to God weren’t visibly shaking.

“Hello, what can I get for you?”

The man looked up and his smile only grew wider as he cupped his chin. “Have we met?”

Sputtering, Patton clutched his notepad to his chest as he struggled to string a coherent thought together. He knew! He knew and now he’d get to tell him what a creep he was and-

“I’m certain I would have remembered the name of a person as cute as you if we had.” The man leaned forward practically purring. “Patton is it? That suits you.”

Patton barely heard the other half of what was being said to him, the word “cute” bouncing around in his skull too many times for him to properly concentrate on the actual conversation. He turned his incredibly red face away from the others gaze, not quite sure what to say back, thankfully the man saved him from having to respond by finally leaning back and taking the menu up again. “I’m very sorry, where are my manners? I’m keeping you from your job aren’t I?”

He was but heck if Patton was going to agree with that statement. The kinder he was the more this person might tip, and besides, he actually was very cute especially up close. He didn’t mind a bit of casual flirting especially since the other didn’t seem to have anything against him.

“You’re fine sir! I um- I don’t mind.” That being the closest Patton could get to actually accepting a compliment he quickly moved on. “Are you ready to order?”

“Yes actually! I’d like a chicken sandwich with tomato and a chef’s salad on the side.”

Nodding, Patton looked back up from his scribbling. “And to drink?”

“Water would be lovely.”

Taking the menu, he nodded again. “It’ll be right out sir.”

“Thank you, Patton.”

The use of his name set him on edge for a second but he quickly brushed it aside. He was just being nice, sure maybe overly nice- but this was the first full blown kind of conversation he’d held with someone who wasn't his landlord or boss in weeks. If the stranger wanted to use his name that was fine. He’d just have to learn his!

Busy as the restaurant was in the afternoon he was slightly disappointed he hadn’t seen the man leave but made his way over to the table to start cleaning up while he had a free minute. Lifting the check book his eyes nearly bugged out of his head at the tip that was left. A solid fifty dollar bill lay next to the receipt, and on the latter a phone number was written along with a name.

“Roman.” Patton breathed out. He realized he was holding a third month's rent in his hands, he could get groceries this week...proper groceries! Like...Patton pursed his lips in thought, maybe fruit and vegetables? He couldn’t remember the last time he’d bitten into an apple that hadn’t gone completely soft from sitting in the cafeteria for far too long. With stars in his eyes and a name in his heart he pocketed the tip and went about the rest of his shift in a daze, not even noticing the dark blue Sudan still parkly in the parking lot as he made his way back home.

----

Roman was absolutely charming- in every sense of the word. After their first phone call where Patton had thanked him endlessly for the very generous tip they had been texting and calling nearly nonstop. The flowery, flirty way he spoke, the way he looked at Patton like he was hung on the moon, even the way he said his name like he was cradling something precious, it was almost too much. Patton’s workplace had become a regular place for Roman to eat, always sitting at the same place and getting there seemingly right as Patton’s shift started. Tired still though he was, he found the monotony broken at last by a welcome smile to greet him every day of the week, and he was absolutely living for it.

Patton was ecstatic when Roman asked him on a date the following week, securing Saturday as the day they’d meet up at a different restaurant and hang out. He felt like he was floating, like finally something was sliding into place and everyday that it got close to the weekend just made him even more motivated to finish his shifts and homework so he could talk to the one who had so quickly captured his attention. The days flew by, and when Saturday finally came he rushed through his shift at the warehouse to go home and sleep, wanting to be well rested for his first date in years.

-----

Despite his excitement, Patton ended up oversleeping and rushing in vain around his apartment, throwing together a haphazard outfit consisting of a soft blue, non-work polo and light jeans. Sliding his feet into his usual tennis shoes and running quick fingers through his hair he could only hope that was enough as he ran out of his apartment and down the stairs to the street below. The restaurant wasn’t far thankfully and he was able to jog there in no time at all, hoping he didn’t look like too much of a sweaty mess to the other man who always looked impeccably out together. Spotting him at a table on the far side of the joint next to the windows Patton made his way over and sat down nervously.

“I’m so sorry I’m late! I overslept and I tried to hurry but-”

“Please, don’t worry about it.” Roman lain a hand on top of Patton's leaving him to fight to contain his blush. “I wasn’t waiting that long and besides, this place has a lovely view.”

Turning to look out the window, Patton had to agree. The restaurant had a wonderful view of the local park, families playing with their children or pets as the Saturday afternoon wore on. He watched the families almost wistfully, almost but not quite missing his own as he watched one play hide-and-seek while another helped their child across the monkey bars. He was so enraptured by the sight before him he didn’t notice Roman’s gaze turn calculating before his easy smile slid back into place, placing his chin in his hands as he joined Patton in people watching.

“Someday, when I leave this town, I’d like to be settled with a family like that.” Roman’s voice brought Patton out of his own thoughts, making him turn to his date with a smile. “Yeah?”

“Yeah, I’d like to have someone to take care of and love, and have them love me back. It sounds perfect doesn’t it?”

Patton flicked his eyes away for a second before smiling again. “It does. To be stable and settled down with kiddos, that’s the life I want.”

Seeming to sense his hesitation Roman cocked his head to the side. “Got a bad experience with families?”

“I-” Patton again was slightly put off by the stranger's forwardness and apparent skills of perception but he brushed it aside, finding it nice to be listened to. “My family and I didn’t get along very well I guess. We don’t talk at all now.”

Roman’s eyes flashed as he nodded. “I understand that. My family doesn’t talk to me much anymore either. It happens.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Patton looked away again as the waitress walked over with water and menus. Quietly thanking her Patton skimmed the list of items searching for something cheap. Settling on a club sandwich with a side of coleslaw he closed the menu just in time for the waitress to come back. Taking their orders she quickly left them alone once again, Patton trying desperately to hide a yawn behind his fist.

“Am I boring you already?” Roman said teasingly, and Patton’s face burned in embarrassment.

“It isn’t that I swear I-”

“It’s okay! Tired from work, I take it?”

Patton nodded gratefully and scratched his neck. “I work two jobs with school and I just- I’m a mess.”

Roman chuckled and shook his head. Hardly! That’s quite admirable of you actually, you work so hard for what you have.”

Patton smiled a bit at the table, blush dying down a bit as he breathed. “I guess so yeah.”

“Well I know so!” Patton flinched slightly as he raised his voice but Roman didn’t seem to notice as their food was placed in front of them and they dug in.

“We should really come here more often, this was exquisite!” Patton’s eyes shot up as he heard that. We? More often? Did that mean-

“You think entirely too loud for my liking my sunshine. Please forgive my forwardness, but would you like to do this again sometime?”

Patton beamed at the other man, twisting his fingers nervously under the table. “I’d love to, Roman.”

-----

The next couple months went by in a blur, having dates when they could manage them and extended phone calls when they couldn’t. Then a weekend finally came when they could go out again, deciding meeting at the same restaurant was fine since it was so good last time. Thankfully Patton wasn’t late again, sliding in a chair across from Roman and taking the menu in his hands.

“Hey Roman!’

“Hello my love, it’s good to see that smile again.” Face heating quickly Patton hid his face behind his menu and ignored Roman’s soft chuckles, deciding to order the same thing for simplicity's sake. Giving their orders and receiving their drinks left the two alone and Roman took the opportunity to lean forward with a serious expression, making Patton squirm nervously in his chair.

“Patton, I have something I want to ask you, and you can absolutely say no if you wish to.”

Pressing his lips together Patton nodded for him to continue.

“I know how hard you work, what with two jobs and school on top of that; you’ve told me you sometimes struggle to meet the rent. We’ve been dating for a couple months now and I was wondering, would you like to move in with me?”

Taken aback by the question Patton could do nothing but gape at the other man, silence stretching between them as he tried to comprehend what he was hearing.

“I understand the hesitancy but I feel like it makes more sense. I could pay most of the rent while you contribute the rest, we could trade off making dinner, it’s a bigger apartment I’m sure so you could get out of that run down building. Plus it's closer to your campus so you wouldn’t have to take the bus, and I could always drive you to work.”

“Roman- that’s incredibly generous of you but I can’t ask you to do that.” Declining drove a stake through his heart but Patton was determined to stay firm. He wasn't a charity case, and even if the answers to nearly all of his problems were sitting right in front of him he knew he had to refuse.

“Patton, you aren’t asking, I am.” Roman looked imploringly into his eyes. “You do so much, let me take care of you.”

Biting his lip, Patton looked back at Roman nervously. This was an incredible thing that had just landed right in his lap- he wanted to say yes so badly but what if they didn't work out? If they broke up Patton would be on the street, he didn’t know anyone besides Roman and his bosses and the latter he knew wouldn’t think twice about some poor college student living on the sidewalk. Plus he felt like the relationship was moving so fast, though he didn’t really have much to compare it to other than little high school flings so maybe he was just paranoid. But it was so difficult to keep up with the rent, and if he had the security of Roman- not quite the roommate he had imagined but definitely better, maybe everything was finally looking up.

Squeezing Roman’s hand he took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay. Only if you're sure and I’ll of course help out around the apartment in any way I can!”

“I don’t doubt it my love.” Their food was placed in front of them, as Roman nodded. “We can move you in today if you like. It wouldn’t be too much trouble.”

Smiling giddily Patton nodded. Yes, everything was certainly turning around for the better.

-----

As they left the restaurant with Roman leading him to his car so they could start packing up his apartment, Patton nearly froze on the spot but managed to keep walking like nothing had happened. He climbed somewhat nervously into the car he had been seeing outside of his apartment, outside of his restaurant and even sometimes outside of the rather remote warehouse where he worked. He shut the door to the dark blue Sudan carefully and buckled his seatbelt, pushing the buzzing in his ears aside as he settled in his seat and listened to Roman’s idle chatter.

Everything was looking up. It would be fine.

This work is also available on AO3!

Part 2 here

#false writes #false bthb #bthb #bad things happen bingoo #patton sanders #roman sanders #unsympathetic roman sanders #sanders sides #sanders sides fic

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dr-archeville · 4 years ago

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INDY Daily: Another Newsletter About Coronavirus

Everything you need to know this morning

Thank you to this week's INDY Daily sponsor, NC State’s Institute for Advanced Analytics. They are accepting applications for admission to their intensive, immersive, interactive 10-month Master of Science in Analytics (MSA) program whose next cohort will begin studies in June.

Support the INDY Press Club: Better Journalism for a Better Community

It’s Monday, December 7.

Hey y’all,

I hope everyone had a great weekend. We took our dogs on the three-mile loop around the Duke golf course and I don’t think anything else we’ve ever done with them has made them happier. Also, we watched the movie Heat, and it made me realize that the main thing I look for in a movie is an unhinged performance from one of the leads. So if you’ve got any recommendations for movies where at least one person is acting like a maniac, please send them my way.

Like the INDY Daily? Share it with your friends and ask them to subscribe!

The INDY Daily is made possible by the INDY Press Club, which is helping us keep fearless, independent local journalism viable in the Triangle.

