#but the website has a telephone number

[angeltreasure]

Thinking about this Catholic Church I went to over the weekend near the boarder of Utah.

It’s no secret that church attendance is dying more and more. There’s hardly anyone left at this one. The poor priest we had was advanced in years, you knew he probably had to be out of retirement to help, and struggled to even walk with a back so hunched over. When I saw him struggle, it made me want to cry. He had absolutely no one to help him at the altar, no deacons, no extra priest, no altar boys, no altar girls, just a couple door greeters opposite side of where the altar is. They used pre-recorded music because they had no piano player. Poor Father was too weak to give us Holy Communion himself. He had one of the sisters do it in his place. Normally, he said, a Catholic school would be supported by its church next to it but instead, since Mass attendance has dropped significantly, the school itself is supporting the church. The school itself has sisters that teach 51 students maximum. I don’t know how many families used to attend Mass there, but my heart felt so sad. Father says if we knew anyone that could support them financially, to reach out to them. If you are in a position where you can donate, please see the link below. If you are unable to donate, please don’t feel pressured or obligated to do so, but I ask you to join me in prayer.

Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church

PO Box 1387

455 S. Lake Powell Blvd.

Page, AZ 86040-1387

Website link:

Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church

Facebook link:

Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church

[curlicuecal]

playing science telephone

Hi folks. Let's play a fun game today called "unravelling bad science communication back to its source."

Journey with me.

Saw a comment going around on a tumblr thread that "sometimes the life expectancy of autism is cited in the 30s"

That number seemed..... strange. The commenter DID go on to say that that was "situational on people being awful and not… anything autism actually does", but you know what? Still a strange number. I feel compelled to fact check.

Quick Google "autism life expectancy" pulls up quite a few websites bandying around the number 39. Which is ~technically~ within the 30s, but already higher than the tumblr factoid would suggest. But, guess what. This number still sounds strange to me.

Most of the websites presenting this factoid present themselves as official autism resources and organizations (for parents, etc), and most of them vaguely wave towards "studies."

Ex: "Above And Beyond Therapy" has a whole article on "Does Autism Affect Life Expectancy" and states:

The link implies that it will take you to the "research studies" being referenced, but it in fact takes you to another random autism resource group called.... Songbird Care?

And on that website we find the factoid again:

Ooh, look. Now they've added the word "some". The average lifespan for SOME autistic people. Which the next group erased from the fact. The message shifts further.

And we have slightly more information about the study! (Which has also shifted from "studies" to a singular "study"). And we have another link!

Wonderfully, this link actually takes us to the actual peer-reviewed 2020 study being discussed. [x]

And here, just by reading the abstract, we find the most important information of all.

This study followed a cohort of adolescent and adult autistic people across a 20 year time period. Within that time period, 6.4% of the cohort died. Within that 6.4%, the average age of death was 39 years.

So this number is VERY MUCH not the average age of death for autistic people, or even the average age of death for the cohort of autistic people in that study. It is the average age of death IF you died young and within the 20 year period of the study (n=26), and also we don't even know the average starting age of participants without digging into earlier papers, except that it was 10 or older. (If you're curious, the researchers in the study suggested reduced self-sufficiency to be among the biggest risk factors for the early mortality group.)

But the number in the study has been removed from it's context, gradually modified and spread around the web, and modified some more, until it is pretty much a nonsense number that everyone is citing from everyone else.

There ARE two other numbers that pop up semi-frequently:

One cites the life expectancy at 58. I will leave finding the context for that number as an exercise for the audience, since none of the places I saw it gave a direct citation for where they were getting it.

And then, probably the best and most relevant number floating around out there (and the least frequently cited) draws from a 2023 study of over 17,000 UK people with an autism diagnosis, across 30 years. [x] This study estimated life expectancies between 70 and 77 years, varying with sex and presence/absence of a learning disability. (As compared to the UK 80-83 average for the population as a whole.)

This is a set of numbers that makes way more sense and is backed by way better data, but isn't quite as snappy a soundbite to pass around the internet. I'm gonna pass it around anyway, because I feel bad about how many scared internet people I stumbled across while doing this search.

People on quora like "I'm autistic, can I live past 38"-- honey, YES. omg.

---

tl;dr, when someone gives you a number out of context, consider that the context is probably important

also, make an amateur fact checker's life easier and CITE YOUR SOURCES

[itscomhes]

Importance of Digital Marketing Compared to Old-Time Newspaper Marketing

There is no denying that the Internet, coupled with technological advancements, has revolutionized the face of marketing. Earlier, the best and the most effective way to promote a business was to get display ads printed in newspapers. But times have changed. Today’s generation is more hooked to the digital world than printed media. Consequently, there is a growing need to shift focus on digital marketing. There is no exception for the healthcare industry as well.

What is Healthcare Digital Marketing?

In healthcare, digital marketing refers to using digital platforms such as social media and websites as tools for marketing communication. The “sponsored ads” that pop up on your social feed and the emails you get from healthcare companies are all a part of digital marketing.

Trends in Healthcare Digital Marketing in India

The past few years have been witness to India emerging as one of the fastest-growing digital economies globally. The period between 2014 and 2017 saw the digital adoption index growing by 90%. Regarding revenue, the Indian digital healthcare market stood at a valuation of $ 116.61 billion in 2018. The numbers will expectedly hit INR 485.43 billion by 2024, with a CAGR of around 27.41% during the years 2019–2024. (Source.)

Why Are the Downsides of Traditional Marketing?

The traditional marketing mode is a conventional method to reach out to a semi-targeted audience through various offline advertising methods. It usually comes in prints, broadcasts, direct mail, telephone, and outdoor advertising like billboards. However, conventional marketing has the following drawbacks:

Very costly

Almost no direct interaction with the audience

Making updates is not easy in a static newspaper ad or an already aired TV commercial.

No room for customizations to target a specific audience

Measuring ROI becomes tough.

The rate of leads converting into paying customers is meager.

Receiving feedback is not easy.

Why Go Digital with Healthcare Marketing?

As per ClickZ, the global population has 57% internet users with an average online activity of 6 hours 42 minutes each day. (Source) With different channels like social media, websites, content marketing, pay-per-click, and more, there can be no better time to tap the digital platform’s potential. While traditional newspaper marketing is still useful, technology makes it easier to broaden your outreach, especially when offering something essential, like healthcare services. So here are the top benefits of adopting digital marketing:

Better audience profiling

Direct interaction with the target audience.

Better prediction of customer behavior

Easier to get feedbacks on your service or brand

Tracking your marketing progress is easy.

Cost-effective compared to traditional advertising.

Enough scope for customizing and updating marketing communication

Conclusion

With progressive government policies, India’s robust digital footprint has played a vital role in nurturing the country’s digital healthcare ecosystem. Healthcare providers are turning to digital media to grow their business while offering their services to the public. Digital marketing has promising prospects for the future, far outweighing the limitations posed by traditional marketing.

There is no denying that the Internet, coupled with technological advancements, has revolutionized the face of marketing. Earlier, the best and the most effective way to promote a business was to get display ads printed in newspapers. But times have changed. Today’s generation is more hooked to the digital world than printed media. Consequently, there is a growing need to shift focus on digital marketing. There is no exception for the healthcare industry as well.

What is Healthcare Digital Marketing?

In healthcare, digital marketing refers to using digital platforms such as social media and websites as tools for marketing communication. The “sponsored ads” that pop up on your social feed and the emails you get from healthcare companies are all a part of digital marketing.

Trends in Healthcare Digital Marketing in India

The past few years have been witness to India emerging as one of the fastest-growing digital economies globally. The period between 2014 and 2017 saw the digital adoption index growing by 90%. Regarding revenue, the Indian digital healthcare market stood at a valuation of $ 116.61 billion in 2018. The numbers will expectedly hit INR 485.43 billion by 2024, with a CAGR of around 27.41% during the years 2019–2024. (Source.)

