#blaming 1 group of people for all the nation’s problems

[csuitebitches]

book review: Stolen focus by Johann Hari

Major learnings from this book. It basically talks about focus, why and how we’re losing it. Why can’t we pay attention anymore? Are we individuals to blame or our systems? 

There will be a time when the upper class will be extremely aware of the risks to their attention (caused by tech, social media, our current generation) and the masses, with fewer resources to resist the temptation of technology, will be manipulated more and more by their computers. 

Multitasking is a myth. What actually happens when we multitask is that we “juggle” between tasks. This results in incomplete tasks, higher error rates, less focus, less creativity and memory decreases. 

Sleep is extremely important, especially sleeping according to nature - when the sun sets and sun rises. If the whole world slept the way we are naturally programmed, we would have an economic earthquake. Our economic systems run on sleep deprived people. 

Reading online and reading print has a huge difference. Reading online creates tendencies of skimming and scanning text. This prevents our brain from focusing intently on one story at a time, which print allows you to do. You also remember and understand things from printed texts better. 

Empathy. Certain research suggests that reading fiction and novels improves empathy, because you are immersing yourself in another character’s life for a while. Empathy has played a huge role in human advancements. If a group of white people did not realise that colonisation was wrong, if men did not realise that women deserve equal rights, we would not have independent nations nor be close to gender equality today. 

There are multiple types of paying attention. Focused attention is one thing. But day dreaming and letting your mind wander with no distraction (that is, being alone with your thoughts) is equally important. Some of the most important breakthroughs in human history were because the inventors were not actively focusing on solving the problem. 

Being on social media = giving a free pass to be manipulated. No thoughts, opinions, desires that you have are original. They have all been fed into you by social media and the online world. It is by their design that we cannot focus. 

Leaked internal records of Facebook show that they are aware that their algorithms exploit the human brain’s attraction to divisiveness. 64% of people, for instance, who join extremist groups join because FB’s algorithm directly recommends too. “Our recommendation systems grow the problem.” Zuckerberg eventually terminated the unit that was studying this. 

Diet and attention. The diet we consumed today is a diet that causes regular energy spikes and energy crashes. Our food does not have the nutrients we need for our brains to function well. Our current diets actively contain chemicals that seem to act on our brains almost like drugs.  

Be careful about reading research, especially when it’s funded by the industry itself. For 40 years, the lead industry funded all the scientific research into whether it was safe, and assured the world that it was. Lead later turned out to severely stunt your ability to focus and pay attention and that you are more likely to get ADHD. 

We define success broadly as economic growth. Economies should get bigger, companies should get bigger. Growth can happen in two ways - either the companies find new markets or they persuade the existing consumers to consume more. If you can get people to eat more or to sleep less, you’ve found the source of economic growth. It results in people working overtime, not having enough time with family, friends and themselves, stress and anxiety prone, lack of sleep and bad health, etc. 

Conclusion: use precommitment to stop switching tasks, try to focus more on intrinsic motivation than extrinsic, go off social media periodically (say 1 month at a time) and then extend those breaks; everyday spend 1 hour in walking in silence (no music, conversations or people- and if this is in nature, even better) to connect with yourself, 8 hours of sleep every night, build on slow practices like yoga, cut out processed food, take your PTO!!

[girlactionfigure]

🔅Sun morning - ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

🔥FOREST FIRE - JERUSALEM.. near the Ben Zion intersection and the Beit Hanina neighborhood.

▪️BLOCKED ENTRANCE TO JERUSALEM BY PROTESTORS.. Demonstrators from the "Change Direction" movement handcuffed themselves to a display in the form of a ballot box and blocked the primary road entrance to Jerusalem. Police and firefighting team are working to remove the protesters.

▪️BLOCKED THE TEL AVIV HIGHWAY OVERNIGHT.. as has become the weekend custom, protestors blocked the Ayalon highway in Tel Aviv at night and were gradually removed by police.  Above at the Kaplan intersection, water cannon were deployed to break up the protest after they refused to disperse.  1 arrested, the police are also now handing out NIS 1,000 fines on the spot for illegal protest and refusing police dispersal orders.

▪️IT’S ALL POLITICAL NEWS.. The focus is moving to the domestic arena in Israel.  The balance problems of Israel’s many-party non-representative democracy are coming to the fore, with all the leadership types blaming each other for the current situation EVEN THOUGH MOST OF THEM have either been part of the emergency government & war cabinet, part of the coalition, or part of the previous government.

HERO SOLDIERS HAVE FALLEN.. Nachman Meir Haim Vakanin, 20, from Eilat, and Noam Batan, 20, from Moshav Yad Rambam have fallen in battle in the Gaza Strip.  May their families be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem, and may G-d avenge their blood!

▪️US NEGOTIATING WITH IRAN.. Iran's representative to the UN confirms the reports of indirect contacts between the US and Iran in an attempt to achieve calm in the region. Contacts are made through the Sultanate of Oman. (( Well so far the US has given in on the ability to prepare materials for nukes, on funding of terror, on funds ceased due to funding of terror.  In the meantime Iran set up and armed regional terror armies and took control of 1/3 of world shipping, as well as building nukes.  Hmm, what can the US give them this time? ))

▪️HOUTHI UPGRADE.. US Central Command eports that the Houthis used a new and particularly dangerous ballistic missile for the first time.  More range, higher accuracy, higher ship damage.

♦️IDF CAPTURES long range rockets and rocket manufacturing facility in Jabaliya.

♦️POWERFUL IDF ATTACKS.. in Jabaliya, Gaza this morning.

♦️COUNTER-TERROR OVERNIGHT in Kalkilya and Shechem.  “Lions Den” terror group firefight with IDF troops, and al-Aqsa Martyrs in Kalkilya.  Several captured.

⭕ YESTERDAY EVENING’s HAMAS ROCKETS at Ashkelon was a BARRAGE of 10.  5 intercepted, 5 missed.

⭕ HAMAS ROCKETS at Sderot this morning, intercepted.  Last 

⭕ SUICIDE DRONE ATTACKS VEHICLE.. overnight military vehicle in Metulla hit by drone.  No casualties.

⭕ HEZBOLLAH rockets and suicide drones this morning, Malkia,  Dishon, Iftach, Malkia, Mevuot Hermon Regional Council, Ramot Naftali, Yir’on, Baram, Avivim.

⭕ ANTI-TANK MISSILES fired at Mt. Dov and at Arab al-Aramsha.

*******

🔅Sun afternoon - ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

▪️EDITOR COMMENT.. For most of this war, the majority of Israeli politicians kept quiet and disagreements somewhat behind closed doors. And even segments of the public and activist groups kept a low profile.

Unfortunately that seems to be coming to an end.  

When we share reports on political statements, protests, and activist actions, we get a fair amount of negative feedback and accusations of bias.  We believe we are presenting a fairly balanced view, taking information from sources that lean both directions and trying to translate them (language and culturally) for our English speaking readers.

Since these political moves directly affect all of Israel, the war, and the Jewish people - we can’t ignore them.  

We do, however, try to limit political and activist reports to the main players and major events.  

▪️POLITICS: GANTZ TWEAKS TERMS.. National Unity MK Gantz adjusts his letter from yesterday - the return of the hostages is not an overarching goal but "a goal of highest priority”.

▪️POLITICS : LAPID CALLS.. Opposition Leader MK Lapid calls on Gantz to resign, he calls on Defense Min. Gallant to stay (as he says because he doesn’t want his deputy to take over).

▪️MASS MURDERER GETS SURGERY.. After Ichilov hospital on Thursday refused to accept the Hamas Nokhaba terrorist for pelvic surgery and he was returned to Sde Yemen, at the end of the week the security forces coordinated with the hospital for the terrorist's arrival and he underwent the surgery.

