#i hope r gets zero votes

[greenerteacups]

oooh please someday tell us what you think of GOT

oh, no, it's my fatal weakness! it's [checks notes] literally just the bare modicum of temptation! okay you got me.

SO. in order to tell what's wrong with game of thrones you kind of have to have read the books, because the books are the reason the show goes off the rails. i actually blame the showrunners relatively little in proportion to GRRM for how bad the show was (which I'm not gonna rehash here because if you're interested in GOT in any capacity you've already seen that horse flogged to death). people debate when GOT "got bad" in terms of writing, but regardless of when you think it dropped off, everyone agrees the quality declined sharply in season 8, and to a certain extent, season 7. these are the seasons that are more or less entirely spun from whole cloth, because season 7 marks the beginning of what will, if we ever see it, be the Winds of Winter storyline. it's the first part that isn't based on a book by George R.R. Martin. it's said that he gave the showrunners plot outlines, but we don't know how detailed they were, or how much the writers diverged from the blueprint — and honestly, considering the cumulative changes made to the story by that point, some stark divergence would have been required. (there's a reason for this. i'll get there in a sec.)

so far, i'm not saying anything all that original. a lot of people recognized how bad the show got as soon as they ran out of Book to adapt. (I think it's kind of weird that they agreed to make a show about an unfinished series in the first place — did GRRM figure that this was his one shot at a really good HBO adaptation, and forego misgivings about his ability to write two full books in however many years it took to adapt? did he think they would wait for him? did he not care that the series would eventually spoil his magnum opus, which he's spent the last three decades of his life writing? perplexing.) but the more interesting question is why the show got bad once it ran out of Book, because in my mind, that's not a given. a lot of great shows depart from the books they were based on. fanfiction does exactly that, all the time! if you have good writers who understand the characters they're working with, departure means a different story, not a worse one. now, the natural reply would be to say that the writers of GOT just aren't good, or at least aren't good at the things that make for great television, and that's why they needed the books as a structure, but I don't think that's true or fair, either. books and television are very different things. the pacing of a book is totally different from the pacing of a television show, and even an episodic book like ASOIAF is going to need a lot of work before it's remotely watchable as a series. bad writers cannot make great series of television, regardless of how good their source material is. sure, they didn't invent the characters of tyrion lannister and daenerys targaryen, but they sure as hell understood story structure well enough to write a damn compelling season of TV about them!

so but then: what gives? i actually do think it's a problem with the books! the show starts out as very faithful to the early books (namely, A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings) to the point that most plotlines are copied beat-for-beat. the story is constructed a little differently, and it's definitely condensed, but the meat is still there. and not surprisingly, the early books in ASOIAF are very tightly written. for how long they are, you wouldn't expect it, but on every page of those books, the plot is racing. you can practically watch george trying to beat the fucking clock. and he does! useful context here is that he originally thought GOT was going to be a trilogy, and so the scope of most threads in the first book or two would have been much smaller. it also helps that the first three books are in some respects self-contained stories. the first book is a mystery, the second and third are espionage and war dramas — and they're kept tight in order to serve those respective plots.

the trouble begins with A Feast for Crows, and arguably A Storm of Swords, because GRRM starts multiplying plotlines and treating the series as a story, rather than each individual book. he also massively underestimated the number of pages it would take him to get through certain plot beats — an assumption whose foundation is unclear, because from a reader's standpoint, there is a fucke tonne of shit in Feast and Dance that's spurious. I'm not talking about Brienne's Riverlands storyline (which I adore thematically but speaking honestly should have been its own novella, not a part of Feast proper). I'm talking about whole chapters where Tyrion is sitting on his ass in the river, just talking to people. (will I eat crow about this if these pay off in hugely satisfying ways in Winds or Dream? oh, totally. my brothers, i will gorge myself on sweet sweet corvid. i will wear a dunce cap in the square, and gleefully, if these turn out to not have been wastes of time. the fact that i am writing this means i am willing to stake a non-negligible amount of pride on the prediction that that will not happen). I'm talking about scenes where the characters stare at each other and talk idly about things that have already happened while the author describes things we already have seen in excruciating detail. i'm talking about threads that, while forgivable in a different novel, are unforgivable in this one, because you are neglecting your main characters and their story. and don't tell me you think that a day-by-day account tyrion's river cruise is necessary to telling his story, because in the count of monte cristo, the main guy disappears for nine years and comes hurtling back into the story as a vengeful aristocrat! and while time jumps like that don't work for everything, they certainly do work if what you're talking about isn't a major story thread!