Why Are the Downsides of Traditional Marketing?

The traditional marketing mode is a conventional method to reach out to a semi-targeted audience through various offline advertising methods. It usually comes in prints, broadcasts, direct mail, telephone, and outdoor advertising like billboards. However, conventional marketing has the following drawbacks:

Very costly

Almost no direct interaction with the audience

Making updates is not easy in a static newspaper ad or an already aired TV commercial.

No room for customizations to target a specific audience

Measuring ROI becomes tough.

The rate of leads converting into paying customers is meager.

Receiving feedback is not easy.

Why Go Digital with Healthcare Marketing?

As per ClickZ, the global population has 57% internet users with an average online activity of 6 hours 42 minutes each day. (Source) With different channels like social media, websites, content marketing, pay-per-click, and more, there can be no better time to tap the digital platform’s potential. While traditional newspaper marketing is still useful, technology makes it easier to broaden your outreach, especially when offering something essential, like healthcare services. So here are the top benefits of adopting digital marketing:

Better audience profiling

Direct interaction with the target audience.

Better prediction of customer behavior

Easier to get feedbacks on your service or brand

Tracking your marketing progress is easy.

Cost-effective compared to traditional advertising.

Enough scope for customizing and updating marketing communication

Conclusion

With progressive government policies, India’s robust digital footprint has played a vital role in nurturing the country’s digital healthcare ecosystem. Healthcare providers are turning to digital media to grow their business while offering their services to the public. Healthcare Digital marketing has promising prospects for the future, far outweighing the limitations posed by traditional marketing.

Source: https://comhes.com/

[scretladyspider]

“The suit centers on Lorie Smith, a website designer who does not want to provide her services for gay weddings because of her religious objections.

In 2016, she says, a gay man named Stewart requested her services for help with his upcoming wedding. “We are getting married early next year and would love some design work done for our invites, placenames etc. We might also stretch to a website,” reads a message he apparently sent her through her website. In court filings, her lawyers produced a copy of the inquiry.

Web designer’s US supreme court case could trample LGBTQ+ rights, advocates say

But Stewart, who requested his last name be withheld for privacy, said in an interview with the Guardian that he never sent the message, even though it correctly lists his email address and telephone number. He has also been happily married to a woman for the last 15 years, he said. The news was first reported by the New Republic.

In fact, until he received a call this week from a reporter from the magazine, Stewart said he had no idea he was somehow tied up in a case that had made it to the supreme court.

“I can confirm I did not contact 303 Creative about a website,” he said. “It’s fraudulent insomuch as someone is pretending to be me and looking to marry someone called Mike. That’s not me.

“What’s most concerning to me is that this is kind of like the one main piece of evidence that’s been part of this case for the last six-plus years and it’s false,” he added. “Nobody’s checked it. Anybody can pick up the phone, write an email, send a text, to verify whether that was correct information.”

Key document may be fake in LGBTQ+ rights case before US Supreme Court, The Guardian, by Sam Levine

[crayfurbs]

Bejewled furby resurfaces - June 2023

Hello everyone! I have been on a slight hiatus due to a myriad of personal reasons, I am back for a short post with some interesting news

a GENUINE Bejeweled furby has surfaced! 

Foreword: 

This bejeweled furby is in my opinion the only one to exist, as with much other furby information numbers of units produced is a shaky 25 year-old game of telephone. But having researched archived Tiger and FAO sites, it appears all promotional images are the same snowball furby (Notably with green eyes) and we haven’t really seen any different versions, For the information in this post I consulted several archived websites on archive.org along with the new listing 

Background info: 

The following description is transcribed from the original FAO Schwarz listing for the bejeweled furby. 

“Created by designer Sidney Mobell. The world's most exciting tay is now the world's

most precious. bedecked with 156 gleaming and glittering genuine gemstones Lovable Furby comes adorned with a tiara necklace. and earrings crafted in platinum and 18k gold and containing 63 full cut diamonds (3.7 ctw) 44 rubies (4.5 ctw) blue sapphires (5 3 ctw) and emeralds (1.O ctw). AIl 3 pieces are removable So you can wear them too!

A portion of the proceeds will benefit the word class hasbro children's hospital–”

The listing + info

So here is the description of the listing, the starting bid is 1,200.

(ill add it in later once the auction ends)

Now for those of you at home, you may be thinking... a $100,000 furby with an auction cap of $2,000. somthing must be fishy right?

but on paper... the bejweled furby isnt worth that much, and Ill explain.

For those of you who are not jewelers (I have only taken intro classes myself) this furby may appear to be absolutely studded in expensive gems… but in reality the true value is being obscured by the cwt, or Carat Total Weight, this value is in reference to the TOTAL cumulative weight of the gemstones. So for example, the 63 diamonds CWT is 3.7, so each diamond is only 0.06 ct. so in reality the QUALITY of the dimaonds used is very low, for comparison you can purchase 25 loose diamonds of the same color, carat and clarity for around $50

So after a very novice rough calculation the total value of all the metals and gemstones here dont seem to total over $800. This is why I think the piece was designed to be a symbolic representation to the person who donated the $100,000 to the hospital, rather than a truly $100,000 furby which is why the capped value of the auction is $2,000

Conclusion + opinions

I still think this is an absolute amazing piece of furby history, one that I admittedly was not to familiar with, but was aware of in my deep dives into the furby archived sites, I think that the resurfacing of this piece is a ode to the furby community, and the fact that we are STILL actively learning about undiscovered information relating to Furbys a quarter of a century later! This toy line was only produced for just under 3 years but has provided a trove of information that's out there just waiting to be discovered! 

And with that, ciao

-Cray 

[hajimedics]

WELCOME HOME JULY 2023 UPDATE SPOILERS

this is more of a ramble rather than a concrete theory. but! another observation I've made regarding the site; you know the little bugs that lead to hidden "answer" pages containing a video with audio of various characters interacting?

I've always thought of it as the bugs showing a glimpse into the mundane, everyday lives of the puppets outside of the puppet show's official episodes. there's a lack of story structure fit for a children's show, no moral of the story, no goofy sound effects. the puppets are all just.... chilling. living their lives.

notice how scratchy the audios retrieved by the welcome home restoration team are. audios from the media page and merchandise page, have this vintage feeling and noise filter overlaying them. while in the "answer" audios, the clarity of the sound is much more clear.

the "answer" pages also show other facets of the puppets outside of their easy-to-stomach-by-kids personalities. take sally for example.

in the "it's for you!" telephone merch, sally is shown to be proud of herself, inching towards being vain. fitting for the classy, confident performer character archetype!

in an "answer" page, like 2-14-sp, despite her bravado, her more caring side is shown. she boosts poppy's confidence . though she still retains her proud side.

in 3-14-hs, you'd expect her to scoff and say something along the lines of "instant food is not befitting for a star like me!" but she takes the offers that howdy gave to her. she prioritizes her plays, her schedules, a quality over quantity person.

wally is also present in every single [number]-14-[two character's initials] video. he was there when poppy and sally was having tea time. his hand can be seen reaching for a cup.

in each "answer" audio, he plays the role of the dismissed third person, always watching, observing. his friends only mention him at the end of the audios and it's mostly them asking him for his input on such and such subjects or have him pick a side in the problem they're discussing.

except in 14-14-bh, a conversation between barnaby and home. this is home's only appearance in the "answer" audios. this is also the only "answer" audio that doesn't refer to wally only in one line (though the audio does glitch out when barnaby eventually calls his name).

