#hatchet brigade

[matlockandthewaffles]

Made some art for my fan fic, 'Life After Death'. Not to proud of the back and foregrounds, but I'm living for how I did the shading on the horse. I have so much trouble with horses, so I'm very happy with how he looks.

In this AU, Alfred is part of the 123rd Illinois Mounted Infantry, part of the Lightning Brigade. He's a very unlucky man, having been thrown of his injured horse and hit in the face by an artillery shell.

Want to know why a shell would be flying so low? Check out the story. ;)

[optiwashere]

So curious about what you think of Lae'zel vs Shady at the start. That fight over the prism. Saw a comment on reddit (I kno I know) /r/BaldursGate3/comments/17p2nov/least_favorite_companion/k837nqh/?context=3

Yeah, this is one reason I stay away from meta discussions on the subreddit now. I'd be such a killjoy lmao.

Because this is part of the "excitement -> backlash -> backlash to the backlash -> excitement for the backlash's backlash, etc." loop that happens on social media. People that aren't fans of X (in this case, Shadowheart) eventually feel like they have to speak up. Then it goes round and round until we all die.

It's a weird cycle, but it happens to every character. In a year's time, there's gonna be some fucking absurd fandom wank, I guarantee it. There's already the hilarious Halsin guys. Give it time and we'll have the Lae'zel brigades (anti- and pro-) beating the shit out of each other in the replies and an eternal war between the Shadowheart simps and haters.

Long ramble ahead to actually talk about the comment, so here's a read more.

The fight made sense to me. But, to dig into... well, everything else before that.

Being cruel to a githyanki? I feel that some folks in the BG3 fandom need to learn what the githyanki are and remember who Lae'zel is. The githyanki are not a sympathetic people, at least not anymore. They're an actual empire trying to expand via all the hallmarks of traditional imperialism. They are slavers and raiders almost to the man, and there is factual evidence of them wanting to rebuild a great empire that spans realms. Calling them fascist frog people is only, like, barely a joke. Lae'zel, at the beginning of the game, is a quintessential brainwashed child of a fascist regime.

Not having more githzerai in the game, other than a fucking brain and, arguably, the gith monks you fight, really kneecapped people's understanding of the -yanki. I know there's a whole thing about alignment, but the githyanki are almost the poster children of Lawful Evil.

Stealing from them and being worried about the fallout of that is one of the most normal reactions possible lmao. Shadowheart's a Sharran that doesn't trust any of her companions. Why should she just play along?

And not having remorse? I don't know, but I'm an admittedly vindictive and petty person and I am very, very loathe to forgive people if they've slighted me. And I'm not even dealing with possible ceremorphosis! So, I guess I get where Shadowheart is coming from and it never struck me as even remotely strange for her to require a lot of work to even trust Lae'zel, let alone "bury the hatchet."

It's also perfectly in keeping with Shadowheart's character, especially that early on, to not respect an honorable duel and instead try to kill Lae'zel while she has the chance.

Mix this with Shadowheart starting as a not-at-all-trusting person? I mean, I don't know. It's just a tastes thing. I'd have been confused if everyone in camp was just cool with Lae'zel, which after a point they are. I don't really buy that some of the others would put up with her, but I like her character enough to let it slide and enjoy what's in the game.

And just let a character have negative traits, flaws, whatever! The companions are great for that reason!

Plus, she's a literal abuse victim. Compassion is in some ways a skill, and a lot of people lack it.

[casbooks]

Books of 2023

Book 74 of 2023

Title: Elite Bastards Authors: Edward L Dvorak ISBN: 9781526789655

Tags: B-52 Stratofortress, FAC, M24 Duster, O-1 Bird Dog, US USA 101st Airborne Division - Screaming Eagles, US USA 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment - Blackhorse, US USA 173rd Airborne Brigade - 4th Bn, US USA 173rd Airborne Brigade - 4th Bn - D Co, US USA 173rd Airborne Brigade - 4th Bn - D Co - 1st Plt, US USA 173rd Airborne Brigade - 4th Bn - D Co - 1st Plt - 1st Sqd, US USA 173rd Airborne Brigade - Sky Soldiers, US USA 17th Cavalry Regiment, US USA 17th Cavalry Regiment - 3/17, US USA 17th Cavalry Regiment - 3/17 - D Troop, US USA 17th Cavalry Regiment - E Troop, US USA 199th Light Infantry Brigade - Redcatchers, US USA 25th ID - Tropic Lightning, US USA 51st Infantry Regiment, US USA 51st Infantry Regiment - F Co (LRP), US USA 51st Infantry Regiment - F Co (LRP) - Team 1/2, US USA 51st Infantry Regiment - F Co (LRP) - Team 1/3, US USA 51st Infantry Regiment - F Co (LRP) - Team 1/5, US USA 51st Infantry Regiment - F Co (LRP) - Team 1/6, US USA 51st Infantry Regiment - F Co (LRP) - Team 1/7, US USA 74th Reconnaissance Airplane Co (RAC), US USA 74th Reconnaissance Airplane Co (RAC) - Aloft, US USA ANG Army National Guard, US USA ANG IN 151st Infantry Regiment, US USA ANG IN 151st Infantry Regiment - D Co (LRP), US USA Combat Trackers - K9, US USA Fort Benning GA, US USA Fort Leonard Wood MO, US USA LRRP Team (Vietnam War), US USA United States Army, US USA USSF 5th SFG, US USA USSF Green Berets, US USA USSF Sgt Maj Mcguire, US USA USSF Special Forces, US USN SEALS, US USN United States Navy, USA AeroScouts, VNM 1968 Tet Offensive (1968) (Vietnam War), VNM Battle of Dak To (1967) (Vietnam War), VNM Bien Hoa, VNM Bien Hoa Air Base (Vietnam War), VNM Bien Hoa Army Base (Vietnam War), VNM Cam Ranh Bay, VNM Camp Lindsey-Lattin (Vietnam War), VNM Central Highlands, VNM Cu Chi, VNM Dak To, VNM Dong Nai River, VNM DRV NVA North Vietnamese Army, VNM DRV VC Viet Cong, VNM Hill 875, VNM II Corps (Vietnam War), VNM III Corps (Vietnam War), VNM Iron Triangle (Vietnam War), VNM LBJ Long Binh Jail - USARVIS US Army Vietnam Installation Stockade (Vietnam War), VNM LBJ Long Binh Jail (Vietnam War), VNM Long Binh Post - Ammunition Depot (Vietnam War), VNM Long Binh Post (Vietnam War), VNM Nha Trang - 5th SFG Recondo School (Vietnam War), VNM Operation Arc Light (1965-1973) (Vietnam War), VNM RVN ARVN Army of the Republic of Vietnam, VNM RVN Chieu Hoi Program/Force 66 - Luc Luong 66 (Vietnam War), VNM Song Be, VNM Tuy Hoa, VNM US MACVSOG (1964-1972) (Vietnam War), VNM US MACVSOG Hatchet Force Teams (Vietnam War), VNM US MACVSOG Road Runner Teams (Vietnam War), VNM US USA 24th Evacuation Hospital - Long Binh (Vietnam War), VNM US USA 6th Convalescent Hospital - Cam Ranh Bay, VNM US USA Cam Ranh Bay - Replacement Depot, VNM US USA II Field Force (1966-1971) (Vietnam War), VNM US USSF 5th SFOB Special Forces Operation Base - Nha Trang, VNM US USSF Mobile Strike Force - MIKE Force (Vietnam War), VNM Vietnam, VNM Vietnam War (1955-1975), VNM Vung Tau, VNM War Zone C (Vietnam War), VNM War Zone D (Vietnam War)

