#business top insurance companies news

[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #35

Sep 20-27 2024

President Biden and Vice-President Harris announced new actions to curb gun violence at the one year anniversary of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. The Office is the first ever White House office to deal with the issue of guns and has been overseen by the Vice-President. President Biden signed a new Executive Order aimed at combatting the emerging threat of machinegun conversion devices. These devices allow the conversion of semi-automatic firearms to a rate of fire that can match military machineguns, up to 20 bullets in one second. The EO also targets the threat of 3-D printed guns. The EO also addresses active schooler drills at schools. While almost every school conducts them there is little uniformity in how they are carried out, and no consensus on the most effective version of a drill. President Biden's EO directions the development of a research based active shooter drills, which maximize both student physical and mental safety.

President Biden celebrated the one year anniversary of the American Climate Corps and announced new Climate Corp programs. The Climate Corps has seen 15,000 young people connected to well paid jobs in clean energy and climate resilience jobs across America. The EPA and AmeriCorps announced a new Environmental Justice Climate Corps program which will connect 250 American Climate Corps members with local communities and over the next 3 help them achieve environmental justice projects. In addition HUD announced it will be the 8th federal agency to partner with the Climate Corp, opening the door to its involvement in Housing. Since its launch the American Climate Corp has inspired 14 states to launch their own state level version of the program, most recently just this week the New Jersey Climate Corps.

The Biden-Harris Administration announced that 4.2 million small business owners and self-employed people get their health insurance through the ACA marketplace. Up from 1.4 million ten years ago when President Obama and then Vice-President Biden rolled out the marketplaces. The self-employed are 3 times as likely as other Americans to use the marketplaces for their insurance, one out of every 5 getting coverage there. The ACA passed by President Obama, defended and expanded by President Biden, has freed millions of Americans to start their own businesses without fear of losing health coverage for them and their families.

The Departments of Transportation and Labor pressed freight railroad companies to close the gap and offer paid sick time to all their employees. Since 2022 under President Biden's leadership the number of Class I freight railroad employees who have access to paid sick days increased from 5% to 90%. Now the Biden-Harris Administration is pushing to finish the job and get coverage to the last 10%.

The EPA announced $965 million to help school districts buy clean energy buses. This comes on top of the 3 billion the EPA has already spent to bring clean energy buses to America's schools. So far the EPA has helped replace 8,700 school buses, across 1,300 school districts in all 50 states, DC, tribal nations, and US Territories. 95% of these buses are zero-emission, battery-electric. The clean bus program is responsible for over 2/3rds of the electric school buses on the road today.

The Biden-Harris Administration took another step forward in its historic efforts to protect the Colorado River System by signing 5 water conservation agreements with local water authorities in California and Arizona. The two short term agreements will conserve over 717,000 acre-feet of water by 2026. Collectively adding 10 feet to Lake Mead’s elevation by 2026. The Colorado River Basin provides water for more than 40 million people and fuels hydropower resources in seven U.S. states.

The Department of The Interior announced $254 million to help support local parks, the largest such investment in history. The money will go to 54 projects across 24 states hoping to redevelopment or create new parks.

HHS announced $1.5 billion to help combat opioid addiction and prevent opioid overdose deaths. The money will support state and tribal governments and help pay for mobile clinics, naloxone kits, and treatment centers. This comes as nationwide overdose rates drop for the first time since 2020, thanks to strong investment in harm reduction efforts by the Biden-Harris team.

The Department of Agriculture announced it'll spend $466.5 million in food assistance and development worldwide this year. Through its McGovern-Dole Program, the United States is the largest donor to global school feeding programs. The USDA will help feed 1.2 million children in Angola, Bangladesh, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Laos, Malawi and Rwanda. Through its Food for Progress the USDA will help support 200,000 farmers in Benin, Cambodia, Madagascar, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Tunisia shift to climate-smart agriculture boosting food security in those nations and the wider region.

At a meeting at the UN First Lady Jill Biden announced a partnership between USAID and UNICEF to end childhood exposer to lead worldwide. Lead exposure kills 1.5 million people each year, mostly in the developing world.

The Senate approved the appointment of Byron Conway to a federal judgeship in Wisconsin. This makes the 213th federal judge that President Biden has appointed.

[genderqueerdykes]

literally the most pathetic thing on this planet is corporations sniveling and crying and acting like they'll go out of business and explode and die if they miss out on .0000000001 cent worth of profit. like it's genuinely fucking pathetic to watch a machine that makes thousands of dollars every second throw themselves on the ground and sob and cry because they missed out on a few cents here and there. oh no, an employee earned some overtime. oh no, the company had to buy a new machine because the old machine broke down and injured and killed employees.

if you've ever worked retail, you'll know the bullshit that comes with being promised overtime. for those that don't know, when you earn overtime in a retail position, your boss will slash hours off of the end of your week so that you don't actually earn overtime. this isn't like, a random occurrence that only happens when you have an asshole manager. this is company procedure. if you earn overtime, your bosses must do everything in their power to try to take it away from you. going as far as to give you entire days off at the end of your week to avoid paying it out. it's a promise they have no legal obligation to carry out. it's just to make the position sound more enticing.

corporations are so pathetic it's insulting. we're expected to pinch all of our pennies and hold on to them for dear life, meanwhile, corporations who make billions of times more than we do act like they have to do the same, going as far as to skimp out on necessary supplies and safety precautions for their employees. a lot of work places don't have necessary PPE. a lot of people do not receive adequate training on dangerous pieces of equipment because the company doesn't want to "waste" the time (money) to train them.

it's just so fucking pathetic to watch a multi billion dollar company act like if they lose out on literal pennies that they'll go out of business instantaneously. it's absolutely pathetic and i hope the suits at the top know that nobody who matters looks up to them. we look down on you as a pathetic, whiny, greedy pieces of shit who cry and moan about losing out on cents while they make billions. it's literally the saddest behavior on planet earth. wake up.

Edit: great addition from the tags for folks who might not know how working retail works. corporations will go as far as they have to in order to slash your hours. like this person said, generally they refuse to let you work full time (40 hours a week) so they do not have to pay for any possible medical benefits as well as destroying any chances you may have had at overtime. i forgot to mention that corporations love to promise medical benefits (health insurance) and then deny you the necessary working hour requirements in order to qualify for it in the first place. thank you to who wrote these:

[jenny-in-a-jar]

🖤💙 4 days until my Surgery 💙🖤

(Picture taken Dec 9th, 2023)

I'm very very excited for my surgery (it's my second gender affirming surgery but this one is more significant to me since it'll be top and bottom surgery) and I'm obviously counting the days until it and I thought some people might be interested in my trans journey 🏳️‍⚧️ So see part 7 below the cut.

Part 1 here

As the summer was ending, I got really lucky! A lesbian hairstylist (who helped organize the drag show I went in the last update) gave my name to this sales lady who sold accounting work to like companies and she needed help with researching CEO and CFO types. And she paid me out of pocket and honestly it was pretty easy internet research using Google. I felt like a little rat scurrying across the Internet 🐀 So, thank you lesbians 🙏🙏

(Picture taken Nov 6th, 2022)

Apparently I really impressed her so she got me hired full time as a sales admin for her company (I wouldn't have gotten with my lack of a college degree without her) and I've had that job since! And a lot of my transition wouldn't be possible without the pay and benefits of this job. Also this is my first job where I get gendered correctly and I'm slowly getting less anxious about going to the bathroom at work 🥰

She honestly mom'd up on me and bought me a bunch of new business casual clothes for the job. And here's an example of one of my new work outfits ����

(Picture taken Nov 14, 2022)

Bc of the new job I was able to afford a lot more things for transitioning! Like voice training. I remember when I first cracked I tried to just teach myself using videos but I wasn't good at it 😅 Also a friend during the summer of 2022 helped me and I did make some progress with her help. But, I started making a lot more progress once I started seeing a speech therapist. But, there was a barrier since I could tell she hadn't worked too much with trans people. I went to a speech therapist bc it was covered by my insurance but she moved and then I couldn't find anyone for insurance covered speech therapy. So, I eventually just paid for lessons Your Lessons Now. And, honestly it's going a lot better! It's really nice to be able to talk about my frustrations with voice training with another transfem. The biggest thing I'm learning from here is how to break the bad habit of pitching up my voice by squeezing my vocal chords.

(Picture taken Sept 8th, 2023)

I had also switched to injections and I highly recommend it! A friend even made my first two vials into earrings 🔥

I also got a lot lazier with makeup 😅 I do eyeliner wings, mascara, and blush for when I go into the office. Which for a bunch of accountants means I do about as much makeup that is normal for the women in the office 🤷‍♀️

(Pictures taken October 31st and December 2nd of 2022)

These were two notable exceptions. I really love the makeup I did for the Halloween of 2022 bc I decided to go as a ghost-type trainer. And the one on the right is when I learned how to use concealer to cover my 'raccoon eyes' as my dad liked to call them 🦝

Also this would be a good time to mention something I probably should've mentioned earlier 😅 I never learned how to use foundation. I know it's easy but I have a weird mental block around it 🤷‍♀️ But, in the summer of 2021 I started doing twice daily skincare routine for my face. Which took me from a very acne heavy face to people being surprised I'm not wearing foundation. Also the routine is really nice. Would recommend to those who want to get rid of their acne (send an ask if you want to know specifics).

(Picture taken Aug 20, 2023)

Romance update since I've been doing that lol: Well, things ended with all the girlfriends I had so I am down to 1 partner. And I got caught in a romance scam for a few months 😭 However, I can't really complain because I got engaged!!! It was so sweet in cute. My partner and I had this date the night before Valentine's Day under a statue outside of a local art museum. We read sapphic poetry by candle light and then they popped the question 🥰🥰

But, I say another big part of this era was I made a lot more local trans friends. Went to a good amount of house parties which would've surprised pre-transition me! And I really love my community of queer people I've been building 🥺🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️💕

(Picture taken July 21st, 2023)

Oh yeah!! I also started laser hair removal at the beginning of 2021 as well. Which was before this era but time is a lie. But the new job definitely made it easier to afford.

The biggest step for my transition was getting my surgeries set up!! And my FFS (facial feminization surgery) marks the end of this era. Below was the last picture I took before my FFS.

(Picture taken Feb 17th, 2024)

So, in my next update, I'll be showing my post-op pictures once most of the swelling went down. See you tomorrow!! 😁✌️

Next Part Here

[girlactionfigure]

THURSDAY HERO: Ernst Leitz II

German businessman Ernst Leitz II, owner of the Leica camera company, saved hundreds of Jews from the Nazis by “transferring” them to Leica offices around the world. Ernst inherited the Leica camera company from his father in 1920. It was founded as Leitz Camera in 1869 and later took on the name Leica: Lei for Leitz + ca for camera. From the beginning the company stood out for the compassionate way they treated their employees, many of whom were Jewish. Leica provided health insurance, sick leave and retirement pensions.