Surprise Surprise, Coronavirus Is Still the Top Story

You know how the stock market is sort of engineered to continuously break its own records? Well, it’s beginning to seem like that with the pandemic, too. On Saturday, the state reported an all-time high of 6,018 new cases in the state for the first time, and then yesterday, we got 6,438. Gov. Roy Cooper and DHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen have suggested that even more stringent social distancing regulations may be on the horizon, so it’s worth looking at one very specific way in which things were set up to get us here.

On one level, having a bunch of new cases isn’t surprising. After all, it’s colder and darker these days, and therefore less suitable to hanging out with people outside, and it’s not like North Carolina is the only place in the universe where COVID rates are going up.

But thanks to a decade under a cut-happy Republican legislature, I worry that if the bottom drops out in North Carolina, things could get even worse.

Why? Well, we are the worst state to be unemployed in. After the 2008 recession, the state racked up a $2.5 billion debt to the federal government in order to keep up with unemployment payments. In the 2010s, the legislature decided to pay back that debt by slashing unemployment benefits — and it’s continued to do so while cutting unemployment taxes even after the debt was paid back.

During the summer, North Carolina’s unemployed enjoyed an extra $600 per week on top of their paltry benefits meted out over 12 weeks (most states provide at least 26 weeks of benefits). But that’s dried up, and the additional 12 weeks of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance were hard to get hold of, and on December 26, PUA will be no more.

Meanwhile, it’s really hard to get a well-paying job that allows you to work from home, even if you had one prior to the pandemic. So people are turning to in-person hourly wage labor or taking their chances in the gig economy — think doing deliveries for GrubHub, buying someone’s groceries for them via InstaCart, or signing up for TaskRabbit and trying to figure out how to put together someone else’s Ikea furniture. These are things that require people to be out in the world, where their chances of catching COVID skyrocket compared to those working at home.

We could have expanded unemployment benefits on our own. We could have just straight-up paid people not to work. But instead, the state’s austerity mindset means that in order to survive financially, people have to do some sort of job — and in a pandemic, that means putting them at risk of not surviving physically.

On top of that, the state’s prison system has done a terrible job of keeping its inmates and employees from getting sick and we still haven’t expanded Medicaid which seems insane.

But What About the Vaccine?

Having a suite of FDA-approved coronavirus vaccines out there will help make things a whole lot more normal, yes. But it’s beginning to look like the vaccine rollout will be slow, lumbering, and not very fun. Then again, 2020 was slow, lumbering, and not very fun, so maybe that’s apt.

Instead of an anticipated 20 million doses of the vaccine by the end of the year, the United States is probably going to get about 6.4 million doses.

That’s not enough, a CNN analysis found, to cover those in the first-priority groups of 27 states.

The United States’ focus on developing a vaccine without simultaneously figuring out how to rapidly scale up its production and distribute it to people is starting to feel like the "gnome underpants" joke from South Park. But instead of "Step One: Steal Underpants / Step Two: ??? / Step Three: Profit," we’ve got "Step One: Develop COVID Vaccine / Step Two: ??? / Step Three: Full Immunization."

While getting vaccines out to everyone is obviously a logistically difficult undertaking, it really seems like we should have been better prepared for this point in the process?

Former Democratic presidential candidate/Bill Dauterive lookalike John Delaney has suggested that we pay people to get vaccinated. Honestly, that’s not the craziest idea in the world.

Finally, this really doesn’t have a whole lot to do with a vaccine, but Rudy Giuliani has coronavirus. This is very funny in a schadenfreude kind of way, but it’s pretty alarming in the sense that the hack lawyer formerly known as "America’s Mayor" has spent the past couple of weeks in courtrooms and state legislative chambers ranting about election fraud while not wearing a mask. His flailing attempts at undermining democracy were bad enough without the possibility that they might lead to someone dying of COVID, y’know?

Statewide COVID-19 by the numbers: Sunday, December 6

6,438 New lab-confirmed new cases (394,990 total; seven-day average trending up)

46,942 Completed tests (5.59 million total; most recent positive rate was 10.4 percent)

2,191 Current hospitalizations reported (seven-day average trending up; 5,543 total deaths)

Quick Hits

Chapel Hill has topped the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Quality Index for North Carolina, meaning that the town does more for its LGBTQ+ residents than any other place in the state. [INDY Week]

It’s a great time to be a Christmas tree farmer in North Carolina. [NC State]

Now that Donald Trump’s reign of dumbness is almost over, it’s a great time to look back on all the times his presidency resembled the HBO comedy Veep. [Politico]

Are you a white male with brown eyes who stands between 6’2 and 6’6 and weighs 210 to 250 pounds? Do you have a deep voice and walk with a limp? Have you robbed 16 banks in Tennessee, South Carolina, and North Carolina since 2009? If so, then you may be the criminal that the FBI has dubbed the "Too Tall Bandit" and you should probably turn yourself in. [WXII 12]

The North Carolina zoo has a new resident: a baby sand cat named Layla. She’s the first sand cat to be born at the facility. [Fox 8]

Today’s weather: Rain until the early afternoon, cloudy into the evening, and then clear at night. High of 45, low of 29.

Song of the day: "Monolith" by Emma Ruth Rundle and Thou Kentucky post-folk singer-songer Emma Ruth Rundle and New Orleans anarcho-sludge-metal band Thou had such a fun time playing a collaborative set at a festival last year that they made a whole album together. Turns out Thou can really boogie when they decide to get lively, and that despite her disparate musical style, Rundle’s undeniable vocal talents translate perfectly to Thou’s ponderous soundscapes.

— Drew Millard — Send me an email | Find me on Twitter

If you’d like to advertise your business to the Daily's 33,000-plus subscribers, please contact John Hurld at [email protected].

Love the INDY Daily? Support it by joining the INDY Press Club.

#news #NC #COVID 19 #Coronavirus #pandemic

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phroyd · 5 years ago

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President Trump’s inaccurate assertion that he has “total” authority to reopen a nation shuttered by the coronavirus is igniting a fresh challenge from governors scrambling to manage their states and highlighting a Republican Party reluctant to defy a president who has relished pushing the boundaries of executive power.

The president’s claim, first conveyed in a tweet Monday morning and underscored at a White House news conference and subsequent social media posts, caught his aides off guard and prompted them to study whether Trump would have such authority in a time of emergency like the ongoing pandemic.

Republicans were largely tepid in their criticism of Trump’s expansive views on his power, which he has wielded throughout his presidency as he circumvented the legislative branch on matters of spending and subpoenas, while enjoying decisions in which he maintained universal authority such as issuing pardons. Trump has also issued a multitude of executive orders while relying heavily on myriad acting administration officials rather than subjecting them to the Senate confirmation process.

At a White House briefing late Tuesday, Trump offered conflicting statements about which entity had the authority to reopen, seeming to backtrack from his claim Monday but at the same time insisting the federal government would have the final say.

“The governors are responsible. They have to take charge,” said Trump, who added that some states want to reopen now and probably can before May 1, while others aren’t there yet. He said that if a state with many cases tries to reopen early, the federal government might step in.

“If we disagree with it, we’re not going to let it open,” he said, before adding, “We’re there to help. But we’re also there to be critics.”

Earlier in the day, Trump’s comments on reopening the nation were challenged by his presumptive Democratic rival this fall, former vice president Joe Biden, and also by prominent governors overseeing the public health crisis in their states such as New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who in his daily news conference Tuesday skewered at length Trump’s position as wildly off-base from the Constitution.

Cuomo said the president’s claim of total authority is “not an accurate statement,” because the basic principle of federalism is enshrined in the Constitution, in which powers not given to the federal government remain with the states.

“The statement that he has total authority over the states and the nation cannot go uncorrected,” Cuomo said. “There are many things that you can debate in the Constitution because they’re ambiguous. This is not ambiguous.”

Later Tuesday in his own remarks, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) was less pointed toward Trump but nonetheless unequivocal, tweeting: “When it comes to reopening, SCIENCE — not politics — must be California’s guide.” Newsom outlined six factors he will consider in doing so, including protecting communities from the spread of the virus and ensuring that hospitals could handle any surge in cases.

The fresh power struggle between the federal government and state officials came as the toll of the pandemic continued to grow, with more than 25,000 people dead from the virus in the United States and more than 600,000 confirmed to be infected.

The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday that the pandemic is causing the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. It is also inflicting acute pain in the medical sector, which continues to struggle with supplies and personnel becoming sick, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention saying Tuesday that 9,000 health care workers have tested positive.

In another assertion of authority, Trump said he would halt funding to World Health Organization while a review was conducted. He has criticized the organization for its slow response in the early days of the outbreak, but by Jan. 30, the organization declared a global health emergency, after which the president continued to play down the outbreak and compared it with seasonal flu.

Governors also began outlining their strategy for reopening their states in the coming weeks and months, while a consortium of seven East Coast states continued a plan to explore how and when to lift restrictions in their geographically aligned states.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) was among the state leaders who made clear Tuesday that the facts on the ground must dictate when the current restrictions can begin to ease.

“This monster is still going to be with us at least until we get a vaccine,” DeWine, who has said his state has had a good working relationship with federal officials so far, said at a Tuesday news conference. “It’s not going away, and that’s the sad news. . . . We are 12-18 months away from this going away. We’re going to have to live with it..”

Two White House officials said there was no broader planning for Trump’s comments that he had “total” authority and that they were both surprised by his tweets to that effect Monday. There was no legal underpinning for the remarks in advance, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk frankly, and “it is widely viewed with skepticism in the building that we should be doing this.

The White House Counsel’s Office is studying what authority the president actually does have during a national emergency, according to the officials. But the operating plan in the White House is not to try to force any state to reopen, although one senior White House official said they had been in contact with some states — such as Texas, Mississippi and Tennessee — about reopening sooner rather than later.

“I am almost positive James Madison fell off a cloud somewhere today when Trump said that,” said Dan Eberhart, a Republican donor. “The founders of the republic stitched together a complicated game of chess to ensure our president was a very weak king who could be simultaneously slowed down by the legislature, judiciary and federalism. His authority is far from total.”

Another prominent GOP donor, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations, said there was an effort “to talk him into a better place.”

One official said Trump is frustrated that the governors are getting so much credit and no blame while he gets all the blame and none of the credit. He particularly complains about Cuomo, this official said.

“Cuomo’s been calling daily, even hourly, begging for everything, most of which should have been the state’s responsibility, such as new hospitals, beds, ventilators, etc.,” Trump tweeted earlier Tuesday. “I got it all done for him, and everyone else, and now he seems to want Independence! That won’t happen!”

Trump has said repeatedly that the federal government is merely a backup to the states and that the onus is on the governors to deal with the pandemic.

Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) said in a recent interview that “at the end of the day, it will be the governors that make these decisions.”

Combative in public, Trump administration and congressional leaders negotiate behind the scenes on coronavirus relief

One Republican ally close to the president said Trump did not initially want to be associated with decisions to close down the government because “closing is bad news, and opening is good news.” And he spoke with governors such as Florida’s Ron DeSantis (R) who were skeptical, said this person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.