Rating: ★★★ Subject: Books.Military.20th-21st Century.Asia.Vietnam War.Specops.LRRPs

Description: This is the quintessential first-person combat memoir of a special forces soldier at war. Edward Dvorak joined the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam in the summer of 1967. He then joined Company F, 51st Infantry, Long Range Patrol, Airborne. For Dvorak and his buddies of Company F, LRP, their real training started with the MACV (Military Assistant Command Vietnam) Recondo School at the 5th Special Forces Compound in Nha Trang, South Vietnam. That training culminated with an actual Combat LRP mission. If you lived through the patrol, you graduated. Dvorak would remain with Company F for 19 months going on dozens of combat patrols deep behind enemy lines.

[cybervigilante]

Q:           ❛ trust? you have broken my trust. ❜            ≛           accepting

there had been a time where his word had been as good as gold to the boy. how had he fallen so far ? the answer was simple, tethered to his poor treatment and constant underestimation of bart since he'd landed in this timeline, and yet wally's reluctance to face his own shortcomings ( and, perhaps, a latent sense of guilt ) had made for a festering wound the scarlet speedster was unwilling to prod at himself. wally forgets just how imperfect he had been as kid sidekick, and how barry had accepted him wholeheartedly regardless. such grace and patience now formed the basis of his fondest memories, and of the insurmountable love and respect he held for his uncle. knowing that degree of affection and it's positive, constructive results, why would he deprive bart from such an experience in the name of 'tough love' ? love, as linda had taught him, was a two-way street ⸻ maybe the time had finally come to bury the hatchet properly, and make something worthwhile blossom out of their souring, current crisis be damned.

it's a good thing they didn't work alone. wally tugs down the cowl of his suit, turning briefly to signal the rest of the lightning brigade to head out before turning back to @youngheroics. nervous hands tug through his hair as he sighs, unsure where to even begin to fix this mess of his making. ‵ tell me what i can do to build it up again. i know i haven't done right by you, bart, but i'm willing to see things through if you tell me what it is that you need. ʹ

[wol-blackthorne]

Before the Calamity

"No tale of the Scions’ exploits is complete, of course, without an adequate description of the group’s heart: our Warrior of Light." — "Tales of Loss, Fire, and Faith" by Archon Y'sthola Rhul

Fiona was born to Hildelana and Winebaud Blackthorn, two monks of the Fist of Rhalgr, in the village surrounding Schism in western Gyr Abania. On the 16th Sun of the 5th Umbral Moon, in the year 1545 of the Sixth Astral Era, she was given the name Fenna under the patronage of the Wanderer.

At age seven, as Fenna played on the banks of the Velodyna, her parents suddenly scooped her up and fled across the river and into the Black Shroud, farther west than Fenna knew was even possible. Behind them, the Mad King's Corpse Brigade razed the temple and murdered every monk they could find.

Knowing the forest to be less than welcoming, the Blackthorns skirted the northern edges and eventually came to the settlement of Wyrmwatch on Silvertear Lake's northern shore. There they lived for ten years, any hope of returning home dashed as Garlemald invaded Ala Mhigo. Expecting the same to eventually come to Eorzea, Fenna's parents taught her in the ways of the Fist to defend herself.

As expected, the invasion arrived on hulking airships, over the forest and into the heart of Eorzea. The Blackthorns stayed, intending to fight for their new home. The battle ended not by sword, but by the dragon Midgardsormr and the Agrias crashing into Silvertear Lake. The resulting aetherial explosion killed Hildelana and Winebaud. It spared Fenna in body, but wiped her memories.

Fenna awakened in the rubble of the now-forgotten village with naught but letters from a man named Gerolt Blackthorn in Ul'dah. With nothing else, Fenna followed the returning Immortal Flames to Thanalan. There she found Gerolt's ex-wife, Rowena, who in a rare charitable gesture (or as a way to spite her ex), directed Fiona to eastern Thanalan.

Gerolt, a former Monetarist blacksmith, worked in Highbridge mending odds and ends for travelers to fund his alcoholism. To his irritation, Fenna found him and, with letter in hand, revealed herself to be his estranged brother's daughter. Gerolt begrudgingly relayed what he knew of his niece’s past and she, through sheer stubbornness, learned the ways of the forge.

To earn her keep, Fenna briefly joined the Stone Torches as a guard, taking up the sword and shield. As a Torch, she witnessed the destruction of a primal summoning firsthand, as her team was dispatched to deal with one of the first Ifrit summonings in an Amajina and Sons mine and found only the scorched aftermath.

As Garlemald threatened further invasion in response to the primal summonings, the Torches joined Ul'dah's Immortal Flames. On Fenna's enlistment papers, the captain incorrectly wrote her name as "Fiona Blackthorne". Fenna, unfortunately illiterate, didn't catch the error and henceforth took a new name.

When the invasion never came, the provisional recruits returned to their old assignments. Fiona, however, left the Torches and joined several of her fellows in the new Adventurer's Guild.

"The Scions—then called the Path of the Twelve—first encountered Fiona, an adventurer by trade, during one of her guildleves in the Black Shroud." — "Tales of Loss and Fire and Faith" by Archon Y'sthola Rhul

Fiona spent the next ten years as an adventurer—traveling Eorzea, killing beasts, guarding caravans, and fixing hatchets.

Eventually, destiny found Fiona in the form of Yda and Papalymo, who crash landed in the Black Shroud during one of her leves. They had come to Gridania to warn of Garlemald's next attempt at invasion. Despite their intentions, their arrival angered the Shroud's elementals and all present—Fiona included—had to take part in a cleansing ritual.

During the ritual, Fiona witnessed a sudden meteor shower and awakened to the Echo, hearing the voice of Hydaelyn for the first time.

"While some features of the gift are common between its bearers, such as the ability to communicate regardless of language barriers, Fiona’s variant grants visions of both past and near future, particularly in situations where the exchange of aether is greatest. The gift elevated an already-skilled adventurer to new heights, [...]" — Ibid.