After Hitler became Chancellor in 1933, the Nuremberg laws were enacted, depriving German Jews of the rights of citizenship. They were banned from schools professions, and lost many of their most basic freedoms. Ernst Leitz began receiving desperate calls from his Jewish employees, begging him to help them escape.

Leitz hatched a brilliant plan. He began “transferring” his Jewish employees, along with their extended families, to Leica sales offices in France, Britain, Hong Kong and the United States. After Kristallnacht, when hundreds of Jewish businesses and synagogues were destroyed throughout Germany, Leitz’ rescue efforts kicked into high gear. At this point, all of the refugees were being sent to America by ocean liner. Once they arrived in New York they were instructed to go to Leica’s office in Manhattan, where they received a Leica camera and a weekly stipend until they were employed. The Jewish refugees went on to careers in photography, camera repair, sales and marketing.

To save Jews, Ernst Leitz risked the company he and his father had lovingly built over 70 year. Indeed, he risked his entire life.

The Leica Freedom Train operated until September 1, 1939, when Germany closed its borders. The Nazis suspected that the Leica company had been illegally helping Jews escape, but they were unable to pin anything on Ernst Leitz, and instead arrested his top executive, Alfred Turk, who was imprisoned until his boss paid a huge bribe for his safe release.

Even after the borders were closed, Leitz’s daughter Elsie Kuehn-Leitz continued helping Jews escape from Germany. Elsie was captured by the Gestapo while smuggling Jewish women into Switzerland, and thrown into prison, where she endured harsh interrogation and frequent beatings before being released in the early 1940’s. By that point, the Nazis had forced the Leica plant to hire 800 Ukrainian women as slave laborers. Elsie spent the rest of the war advocating for these women and working to ensure they had acceptable working and living conditions, and were treated humanely.

Later to be known as the “Leica Freedom Train”, Ernst Leitz’ bold plan saved the lives of 200-300 Jews.

A rare light in a sea of darkness, the Leitz family never wanted publicity for their heroism. The story of the Leica Freedom Train only came out after the last immediate Ernst Leitz family member was dead.

For their courage and sacrifice, we honor Ernst Leitz and his daughter Elsie as this week’s Thursday Heroes.

[thezombieprostitute]

Bittersweet

A/N: Written for @the-slumberparty's Sundae Bar:

🍧Cookie Dough: bakery au – cookie dough proves that a bit of baking can make anything better. Your characters now live in a bakery au, whether they work there, or come as customers, they can’t resist the sweet aura.

🍧Birthday Cake: secret admirer – it doesn’t have to be your birthday to have this flavour. And your secret admirer leaves you gifts every day, but just won’t give you the one thing you desperately want: their identity.

🥄Graham Crackers: flashback – a brief trip into the past reveals something important.

Warnings: Coercion, Stalking. Please let me know if I missed any!

There was a time when you really enjoyed going to work. Your bakery wasn't massively successful but it did well enough. The regulars kept you in business and you were able to attract the occasional crowd with seasonal recipes. You loved baking and you loved that you could try new things along with the tried and true. Even with the protection money you had to pay out, you were still able to turn a small profit.

As much as you hated it, you had to admit they did keep things relatively safe. The grocer across the street had gotten robbed and not only had the person been caught, the store owner received all of their money back with a bonus for the employee who'd been working the register. Store owners who get the runaround from their insurance companies just have to tell the right people to get the fixes and payouts they need. So while you hated having additional expenses, at least you knew it wasn't going to waste.

But then you started getting gifts delivered to you at the bakery. Practically every day, for the past few months, you've been getting gifts of all sorts. It was cute and fun at first. A charm bracelet with a bunch of baking based charms, a small bouquet of flowers. But the,n the gifts started getting more and more personal. A book that had been on your wishlist forever but you never told anyone about, a dress in your favorite colors that fit you perfectly. You started dreading stepping into the bakery.

The small box is on your desk and you take a breath to steady your nerves before opening it. Given the packaging it could be a book. Given the way the gifts have been going, it's likely a book of photos of you. You slowly unwrap the gift and you're proven partially correct. It's a framed drawing of you, asleep in your room. It's definitely your room. All the details are painfully correct. Someone was in your home watching you sleep.

As much as you want to drop everything and cry, there is work to be done. You've got bills and employees to pay. On top of that, it's time for the quarterly protection payment. Maybe you can ask the “agent” you regularly meet up with to keep an eye out for the secret admirer. You fill up the manila envelope with the payments and head to the kitchen to get things started.

The routine is comforting. Cookies, small cakes, pastries, you could probably make these in your sleep. It does help when your employees start trickling in and taking over some of the tasks. The shop is running like a well-oiled machine and you're able to forget about the unsettling drawing in your office.

A little before time to open, there's a knock at the front. You recognize the woman, Nat, as the one who collects the payments. You quickly run up and let her in. She seems especially chatty this morning.

“Hey, did you stop wearing that charm bracelet?”

“Oh, yeah,” you reply sadly. “It's actually something I was hoping to talk to you about.” As you step into the office you hand her the envelope with the payment before pointing to the picture. “My secret admirer has gotten more and more creepy, like a stalker. It's really scaring me.”

She looks at the drawing, “they're certainly talented.”

“Oh yes,” you agree quickly, “but that's not the point. That's my room. No one has been in my room for...long enough. There've been other gifts that feel way too personal for a stranger to know. Hell, even friends of mine wouldn't know!”

Tears start forming in your eyes and Nat quickly starts trying to soothe you. “We'll look into this,” she promises. “I'll have answers for you by the end of the week.”

You nod and thank her before she leaves and you get back to work, letting yourself get lost in the rhythm of the day.

“Excuse me, miss?”

You pause on your way to your car and turn towards the source of the voice. You recognize the man, Sam, as another “agent” like Nat. “Can I help you?”

“I've been asked to bring you to The Shield for dinner. We have some answers about your secret admirer.”

“Oh, what, um, what time?”

“Now,” he replies as he motions to his car.

“But I'm not dressed for The Shield. I'm covered in flour from work. I smell--”

“Now,” Sam repeats. His tone leaves no room for argument. Your hands shake as you put your keys in your purse and sit in the passenger seat of Sam's vehicle.

The Shield is a very high-end restaurant that's known to be a favorite of Barnes, the man in charge of the Protection for your neighborhood. You're not sure why he would need to see you in person. Did you overstep when you asked Nat for help? Do they need to start charging you more because of it? Can you afford the increase?

“You'll be okay,” Sam assures. “He just wants to talk to you over dinner.”

“I don't think I can afford the meal.”

He chuckles, “it's on us. He's making you come to dinner with him, the least he can do is pay for your meal.”

You nod your understanding. At least that's something you don't have to worry about.

At the restaurant, Sam leads you past the hostess and straight to, what you can only assume to be, a VIP area. Tables are set inside of nooks, some cordoned off by curtains to promote privacy.

One of the tables is occupied by two very different looking men. One of them is big and tall with long, brown hair and stubble. The other is smaller, with blond hair and looks...familiar. He looks up and smiles as he sees you and you're hit with a memory from over a decade ago.

You were working late shift at Waffle House. Not great, but it paid the bills your scholarship didn't cover. Culinary School was your ticket out of this town and you were going to give it everything you had. And, because of class schedules, the late night shift was your only real option.

On a slow night it was just you and another server managing the floor. Curtis, the cook, was out back for his smoke break. Your one patron came up to pay his bill. He was scrawny, blonde haired, blue eyed, and very polite. Unlike other late night patrons, he wasn't drunk and didn't try flirting with you. He spent most of his meal drawing in his notebook and you noted he was very skilled. He smiled shyly and thanked you.

He went to the till to pay but went pale when his card was declined. “I...I knew I was cutting it close but...I'm so sorry! Let me try to find some cash or something!” He starts frantically pulling out his pockets.

“It's okay, I've got you,” you assure him. “It was just eggs and toast.”

“I don't want your pity,” he mumbles. “I swear I can pay.”

“It's not pity, it's kindness,” you retort. “You were a very nice customer, very respectful. Not used to that this time of night. You even let me look at your artwork. So let me thank you for being nice by being nice in return.”

His cheeks are pink with embarrassment but he steadies himself, “I...I promise I'll pay you back.”

“I'm not worried about it.”

And now that same scrawny, blonde haired, blue eyed man was gesturing for you to sit next to him at the most high-priced restaurant in the city.

“I know it's been a while,” he states calmly. “So I'll understand if you don't recognize me.”

“Eggs and toast,” you whisper, making him smile.

“I still owe you for that meal. And with interest and economic inflation, I think you could order whatever you want from this place and I'll still owe you.” His companion, the big, brown haired man chuckles. “Please, have a seat. We've got some catching up to do.”

You sit down, still feeling in a bit of shock. “What...what are you doing here?”

“Me and Bucky,” he gestures to the brunette, “run this town. We're the ones you've been paying the protection money to.”

“You're Mr. Barnes?”

“That would be me, Doll,” Bucky speaks up. “I have the more intimidating presence people expect, complete with the skills to back that up. Steve here is the brains. The devious bastard figured out how to completely run out the other rackets, making us the only game in town.”

A sudden thought hits you. You look at Steve, “those gifts I've been receiving?”

“Those were me, Angel,” he smiles. “I figured you'd appreciate a glimpse at the nice things I can give you.”

“You...you broke into my apartment...”

“I own the building so it wasn't a break in,” he calmly tells you. “I have my own key.”

You freeze up. How many times has this stranger been in your apartment? How many times did he watch you sleep? And how much power does he have that he can openly admit these things to you without fear of repercussion?

“I warned him that the drawing was a step too far,” Bucky interrupted your thoughts. “But he insisted you'd be flattered.”

“Then we got Nat's report from you,” Steve frowned. “I really didn't think it would scare you.”

“You didn't think it would scare me to have someone draw me in my sleep? Without my knowing?!” You get out of your chair and try to back away. “You've been stalking me. Invading my privacy! I never consented to any of this!”

You try to turn and walk away but you're stopped by Sam. “I promise you,” he warns, “if you leave you will regret it.”

Confused you turn back to Steve and Bucky who are out of their own seats and stalking towards you, looking angry.

“I want to be nice,” Steve tells you. “But I'm sure you can guess, I don't have to be. Neither do my friends. Now please,” he holds out a hand to you. “Please come sit, and have dinner with me.”