I have a strong feeling that he's the one who put the bugs in the website -- he's the one who kept messing up the site and putting secrets inside of it. tying to the word "answer"; wally has said that he'll make the neighbors understand. he never explicitly said what we'll understand, but perhaps the "answer" pages that he (I assume) showed is what it is....?

also unrelated, but bugs..... inside a website.... web bug.... computer bug.... bugging.....

[alternativeminiatures]

Ok, let's talk about Lost In Space.

In the early 2000's there wasn't as much 40k fanfiction as today, you had Turn Signals on a Land Raider, and... I really can't remember. But I do remember Lost In Space!

This is probably one of my favorite 40k comics, even if it only has around 50 strips and never was completed. Sadly the website was nuked on january 2006, and nowadays, it's a bit hard to find all its published content. But hey, guess what? I'm a data hoarder, and found almost all the comic on my external hard drive, and the four strips I didn't have, I found them on a russian website, in russian, but @varanguard did me the favour of translating them back to english.

So, what now? I think I'm going to put it here with tags, so people can find it; lost media is something we should take more seriously, books, videogames, series, music, etc... all human creation should have a place.

What happened to the website? I asked a friend if he remembers and he told me back then James was throwing a fit about copyright, and closed many fan content websites, so yeah, it could be the answer.

And what about the author? Ok, this is a complex subject. Technically, the last we know about the author is a post on DeviantArt where they talks about getting a copy of all the strips and wanting to publish them there, they started on september 2006, and the last one is from october 2006, there are only 11 strips, I think I have near 80 between LiS, Meanwhile and Grail Quest.

Soooo... I still wanted to know if it was ok to put the comic here, and you see, I am a very good internet sleuth, very good, so good that from a complete stranger putting funny drawings on the internets 20 years ago, now I may know their complete name, where they live, where they work, I got 4 different emails and their work telephone number*. And at this point I realized I had jumped head first without parachute into creepy territory (I blame my autism, when you focus onto something it's hard to know when to stop).

And now, contacting the author with the information I got that they didn't put out there to be contacted, to talk about something they haven't talked about for almost 20 years, feels disturbing, like crossing 30km of red lines and boundaries, and way worse than putting the comic out there without their permission.

I think I'm going to follow the spirit of their last post and share the comic, but if somebody has any idea, comment or observation, please, let me know.

*be vigilant about your internet privacy and what you put out there!! I'm just a basic nerd and was able to get all that information with just google! All the people telling you to be careful are not paranoid, they know how easy is to find information about somebody!

[dimalink]

Barn – things come to it!

And, by the way, all summer things are going closer to barn. It is such a big house. There are lots of stuff inside, it is heap, lots of things are piled up there. Some boards, some old boards, for example. With a very big amount. So, as a fact, you even cannot to go there.

Everything is piled up with a boards, some wooden things.  Somewhere, there are several woods. Some iron little things, different, in rust. Some old nails. So, it is so wonderful and magical place! It is a barn! It is good to sort all the things! It, looks like endless! How in such little house can be placed so many things? It is just amazing!

It is a good weather outside. And it is good to have some warm up a little. So, I help a little brother to sort things in a barn. I pull cart with different things forward and backward. It is, also, a funny thing to do. It is good, that it is so excellent weather. And, so many green things all around you! During breaktime, I run to little house – to drink a tea, and play videogames! And, I, also, do my countryside things! I can say I have excellent summer days!

But barn, it is, really, something! Whole universe out of bags, broken bricks, also, I can find there sometimes. Some rusty details. I cannot say what they are using for.

I find also old bicycle. And mine one, and my little brother`s too. And a wheels from bicycles. Old. And, also, a deflated football ball, also, is here. I guess, it is easy to find here any thing – especially, if search well!

As a truth, there are, lots of dust there! And, sand at the floor. And, also, sometimes, you can find a little spiders here. And, some fly can fly here near the window glass. So, it is a full scale life cycle here in a barn. There is life in a barn, u know.

I find some old telephone device here. When you need to rotate a circle to call a number. But, it was a absolutely broken. It has a broken case. And a handset part is connected to main case with a rope. Amazing thing! Old table is here! In a disassembled form. Lots of old stuff, made out of wood.

Yes, there is, of course, here a place for interesting things! It is such a wonderland beyond the mirror! In a barn -there is, it is own wonderland. And you can get into this place without a mirror. You need just to open a little door. By the way, it is rather cold in a barn. It is wind with a cold there. In a hot day, it is a cool place to be there in a shade. Also, it has a wind there. Interesting, where it goes from?

It is dark in a barn! And, if you get out – it is so light and a whole green world! Yes! There is something to do in a barn! Barn - it is a big thing! To sort the things!

Dima Link is making retro videogames, apps, a little of music, write stories, and some retro more.

WEBSITE: http://www.dimalink.tv-games.ru/home_eng.html ITCHIO: https://dimalink.itch.io/ GAMEJOLT: https://gamejolt.com/@DimaLink/games

TUMBLR: https://dimalink.tumblr.com/ BLOGGER: https://dimalinkeng.blogspot.com/ MASTODON: https://mastodon.social/@DimaLink

[polaroidcats]

Breadcrumbs and broken families – a very scientific analysis of “Savour It (I’m Tasty)” by epicblueblanket

One of the most complex literary works of the 21st century is without a doubt “Savour It (I’m Tasty)” by epicblueblanket, also known by the pseudonym @kaaaaaaarf on the popular blogging website tumbler dot com. In less than 1000 words, the author manages to write a story that is not only captivating to any reader, it is also packed full of inspiring and deeply philosophical metaphors.

In this essay I will explore how the sausage rolls and breadcrumbs serve as a metapor for Sirius’s broken family, which might be one of the reasons why Remus feels so familiar to him even if they barely know each other - they're surrounded by broken pieces of something that should have been wonderful but has now been destroyed beyond recognition.

One of the most emotional moments of the story is at the beginning, when Sirius asks Remus if he eats sausage rolls when he is not at work, to which Remus replies with: "Well, I take home the leftovers at the end of my shift. It’s wasteful to throw it away, you know?", causing the following reaction from Sirius: “Sirius shakes himself. ‘Right, yes, of course—makes sense.’", obviously affected by the parallels between his own life – being thrown out and disregarded by his family as a teenager for reasons beyond his control – and the sausage rolls at Gregg’s being thrown out at the end of the day for health and safety reasons, no longer wanted or needed, through no fault of their own at all. The scene leaves the reader breathless with emotion, and it is impossible not to feel sympathy towards Sirius, as well as the sausage rolls at Gregg’s, who now both rely on Remus to help them fill the emptiness they feel from their respective rejections. And Remus seems more than willing to fill any sort of emptiness Sirius needs him to, acting as a very firm support system for Sirius, something he likely has been lacking up to that point, his life most likely as structured as a sausage roll that has been lying in the warm shop window of a bakery for a little bit too long.

Obviously affected and embarrassed by the sheer intimacy of sharing such an intense moment with his new lover, Sirius is quick to belittle himself (“I’m being stupid”) when Remus asks him if he wants to stop their sexual activities in the name of the sausage rolls. Remus is delighted by Sirius’s refusal to stop their activities, stating he has been looking forward to it since Sirius gave Remus his telephone number the previous morning. An interesting detail here is Sirius making the first step, not only in giving Remus his number but even before that, by coming into the shop and consuming “his own weight in vegan sausage rolls”, which not only shows his consideration for other living creatures, but also hints at possible future acceptance towards his difficult situation with his family. Through eating the sausage rolls - on a daily basis - he is helping them fulfill their destiny, something his family has failed to help him achieve. But Sirius’s selfless acts help the sausage rolls reach their goal of being eaten and not going to landfill, something Remus also seems very passionate about, so it is no wonder that the two of them seem like such a perfect match.