With her newfound ability, Fiona returned to Ul'dah to join Minfillia's Path of the Twelve, where she worked with the Ashcrown Consortium in securing the crystal trade and easing tribal relations. That work eventually turned to trying to make allies of Eorzea's various peoples, where Fiona and her fellow Path Walkers were captured by Amalj’aa.

In captivity, Fiona witnessed Ifrit’s summoning firsthand. Ifrit tempered her allies, leaving only Fiona unscathed. Assuming Fiona to be claimed by another, Ifrit vowed to leave her unscathed—as long as she vowed to summon no other primal.

A vow broken when Garlemald’s invasion began in earnest, set to the ominously growing second moon.

"[...] which would eventually lead her to the battleground of Carteneau on the night Dalamud fell from the heavens." — Ibid.

Desperate for salvation, under the guidance of Louisoix Leveilleur, the Path of the Twelve and Louisoix’s Circle of Knowing prayed to the Twelve at key holy sites around Eorzea.

Their prayers seemed for naught when, over the war-torn plains of Carteneau, Bahamut erupted from the lesser moon. Louisoix summoned the Twelve as abstracted primals to imprison the dragon, but failed. In a final gambit, he invoked Althyk's power to send Fiona and her surviving fellow adventurers into the future.

Few can recall what transpired afterwards. The survivors of the fall awakened to a realm remade in fire. As for the disappeared warriors, all anyone could recall was a blinding light.

Thus Fiona and her compatriots became known as the Warriors of Light.

[yiqithings]

First line of an enchantment

The illusion of card-having is all I ask where brittle bone meets copper shoes, And blood thickens to paste or thins to compensate for the empty ink wells feeding into the lagoons.

I lie in repose, refuse every rose dug up from the poisoned brambles  beyond these silent hills.

Watch for the alchemist waiting behind the temple gates, he doesn’t smell your tongue-lashings and he doesn’t play parlor games.

So fan out your deck of possible futures and stitch together your best story of what the hatchet man last read and what the cubic executioner last sang.

I’ll save this velvet tin box for you and your entire handsome brigade to drink up the last drop of spirits before the house tonight.

-- yiqi 11 July 2023 11:08 pm ~!~

This poem was inspired by a text conversation with a friend.  It began with the words, “The illusion of card-having is all I ask” and my remark that it was “a very Clive Barker tagline.”

[1863designs]

- The newest addition to our Unit Series, Wilder’s Lightning Brigade!!!! Like the Pioneer Brigade, this unit was the brainchild of General William Rosecrans. The idea behind having a whole brigade of mounted infantry was at first to help deal with Confederate cavalry like John Hunt Morgan by allowing an inafntry unit more mobility by being mounted. Wilders men proved valuable on the battlefield by being able to quickly move from fight to fight much quicker than their on foot counterparts. These men were armed with Spencer’s rifles as well as long handled hatchets giving the brigade another name, the Hatchet Brigade. After Chickamauga the Brigade was split up and it’s regiments converted to Cavalry. Though short lived, Wilders Lightning Brigade gained great fame. Our design features their monument at Chickamauga at its center with lightning bolts making up the border. The regiments of the brigade adorn the center and two crossed hatchets at the bottom pay homage to the brigades other name. Now available at our store! (Link in bio) Shirts will be out soon as well as other units!! #civilwar #civilwarart #americancivilwar #wilderslightningbrigade #wilder #lightning #hatchet #illinois #indiana #chickamauga (at Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cpxr0NiOG44/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[thegoatsongs]

Why does Jonathan Harker have a kukri?

So why does Jonathan specifically have a Kukri and not any other weapon? Why not something traditionally used in Britain like a dagger or an axe/hatchet or a cutlass or a revolver?

The kukri (historical bg here) has one very prominent legend, which was also believed by the British at the time, as they spread the legend from the Nepalese Gurkha who use that knife.

It needs blood when it’s unsheathed in anger. 

This is, of course, just a myth. But one that also prevailed in Stoker's time years after the Brigade of Gurkhas was formed. It’s a knife used in battle, as a chopping tool, and in blood sacrifice with cattle. Jonathan’s blood was extremly likely “sacrificed” to renew Dracula for his journey on June 30. 

So why would the only weapon that has lore about needing blood go in the hands of Dracula's first victim in the story?

A weapon that said victim wants to use on Dracula's neck?

Jonathan was given the kukri in particular because he has been transforming into Dracula's gothic double. 

Dracula’s first prey becomes the predator and the hunter becomes the hunted.

It's his fang, seeking Dracula's throat.

[fireember345]

Of Spiders, and Lizards and other Critters Prompt

A Spider-Man Prompt

Do not own Spider-man

Anyone can use prompt

Harry x Peter

Mpreg

Retired Spiderman Peter Parker

Chieftain Wolf Spider Drider Man Spider Peter Parker

Defeat types of Lizard People and Spider folk

Harry never died but the green caused a split personality, alteration to his DNA, and hallucinations of his other self as the Green Goblin

Gwen Stacy never died but was given a blood transfusion of Spider-man, giving her spider powers

Miles new Spider-man

Ghost Spider Gwen

Mary Jane spider powers

Aunt May Spider powers

Mayor J. J. Jameson

Transformable Man Spider

New Green Goblin hero Harry

Split Personality Harry and Green Goblin

Senator/Head scientist Peter

Lizard Senator/ Scientist Curt Connors

CEO Harry

3/5th of people in New York are mutants

1/4th is Spider-folk of mutants

1/4th is Lizard People of mutants

Normie and Benny are twins and Peter and Harry’s sons

Spider folk can be divided into separate categories of Man Spider Form, the strongest and often the leaders is the Chieftain Driders the rarest, then Driders, Arachne, J’ba Fofi, Jorōgumo, the Spidora, then uncommon and common Man Spiders

Spider island, only no one lost their powers and controlled their man spider forms

Once you change into your Manspider form, you go out of control for twenty for hours before your DNA can adapt and evolve fully, thus earning control

After helping everyone with the Man Spider problems and begin free of the Jackal and Spider Queen, people with spider powers still needed guidance and so Peter was chosen to lead them

Becoming a senator and representative of the spider community, he had no choice but to retire and pass on the title to the Web Warriors (Gwen Stacy, Trisha Parker, Flash Thompson, Ben Reilly, Miles Morals, Jessica Drew, Julia Carpenter, John Diaz, Kaine Parker and Anya Corazon) With Kid Arachnid now Spiderman

Soon the Spider Brigade gets started as a private police force of spider-folks with the Web Warriors leading them

Rank for the Brigade goes Web Warriors, then Brown Reclusive Unit, then the Black Widow Unit, Nursery Web, Trapdoor, and so on