You want to run. You want to scream. But this man owns your business. He owns your home. If you try to get away, where could you go? You've invested everything into your bakery and have no savings. You have nowhere else you can live. He owns everything you hold dear.

You take his hand, “I'm...I'm sorry, Steve. It's a lot to take in.”

He smiles while Bucky and Sam relax. “It's okay, Angel,” he covers your hand with his. “We've got all the time to figure this out.”

Partially inspired by @theinheriteddutchess; Tagging @alicedopey; @delicatebarness; @fluxxdog; @icefrozendeadlyqueen; @ronearoundblindly

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved in our archive

A disgustingly economic discussion that is far more clear about the realities of covid than what our governments are telling us

“There is a huge delusion at the moment that COVID is over and when we talk about it, we say ‘when the pandemic happened’ but actually it is still happening,” he said. “So, insurance companies need to be very conscious of that and to be thinking ahead. Swiss Re has a powerful role across the market to make sure that this is being thought about. “In our view, there are a range of scenarios, but most of them anticipate a return to normality in five to 10 years, depending on your level of optimism. And we think that because of the other more fundamental movements happening around cancer, lifestyle risk and eventually Alzheimer's, to name the three biggest ones, that mortality improvements will also return over the longer term.”

By Mia Wallace

“COVID-19 is far from over.”

A recent Swiss Re report suggested potential excess mortality in the general population of up to 3% in the US and 2.5% in the UK by 2033 in a pessimistic scenario, highlighting the lingering impact of COVID-19 – both as a direct cause of death and as a contributor to cardiovascular mortality.

Discussing the report with Re-Insurance Business, Paul Murray (pictured), CEO of L&H Reinsurance at Swiss Re, outlined some of the key ageing and mortality trends shaping the life and health reinsurance market today. “Of course, we saw excess mortality when we were locked down and experiencing the pandemic but now we’ve returned to normal life, we think it’s over and it’s not. People are still getting ill with the COVID infection and they’re still dying.”

The debate for the market now is how long that trend is likely to continue, and whether its impact will fade over time – with Swiss Re’s recent report offering multiple scenarios into the reinsurance giant’s viewpoint on that question. Top of mind is understanding the key factors driving future mortality trends and changing life expectancy statistics – and how these influencing factors may change going forward.

What are the top trends driving future mortality trends? Pinpointing some of the key considerations driving future mortality trends, Murray underscored the need to look at historical data. “The headline for me is always that there has been a phenomenal period of mortality improvements, of life expectancy extending. This is probably one of the biggest social transformations that the human race has been through.

“One of the main drivers of that has been cardiovascular improvements. Smoking cessation helped a lot towards that in the 20th century and is continuing now as well. There’s also new technology that enables low-intervention cardiovascular surgery, like stents. We’ve shifted from a lot of surgery having to be open-heart and high-risk in an operating theatre to in-and-out in a day with injected stents. It has been completely transformational.”

Where do medical advances go next? The ”plumbing” of the human body and the way it’s protected and healed by modern medicine has been largely optimised, he said, but now some of the benefits of that is starting to level off. Looking to the future, he sees that there is still the potential for some further improvements as a factor driving increased life expectancy, particularly amid improving access to information and education about healthy living choices – and improving intervention techniques.

“When we look forward, I anticipate the area where we have the best chance of improvements is on the cancer side,” he said. “Comparatively to cardiovascular risk, improvements to cancer treatments have been relatively low in the past. Of course, it’s very complex as 'cancer' is a bucket term which combines 200-plus types, but we are seeing some very promising technologies emerging here that will help address that.

“Take mRNA vaccines, for instance, which are not new but became very prominent in the pandemic, specifically as it helped us develop vaccines very quickly. mRNA capabilities, combined with immunotherapy, are currently in trials, and showing very significant improvements in outcomes for cancer patients in specific causes. And we've only really started scratching the surface of that. Looking 10-to-30 years out, which is the duration we have to think about as life insurers, we think that’s a prominent contributor to future improvement.”

Alzheimer's is another pressing area for consideration, he said, as, with people generally living longer, this is becoming a much more significant risk. Due to a myriad of reasons, more people than ever are living with Alzheimer’s today and society is being increasingly challenged to deal with it and to support those living with the disease. “Again, improvements in dealing with Alzheimer's historically have not been that great, and I think this is one area where there's the potential for a meaningful breakthrough, and we're starting to see some signs of that in scientific research.”

Understanding the impact of lifestyle factors on future mortality trends An interesting element shaping discourse in the life and health reinsurance market is the question of the impact of lifestyle factors on future mortality trends. Murray noted that if you characterize overall mortality rates into lifestyle or non-communicable diseases, between 30-40% of mortality is driven by lifestyle choices – including such factors as what you eat, whether you smoke, whether you exercise, how much sugar you eat, and how you manage your stress.

The insured population are typically quite happy to engage with that, he said, and Swiss Re is seeing improvement on those metrics, but there remain large swathes of the overall population who don’t engage in that conversation. As more data emerges over time, he believes the market will start to see stronger connections between activity and outcomes which, in turn, will help it to drive better results.

“An interesting area here is diabetes and Swiss Re is taking a leadership position on this globally,” he said. “We regularly engage with policymakers around the world – with doctors and thinkers on nutrition and food policy in particular – to [highlight] how your diet has a big impact on your health, but also to assess whether the current advice is appropriate for the future.

“Obesity and diabetes continue to increase. That debate has a long way to go, but if it continues to evolve positively, it will have a positive impact on mortality.”

Poor metabolic health drives obesity and diabetes, which are offsetting previous advances made by treating cardiovascular diseases and smoking cessation. The emergence of GLP-1/GIP weight loss injectables has shown early promise in reducing weight and improving baseline clinical risk factors, when combined with long-term lifestyle alterations. Although long-term data doesn’t yet exist on the impact of GLP-1 drugs, in the short term these medications are showing positive results in reducing all-causes, and specifically cardiovascular mortality. In addition, the drugs appear to positively affect a range of other conditions such as cancer, liver and kidney diseases, and even neurodegenerative diseases.

When will excess mortality return to pre-pandemic levels? Underpinning the broader conversation is the big question on the minds of many across the life and health reinsurance market – when, or if, excess mortality will return to pre-pandemic levels. Swiss Re’s recent paper posited both a pessimistic and an optimistic scenario because its role is not to say what will happen, but rather to encourage people to think about the tail risk of the COVID crisis and how it might play out.

“There is a huge delusion at the moment that COVID is over and when we talk about it, we say ‘when the pandemic happened’ but actually it is still happening,” he said. “So, insurance companies need to be very conscious of that and to be thinking ahead. Swiss Re has a powerful role across the market to make sure that this is being thought about.

“In our view, there are a range of scenarios, but most of them anticipate a return to normality in five to 10 years, depending on your level of optimism. And we think that because of the other more fundamental movements happening around cancer, lifestyle risk and eventually Alzheimer's, to name the three biggest ones, that mortality improvements will also return over the longer term.”

Study link: www.swissre.com/institute/research/topics-and-risk-dialogues/health-and-longevity/covid-19-pandemic-synonymous-excess-mortality.html

[backgroundnoisewithaview]

Unable to afford his apartment due to new insurance issues, Will finally gives into Connor's offer of living with him.

What started off as awkward, where will couldn't get out of feeling like a guest in someone else's home, and aware of everything around him was probably a months wage per item, it soon turned quietly domestic after a loooong shift at the hospital.

Connor: I don't even care about food, I want a shower and bed.

Will: I already showered at the hospital... I'll order in pizza?

Connor: Sure. Save me a slice.

Will: Yeah, course.

Will orders an extra large meat feast pizza, which comes with a free small garlic bread, whilst they're still on their way home. It arrives not soon after they do when Connor is in the shower.

Will takes a few slices for himself and leaves the rest in the box, and covers it up. He does like garlic bread but he's not in the mood for it, keeps it boxed up and figures whatever Connor leaves, it'll be good for leftovers the next day anyway.

Connor comes out of the shower freshly washed, in soft navy blue tartan pyjama bottoms and matching plain navy t-shirt. He sees the pizza, garlic bread and empty plate waiting for him next to it and his whole body realises it's been hours since he last ate. He takes a few slices of the pizza and a slice of the garlic bread.

Connor: Thanks for this man, I'll owe you.

Connor says it to the direction of the couch, where Will is slumped sideways against the arm of the couch watching TV.

He takes a bite and is glad Will took the initiative to order food, glad he's there at all.... and then realises he got no reply. Connor looks over properly, and, worried, slowly walks around towards the couch. Pizza on plate in hand.

Wills plate, empty save for some remnants of crust, sit on the coffee table. The man in question has his eyes closed, head resting on his hand but tilted upwards just a bit and softly snoring.

Connor would never say this out loud, but the sight is.... Sweet. If you can call a 6 foot, fully grown man sweet. Just for sleeping.

He nudges him with his free hand, thinking that they're not 20 anymore, Will will regret sleeping on the couch like this in the morning if he leaves him.

Will slowly opens his eyes and makes a questioning noise that comes off kind of whiny.

"You'd be better of sleeping in your bed, Will, trust me."

"Blow the bed, I'm sleeping here" Will mumbles in reply, and closes his eyes again.

Connor breathes in, and slowly blows it out with puffed cheeks. He puts his own plate down and makes a decision. "alright, man, but let's at least get you more comfortable".

With the expertise of a doctor that has had to move many an unwilling patient, he manovres Will into a lying down position, automatically on his side and then looks around for something to put over him.

Of course he doesn't have a throw on the back of the couch, he's a busy cardiothorassic surgeon with more money than style, and has been living in a click and collect bachelor pad for the past 10 years of his life.

His only option is to get something from Will's room. He leaves his plate of pizza in the company of a totally not sweet sleeping Will Halstead, trusting the man not to be a sleep eater, and returns quickly with the fleece liner for a sleeping bag that he couldn't find. It would do. He opens it up wide and lays it over the sleeping man, and then because he is a damn good friend, tucks it around his shoulders and behind his feet.

He looks down at a job well done, absolutely does not think about kissing the top of his friends head, picks up the plate of now cool pizza, and goes back to the kitchen.

The sleeping man sleeps on, and Connor takes a few extra minutes to put the leftovers in the fridge, minus an extra slice of pizza he took for himself. He writes on a note on the magnetic pad on the fridge "Pizza and Garlic Bread in fridge. Whatevers left is yours. Thanks man. C"

And then he takes his plate and a glass of water into his bedroom.

-

When Will first wakes up the next morning, he is surprised to find he is vertically on the couch and has acquired his fleece liner from the sleeping bag he lost in the move to Connor's condo. He's never been a sleep walker so his only conclusion is Connor got it for him.