Sirius describes watching Remus eat Yum-Yums, and occasionally also sausage rolls, with so much passion, and it is not hard to imagine how this affects Sirius, who sees a piece of himself in every bit of pastry Remus consumes. While on a surface level Remus seems oblivious to the deeper meanings behind the sausage rolls and even misguidedly asks Sirius if it is some sort of sexual fetish, one can speculate that on a more subconscious level, Remus also knows about the healing power of eating sausage rolls in bed with one’s lover, allowing each other to create a mess of crumbly pastry pieces, and finding joy in the brokenness and vulnerability of it all.

Remus understands that not everything needs to be perfect or whole in order to be devoured, a philosophy he applies to sausage rolls as well as Sirius. The hopeful ending of the story sees Sirius enjoying a post-coital cigarette, Remus enjoying a post-coital sausage roll, both of them covered in sugar as well as pastry flakes, and Sirius starting to see Remus’s perspective through all the pastry flakes, feeling the healing powers of sausage roll consumption and sex.

[jokeroutsubs]

Käärijä's Eurovision friend comes on tour to Finland - Some fans were bitterly disappointed

The Slovenian band Joker Out will perform in Finland this autumn. Some fans were disappointed, as tickets sold out in no time.

(Caption under the video: This is what Käärijä's concert was like at the Helsinki Ice Hall.)

Joker Out, who represented Slovenia in the Eurovision Song Contest with Carpe Diem, will be coming to Finland this autumn. The indie rock band, who sings in Slovenian and English, will perform in Helsinki, Tampere and Turku in September.

Tickets for the concerts went on sale on Friday morning. All three concerts sold out in no time.

Tickets for the Tampere and Helsinki shows were sold by Tiketti Oy. The great popularity was no surprise to the company.

- Already yesterday, when we published the information about the concerts, the attention we received on social media and the visits to our website indicated that the tickets would sell quickly, Mirva Merimaa, Tiketti's CEO, told to Iltalehti.

(Photo caption: This is how the singer of Joker Out performed at the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool. EBU)

In Helsinki, the band will perform at Tavastia and in Tampere, the venue will be Olympia-kortteli. According to Merimaa, both gigs are small club gigs for less than 1000 people.

Merimaa cannot yet say whether additional tickets or concerts will be on sale. However, she estimates that the popularity of Eurovision artists has risen in recent years.

- The Eurovision Song Contest has increased the popularity of the artists and made them better known to the public. The Eurovision Song Contest has become a boom across Europe," says Merimaa.

Some fans who missed out were hugely disappointed. Bitter comments appeared on the band's Instagram account.

(Photo caption: Joker Out represented Slovenia at this year's Eurovision Song Contest. EBU)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Joker Out (@joker_out_official)

(Instagram content)

- It was impossible to get a ticket for the Helsinki show. Please add more gigs, one fan hoped in a comment thread.

- I wanted to buy a ticket for Tampere, but the tickets were already sold out. Could you please increase the number of concerts or move to a bigger arena, a social media follower asked on Instagram.

One possible reason for the band's popularity could be Käärijä aka Jere Pöyhönen. He became friends with Joker Out singer Bojan Cvjetićanin during the Eurovision Song Contest. The duo have kept in close contact even after the contest. Bojan recently performed at Käärijä's gig at Tavastia in Helsinki.

(Photo caption: Käärijä has shared several videos and photos with Bojan on social media. Henri Kärkkäinen)

In an interview with Iltalehti in May, Käärijä recalled how the duo became friends.

- At first we communicated with just facial expressions and gestures. We didn't talk much. Whenever we saw each other, we started laughing and our first conversation started with him laughing and me laughing, it didn't become a conversation at all.

- He's a fantastic guy. He's sympathetic and he takes everyone into consideration. He has a heart in the right place," Käärijä described his friend to Iltalehti.

Joker Out was founded in 2016. They have released two full albums. The band finished 21st in this spring’s Eurovision final. Finland gave Slovenia 7 points in the telephone vote in the final.

Translation by jokeroutsubs (@niini5 and @aishirii ) DO NOT REPOST!

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Jason Wilson at The Guardian:

A Guardian investigation has identified former University of California, Irvine (UCI) lecturer Jonathan Keeperman as the man behind the prominent “new right” publishing house Passage Press and the influential Twitter persona Lomez. The identification is based on company and property records, source interviews and open-source online materials. The reporting has revealed that Keeperman’s current status as a key player and influential tastemaker in a burgeoning proto-fascist movement came after years of involvement in far-right internet forums.

Much of that journey coincided with his time at one of the country’s most well-regarded writing programs: Keeperman first came to UCI as a master of fine arts (MFA) student, and was also a lecturer in the English department from 2013 to 2022, according to public records. The emergence of Passage Press and other such publishers has been a key part of the development of a swathe of the current American far right, which is seeking to capture US institutions – or develop far-right equivalents – as part of a political and cultural war against what it sees as the dominance of a liberal “regime” in America. In a June 2023 podcast interview, Keeperman characterized Passage Press and its literary prize as part of this effort to “build out alternative infrastructure, alternative institutions”.

It is a fight wholeheartedly embraced by Donald Trump and his supporters in the Republican party, especially in their railing against “the deep state” and promises of retribution should Trump win the 2024 presidential election. The Guardian repeatedly contacted Keeperman requesting comment on this reporting, at a personal Gmail address and a Passage Press address, and left a voicemail message at a telephone number that data brokers listed as belonging to Keeperman, but which carried a message identifying it as belonging to a member of his household.

[...]

Scary ideas – and wanting to be recognized

Passage Press books include a Tucker Carlson-blurbed anthology of writings by “human biodiversity” influencer Steve Sailer; a similar retrospective from “neo-reactionary” guru Curtis Yarvin; and a print version of the biannual Man’s World. Like many other far-right publishers, Passage’s list is bolstered by reprints of out-of-print or public-domain books by historical fascist and reactionary writers. These include books by radical German nationalist and militarist Ernst Jünger; Peter Kemp, who fought as a volunteer in Franco’s army during the Spanish civil war; and two counter-revolutionary Russian aristocrats, White Russian general Pyotr Wrangel and Prince Serge Obolensky.

[...] Passage Press differs from many others in its niche in offering new work by the contemporary far-right’s intellectual celebrities, and in curating in-person events and a far-right literary award. The publisher also produces high-end limited editions of selected titles. The “patrician edition” of Noticing, a book by Sailer, for example, is “bound in genuine leather, gold-foil stamping” and “Smyth-sewn book block”, according to the website. Though lavishly produced, the “patrician” offerings appear to have generated significant income for Passage. At the time of reporting, Passage had sold out its limited run of 500 patrician editions of Noticing at $395 apiece, according to the website. This equates to some $195,000 in revenue. An earlier patrician edition of winning entries in the 2021 Passage prize sold 250 editions at $400 apiece, according to the website, representing another $100,000 in revenue. The publication of Noticing – also available as a $29.95 paperback – was spun out into a series of in-person events in Austin, Los Angeles, Miami and New York City, held in March, April and May.

The Guardian reveals that the identity of far-right X account Lomez belongs to UCLA lecturer Jonathan Keeperman.

[mightyflamethrower]

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Cross-dressed by his grandmother as a child, abused by his uncle, confused and hurting, Walt Heyer sought to become a woman. As a young man, he underwent attempted gender-reassignment surgery, lived as a trans-identifying woman for eight years, and ultimately detransitioned.

Heyer, now 83, has spent the past few decades offering support to men and women who also have been taught to believe they were born in the wrong body. As part of that effort, he told The Daily Signal, he’s written a number of books and answered “thousands” of letters from individuals, often men, who seek his help.

Now, he’s partnering with Ascend Pictures Productions to produce a movie about his story, tentatively titled “Who Am I.” That movie will pose the question, Heyer says: “Who do we think we are?”