Spider-folk are taught how to use their powers as laws and permits were place to provide a new sense of order as New York began to change

Harry marries Peter soon after he retires, both wanting to start family life

Harry still remains as a Green Goblin as his split personality is apart of him and not trying to kill Pete

It was soon learned that Peter could produce offspring as he became pregnant with Harry’s children

They waited to let the word go public, telling May and their friends first

The public congratulate the couple as word soon reach the previous Green Goblin, Norman Osborn and Harry’s ex, Lily Hollister the Menace

The Black Widow unit were sent to act as bodyguards for Peter

In the third trimester, Lily visited Peter

Lily acts like a friend, even when she and Petey had some bad blood, for her it was him ‘stealing’ Harry and him it was trying to kill his aunt

Lily lies about wanting to bury the hatchet and become friends with Pete, making Harry happy while Peter took time in trusting her

She soon kidnaps him when they are alone, causing an uproar in New York, trapping Peter in one of the previous Green Goblin’s labs

She was mad with jealousy in wanting to be the love of Harry, to carry his children and planned on killing him to have Harry all to herself

Harry as the Green Goblin, Web Warriors, Avengers, and Fantastic Four came and rescued Peter as he went into labor

Lily got away after Harry told her he would never love her, causing her to attack him and stealing a third of his left pinky

Peter gave birth to two boys, as they were named Ben After his Uncle Ben and Ben Reilly, the boys’ uncle, and Norman, despite what he had done, Harry wanted to honor the man he was before

Lily brings the pinky to Norman as no one suspected his involvement in their plan as he arranged the severed chunk of pinky to be used for his experiments, the drops of blood for Lily to get pregnant and have a son of Harry, while the rest is used for cloning, to be kept alive to make an unlimited supply

Harry can still feel his pinky but believed it to be ghost pain

Harry and Peter decided to move to a big house in Queens as they didn’t want to live in Osborn’s home, convincing May, and her new husband Jameson’s father to move in with them

Everyone that knew Harry and Peter personally loved the twins

May and Mary Jane are babysitters the most to the twins as everyone doted on them

Norman started making clones of Harry but none of them were as good as the original, Gabriel and Sarah

Norman proclaims to have changed and turning his life around, to serve humanity rather than rule it

He wanted to see his grandchildren, but Harry and Peter took out a heavy restraining order for the kids, Peter, and May

Normie and Benny soon began to show spider powers, Normie able to wallcrawl and Benny able to create webs from his wrist

Peter and Harry had to baby-proof the room suited for spider babies

As by the conditions of his parole, he needed to be heavily watched, not allowed to leave New York, no contact with the Parksborn, no Green Goblin costume or weapons creation without approval

The Spider Community doesn’t trust Norman as they knew Peter had his reason not to trust him and it was enough

When the heat was off, and he earned good behavior, he then proclaims to start a government team of heroes like the Avengers, HAMMER with heroes that Peter has never heard of, one of which is a Symbiote User like Flash and Eddie

Norman becomes the Patrioteer as he wanted Harry to join him as the American Son, even trying to convince Peter to come out of retirement and join up with him

They both refuse as they had suspicions of Norman, Peter calling up Flash to see if he could identify the latest Symbiote User

Flash explains that there were hundreds of Symbiote Users that joined the program, but would see about turning some stones

Lily then came to Harry, still angry about the attack on his family two years ago and claims to have made a terrible mistake

She went to the Jackal in hiding, using the finger she cut off to create serum which would make her pregnant with his child

Lily realized that she wanted her baby to grow up in a loving environment like the boys as she watched his family from afar

Peter was beside himself but agreed to house her with the condition that she turns herself in after the baby is born and Harry and he take custody over it, knowing she is incapable of raising a child

Lily warns that Norman is after her and she would be captured, causing Peter and Harry to call in the Web Warriors to look into it

Flash calls Pete back to explain that the Symbiote that the member of the HAMMER has belong to a murdered soldier, Specimen 167 Gen 5, the murderer was unknown, but the government reported the symbiote stolen

While Harry acted as a spy in Norman’s group and Lily in hiding, the Web Warriors captured the Symbiote User revealed to be Mac Gargan

Mac confessed of using the stolen suit but not killing the soldier, it was Lily that killed him, under Norman’s command

It was revealed that the heroes were actually villains and Norman was planning on taking over New York through them as well as take back his entire family, even making Peter a slave

Lily stuns Peter then kidnaps the family, Peter, Benny, and Normie and brings them to Norman

Norman welcomes Peter to the family in an insane way as sees Peter as genetic perfection to start the Osborn Generation

Norman injected Normie with Carnage Symbiote without anyone knowing but never had a chance to inject Benny

Lily lied to Harry about lying about being pregnant as it led to a fight, wishing she was dead, then rescuing his family with the American Son Suit

After Norman was sent to prison again with HAMMER, Peter decided to keep the suit as a decorative piece in Oscorp, in a secured case, to remind him of his knight in shining armor

Lily then had Stanley a year later, lying him being Norman’s before sending him away to be raise by Peter and Harry while fleeing from the Sinister Six

Harry was attacked by Gab and rescued by him in the American Son suit, which was reported stolen by Oscorp

Though people suspected at first of Harry stealing it, but Peter vouched for him as Harry was with him at a doctor’s appointment for their baby son Stanley

Harry learns that Gab is his brother from Norman, still demanding to see Benny and Normie and threatening to kill Peter

Gab kidnaps the reporter and Peter to lure Harry but Harry defeats Gab

Normie wanted to be his mom’s protector as the Carnage encourage him to explore his powers

Normie is more of charm and charisma but smart enough in engineering while Benny is shy but highly intelligent to a prodigy like his mother

When Norman became the Carnage Goblin, he determined to kill Peter

Flash is injured as he gives Venom to Peter before slipping to a coma

When Norman came close to killing Peter, Normie attacked him to protect his mother

Normie could keep the Carnage as long as he retained his control

Harry discover a clone of himself, who thought was the original, scaring the boys and causing Peter to reflex attack

Clone Harry was everything like Harry except for the Goblins parts, even his love of Peter was there, making the original jealous

When it was revealed he had no knowledge of where he came from, believing that he came from the Jackal after he stole Harry’s pinky

Peter introduces Clone Harry to Ben as he agreed to help the clone find his way in life

Kindred soon targets Harry, attacking him psychologically, warping the Web Warriors into monsters and kidnapping the family and Web Warriors with Mary Jane

Kindred was captured thanks to Norman and the Kingpin as well as Peter and Mary Jane, hesitantly agreeing to a alliance

Kindred is revealed to be the brother of Harry and then the clones given demon powers, wanting the souls of Harry and Peter to create the perfect demons to take over the world

But Dr. Strange frees Harry from the contract as his soul belongs to Peter, causing the Kindred to rot away from the virus