He vaguely recalls mumbling something to Connor but the conversation they had is lost to the sensation of a dream you can't quite remember.

He has about 20 minutes before his alarm will go off for work, if his phone is still working and didn't die overnight through lack of charge. He turns to lie on his back, pulls the fleece higher and closes his eyes to doze the time away.

[curio-queries]

I’m loving your production breakdown posts, they are so interesting and insightful.

I think you mentioned it maybe in the first ep breakdown but it was about expenses. I just thought it was interesting in ep4 when JK mentioned at the chicken place, paying in cash, and he solely has this conversation with Tae, not Jimin. Would there be an arrangement do you think? Or was that scene cut and he’d have asked Jimin too? I’ve noticed in comparison to Bv where they were usually only allowed a certain amount of money between them, with one usually being in control, or a sum for a task, in AYS, Jimin and JK have been whipping out their cards, be it their own or a company card, in Big Dicks store, in Walmart etc.

I just found it interesting

Hi anon,

The finance bits are interesting in the most boring corporate sense if that makes any sense. 😅 Trust me on this. Let's dive in:

In my opinion, it really boils down to two concerns: taxes and sponsorships. Taxes to insure the company receives every possible benefit for every dollar they spend. Sponsorships because some brands can have fussy rules about how individuals interact with their product and especially any competitor's products while they have an active agreement.

Obviously I have no actual insight onto how the finances and budget were managed for any of these specific shows and I know absolutely nothing of the intricacies of taxes in South Korea but in the US, there are many regulations when it comes to how companies can claim expenditures for tax breaks.

Every company that has had me travel for work has gone to a lot of trouble to insure that I was aware of exactly all of the requirements on my part regarding expenditures. I'm 100% sure all of the BTS members are aware of their requirements as well so I don't particularly think there's any motive other than as a cute convo for the moment between JK and V. Imo, the only reason it made it to the final cut was JKs endearing tone in his response.

Let's go through some examples though:

Receipts: in both AYS and Bon Voyage, we see the members be very specific in getting Receipts. JM and JK talk about it as they're leaving Walmart. In BV, it's all of the shenanigans with the money pouch they acquired in Malta and continued using in New Zealand. This is usually documentation required for any operation that's going to be claimed as a business expense for tax purposes.

Personal Spending: off the top of my head I can think of several clear instances where we know that the members are using their own money for purchases we see them make on the shows. In Run BTS ep.70 in Toronto, JK pays for the member's clothing purchases himself. In BV4, JM pays for the member's clothing himself a couple of times (remember the drama of his lost wallet? 😅)

Budget as Content: BV 1 & 2 mostly only include finances as part of the game-ification of the show. The members had to earn money as an allowance for the activities and determine the best ways to spend it. (I do vaguely remember some members wanting to negotiate for more when buying souvenirs? Was that just in the extra scenes? It's been so long, I've been holding off on rewatching until I'm done with my Run series).

Thankfully, the success of BTS has basically nixed the budget games. I think the last time we saw something like this were the Run episodes of a hotel staycation? But the prices were ficticious and not necessarily about real-world spending but rather determining the secret number to not exceed. (If I'm misremembering and there are more recent examples, please share!) Imo, it would just be too tone-deaf to continue portraying the members in that context. I know we all joke about them being broke millionaires, but there's a reason why celebrity game shows always make it clear that the money involved is for charity.

Anyway, back to AYS, the interesting bit to me is wondering about the inclusion of Taehyung from a budget standpoint. How was that reconciled? None of us can possibly know the answer, but it's interesting to think about. Some costs wouldn't have changed at all with one extra participant, like the house rental, or booking the climbing gym or yacht tour. But there were a few extra concessions, getting the extra mattress likely was more a logistics headache on short notice rather than an impact to the budget. And most Korean meals are served family-style so there honestly isn't a huge difference cost-wise. Except maybe the omakase. That I can imagine was noticeably more expensive with an added individual.

But really, the most expensive item per person would likely have been travel. Did someone say Tae was already in Jeju prior to filming? If he wasn't, did the show cover his flights like they would have JK, JM, and the crew? Or is the budget on these shows big enough that it was just another drop in a bucket? Also, the intent likely was for JK to zip around on the motorbike and JM to be on the scooter. I'm curious if they weren't logistically able to get another such vehicle with the short notice or if the budget/sponsorship constraint didn't allow for a third one the day. Or it could be that the scooter exists because of the 3 member count and production thought one of them could be JKs backpack. That bike has the space for it. But perhaps the difficulty to get coverage and/or converse wasn't appealing. Or maybe there just wasn't a third radio-enabled helmet prepared?

I know the various shippers are using this in their arguments. I'd like to firmly state that I am not building a case for either side here. Go do that on your own and leave me out of it. Lol.

There are so many questions and it's interesting to theorize how the finances could have impacted the development of the show. Maybe we'll get some more insight with the remaining episodes and bonus footage but I doubt it. Finances don't usually make for engaging content.

Thanks again for the ask! It's one of the points I want to discuss when I start doing my BV and ITS posts but who knows when that will be!

[rannadylin]

Pros of today's check-up with my endocrinologist: My A1C is down to 5.6* which is almost the lowest it's been!** And my CGM data says I've been 88% of the time in target range. :-) [insert "getting a good grade in being a type 1 diabetic" meme here...]

Cons of today's check-up: My endocrinologist is leaving to start her own private practice, which will be direct care and not take insurance so...I'm probably gonna have to start looking for a new one. :-( She's been such a huge help and so easy to work with that I kept driving an hour and a half to see her twice a year for check-ups even after I changed schools and moved to where I live now, so I don't look forward to trying to find someone who'll live up to my high expectations now. But c'est la vie, tempus fugit, and all that...

*I'm pretty sure it's the Ozempic. She started me on it at my check-up 6 months ago and I was looking back at my carbs/meds log from back then and almost immediately after I started on it my insulin ratios were dropping by about half of what I had to take before. She thinks that I have some type 2 diabetes/insulin resistance on top of the type 1/insulin dependent, and I guess the results probably prove her right here. I was taking insulin at a 1 per 3 carbs ratio back then and now it ranges as low as 1 per 6 or 7, which is great since the insurance company is apparently more willing to pay for Ozempic than they are for insulin (see last year's drama about the prior authorization for the insulin they told me I'd have to switch to...sigh).

**The prior lowest it's been was 5.5...in June 2020. After 3 months of reduced workload and not having to leave my home, meaning more control over my meals and rest and activity level and everything else. Hmmmmm funny how that happens. So I guess that getting it down to 5.6 now in the middle of a busy school year is an even huger win than I realized at first!

[mariacallous]

The Republican Party platform, released ahead of this week’s Republican National Convention, contained many capitalized words—“American Patriots,” “Migrant Invasion,” “God’s Good Grace”—but none of them were “Taiwan.” It was a striking departure from the party’s track record of support for the island and left many guessing where former U.S. President Donald Trump stands on Taiwan heading into a potential second term.

Trump filled in that blank on Tuesday with characteristically blunt comments published in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek.

In the interview, conducted in late June, he cast doubt on future U.S. support for Taiwan. Asked whether the United States would come to Taiwan’s defense in the event of a Chinese attack, he answered rather elliptically, saying, “Taiwan. I know the people very well, respect them greatly.” He then added, “They did take about 100% of our chip business,” referring to high-end semiconductors, the vast majority of which are currently made in Taiwan. 

Trump went on to suggest that the answer would be conditioned on whether defending Taiwan would be a good deal economically for the United States. “Taiwan should pay us for defense. You know, we’re no different than an insurance company,” he said. “Taiwan doesn’t give us anything.”

Taipei’s representative office in Washington defended the island’s own efforts in a statement to Foreign Policy, saying, “As the threat of military coercion increases, Taiwan is doing its part by actively strengthening deterrence capabilities with the support of the United States under the Taiwan Relations Act.”

Trump’s comments undoubtedly set off new concerns in Taipei, but he has made statements in a similar vein over the past two years. 

In an interview with Fox News last summer, he said, “Taiwan did take all of our chip business,” when asked whether the United States would protect the island. And in several interviews in recent months, he has stuck closer to the traditional U.S. position of “strategic ambiguity” on defending Taiwan (unlike U.S. President Joe Biden, whose administration maintains an official policy of strategic ambiguity but who has personally said on numerous occasions that the United States would defend Taiwan). 

Like his recent comments, Trump has framed strategic ambiguity in transactional terms. In an April interview with Time, when posed the typical question about defending Taiwan, he said, “I wouldn’t want to give away any negotiating abilities by giving information like that to any reporter.”

While Trump’s latest remarks aren’t new per se, as his poll numbers climb higher and the November presidential election draws nearer, they highlight a critical open question: What might Trump’s approach to Taiwan look like in a second term? The answer hinges on whether Trump’s own America First mentality would dominate over the agenda of the China hawks in his national security orbit who are staunch defenders of Taiwan.

Looking back to his presidency offers some clues. Trump was inconsistent on Taiwan—he famously took a call from then-Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen as president-elect, breaking long-standing U.S. norms. But then he quickly tacked back to the typical U.S. talking points, recognizing the so-called “One China” policy in a subsequent call with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Many of his top foreign-policy advisors were China hawks and Taiwan supporters, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; National Security Advisor John Bolton; Deputy National Security Advisor Matt Pottinger; Peter Navarro, the director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy; and Randall Schriver, the assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs. During the course of his administration, they successfully pushed for more support for Taiwan, including the sale of F-16 fighter jets to the island, previously deemed to be too controversial. And at the very end of Trump’s presidency, Pompeo went as far as to cancel the rules barring direct communication with Taiwan.

“I think in the first term, you had a lot of people around Trump who were friendly with Taiwan [and] very skeptical about China,” said Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. “It’s not clear, though, that that was Trump’s own personal view.”

Trump’s national security team in a second term would likely be more mixed on Taiwan, as several of those former key players have since distanced themselves from Trump, including Bolton and Pottinger. Voices such as Elbridge Colby, a principal at the Marathon Initiative and former Trump official who is thought to still be in Trump’s good graces, have called for a pivot from Ukraine to Taiwan, while others may fall closer in line with the Trump isolationist impulse. 

“I think that’s the core tension within the Trump circle,” Cooper said. Which direction the administration might swing depends on Trump himself and his level of involvement. Trump has already proposed launching a new trade war with China, and he is likely to be very involved in shaping economic policy toward China overall, but it is unclear how directly he would engage in Taiwan policymaking.

If Trump’s own views were to prevail in a second term, Taiwan would likely be in for a rocky four years trying to prove its worth to the president. “Contrary to what some analysts argue, there isn’t an Indo-Pacific exception in Trump’s version of ‘America first,’” Hal Brands, a political scientist at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, argued in a recent essay in Foreign Affairs.