“There’s been nothing like it,” he said in a Tuesday telephone interview. “It is a powerful movie.”

Heyer knows his story has inspired many people, and he believes it should be shared through movie. When he was only 4 years old, he has shared, his grandmother would secretly dress him in a purple chiffon dress.

The attention and affirmation—which made Heyer feel very special as a child—“would be his mustard seed of torment.”

Heyer sought transgender treatments that “promised relief,” but those treatments only “led to the destruction of his marriage, his family, and his career.” The movie would explore Heyer’s journey, he said, which includes his ultimate discovery of his Christian faith and the “road back to redemption” and forgiveness.

Heyer emphasized to The Daily Signal that he wants the film to focus on sharing his story, rather than being preachy: “We really want it to appeal to people who don’t know Jesus. And I think it will.”

He wants viewers to understand that the issues he was dealing with, and the issues that other individuals who try to transition are experiencing, go much deeper than gender. And gender therapists are not going to be able to help individuals struggling in this way, Heyer maintains.

But the movie will need financial support to make it happen. Heyer encourages supporters to visit the prospective film’s website, where they can sign up for updates.

“We need support,” he noted. “We need the crowdfunding to get it off the ground. Crowdfunding is the most important part.”

[traumacatholic]

UK Support Services Numbers and Websites

NHS 24 Phone number: 111 (Open 24/7 every day of the year) Website for Scotland: https://www.nhs24.scot/ Website for England: https://www.england.nhs.uk/urgent-emergency-care/nhs-111/ Website for Wales: https://111.wales.nhs.uk/

The service is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year and is intended for 'urgent but not life-threatening' health issues although 111 operators in England are able to dispatch ambulances when appropriate using the NHS Pathways triage system. If needed, NHS 111 can book patients in to be seen at their local A&E / emergency department or an urgent treatment centre, emergency dental services, pharmacy or another more appropriate local service.

SAMARITANS Phone number: 116 123 (Open 24/7, every day of the year) https://www.samaritans.org/

Samaritans is a registered charity aimed at providing emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope or at risk of suicide throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, often through its telephone helpline. Its name derives from the biblical Parable of the Good Samaritan although the organisation itself is not religious.

BREATHING SPACE [SCOTLAND ONLY] Phone number: 0800 83 85 87 (24 Hours at weekends - 6pm Friday to 6AM Monday - 6pm to 2am on Weekdays (Monday - Thursday) https://breathingspace.scot/

Breathing Space is a psychological counselling service in Scotland for people feeling depressed, or with other urgent psychological problems. It has a telephone helpline, a web interface, and a British Sign Language webcam interface, all staffed by trained advisers who offer guidance and referral. The service is funded by the Scottish Government Health Directorate and NHS 24, and is operationally managed by NHS 24. It is their belief and hope that by empowering people, they will have the resources to recover. Breathing Space complements the work of other phonelines and agencies which are endeavouring to reduce suicide rates in Scotland.

AGE UK Phone number: 0800 678 1602 (Open 8am to 7pm, every day of the year) Website: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/

The over-60s is the fastest-growing group in society and there are more of us than ever before. Ageing is not an illness, but it can be challenging. At Age UK we provide services and support at a national and local level to inspire, enable and support older people. We stand up and speak for all those who have reached later life, and also protect the long-term interests of future generations.

CRUSE BEREAVEMENT SUPPORT Phone number: 0808 808 1677 (Monday - Thursday 9:30AM to 3pm. Closed Friday to Sunday. On Christmas and Boxing Day 10AM to 2PM. Closed on New Years Day) Websites: cruse.org.uk // hopeagain.org.uk // crusescotland.org.uk // cruseisleofman.org

Cruse Bereavement Support is the UK's largest charity for bereaved people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a sister organisation in Scotland. Cruse offers face-to-face, group, telephone, email and website support to people after someone close to them has died and works to enhance society's care of bereaved people. Cruse has a freephone national helpline (0808 808 1677) and local services throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Cruse also has a specialist website for young people, hopeagain.org.uk. Cruse services are provided by trained volunteers and are confidential. Cruse also provides training and consultancy for organisations and for those who may come into contact with bereaved people in the course of their work

SHELTER Phone number: 0808 800 4444 (Monday to Friday, 8AM to 8PM // Weekends and bank holidays: 9AM to 5PM) Phone number for Wales: 08000 495 495 (Monday to Friday, 9AM to 4PM) Phone number for Northern Ireland: 028 9024 5640 (Monday to Friday 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM. Closed on public holidays) Website for Scotland: https://scotland.shelter.org.uk/ Website for England: https://england.shelter.org.uk/ Website for Wales: https://sheltercymru.org.uk/ Website for Northern Ireland: https://www.housingrights.org.uk/

Shelter is a registered charity that campaigns for tenant rights in Great Britain. It gives advice, information and advocacy to people and lobbies government and local authorities for new laws and policies. It works in partnership with Shelter Cymru in Wales and the Housing Rights Service in Northern Ireland. Shelter helps people in housing need by providing advice and practical assistance, and campaigns for better investment in housing and for laws and policies to improve the lives of homeless and badly housed people.

NATIONAL DEBT HELPLINE Phone number: 0808 808 4000 (Monday to Friday 9AM to 8PM, Saturday 9:30AM to 1PM and closed on Sunday) Website: https://nationaldebtline.org/

National Debtline is a debt advice charity run by the Money Advice Trust. We are a free and confidential debt advice service for people in England, Wales and Scotland. We have helped millions of people deal with their debts. Our team of expert debt advisers care about improving your situation and will help you to take control of your debts. You can call, webchat or use our Digital Advice Tool to get free advice. If you haven’t contacted us before and want to know what the best way to deal with your debts is, see our Getting ready for advice fact sheet first. Our debt advisers come from a variety of different backgrounds. All of them are dedicated to helping you tackle your debts.

DOMESTIC ABUSE HELPLINE (This service is for women only, please see the below resource if you are a man seeking support) Phone number: 0808 2000 247 (Available 24/7) Website: https://www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk

We are a team of highly-trained, female advisers. We won’t judge you or tell you what to do; we are here to listen. We will empower you to understand your options and support you to make any decisions about the future. We can support you to increase your safety. We can help you find a refuge place, or other specialist services. We can talk in confidence, in many different languages, 24-hours a day, 365 days a year, for as long as you need.

MEN'S DOMESTIC ABUSE ADVICELINE (This service is for men only, please see the above resource if you are a woman seeking support) Phone number: 0808 801 0327 (Monday to Friday 10AM to 5PM) Website: https://mensadviceline.org.uk/

Men’s Advice Line is a team of friendly Advisors who will listen and believe you. Our team are available to offer you non-judgmental support, practical advice and information. Men’s Advice Line is for men who are experiencing or have experienced domestic abuse, and for those supporting them: concerned friends or family members, Frontline Workers assisting male victims, are all welcome to call us for information and support. We are strongly committed to offering a high-quality service. The Men’s Advice Line was accredited for the fourth time by the Helplines Partnership in June 2022.

SHOUT CONFIDENTIAL TEXT SERVICE Phone number 85258 (Available 24/7) Website: https://giveusashout.org/get-help/

Shout 85258 is a free, confidential, anonymous text support service. You can text us from wherever you are in the UK. If you are struggling to cope and need to talk, our trained Shout Volunteers are here for you, day or night. They can help with a range of issues such as anxiety and stress, depression or sadness, suicidal thoughts, self-harm, panic attacks, loneliness or isolation, abuse and bullying. Texting the word ‘SHOUT’ to 85258 to start a conversation with a trained Shout Volunteer, who will text you back and forth. You only need to share what you feel comfortable with and our volunteers will work with you to take your next steps towards feeling better. We will always try to respond to messages as quickly as possible, however our responses will be longer at times of high demand. We will always respond to high risk texters as a priority. Please take a look out our online resources while you wait.