now put aside whether or not all these meandering, unconcluded threads are enjoyable to read (as, in fairness, they often are!). think about them as if you're a tv showrunner. these bad boys are your worst nightmare. because while you know the author put them in for a reason, you haven't read the conclusion to the arc, so you don't know what that reason is. and even if the author tells you in broad strokes how things are going to end for any particular character (and this is a big "if," because GRRM's whole style is that he lets plots "develop as he goes," so I'm not actually convinced that he does have endings written out for most major characters), that still doesn't help you get them from point A (meandering storyline) to point B (actual conclusion). oh, and by the way, you have under a year to write this full season of television, while GRRM has been thinking about how to end the books for at least 10. all of this means you have to basically call an audible on whether or not certain arcs are going to pay off, and, if they are, whether they make for good television, and hence are worth writing. and you have to do that for every. single. unfinished. story. in the books.

here's an example: in the books, Quentin Martell goes on a quest to marry Daenerys and gain a dragon. many chapters are spent detailing this quest. spoiler alert: he fails, and he gets charbroiled by dragons. GRRM includes this plot to set up the actions of House Martell in Winds, but the problem is that we don't know what House Martell does in Winds, because (see above) the book DNE. So, although we can reliably bet that the showrunners understand (1) Daenerys is coming to Westeros with her 3 fantasy nukes, and (2) at some point they're gonna have to deal with the invasion of frozombies from Canada, that DOESN'T mean they necessarily know exactly what's going to happen to Dorne, or House Martell. i mean, fuck! we don't even know if Martin knows what's going to happen to Dorne or House Martell, because he's said he's the kind of writer who doesn't set shit out beforehand! so for every "Cersei defaults on millions of dragons in loans from the notorious Bank of Nobody Fucks With Us, assumes this will have no repercussions for her reign or Westerosi politics in general" plotline — which might as well have a big glaring THIS WILL BE IMPORTANT stamp on top of the chapter heading — you have Arianne Martell trying to do a coup/parent trap switcheroo with Myrcella, or Euron the Goffick Antichrist, or Faegon Targaryen and JonCon preparing a Blackfyre restoration, or anything else that might pan out — but might not! And while that uncertainty about what's important to the "overall story" might be a realistic way of depicting human beings in a world ruled by chance and not Destiny, it makes for much better reading than viewing, because Game of Thrones as a fantasy television series was based on the first three books, which are much more traditional "there is a plot and main characters and you can generally tell who they are" kind of book. I see Feast and Dance as a kind of soft reboot for the series in this respect, because they recenter the story around a much larger cast and cast a much broader net in terms of which characters "deserve" narrative attention.

but if you're making a season of television, you can't do that, because you've already set up the basic premise and pacing of your story, and you can't suddenly pivot into a long-form tone poem about the horrors of war. so you have to cut something. but what are you gonna cut? bear in mind that you can't just Forget About Dorne, or the Iron Islands, or the Vale, or the North, or pretty much any region of the story, because it's all interconnected, but to fit in everything from the books would require pacing of the sort that no reasonable audience would ever tolerate. and bear in mind that the later books sprout a lot more of these baby-plots that could go somewhere, but also might end up being secondary or tertiary to the "main story," which, at the end of the day, is about dragons and ice zombies and the rot at the heart of the feudal power system glorified in classical fantasy. that's the story that you as the showrunner absolutely must give them an end to, and that's the story that should be your priority 1.

so you do a hack and slash job, and you mortar over whatever you cut out with storylines that you cook up yourself, but you can't go too far afield, because you still need all the characters more or less in place for the final showdown. so you pinch here and push credulity there, and you do your best to put the characters in more or less the same place they would have been if you kept the original, but on a shorter timeframe. and is it as good as the first seasons? of course not! because the material that you have is not suited to TV like the first seasons are. and not only that, but you are now working with source material that is actively fighting your attempt to constrain a linear and well-paced narrative on it. the text that you're working with changed structure when you weren't looking, and now you have to find some way to shanghai this new sprawling behemoth of a Thing into a television show. oh, and by the way, don't think that the (living) author of the source material will be any help with this, because even though he's got years of experience working in television writing, he doesn't actually know how all of these threads will tie together, which is possibly the reason that the next book has taken over 8 years (now 13 and counting) to write. oh and also, your showrunners are sick of this (in fairness, very difficult) job and they want to go write for star wars instead, so they've refused the extra time the studio offered them for pre-production and pushed through a bunch of first-draft scripts, creating a crunch culture of the type that spawns entirely avoidable mistakes, like, say, some poor set designer leaving a starbucks cup in frame.

anyway, that's what I think went wrong with game of thrones.

[gayforanthonyjcrowley]

So, I have this writing idea, but I might need some help from you guys.