Trump was happy to accept the argument from some advisers that he should invoke federalism, and the president repeatedly emphasized states’ rights when questioned by reporters in recent weeks why he was not instituting a national stay-at-home order. But he sees a political triumph in reopening the economy and wants credit for it, this person said.

In a tweet Monday, Biden said that he is “not running for office to be King of America.”

“I respect the Constitution,” Biden said. “I’ve read the Constitution. I’ve sworn an oath to it many times. I respect the great job so many of this country’s governors — Democratic and Republican — are doing under these horrific circumstances.”

Within the GOP, Trump’s biggest challenge to his exertion of executive power came last year, when a dozen GOP senators voted to reject an emergency declaration the president issued to take taxpayer dollars from the military and other accounts for a border wall that Congress had denied.

Of that dozen, two — Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Marco Rubio (Fla.) — issued comments Tuesday, both stressing that states should retain the power to regulate their own activities. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said in a statement: “I respect the authorities of the office of the presidency. I also recognize that it will take all of us — elected leaders and citizens — to effectively stop the spread of this virus.”

A spokeswoman for Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) pointed to his remarks from a Fox Business interview earlier Tuesday in which he said the matter was not just up to elected officials “deciding when it’s time and coming up with some arbitrary deadline,” but the science and whether people feel safe leaving their homes.

Aides to two others — Utah Sens. Mitt Romney and Mike Lee — said the senators would have no response. None of the other six responded to requests for comment. They were Sens. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), Roy Blunt (Mo.), Susan Collins (Maine), Jerry Moran (Kan.), Patrick J. Toomey (Pa.) and Roger Wicker (Miss.).

At least two other prominent elected GOP lawmakers, past and present — Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), the third-ranking leader among House Republicans, and Republican-turned independent Rep. Justin Amash (Mich.) — challenged Trump’s notion.

Cheney, whose father, Richard B. Cheney, had pushed for broad executive authority as vice president in George W. Bush’s administration, cited the text of the 10th Amendment in a tweet: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

But other GOP lawmakers questioned about Trump’s bold claim, an assertion refuted by constitutional experts, were reluctant to challenge the president.

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), the No. 2 House Republican, argued in a Fox News interview Tuesday that states had largely taken their cue from Trump and the federal government over the past two months, particularly when it comes to social distancing guidelines.

“When the president said that, you saw almost every governor in the country take that cue and say, ‘Okay, we’re going to institute a new set of policies,’ ” Scalise said. “And so, while the president hasn’t said every state has to do this, he’s been setting the guidance using the experts from CDC and other agencies, and then you see states following suit.”

A spokesman for Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) on Tuesday declined to comment beyond the governor’s remarks to CNN on Monday in which he said governors were best positioned to make the ultimate decision on when their states can safely resume everyday activities.

“It’s not my understanding of the Constitution,” Hogan said in the CNN interview of Trump’s interpretation of his own powers.

Devlin Barrett, Ovetta Wiggins, Felicia Sonmez, Mike DeBonis, Samantha Pell and Brittany Shammas contributed to this report.

Phroyd

#trump #corona #moron

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kaycmoney · 4 years ago

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33 Legit Online Jobs That Pay $50,000+ From Home

Working remotely doesn’t have to mean taking a pay cut. There are more legit online jobs than ever. All it takes is being aware of the possibilities.

Below are 33 legitimate online jobs where you can earn over $50,000 a year — and most of them allow you to make your own schedule.

Plus, included are a number of valuable tips and resources that will help you land and succeed in your ideal online job.

Best Online Jobs

These top online jobs have the ideal mix of high demand, a low supply of talented individuals, and the ability to start earning fast. All you need is an internet connection and the motivation to get started.

#1. Proofreading

Quick summary: Earn money by proofreading books, academic papers, website content, audio transcripts and more.

Average pay: $17.50 per hour.

Pros: With no certification requirements, you can start earning fast.

Cons: Limited upside unless you decide to transition to a related high-paying field (such as editing).

If you’re the type of person that spots every typo and grammar mistake in the articles you read, consider a career as a proofreader. This is a great example of a job that needs no certification, and you can use your set of eagle eyes to make solid money.

With the explosion of web content that has occurred in recent years, it’s a job that’s in super-high demand. That means you can land your first client today, if you’re ready to start.

#2. Bookkeeping

Quick summary: Record and continuously update financial transactions for small businesses.

Average pay: $17.50 to $40+ per hour.

Pros: You’ll typically work with clients on a retainer basis, allowing you to earn a steady base of income.

Cons: Will need basic training to earn your first client.

At the top of most business owners’ list of “Least Favorite Work Activities” is bookkeeping. Of course, it’s a critical task for ensuring that a business runs smoothly and survives into the future.

If you’re someone who loves to work with numbers, you can earn very good money in the field. There are also a lot of opportunities to charge higher hourly wages the more you specialize.

And, just like proofreading, bookkeeping doesn’t require a certification.

#3. Start A Blog And Become An Influencer

Quick summary: Create a website that provides valuable information about a topic you care about.

Average pay: $0 to $10k+ per month.

Pros: High income potential.

Cons: Even experienced bloggers take nearly a year to earn a full-time living.

I started my first blog in 2009 and sold it two years later.

I launched this blog in August of 2016. Just over a year later, it was generating enough revenue that I felt comfortable leaving a job I’d held for over 10 years.

The great thing about a blog is that you’re building a sellable asset. A quality website sells for around 30X its monthly revenue. Therefore, if you’re able to make $1,333 per month, you have a $40,000 asset.

As for how to make money blogging, there are a number of ways.

These include:

Advertising — earn money by placing ads on your website.

Affiliate marketing — make money promoting other businesses.

Products and services — sell your own products and services to others.

Sponsored content — you can get paid for partnering with brands

One big upside to blogging is that it can be a great source of passive income. On the other hand, one downside is that it can take time to get up and running. As such, if you need money today, you might want to consider a different online job instead.

#4. Online Tutoring

Quick summary: Tutor students worldwide in English or other subjects.

Average pay: $18 per hour.

Pros: The ability to start earning in as little as a few weeks.

Cons: Limited upside.

One high-growth business industry right now is online education. And one of the fastest-growing niches within online education is online tutoring jobs.

There are now multiple websites that connect you with students all over the world who are looking to be tutored in a range of subjects.

When we ranked the best online tutoring sites, one of the top options was Education First.

EF is a U.S.-based company that pays as much as $20 per hour to start and offers cash bonuses for reaching certain teaching milestones.

Here are just a few of the benefits of working for EF:

The lesson plans and course materials are provided.

You can start teaching classes as quickly as two weeks after applying.

You can work when you want, where you want, with no need to worry about marketing your services.

No teaching experience is required, as EF considers your entire professional background and resume.

Apply with Education First.

VIPKid is another great online tutoring opportunity, although they get a lot more applications. As such, it’s better suited for those with more teaching experience.

You’ll need a bachelor’s degree to work for either company, but it doesn’t have to be in education and you don’t need an active teaching certification.

Apply with VIPKid.

Best Legit Part-Time Online Jobs (With No Fees Or Startup Costs)

What makes a great part-time online job?

Flexibility, fulfilling work, and the chance to earn as much by working part-time as others do from working full-time.

Here are the top part-time online jobs that meet these criteria.

#5. Social Media Marketing

Quick summary: Handle all social media tasks for small business owners.

Average pay: $20 to $100+ per hour.

Pros: Most social media clients are on a retainer basis.

Cons: Limited upside unless you’re willing to learn paid advertising, which can take time.

Many business owners don’t have the time to make consistent updates to their social media platforms, or to respond promptly to customer requests made via social media.

That’s why so many businesses today are looking to hire social media managers. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an 8% job growth rate is expected for social media marketing managers through 2028.

As long as you have the ability to post, curate and manage content on social media channels, you can start taking on clients today.

But the big money is in learning how to effectively deploy paid advertising, such as Facebook ads. Businesses need new customer leads, and you can earn premium wages if you know how to use things like micro-targeting to deliver ads to just the right audience.

This can be a great opportunity for college students, because the amount of time you need to spend on a project each week can be quite small (especially if you utilize automation), and the required schedule tends to be extremely flexible.

#6. Virtual Assistant

Quick summary: Work as a remote executive assistant doing a range of tasks.

Average pay: $18 to $35 per hour, according to Upwork.

Pros: The more efficient you become, the more clients you can add (and the more money you can make).

Cons: Most employers will want you to work certain hours of the day.

For years, most people thought of virtual assistants as low-paid overseas workers that could be trusted to handle basic administrative tasks.

But now the trend isn’t to hire a VA for $5 an hour. It’s to find the highest-quality VA possible. Someone who will really add value to your business.

And because of that, people are willing to pay significantly higher wages to the right person with the right skills and work experience.

So instead of just doing boring, repetitive tasks, you’ll be working for a successful business owner as a remote executive assistant.

Common tasks carried out by VAs include:

Answering email

Booking travel

Managing social media

Scheduling appointments

And more, depending on the field

Some VAs take on multiple clients, allowing them to earn over six figures a year from home. This means it can be one of the most lucrative remote jobs you’ll come across.

#7. Freelance Writing

Quick summary: Online writing jobs include things like drafting blog posts, articles, advertisements and more for clients.

Average pay: $15 to $40 per hour for beginners.

Pros: It’s a field that’s exploding in demand due to the growth of online publishing.

Cons: Standing out when you don’t have a lot of experience is difficult.

Freelance writing is one of the more lucrative side hustles I’ve tried. I started small, but in a year I was earning over $100 an hour.

Thanks to the growth of content marketing, it’s also a skill that’s more in-demand than ever.

#8. Photography

Quick summary: Supply stock photos that will be purchased and used by businesses.

Average pay: 20 to 50 cents per image sold.

Pros: A fun, fulfilling hobby that can double as a business.

Cons: Will take time to build up your inventory of photos available for sale.

One of the fasting-growing online markets is stock photography.

Businesses need quality stock photos for their websites, client presentations and more. If you love being behind a camera — even the one on your smartphone — you can get paid for uploading quality photos to stock photo sites.

You’ll earn anywhere between 20 and 50 cents per image sold. So, the goal is to have dozens of photos for sale, each generating daily commissions. This makes selling stock photography a great source of passive income, because you can get paid over and over again for work you only did once.

#9. Search Engine Optimization

Quick summary: Help small business owners get found online.

Average pay: $25 to $40 per hour for beginners.

Pros: Quality SEO specialists are in high demand.

Cons: Proving your value comes down to showing proof that past projects have worked — which makes it hard for beginners to land a job.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of helping businesses get found online — primarily on Google.

In fact, a recent study by Microsoft listed SEO as the most important hard skill for marketers to learn going forward in 2020.

In my experience, having managed local SEO campaigns in the past, there’s a lot of low-hanging fruit. That means you can drive a lot of revenue to a business just by implementing a basic set of SEO “best practices.” Therefore, you can charge a high hourly or project rate, knowing you’ll deliver results.