The Clone Harry dies as Harry saw him as a brother

[pinturasdeguerra]

1706 Ramillies 1600 hrs 'The struggle for Ramillies' - Seán Ó'Brógáin

Occupying ihe left of the Argyll's Scots' Brigade, Borthwick's regiment drives directly into the centre of Ramilies, with the intent of splitting the defenders in two and seizing the church and its grounds that had been fortified and occupied by a battalion of the French'Picardie' regiment.Unable to make headway against the defences, Borthwick orders his Grenadier Company  to assault the gatehouse with hatchets, and force an entry into the church precincts. Leading the attach. Ensign James Gardiner is badly wounded and left for dead in the lee of the church as the fighting rages around him, and whilst Borthwick himself  is marshalling his remaining companies to continue the assault, they are attacked by Charles, Viscount Clare , at the head of a regiment of Irish emigres in French service.Shrouded in musket smoke, the fierce hand-to-hand combat is even more confusing due lo the fact that both Borthwick's and Clare's regiments wear almost identical uniforms, but as more French troops rush forward the Allied troops are forced out of the village, the Scots colonel being killled al the height of the fighiting, while his Irish counterpart was mortally wounded, being carried from the field to die three days later. Gardiner would lie propped up against the church wall, to be found by his comrades when the Bourbon troops were finally driven from the village. He rose to the rank of colonel and was killed in action at Prestonpans in September 1745.

[timeless-hollywood-classics]

The Bowery (1933)

In the Gay Nineties, on New York's Bowery, saloon owner Chuck Connors (Wallace Beery), finds that his rival, Steve Brodie (George Raft), has thrown a muskmelon at his window. The happy-go-lucky Brodie explains that he threw the melon on a dare. As Connors threatens to fight him, the two learn of a fire in neighboring Chinatown. Both men call upon their volunteer fire brigades, and wager $100 on which will be the first to throw water on the fire.

Although Brodie is first to arrive, he finds Connor's young pal, Swipes McGurk (Jackie Cooper), sitting on a barrel placed over the fire hydrant preventing Brodie from using it first. Connors arrives and the rival fire fighters brawl as the fire reduces the building to a smoldering ruin, presumably incinerating the crowd of Chinese trapped inside who had been screaming for help at the window. Brodie vows revenge on Connors, leading to a $500 bet that a boxer, whom Brodie calls "The Masked Marvel", can beat "Bloody Butch" a prizefighter that Conners manages. Conners accepts, and the "Marvel" knocks out Bloody Butch with one punch. After the fight, the "Marvel" is revealed to be John L. Sullivan (George Walsh).

Connors meets a homeless girl named Lucy Calhoun (Fay Wray) and takes her to his apartment, where he lives with Swipes, and lets her spend the night. In the morning, he is pleasantly surprised (and Swipes annoyed), to find that Lucy has cleaned up the place and cooked breakfast. Swipes later locks Lucy in a closet and, when Connors finds her, spanks him. Humiliated, Swipes packs and leaves. That night, Brodie invites Swipes to move in with him, which he does. Finding out about Lucy, Brodie attempts to seduce her, thinking that she is Connors' mistress. She bites his hand, drawing blood, and after learning her identity, he apologizes and asks if he can call on her. They soon fall in love, and Brodie reveals his ambition to run a saloon bigger than Connors'.

When two brewers offer to sponsor him if he can bring his name into prominence, Brodie decides to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge as a stunt. Connors bets his saloon against a free burial that Brodie won't survive. Scheming to avoid actually jumping, Brodie gets a life-sized dummy made up to look like him and arranges for Swipes to throw it off the bridge at the time of the jump. As a crowd of 100,000 gathers at the bridge, Swipes finds the dummy missing. Swipes observes "They were hip to us so they copped it." Despite Swipes's pleas, and left without any other option, Brodie vows to make the jump anyway, so that no one can say he didn't take a dare. Meanwhile, temperance activist Carrie Nation and her band of women arrive at Connors' saloon to tear it down with axes and hatchets. When he sees Brodie lifted in a parade after making the jump, however, Connors encourages the activists to destroy the saloon, which they do.

Brodie re-opens the refurbished saloon, and when war is declared against Spain, Connors enlists in an effort to get away from the Bowery, where he is no longer a big shot. When he returns to his apartment to pack, he finds that Swipes has returned and reconciles with the boy. Professional rivals of Brodie's then find Connors and deceitfully tell him that Brodie did not actually jump from the bridge, showing him the dummy. Connors demands Brodie give his saloon back. Brodie denies using the dummy, and the two have a long fight on a barge in the East River to settle their differences. After Connors returns victorious, he is arrested for assault and battery with intent to kill. Brodie, however, refuses to implicate him. As Brodie recovers, Connors visits his hospital only to begin another fight, but Swipes stops them and urges them to become friends. After they shake hands, Connors dares Brodie to join him in Cuba. At a parade for departing soldiers, Connors tells Lucy to kiss Brodie goodbye, and after she does, she also kisses Connors. The men lament not being able to say goodbye to Swipes, but they soon see, to their delight, that he is hiding in an artillery box on the supply wagon just ahead of them.

[carewyncromwell]