I have this idea where Crowley and Aziraphale go on abc dates, but I need some ideas. This is the list I have so far:

A: alpha Centauri, amusement park, arcade, aquarium, …

B: baking, boat ride, botanical garden, berry picking, backyard camping, bowling, …

C: cooking, circus, concert, craft night, chocolate fondue, …

D: dinner order, drag show, drive-in movie, …

E: eventing, eating escargo, Everest, estate sales, escape room ( no miracles ), enchilada date, elephant back riding, Easter egg hunt, Eden garden, …

F: fishing, filharmony, fruit picking, firework show, …

G: gaming, getting matching tattoos, goat yoga, …

H: hair tutorial remaking, hiking, horseback riding, historical museum, …

I: ice cream, ice skating, ikea shopping, …

J: jazz club, jogging, jacuzzi, jigsaw puzzle, …

K: kayaking, Karaoke, …

L: live music, Lego building, …

M: movie night, museum, mini golf, magic show, …

N: national park, Nintendo game night, …

O: oven baked cookies, opera, open mic night, origami class, …

P: pancakes, planetarium, pottery, painting, picnic, …

Q: Queen concert, quiz night ( triple date ), … 

R: roller skating, Ritz, …

S: swimming, sushi, stargazing, …

T:  tour with the Bentley, thrifting, trampoline park, train ride, …

U: ugly sweater party ( triple date ), …

V: vintage car rally, vinyl record shopping, vineyard experience, volunteering, Venice trip, Venus, …

W: wildlife sanctuary, wine tasting, waltz lesson, …

X: Xylophone concert, Xylophone lessons, Xerox, X-Rays, Xbox gaming, xtreme sports, xylophone, …

Y: yacht ride, YouTube marathon, yoga, …

Z: zurich mini break, zero-proof cocktail making class, Zumba class, Z A Rob Zombie concert, zen garden, zoo, …

So let me know if you have another fun idea! I’ll post a poll on my tumblr, so you guys can decide what they are going to do on their date! ( If no one votes, I’ll choose myself, but I hope I’ll get at least some votes )

I’ll be posting this story on my AO3 account, same as my tumblr, GayForAnthonyJCrowley.

[alt-wannabe]

MCSR D&D

silver r(ogue) runs

silver r(anger) runs

Soulknife Rogue 10 / Fey Wanderer Ranger 5

we're back! ik this one took a little longer compared to the last few i've just been real busy with lab stuff! planning on having reign's sheet made next :3

I went for rogue for the general unbothered energy they tend to have, which silverr seems to have in spades. Rogues also have extremely high dex which we determined was gonna be silverr's highest ability score. I picked up ranger because the adept terrain knowledge is something that's really fitting for a speedrunner. I picked half elf for the race because they get a boost to charisma and that was voted as silverr's second highest ability score (note the charisma score of 18 that has exactly zero benefit to either of his classes lmao)

Ranger spell choices are extremely minimal so this is what we ended up with. Cure Wounds and Hunter's Mark for general playability, Longstrider for the SPEEDrunning joke, Locate Animals or Plants as a dupe for finding spawners.

Equipment time! Some smaller items of note include 20 obsidian (in 2 stacks of ten because dndbeyond is weird), navigator's tools for routing, pearls, a potion of healing, a fire resistance potion, and a pearl of power. To be fully honest Gray Bag of Tricks is entirely a joke based on gray=silver. The Eyes of Minute Seeing basically make you see better and give advantage on intelligence checks within an area around you and that was fitting to me bc silverr is pretty damn observant. The Ivory Goats were a pick entirely based on his old MC skin with the horns. Then I hope the Boots of Speed, Dragon Scale Armor, and Dragon Slayer Sword are fairly obvious connections.

Class featuresssss. Favored enemy was humans because that's just straight up other players and the dragonborns as a joke about the ender dragon. Speaking of the end, I chose Underdark for favored terrain as sort of a dupe for the End. Then two weapon fighting is the style I chose basically entirely thinking about the off-hand mechanic in minecraft.

This is a fun feature of the Fey Wanderer subclass that would legitimately give him horns in game.

Primeval Awareness is another D&D dupe for finding spawners or the stronghold in my eyes. A huge part of why I chose the Fey Wanderer subclass is because of the Otherworldly Glamour giving a huge boost to charisma checks. The common consensus of a lot of people is that silverr would have a really high charisma stat FULLY without realizing or having it be intentional and I figured that having him fey adjacent would be a realistic way of implementing that.