▪️ATTEMPTED TERROR STABBING - Abu Dis checkpoint.. A terrorist arrived at the "Kiosk" checkpoint located near the town of "Abu Dis" in Judea pulled out a screwdriver and tried to stab the fighters at the checkpoint.  Terrorist killed.

▪️HOSTAGE SHANI LUKE’S FATHER.. at her funeral “I ask all the people of Israel not to go to demonstrations. This is the fuel of our enemies.”

▪️JERUSALEM PROTEST.. that blocked the city entrance.  3 arrested.

▪️RA’ANANA TERROR OR MENTALLY ILL?  A resident of Taiba was arrested by a gym in Ra'anana threatening the exercisers and shouting that they should die "like Shahid". Arrested and police say will be transferred to professionals for mental health diagnosis.

♦️COUNTER-TERROR A-Rihiyya.. near Hebron, raid.

⭕ HEZBOLLAH ANTI-TANK fire at an IDF Hummer in Malikia, followed by artillery at the responders.

⭕ HEZBOLLAH DRONES, 2 rounds, Beit Hillel, Kfar Giladi, Kfar Yuval, Metulla, Manara, Ma'ayan Baruch, Margaliot, Misgav Am, Kiryat Shmona, Tel Hai, Dafna, HaGoshrim, Ghajar, Kibutz Dan, Shear Yeshuv, Snir, Avivim, Baram, Yir'on 

[treadmilltreats]

The Effects of Verbal A

buse

October is National Domestic Violence month, and it is a subject near and dear to my heart.

So all through this month, I will be writing about it, to try to open your eyes about what it actually does to the victims.

Today, I want to present you with some facts about this devastating crime and the lasting effects it can have.

This is not just me telling you, this is actual facts and reports from top researchers on what domestic violence and verbal abuse can and will do to people and let me tell you it's really scary.

According to 2020 National Statistics on Domestic Violence, here are the facts:

On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men.

1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men experience severe intimate partner physical violence, intimate partner contact sexual violence, and/or intimate partner stalking with impacts such as injury, fearfulness, post-traumatic stress disorder, use of victim services, contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, etc.

1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner. This includes a range of behaviors (e.g., slapping, shoving, pushing) and in some cases might not be considered "domestic violence."

1 in 7 women and 1 in 25 men have been injured by an intimate partner.

1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men have been victims of severe physical violence (e.g., beating, burning, strangling) by an intimate partner in their lifetime.

1 in 7 women and 1 in 18 men have been stalked by an intimate partner during their lifetime to the point in which they felt very fearful or believed that they or someone close to them would be harmed or killed.

Harvard University put out their own study on verbal abuse. They went on to say:

Scolding, swearing, yelling,

blaming, insulting, threatening, ridiculing, demeaning & criticizing can be as harmful as physical abuse, sexual abuse outside the home, or witnessing physical abuse at home.

The report suggests that, when verbal abuse is constant and severe, it creates a risk of post-traumatic stress disorder,

The same type of psychological collapse experienced by combat troops in Iraq.

The research on which the report is based points out that children who are the target of frequent verbal mistreatment exhibit higher rates of physical aggression, delinquency, and social problems than other children.

Other researchers have associated childhood verbal abuse with a significantly higher risk of developing unstable, angry personalities, narcissistic behavior, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and paranoia.

“Verbal abuse may also have more lasting consequences than other forms of abuse because it’s often more continuous,”

says Teicher. “And in combination with physical abuse and neglect, may produce the most dire outcome.

There are always signs, yet we chose to ignore them,

here are a few:

Do they...

*Make derogatory

comments about a group you belong to (gender, career, religion, etc.). This comment might end with "I mean them, not you."

*Make fun of or insult your

ideas, behaviors, or beliefs?

*Make negative comments about people, places, or things that you love?

*Say things that are almost true about you, but leave you wanting to defend yourself?

*Say, "What? It was just a joke!" to dismiss a remark that offends you?

*Ask you questions about something that just happened and reply to your answers, "Do you care to think about that and answer the question again" or just sit there, staring at you, in a way that lets you know your answer wasn't "right"?

*Engage you in long conversations about things on which you disagree until you reach the point of wanting to say, "Okay. Whatever. You're right!"

Or insist that you repeat what they said and then, later, claim,

"You agreed with me!"

*Somehow manage to physically back you into a corner or somewhere you can not easily escape during intense conversations?

*Break you down until you

say you're sorry about a fight you clearly are in the right about?

These are signs of how you feel when you are with them. Do you feel...

*Nervous when approaching them with certain topics?

*Insulted because of their use of foul language, or does their use of foul language change the meaning of otherwise normal requests?

Such as: "Could you f*ck*ng tell me how much f*ck*ng longer it will be before you're ready

for dinner?"

*A need to tell on yourself

about innocent events just in case the person hears about it later?

*Feel misunderstood for the most part in your relationship?

Do you doubt...

*Your sanity, intelligence, and communication skills because of difficulties relating to them?

*Your memories when it comes to recalling conversations or events with the person because their take on it is so different from your own?

Ask yourself these questions and be brutally honest with the answers because these are the signs.

Victims of verbal abuse may:

*Have difficulty forming conclusions and making decisions.

*Feel or accept that there is something wrong with them on a basic level.

I am here to tell you all of this is true as I was in a verbally abusive marriage for 24 years. I know how it feels to be yelled at, put down, belittled, told you are stupid, and that you could never do anything right.

I spent years crying myself to sleep, thinking I could never get out of this relationship because I didn't think I could make it on my own. His words rang over and over in my head. I'd be nothing without him. He would take my girls, I'd be living in a box under 95... I was stuck in fear.

When I finally had the courage to leave, I made it my mission to help other women, to make sure my words touched their hearts, to uplift and give encouragement to someone else who may need it. I feel this overwhelming need to constantly put the word out about this silent killer of lives and souls.

This will never go away if we keep quiet about it. It has to be spoken of, we have to shine the light on this dark topic and show these men and women that even though you may not raise your hands to us, you are still a abusiver!

So today, my friends, I beg you to reach out to help others who are literally stuck in these relationships. Give them a way to get out, and donate to your local women's shelters. You don't realize how small and precious the joy is of just coming home, not being afraid, and just being happy until you have walked in our shoes.

"Be the change you want to see,"

@TreadmilltreatsCheck out my daily blogs @ https://treadmilltreats.blogspot.com/?m=1

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The Blessing in Disguise.... revealed

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[rwbyuser24]

Small changes you would have made to RWBY?

Something small, nothing very big. Things to make the things better. Why not? 1.Not Penny, but Atlesian Knights.

I would have preferred that instead of being Penny, were some Atlesian knights. Atlesian knights of the SDC re-painted to have Atlas emblem on them.

Why? Simple, in the original series there was the problem of there weren't faunus with night vision to see Tyrian killing people.

Some might say that Marrow couldn't see because he said he didn't have night vision.

"Harriet found a gap in the rubble we think one of you could fit through, ideally someone with a knack for seeing in the dark."

But, actually he talking about how between Weiss and Blake, Blake was the one who could see in the dark. Marrow couldn't go because he couldn't fit.

I understand that Pyrrha says that some faunus had night vision, not everyone.

But still, it is a convenience that no faunus could see Tyrian.

That, and also the fact that Penny had no blood on her daggers. So, it was obvious that she wasn't the one to make the massacre.

Instead, if Jacques give some Atlesian knights to Watts to use them to attack the civilians, framing the Atlas military for the job, everyone could clearly see the apparent involvement of the military in the massacre. Basically, the Atlesian knight would explode.

The fact that Penny was framed wasn't actually necessary for her character. I mean, she have other important points on her character. But, if you retire being framed for the massacre, not so much changes about Penny. She still have the burden as protector of Mantle, and she could still feel some guilty for not being able to stop Tyrian.