The best way to learn SEO is with hands-on experience. Personally, I learned SEO by starting a blog and seeing what worked and what didn’t.

With real proof of results on my resume, I was then able to obtain clients and earn a high rate for my work.

#10. Scoping

Quick summary: Edit transcripts for court reporters.

Average pay: $20 to $30 per hour.

Pros: Very flexible hours, as often you’ll be working off recordings.

Cons: Contracts can come and go based on your client’s hours.

Scoping is a little-known work-from-home job that’s been around for 30+ years.

A court reporter’s job is transcribing what’s said in the courtroom into written form, using a special system of shorthand so that they can keep up with the fast-moving proceedings. Court reporters then hire scopists to edit their transcripts.

Court reporters make money per page, not per hour. That’s why outsourcing the editing allows them to increase their earning potential.

Similar to proofreading and bookkeeping, no certification is required, there are very minimal start-up costs, and the earning potential is high.

#11. Graphic Design

Quick summary: Design engaging graphics.

Average pay: $25 to $40 per hour for beginners.

Pros: Pick your own clients and work in niches that interest you.

Cons: Will be a lot of project-based work, which can vary your income.

For the artists out there, graphic design is a great way to monetize your hobby. The web is becoming more and more visual — especially as mobile devices become the primary method of browsing.

The highest-paid graphic designers combine multiple skills into their designs. Knowledge in branding, sales and direct response marketing allows many graphic designers to charge over $100 per hour.

#12. Video Editing

Quick summary: Create engaging videos for social media, YouTube and websites.

Average pay: $25 to $35 per hour for beginners.

Pros: Growing in demand as the popularity of YouTube, Instagram and other video platforms increases.

Cons: Video editing requires a lot of focus, so it’s important you have the work environment and discipline to log longer hours.

Another online trend that’s picking up more steam year-by-year is video editing. Video editors with prior experience are in high demand today, with the potential to earn over $50 per hour the more you specialize.

#13. Marketing Automation Specialist

Quick summary: Design and implement automated digital marketing systems.

Average pay: $40+ per hour for beginners.

Pros: High income potential, with the ability to scale into an agency.

Cons: The best in the field have a range of skills, from copywriting to understanding the technical aspects of a particular software. These skills tend to have a longer learning curve.

I’m in a mastermind group that’s been meeting since 2009. We all do some type of marketing work as independent contractors for a range of businesses. We’ve each had our ups and downs. Yet, as I write this, things are going well for everyone.

Connecting the dots, we realized that once we committed to specializing in a growing digital marketing platform, we had to actually start turning clients away.

One of the fastest-growing segments is marketing automation, on platforms such as Ontraport and HubSpot. These platforms are experiencing explosive growth, and more are emerging all the time. Some other examples are Aweber, Convert Kit and MailChimp.

Taking a certification course to become a specialist can often land you in the $60 to $100 per hour range fast.

#14. Medical Transcriptionist

Quick summary: Edit medical transcriptions for local healthcare providers.

Average pay: Transcription jobs typically pay $10 to $25 per hour.

Pros: Steady source of income.

Cons: High startup costs to earn a credential.

There are dozens of data entry jobs online. Sites like Clickworker and Amazon’s Mechanical Turk provide typists with a lot of work opportunities, but they’re often micro jobs — quick tasks that pay almost nothing.

In order to make over $50,000 per year with data entry jobs, you’ll need to specialize. And beyond scoping, one of the best ways to specialize in data entry is by focusing on medical transcription.

The first thing to know about medical transcription is that it requires a certification, which you can get through a company like CareerStep. CareerStep offers a range of certifications in multiple work-at-home opportunities within the medical field.

With their medical transcription certification, which is approved by the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity, you’ll prepare yourself to land an online job as a transcriptionist in an industry that’s hungry for qualified talent. CareerStep courses are not cheap (they start at $2,999), but they do offer both payment plans and discounts for military spouses.

If you’re not looking for a career and just want to make some extra income, there are a number of websites where you can get started with transcription jobs on a more casual basis.

The most popular sites are:

Rev — make 36 to 65 cents per minute of audio transcribed.

Go Transcript — earn up to 60 cents per minute of audio transcribed.

Scribie — pay starts at $5 to $25 per hour of audio transcribed.

DionData Solutions – hires only U.S.-based workers.

One thing worth noting about medical transcriptionists is that they’re seldom out of work for long, as more and more healthcare companies are looking to outsource tasks to keep overhead costs as low as possible.

#15. Voiceover Artist

Quick summary: Provide vocal recordings to be used in audiobooks, videos, films and more.

Average pay: $20 pay per hour.

Pros: Flexibility and freedom to work your own schedule.

Cons: As most work is contract-based, your income can vary drastically from month-to-month.

Voice acting is the art of reading a script and using your voice to bring that script to life. Quality voice actors are in especially high demand in the marketing field, as video marketing has exploded in popularity in recent years.

A good site to get started on is Upwork. There, you can gain experience working as a voiceover artist (and ideally find your niche).

#16. Technical Writing

Quick summary: Synthesize complex, high-level information for a specific audience to understand.

Average pay: $20 per hour for beginners.

Pros: One of the higher-paying freelance writing niches.

Cons: The work isn’t very creative compared to most traditional writing jobs.

For those who like to dive deep into learning new things — and aren’t afraid of tackling super-complicated topics — technical writing can be a great way to generate extra income.

As a technical writer, you’ll be responsible for writing user guides and other documentation.

Aside from being interesting work for those who love to research, it’s also widely recognized as one of the best-paying writing jobs available. Furthermore, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects growth at 8% per year through 2028.

#17. Customer Service Representative

Quick summary: Provide service to a businesses’ existing customers.

Average pay: $12 to $25 per hour.

Pros: Opportunities with Fortune 500 companies, which may provide benefits such as health insurance, 401(k), and paid time off.

Cons: You may have to work irregular hours (especially when just starting out).

Most customer service jobs will not pay you $50,000. In fact, according to Payscale, the average hourly wage for work-at-home customer service jobs is $13.92.

However, if you’re smart about where to look and the skillsets to master, there is a path to becoming a high-earner in the field.

For starters, because there’s a large supply of customer service jobs, I’d avoid looking for jobs under the name “Customer Service Representative.” Research by TheJobNetwork showed that terms like “Customer Experience Associate,” “Customer Engagement Representative,” and “Customer Service Advisor” actually paid $18 or more per hour — well more than your average customer service job.

Two fields with a lot of overlap (and higher pay than customer service) are “Account Management” and “Customer Success Manager.” In these fields, you’ll be doing a lot of customer service work but other skills — such as cross-selling and retention — are required. As such, if you’re looking to become a high earner long-term, finding an entry-level position in account management or customer success might be your best bet.

Online Jobs That Pay Well For Entrepreneurs

The goal of a freelancer is to get good clients, do great work, and increase their value over time.

The goal of an entrepreneur is to build a repeatable system that provides value with or without the owner.

As an entrepreneur, you’re no longer working on projects for a set rate (or by the hour). Instead, your income correlates with the amount of value you can provide.

There are no limits to what you can and can’t do. But to narrow down your choices and help you figure out where to start, here are 10 ideas.

#18. Authority Sites

Quick summary: Build an informational website that helps people make purchasing decisions.

Pros: While working to build your authority site, you’ll learn very valuable, in-demand skills that can be transferred to your existing career.

Cons: Similar to a blog, it often takes a year or more to see a significant source of income.

A popular, highly-profitable and low-cost online business idea is building authority sites.

Authority sites are content-driven websites on a specific topic. They most often exist to help people like you and me make purchasing decisions.

Authority sites are a lot like blogs. Actually, if you were to build an authority site, a lot of the work is the same. The big difference is that blogs are more personal in nature. With a blog, you’re looking to build long-term relationships with visitors. Authority sites are much more transactional.

To best understand the idea, think back to the last time you searched for a review of a product. When you visited a website that had the review, that was likely an authority site.

As an example, I’m in the market for a sauna. So, I’ve visited different authority sites in the sauna niche, reading buyer guides and reviews.

The most popular way authority sites make money is through affiliate partnerships. With our sauna example, if I were to buy a sauna recommended by a particular site, that site would earn a commission.

And therein lies one of the big benefits to an authority site: since the owner doesn’t need to be present to make money, and they often drive traffic through passive sources like Google, such sites can be a source of passive income.

#19. Dropshipping

Quick summary: Sell items via a website and have them shipped directly from the manufacturer or wholesaler to the customer.

Pros: Can test the business model with very little money.

Cons: The dropshipping field is loaded with spammy marketing, so stick with learning the ropes from reputable sites like Shopify.

Shopify has created hundreds of opportunities for online entrepreneurs. Why? They made the process of selling online easy. From products and digital downloads to consulting services, over 1 million people use Shopify to run an online store.

One of the most common ways people get started is through dropshipping. The benefit of starting a dropshipping store is that orders are sent right to the customer. That means the store owners (like yourself) don’t have to hold inventory or deal with shipping.

And since you only need to order a product after a customer has bought it from your store, it’s a very low-cost business to start.

#20. Retail Arbitrage

Quick summary: Buy low and sell high.

Pros: A way for hobbyist and collectors to use their knowledge of a particular niche to make money.

Cons: Takes time and skill to find the best deals.

Do you love going to flea markets and garage sales, and browsing thrift stores? If so, you can make money online by flipping items for profit.

Think of this online business idea as buying an asset and selling it for a higher price. Your inventory can be anything you find at a garage sale or on a clearance rack.

The goal — and the key to making retail arbitrage work — is having an information advantage. This means understanding the market for what you’re buying better than the person who is selling that item.

Remember, the concept of arbitrage is based on the principle that a particular good has a higher price in one place than it does in another. That might mean it sells for more in California than it does in New York. But it might also mean that it sells for more online than it does in a brick-and-mortar store.

Winning at arbitrage means knowing how to figure out which items to buy and which ones to walk away from.

#21. E-Commerce Store And/Or Amazon FBA

Quick summary: Create your own online store or use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) to sell physical products online.

Pros: Very high potential in a fast-growing field.

Cons: Higher startup costs. Money often has to be reinvested in the business.

Amazon FBA is a business idea that’s getting a lot of attention lately.

The idea is to buy products directly from a manufacturer or wholesaler, then sell them online via Amazon. The most popular option is to use Amazon FBA, which handles all the warehousing and shipping (the “fulfillment”) for you. In fact, you can even have the manufacturer or distributor ship the products directly to Amazon, so that you never have to physically touch the items.

But you don’t have to limit your selling to Amazon. You can also use FBA to ship products you sell on eBay or your own website. It’s much easier than packing and shipping everything yourself, and the shipping rates Amazon charges you are much lower than you’d pay to UPS or FedEx.

#22. Etsy Store Owner

Quick summary: Create and sell homemade crafts and digital products on the world’s largest creative marketplace.

Pros: You’re taking advantage of a fast-growing platform.