MIND INFOLINE Phone number: 0300 123 3393 (Monday to Friday 9AM to 6PM, closed on bank holidays as well as on the 25th and 26th of December as well as the 1st of January) Website: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/helplines/

Calls from UK landlines are charged at local rates. Charges from mobile telephones vary. The charge for your call will depend on your mobile phone provider and the contract that you have with them. Mind does not get any money from telephone calls. You can ask us about: Mental health problems Where to get help near you Treatment options Advocacy services Welfare benefits (ask to speak to a welfare adviser) Our Infoline is an information and signposting service. We don’t provide a listening service or a crisis service, but our crisis helplines page lists many services that do. We want to reassure you, you won’t ever be without a place for support. As well as our Infoline, our email or web chat service, there are lots of other ways to get support.

YOUNG MINDS TEXT SERVICE (This service is for 11 - 25 year olds. If you fall out of this age range, please look at the other resources available). Website: https://www.themix.org.uk/get-support/speak-to-our-team

Our trained team provides help for young people aged 11-25. This Mix isn't just about young people and mental health, we also provide support for relationship issues, working life, school life, housing, depression and any other issues all year round. Call our support helpline, email us or chat one-to-one online 4pm-11pm Monday to Friday, sign up for free counselling online or text our 24/7 crisis line. If you feel like you can’t cope or are worried about how you are feeling, you can contact our crisis messenger 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by texting THEMIX to 85258. Our text messaging support service is free and for any issue. We provide in-the-moment support and problem solving when you need it most. This service is delivered in partnership with Crisis Text Line and Shout. If you’re aged 11-25 and need help but don’t know where to turn, call us for FREE on 0808 808 4994. We’ll explore your situation with you and find organisations that may be able to help you further. We're open from 4pm to 11pm Monday to Friday. Please note that this service is closed on weekends. The helpline will be closing between the 25th December and 2nd January (our email service will still be running).

[clarafell]

My, have you heard? Has anyone told you?

Have you heard of the Rumor of the Witching Hour?

Once the old universe is rewritten into something new, Homura decides to punish the Incubators by removing them from their duties to form contracts. She takes up the mantle. Aware she's only one person, Homura knows she needs to get creative with how to make as many contracts as possible. With this in mind, she puts her familiars to use by making them spread rumors of a person that can grant wishes. Though they are still chaotic, the Clara Dolls prove to be an excellent way of spreading the rumors. They, however, are not enough.

Harkening back to her days of stealing modern weapons to fight, Homura decides to use the advancement of humankind once more to her advantage. The Incubators had the advantage of having more numbers due to being an entire race, connected like a hive-mind. The race of Incubators are spread across the universe, so they have more eyes and ears in many locations through time and spice. Homura has ascended into something unthinkable, but she is still only one person. As shown in the trailer for the Walpurgisnacht Rising movie, Homura is seen communicating through a vintage phone to someone.

One of the methods Homura uses to reach potential contractees is to communicate through phones. Not only does she use communicate telephones to contact potential people, but she also uses telephones to communicate with important people while keeping a distance. Homura rarely makes the first moves when it comes to phone calls, however. She selectively picks who she wishes to approach, however. She is more likely to pick up ongoing calls, waiting for people to call her. Another use for telephones is to use them to spread information to the people, which may or may not also contain cryptic rumors.

Don't have access to a phone? Hate making phone calls in the dead of night? Worry not! Homura is generous enough to give another method of reaching her.

The most popular method to reach Homura is to visit her website. Rumors of her website spread much faster than her telephone method, easily passed around through internet circles as being a cursed website. Why is it cursed? Well, you can only access this website between the witching hour. Trying to reach the website at any other time will result in an error page, no matter how many times you refresh the page. The witching hour begins as soon as midnight strikes, granting anyone the opportunity to access the website.

Too fascinated and curious for their own good, people begin to take the website as a challenge. Rumors begin to spread about the cursed website, only strengthening the website's popularity even more. The website is very simple to use, but its simplicity only makes it more appealing to check out. One must answer two vague questions before you can access what everyone is hoping to see . . .

                         Can you accept the risks and responsibilities?

                         Can you fight against the curse of this world?

If the visitor chooses to select "no" for even one question of these questions will cause the website to crash. Trying to go back to the website will end in failure, even if the devil's hour is still ongoing. Any attempts to access the witching hour website on another device, including a cellphone, will still result in the same error. Not even the most tech-savvy person can get the website to work properly, so trying to make the website work again will end in failure. The good thing is that the visitor will still be available to visit the website on another night.

Once the two questions are answered with an honest yes, the visitor to the website will be directed to yet another simple page . . .

                         What is your wish?

A text box will be right below this question, ready to accept any wish as long as it is typed within the confines of the text box.

There appears to be no character limit for what your wish will be. Not only that, but the website adapts to any language, easily being more available to anyone. Once the wish is written in the text box, the visitor must submit the wish to the website in order for their wish to be sent to Homura.

Now, what about the times before the rise of technology?

Homura will enlist the use of newspapers, taking advantage of the printing press by including a personal advertisement. But what about the days before newspapers? She will also use her birds to act as messengers. Handing a written wish to one of her birds will allow them to take wishes back to their mistress. The wish can be written on any form of writing device, ranging from wooden tablets to even leaves. The strange-looking ravens are stronger than most ordinary birds, so they will easily accept any form of offering as long as a wish is written down.

No matter where you are, your wish will be heard!

[bamby0304]

Her Saviours- Ch.37

Series Masterlist

Summary: During an odd case, the Winchesters came across Y/N, a scared young Omega girl who had been used as a lure for a nest of vampires. After rescuing her from the monsters, John and his sons took her in knowing she was in no state to live among ordinary people. But three Alphas and one Omega is a mixture bound for disaster.

Warnings: Explicit language. ABO dynamics. Violence.

Bamby

Sam was being weird. While Dean ordered the coffees and food, you stood with the younger brother and couldn’t help notice that something was off. He was wriggling around like there was something in your pants.

“Thank you.” Dean nodded to the guy who handed him the coffees before he turned to lead your little group away. As you all walked to a table, he noticed Sam’s wriggling. “Dude what's your problem?”

“Nothing, I'm fine,” Sam insisted.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Letting it go, Dean got back to the job. “So, ahhh, all right keep going. What about these Tulpas?”

Putting his bag on the table, Sam took a seat as he started to explain, “Ok, so there was this incident in Tibet in 1915. Group of monks visualised a golem in their head. They meditated on it so hard they brought the thing to life. Outta thin air.”

“So?” Dean asked.

Before you could take a seat for yourself, Dean pulled your chair closer to his. You frowned for a short moment before shrugging and plopping yourself into the chair. His arm rested behind it as the two of you sipped at your drinks while Sam spoke.

“That was 20 monks. Imagine what 10,000 web surfers could do. I mean Craig starts the story about Mordechai, then it spreads, goes online. Now there are countless people all believing in the bastard.” Sam pulled his computer out of his bag before starting it up.

“Now wait a second. Are you trying to tell me that just because people believe in Mordechai, he's real?”

You shrugged, answering Dean’s question, “How do monsters happen? Maybe people just believe hard enough and then we’ve got bad guys under beds and in closets.”

Dean didn’t look convinced though. “People believe in Santa Claus. How come I'm not getting hooked up every Christmas?”