2. Adam breaking Yang's robotic arm

Well, it's something simple. Basically during the second round with Yang, he would have destroyed her prosthetic arm.

She was going to receive a new arm in the next volume anyway.

Destroying Yang's arm during the battle would have made the battle seem even harder. You know, she won, but barely.

3. Banesaw.

Basically, have you ever wondered why Sienna Khan didn't call Adam after the Breach? I mean, she would say "What is wrong with you? Don't you realize that innocent faunus would have died?!". She only reproached him after the Fall of Beacon.

Or, why Ghira didn't call out Corsac and Fennec for the White fang's attack on Vale? I mean, it happened before they came up with the excuse of "It was done by a splinter group".

Well, in this case, Adam would have blamed Banesaw for that. It would be like, "He was acting on his own. The Breach have nothing to do with me." All this farce would last till the Fall of Beacon.

For all this to work out, Banesaw need to die in the Breach.

Also, Banesaw should have appeared during Adam's character short. During the assault on the SDC, he would have fought along the rest. Basically showing us how close he was to Adam, or at least, how close he BELIEVED he was with Adam.

4. Changes on phrases.

These are minor changes:

-"My only goal is that all the citizens of Mantle and Atlas -- and Faunus -- have an equal shot at a good life."

It would be "My only goal is that all citizens both humans and faunus from Mantle and Atlas have equal shots at good life".

In her original phrase, it seemed like Robyn is considering the faunus something apart from Atlas and Mantle.

-"But you're Huntsmen and Huntresses! You can't just back down from a fight!"

It would be "But you are soldiers from this kingdom! You can't abandon Mantle!".

I don't know, I prefer that Yang makes emphasis in the fact that they are committing national treason. For me that is the worst part of leaving Mantle behind, that is national treason.

"You were. Then you trained us."

Eliminate the phrase. It seems weird that first she is overconfident in fighting the Ace ops, and later she is all:

"Come on Harriet! We're playing right into Salem's hands! You know we need to be working together."

So yeah, eliminate the phrase.

[trialbymagicks]

Revisiting Hidden Expedition: Everest (2007) [PC, Steam]

In honor of the 70 years since Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary became the first known people to reach Mt. Everest's summit, let's embark on another Hidden Expedition with the second game in the series. Hidden Expedition: Everest, here we come! 🏔️

Plot

The Hidden Expedition Club sends you, their best thrill-seeking explorer fresh from the depths of the Titanic wreckage, to race to the top of Mount Everest. Armed with a keen eye and the advice of “expert Everest climber” Ed Viesturs, you have all the information you need to beat the competition – two spry old ladies and their bereaved ferret, a couple of bookworms, and a group of Big Fish Games fans – never mind the fact that you presumably have no prior training for such a feat. But first, you must track an eccentric mountain climber across three continents to discover what he knows about a secret passageway through Mount Everest before you challenge the mountain yourself.

Introduction

For the second game in the series, Big Fish Games partnered with National Geographic Ventures and Ed Viesturs to create Hidden Expedition: Everest, which took the casual game market by storm upon its release on June 1, 2007. In fact, it was so successful that it was the first game in the series to get the iOS treatment, subsequently proving to the company that the mobile market was also a profitable one.

While Titanic’s set dressing tapped into the world’s curiosity and fascination regarding the famous sunken wreck, Everest’s mission was to inspire in its players a sense of adventure and love for the world we live in. Boasting more than 30 scenes from around the world and exclusive footage from Ed Viesturs’ travels, this game certainly makes an effort to shove as much as it can into a small package. Unfortunately, some scenes may not be as sensitively or accurately depicted as they could have been. Some of this can be blamed on the lack of theme in the randomized hidden object lists, but certain aspects do fall victim to the tendency to generalize entire cultures.

Everest At A Glance

The start menu is a fantastic display of this game’s improved quality. Epic music immediately puts you in the mood for a high stakes international expedition, which the soundtrack continues to deliver on throughout the game, and the scenery already lets you know that you’re going to be treated to some beautiful sites.

The most interesting new feature, a black book, sits in the bottom left corner and there is now a high score section for cataloguing your completion time. Upon pressing play at the start of a new game, the National Geographic documentary footage rolls and we are treated to an early example of how cutscenes would eventually become a selling point of the genre.

Unfortunately, it becomes evident right away that the clarity of the Steam port’s hidden object scenes is lacking compared to its predecessor. The images appear fuzzier and objects blend in almost seamlessly with the scenery. This appears to have been an intentional part of the gameplay designed to raise the difficulty level and encourage players to use some of the new features – such as a more effective pause option and the hourglass – to help them on their quest. Objects can take a lot longer to find as a result, though thankfully some scenes cause less eye strain than others and the game isn’t unplayable by any means.

Once again, Steam reviews on the store page reported concerns about the game not opening to full screen or being too clunky on a higher end PC. So, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I did not have either problem – even running it on a Windows 10 system!

Fair warning: Just like with Hidden Expedition: Titanic, you are required to grant the program permission to make changes to your computer upon first startup. This appears to be what allows the game to automatically change its resolution and open to full screen in order to accommodate for its original smaller size… which I suspect may be a contributing factor to the fuzzy image quality, but I’m no expert. If this makes you feel uncomfortable, you may want to pass on picking it up because the game will not run if you don’t give it permission. You can, of course, choose to play the game in windowed mode later on if that is a more comfortable fit for you.

But fear not, the screen resolution is immediately restored to your previous setting once the game is closed! During my multiple replays, there was only one instance where I had to manually reset the resolution for my screen after closing the game. Admittedly, the main difference between Titanic and Everest is that the former is way less clunky about the resolution difference and doesn’t hinder me from using the Windows Start button to return to my default resolution desktop without quitting.

Regardless, I am happy to finally be able to experience the game in full after so many years of burning curiosity!

How To Play

Although Hidden Expedition: Everest kicks the difficulty level up a notch, the gameplay remains just as intuitive as its predecessor and the rules are also simple to grasp:

Complete all scenes (plus bonus round) in each level to move on to the next level.

Each level is timed, allotting a certain number of minutes to complete.

Find all hidden objects in each scene before the timer runs out.

Clicking on the wrong object too quickly or too often negatively impacts your position in the race.

A short amount of time can be gained by finding the hidden hourglass in each scene.

Finding all 5 gems in each scene grants you an extra hint for the level.

There are 4 zones you must navigate throughout this game, but don’t let the small number fool you! Somewhat like a nesting doll, each zone consists of multiple levels inside which are two or three locations you must visit and complete the hidden object scenes within before you can move on to the next stretch of this grand adventure.

If you thought the time limit for each Titanic dive was stressful, Everest raises the bar even higher. This time, instead of racing against your dwindling oxygen supply, you’re racing against three competing AI teams who move at randomized speeds to keep you on your toes. Your goal is to gain and maintain the lead by completing each level before the AI teams do.

For every item you find, your marker – a white arrow located along the bottom of the item list in every hidden object scene – is moved forward in the race. Unfortunately, if you misclick too many times on the screen, you will be penalized and the AI teams’ markers will be moved forward, which can potentially cost you your lead. But because fortune favors those with good eyesight, if you find the hourglass hidden in the scene, time will stop and the AI teams will be frozen in place just long enough for you to catch up and scoot ahead. (We don’t need to address the fact that this implies some type of time-bending magic in the Hidden Expedition universe, but do keep that tidbit of knowledge in your back pocket for later.)

At the end of each level, the game will show you the current times and ranking for each team. It should be fairly easy to finish in first place, but just in case you somehow didn’t, this screen is your chance to return to the level and replay it for another shot at the lead! This is something you probably will want to do if you happen to be a completionist.