Finally here are his feats! Both of these picks were motivated by getting a plus one in the strength and charisma ability scores respectively. Slasher fits both because silverr is a strong pvper and because the soul blades from his rogue subclass can deal slashing damage. Shadow Touched seemed really helpful for a rogue with the invisibility spell, and also gave me access to False Life which kinda makes me think of the extra hearts given by a golden apple (and also silverr NEEDS those extra hit points he has a very low constitution score).

Again I hope y'all are liking these! Reign should be coming next but it may take me a little while to figure out what his deal is lol.

[denimbex1986]

'The Senate on Thursday approved a measure that would, for the first time, give health care benefits and compensation to communities impacted by the test of the first atomic nuclear bomb in New Mexico.

The “Trinity” nuclear test is featured in Christopher Nolan’s latest hit movie “Oppenheimer,” which focuses on the life of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in leading the Manhattan Project, a top-secret U.S. government program that began during World War II.

What the film doesn’t mention, however, is the array of deadly cancers that afflicted people exposed to radiation who lived “downwind” in the area near Alamogordo, New Mexico, for decades afterward ― many of whom were Native Americans and other people of color. The fallout traveled in a northern direction, affecting people as far away as Colorado, Idaho and Montana.

“Millions of people across the country traveled to theaters this weekend to watch a blockbuster centered around this infamous day, but not enough people have focused on the collateral damage caused by our nation’s nuclear testing,” New Mexico Sen. Ben Ray Luján said Thursday in a speech on the Senate floor.

Luján called attention to the consequences for his home state in a series of tweets posted last week ahead of the movie premiere, noting that thousands of victims and their family members continue to face health complications.

In 1990, Congress passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which compensated many communities affected by U.S. military nuclear explosions. The law excluded survivors of the Trinity test, however, and lawmakers and native tribes in New Mexico have been seeking to right that wrong ever since.

“Those families were not given any warning, any heads up, they saw a bright light, they saw ash fall on their clothing lines, but for some reason they were excluded as a county that should qualify for status. It makes zero sense,” Luján told HuffPost.

Working alongside Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Luján sponsored an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would include previously excluded communities harmed by radiation from above-ground nuclear weapons testing, as well as uranium mining and nuclear waste storage in other states. It was adopted on Thursday in a bipartisan 61-37 vote.

Hawley, who was spotted whipping his GOP colleagues to vote for the measure in the well of the Senate chamber, credited Nolan’s film for raising awareness to an issue that has affected people in his state who lived near a Manhattan Project nuclear processing facility.

“For us, it’s about getting some basic justice for the people in the St. Louis region who have gotten literally poisoned,” Hawley said.

The Senate is expected to pass its version of the National Defense Authorization Act this week. The House already approved the bill earlier this month, though it included several partisan GOP amendments on hot-button social issues. The two sides will have to hash out their differences in a conference committee, including over the Senate amendment extending benefits to victims of nuclear tests.

Luján said he hadn’t yet watched “Oppenheimer,” so he couldn’t weigh in as to its accuracy and its portrayal of how the nuclear testing affected the people of New Mexico.

“I don’t know that anyone can ever give this a fair shake,” he said of the movie. “You have to hear the stories of these families. Many of our brothers and sisters have since passed. I’m hopeful that attention around the movie brings attention to this travesty because this deserves attention.”'

[jen4k2]

From Jessica Orsini.

[deep breath]

This started as a reply to someone in another post of mine, someone who expressed that both major party candidates this year are unacceptable and expressed hope for an independent candidate to somehow save us. I replied there... and then realized that this should in fact be a post of its own. So here we go.

INDEPENDENT/THIRD PARTY CANDIDATES

First things first: the independent angle. The short version is, that's a fantasy and it's best to move past it. The long version is, well, here we go:

In our first-past-the-post system, combined with the Electoral College, independent candidates are non-starters at best and destructive spoilers at worse. Remember 1992, with Clinton-Bush-Perot? Perot took up a lot of oxygen, but won not a single solitary electoral vote. Likewise 1980, with Reagan-Carter-Anderson. In fact, the last time an independent secured electoral votes was in 1968, with Wallace running a full-on racist ticket in the South and garnering five states for 46 electoral votes... which still had no real effect on the Nixon-Humphrey contest.

It doesn't help one bit that the people who actually run as minor party or independent candidates are just awful. RFK Jr is an inveterate conspiracy theorist. Cornell West thinks he's the modern Malcom X. Jill Stein wants homeopathy covered by Medicare. The only minor party or independent candidate even on the ballot in enough states to *theoretically* hit 270 electoral votes is Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver... and half of his own party tried to throw him overboard for Trump.