[HPHM] Erika Rath Playlist

suggested by @wangxianforever000 // featuring Anouk Hoogendijk as Erika

    “Overture” ~ Bring It On the musical

“We Will Rock You” ~ Queen

“Wizards in Winter” ~ Trans-Siberian Orchestra

“On Fire” ~ T. Powell

“No Way” ~ Six the Musical

“Enjoy the Silence” ~ Depeche Mode

“I Ain’t Movin’” ~ Des’ree

“Starlight Brigade” ~ TWRP

“The Hall of Fame” ~ the Script ft. Will.I.Am

Erika Rath was one of the best Beaters the Ravenclaw Quidditch team saw in its history. From the time she joined the team in her second year, her talent was undeniable, and she would go on to help her team win the Quidditch Cup five out of her seven years at school. Erika’s talent, however, came about not just from her own great physical strength and resilience, but from a lot of hard work. The Raths are a very poised, soft-spoken magical family, running a home with no raised voices or flaring tempers and everything having its place, and are best known for their work in the Department of International Magical Cooperation. Yet from the time Erika was little, she knew she could never fit into the mold set by her grandmother, father, uncles, and older brothers. Instead her one true love soon became Quidditch, which she found a safe place to vent her silent frustrations and bond with others without having to talk a lot. Although Erika’s grandmother and extended family are rather passive-aggressive in their disapproval of her life choices, her father and brothers are fortunately a bit more supportive, in their own understated way. They weren’t the sort to openly contradict the family matriarch or speak out in Erika’s defense, but they would send her Quidditch books and merchandise for her favorite Quidditch team, the Wigtown Wanderers, as Christmas presents. Speaking of the Wigtown Wanderers, Erika’s main rival at Hogwarts was Slytherin Chaser Skye Parkin, who started unfounded rumors about Erika stealing her teammate Carewyn Cromwell’s new Cleansweep between matches. The debacle resulted in Carewyn leaving the Slytherin team and Skye and Erika constantly butting heads for the rest of their school career. Eventually Skye ended up being one of Erika’s teammates when the two joined the Wigtown Wanderers as adults. It took a very long time for them to “bury the hatchet” so to speak, but over time (and with a lot of counseling from Skye’s old friends, Montrose Magpie Chaser Orion Amari and up-and-coming Quidditch commentator Murphy McNully), the two were able to find a way to communicate properly and pull together to bring their team victory. During the Second Wizarding War, Erika even helped Orion go into hiding with his infant daughter Eos and -- alongside Skye, Andre Egwu, Oliver Wood, and other members from the Quidditch league -- returned to Hogwarts for the final battle against Voldemort. Erika and her associates ended up forming something of an “air force,” attacking the Death Eaters, Snatchers, giants, and acromantula from above on their brooms in battle-like formations.

[sleepyfan-blog]

Mouth stitched shut, horror x nightmare?

I got a request for this already, but couldn’t resist doing it again :P enjoy!

Set a couple of years after this.

Fandom: Undertale AU

Characters and pairing: Nightmare, Horror, Dream, Dreammare

Warnings: body horror, blood, implied abusive relationship,

Word count: 2,342

Summary: Horror sees someone he shouldn’t have and gets punished for it.

Horror!Sans - or Hatchet as he’d decided to call himself - had been more or less willingly working for Nightmare for the better part of a year and a half. The spine-chillingly powerful being had suddenly appeared in his timeline one day and after beating up half of the royal guard, had informed him that he would either join him, or watch as everyone around him fell to dust - and his brother get corrupted and twisted. In exchange for working for the goopy asshole, Nightmare ensured that his people got regular shipments of good food. Enough that they didn’t have to ration and scramble in the garbage for scraps and wait desperately for any human unfortunate enough to fall into the underground.

He helped to bring pain and misfortune to other timelines - and aided Nightmare in expanding his multiversal empire. There were others he worked alongside - A stabby asshole by the name of Killer, who liked knives more than anything and Dust… Who was a twitchy Asgore-damned lunatic. Others came and went, but they either died… Or did something stupid, like try to betray Nightmare. Which never went well - and the moment that they tried to turn on him, they were dusted.

There was one part of the castle that no one was allowed to go. Not even the dark Papyri - who as far as Hatchet could tell, were summons of Nightmare’s. Normally the large skeleton knew better than to go against boss’ orders… But he was pretty sure that he could sense someone in that part of the castle - and if he dealt with an intruder in the secured part of the castle, he supposed that the good of going after some poor random asshole would counterbalance going against Nightmare’s orders, as was usually the case for such things.

After glancing furtively around - checking for any dark Papyri or Dust and Killer (Nightmare wasn’t in this miserable wreck of a timeline - off recruiting another damned soul to his hellish brigade) Hatchet carefully opened the door that led to the forbidden wing of the castle. It… Seemed to be the oldest section of the place, and the deeper inside that he went… The less tense and anxious that he became. There seemed to be something… Soothing to this portion of the castle. He wasn’t quite sure why - it was decorated in the same creepy, vaguely ominous and threatening manner as the rest of the castle… But the colors were lighter in hue.

As he approached the being he did sense, Hatchet realized that the first time since… Since before The Kid had fallen underground and killed Asgore… He was feeling genuinely and completely calm and at peace. He was… He was smiling, and it wasn’t because he was trying to creep someone out, or to throw someone off-guard. It had been so long since he filled that way. He spotted a flash of golden light and a bit of movement from the other end of the hallway, and with a happy (rather than maniacal) laugh, Hatchet gave chase.

It took him a good twenty minutes to catch up to the other being - in part because he didn’t know this section of the castle well, but he caught up to the other, trapping them into a room. The figure was small, wearing a faded golden cape, curled into a small ball, trembling “I caught you, little ray of sunlight. It was very foolish of you to come to this place. Now, come out from the corner and tell me why you’re here.” He called out, his voice lighter and warmer than it had been for a very long time.

The frighten yellow ball slowly uncurled, and a skeletal face peeked at him. The other looked like a swap Sans - except for the… Holy fuck. The other’s mouth was stitched shut with cyan strings, and the other’s golden eye lights were shrunk to mere pinpricks in fear, tears silently streaming down their face. Their hands were trembling violently as they tried to sign at him, but Hatchet couldn’t understand what the other was trying to say.

“I… H-Hey, it’s okay… I’m not going to hurt ya’. I know that I look like a real demon, but I won’t bite. Not unless you ask at least.” Hatchet called out soothingly, backing off a little before sitting down.

The yellow skeleton stared at him for a couple of moments, a curious expression appearing on his face and the other started to approach him, signing [You are injured. Let me help?]

“Eh? Oh, you mean the crack in my skull?” Hatchet responded after checking himself to make sure he didn’t have any injuries on him that he couldn’t feel for some stupid reason. “I’ve had that for quite a while. I haven’t met anyone yet who’s able to heal it. But if you really want to try… What’s your name, by the way?”

That was apparently the wrong thing to ask, because as soon as he did, the golden skeleton drew away from him, his eye lights turning to pinpricks as he shakily signed [If you do not know then you should not be here. Run. I promise I will not tell him you came here. Run please. He will hurt you.]

“I… Wh-who’s he? Shit, I’m a pretty strong fighter. I know the crack in my head makes me look mostly dead, but there are only a few who can match me, and fewer still who can best me.” He wasn’t talking arrogantly - but rather in facts.

Before either of them could react, something cold, slimy and sticky wrapped around his neck and his arms, and something shoved him against the nearest wall - and Hatchet hissed and cursed - struggling to get free. A sudden chill went through the room, and terror floods through him only like when boss is furious and using the full brunt of his emotive powers.

“Hatchet, why are you in this part of the castle?” Nightmare hisses, flipping him around so that the other can look at him directly, the other’s tentacles keeping him in place.

“I.. I thought I sensed someone in this part of the castle boss, and went to investigate, in case it was an intruder. And I found the yellow Blueberry over there. I was starting to interrogate him when you showed up… Sir.” Hatchet answers honestly, doing his best to be polite - boss this angry was liable to dust the subject of his fury unless the matter was handled very, very carefully.

“He’s here because he’s supposed to be. Apart from myself, he’s the only one allowed to be in this part of the castle without my express permission.” Nightmare growled, still radiating palpable waves of fury.

As boss spoke, Yellow - who had crumpled to the floor at some point - crawled over towards Nightmare on his hands and knees, and let out a soft whimper, signing with shaking fingers - Hatchet couldn’t tell what the other was saying.