Collecting all 5 gems in a scene grants you one extra hint, which is difficult to do because the gems are blurry and hard to pinpoint in some scenes due to the game’s odd resolution. Take note that each level grants you 3 hints and you have the opportunity to earn 2 or 3 extra hints if you find all of the gems in the level. While your stash of 3 to 6 hints do carry over between scenes in the level you find them in, they do not carry over between levels or zones. So, strategize your use of them wisely before you lose them!

After all hidden object scenes in a level have been cleared, you will be presented with a minigame. This will either be an extra hidden object scene or a puzzle where you must piece together some type of map or artifact that is vaguely connected to the plot. Complete the challenge before time runs out and the mission will reward you with the next clue to the whereabouts of the mysterious expert adventurer that you’ve been tailing, propelling you forward in your brazen attempt to discover his secrets.

On the plus side, due to the added length of the game, you can now return to the start menu or quit the game in the middle of a level without fear of the level resetting on you like the dives in the Titanic game would. You can even return to the map during your exploration of a hidden object scene and jump around to the other available scenes without losing your progress. The number on the red location markers will remind you of how many items you have left to find in each scene.

As usual, you will be asked to complete one final (rather intuitive) puzzle upon reaching the summit to claim your victory! Despite its intimidating appearance, this one is very forgiving and does not appear to be timed, so don’t sweat the small stuff here.

How very “aliens built the secret tunnel” of you, Big Fish Games.

First Time Features

In keeping with the Hidden Expedition series’ educational format, “world-famous mountaineer and Mount Everest climber” Ed Viesturs keeps butting in to narrate fun facts or “helpful advice” about his knowledge and every time he does I feel like I’m back in a lecture hall politely waiting for the teacher to stop talking so I can leave. His line delivery is so stiff it’s clear that he’s reading from a script, but given that this is the first time voiceovers were introduced to the Hidden Expedition series I can’t help but find it charming.

This is also the first Hidden Expedition to include a journal feature for storing educational trivia gathered throughout the adventure.

Here, it takes the form of Ed Viesturs’ photo album where you can view photographs and videos from his travels (which he dutifully narrates over, making him seem even more like a world history professor flexing on his students with his vacation photos) alongside his personal biography. Click on his face and he’ll even recite one of a handful of prerecorded lines from his motivational speeches! New photos and voiceovers unlock as you clear zones in first place, and he’ll certainly make sure to inform you that new content is available as you proceed. You can return to the start menu to check out his travel logs anytime.

Similarly, this game introduces the next new feature – a collection of secret items (like a pumpkin) that you can find in hidden object scenes!

This seems to be the predecessor of the admittedly more straightforward “morphing items” feature in later games. The “secret” in the name is the key word here because the game will not tell you about their existence until you happen to click on one either by accident or out of curiosity to see if that object will match a description on your item list.

This feels a little backwards, considering the game makes a point of punishing players for misclicking and doesn’t exactly encourage exploration. But since Ed Viesturs keeps reminding us that climbing Everest is a challenge, I suppose it only makes sense that this game should be filled with unforeseen challenges too!

The Story So Far...

When we last saw our intrepid adventurer, Eris was hanging out in the remains of a deep-sea death trap, aka: the wreckage of the RMS Titanic. But diving – yes, diving – 12,600 feet below sea level was the equivalent of a nice vacation for this adrenaline junkie because they are fresh off the dive and raring to ascend more than 29,000 feet above sea level to the summit of Mt. Everest!

For some undisclosed reason – most likely related to the suspicious disappearance of a mysterious mountain climber in Kathmandu who was rambling about a secret tunnel through the mountain – the Hidden Expedition Team has chosen Eris (who quickly teams up with professional mountaineer Ed Viesturs) to represent them in a race against the public to reach the summit.

But of course not all is what it seems and who – or what exactly – should they discover along the way? Well…

Catch the full story as soon as I finish wrapping my head around the conspiracy board I've accidentally created.

Resources

For more information on the series, check out the Hidden Expedition Wikipedia page, the Big Fish Games Hidden Expedition Website, and the Hidden Expedition TV Tropes page.

If you’re curious to read more about the National Geographic partnership with Big Fish Games, you can check out this Information Week article.

In a shocking twist that surprised absolutely no one, National Geographic christened Ed Viesturs with the title of Adventurer of the Year in 2005 upon the completion of his 18-year mission to reach the summits of all fourteen of the world’s 8000-meter peaks without supplemental oxygen. After all these years, you can still keep up with what he’s doing at his website, many passages from which are used verbatim in the game.

Note: This article was originally posted on WordPress on May 29, 2023.

[andiessoccerblog]

USA Exit, Quarterfinals

I wish I had made separate blog posts about these, but my travel back to the USA was overwhelmingly nuts and jet lag has hit me hard, so just pretend this is two separate posts.

USA Exit

In Round of 16, team USA was heartbreakingly eliminated by Sweden in penalty kicks. Ironically, it was the best game that the USWNT played the whole tournament, but even their best was not enough to make the difference against Sweden and their keeper Zećira Mušović, who made 11 saves (most in one game in the world cup so far) to keep the scoreline 0-0. The final penalty kick that gave Sweden the win was almost saved by USa keeper Alyssa Naeher, until goal line technology (7 cameras located around the field) determined that the ball had crossed the line with a millimeter to spare. A SINGLE MILLIMETER.

It is the first World Cup ever where the USA did not get a medal. People have a lot of opinions on why. Some people blame the coach, who will probably be fired just based on the result. Other people (idiots) blame the team themselves, saying they focus too much on money and advocacy and not enough on the game. These players have worked their entire lives to be on this stage, and often this is the only chance they get. It is insulting to these players to say that their singular focus is not winning the World Cup. 

As with a lot of things, the real reason is…it’s complicated. The USA did look disorganized and unprepared in the group stage games, and while Coach Vlakto Andonovski definitely does hold some responsibility, his player pool was also affected by major injuries, and he inherited poor long-term planning strategy from US Soccer. After the 2019 World Cup and the 2020 Olympics, there was not enough done to transition the team from relying exclusively on its older players for goal production. Of the 9 scorers for USA at the 2019 World Cup, only 3 of them were starters in the 2023 World Cup, and only one of them (Lindsay Horan) scored a goal. 

As we have also seen this year, this is the World Cup of Chaos. THREE debutantes made it to the knockout stage, while Germany, Brazil, and Canada did not. Teams are better than ever, and can finally challenge the teams that have been considered elite in other years, including the USA. This is a good thing. 

Quarterfinals

Spain v. Netherlands

Spain and Netherlands both faced easier opponents in the round of 16, Spain taking down Switzerland and Netherlands taking down South Africa. Netherlands has played more consistently over the course of the tournament, and although Spain has shown some really good moments, I do think their 4-0 loss to Japan is indicative of problems against high-ranked teams, and so Netherlands will likely win.

Japan v. Sweden

Of all the games, I think this is the quarterfinal game that will produce the winner of the World Cup. Japan has been on fire, and has shown that they can win against teams like Spain and Norway AND make it look easy. Sweden fought for their life against the USA, and won; they can use that momentum against Japan. Their keeper Mušović is finding her rhythm, and will be a bigger challenge to Japan than any other keepers the country has faced. My pick for this game is Japan winning, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Sweden gets the upset.

Australia v. France

France had an easy win against Morocco in the round of 16, scoring three goals in the first 24 minutes, but only one goal in the rest of the game. Similarly, they had an easy win against Panama in the last group stage match, but were held to only 1 goal in the second half. If France continues to have weak second halves, they could struggle against Australia. The host nation pulls massive crowd support at every game, and has put together strong wins against Canada and Denmark. I think that Australia will use their momentum to put together a win against France.

England v. Colombia

This should be the most predictable result. England should dominate. But they went to penalty kicks against Nigeria, and had close games in the group stage. Colombia beat Jamaica in their round of 16 game, and beat Germany in the group stage, but in both games Colombia was struggling, and many people are saying that it is pure luck that Colombia have gotten to this point in the first stage. I tend to agree, and think England will win this.