There are ways to fix the systemic problems that minor parties and independents face in the U.S., but all of them take exactly the kind of hard work and long-term planning that none of these parties have so far been willing to put in; instead, they toss up quadrennial Quixotic candidates and then complain loudly that their unseriousness isn't taken serious by the electorate.

I can go into more detail on this elsewhere if you like, but that's enough for this particular thread. Suffice to say that wistful dreams for a third-party white knight are just that: wistful dreams. And with everything that is at stake, we have to set those aside and deal with reality.

THE PROBLEMS WITH THE TWO MAJOR PARTY CANDIDATES

So, that being said, either the Democratic or Republican candidate will be elected President in November. Unless one or the other or both die or drop out, those are Joseph R. Biden and Donald J. Trump.

It's not an ideal situation, to be certain. Both of these men are older than dirt. Both are prone to memory lapses. Both are prone to spewing word salad. I suspect that Biden's physical health is a bit better than Trump's, but that's honestly not saying much. Biden has an obvious hard time getting thoughts out. Trump delves down bizarre semiliterate rabbit holes that are reminiscent of Archie Bunker.

So no, neither should be running. But they are. There's some chance that Biden might drop out and allow someone else to run, but I wouldn't rate it higher than 10%. There's absolutely no chance of Trump doing so. So, let's set aside their aforementioned cognitive/senior issues and look at them.

THE REAL CHOICE BEFORE US

Biden is a life-long public servant. It's pretty much in his DNA. He really, really wants to be able to work across the aisle in a way that was possible until Gingrich's revolution in the House in '94, and still tries despite an opposition with zero interest in doing so. He surrounds himself with experts and capable administrators, and has a capable vice president. He is, at his core, a compassionate and empathetic man.

Trump is a life-long narcissist. It is, again, pretty much in his DNA. He has sought personal power and adulation his entire life. He has openly discussed -- quite often -- his desire to be able to jail, deport, and/or just plain execute his political enemies, and opined how much he wishes he had the personal power of Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, and Kim Jong Un. He surrounds himself with shameless sycophants, intends to fire some 50,000 career federal employees via Schedule F reclassification to replace with dedicated Trumpists, and has made clear that his number one qualification for a running mate is personal loyalty to him above anything and everything else. He is, at his core, a selfish and vindictive man.

Barring Biden dropping out, one of these two men is going to be the next President of the United States, and will do so in an era of unparalleled and uncontested power vested in that office by our increasingly imperial Supreme Court. Given the two men involved, given their long personal histories and character traits, the obvious choice -- suboptimal as it may be -- is Biden.

[thepancakewitch]

One of my lengthy drabbles with myself of my favorite OC, Momoko, enjoying adventures in various IPs.

---

MACH SPEED! He moved like a blur. My presence... is emptiness! Silently, he weaved in and out of the streets... leaving behind only light tapping of his boots against the concrete and flyers with... his face on them.

Chip Zanuff for President.

It didn't take long for him to disperse most of his ads for voting in his country of East Chip Kingdom.

Deciding to show off for his last few moves, he swirled in the air, a trail of blue following.

"SUSHI!" He threw out one. "BENTO!" Another one. "DAIJOBU!!!" A rain of posters followed. The crowd cheered for him as a certain citizen appeared.

"Ahh Nihongo?" She asked. Chip turned in response, wailing out in excitement over this new beauty given to him, asking if he spoke Japanese. Was this... a real Japanese person!?!?!

"HAIHAIHAIHAI! UH... MOSHI MOSHI!" He threw out his hands, clasping onto hers as he shook them up and down.

The woman laughed more, elated by his excitement. "Oh what a joy it is to find another Japanese person outside of the sanctuary. We probably shouldn't speak too much in public... we can exchange details in private." She spoke in Japanese. Chip listened intently, sweating profusely as he adjusted his glasses. He had absolutely zero idea what she said, he all he knew was that he was completely in love with his new kimono princess.

Making their way to a hotel, Chip received a call.

"Boss!"

"PRESIDENT!" Chip replied instantly as he took the call in the privacy of the... bathroom.

"What's your update on your campaign?" He adjusted his glasses.

Chip stared to the door, wondering what his kimono princess might think of him... I mean obviously she liked him to some extent, allowing him into this room with her and... doki-doki... the oppai... he huffed loudly. "Big... big success! BANZAI!" He threw up both of his thumbs.

"It doesn't seem like you're being incredibly honest... where are you right now anyways?" He tried to peer around. "Is this a... bathroom? Did I catch you at a bad time?"

"Chip, where are you?" Momoko called out, giggling. "I hope you're not tattling on me."

Chip began to sweat more as he stared at the floor. The call went silent before a loud sigh came from the other end.