Nightmare’s grip on Hatchet loosened minutely and he tilted his head a little, consideringly “No, I don’t plan on killing him. He’s far too useful for this one offence to cause his dusting. However… He will need to be punished… And I would rather he not talk about seeing you. How much did you speak with him?”

[Asked him if he wanted to be healed. Did not know he was not supposed to be here until he asked my name.] Yellow signed back, his hands steady enough for Hatchet to read now…

Wait did that mean that Yellow had been asking boss to spare his life? Why though? Then again, he looked like a slightly off-Swap, and they tended to be merciful creatures if they weren’t also Fells. Not that Hatchet was going to complain if the other was asking for Boss’s nearly non-existent sense of mercy. “I’ll do whatever punishment you want, boss. And I won’t tell the others about… Whoever that is.” He very carefully did not look directly at yellow, unsure as to whether or not his words would help or hinder things.

“Good. Stay here while I get the supplies needed for your punishment. It’ll ensure that you won’t be able to speak of my beloved to the others - at least until the enchantment wears off. Then if you’re still alive and have proven that you will mind your tongue appropriately, I won’t reapply it.” Nightmare responded, glancing down at Yellow “Oh… And you can leave if you want to, darling. But if you do, I won’t let you help him. Do you understand? And he better still be here when I come back.”

Yellow cringed and nodded meekly, his gaze fixed firmly on the floor, trembling and staying where he’d crawled to. Nightmare teleported off to somewhere else in the castle.

Hatchet was seriously tempted to run - but he couldn’t make portals and boss would catch him sooner or later. He also wasn’t going to touch the fact that Nightmare had referred to Yellow by pet names. Hatchet didn’t want to get further involved in whatever this was more than he already was. “I’m guessing the he you were referring to was Boss?”

Yellow nods, tears slowly falling from his eye sockets and he signed back [I am so sorry I could not get you to run before he came. If I had led with that you might have ran.]

“I might have, but probably not… I’d ask for your name, but I suspect that the more I know about me, the worse shit I’ll end up in.” Hatchet rumbled quietly.

[Probably.] Yellow signed, sinking further in on himself [he is probably going to silence you as he has done to me… Hopefully he will not reapply it to you for another decade. It hurts just as much the second time as it does the first.] Yellow lightly touched a couple of his stitches for explanation.

Hatchet choked on air for a couple of moments, shuddering a little but - as soon as the fear and anger ran through him, it vanished again, and he was left calm. “The… The hell?”

[He will do it to you, and being fearful or angry will only make him take longer on the stitches, will make you bleed more.] Yellow signs [I am sorry for pushing you back to neutral without asking first, but it is one of the few things he will let me do.]

“Awh hell. You’re the Ink to his Error, aren’t you?” Hatchet swore quietly. Only Nightmare had managed to *capture* his lighter counterpart. Why the other didn’t flee using portals, he could only guess. “… Why don’t you try to leave this place? I mean - I assume that you can make multiversal portals.”

[Night’s corruption is my fault. There are flashes of who he truly is buried beneath the darkness and madness. Besides - where would I go? He can find me no matter how far apart we are. The… The pain is not worth the temporary freedom, and I do not want him to kill the mortals around me simply because I have hidden in their timeline. Who are Ink and Error?]

Well, *shit*. Yellow’s got a hell of a point… Or rather, since Nightmare was all dark and evil and tweaked darker emotions… He was going to guess that Yellow is likely called Dream. “Ah, well I suppose that makes sense. Ink is the self-proclaimed guardian of the Alternate Universes. Error is a destructive ass who destroys timelines and universes for shits and giggles as far as any of us can tell.” Hatchet explained quietly.

Nightmare appears at the door to the room they’re in, cyan string that matches what Yellow has stitching his jaw shut, a silver needle glowing the color of his magic in hand. “I’m going to begin - do stay still Hatchet, I don’t want to miss. If you could help me hold him still, precious?”

Yellow nods miserable and staggers up to his feet. The other is surprisingly short and the other barely comes up to his shoulder. Still, his hands are stronger than expected as he gently pushes Hatchet down to his knees, gently squeezing the other’s shoulders as a sense of peace and tranquility fills the horrortale native as Nightmare glides silently across the room, the silver needle in hand.

~

The procedure barely hurt, and as soon as Nightmare finished, Yellow healed him so that he stopped bleeding marrow and magic - the other also healed the crack in his skull so that it was much smaller. Nightmare left with a smirk, saying “I expect you in the main throne room in half an hour, Hatchet.”

Hatchet nodded silently in response lifting a hand and giving the other a two-fingered salute and signed clumsily [Yes Boss.]

Yellow was crying quietly, and signing over and over again, his fingers shaky [I am sorry, I am so, so sorry…. If you would have left, then he would have only punished me for wandering…]

Hatchet shook his head, grabbing the other’s hands with one of his own before signing back [Not your fault. My own curiosity led me here, and I should have listened when you told me to leave. Stay safe, yellow.]

The other nodded, not crying anymore. He sent Hatchet a watery smile and took a couple of steps back before pausing for a moment. Yellow teleported off and then back to him moments later, holding up a pale blue scarf, tying it around Horror’s neck and face, adjusting it so that it covered the lower half of his face… Including the stitches that he’d just acquired.

[Thanks, Yellow.] Hatchet signed.

The other nodded, smiling a little and gesturing for the other to leave, gently patting one of the taller skeleton’s shoulders. [Good luck. I hope that you are able to abide by Night’s rules.]

Hatchet nodded and teleported off to his own room before walking over to where Boss had ordered him to be… Killer, Dust and a half-dozen dark Papyri there as well. This was going to be fun.

[appalachianaxeworks]

German Fire Brigade hatchet/axe now available in our Etsy shop. #axe #hatchet #forsaleonetsy #appalachianaxeworksshopdotcom #appalachianaxeworks #appalachianaxeworksshop #axehounds #axejunkies #firebrigade #germanfirefighter #germanfirebrigade #etsy #etsyshop #etsyseller #etsysellersofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/BuhsAR8BhZL/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=20jwf8vro9jn

[atlanticcanada]

N.S. announces comfort centre locations after extensive damage from Fiona

As Maritimers assess the damage left behind from post-tropical storm Fiona, a number of comfort centres have been made available for residents to get food and water, recharge devices and receive up-to-date information.

Here is a list of the comfort centre locations announced so far.