[benevolentbirdgal]

watching the r primary debate with some red wine as streamed by a smarmy liberal dude. holy fucking shit a shitshow.

recap from a snarky blue haired progressive:

They opened with a message from Biden. Then a SONG that the candidates had to analyze the popularity of.

They all played Blame The Dems For The Economy, except Haley, who also quoting statistics on why the Republicans suck economically.

Christie said Ramaswamy talked like ChatGPT. Dammit Christie, I can't unhear it.

We got a whole 19 minutes in before the first "deep state" - DeSantis broke the levee on that one.

Minute 24: There was a video call from someone representing a conservative youth group. The kid basically said that climate change is biggest issues for young voters. How will you assure the American voter (esp the young voter) that you as prez/party leader care about this? The hosts asked for a show of hands if you believe humans are driving CC. Before anybody could Florida Man went on a rant about economics and China.

wait is Haley against the Dobbs decision? okay kindasorta asterick-asterick but she's WAY more moderate than the Florida man or the rest of the squad on stage. And also more realistic about getting the required senate votes. and actually named not arresting women for getting abortions.

DeSantis then had to ramble about abortion and how /he/ got it through in Florida and how he could totally get a national 6 week ban or more.

Minute 37 before anybody invoked their Christianity as political stance - Pencey-wency. (re aborsh).

oh the north dakota guy exists. right. he actually opposes a federal abortion ban. actually shocked he believes in the 10th amendment to that degree.

oh the Arkansas guy exists. he seems to think, much like Pence and DeSantis, he can just push it through on sheer power of will. same for Tim Scott.

Damn I wish I could play live shit on 2X.

Pencey-wency is walking a tight fucking line re Trumples.

47 minutes at invocation of Hunter Biden. (Christie, on crime).

49 minutes for "George Soros" (Florida Man).

ND Man's solution to crime to learn from small towns.

52 minutes to someone referring to Trump as indicated (Asa Hutchinson).

Hell of a tightrope that Christie is walkin' re: Trump.

I really do think Token Billionaire New To Politics buys his own bullshit.

Jersey Boy is out for blood. Productive? No. Panem & Circus? Yes.

so much flat out lying. from multiple people.

Florida Boy still won't answer yes/no questions.

Arkansas Dude actually said the word "insurrection." (1:07 in). and that he would not support a convicted Trump. genuinely surprised.

Jersey Boy actually seems to understand the VP oath of office as well. Haley dodged the question. DeSantis dodged it ramblingly.

Does Billionaire Man know what "contrition" means? Not convinced he does.

Is Pence pitching Jesus as his running mate? Or a physical copy of the constitution?

The Ukraine funding is actually showing some difference in opinion. From "not my problem THE BORDER" to "that's fucked up and we should fix it for humanitarian reasons but also to keep Russia away from us" to "not buddying up with Russia is empowering China." This seems to be the issue with the most diversity of opinion.

1:17 in and they have to explain how the bell works again.

More arguing about Ukraine. More arguing and non-cooperative-overlap regarding foreign aid and foreign military intervention.

Tim Scott: lets fire the IRS for national security!

There should be some mechanism where they CANNOT answer in rambles until they press a yes or no button. FFS.

DeSantis is REALLY into the anecdotes about "I met a random person and blahblahblah."

1:29 to "the wall" being said.

1:38 to "gender ideology" and "critical race theory" (Florida Man).

"The nuclear family is the great form of government known to mankind" - Billionaire's solution to education. Went on a rant about single mothers being "paid" to be single versus keeping a man around. he's winning the bonkers take award and it's not a field full of normal takes. see also: he wants the voting aged RAISED and having to take a test to vote?

1:43 - "lightning round" - "keep it 30 second, PLEASE."

1:46 "Judeo-Christian" (Scott). Followed by "break the backs of our teacher unions."

1:48: Jersey Boy has to answer a question about UFOs. "Would you level with the American people about what the government knows about these encounters?" not the most cray-cray question of the night.

Closing statements were pretty boring, honestly.

[vamptastic]

i think primarily the problem with me is that i would like to fix everything. i see communism primarily as like The Big Answer, the Right Way Forward, and i think in reality a true communist system would be better in most ways and better in terms of what i personally value (better wellbeing and happiness for all, equality and egalitarianism, the inherent goodness and value of human life), but much, much harder to implement.

the way i (in my extremely uneducated view ive like barely read the communist manifesto im 17 please feel free to talk about this with me but know i indeed have not read theory and mostly come up with shit on my own via unhinged rants) see it there are essentially two ways to achieve communism:

1. you establish an authoritarian government, one that is probably well-intentioned, but still at the mercy of a few people's capabilities. this is, thus far, the only way it has been done, and like any centralized government with few checks and balances you can get a lot of shit done very quickly. the problem, of course, is that individuals are highly susceptible to corruption and logistics are fucking hard, especially in a country that was likely in a VERY bad state to incite revolution, both agriculturally and industrially, and also has the powers that be actively trying to sabotage it. this is how you end up with resettlement programs, lines for bread, and catastrophic famine. it is also how you quickly give the homeless homes, establish supply lines and public transport, and give everybody a job. you also probably have to shoot some people in the head, ranging from monarchy and billionaires to college students who cannot resist the urge to dispute propaganda. i honestly feel the more i learn about political science the LESS qualified i am to evaluate how much of this is because of authoritarian government, in no small part because american polisci classes seem to hinge on democracy = good and evaluate from there (tbf, democracy usually rocks, but i would like to get into WHY a bit, you know?). i will say that i think a lot of the biggest failures in communist countries have come from a national decision that has catastrophic effects on local areas, which could be averted with less centralization. just realized i am essentially just advocating for a mixed federalist system fucking ap us government and politics is poisoning my brain dude. eventually i will achieve my life's work (a minor in political science) and will know the One True Answer to this.

2. you rely on the idea that people just like, will do communism on their own. the issue with this idea being that they havent. from the (again, not exactly rigorous) reading ive done, this is kind of what marx was going for, in that he believed communism was the inevitable result of industrialization and that it would happen no matter what, but should be sort of hastened along (you can blame this perspective on the foreward to my copy of the communist manifesto, which i fall back onto in times of need when i cannot understand the pamphlet itself, and its utter conviction that marx was a romantic). there is some validity to this in that a lot of pre industrial society was much more communal, ranging from indigenous agricultural towns to like, salem sharing their rye, or the many successful small-scale communist projects that have been created since then. and i do think that small groups of people, tight knit communities, embody the spirit of communism better than an entire nation working towards producing more coal. the problem, of course, is that if you got rid of nationalized infrastructure and just let everyone do their own thing our quality of life would drop significantly. you need things like pharmaceuticals and an energy grid to keep up our current lifespan and quality of life for the elderly, disabled, mentally ill, children, vulnerable people in general, which is kind of what communism is all about: that the QOL for the lowest rung of society is indicative of society as whole. also for how much this is predicated on the idea that people just will become communist on their owns if things get shit enough it does seem that outreach and education and distribution of propaganda are important even to people who believe strongly in anarchism. there's definitely an answer here i think i just need to Read More and Think Harder.

both of these methods are the Only Good Method, and both suck. communism, however, is pretty good. i am yet to reconcile this.

a neglected component here is also my deranged idea that it's my personal responsibility to figure out how to fix the entire world, or indeed that that is possible to do. i also think it is important to care about things and that too many people don't care about things beyond what brings them pleasure or greater quality of life as an individual. it would feel wrong to simply accept that i can go about the rest of my life being financially stable if i just stop caring about other people. i think the answer here can probably be found in that 'first they came for jews, but i did not speak out because i was not a jew' poem, firstly because i AM a jew, and because like, i kind of AM the Other People in a more general sense. but on the other hand it would be really easy to just stop giving a fuck and go get my free college degree in whatever is easy and makes me money and never care about any of this ever again, which many will tell you is the inevitable fate of happy people. sad people are like the old revolutionary in disco elysium, sitting on an empty island in utter conviction of their moral rightness and pursuit of am unachievable goal. they are also sometimes assassinated.

the use of metaphors is signaling that the point is REALLY getting away from me so i will be calling it a day on this one i think. if anybody has the definitive answer to how we Do Communism Right please let me know and maybe tell me what books i read to find out the answer as well.