Cons: As Etsy has grown it’s become more competitive, with large companies creating stores on the marketplace.

When it comes to legit work-from-home jobs for moms, Etsy is near the top of the list.

Think of Etsy like eBay for creative people, as some of the most popular products on the platform include arts, crafts and jewelry.

You can either do Etsy as a business (there are many full-time sellers) or use it as a way to make extra money in your spare time.

#23. Create A Course

Quick summary: Create an online education course.

Pros: Can test demand for ideas fast by utilizing online teaching websites.

Cons: The below sites, which have an audience looking for courses, often take a large cut of your profits. The best long-term business model is building your own audience, but that can take time.

If you have expertise others may find valuable, you can create a course online and sell it. This used to be very hard, as you had to build your audience from scratch.

But two websites, Udemy and Skillshare, now provide access to an audience of people who are eager to learn about almost everything under the sun.

There are all types of courses available, so it’s a great way to create a legit online job of your own.

#24. Home Health Agency

Quick summary: Manage a local team of home healthcare providers.

Pros: Demographic trends, specifically the aging of the baby boom generation, have increased demand.

Cons: High startup costs, including licensure.

A major trend in our economy is the need for qualified home healthcare. The aging population of the United States, as well as seniors’ increasing desire for care inside their home, is driving this trend.

A big benefactor of this trend has been local home health agencies.

A home healthcare agency provides qualified care to local residents. As employees are working at client’s houses, an office isn’t required.

This is by no means an easy business to start. To begin, you’ll need certain licenses and certifications. These vary by state, as well as by the type of care you offer.

Non-medical care agencies have the lowest startup costs and barriers to entry. This type of agency provides day-to-day living help, such as meal-prep and housekeeping. In contrast, medical care agencies work with Medicare/Medicaid and have more complex responsibilities.

#25. Virtual Recruiter

Quick summary: Find talented employees for businesses.

Pros: High income potential for those with large existing networks.

Cons: If working for yourself, income can vary widely as you’re only paid when someone lands a job.

If you love to network, this is a great low-cost business to start. What you’re doing here is finding talent for employers. Payouts can be quite large, as some placement firms charge upwards of 25% (or more) of the employee’s annual salary.

#26. Insurance Agent

Quick summary: Sell property, casualty or life insurance from a home office.

Pros: Some insurance income is recurring, making for a quality source of passive income.

Cons: Competitive field, often competing with companies with billion-dollar ad budgets.

Having been in this field myself for over 10 years, I’ve seen a lot of growth from individuals starting their own insurance agencies from home. Startup costs are low, the hours are flexible, and the commissions can be quite high.

If I were to start an insurance agency from home, I’d focus on selling small business insurance. The premiums tend to be higher than those of auto and home policies, and there’s much less competition.

#27. Travel Agent

Quick summary: Book and coordinate travel for individuals or businesses.

Pros: Fulfilling way to earn more for those who love to travel.

Cons: Income can vary, as travel tends to spike at certain times of year.

Believe it or not, travel agents are still in demand. It just depends on finding the right niche. This is an especially good business for you if you have personal or professional travel experience, because you can provide your clients with insights they can’t get from a website.

Legit Online Jobs: Growing Industries Hiring Online

Below are examples of legit online job opportunities in specific industries that are increasingly moving towards remote workers. Here you’ll find jobs available for both entry-level workers and for those with experience (both in the U.S. and Canada).

#28. Healthcare

Popular online healthcare jobs include billing, coding, the handling of insurance claims and general customer service work.

#29. Sales And Business Development

Sales is one of the most in-demand and legitimate work-at-home jobs. If you produce results, you can get paid big money. Just about every industry needs quality salespeople.

#30. Accounting And Finance

A field open to both entry-level and experienced professionals, common roles in accounting and finance include bookkeeping, managing payables and receivables, collections and analysis.

#31. Communications

Work with PR and marketing departments to deliver communications within and to prospects and customers of a company.

#32. Insurance

The insurance field is one of the largest sectors of the economy, employing over 2.66 million people in the United States. Entry-level jobs include call center roles, customer service reps, sales, and communications.

#33. Legal

There’s a wide range of jobs in the legal field. Opportunities for entry-level workers include administrative assistant and records assistant positions.

Online Job FAQ

How much do online work from home jobs pay per year?

When you work from home, you’ll usually (but not always) be classified as an independent contractor. That means you’re working on a per-hour or per-project basis, rather than for a set annual salary. As a result, your annual earnings can vary widely based on a number of factors. If you’re organized, motivated and efficient, you can often earn more money for the same amount of work as compared to a more traditional environment. But on the flip side, if you’re someone who finds it difficult to stay focused and has a tendency to coast through the day, you might end up making significantly less. That’s because as a freelancer or contractor, you’re only getting paid for the work you actually do. Being at home can be distracting, and it’s easy to end up with only four billable hours after an eight-hour workday. Your take-home pay will also depend on the types of contracts you’re able to win. You’ll make a lot more money as a paid social media manager than you will by doing online data entry jobs.

Where should I look for online jobs?

If you’re trying to get hired for a full-time position at a company, start your job search at FlexJobs — a great job board for finding remote work. As mentioned above, FlexJobs screens each listing before making it available to applicants. That’s a good thing, because the company’s research has shown that there are 53 scam job listings for every legit online job! Beyond FlexJobs, Indeed is another job board that’s worth checking out, as it has the most powerful search engine among job listing websites. If you’re looking for independent contractor or freelance work, sites like Upwork and Fiverr feature a bevy of legitimate online jobs.

How do I avoid work at home scams?

There are many scams when it comes to the advertising of work at home opportunities. That’s why, before applying for any job, you should research the company on Glassdoor, a site that allows former employees to leave reviews of the employer. You’ll find details such as average pay, growth opportunities, benefits, and more. A good rule of thumb is that if the company you’re looking to work for isn’t on Glassdoor, it’s not worth applying. If you’re searching for independent contractor jobs on Fiverr or Upwork, make sure to view the company profile before applying. On Upwork, you can even see how much the company has spent on freelancers, where it’s located, the average hourly rate they pay, and reviews from previous freelancers.

What are the qualifications to get an online work-from-home job?

As with any job, the necessary qualifications depend on the type of work you’re seeking. In general, if you need a certification to do the work in person, you’ll also need one to do it online. However, some jobs — such as freelancing writing and editing jobs — can be easier to get online if you have limited work experience. For example, while few newspapers will hire a journalist who has zero training, it’s fairly easy to gain a foothold as a content writer for a blog or website.

Legit Online Jobs With No Upfront Investment

The internet has made it much easier to make money from home. While many people are just looking for opportunities to make a few bucks here and there by taking online surveys or maximizing their cash-back shopping, you can also find legitimate work that pays just as much as — and often more than — offline options.

Whether your goal is to work full-time, part-time or run your own business, there’s no shortage of work-at-home jobs.

So get started today. Take at least one action: sign up for a free resource, update your resume, or even send that resume in. There’s a good chance you’ll be earning money online faster than you think.

Good luck!

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#AFFILIATE MARKETINGHOW TO MAKE MONEYWORK FROM HOMEMONEYMAKERENTREPRENEUREARN MONEY

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tracyk13 · 5 years ago

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36 and what a world I have seen

Honestly I’ve been terrible at journalling lately. Love handwriting in quill and ink style, but my current life leaves me exhausted after work and most of my time spent in education. But currently the Covid-19 pandemic made me consider the important world events I have witnessed.

Born in 1984 I lived in a world of rapidly changing technology but still being forced outside to play. We always had an Apple computer in our house for as long as I can remember. Played the Oregon Trail in black and white, then in color. That was the standard computer game of my childhood. Mom got us Mario Teaches Typing, probably the only “video game” I ever played at that point. AOL was a thing. All those CDs in the mail with updates. I never really got into it, but my twin sister did.

Also a child of the Disney Golden Age of animation. Dramatically influenced my life to the point I went to work for Walt Disney World after college. Still a Disney fanatic to this day.

Apparently my family visited Yellowstone National park (age 4? too young to remember anyway) then not too long after the park had the fire.

Was alive though not conscious of world events when the Berlin Wall fell. Watch the birth of CNN during the first Desert Storm when my dad was there overseeing some of the first drone flights. The military required a pilot on hand for those flights. He told us later how some Iraqis would surrender to the drone plane, not that it was ever one of the ones he supervised. And according to my mom I frequently asked to NOT watch the 24 hour stream of news because it was too depressing and I knew that’s where dad was.

Really started to pay attention to news (not that l enjoyed it but that’s the timeline for how chidden develop) during the O.J. Simpson trial.

By that point I had lived on both coasts of the USA, crossed country twice, lived in many different environments from Washington’s cold wet seasons to California’s deserts California’s coast to landlocked suburbia of Georgia.

Where I learned to drive, had a single Nokia phone for me and my twin in our tiny Cabrio convertible (I hate convertibles). Got a personal computer for the first time, where before it was a single family computer. The iMacs were coming out right when we were heading to college. My sister got the desktop, I got the laptop and have never looked back. Still have my gumstick shuffle iPod floating around and it still works.

Got to watch the insanity of Indecision 2000 and appreciate political humor for the first time.

I’ve been to 9 different schools for 12 years of school, not including college. That would make it ten. Was a freshman in high school when the Columbine shootings happened. Some weeks later we had a pipe bomb threat at our school which forced all the students out to the football field. From the top of the bleachers we could see the bomb squad and their dogs entering the school. All I could think of was if someone really wanted to kill at lot of people, there on the bleachers would be the place to do it. Then at some point in my adult life someone did it at a movie theater showing The Dark Knight.

Saw the images of the Oklahoma City bombing. Heard about the Unabomber. Watched the Waco Texas incident.

But my senior year was the time of 9/11. My math class was out in the hallway doing a math related science type experiment, can’t tell you what it was. But that day was the only day I have ever heard a school of nearly 5,000 students absolutely silent during class change. Thus Desert Storm part two happened.

Right before I headed off to college. So I wasn’t super savvy about applying to colleges. I only applied to one. Didn’t have a clue as to what I wanted to do with my life. I’ve done a wide variety of sports, been writing fiction since at least 10 years old, drew and painted fairly well, thought about doing animation or architecture (did a semester learning thing with a local firm, decided it wasn’t for me).

Ended up getting a degree in two foreign languages but not fluent in either. It did greatly improve my understanding of the English language. And I had the privilege of an exchange program for a school year to Japan, plus of study abroad summer to Germany. Would never regret any of that. Even if it didn’t get me a degree that got me a job.

Instead I went to Disney World as part of their internship program. Been in foods and hospitality for a significant portion of my life (thus far). Loved working there. Got to work with the Characters and it was fabulous. Even with the frustrations of all work environments.

But it couldn’t last. Minimum wage was raised, but the cost of living out stripped the earnings for a single person living alone. Prompting a move back home with parents to get another degree. Then the Housing bubble burst, loans defaulted, mortgage crisis, resulting in the Great Recession. It did get me a house in my name but basically an income property for my mom as her inheritance from my grandmother. All the while I’m going to school to be a nurse.