"Don't take too long, samurai."

"NINJA. I'M A NINJA!!! Er, and a president!" Chip replied, laughing nervously as he appeared out of the bathroom. He was greeted with a half naked Momoko on the bed, with her robe now lazily draped around her body as she waved. He wasn't ready, no matter what he was. No... the people need someone strong and... THIS WOMAN HAS CHOSEN ME, TO BE HER NINJA, HER PRESIDENT.

He dove next to her and wrapped his arms around her waist as she burst into laughter. "I feel so rude,  I hadn't even given you my name. I'm Momoko." She replied as he snuggled up next to her. He let out a dreamy sigh upon hearing her name, pressing his cheek against her's.

"R-Really...? What a beautiful name. I'm Chip Zanuff!" He replied with a cheery ring in his voice. Momoko laughed, bringing his chin up in her hand as her other free one strayed across his built body. He obviously wasn't Japanese, but she did appreciate his dedication to her culture... it was adorkable.

"I know, silly, I grabbed one of your fliers... demo... I think it landed somewhere kind of naughty~... can you help me get it out?" She looked down to her cleavage, fluttering her eyelashes back up to him.

Chip nearly died. From feeling her hand freely groping him to her teasing and playful demeanor, mixing in Japanese, this was... a dream come true!!

"Y-yes... may I?" Chip's eyes darted from her face to her cleavage, than back and forth and back and forth... his hand reached up, waving a little bit as his fingers flexed.

"Onegai..." Momoko arched herself against his hand, letting out a soft moan. Chip was simply elated at that point, completely set off. He could feel himself fuming. This was... this was... everything he dreamed of!!! His hand gently massaged on her milky breast, the more Momoko replied to his movements with soft noises of pleasure, the more he found himself growing to want more. It felt so quick, so sudden, and yet, it felt so right.

"HAI!" He grasped at both breasts, hovering over her completely now. Unfortunately this left the rest of his body defenseless to her own hands as his were full with her chest.

"Good boy..." She cooed, her hand grasping at his growing bulge as she continued to moan, feeding into his growing excitement.

He had absolutely NO clue what she was saying, but it seemed alright to keep going. He leaned down, kissing her warmly on the lips before cooing. "Ita deki mas!"

Momoko burst into laughter,

--

"Chip help!" Momoko called out.

Chip managed to dive out and rescue Momoko from falling... from a hit from Sol Badguy's sword. He spun together with her in the air, the two staring into each others' eyes as they laughed. It seemed so magical.

"You're so talented, Chip!" She fluttered her eyelashes.

Chip fumed in glee over her compliment, smooching her before landing on his feet with her. The two landed in unison, holding each others hands as they wiggled together. "You can't defeat us when we're together, Mr. Badguy!" Momoko announced.

Launching her into the air, Chip began to get super fast as she spun around as they both created static images of themselves.

"AI!"

"SHI!"

"TERU~!"

"Daisuki daiyo!" "Forever! HELL YEAH!"

They slashed forward, Momoko delivering a swift kick as Chip followed with a slash. FINISHED!

"True love always wins!" They announced, giggling as Momoko was swept up with kisses from Chip as he cradled her.

Elphelt couldn't help but be jealous over this display, it was EVERYTHING SHE WANTED! TRUE LOVE!!!

--

"I'm going to be... za first lady!" Momoko laughed.

"Yes! A president needs a strong first lady behind him, supporting him!!!"

The two had become too much alike. A scorn upon the world. It wasn't the impending Apocalypse that Ralmelthal predicted... but rather... a pair of an ex-communicated Japanese woman and a weaboo.

[truckreincarnation]

(vee)xation | Vee | Trial 2.4 | Re: Nao, Manami, Avery

By all accounts, Vivian Lockwood is already having a shite day, and Nao’s outburst triggers a look of genuine hurt on their face that will likely have consequences down the line.

It’s only Manami’s interruption that stops Vee from immediately turning on them, and while part of him still wants to scream and shout and rage, the anger instead pools itself together and freezes up. Hatred doesn’t boil bright and burn red with them, and instead the newfound iciness in their tone shows just how upset they really are with what the Secretary has to say. "I am very well aware t-that if we get this wrong, s-someone innocent will take the f-fall, but the same is true if w-we vote for Frank and that is the wrong o-option. Nothin’ we’ve brought up so far c-can absolutely prove or disprove one t-theory or another, so is it so wrong to w-want to cling to what shreds of h-hope we have that this trial c-can end without further death? That I can b-believe there isn’t enough e-evidence to prove that someone else here is d-directly or indirectly responsible?“