[wheredidthepeepeego-mp3]

western europeans stop getting fucking defensive.

"but your hIsToRy is just killing native americans!!!" and that's not important? Are you assuming all of america is just white people? Where do you think native people went? They're still here- victims of the very system you mock so heartlessly. some of the people living within US borders that Europeans loveeee to be EXTREMELY classist about live on fucking reservations so don't pretend to be such an ally. And american history DOES include marginalized groups- are ignoring the rich art and culture of black people in the us? inventions like the banjo are mocked in other countries and even up north for being "white trash music" but they were invented by black people. yes, they've culturally been distanced from that but my point still stands- make fun of the way white people profit off of other cultures, not the ACTUAL CULTURES THEMSELVES YOU THINK YOU'RE PROTECTING. europeans make fun of american adaptations of chinese, italian, or mexican food when these resturaunts were oftentimes commandeered by immigrants so shut yalls fucking yaps about american culture being all "colonialism" when the majority of american culture is held up by black folks. Yes, it's ABSOLUTELY a problem that white people profit off of black culture- but stop making jokes about things like soul food because you think you're punching up at colonizers but you're punching down at colonizees. just because you know the FACTS about american history doesn't mean you know the cultural context.

"but you don't learn about OURR history. waah waah waah little baby colonizers feel bad for being left out." bbg you live in france- one of the HIGHEST rated countries of quality of living. don't get me wrong- the us also mostly outperforms quality of living standards too according to oecd but not to that level. MANY people in the us live in extreme poverty and live on the streets in either extremely cold or searing hot weather without proper clothing- they can be raped, trafficked, or otherwise taken advantage of with no feasible place to go espicially in the south if they are queer and can't stay at a church or christian shelter. You see them walk the streets every day, down almost every road depending on where you live. obviously poverty is not a us specific thing and other countries have it MUCH worse but still. i agree that the world's politics are centered around the us which is obviously horrible and i'm very anti-nationalism but the reason why us politics are prevalent outside of the us is because it's a fucking HUGE country. you live in a country the size of my state- that isn't an insult, in fact, i'm very glad for you that you live in a damn nice place. But the reason americans are "dumb" is because a lot of us are taught fascism in school and aren't given the research skills to FIND accurate information about other countries. saw someone in these notes saying not to "throw stones in glass houses-" but isn't it just as hypocritical to judge americans for being colonizers when almost EVERY WESTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRY has had war crimes as severe or worse than the us? Brits, don't blame me, a single (one, 1) american for not singlehandedly solving US colonialism when you haven't solved the Indian economy, hmm??? The moment you accuse americans of being hypocrites just for living there, you make an enemy out of us. You have NO empathy for native people/latinos/black americans because you label all of us as poor uneducated fools.

And whose fault is it that we're poor and uneducated? What are you gonna do, tell us to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps out of the VERY SYSTEM you make fun of us for being in? Folks that are actual victims of colonization are of course always welcome imo to make appropriate fun of americans but when fucking Swedish people or whatever make insensitive jokes about fat children dying in shootings being okay because they're "colonizers" they are being GIANT hypocrites. Have some fucking empathy to literal children being murdered- is that too damn much to ask? If you've never had to live in a food desert, or hear gunshots at night,

sorry about the length and incoherence of my rant :3 ask me if something is unclear because im on my period, caffeinated, stayed up all night, and hit my head really hard against my table yesterday and am semiverbal in the first place so im not at my best RN when it comes to communicating.

[burrowkit]

Provincial Election Rant

So, where I'm at, there's a bit of an election running.

Throughout covid, I've picked up a habit of following (and turning on notifications) of the person in charge of my province. You know, because sometimes the government accounts don't post urgent stuff before the guy at the top. (Same with the various police forces because the only way to know if an escaped shooter is in my area is by having other places not in my province with notifications on. Having those accounts having notifications on amuses people).

Anyways. It worked fine for the last election and the last guy, because he shared important information. Also blamed everyone in age of 18-39 for being the super spreads (because they spread more covid than the 40-49 age group, or the 10-17 group, or any other 'decade group'. Which bugs me because 18-39 is obviously going to get double! They have 20-29, 30-39 + 2 years! That's 22 years in 1 category vs all the other 10 year age groupings!)

But this time around, my gosh, he's posting daily about campaigning everywhere.

I don't think he's posted a single thing of him being at his home district. Only everywhere else in this place.

And, he tries to seem cool but like, is totally missing the mark?

There was a national day recently (keeping it vague-like cause y'all could google all this). All this opponents posted about it. Some of their stances / how to protect others. Etc. Still campaigning but less so.

This dude does like one post early for generic stuff. Then, like 8 hours later does another super campaign-y post.

Less than an hour later, he swiftly posts about said day.

Almost like someone said "Hey uh, you forgot to post about this today".

I also can't tell if the peeps in charge of the overall campaign hate the party or not. They're posting their slogans all over... covering their own party member's candidate sign and sticking it next to the competition.

The extra problem? Random slogan for extra hiding...

"Want to save more money?" and then beside the sign is their rival.

And in tiny letters under the text? Their party.

It really reads (to me) as if the other parties are pushing this thing that their own party is equally pushing. Like??? grr

Anyways, in this election, apparently my wanting people to have better labour laws/rights means which way I vote in our 3 available options, is pretty well known.

[treadmilltreats]

The Effects of Domestic Violence

October is National Domestic Violence month, and it is a subject near and dear to my heart.

So all through this month, I will be writing about it, to try to open your eyes about what it actually does to the victims.

Today, I want to present you with some facts about this devastating crime and the lasting effects it can have.

This is not just me telling you, this is actual facts and reports from top researchers on what domestic violence and verbal abuse can and will do to people and let me tell you it's really scary.

According to 2020 National Statistics on Domestic Violence, here are the facts:

On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men.

1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men experience severe intimate partner physical violence, intimate partner contact sexual violence, and/or intimate partner stalking with impacts such as injury, fearfulness, post-traumatic stress disorder, use of victim services, contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, etc.

1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner. This includes a range of behaviors (e.g., slapping, shoving, pushing) and in some cases might not be considered "domestic violence."

1 in 7 women and 1 in 25 men have been injured by an intimate partner.

1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men have been victims of severe physical violence (e.g., beating, burning, strangling) by an intimate partner in their lifetime.

1 in 7 women and 1 in 18 men have been stalked by an intimate partner during their lifetime to the point in which they felt very fearful or believed that they or someone close to them would be harmed or killed.

Harvard University put out their own study on verbal abuse. They went on to say:

Scolding, swearing, yelling,

blaming, insulting, threatening, ridiculing, demeaning & criticizing can be as harmful as physical abuse, sexual abuse outside the home, or witnessing physical abuse at home.

The report suggests that, when verbal abuse is constant and severe, it creates a risk of post-traumatic stress disorder. Yes, the same type of psychological collapse experienced by combat troops in Iraq. I had no idea until I was diagnosed with it.

The research on which the report is based points out that children who are the target of frequent verbal mistreatment exhibit higher rates of physical aggression, delinquency, and social problems than other children.

Other researchers have associated childhood verbal abuse with a significantly higher risk of developing unstable, angry personalities, narcissistic behavior,

obsessive-compulsive disorders, and paranoia.