Now let’s not forget about the many weather crises I’ve witnessed via the news. Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, Harvey, Maria to name the ones I easily remember. The Class 5 tornado that wiped out a midwestern town. The volcano in Iceland rerouting planes. The tsunami in Indonesia and Sumatra. The massive earthquake in Haiti. These are only the ones that easily come to mind without researching what happened during the years I’ve been alive.

Not to mention the diseases that I’ve seen via the news. First to mind was the Ebola outbreak while I was in nursing school. Saw the hype on the Swine Flue, SARS, Avian flu to name a few easily remembered. Those never reached me personally. Now it’s Covid-19 unfolding. Called SARS-CoV-19 now, but that later.

But its not all disasters. Went to the Atlanta Centennial Olympics still have the t-shirt. Was alive during the first black president.

Took part in the massive phenomena that was Harry Potter and still love it to this day. It showed me that fiction/fantasy could be a mainstream genre to write for. I started writing FanFiction at that time to fill in the long spaces between books. Started when fan fiction.net had the 7or 8 main characters to choose from for tagging. It was like the Wild West of figuring out what you were about to read. Learned about Slash, yaoi, lemons and such the hard way. But being exposed to it that way did open my eyes to what goes on in other people’s heads. Knew immediately that just because I didn’t like something didn't mean I had to hate on it. I left it alone once found and kept going. Really helped increase my tolerance to other cultures and thoughts.

Met my best friend on a role playing site and we wrote nonstop during our college years. Went to her wedding, have a lovely Renaissance style dress as a bridesmaid gift. Still am in touch with her. We don’t write together any more as we have moved in our lives with adulting. But I still have all those stories and hope to turn them into something.

Had my first camera cell phone in Japan as just a basic free phone. Was shocked to find cameras in the States were not standard. One of my friends in Japan kept doing selfies before they were called selfies. Blind positioning of the camera for pictures. Then came the iPhone and the world never looked back.

Joined Facebook when it required a college email. Used MSN messenger and Yahoo messenger to communicate with people around the world. Didn’t join the Twitter or Tumblr movement until after they became established. Saw the boom and bust of the Dot.Com bubble. Watched the Dow Jones numbers increase without the income to invest the way they said to.

Lived right above the poverty line during the Recession. Not knowing if I could make it the next month. Never being able to claim poverty on the tax forms. Caught in the income dead space of not being able to afford health insurance from the markets but in a state that didn’t allow for Medicaid expansion.

But I do not have the worry now thankfully.

Jobs wise I’ve been a telemarketer, dishwasher, a line cook, a hostess, server, janitor, assistant manager, and now I’m a nurse. I started on med/surg, ED, Cardiac, and ICU. In a small rural hospital getting smaller in a time when rural were shutting down because of no funding. They serve areas with a high rates of unemployment, uninsured, drug and alcohol abuse.

Worked at a busier hospital were no bed was left empty. Sicker patients. Work in a mid-size place. Some days super busy, some slower.

Covid-19 had the affect of somehow doing both. First few days was almost empty, now it fluctuates. Mostly rule outs. And the protocols are changing hourly which makes life frustrating for us. It’s the constant unspoken threat of going into work not knowing if you’ll have the right equipment to do the job. I’m not scared of the virus itself, not even of the collapse of the economy. I’m scared of the surge that will put my coworkers at risk.

I live alone (my little sister lives with me now) so very little contact with others. But they have kids and a much closer physical distance to their older parents. I know I will add days to my weeks if they have to stay out for any length of time.

So this is the first time a world event as truly affected me. It is a terrifying time which prompted this summary of my life so far.

I went into a restaurant and saw no one. I never thought I’d see that day. I don’t want people to loose their income, but if people were to go about their daily activities we would loose so many in one go. All I can do is my job.

The more I watch the more depressed and stressed. At work is worse.

I’m teaching myself a new craft because of this. I have taken up leather working to make masks. It helps the creativity outlet. I started drawing class early in 2020 and was set to continue drawing and add painting when the social distancing started. I admit it felt overblown in the beginning. Now the numbers are changing rapidly and we are really seeing what happens in close communities. Just keep working. It’s part of life now. No matter how much if feels like a movie plot line.

But back to other things I’ve seen.

LGTBQA and others coming into the forefront of society. Saw legalization of gay marriage. Quite thrilled with that.

Didn’t hear the term Asexual in reference to a sexual preference until my early 20s. Immediately recognized similar stories to me. Never had an interest in sex or having a partner. A name did make things more relatable, but I will never fully understand people who seem to base their entire existence on their sexual preference.

I’ve been call sir many times based on how I dress. I still sound like a female. Can’t fault anyone for using the appropriate pronoun for what they see in front of them. But that’s a culture that’s growing. Preferred pronouns. But I have to admit that an online friend referred to me as “they” despite a lady being in my username and it felt nice. So in honor of the Special Snowflake term that floated around, I’m an nonbinary aromantic asexual. Probably with a fem-romanitic leaning.

Saw the rise of the Millennials. I’m caught between Gen X and the Millennials. Now that all the Millennials are of age to vote, perhaps change is underway?

I’m back in college for my 3rd and then 4th degree. In nursing. Online. Watching the world combat a virus.

A US that is split down the middle politically. A world with more pollution problems than we can handle. Governments preferring to coverup mistakes and corruption than help their citizens. The term Public Servant is obviously not taken seriously in some places. See Flint, MI and their water. Lobbyists creating bills that benefit corporations rather than people. Politicians that never retire and keep getting lucrative reelection donations from those very corporations.

The rise of narcotic drug use, prescription drugs. Pill mills.

Sex scandals taking center stage in the news rather than things that actually affect daily life. Among things I will never understand is the fear of Transgender women in the women’s restrooms when it was always a straight conservative man who was the center of all these sex scandals.

Asexual brain at work. I simply do not understand. Conclusion: If you look like a certain gender, you’ll most often be treated as that gender.

What I do miss were the kid shows and cartoons in the 90s. They were super progressive with great literature themes. I knew the story of some of the greatest classic literature simply by the references in those shows.

Also the era of War on Drug commercials. Recycling promoted.

My favorite: Captain Planet. Not only was it pushing for a cleaner earth it had different nationalities. Stereotypical, but a far better representation than what I am seeing in kids shows today. It was diverse in that multiple skin tones were seen on screen together rather than specific skin tones marketed to that specific demographic. Now I do like how many more cultures are represented, I just want them shown in ways where color and culture is not the primary focus.

It also surged a desire to protect the planet. The knowledge that we need clean water and air. Educational shows like Magic School Bus and Bill Nye explained what is happening in the environment long before Global Warming became political. With the global shut in we see the world cleansing itself.

Now the marijuana legalization issue. No one has died from overdosing on weed. Unlike Alcohol. Yes smoke isn’t good for your health like cigarettes, but the complications are not as prevalent, well studied, or as life threatening with what is known. The disconnect of state legalization and national illegalities is mind blowing. I hope to see that break so we can study it.

Overall I know I have seen a lot of historical events and I hope to live another 36 plus years to see more. 3 decades, the change of a century and the change of the millennia. Y2K hysteria included.

The world is changing. The outcome is unknown. Peace be upon us all.

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imdoingthismspaintadventure · 5 years ago

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Worm 2.2 - In which we browse a superhero forum

The run had helped to wake me up, as did the hot shower and a cup of the coffee my dad had left in the pot. Even so, the fatigue didn’t help the feeling of disorientation over just how normal the day seemed as I made my way to school. Just a matter of hours ago, I had been in a life and death fight, I had even met Armsmaster. Now it was a day like any other.

Yeah, I’d be suprised if you pay any attention to anything they teach at school today. The feeling of coming back to normality and routine after that must be something else

I felt a bit nervous as I got to homeroom. Having basically skipped two classes the previous Friday, failing to turn in a major assignment, I figured that Mrs. Knott probably knew already. I didn’t feel relieved when Mrs. Knott glanced up at me and gave a tight smile before turning her attention back to her computer. That just meant the humiliation would be redoubled if and when class was interrupted by someone coming down from the office. A part of me just wanted to miss this class too, just to avoid the potential humiliation and avoid drawing attention.

Ugh, falling out of schedule and/or failing classes because of the bullying is rough as hell. Keeping your grades acceptable can be used as escapism from your own thoughts in these kinds of situations and if that starts falling apart too... what’s keeping you in school at all?

If you start missing classes it can quickly slowball into full-on not attending class at all.

All in all, I felt anxious as I made my way to my computer, which kind of sucked because Computer class was one of the few parts of the school day I didn’t usually dread. For one thing, it was the one class in which I was doing well. More to the point, neither Madison, Sophia nor Emma were in this class, though some of their friends were. Those girls didn’t usually feel the need to harass me without the trio around, and I was further removed from them because I was in the advanced stream of the class. A good three quarters of the people in the room were computer illiterate, being from families that didn’t have the money for computers or families that didn’t have much interest in the things, so they practiced typing without looking at the keyboard and had lessons in using search engines. By contrast, I was in the group that was learning some basic programming and spreadsheets. It didn’t do a lot for my already geeky reputation, but I could deal.

Oh interesting that Taylor’s favourite class is Computer Science! I am studying to be a Software Engineer myself! Nice!

It’s good that those three aren’t in every class, so you at least get some moments of respite from their bullshit. That’s good.

We never had the basic kind of keyboard-training classes and all that. Is computer science taught early in America? Here we basically don’t learn anything until we are like 16 or 17 at the very least.

Mrs. Knott was an alright teacher, if not the most hands on; she was usually content to give us advanced students an in-class assignment and then focus on the more rambunctious majority for the rest of the class. This suited me just fine – I usually wrapped up the assignment in a half hour, leaving me an hour to use as I saw fit. I had been recalling and going over the events of the previous night during my morning run, and the first thing that I did when the ancient desktop finished its agonizing load process was to start digging for information.

Lucky you! Assignments stress me out a lot, generally. I wish I could just do them easy-peasy like that. Although I suspect Taylor’s are much simpler, just because of her age and school education vs college.

The go-to place for news and discussion on capes was Parahumans Online. The front page had constant updates on recent, international news featuring capes. From there, I could go to the wiki, where there was information on individual capes, groups and events, or to the message boards, which broke down into nearly a hundred sub-boards, for specific cities and capes. I opened the wiki in one tab, then found and opened the message board for Brockton Bay in another.

Ok I love this. I love this a lot.

This is one of the most realistic things the serial has done so far. Also one of the most fun. If superheroes were real, you bet your ass there would be forums about them, probably more than one. With hourly threads and a lot of speculation and debate.

I imagine there would be like a serious one with strict rules for talking about world events relating to capes, like if it was the news. Cause they aren’t just a tv show or a videogame, they have a real impact in the daily lives of people everywhere.

There would also be whole fanclubs or communities for each super-group and for each city/country, where they talk about the popularity, newcomers, fights, etc...