Under the Trump-centric Taiwan foreign policy, several scenarios could unfold. On defense, Trump spoke critically of Taiwan treating the United States like an insurance company in his conversation with Businessweek, but his comment that Taiwan “should pay us for defense” suggests he may mostly be interested in securing a higher premium for U.S. support. 

What kind of payment would Trump be looking for? During his presidency, Trump called for South Korea and Japan to cover a much higher share of the costs for U.S. bases in both countries, but very few U.S. troops are stationed in Taiwan. Taipei already buys billions of dollars’ worth of weapons from Washington, but Trump might consider cutting off new foreign military aid to Taiwan approved under Biden. He would also likely push for Taiwan to increase its military spending, up from 2.6 percent of its GDP today, as his former National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien suggested recently. 

On chips, the Taiwanese government has pushed back on Trump’s claims of unfairness. In an interview with Foreign Policy this month, Alexander Yui, Taiwan’s representative to the United States, said, “Between Taiwan and the U.S., we’re partners in terms of that industry. … The United States is very good at chip design, and we’re very good at manufacturing.” He also referenced the three massive semiconductor factories that Taiwanese tech giant TSMC plans to build in Arizona.

However, Trump’s repeated comments begrudging Taiwan’s semiconductor dominance suggest that he is unsatisfied with the status quo and may push for more domestic chip manufacturing. “Trump has made it clear—he’s going after chips,” said Jason Hsu, a former Taiwanese legislator who is now an Edward Mason fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. “TSMC could bear the consequences of Trump’s political rhetoric.”

A final scenario that some experts say could unfold if Trump were to dominate Taiwan policy and take it in the most transactional direction is that he could trade Taiwan’s future away in some kind of grand economic bargain with China. The terms of such a deal and its likelihood are far from clear, but experts point to Trump’s past remarks in private diminishing Taiwan’s significance as a sign that such a scenario might be possible.

But Taiwan has some “aces up its sleeve” to head off worst-case scenarios under a Trump administration, argued Craig Singleton, the director of the China program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. 

“Taiwan’s major semiconductor investments in important battleground states, like Arizona, and its substantial military hardware purchases highlight the island’s strategic importance,” Singleton said. “Taiwan also enjoys steadfast bipartisan backing on Capitol Hill, which could prove helpful in navigating choppy diplomatic waters.”

[embeanwrites]

It Was Always Simple (Artemis Fowl/Reader)

A/N: This is a commission for @gifted-burnout! Hope you enjoy! 

It had happened faster than Artemis would like to admit. He liked to be on top of plans, at least three steps ahead of his enemies, but she was always a variable that he couldn’t account for. If he predicted her to go one way, she would without a doubt go the other way. If he took this into account, she would then go the way he had first predicted. It was beyond frustrating, but Artemis was never one to back down from a challenge. 

She preferred to take things head on and recently the pair had been working on a new flood prevention plan for a local city, one that would without a doubt fix the issue of flooding that plagued the city every six months or so, but they had met resistance from, what Artemis had originally deemed to be nothing more than, a shady insurance company that made marks through flood claims. However, as the threats rolled in the two of them quickly realized that this was more than a shady company, it was an intelligent group that laid below many businesses. She had called it the mafia, Artemis told her she needed to watch less TV and get real about the threat. She then said the best way for them to deal with them was to face them head on, show them what they knew, and bust them. He disagreed but offered no other solution. 

One moment the two of them were arguing about the safety of her plan, the next she was storming away when he said no and shut her plan down. It wasn’t anything new, and it especially wasn’t a new argument. 

Leading them too now. 

He preferred to let her cool off, to come back to him on her own terms. He had found this was the best way to essentially “win” their fights, but it had been over two days and he hadn’t heard from her, and he had an undeniably bad feeling about this. He didn’t like this idea that she was going to prove him wrong, it was less about being actually right and was more about if she was safe. He no longer cared about being the bigger person in the argument and he didn’t care how mad she would be over this, he needed to talk to her.  

Sitting in his study, he impatiently fidgeted with his phone, opening, and closing the secure messaging app they normally used to communicate. Their last text messages staring at him, mocking him. He found himself staring at his phone, debating tracking her phone. Was it a breach of trust that she would get upset about? Yes. But he was starting to think it was worth it. 

Turns out, he should’ve done it sooner. 

“For the last time, I don’t know anyone named Artemis, especially a boy. I mean come on isn’t that a girl’s name to begin with. I think your facts may be-” Before she could finish her sentence the man slapped her, the sound echoing around them as she winced from the force. She kept her eyes trained to the side on the dark gray wall, pretending it was the most interesting thing she’d ever seen. She refused to let the stranger see her unwillingly cry from the blow, she would not let them win in any sense if she could. She would not be viewed as weak, especially by some Mafia scum. 

It hadn’t taken more than an hour of scoping out the fake insurance place’s front for her to be found out. So focused on the task at hand, she hadn't noticed the two men until they had already grabbed her and covered her nose and mouth with a sweet smelling cloth. When she woke up, tied down to an uncomfortable metal chair in a musty dark room, she figured it had to have been chloroform. Cowards, they didn’t even give her a fighting chance. Her hands were tied behind her back, her ankles were tied to the legs of her chair, and she couldn’t see for sure, but the chair seemed to be bolted to the ground. She wasn’t going anywhere these guys didn’t want her to and Artemis would have no idea where she was. 

She absolutely hated to think it, let alone admit it, but Artemis was right. Not only about the situation, but about her. She was foolish and she rushed into a situation and now she was paying the price. Knowing him, he would be patiently waiting for her to run back to him and listen to whatever his genius plan would be. She had no way to contact him, and she hadn’t told him what she was doing. Well he’s smart and it probably wouldn’t take him a terribly long time to find her, but how long would it take for him to realize something was wrong? 

At the thought of him waiting for her to return patiently, she pulled at the zip ties on her wrists as if she hadn’t been trying that for the past few hours. Her wrists were already red and raw from the strain, but she barely took note of the pain. 

“You have two choices, the way I see it. Tell me what Artemis Fowl knows about us, and you get to keep your life. Or you keep this ‘undying loyalty,’” He said mockingly, “and wind up in the bottom of some river and that’s the end of your story.” 

The answer was simple, in her mind. She paused for barely two seconds before plastering on what would have been an award winning smile if not for the split lip and bruises marring her face, and spat right in that piece-of-shit mafioso's face. She couldn’t help but laugh as he grabbed her hair and pulled her head back at a painful speed. 

Artemis didn’t like wearing his emotions on his sleeve, he spent his entire childhood learning how to perfect his poker face, to not let his enemies see how he felt. He liked keeping his cards close to his chest, but she had made it increasingly more difficult to do so. The way his heart sounded like it was going to beat out of his chest, the butterflies in his stomach, and the way his mind would grow foggy when she was around, it all determined him even more to not allow their last conversation to be in anger. 

When Artemis had located her phone, which was in an area she had never been and one the two had linked to the fake company he became increasingly more concerned for her wellbeing. Artemis couldn’t allow himself the time to wonder if he was in the wrong. Every second wasted could mean disaster. He had quickly shown Butler all he had discovered, luckily, he didn’t need to go into too much detail before Butler had connected the dots his young charge was laying out and the two of them soon got to work. 

It took them less than half an hour to get ready and to get to her phone’s location and they were immediately met with resistance, and while Artemis normally wanted to take his time, toy with his opponents, and outsmart them, he felt his anger as if it was red hot lead in his veins. He wanted nothing more than to put down the men who had hurt her in order to find her and bring her back to safety. The more time that passed he became increasingly worried for her health and wellbeing. 

Artemis was breathing hard, knuckles bruised and bloody but not as bad as the now unconscious goon lying beneath him. He couldn't feel his split knuckles, his sole focus on finding her, saving her, destroying those that took her, and keeping her from ever recklessly endangering herself again. He vaguely felt Butler’s hand on his shoulder, urging him to keep going. 

The pair launched themselves into the security room as Butler fired a tranquilizer dart at the guard. Artemis quickly stationed himself in front of the many camera screens. He took them in at a speed that was barely human, looking for any sign of her. It took Butler looking to point her out to Artemis. He fought the numb feeling as she was clearly unconscious and strapped to a chair. The blurry camera gave away no clear wounds, but at the very least, Artemis noted, that her chest was falling and rising so she was alive. 

“It’s down the hall and to the right. Cover me and I’ll get her.” Artemis found himself ordering without really thinking about it, but surprisingly Butler didn’t argue with the command. Maybe he recognized just how important she had become to Artemis.

As quietly as the two could, they ran down the hallway, checking corners before they finally hit the door she was behind, Artemis quickly got to work on the lock, letting the simple task allow him to focus on something other than his nerves. 

As the door unlocked and opened, Artemis was immediately met with a heartbreaking sight. It was clear she was still alive, and they had made quick eye contact, so she knew she was saved, but she immediately looked back down and kept her mouth shut, which was very unlike her. 

Artemis quickly got closer and got out a pocket knife, first cutting the zip ties on her ankles that were keeping her pressed to the chair, and then gently cutting the ones on her wrists. She winced as the bonds came off but made no move to leave the chair. Artemis took her face between his hands, brushing her hair out of her face. He took stock of her busted lip and bruised check, he tilted her head one way to confirm there wasn’t something more sinister waiting for him. He tried to get her to make eye contact to check her for a concussion, but before he could ask any follow up questions, she started to cry. 

If this was a few years ago, he wouldn’t know how to respond, he’d probably remove himself from the situation entirely, but his heart ached for her in this moment. He decided that waiting there for more guards to come or anything would just further traumatize her, so his best move was to remove her from the situation completely. Even though he would do anything in this moment to end their entire organization now. Slowly, so as not to spook her, he gently gathered her into his arms and picked her up bridal style. He was worried at first that she’d try to fight back, saying she can walk on her own, but instead her head laid on his shoulder and her arms wrapped around his neck. He knew his own face must’ve been burning with embarrassment, but he was just happy to have her back. 

“Butler, are we clear to leave?” He asked quietly, not wanting to startle her even worse. Butler nodded, looking briefly at her as she curled further into Artemis’ grasp, if it wasn’t for the situation Butler may have smiled or teased the two for how far they’ve come together. 

The rest of the day was a blur, she remembered Artemis carrying her and gently placing her in the car, taking the time to buckle her in. He asked her if she was hurt anywhere that he couldn’t see, to which she simply shook her head. He sat next to her in the back while Butler began driving them back to Fowl Manor, Butler debated for a few minutes whether she may need the hospital, but ultimately decided Artemis would have said something if she needed. A few times she would catch him looking back at the two of them in the rearview mirror, and if it was any other day, she’d probably be making faces at him or at the very least talking to Artemis. 