“Cuz you're a bad person.” Sam gave him a pointed look before turning his computer to Dean. “And because of this… That's a Tibetan spirit sigil. On the wall of the house. Craig said they were painting symbols from a theology textbook. I bet they painted this, not even knowing what it was. Now that sigil has been used for centuries, concentrating meditative thoughts like a magnifying glass. So people are on the HellHounds website, staring at the symbol, thinking about Mordechai ... I mean I don't know, but it might be enough to bring a Tulpa to life.”

“It would explain why he keeps changing,” Dean agreed.

Wriggling again, Sam ignored whatever was annoying him as he went on, “Right, as the legend changes, people think different things, so Mordechai himself changes. Like a game of telephone. That would also explain why the rock salt didn't work.”

“Yeah because he's not a traditional spirit.” Dean nodded. “Ok. So why don't we just...uhh ... get this spirit sigil thingie off the wall and off the website?”

Sam sighed, “Well it's not that simple. You see, once Tulpas are created they take on a life of their own.”

“Great. So if he really is a thought form, how the hell are we supposed to kill an idea?”

“Well it's not gonna be easy with these guys helping us. Check out their homepage. Since they've posted the video their number of hits have quadrupled in the last day alone.”

“Hmph.” Dean considered things for a moment before he reached over and closed Sam’s laptop. “I got an idea. Come on.” His hand fell into yours, leading you up and off your chair as Sam gathered his things.

“Where we going?”

“We gotta find a copy store,” Dean answered, handing you your coffee from the table.

Groaning, Sam tried gathering his things as quickly as possible but he couldn’t stop fidgeting. “Man, I think I'm allergic to our soap or something.” It was then that Dean cracked a smirk and started laughing. Sam turned to him, unimpressed. “You did this? You're a friggin jerk!”

“Oh yeah,” Dean continued to chuckle as he led you away.

It seemed as if their games weren’t over just yet.

…

Dean stepped up to the trailer and paused a moment, looking back at you and Sam before he knocked on the door. There was a pause inside before someone called out.

“Who is it?”

“Come on out here guys, we hear you in there,” he called back to them. There was another pause before the door opened, revealing two guys. “Ah, would you look at that! Action figures in their original packaging. What a shock.”

You’d never met the ghost hunters Sam and Dean had told you about yet. You’d gathered they were nerdy and awkward… you also assumed they’d be Beta. You, of course, were right. But they were still males and once they spotted you, they paused whatever insults they’d been ready to throw at the brothers.

“Guys, we need to talk,” Sam started, ignoring the way they were staring at you.

The dark haired one slapped the other, murmuring something about the guys bringing a chick. The other swallowed around the thick nothing in his throat as he tried not to wobble on the spot.

Trying to save face, the one with glasses pretended to be brave as he shrugged. “Yeah, um, sorry guys. We're ahhh, a little bit busy right now,” he noted as he stepped out of the trailer.

“Ok well we'll make it quick. We need you to shut down your website,” Dean told them simply.

Glasses laughed. “Man, you know, these guys got us busted last night, spent the night in a holding cell…”

“I had to pee in that cell urinal. In front of people. And I get stage fright,” the other added.

“Why should we trust you guys?”

Sam sighed, “Look guys. We all know what we saw last night, what's in the house. But now thanks to your website there are thousands of people hearing about Mordechai.”

“That's right.” Dean nodded. “Which means people are gonna keep showing up at the Hell House, running into him in person, somebody could get hurt.”

“Yeah, yeah…” Glasses rolled his eyes.

The other one, however, looked uncertain. “Ed, maybe he's got a point, maybe...”

“Nope…” Clearly Glasses- Ed- ran the show. “We have an obligation to our fans, to the truth.”

“Well I have an obligation to kick both your little asses right now-”

Lifting your hand, you pressed it against Dean’s chest to stop him. “Just forget about it, okay? I know you could toss them around like ragdolls, and I could tell them what I found out about Mordechai, but nothing we do will make them help us.” You sighed, “Let’s just go.”

The nerds were suddenly very intrigued.

“Whoa.. whoa…” Ed stepped towards you.

Dean ignored him, looking down at you with a shrug. “Yeah, you're right.”

As the three of you started towards Baby again, the two Betas followed, both of them fumbling over each other’s sentences.

“What you say about...?”

“Hang on a second here.”

“Wait...wait.”

“What thing about Mordechai you guys?”

Reaching the car, Dean reached for your door as he turned to you. “Don’t say anything, sweetheart.”

You paused and sighed, glancing over your shoulder at the Betas with your best sweet eyes. “But if they agree to shut the website down…

“They're not going to do it, you said so yourself,” Dean noted.

Ed stepped forward then, trying his best to look determined and trustworthy. “No wait. Wait. Don't listen to him ok? We'll do it. We'll do it.”

Chewing your lip, you pretended to consider it as you looked at the two of them. “Promise you’ll shut it down?” you asked, doe eyes in full effect.

“Totally,” Ed promised.

Smiling brightly at him, you reached into your jacket pocket and pulled out the fake death certificate you and Sam had made together at the library earlier. “It's a death certificate,” you started. “From the '30s. We got it at the library.

“Now according to the coroner, the actual cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound,” Sam added.

Dean nodded. “That's right he didn't hang or cut himself.”

The one that wasn’t Ed looked shocked. “He shot himself?”

“Yep.” Sam nodded. “With a .45 pistol. To this day they say he's terrified of them.”

“Matter of fact they say if you shoot him with a .45, loaded with these special wrought-iron rounds…” Dean paused for dramatic effect before adding, “it'll kill the son of a bitch.”

The three of you watched as the two Betas took the bait. Scurrying off with the fake birth certificate, they hurried back to their trailer, trying to remain cool but completely failing.

Just like that… the plan was in motion.

…

Sitting in a diner, munching on your shared fries with Dean, you watched as Sam reached up to turn off the mechanical fisherman hanging from the wall above your table.

“If you pull that string one more time I'm gonna kill you,” he warned his brother.

Moving fast, Dean pulled the string again, making the fisherman laugh. Sam snatched at the string, shutting it up.

Dean chuckled. “Come on man, you need more laughter in your life. You know you're way too tense.”

“Not too tense.” You grinned, plopping a fry in your mouth.

Dean looked from you to his brother and back, a smirk of his own forming. “You’re a little vixen.” Leaning in, he caught your lips in a kiss as the two of you grinned against each other, his teeth tugging on your lip before he pulled back. Sighing, he turned to Sam again. “They post it yet?”

Without words, Sam turned his computer around, showing you and Dean the new post about Mordechai and his ‘found’ death certificate. You were pretty pleased with the handiwork.

Dean shrugged. “We've learned from reputable sources that Mordechai Murdock has a fatal fear of firearms. All right. How long do we wait?”

“Long enough for the new story to spread, and the legend to change. I figure by nightfall iron rounds will work on the sucker,” Sam answered.

“Sweet.” Dean nodded, reaching for his beer. He took a swig and went to put it back down, but found his hand stuck to the bottle. His eyes grew wide, knowingly. “You didn't.”

Sam laughed, pulling out superglue from his pocket. “Oh, I did!”

“You two are impossible.” You rolled your eyes at them, but even you couldn’t help but admit that it was funny.

…

Sitting in Baby, a distance away from Mordechai’s house so you were safe, but close enough so you could see the house in the distance, you held your gun in your lap. The brothers felt better bringing you at night now that you could protect yourself with the gun. But they still didn’t want you in the house.

Watching the place, you waited with baited breath, hoping that they would simply walk out any second now with a job well done.

But the longer you waited… the worse you felt.

Gunshots went off, causing you to jump where you sat. You didn’t move, though. You’d been expecting the gunshots, it was the plan… what you weren’t expecting was the brothers to not leave the house right away.

Something was wrong.

Throwing the car door open, you didn’t bother closing it as you hurried for the house. Throwing the door open, you could hear noise from around the corner. It sounded like Sam struggling.