I can also see entire pages dedicated to romantic relationships or rumors, fanarts, conspiracies, versus battles (who would win?) etc....

Basically, supers being real would absolutely reshape the whole internet forever.

I had the sense that either Tattletale or Grue were the leader of the group I had run into. Turning my attention to Tattletale, I searched the wiki. The result I got was disappointingly short, starting with a header reading “This article is a stub. Be a hero and help us expand it.” There was a one sentence blurb on how she was a alleged villain active in Brockton Bay, with a single blurry picture. The only new information for me was that her costume was lavender. A search of the message boards turned up absolutely nothing. There wasn’t even a hint as to what her power was.

Grue seemed the one calling the shots, but I could also see Tattletale as a short of “shadow leader” type, yeah...

Tattletale has almost nothing about her in her page! That’s very interesting. So she’s very secretive or at least good at hiding information about herself...

Heh, ironic that the Tattletale is the one who keeps secrets. I like the name she picked.

I looked up Grue. There was actually information about him, but nothing detailed or definitive. The wiki stated he had been active for nearly three years, dealing in petty crimes such as robbing small stores and doing some work as an enforcer for those who wanted a little superpowered muscle along for a job. Recently, he had turned to higher scale crime, including corporate theft and robbing a casino, together with his new team. His power was listed as darkness generation in the sidebar under his picture. The picture seemed crisp enough, but the focus of it, Grue, was just a blurry black silhouette in the center.

So Grue is an experienced criminal! Somewhat at least. Three years of experience is certainly better than one night!

He was doing low-level crimes until recently, when he adquired his new team, and they seem to be doing big heists now! How did Grue find the others? Seems like a pretty big increase in notoriety and strength in a short time!

Darkness generation....that could potentially be very cool. I wonder if it can be used offensively, like fire with Lung. I always imagine the darkness element (when used as blasts the same way they use fire, in some media) to feel like being devoured by some parasite, like if darkness ravages and devours you. Light on the other hand just scours and obliterates everything it touches. At least those are my headcanons for the more esoteric elements.

I searched for Bitch, next. No results. I did another search for her more official title, Hellhound, and got a wealth of information. Rachel Lindt had never made any real attempt to hide her identity. She had apparently been homeless through most of her criminal career, just living on the streets and moving on whenever police or a cape came after her. The sightings and encounters with the homeless girl ended around a year ago – I figured that was when she joined forces with Grue, Tattletale and Regent. The picture in the sidebar was taken from surveillance camera footage – an unmasked, dark haired girl who I wouldn’t have called pretty. She had a squarish, blunt-featured face with thick eyebrows. She was riding atop one of her monstrous ‘dogs’ like a jockey rides a horse, down the middle lane of a street.

Huh, so Bitch, or Rachel, had never had a secret identity or a secret life! Seems like her cape and normal life are one and the same! She was homeless and running from one place to another, along with her giant eldritch dogs.

I assume they took her into the group and she prefers it to being alone and without a place to be.

According to the wiki entry, her powers manifested when she was fourteen, followed almost immediately by her demolishing the foster home she had been living in, injuring her foster mother and two other foster children in the process. This was followed by a two year series of skirmishes and retreats across Maine as various heroes and teams tried to apprehend her, and she either defeated them or successfully evaded capture. She had no powers that would have made her any stronger or faster than the average Jane, but she was apparently able to turn ordinary dogs into the creatures I had seen on the rooftop. Monsters the size of a car, all muscle, bone, fang and claw. A red box near the bottom of the page read, “Rachel Lindt has a public identity, but is known to be particularly hostile, antisocial and violent. If recognized, do not approach or provoke. Leave the area and notify authorities as to her last known location.” At the very bottom of the page was a list of links that were related to her: two fansites and a news article relating to her early activities. A search of the message boards turned up too many results, leaving me unable to sift through the crap, the arguments, the speculation and the villain worship to find any genuine morsels of information. If nothing else, she was notorious. I sighed and moved on, making a mental note to do more investigation when I had the time.

Damn, can she control her powers all that well? Or at least, at that time? Cause that sounds to me like the type of situation where her newly-found powers go out of control and cause problems.

She had a foster-home, but then had to run away from the people she hurt ,the authorities, heroes and everyone! And she lived two years like that! No wonder she is antisocial now, jesus.

Also she can apparently turn any dog into those boney creatures of death. Wow. Depending on where she is, she could be incredibly powerful in a fight!

She also seems to be the most famous one so far, having even online admirers and fansites about her exploits. Interesting. She seems to be dangerous though, as she is said to be violent to everyone she meets.

The last member of the group was Regent. Given what Armsmaster had said about the guy being low profile, I didn’t expect to find much. I was surprised to find less than that. Nothing. My search on the wiki turned up only a default response, “There are no results matching this query. 32 unique IP addresses have searched the Parahumans.net Wiki for ‘Regent’ in 2011. Would you like to create the page?” The message board didn’t turn up anything else. I even did a search for alternate spellings of his name, such as Regence and Recant, in case I had heard it wrong. Nothing turned up.

Woah, if Tattletale had little to no information, this guy is straight-up a nonentity! Absolutely hidden from the public eye!

We don’t even know his powers, story or place within the group. How fascinating.

If my mood had been on the sour side as I got to homeroom, the dead ends only made it worse. I turned my attention to the in-class assignment, making a working calculator in Visual Basic, but it was too trivial to distract me. The work from Thursday and Friday had already given us the tools to do the job, so it was really just busywork. I didn’t mind learning stuff, but work for the sake of doing work was annoying. I did the bare minimum, checked it for any bugs, moved the file to the ‘completed work’ folder and returned to surfing the web. All in all, the work barely took fifteen minutes.

You at least get experience and speed in doing these kinds of things! And calculators can be fun to program!

Also yeah, having nothing to do and being able to use the internet the rest of the class is pretty sweet!

I looked up Lung on the wiki, which I had done often enough before, as part of my research and preparation for being a superhero. I’d wanted to be sure I knew who prominent local villains were and what they could do. The search for ‘Lung’ redirected to a catch-all page on his gang, the ABB, with quite a bit of detailed information. The information on Lung’s powers was pretty in line with my own experience, though there was no mention of the super-hearing or him being fireproof. I debated adding it, but decided against it. There were security concerns with my submission being tracked back to Winslow High, and then to me. I figured it would probably be deleted as unsupported speculation, anyways.

They are really underselling Lung huh. No wonder Taylor was suprised about how OP he could be! And yeah better not to edit anything in a trackable device, or without any solid source for that matter.

The section beneath the description of Lung and his powers covered his subordinates. He was estimated to have forty or fifty thugs working for him across Brockton Bay, largely drawn from the ranks of Asian youth. It was pretty unconventional for a gang to include members of the variety of nationalities that the ABB did, but Lung had made it a mission to conquer and absorb every gang with Asian members and many without. Once he had the manpower he needed, the non-Asian gangs were cannibalized for assets, their members discarded. Even though there were no more major gangs in the east end of town to absorb, he was still recruiting zealously. His method, now, was to go after anyone older than twelve and younger than sixty. It didn’t matter if you were a gang member or not. If you were Asian and you lived in Brockton Bay, Lung and his people expected you to either join or to pay tribute one way or another. There had been local news reports on it, newspaper articles, and I could remember seeing signs in the guidance counselor’s office detailing where people who were targeted in this way could go for help.

He seemed to want to grow quickly by recruiting every asian person in Brockton Bay, cape or not! And if you were Asian, you would have heard of his band and their threats or extortion.

You are partly responsible for the capture of one mayor threat to the safety of the citizens of Brockton Bay. You did great last night, Taylor!

Lung’s lieutenants were listed as Oni Lee and Bakuda. I already had some general knowledge about Oni Lee, but I was intrigued to see there were recent updates to his wiki entry. There were specific details on his powers: He could teleport, but when he did so, he didn’t disappear. As he teleported, his original self, for lack of a better term, would stay where it was and remain active for five to ten seconds before disintegrating into a cloud of carbon ash. Essentially, he could create another version of himself anywhere nearby, while the old version could stick around long enough to distract or attack you. If that wasn’t scary enough, there was an report of him holding a grenade in his hand as he repeatedly duplicated himself, with his short lived duplicates acting as suicide bombers. Topping it all off, Oni Lee’s wiki page had a similar red warning box to the one that Bitch/Hellhound had on hers, minus the bit about his public identity. From what they knew about him, authorities had seen fit to note him a sociopath. The warning covered the same essential elements: exceedingly violent, dangerous to approach, should not be provoked, and so on. I glanced at his picture. His costume consisted of a black bodysuit with a black bandoleer and belt for his knives, guns and grenades. The only color on him was an ornate Japanese-style demon mask, crimson with two green stripes down either side. Except for the mask, his costume gave off the distinct impression of a ninja, which just added weight to the notion that this was a guy who could and would slide a knife between your ribs.

Oni Lee sounds like a mayor fucking threat! The ability to teleport-shadow clone yourself multiple times to get to a thousand places quickly AND leave behind copies who could stab, shoot you or even blow themselves up seems really really dangerous.

And he’s a sociopath to boot! You were lucky he wasn’t there last night, he could have probably just teleported to the roof and knifed you.

Bakuda was a new entry, added to the ABB wiki page just ten days ago. The picture only showed her from the shoulders up, a girl with straight black hair, large opaque goggles over her eyes and a metal mask with a gas mask styled filter covering the lower half of her face. A braided cord of black, yellow and green wires looped over one of her shoulders. I couldn’t pinpoint her ethnicity with the mask and goggles, and her age wasn’t any easier to figure out.

This was the bomb expert, right?

She looks menacing with that setup, which is probably true! Her powers also sounds really worrying!

The wiki had a lot of the same details Armsmaster had mentioned to me. Bakuda had essentially held a university ransom and she did it with her superhuman ability to design and fabricate high tech bombs. There was a link to a video titled ‘Bomb Threat @ Cornell’, but I didn’t think it wise to play it in school, especially without headphones. I made a mental note to check it out when I got home.

Damn, she was basically a domestic terrorist back then!

It’s probably not a good idea to play a bomb threat at a school IN a school, you’re right.

The next thing that caught my eye was the section heading titled ‘Defeats and Captures’. I scrolled down to read it. According to the wiki, Lung had apparently suffered a number of minor defeats at the hands of various teams, ranging from the Guild to the local teams of New Wave, the Wards and the Protectorate, but consistently managed to evade capture until last night. A blurb read, ‘ Armsmaster successfully ambushed and defeated the leader of the ABB, who was weakened from a recent encounter with a rival gang. Lung was taken to the PHQ for holding until the villain’s trial by teleconference. Given Lung’s extensive and well documented criminal history, it is expected he will face imprisonment in the Birdcage should he be found guilty at trial.’

Huh, so he WAS bested before! Just not captured! He always evaded prison, until now thanks to Taylor and co.!

Or thanks only to Armsmaster, according to the official story, which to be fair, is what they agreed upon.

The birdcage? What is that, some sort of super-prison like The Raft, Blackgate, Impel Down in One Piece...