“Verbal abuse may also have more lasting consequences than other forms of abuse because it’s often more continuous,”

says Teicher. “And in combination with physical abuse and neglect, may produce the most dire outcome.

There are always signs, yet we chose to ignore them,

So let me give you a few:

Do they...

*Make derogatory

comments about a group you belong to (Gender, career, religion, etc.). This comment might end with "I mean them, not you."

*Make fun of or insult your

ideas, behaviors, or beliefs?

*Make negative comments about people, places, or things that you love?

*Say things that are almost true about you, but leave you wanting to defend yourself?

*Say, "What? It was just a joke!" to dismiss a remark that offends you?

*Ask you questions about something that just happened and reply to your answers, "Do you care to think about that and answer the question again" or just sit there, staring at you, in a way that lets you know your answer wasn't "right"?

*Engage you in long conversations about things on which you disagree until you reach the point of wanting to say, "Okay. Whatever. You're right!"

Or insist that you repeat what they said and then, later, claim,

"You agreed with me!"

*Somehow manage to physically back you into a corner or somewhere you can not easily escape during intense conversations?

*Break you down until you

say you're sorry about a fight you clearly are in the right about?

These are signs of how you feel when you are with them. Do you feel...

*Nervous when approaching them with certain topics?

*Insulted because of their use of foul language, or does their use of foul language change the meaning of otherwise normal requests?

Such as: "Could you f*ck*ng tell me how much f*ck*ng longer it will be before you're ready

for dinner?"

*A need to tell on yourself

about innocent events just in case the person hears about it later?

*Feel misunderstood for the most part in your relationship?

Do you doubt...

*Your sanity, intelligence, and communication skills because of difficulties relating to them?

*Your memories when it comes to recalling conversations or events with the person because their take on it is so different from your own?

Ask yourself these questions and be brutally honest with the answers because these are the signs.

Victims of verbal abuse may:

*Have difficulty forming conclusions and making decisions.

*Feel or accept that there is something wrong with them on a basic level.

I am here to tell you all of this is true as I was in a verbally abusive marriage for 24 years. I know how it feels to be yelled at, put down, belittled, told you are stupid, and that you could never do anything right.

I spent years crying myself to sleep, thinking I could never get out of this relationship because I didn't think I could make it on my own. His words rang over and over in my head.

I'd be nothing without him. He would take my girls, I'd be living in a box under 95... I was stuck in fear.

When I finally had the courage to leave, I made it my mission to help other women, to make sure my words touched their hearts, to uplift and give encouragement to someone else who may need it. I feel this overwhelming need to constantly put the word out about this silent killer of lives and souls.

This will never go away if we keep quiet about it. It has to be spoken of, we have to shine the light on this dark topic and show these men and women that even though you may not raise your hands to us, you are still a abusiver!

So today, my friends, I beg you to reach out to help others who are literally stuck in these relationships. Give them a way to get out, and donate to your local women's shelters. You don't realize how small and precious the joy is of just coming home, not being afraid, and just being happy until you have walked in our shoes.

"Be the change you want to be”

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[clowngames]

First, be aware that this "stages" list is not absolute. Some stages can be skipped, some can be swapped in order, and there's no real timeline at which this must happen. In fact, we could get to 7 and the whole thing could fizzle out.

In short, this can be prevented. Maybe not necessarily by us. Long post incoming.

In my view, two things would need to happen for this to be prevented. I think it's very possible that both happen, but neither of them are especially immediately reassuring.

All or most of these bills must fail. Every republican state is working on its own little genocide track, and while "just move" isn't the best solution to the problem of "existing in public in this state is a felony" it's at least marginally more reasonable if there are states you can move to.

Republicans have to lose soundly in the next election, in the house, in the senate, in local elections, they have to lose badly.

Here's the thing: this isn't actually unreasonable. Republicans are campaigning on a pro-genocide platform that their voter base doesn't actually want. Republican voters oppose these bills. While republican voters may not like trans people as much as we'd like them to, they're sick of hearing about them. Republicans have issues that they'd like to be addressed, and politicians and news folks are just flat out ignoring everything else.

They can't do with trans people what pro-genocide folks do with their targets and blame all current problems on them, because there just aren't enough trans people out there. So they just can't convince their voter base to get as passionate as is required.

At least, that's what the numbers imply, and that's what I hope is true and will stay true past the election season.

Now "go vote" feels like a hollow sentiment to prevent a whole-ass genocide, but Republicans need to lose this next election. Not just because they won't be in power to enact these evil laws, and not just because we can barely rely on Democrats to repeal whatever ones do get passed, but also because it will be a signal to them that they bet on the wrong horse. That going after trans people isn't actually the strategy to get votes. That will prevent them from putting so much money down on this issue in the future.

Ok, so I talked about #2. Let's talk about the more immediate #1 - these bills need to fail.

How can you and I increase the likelihood of making sure they fail? The best shot we've got is to communicate with our representatives. That means calling them, mailing them, letting them know where we stand on this issue. Calling it genocide might not be a rhetorically effective tactic when talking to someone who isn't already on your side, but when you call a senator/house member, you get their secretary who really only relays the fact that you took x position on y issue - it's the calls in bulk that are really important.

This is not to convince our legislators that genocide is wrong, its to convince them that it's unpopular. The more people are involved, the more successful this will be. Get your parents to call too, separate calls each.

Protests are also effective for this, though they tend to be reactive rather than proactive, and I've seen in my own lifetime conservatives spin protests into arguments about how aggressive and violent progressives are. At this point, who cares? Riots are the language of the oppressed.

You can also consider donating to pro-LGBT political groups. I haven't vetted them so someone else can chime in if they want but the National Center for Transgender Equality and the Human Rights Campaign are two orgs that can help fight on our behalf, according to a brief google search. They both have some resources for getting involved in other forms of activism. Again, doing anything is better than nothing.

So now let's talk about the contingency plan: If we can't stop the genocide, we can do damage control.

The above advocacy groups, as well as various other charities, are good to donate to at any time to help trans people even in the worst case scenario. Those groups will adapt to the situation and shift focus to help trans folks survive as much as they can, and they'll be smarter about it than me. You don't have to donate your money, you can find out how personally to get involved.

You're also going to want to find some allies who you can trust to help you if shit goes south. People who can take you in if the laws become economically devastating instead of just physically devastating. People who can protect you if things get worse than that. It might be your family, it might be friends. If you don't have any close cis friends, make them now.

To the cis people reading this, be those allies as much as you physically can. Help trans people by doing all the above activism shit within your own ability. Trans people need your help now more than ever, and in the next few years even more than now.

Know that you don't have to be a friend to be an ally. You could personally hate the guts of every individual trans person you've met, but if you agree as most people do that these bills are going too far, you need to be vocal about that in the same ways I outlined above.

I'll end with as hopeful a message as I can: You can't kill transness, just like you can't kill homosexuality. These republican politicians, and the voters that enable them, are gonna have trans kids, just as they once had gay kids. They're going to learn, eventually, that you can't convert someone. And someday the idea of trying will be so unpopular no one will suggest it.

That may not be soon, unfortunately. It might not be in our lifetime, though I have to believe it will if we make it that far. In the meantime, do everything you can to survive. The generation that will live to see peace needs us to fight.

I feel like US conservatives went from a 3/4 to 7 on transgender people over the course of a year and a half.

Basically, if this passes, the state Florida will take away your children if you are transgender or one of your children is transgender (as the bill notes it will take away cis children if they have a trans sibling).

Absolutely monstrous.

[wyrmfedgrave]

Pics:

1. Voters will decide who's better for our country - if we can stop tRump's attempts to steal the vote...

2. Problems.

There's always more of them - & their would-be solutions...

If we can work together as a unified group.

3. The Blame Game affects every- body.

It doesn't matter who's on top...

But, the Republikkkans certainly aren't hiding their evil intentions!!