Moving as fast as your feet would let you, you ran around the corner and found Sam being held against the wall, with the hilt of an axe being dressed against his throat as an imposing man pressed it against his airway.

“Sam!” Lifting your gun, you aimed it at the man who you could only assume was Mordechai before you pulled the trigger.

Mordechai stumbled at the impact of the bullets, but nothing more happened. Letting Sam go, which had him drop to the floor, Mordechai then turned to you. His face pulled into a grin as your eyes went wide… you were in danger.

Stalking towards you with heavy feet, Mordechai lifted his axe and took aim. You flinched, ducking down quickly as he swung the axe. It landed in the rotting wood of the wall, getting stuck momentarily.

“Hey!”

Looking behind you, you spotted Dean with an aerosol can and his lighter at the ready. Scurrying out of the way, you hurried over to him as Mordechai pulled his axe free. He didn’t get the chance to use it, though, before Dean set the can alight, turning it into a flamethrower.

“Go go go!”

Sam hurried over to us, staying low, before he helped me to my feet. Dean was close behind as we all started for the front door.

“Mordechai can't leave the house, we can't kill him.” Dean shrugged. “We improvise.”

Lifting his lighter again, Dean then tossed it on the ground from the direction we’d come from. Flames engulfed the ground where he’d apparently poured something that was highly flammable. 

Then the three of you were running, hurrying out of the now burning house. Neither of you stopped until you were on the other side of the bushes.

“That's your solution?” Sam looked at his brother like he was insane. “Burn the whole damn place to the ground?”

“Well nobody will go in anymore. I mean look, Mordechai can't haunt a house if there's no house to haunt. It's fast and dirty but it works,” Dean had a good point.

Sam didn’t look impressed. “Well what if the legend changes again and Mordechai is allowed to leave the house?”

“Well…” Dean clearly hadn’t thought that over, but he hadn’t had the time to. “Well then we'll just have to come back.”

It was the best option there was.

…

Back at the trailer park, the three of you were waiting and watching as Ed and his friend- who you now knew was called Harry- started towards your little group. They were carrying supplies, clearly ready for a long road trip. There was a smug look about them, more smug than usual.

“Gentlemen, lady.” Ed nodded to the three of you.

“Hey guys.”

“Should we tell 'em?” Harry asked Ed.

Ed shrugged. “Hey, might as well, you know, they're going to read about it in the trades.”

With that being a good enough answer, Harry turned back to the rest of you. “So this morning we got a phone call from a very important Hollywood producer.”

“Oh yeah, wrong number?” Dean grinned.

Ed glared at him. “No, smart-ass. He read all about the Hell House on our website and wants to option the motion picture rights. Maybe even have us write it.”

“And create the RPG,” Harry added.

“The what?”

You leaned closer to Dean to answer his question, “Role playing game.”

Looking more pleased with himself, Ed continued towards their car. “Anyhoo, ahhh, excuse us, we're off to la-la land.”

As we followed them, Sam spoke up, “Well congratulations guys. That sounds really great.”

“Yeah.” Dean nodded. “That's awesome, best of luck to you.”

“Oh yeah, luck. That has nothing to do with it. It's about talent. Sheer unabashed talent.” Ed was so full of himself. “Later.”

The two of them piled into their car before driving off.

Watching them leave, Dean scoffed. “Wow.” Shaking his head, he started towards Baby. You followed, slipping your hand into his.

Sam wasn’t too far behind. “I have a confession to make.”

“Hmm?” You looked to your left as he fell into step with you and his brother.

Sam shrugged. “I, uh...I was the one that called them and told them I was a producer.” A sheepish grin found its way onto his lips.

Dean stopped in his tracks and laughed a full belly laugh. “Yeah well I'm the one who put the dead fish in their back seat.”

The two of them cracked up, laughing hard together. You couldn’t help but join them, agreeing that out of all the pranks they’d ever played, they were the two best ones.

“Truce?” Sam offered once you all calmed down.

“Yeah truce,” Dean agreed. “At least for the next 100 miles.”

Bamby

[warningsine]

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/communications-disrupted-bangladesh-amid-student-protests-2024-07-19/

DHAKA, July 19 (Reuters) - The Bangladesh government has decided to impose a curfew across the country and deploy the army, BBC Bangla reported on Friday, citing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's press secretary, amid widening student-led protests against government job quotas.

An official decision regarding the curfew would be issued soon, the prime minister's press secretary, Nayeemul Islam Khan, told BBC Bangla.

Three people were killed in the country on Friday as police cracked down on unrelenting student-led protests against government job quotas despite a ban on public gatherings, local media said.

Police fired tear gas to scatter protesters in some areas, Reuters journalists said. One said he could see many fires across the capital Dhaka from a rooftop and smoke rising into the sky in several places.

Telecommunications were also disrupted and television news channels went off the air. Authorities had cut some mobile telephone services the previous day to try to quell the unrest.

Bengali newspaper Prothom Alo reported train services had been suspended nationwide as protesters blocked roads and threw bricks at security officials.

Violence on Thursday in 47 of Bangladesh's 64 districts killed 27 and injured 1,500.

The total number of those dead from the protests reached 105 on Friday night, AFP separately reported, citing hospitals. Reuters could not immediately verify the reports and police have not issued a casualty toll.

The U.S. Embassy in Dhaka said that reports indicated more than 40 deaths and "hundreds to possibly thousands" injured across Bangladesh.

In a security alert, it said protests were spreading, with violent clashes being reported across Dhaka. The situation was "extremely volatile", it said.

The protests initially broke out over student anger against quotas that set aside 30% of government jobs for the families of those who fought for independence from Pakistan.

The nationwide unrest - the biggest since Hasina was re-elected this year - has also been fuelled by high unemployment among young people, who make up nearly a fifth of a population of 170 million.

Some analysts say the violence is now also being driven by wider economic woes, such as high inflation and shrinking reserves of foreign exchange.

The protests have opened old and sensitive political fault lines between those who fought for Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan in 1971 and those accused of collaborating with Islamabad.

The former include the Awami League party of Hasina, who branded the protesters "razakar" - making use of a term that described independence-era collaborators.

International rights groups criticised the suspension of services and the action of security forces. The European Union said it is deeply concerned by the violence and loss of life.

"It is vital that further violence is averted and that a peaceful resolution to the situation is found as swiftly as possible, underpinned by the rule of law and democratic freedoms," it said in a statement.

Neighbour India said the unrest was an internal matter of Bangladesh and that all 15,000 Indians in that country were safe. Indians studying in Bangladesh were returning by road.

Violence linked to the protests also broke out in distant London, which is home to a large Bangladeshi population, and police had to quell clashes between large groups of men in the east of the British capital.

TELECOMS DISRUPTED, WEBSITES HACKED

Friday began with the internet and overseas telephone calls being crippled, while the websites of several Bangladesh newspapers did not update and were also inactive on social media.

A few voice calls went through, but there was no mobile data or broadband, a Reuters journalist said. Even text messages were not being transmitted.

News television channels and state broadcaster BTV went off the air, although entertainment channels were normal, he said.

Some news channels displayed a message blaming technical problems, and promising to resume programming soon.

The official websites of the central bank, the prime minister's office and police appeared to have been hacked by a group calling itself "THE R3SISTANC3".

"Operation HuntDown, Stop Killing Students," read identical messages splashed on the sites, adding in crimson letters: "It's not a protest anymore, it's a war now."

Another message on the page read, "The government has shut down the internet to silence us and hide their actions."

The government had no comment on the communications issues.

On Thursday, it had said it was willing to hold talks with the protesters but they refused.

Many opposition party leaders, activists, and student protesters had been arrested, said Tarique Rahman, the exiled acting chairman of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Reuters could not confirm the arrests.