Artemis. 

She knew it was coming. The moment for him to tell her that he was right, and she should’ve listened to him, but so far, he hadn’t said much of anything other than checking up on her. He helped her into the guest room at Fowl Manor and ran around getting her water and a snack. Finally bringing a first aid kit and started treating her face and wrists. He had started with her face and a gentle grasp of her chin. 

With tired eyes she watched him dab some rubbing alcohol onto a piece of gauze. She looked up and he gave her a small smile as he gently grasped her arm to turn her hand palm facing up. 

“This will sting.” He murmured, as he softly pressed the gauze to her busted lip, she couldn’t help the sharp intake of air and slight jump back. However, he acted like he didn’t notice as he continued cleaning. 

It went on like that for a few minutes, Artemis slowly and carefully cleaning her face and then gently moving onto her wrists and her trying to think of something, anything to say that get them past this unbearable silence, she knew he’d never break it, he was too proud, too sure of himself being correct all the time, and he-

“I should’ve been there. I’m sorry.” He whispered and for the first time in their entire relationship she was shocked at the emotions in his voice. This was so not like him, she was expecting a lecture. 

“Artemis, you couldn’t-” She started. 

“I did know, I know you and I…I should’ve at the very least listened to you. This was dangerous and I knew it and I let you go for it anyway. I never should’ve let you leave; I should’ve listened, we should’ve kept trying to find a suitable plan, but I never should’ve let you leave knowing you and knowing how dangerous those men are.” Looking up at Artemis’ blue eyes he immediately darted his eyes away from hers, but she could still see the pain he was holding…he was actually upset at this, and strangely not at her. 

“Artemis, you do know it wasn’t your fault, right?” She asked softly, taking his hands in hers and it was at the moment she noticed his knuckles, bright red in contrast to his pale skin. “Artemis.” She tsked, not waiting for his permission, she took the used gauze from him and gently started cleaning his knuckles. 

“That’s unhygienic.” He murmured, as she let out a humorless laugh and shook her head. 

“We’re past that.” She replied as she dabbed the clean end of the gauze gently over his knuckles, unlike her he made no sound or movement as she cleaned. “I need you to understand it wasn’t your fault, Artemis.” She gently repeated and he sighed. 

“If something had happened to you, I wouldn’t-”

“But nothing happened, Artemis. I’m okay. A few bruises, but that’s pretty typical in our line of work.” She reminded him. “I signed up for this, remember? Us working together to try to ‘save the world’.” She added extra emphasis to the ‘save the world’, causing him to let out a small laugh. 

“Can I say something crazy?” He asked as he removed the gauze from her hands, setting it on the bed and with a featherlight touch he grasped both her hands. She had never noticed how much bigger they were than hers, sure Artemis was tall and could be intimidating, but never to her. 

“When are you not talking crazy?” She said hoarsely with a half-smile. She watched him take a deep breath. 

“Today was scary, for multiple reasons, but one thought kept going through my head that if they had…if you were…” He struggled before clearing his throat. “If you had died today and I hadn’t gotten the chance to tell you how much you mean to me I would have never forgiven myself. I was so shaken when I saw you on that screen with your head down and for a single moment, I thought I was too late and that you died thinking I didn’t care about you…about us.” 

“Artemis, I don’t know what to say.” She whispered; she almost couldn’t believe what was coming out of his mouth. This smart, infuriating, well dressed individual sat in front of her was looking at her as if she hung the stars in the sky and for the first time in their friendship all those feelings came crashing into her. They were never trying to one up each other, they were trying to impress each other.

“You don’t have to say anything, I just need you to know that I’m in love with you.” He supplied as if it was the easiest conclusion known to man. If she hadn’t been so emotionally and physically exhausted, she may have laughed or tried to tease him before giving in, but right now she just needed him to know. 

“I’m in love with you too, Artemis Fowl.” He smiled and looked down at their hands. 

“Promise you’re not going to ‘sike’ and take it back tomorrow?” He said looking at her with a rare smile. 

“While that would be hilarious, Fowl. I do mean it. I promise.” She said, leaning over he gently kissed her check. “Oh, come on, two years of friendship, building up to this, you can do better than that.” She joked, putting her right hand on his check, and pulling him in for a real kiss. It was soft and chaste, much unlike their relationship up to this point, but she couldn’t help but smile as the two pulled apart. 

“You need to get some rest, you’ve had a horribly traumatic day, my dear.” My dear. It rang in her head, and she fought back a smile. However, he was right, the mess of the day and finally being safe was catching up with her. 

“Will you stay with me?” She asked and Artemis smiled. 

“Of course.”

[sweaterkittensahoy]

WE HAVE A FLOOR

OH THANK FUCK

So, for those of you who don't know or don't recall or just love seeing this fucking story again and again because this shit has HAUNTED me for NEARLY TWO YEARS, let's turn back the clock:

2022:

By the end of June 2022, the following things had happened to me in the year 2022:

Six sinus infections, one right after the other. Tested for Covid each and every time. Not Covid. When to the doctor on day 12, got the antibiotics, shit cleared up. And basically the moment the antibiotics cleared my system, new sinus infection.

Had so many in a row, in fact, that my my ashtma wouldn't calm down, and we had to get me on steroids for ten days to basically reset my lungs.

Went to a family wedding, first big trip since lockdown.

Came home from the family wedding and had Covid. I regularly get body pain with my fevers, and this was the worst body pain of my life. I barely remember going to the doctor for the test so I could take time off. It was bad.

Was very close to a major realization that a friendship I thought was going to last my whole life had become utterly toxic and abusive.

And then the end of June hit. And I woke up one morning to Sean cursing, which was alarming. Because I curse like a sailor, but he does not. I get up to see what the problem is.

The problem is a quarter-inch of water through most of our apartment. It was coming through our light fixtures. We are in a renovated basement of a house from the 1920s. I ran outside then up the stairs to see what was going on up there.

The house is two stories. Overnight, the toilet supply line on the second story had begun to leak. This kind of leak is a silent affair. We don't know when it started. But when we woke up, the entire living/kitchen area was flooded. The laundry room/bathroom was flooded. The water had soaked into the bedroom carpet so far that it was sopping wet from the door to about two feet in.

The office had, miraculously, not taken a drop. Still not sure how that worked.

We call the management company. We call insurance. I swear my ass off because Sean has to go to work, which means I'm stuck alone all day with the mess and a dog who does NOT understand why her paws keep getting wet.

Demo guys show up. They are very, very nice. By the time they're done on day one, there are two dehumidifiers and several large fans going in my house.

We don't have A/C by the way. And it's late June, and even in PDX, that's not great.

Three days later, the demo guys show back up to take out everything that can't be fixed. Our place looked like this:

Once they took all the wet out, we had this hole in our ceiling:

And were walking around on this floor:

That's the original cement floor that was put in when the house was built, by the way.

And then, we spent the ENTIRE SUMMER waiting for someone to FIX OUR FUCKING HOUSE. From the end of June until FUCKING SEPTEMBER we were living with an open ceiling and no actual floor.

I'd email the management company. I'd call. They'd say "Oh, we're working on it. The owner is dragging his feet."

Put a pin in that claim. We'll come back to it.

At the end of July, I ended that friendship I mentioned. I am using it as a measurement here so you understand that a month into my house being like this, I was also going through a massive emotionally fucked up situation.

Work was so fucking busy I nearly burned out. On top of trying to get some answers about when I was gonna get a fucking ceiling and floor again.

By August, I snapped and sent a terselye worded email about how it should not take this long to make some fucking decisions. I got back, "Oh, we're trying, but the owner isn't communicating with us."

Put a pin in that claim, too.

Finally. FINALLY. After FOUR contractors came and looked and gave estimates, we got told "Okay, we're gonna fix your place. In September. It'll take three weeks."

So, for three weeks, we moved into a hotel, and it was...it was fine. But it's not home, okay. I just wanted to be in my fucking house with a fucking ceiling and floor.

Finally, three weeks later, we moved back in, and we had a ceiling! And a floor!

And then I got what I thought was food poisoning. 48 hours of some of the worst pain I've ever had, and my endometriosis is severe enough I had a full hysterectomy at 31 or 32 (I honestly don't recall). Okay. I know from pain. Went to the doctor. Got an anti-nausea injection from the biggest needle I have ever seen in my LIFE. The doctor pushed on my gall bladder and asked if it hurt. I'd been continuously sick for 48 hours. Everything hurt. I said, in all honesty, I couldn't tell.

Went home. Rehydrated. Things seemed fine. They guessed it was my gall bladder anyway, and since I had no history of issues, said "Let's try to change your diet before we go through surgery."

Fine. Whatever. Didn't care.

A week later, in the first week of October, I ended up in the ER because I was sick again. So sick, in fact, I could not keep down apple juice. It took TWO DAYS to get a surgical spot. I went through caffeine withdrawal. The Try Guys released their video about firing Ned. All I wanted to do was go home to my finally fixed house and fucking sleep.

Surgery went fine. Had a full-room hallucination that Sean and I were Chucky and Tiffany from the Chucky movies. Kept telling Sean to kill the nurse so we'd get a larger cut of the money. This has never happened before, but I've also never been on Dilaudid for several days in a row to control my pain. Apparently, when that happens, I think I'm a serial killing doll.

Go home. Rest up. Things seem fine.

In November, I walk into the kitchen one day, look down, and see a space between two of the floorboards that should not be there.

I refuse to deal with it and throw a rug over it.

Over the next several months, more boards start bubbling and warping.

The floor, it appears, has some fucking issues.

I ignore it for almost a year. Yes, I know what you're thinking, "Gayle, why?"

Because 2022 was a fucking disaster, and a major part of it was the flood, and sometimes you just gotta avoid that shit, okay?

But, finally, it's bad enough I know I gotta say something. I send the management company a note. They send a guy. He's great. Says I'll hear back in a week.

I don't.

And then I don't.

And then I don't.

And then the owner asks to inspect the property to see how things are looking.

He sees the floor and is shocked. This is not good. Why is it like this? How long has it been like this? When did I put in a maintenance request? And what was the last thing I heard?

This is November.

In December, we are informed via letter from the owner that he would like to be cc'ed on every request we send to the management company because he is not pleased with their performance.

Well, okay.

In January, we get a hard freeze. And then we got a pinhole leak in a pipe. That I discovered when walking into the kitchen and stepping into--you guessed it--a quarter-inch of water on the floor.