NOVA SCOTIA

Halifax

Beaver Bank Kinsac Community Centre located at 1583 Beaver Bank Road in Beaver Bank

Royal Canadian Legion Branch #58 located at 23566 Nova Scotia Trunk 7 in Sheet Harbour

Prospect Road Community Centre located at 2141 Prospect Road in Hatchet Lake

Cole Harbour Place located at 51 Forest Hill Parkway in Cole Harbour

Lebrun Recreation Centre located at 36 Holland Avenue in Bedford  

Kings County

Canning Multiplex located at 977 Jordan Rd. in Canning 

Greenwich Fire Hall located at 9798 Highway 1 in Greenwich      

Port Williams Community Centre located at 1045 Highway 358 in Port Williams  

Cape Breton

Big Pond Fire Hall located at 7193 East Bay Highway in Big Pond

Boisdale Fire Hall located at 3810 Grand Narrows Highway in Boisdale    

Gabarus Fire Department located at 8791 Gabarus Highway in Gabarus  

Georges River Fire Hall located at 1208 George's River Rd. in North Sydney             

Howie Centre Fire Department located at 47 Tometary Dr. in Howie Centre          

Louisbourg Fire Hall located at 7485 Main St. in Louisbourg

New Waterford Fire Hall located at 3336 Walsh Ave. in New Waterford

North Sydney Fire Hall located at 14 Pierce St. in North Sydney

Reserve Mines Fire Department located at 195 Main Street in Reserve Mines

Sydney City Hall located at 320 Esplanade in Sydney

Membertou Convention Centre located at 50 Milliard St. in Membertou

Colchester County

Bass River Fire Hall located at 5554 Highway 2 in Bass River         

Bible Hill Community Hall located at 69 Pictou Rd. in Bible Hill     

Brookfield Fire Station located at 110 Highway 289 in Brookfield              

Cobequid Fire Brigade located at 3830 Highway 236 in Lower Truro          

Onslow Belmont Fire Hall located at 12355 highway 2 in Lower Onslow  

Salmon River Fire Hall located at 1102 Salmon River Rd. in Salmon River 

Stewiacke Community Centre located at 111 Highway 2 in Stewiacke      

Tatamagouche Fire Hall Colchester located at 202 Main Street in Tatamagouche

Truro Fire Hall located at 165 Victoria Street in Truro      

Antigonish

St. Joseph's Lakeside Community Centre located at 2752 Ohio East Rd.

Pictou County

Eureka Fire Department Pictou located at 5222 Trafalgar Road in Eureka

Linacy  Fire Department located at 6735 Highway 4 in Linacy       

New Horizons Club located at 14 Kempt St. in Pictou       

Pictou Fire Hall located at 166 Church St. in Pictou

Plymouth Fire Hall located at 4667 East River East Side Road in Plymouth              

Stellarton Fire Hall located at 10 Jubilee Ave. in Stellarton             

Summer Street Industries located at 72 Park Street in New Glasgow       

Town of Westville Municipal Building located at 2042 Queen St. in Westville    

More comfort centres are expected to be added throughout the Maritimes once travel is deemed safe. 

This is a developing story and will be updated.   

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/f46DHz5

[bbcbreakingnews]

Legalise cannabis, eliminate drug dealer & cop-neta-cartel nexus

Even as the world moves towards legalising marijuana for medicinal & recreational use, opinion is split in the land of bhang laddoo & thandai The criminalisation of cannabis by clubbing it with narcotics like heroin is a direct consequence of the notorious ‘war on drugs’ launched by Richard Nixon in the US in 1971. A plant which had been grown and consumed in diverse ways by populations around the world, including in India, for millennia, with minimal harm to the user or their community (unless getting the munchies can be considered harmful), was instantaneously transformed into a banned substance. Simultaneously, the state, and its hatchet-men, the police, were empowered to prosecute and incarcerate the vast number of people who suddenly became criminals. We now know that the “war” was intended to target perceived enemies of the state and the worst hit were African-Americans who were up-ending centuries of white supremacy through civil rights action. The moral brigade, not surprisingly comprising people who preferred an expensive Scotch, would claim that the inclusion of cannabis in the war on drugs was justified by the fact that it was as addictive as opiates and that it served as a ‘gateway’ drug for more dangerous drugs. Decades of research have confirmed that there is no evidence of a withdrawal syndrome or tolerance, cardinal features of addiction, associated with cannabis use. And while it is true that cannabis does occasionally act as the first step on a person’s journey to stronger drugs, this is perversely facilitated by the law which criminalises its use, forcing the user to buy cannabis from dealers for whom getting more people to use addictive drugs is a business opportunity.

In 2017, a group of American physicians wrote in the prestigious American Journal of Public Health that “every year, the United States makes 575,000 arrests for marijuana possession alone, which is greater than the number of arrests for all violent crimes combined. The war on marijuana exacerbates poverty, which is strongly correlated withamong other problems—reduced access to healthcare. The unjust prohibition of marijuana has done more damage to public health than has marijuana itself.” Similar unambiguous declarations from the medical and public health communities in other countries have accompanied a transformation of public attitudes leading scores of countries and American states to decriminalise or legalise cannabis. In India, the mindless inclusion, under pressure from the US, of cannabis under its stringent narcotics legislation has always been a fig-leaf. If enforced consistently, at least 30 million people who have owned up to using cannabis in national surveys should be prosecuted, a number which is about 60 times the size of India’s current prison population! Unsurprisingly, this law has given the police another weapon to harass individuals they can cherry-pick for arbitrary reasons, as we have seen play out in the epilogue to Sushant Singh Rajput’s suicide. It is time for this law to be junked, along with other laws whose justifications are simply a façade for a primitive moral compass or frank hatred, such as the criminalisation of homosexuality, of interfaith marriage or the consumption of beef. I favour legalisation rather than decriminalisation for one simple reason: the for mer offers the only route to eliminate the drug dealer and the criminal nexus of police, politicians and the drug mafia. I unreservedly recommend the approach taken by Canada where all manufacture, distribution and sale of cannabis is controlled by the state. It is an imperative not to let corporates, whose deadly profiteering in knowingly selling tobacco products or recklessly marketing of opiate analgesics and alcoholic beverages has caused untold misery to millions of lives, into this marketplace. Needless to say, the approach to cannabis legalisation must embrace all the best practices to prevent the harmful use of substances such as alcohol, from age restrictions to offering counselling for those who wish to stop. We must be particularly wary of the high-potency versions of cannabis which do pose health risks to younger users with mental health vulnerabilities. Instead, the government must champion our own numerous ‘organic’ varieties, as for our richly diverse heritage of mangoes, rice and teas. The war on cannabis has been unanimously declared a failure by the scientific community. It is time for India to abandon this futile and archaic battle which was thrust upon her by foreign nations who have themselves admitted defeat. In doing so, we might also put one liberal brick back into the edifice of our nation which is being systematically stripped of its liberal foundation. ( Patel is professor of global health at Harvard Medical School)

source https://bbcbreakingnews.com/2020/12/25/legalise-cannabis-eliminate-drug-dealer-cop-neta-cartel-nexus/