Is that place safe? Cause prisons and jail breaks are pretty synonymous in comics

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I wasn’t sure what to think. By all rights, I should have been angry that Armsmaster took the credit for the fight that could have cost me my life. Instead, I felt a building excitement. I felt like shaking the shoulder of the guy sitting next to me and point to the screen, saying, “Me, I made that possible! Me!”

Hehe. Excited and happy Taylor is just the best.

With a renewed enthusiasm, I switched tabs to the message board and began looking to see what people were saying about it. A post by a fan or minion of Lung threatened violence against Armsmaster. There was a request by someone asking for more information on the fight. I was given pause by one post that asked whether Bakuda could or would use a large scale bomb and the threat of potentially thousands or hundreds of thousands dead, to ransom Lung back.

Eeash, seems Arms was right about the consequences of this!

That Bakuda threat is really scary

I tried to put that out of my mind. If it happened, it would be the responsibility of heroes better and more experienced than I.

True, you can’t carry everything on your shoulders.

It struck me that there was one person I hadn’t looked for. Myself. I opened up the advanced search page for the Parahumans.net message board and did a search for multiple terms. I included insect, spider, swarm, bug, plague, and a mess of other terms that had struck me when I had been trying to brainstorm a good hero name. I narrowed the timeframe of posts to search for posts made within the past 12 hours and hit Search.

Huh, I don’t think you would find that much honestly. I mean, fight aside, you were pretty stealthy on your way in, and the only people who directly met you are the fire dragon currently going to jail, a couple of mooks without their boss, a group of very cryptic teenage villains and the superhero who was going to keep you hidden sooo yeah.

Also kinda hard to search for yourself without having decided on a name yet!

My efforts turned up two posts. One referred to a villain called Pestilence, active in the UK. Apparently Pestilence was one of the people who could use ‘magic’. That is, he was if you believed magic was real, and not just some convoluted or deluded interpretation of a given set of powers.

Pestilence sounds awesome as an insect-power name. One of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse!

Huh, so there are powers that seem more “magical” and others that are more “technological”. Nice.

The second post was in the ‘Connections’ section of the message board, where rescued damsels left their contact information for their dashing heroes, where conventions and fan gatherings were organized and where people posted job offers for capes and the cape-obsessed. Most were cryptic or vague, referring to stuff only the people in question would know.

That is a nice system to have, to contact people anonymously.

The message was titled, simply, “Bug”

Well damn, seems someone did notice you

I clicked it and waited impatiently for the outdated system and overloaded school modem to load up the page. What I got was brief.

Subject: Bug

Owe you one. Would like to repay the favor. Meet?

Send a message,

Tt.

IT’S TATTLETALE.

IT’S THE TEENAGE VILLAINS REACHING OUT TO HER AFTER THE LAST FIGHT.

This opens up so many possibilites oh my god

The post was followed by two pages of people commenting. Three people suggested it was something important, while a half dozen more people decried them as tinfoil hats, Parahumans.net’s term for conspiracy theorists.

Hah! I imagine a message like that would cause speculation even in OUR reality! Considering Taylor’s the protag, those tinfoil hats may be on to something there...

It was meaningful, though. I couldn’t interpret it any other way; Tattletale had found a way to get in contact with me.

She sure has!

So now both Arms and Tattletale have contacted her, both with offers maybe! Damn, she sure got popular after that one night!

Oh, oooh

What if they offer her to join them?

And what if she accepts?

Oh god the story could go in a wildly different direction now. I hadn’t even considered that in my list of possibilities!

It seems at odd with her desire to be a hero, so maybe not.... But what if?

I’m liking where this is going.

#Worm #worm liveblog #worm parahumans #parahumans liveblog #wildbow #Worm 2.2 #arc 2

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balisinghposts-blog · 5 years ago

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How to save Energy by analysing Energy Monitoring System -Energy Log

Today we'll discuss the basic functionality of one of the markets best energy monitoring system Energy Log. We’ll use the case of a chain of supermarkets to show you the main functionality of the Energy Log, focusing on three supermarkets one in Delhi one in Mumbai and one in Banglore. The Energy Log shows you to the dashboard login which brings you right to this screen. Which gives you a quick overview of your facilities in real-time. Dashboard indicators are fully configurable widgets. Widgets present information in a way that's clear and easy to understand. When we detect an inefficiency, we can go to the analysis, reporting or alerts areas to view the facility in more detail. The Energy Log navigation functionality which is based on hierarchies and filters makes it extremely easy to locate exactly the information we need to know.

Customized Dashboard

We will compare the performance of three supermarkets in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore and monitor their general consumption. We will view their utility meter and its consumption of HVAC refrigeration and lighting systems. We can create an unlimited number of dashboards for our analysis of the three supermarkets. We've created a different dashboard for each of our user profiles energy manager, finance director, and maintenance staff users. They can set up their own dashboards and share them with other users which saves time and keeps teams in the loop.

Real-Time Analysis

The analysis area is where we access all our data so we can understand consumption patterns in our facility or group of facilities. Energy Log analysis tools help you to easily visualize and understand consumption cost evolution and billing. For example, if we want to view the real-time consumption of our Delhi store we just go into the consumption tools and select all the meters installed, we see is in real-time. It will show us the hourly consumption for the past week. We see exactly what time lighting and HVAC systems are switched on and off. How much energy they are consuming? We can see here that refrigeration levels are constant, but they should be changing according to outside temperature. We can also view the evolution of energy consumption for each individual meter from week to week if we select a date range and choose to view weekly consumption.

Global-View and Excel data Downloads

Energy Log displays an overview of the consumption trends of facilities, so we can identify patterns of all data and graphics which can be exported to excel for future reference or graphical reports. We can also have a global view where we can compare our three supermarkets. We will select fiscal meters and do an hourly comparison. We can see the activity level by the hour is similar in the three stores but that there are notable differences among consumption levels. It appears that the Mumbai store consumes the least followed by Banglore and then the Delhi store. Delhi has the highest level of consumption.

Energy Performance Indicators

But when we go into more detail by viewing the daily evolution over the course of a year. We can see that the variations, we have identified are visible throughout the year. This might be the result of variations in surface area, weather variables, consumer volume or other factors because there are so many things that might affect inconsistencies. We need a fast and intuitive tool that allows us to easily view energy use in the context of a range of variables. So, we can pinpoint the exact causes this is where ratios are especially useful. For example, when we factor in the surface area of the stores, we see that the Mumbai supermarket which originally ranked first for energy efficiency falls to second place and the Banglore store comes in first. We can filter our original results by entering a wide range of ratios like degree days, average temperatures, ticket occupancy levels, average sales or anything else that might be useful to understand exactly what is affecting consumption.

Let’s repeat the analysis but this time focusing on the lighting systems, first, we'll select three lighting meters and compare their yearly consumption. When we control our results for surface area we see that from the beginning of the year up until August, the Delhi store averaged to consumption of 0.6 kWh/sq ft which is higher than that of Mumbai at 0.7 kWh/sq ft and much higher than the Bangalore stores consumption which is only 0.2 kWh/sqft. So we know right away that we have a problem of excess lighting in the Delhi and Mumbai locations we can look more closely to see that lighting levels are in fact double. There should be values of more than 2,000 Lux are showing up when the established baseline for a retail space is closer to 750 Lux. Analyzing more deeply we can see that shutting off one out of every two fluorescent lights on July 7th in the Delhi store and on August 8th in Mumbai effectively reduce the kWh/sqft ratio and brought down the lighting consumption of the three stores to similar levels.

Put Comment on Analysis Sheets

The Energy Log comments feature allows us to easily log these changes and their energy-saving results, so we can better track and manage projects. We can just click over add Comment and select the date on which the improvement was implemented and add a title and description to identify the improvement. We then select the kind of comment the location where the improvement was implemented where we indicate Delhi and we publish our comment. Once published our comment is visible in the graphic in the form of an icon. When we hover the mouse over the icon the title of the improvement appears.

Monitoring and verification of Energy Saving Achieved

As we have implemented our lighting efficiency improvements, we can look at how they translate to savings. Let us compare for different time periods by day month or year which helps to see the evolution of our consumption over time. We select the Delhi store and its lighting node and then select a before and after the efficient implementation and we evaluate our results. A graphic display’s two colored curves representing weekly consumption, the blue represents before and the green represents after in the chart below the graph.

We can clearly see a reduction in lighting consumption, our weekly lighting consumption per week has dropped by nearly 30 %. It’s even more interesting to see how this saving translates to the financial savings. For this, we simply go to the cost screen where we can see in real-time exactly how much money we are spending according to the tariff plan of the DISCOM. If we look at the cost of lighting at the Delhi location, we see a cost of over three thousand dollars a month. Most of the consumption comes from the peak level which corresponds to the contracted tariff. We select lighting choose a weekly view and look at the levels one week before the implementation of the improvement. We can view the hourly consumption for the selected week. We see that there is hardly any passive consumption and see penalties for peak hours. Energy Log quickly calculates the weekly lighting consumption based on these factors and comes up with a weekly cost. If we view consumption in dollars after the implementation, we see that our weekly cost represents a yearly savings of $15,000.

Energy Log offers a multitude of tools that help us to easily analyze and detect potential in-efficiencies. We can use its intuitive tools to measure passive reactive or other kinds of consumption or even customize a screen with variables.

Reports

Reports area is where we find all our reports and view those generated during a particular project. You can use a public template or use the reports assistant to customize a report. We just need to select a template and activate it. We can automate a report to be generated and sent to our inbox every Monday or every 1st of the month. Energy Log displays a history of all reports filterable by template type and configuration. We can generate simple weekly reports or more advanced monthly reports. We can create reports that simulate electric utility invoices, so we can compare our invoices with those of the DISCOM. The analysis of the HVAC system in detail reports allows us to track different indicators throughout the project lifecycle and deliver them in an easy-to-understand format to the energy manager, finance director or the end customer.

Alerts

Another valuable feature of the Energy Log is the alerts. Area alerts are extremely simple to configure and let us put the system to work for us by configuring alerts and monitoring variables. This feature alert intimates us the instant there is an inconsistency in the system, which means we can react immediately to malfunctioning systems and failures and greatly reduce down-times. Energy Log has a range of pre-configured alerts that are designed to catch common potential problems such as excesses or reactive penalties which show us the exact cost of a penalty as soon as it is incurred. The alerts areas organized by locations by our custom configuration which makes it easy to access and view all alerts. We can also configure alerts to be sent by email or SMS to anyone registered in the platform. This should give you a good sense of the most basic of Energy Log extensive functionality. You have seen its ability to improve all aspects of energy management from analyzing the consumption of an individual facility to doing comparative analysis. To detecting potential savings and determining the monetary value of improvements. It gives you full visibility of your facilities and systems by using reporting and alerts.

You can visit the below links to access the demo video of Energy Log https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S93HQchHieE&t=2s

You can also visit us for any assistance https://www.ecoenergies.co.in/contact-us

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