Their breathing evens out, less shallow than it was before. "Besides, I’m not tryin’ to m-make the decision for you. Or t-tell you it is the only r-right decision that m-must be made. What Avery a-and the others have said so far h-has enough merit that I am c-convinced, if that’s the kind of c-confirmation you’re lookin’ for.” Vee’s tone abruptly shifts as they narrow their eyes. “But don’t c-condescend to me and make it out l-like I don’t know what’s at s-stake for all of our l-lives. If you push hard on F-Frank because you’re unconvinced t-that he didn’t do it, you’re also hedgin’ y-your life on that outcome. I wouldn’t h-have volunteered for that either, and you’ve t-taken that choice away from not just me but the r-rest of us tryin’ to a-argue in good faith that we think t-this outcome is the right one. For our selfish r-reasons, perhaps, but I didn’t come t-to this fuckin’ trial room prepared to s-save lives.”

(cw: implied mouth trauma) A fresh trail of blood dribbles at their lips. They absently brush it off, when did that happen?

“Perry had h-her own skills. I’m f-fairly certain she used one a-at one point to restore her s-sap body construct, somethin’ I’m c-certain you were there for, Mx. Smith,” Vee notes quietly. “I also believe t-this is an accident because Frank would h-have to had seen Perry, m-made a split-second decision to e-enter the craftin’ room and zero in the b-blasted Shatterstone in the m-minutes after when she m-made it to the room - which considerin’ her path w-went through the Housin’ and the L-Library, took at least a w-while - and then kill her w-with the stone before h-hurryin’ back to the Orchard. There's also b-blood on the shelf where the stone o-once was, and unless s-someone could wash their hands v-very quickly I don't see how or why s-someone other than Pears grabbed it. Whether or not you d-don’t believe is no longer up to m-me.”

They’re so tired, and yet the first thing they plan to do after this trial is over is camp outside the Bound Housing and wait for their best friend to wake up. That is, assuming they don’t end up as one of its residents alongside her when the votes are read.

[thekultofo]

On the second day of January's Full Moon Weekender I played an hour of #Jungle music.

Hope you enjoy, if you do please leave a comment, share with a friend or just favorite. Always appreciated!

Tonight, Sunday the 8th, I'll be playing an hour of Breakcore. If you want to vote what I should play during the next Full Moon Weekender go to my patreon page, you don't have to be a patreon to vote though:

https://www.patreon.com/posts/next-full-moon-76907619

Original artwork: Still from the "A Trip to the Moon" movie from 1902

I'd like to thank my Patreons who supported this show: Dafreeze, Strayd0g, ivan & R. Relique.

If you also want to support The Kult of O, and get more content, then consider becoming a Patreon:

EriS - I Want Your Bhagavate Zero - Untitled Amen Fog Area - Scare To Close My Eyes Arkon - bitter harvest MURDARAH - Na Lampada New Mix Bman & Sensimo - Angels DJ Throttler - Flat Out D.T.A - ROOM IN HELL Okrozhka & Eris - Ravager Edgey - Deep Thunder Roll'd Sinister Source - Sinster Haunting (K'Teus Remix) Submerged - Ezekial Choke (Original Mix) Replicator - Dark Alliance end.user - the choke (remix) Sativa - the forgotten breaks Indian Junglist - The Human Clawmachine Arkon - system shock Fog Area - Frost Heart Controlless - Cyber Humanity D.T.A - LIES Quoit vs. Submerged - El Topo

Blog https://www.thekultofo.com/full-moon-mix-jungle-2/

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

Friday Night Stabby best quotes part 23 (11/06/21)

Impulse is missing from this session so Astro’s wife Ursulala “Lala” filled in for him. i normally watch Impulse’s POV but for this stream, i watched Tango’s.

…

Endless: Alright guys, so I watched Evil kill Brody and then I started chasing Evil trying to report the body but that’s not how this game works. Evil, laughing: I can’t- I can’t even deny it!

...

*Astro has been caught killing with 4 people left* Lala: I don’t know who to vote for…! Etho: So… we’re gonna need you to turn on someone you care about right now. Lala: Oh, I don’t like that!

...

*silence as Tango does a task* Tango: This feels like a round where I’m gonna die early. Etho: *kills Tango*

...

Lala: The only person I saw at all in that direction was Joker so I’m voting for him, I don’t even care. Skizz: Alright! I like it! *votes* Etho: Whoa… Joker: What? Skizz: Wait… I dunno. I may have jumped the gun, there. I still got 3rd Life bloodlust on the brain.

...

Etho: Joker? Joker: What? Etho: Where were you? Joker: I dunno. Skizz: Joker, you are USELESS!