It was comin up from under the boards, but the hole was actually in our wall. We had glare ice. No one in PDX knows how to handle glare ice. The owner made the trip from the deep suburbs to us every day he could (he got stuck once) to get the problem fixed as quickly and neatly as possible.

I heard him on the phone with the management company several times explaining what he was doing, how long he thought it would take, and thanking them for communicating with us.

Which.

It took 4 days. I got one email. At 6:30 PM. On a day I heard him call them at 10 AM.

So. Suddenly "the owner isn't responding" and "the owner won't communicate" seem like complete fucking bullshit. Because he sure as hell responded when he found out there was a leak (we cc'ed him on the email as requested), and I fucking HEARD HIM communicate.

And then we found out that the owner had not had final say on the floor, which now had to be replaced not just for bubbling but for being fucking wrecked from NEW water damage.

But for this new floor, we just went through him, and would you look at that. Clear communication. Regular updates. We were on the concrete again for about three weeks because that's just how far out contractors are booking right now. But the work was done when he said it would be, and by god, it's clearly a much higher quality of flooring.

So. It's done. It's fucking done. It looks beautiful. The owner scrubbed our bathroom before he left for some fucking reason and was worried he'd lost the knob off our washing machine (we bought it used; it's never had that knob). When I met him the first time after the big leak, I thought he was a complete asshole, and it turns out he's actually all right. He gave us money for dinner this week and is also gonna get us a few days of rent comped for having to have people in and out. I'm never renting through this management company again, but if that dude's got other properties through someone else, I'd go there in a second.

April 5, 2024. May it be the last reference I ever have to make to a fucking floor repair in this house.

[justforbooks]

Steve Wright, who has died aged 69, helped to redefine the role of a disc jockey when he established his BBC Radio 1 afternoon show in the 1980s. To the usual formula of linking almost back-to-back music, he added gossip, trivia, guests from the world of entertainment such as Paul McCartney and Warren Beatty, and a general feeling of chaos that became known as the “zoo” format. It made him the most popular UK radio presenter of the era, with audiences of more than eight million.

“The show’s a little bit of everything you fancy,” he said. “I invented the format myself. It’s a tabloid newspaper of the airwaves – fast, fun and packed with info. Something for everyone.”

Some of the regular “guests” or “listeners” phoning in – including Mr Angry, Gervaise the hairdresser and Damian the social worker – were fictional spoof characters voiced by actors, while Phil Cornwell, whom Wright described as “a crazed, inspired genius”, provided impersonations of David Bowie, John Lennon, Robert De Niro, the Rolling Stones and others. Cornwell’s interactions with the DJ were improvised. A compulsive collector of information, Wright was particularly fond of the “factoids” and bizarre true stories he dug up to entertain his listeners.

Alongside the showbiz guests, Wright was also trusted by politicians, although things did not always go well. On one occasion he was waiting in the prime minister’s study at 10 Downing Street, preparing to conduct an interview with John Major, when he spotted two paracetamol tablets on a table. As he was suffering from a headache himself, he popped them into his mouth.

“When Mr Major walked in, I think he spotted the empty packets – because there was an immediate atmosphere,” recalled Wright. “He wouldn’t really loosen up. I asked him what clothes he liked to wear and he said, ‘Er, um, casual.’ I asked what sort of casual, but he wouldn’t be drawn.” However, Wright did elicit the revelation that the prime minister’s favourite record was the Marty Robbins western ballad El Paso. “A very strange song indeed,” observed the DJ.

Wright first took to the Radio 1 airwaves with a Saturday evening show in 1980 and, within weeks, was presenting Top of the Pops on BBC television. Then, he hosted the Saturday mid-morning show before switching to his long-running post-lunch weekday slot in a programme eventually titled Steve Wright in the Afternoon (1981-93).

At the beginning of 1994 he moved to the flagship Radio 1 breakfast show, titled Steve Wright in the Morning, in a bid by the BBC to halt declining ratings. He added 250,000 listeners within four months and kept a steady audience of seven million while audiences for other shows plummeted. Nevertheless, Wright walked out on his £165,0000-a-year job in 1995 – following differences with Matthew Bannister, the recently appointed controller of Radio 1 – and joined Talk Radio for an unhappy few months.

He was back at the BBC in 1996, switching to Radio 2 to present a Saturday show and launch Steve Wright’s Sunday Love Songs, a mix of classic songs, dedications and real-life romance stories, before returning to familiar territory in 1999 with Steve Wright in the Afternoon. When his departure from the afternoon slot was announced in 2022, he handed over typically graciously, saying “Now, I’ve been doing this programme for 24 years at Radio 2, and so how can I possibly complain? Really, I can’t hog the slot for ever, so let’s give somebody else a go.”

Wright was born in Greenwich, south-east London, and brought up in New Cross, the son of Richard Wright, who managed a Burton’s menswear store, and his wife, June (nee Saunders). Following the family’s move to Southend-on-Sea, Essex, Steve attended Eastwood high school, where he broadcast on school radio over a speaker system from the stock cupboard.

Leaving with three O-levels, he went through jobs as a shipping insurance company clerk, telephone engineer and backstage theatre worker, as well as running his own jingles business. He also had an unsuccessful stint singing on the club circuit, and worked in hospital radio in his spare time.

Joining the BBC in the early 70s, he spent three years working in its pop record library, digging out vinyl discs for DJs to play, followed by a period as a researcher in radio. He left in 1975 to host a show on Radio Atlantis in Belgium, then worked as a reporter and presenter on LBC in London.

In 1976, he moved to the newly launched commercial station Radio 210 in Reading, making promotional trailers and jingles before hosting his own show – he and a fellow 210 DJ, Mike Read, also contributed a pop column to the local newspaper, the Reading Chronicle. Wright switched to Radio Luxembourg three years later and returned to the BBC in 1980.

Radio fame brought Wright television appearances not just on Top of the Pops (1980-89), but also as a panellist on gameshows such as Blankety Blank (1987-89) and That’s Showbusiness (1990-93). He then became the presenter of Home Truths (1994), with celebrities answering general knowledge questions and revealing skeletons in their closet, and Steve Wright’s People Show (1994-95), featuring celebrity guests. From 1997 until 2009, he narrated the Top of the Pops archive footage programme TOTP2.

On radio, Wright’s other shows included Wright Around the World for the BBC World Service (1999-2003) and Radio 2’s Pick of the Pops (2022-24), and he continued to present Sunday Love Songs until his death.

He was appointed MBE in this year’s new year honours list.

In 1985, Wright married Cyndi Robinson; they divorced in 1999. He is survived by their children, Tom and Lucy, his father and his brother, Laurence.

🔔 Steve (Stephen Richard) Wright, radio and television presenter, born 26 August 1954; died 12 February 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[louisisalarrie]

Hello! The LATAM dates anon is me. Ahh sorry I gave you a bit of a chaotic ask! I’m not sure if LATAM really isn’t selling well - Lou’s Mexico dates look sold out - but I read stuff on Twitter via various fan accounts that made it seem as though sales in some countries were slow and they were really trying to drum up sales by giving tickets away etc. I also saw a couple of other tumblr blogs mentioning poor sales but I realise now these accounts are kind of ‘Louis hate accounts’ (urghh) and they’ll say anything to put him down.

I guess I just wondered if you’d read anything different about LATAM? I want it to be amazing for him. He’s such a gem and I really want him to do have great shows out there.

Can’t remember what other stuff I asked…but thank you for taking the time to respond! Xx

No don’t stress at all lovely!!! I appreciate the q’s, but they were different topics so just wanted to break them down xx

Alrighty, let’s look at LATAM ticket sales. Anon, welcome to the show.

Let’s look at some tickets available, capacities, and then I’ll chat more about venue modes and draping etc for some more context.

So, the best selling show in LATAM looks to be Arena VFG, in Guadalajara, Mexico. I’ve had a bit of a look online, and it looks like the show is entirely sold out. That has a capacity of 15,000 , and looks full concert mode, but that doesn’t mean he will have use of all 15,000. The capacity would prooooobably look more like 11,000 - 12,000ish, as an estimate. I haven’t been to the venue so I can’t be 100% on that, but they’re not selling 15,000 tickets to it. We’ll circle back to this later.

Then, his show at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, is a race track used for Formula 1 events, music festivals, and stuff like that. It’s said to have a capacity of 110,000, but of course would be a reduced mode due to the fact that well… that’s pretty impossible for any artist to sell out. Hell, TS’s biggest concert ever was 96,000 people at the MCG in Melbourne, Australia in 2024. Ed Sheeran did 109,500 people in one night at the MCG in 2023. Harry’s biggest show in Australia for LOT was 69,512 people at Accor Stadium in Sydney, which for both show nights, had a capacity of 70,170 people (the first night sold 66,791).

Louis’ show at Arena 1 in Lima, Peru, has a promotion on until the 15 Match 2024 for 25% off certain tickets (the promotion started on 2 November 2023). It can hold up to 16,000 people, and by the looks of it is mainly used for concerts, not sporting events. So they could be selling an amount of tickets that’s closer to their actual capacity, as opposed to the other venues. Again, I haven’t been to it so I can’t be sure. The discount on these tickets, however, is only for people using payments of “Credit, Debit, Business, and Working Capital Cards”. We see similar promos with other artists, such as MasterCard pre sales, American Express presales, etc., but I haven’t seen discounted tickets like this for other artists off the top of my head. However…

I looked at Louis’ 1st June 2022 show at Arena Peru Explanada in Lima, Peru, and according to Team Louis News on Twitter, it sold out. They said it has a capacity of 15,000 people, but again, doesn’t mean every seat was utilised, but it doesn’t look like it’s used for sport, so they could’ve gotten close. And, funnily enough, at this arena and show, there was a 15% discount if you paid with an Interbank Credit or Debit card.

A lot of stadiums are owned/sponsored by banks, or insurance companies, or these companies may have a large share of profit for the money they invest in it etc., and it’s a great way of advertising. Signing up for a bank for discounts of tickets at their venue(s)??? Yes please. So, you can see the appeal. And I can 100% guarantee you that this is a partnership and a condition of said bank investing in the stadium. A quick look at their other shows, every artist (Lauren Jauregui from Fifth Harmony, Paramore etc.) has a special discount based on if they used that bank’s cards to pay for tickets. So it’s not “oh louis could NEVER sell enough tickets, he’s a flop” and whatever these losers say, it’s that certain arenas (clearly more prominent in LATAM) will have discounts on tickets due to the partnership with the bank that invests in them.

NOW

let’s circle back to capacities. this frustrates me to no end because people throw these numbers around all the time and it just… that’s just not how it works.