4. Most of the world's media is owned by oligarchs.

So, how can Prez Biden get a 'fair shake' from his enemies?

Answer: He can't.

So, go on the warpath on independent newscasts.

Bias free companies like NPR, etc...

5. Yes, Biden had a bad night - on an important debate.

There's no denying that.

And yes, the weaker members of the Democrats are trying to replace him.

But, at this late time - it would cost them the election.

Unless, that is, they put forth a truly winning candidate - like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez!

Nobody else in the Democratic Party has the needed will, drive & national profile like she does.

So ask her already!!

6. I can't think of any decent cop who'd follow such a criminal law.

Yes, some homeless people are of the violent sort.

But, to criminalize someone - for being too poor - is particularly evil.

And, an extremely feudal system.

In such a mindset, people have to pay just to exist...

Most folk don't know it, but feudalism is actually the end goal of capitalism!

7. What most of us are hoping to accomplish with our votes.

Since the Felon Rump controls about ⅓ of the voting public, he would have to cheat his way into the White House.

The Con Man's Christian cultists can, for instance, buy enough Electoral College votes.

They could fool around with the voting machines.

I hear they'll try to intimidate voters by 'watching' them - from inside the very polls.

Why isn't that illegal?

8. What we all hope that Prez Biden will do...

I'd say that the Odious Rump is a true danger & traitor to the U.S. - one that deserves an 'official response'...

End it already.

[gatekeeper-watchman]

Daily Devotionals Tuesday; April 23, 2024

Proverbs: God's Wisdom for Daily Living

Devotional Scripture:

Proverbs 14:34(KJV): 34 Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.

Thought for the Day

In this verse, Proverbs points out that corporate righteousness exalts a nation, while corporate sin brings reproach. Every blessing comes directly or indirectly from God's grace. It grieves the heart of God, that instead of being grateful for all the blessings God has bestowed upon mankind, many blames Him for the problems in the world. They do not understand that sin has created the issues.

Keeping God's Word brings blessing. Some nations, though they follow false religions, are blessed in some aspects of their society because they practice scriptural principles. Many people do not realize what tremendous things Christianity has accomplished for the betterment of our lives, especially here in the United States. Many here enjoy a good life with abundance, not realizing that they owe our prosperity and freedom to a book that many are taught to despise - the Bible. Many of our founding fathers were godly men who used Biblical principles to construct the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Any unbiased historian knows that the Bible has had a much greater influence in the shaping of our nation than what is currently being taught in our schools.

When the Bible's influence is strong, it affects culture in positive ways. When a society rejects Biblical principles, evil will be reflected in its cultural choices. We see this today worldwide, as both young and old people are embracing unbiblical things. Choice of dress, food, music, and entertainment are all reflections of how we embrace or reject God's Word. Rebellious, anti-Christian music, for example, has become firmly established in society, despite its dangerous influences of encouraging lust, sexual promiscuity, suicide, rebellion against authority, and so forth.

We must repent and return to righteousness so that our nations will be exalted. Sin brings reproach to us–individually and corporately. "God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth" (Psalm 67:1-5).

Prayer Devotional for the Day

Dear heavenly Father, thank you for this nation. May I be a righteous influence to those around me, thus affecting this society for good. Forgive us for the sins of our nation. Lord, bring revival to our land and turn sinners to the gospel so that they might be saved. Lord, deliver our children from the Satanic influences in today's society. Protect them from the evil one. Show them the way of the Lord. Help me to be a good example to young people and influence them to follow You. Forgive us of our national sins of lust, materialism, pride, witchcraft, murder, abortion, and sexual sins. Deliver us from evil. I ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. From: Steven P. Miller, @ParkermillerQ, Founder of Gatekeeper-Watchman International Groups GatekeeperWatchman.Org Tuesday, April 23, 2024, Jacksonville, Florida., Duval County, USA. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Sparkermiller.JAX.FL.USA, https://www.facebook.com/StevenParkerMillerQ Instagram: steven_parker_miller_1956, Twitter: https://twitter.com/ParkerMillerQ Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/gatekeeperwatchman, https://www.tumblr.com/gatekeeper-watchman,

Pinterest: @gatekeeper-watchman, https://www.pinterest.com/GatekeeperWatchman1/ Tags: #GWIG, #GWIN, #GWINGO, #Ephraim1, #IAM, #Sparkermiller, #Eldermiller1981

[trans-wojak]

Regarding your post about Palestine I definitely agree. Its honestly become a trend among "those" types of people to "support" Palestine, not because they actually care but because it suddenly became trendy to do so and they're just like "alright if I want to be seen as woke I guess I'm doing this now" and they begin spamming posts with the hashtags free Palestine, acting as if its a new thing even though its been going on for years.

I've also seen MANY and I mean MANY "woke" people using this whole thing to disguise their blatant antisemitism, they blame all Israeli's and all Jewish people for whats going on instead of the people ACTUALLY RESPONSIBLE, its to the point where some girl on TikTok said "Jewish privilege" was a thing and the video as far as I know is still up

Its honestly just a repeat of people showing "support" for BLM when police brutality became a "trending topic" back in 2020 even though police brutality against black people has obviously existed years before 2020

These people don't even do anything to "free Palestine" anyways, they just put a Palestinian flag in their bio, flood everyones page with posts about Palestine and call it a day, they don't donate anything or give anyone links to places we can donate, they don't talk about ways we can help, its just blatant that 90% of these people just want to keep up with the "trend" and as soon as this whole thing with Palestine isn't as "popular" in the media they'll just stop posting about it and begin talking about the next big problem going on

It was the same when the whole thing with Ukraine and Russia happened, everyone on TikTok made the Ukrainian flag their pfp, at most made 1 or 2 videos and did nothing else

And I will not even get started on those people who are like "If you don't make posts about Palestine you're evil and are contributing to genocide" because god forbid I don't want to talk about people dying and stuff

I've seen literal 13 year olds and teens get harassed for not talking about Palestine, what the hell is a child gonna do about freeing Palestine?!

(of course these issues are important, and what has been going on with Palestine and Israel is obviously awful, but I'm sick of people using it to get clout, using it as an excuse to crap on Jews, and just seeing it as a "trend" and not an actual problem)

Couldn’t have said it better myself, this is 100% how I feel too. I’ve seen these woke types literally say things like “guess the Jews learned nothing from WW2 now they’re just being Hitler” like bro?? That’s like saying America is responsible for Britain colonising over the world because they’re both predominantly Anglo christian nations.

This war has been going on since like, before 1950 from what I remember. No one remembers Ukraine now, no one mentions BLM, even though police brutality has been a thing since FOREVER especially targeting minority groups.

That chick was deadset being transphobic (not that I actually care, I just like irony) and she’s acting like she’s actually a good person because she spams the internet with shit about free Palestine lmao

I’m actually Jewish, I don’t have any ties to the culture cause my grandfather passed away really young. But there are deadset people still out there who deny the Holocaust happened and I’m seeing a lot of these people post “look a Holocaust survivor said X about Y, it means it’s true!” Like bro, just like Israel doesn’t represent all Jews, neither does one guy.

I simply don’t think wasting energy on caring about this is a good use of emotions or empathy. Unless people actually donate money and PHYSICALLY make an impact, it’s nothing more than signalling how “good” you are to me. I don’t pay attention the news on crap like this cause I don’t need to worry about it, it does not affect me and there’s nothing I can do even if I feel empathy or sympathy. Literally nothing changes besides I wasted some energy. Is it self serving? Yes. I just say the quiet part out loud. I don’t want to listen and talk about war crimes, it’s not productive nor interesting to me. I block tags about it but people rarely tag and it gets posted in meme tags, also by meme pages cause it’s trendy. It’s boring and I’m sick of seeing pretending they are these great activists for clicking reblog on a post they have no idea if it’s even verified.