You can find a capacity of a venue pretty easily when you google said venue, and often people go “oh wow, this artist is playing a venue that holds 100,000 people!!!!” which is yeah, you’re right, that venue does hold 100,000 people, but that depends entirely on the mode, stage setup, and how big the artist is. Also, if it’s used as a sports stadium as well, it’s gonna hold a hell of a lot more people than a concert mode, because they can utilise every seat. You can’t just sit behind the stage at a concert, but you can sit anywhere during a football match. So that’s a major difference in ticket sales already.

If you’re someone like Harry, who has a big old T catwalk and a larger built out base/main stage, that’s gonna lower the capacity of the venue. So then they make more of it GA on the ground as opposed to seating, to make the capacity higher again. But he plays stadiums, which are used for sport, and so he’s not utilising the whole capacity as it is.

BUT Ed Sheeran did the thing.

At the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground, used for cricket and AFL etc.), Ed Sheeran sold sooooo many more tickets than TS, because he had a 360 rotating stage in the middle of the stadium. SUCH a good idea, but that doesn’t work for an artist like TS or Harry. They perform and run up and down cat walks and dance and flail about, Ed Sheeran doesn’t. So, yep, the stage setup can seriously affect the capacity.

Then, estimated ticket sales. Louis sold out his last time in Peru, at a different arena, but it’s pretty safe to say he’ll sell out this one too (hopefully). But, that arena last year might not have been utilised at 15,000. So it’s a bit of guess work too, and finding out what he sold last year (which is easy if the same promoter is hosting but idk I haven’t looked that deep in hahaha but I’d say it’s the same one still).

And when tickets go on sale, they’ll release a certain amount (obviously smaller amounts in pre sales to see how it’s selling), but the ticket website doesn’t tell you how many tickets are left. Why would they? That defeats the purpose of trying to tell people that they might miss out. If the website says there is 10,000 tickets left, you’ll wait til closer to the time to buy one because you’re not worried. But, that skews ticket sales and a show can be cancelled over that, which is happening a fair bit at the moment with ticket reselling websites that aren’t authorised by the venue. I can go into ticketing and ticket reselling further if you’d like but yeah… best we stay on topic.

So, if a show sells enough to at least make a small profit, but isnt sold out regardless of capacity size, the promoter will often put a thing called “drapes” over a certain amount of seating to the side of the stage. These are just big black curtains that cover those seats to make it look more full. It’s what you’d call a “reduced mode”. And, that’s also a way they can use bigger venues if an artist won’t quite sell it out, but they’re too big for a smaller scale show and either don’t wanna do a couple of nights in a row or the smaller venue is super booked out etc. And, artists can sell out a reduced mode, which is great PR for them.

Anyway, there are a million variables that happen with shows. But, capacity does not equal ticket sales, discounts at venues does not equal the size of the artist, and I’m sure Louis is gonna do great in LATAM. I’ve seen so many people excited!!!

Hope this helps/makes sense. Thanks anon!

[theorgantrail]

Insurance: Healthcare Workers' Perspective (i.e why it sucks)

1. Why Doctors Don't Carry Your Insurance

This was one of the most surprising things to learn when I started working in a dr's office. Insurance sucks just as much for providers as it does for the patients. (The only upside is we have a separate hotline for calling).

Doctors have to pay (quite a lot of money $$$ btw) to register as providers with insurance. Each individual company (BCBS, USAA, Kaiser, etc) requires a fee, and often will have different processes for registration. This process is not instantaneous, either, but can take anywhere up to 2 years.

That is why many younger/newer providers will often only carry a couple insurances. So the more insurances a provider carries, the more they fought and paid for accessibility for their patients.

2. Prior Authorization

“Physicians spend an enormous amount of time fighting these prior authorization rejections to get patients the therapies that they need,”

-Jack Resneck Jr., MD

What doctors wish patients knew about prior authorization

One major problem in healthcare, which one of our admins talks about in the insurance section, is prior authorization.

I have personally worked in healthcare on and off for about 3 years. At one point, I was a receptionist for a busy ENT clinic, where I helped file medical and insurance paperwork and talked to just about e v e r y insurance company there is the US.

One of the most common (and incredibly frustrating) forms was prior auth, and everyone involved absolutely hates this form. The doctor, the MA's, the patient, the insurance workers you call, etc. Often, we have to call back and forth over a period of weeks to even months to get a patient a single medication that is very often necessary for living.

Mind you, this again takes a lot of precious time. Dr. Resneck went on to say that, "We physicians often find ourselves fighting over and over and over through a series of appeals to get the patient the medication or the test or the treatment that they need," which I can attest is absolutely true! Talk about incredibly dangerous for continuity for care and health of the patient!

On top of how busy the clinic and physicians are, these authorizations and appeals often go to the support healthcare workers, like receptionists or MA's, to handle.

Most often was a medication that was simply being refilled by a new doctor, or occasionally the exact same doctor (the patients window of insurance viability had just lapsed)! A patient could have been on a medication for YEARS and suddenly the insurance would be dragging their feet. And they won't talk to patients, the point-blank will only discuss and haggle with physicians and their representatives (ie. ME).

There is lot more to this subject, but unfortunately, I have other homework to get to.

Did either of these surprise you?

[entailglobal]

The Role of Import and Export Companies in Global Supply Chains

In today’s interconnected world, the seamless movement of goods across borders is critical to the functioning of global supply chains.  Import and export companies play a pivotal role in this complex network, ensuring that products reach their destinations efficiently and reliably.  Entail Global, a leading import and export company in India, exemplifies the essential functions these companies perform.  This article explores the role of import and export companies in global supply chains, highlighting the contributions of top exporters in India and the services provided by export agencies in India.

Understanding Global Supply Chains

Global supply chains involve the production, transportation, and distribution of goods and services across multiple countries.  These chains are complex and multifaceted, involving numerous stakeholders, including manufacturers, suppliers, logistics providers, and import and export companies.  The efficiency and reliability of these supply chains are crucial for businesses to meet market demands and maintain competitiveness.

The Role of Import and Export Companies

Import and export companies serve as intermediaries between domestic producers and international markets.  They facilitate the movement of goods across borders, handling various aspects of trade, including compliance with regulations, documentation, and logistics.  Here is a closer look at their key roles:

1.   Market Access and Expansion

Import and export companies help businesses expand their reach to international markets.  By leveraging their expertise in foreign markets, these companies enable businesses to identify and exploit new opportunities, thereby increasing their market share and revenue.  For example, a top exporter in India like Entail Global provides invaluable insights into market trends, consumer preferences, and competitive landscapes in various countries.

2.   Regulatory Compliance

Navigating the regulatory landscape of international trade can be challenging due to varying rules and standards in different countries.  Import and export companies ensure compliance with all relevant regulations, including customs requirements, tariffs, and trade agreements.  This reduces the risk of delays, penalties, and legal issues.  As a leading export agency in India, Entail Global stays abreast of the latest regulatory changes, ensuring smooth and compliant transactions for their clients.

3.   Logistics and Supply Chain Management

Efficient logistics and supply chain management are critical to the success of international trade.  Import and export companies coordinate the transportation, warehousing, and distribution of goods, optimizing routes and schedules to minimize costs and delivery times.  Entail Global’s expertise in logistics ensures that goods are moved efficiently, reducing the risk of disruptions and delays.

4.   Risk Management

International trade involves various risks, including political instability, currency fluctuations, and supply chain disruptions.  Import and export companies help mitigate these risks through strategic planning and risk management practices.  They provide valuable advice on hedging strategies, insurance options, and contingency plans, ensuring that businesses are well-prepared for potential challenges.

5.   Documentation and Paperwork

The documentation required for international trade can be extensive and complex, including invoices, bills of lading, certificates of origin, and more.  Import and export companies handle all necessary paperwork, ensuring accuracy and compliance with international standards.  This streamlines the process and reduces the administrative burden on businesses.

The Impact of Import and Export Companies on the Economy

Import and export companies significantly contribute to the economic growth and development of their home countries.  Here is how:

1.   Job Creation

The activities of import and export companies generate employment opportunities across various sectors, including manufacturing, logistics, and services.  This job creation boosts the economy by increasing income levels and consumer spending.

2.   Foreign Exchange Earnings

Export activities bring in valuable foreign exchange, strengthening the country’s currency reserves and improving its balance of trade.  Top exporters in India, such as Entail Global, play a crucial role in generating foreign exchange earnings through their international trade operations.

3.   Technological and Knowledge Transfer

International trade facilitates the transfer of technology and knowledge between countries.  Import and export companies help domestic businesses access advanced technologies, best practices, and innovative solutions from around the world, enhancing their productivity and competitiveness.

4.   Economic Diversification

By opening up new markets for domestic products, import and export companies contribute to economic diversification.  This reduces reliance on a single market or industry, enhancing the resilience of the economy to external shocks.

Entail Global:  A Leading Import and Export Company in India

Entail Global stands out as a premier import and export company in India, providing comprehensive services that facilitate international trade for businesses of all sizes.  Here is what sets them apart:

1.   Extensive Market Knowledge

With years of experience in international trade, Entail Global possesses deep insights into various markets.  They help businesses understand market dynamics, identify opportunities, and develop effective entry strategies.

2.   Regulatory Expertise

Entail Global’s team of experts stays updated on the latest regulatory developments, ensuring that all transactions comply with local and international laws.  This expertise helps clients avoid legal issues and penalties.

3.   Efficient Logistics Solutions

Entail Global offers end-to-end logistics solutions, including transportation, warehousing, and distribution.  Their efficient logistics management ensures timely delivery and reduces costs, enhancing the overall efficiency of the supply chain.

4.   Comprehensive Risk Management

Entail Global provides robust risk management services, helping clients navigate the uncertainties of international trade.  Their strategic advice and support ensure that businesses are prepared for potential risks and disruptions.

5.   Tailored Services

Recognizing that each business has unique needs, Entail Global offers customized solutions tailored to specific requirements.  Whether it is market research, regulatory compliance, or logistics management, they provide personalized services that address the specific challenges faced by their clients.

Conclusion

Import and export companies are vital to the smooth functioning of global supply chains.  They facilitate international trade by providing market access, ensuring regulatory compliance, managing logistics, and mitigating risks.  Companies like Entail Global, a leading import and export company in India, play a crucial role in enabling businesses to expand their reach and succeed in the global marketplace.

As a top exporter in India and a reliable export agency in India, Entail Global exemplifies the essential contributions of import and export companies to the economy.  Their expertise, efficiency, and commitment to client success make them a trusted partner for businesses seeking to navigate the complexities of international trade.

By partnering with experienced import and export companies, businesses can unlock new opportunities, enhance their competitiveness, and drive economic growth.  The role of these companies in global supply chains is indispensable, ensuring that goods move seamlessly across borders and reach their destinations efficiently.