...

Etho: *reports a body* Etho: Well, well, well! Tango: Ooh…! Endless: Ooh…! *pause* Etho: ...I got nothing.

...

*Etho and Skizz are lovers, Etho is imposter with Tango, there are 4 people left alive* Etho: *calls emergency meeting* Etho: Okay, I think it’s pretty clear. It’s Tango. Joker: Yeah, he was the last person I heard [when Mrs Tango died]. Etho: Voting Tango. *votes* Skizz: *votes* Tango: No. Joker, listen. Joker, Joker- Joker: *votes* Tango: JOKER, you just blew it! *groans* Etho: *laughs* Tango: Joker, I’m gonna tell you the truth right now, cuz it’s all out there, okay? You just blew it, my friend. Etho: I got a pact with someone, Tango, I’m sorry. Tango: Etho and Skizz are lovers, alright? You just blew it. Skizz: We’re more than lovers, dude! Red Army forever!!! Tango: WRONG GAME, man! Wrong game, Red Army! Etho: You were- You were a Crastle people traitor. Skizz: *laughs hysterically* Tango: I shoulda killed Skizz when I had the chance, I woulda taken you both out, I would’ve won! I knew it was coming, Etho! It was just a matter of time! Etho and Skizz: *laugh* Skizz: 3rd Life lives on! Tango: I’m voting Joker cuz he smells. *votes are revealed, Tango is ejected* Skizz: Ah, Etho, you’re the best! Etho: That was beautiful. Tango: I waited too long, that was my fault. Joker: That was a no-win situation for me. Etho: You had no chance there, Joker. Joker: Yeah, I had no chance. Skizz: That was SO poetic!

...

Astro: Why is everybody killing Lala early? It’s very rude. Tango: Says Astro the killer. Astro: If I ever get a round of imposter, I’m gonna avenge every one of these deaths.

...

Tango: Joker and I were sharing sweet nothings over in nav and then in shields. Mrs Tango: Uhh… Tango: Oh yeah, you BET you wanna know ;)

...

Tango: Brody’s got me fooled. Brody: That’s not hard to do.

...

*after a stack kill* Evil: I saw Brody teleport to the body. Brody: I sure didn’t do that. Tango: Evil, are you voting for Brody? Evil: I did. Tango: Alright, I’ll do it. *votes* I’m afraid we’re gonna get jestered, but… Skizz: He voted for himself at the beginning, why would- *votes are revealed, Skizz is the only one who didn’t vote for Brody* Brody, being ejected: I’m so confused. Tango: Did he just win? Brody: I’m SO confused. Why did you guys just give me that? Evil: *bursts out laughing* Tango: Oh god… Skizz: Is this for real? Brody: Evil, why would you just give me that? You knew it was me. Tango: Evil! *Brody wins as jester* Etho: Why?! I don’t get that! Endless: What? Why would-? What?! Evil: *still laughing hysterically* Skizz: You guys are morons. Tango: EVIIIL! What’s wrong with you?! Why would you lie?! Evil, still laughing: I didn’t believe he was the jester! Skizz: HE VOTED FOR HIMSELF TWICE!

...

Tango: Rule number one: if you don’t understand a button, press it immediately.

...

Tango, running into electrical to find only Lala there: Oh hi, Lala! *silence* Tango: Lala, how you doing tonight? We haven’t had a chance to talk. *silence* Tango: Good chat, let’s do this again sometime. *silence* Tango: Thanks, Lala. That- Great stuff…

...

*imposter Mrs Tango accidentally killed her partner’s lover and got ejected for it* Mrs Tango: Dangit, Astro! Astro, laughing: Hey, Mrs Tango? D’you r- remember when I had a lover that round?

...

*after Skizz sheriffed Tango 10 seconds into the round* Tango: Let’s find Skizz and close all his doors. *ghost Tango floats over to electrical and finds Skizz’s ghost hovering next to his body* Tango: OH SKIZZ WHAT’S THE MATTER YOU’RE DEAD IN THE FACE YOU JERK BUTT! Skizz: *bursts out laughing* Tango: YOU ARE SUCH A MONKEY- *cuts himself off* MMMNNAAAA, alright?! You know that?! I did NOTHING- I did NOTHING to tip you off except mock colours! Skizz: Yes you did, dude! Tango: And you come over like *mocking Skizz* “mleh I’ve known you long enough”, you took a shot in the dark, you monke-! *again cuts himself off* Skizz: It was not a shot in the dark! Tango: Yes it was! Skizz: No it wasn’t! Tango: TOTAL shot in the dark! Skizz: NO IT WASN’T! Tango: You’re a flaming buttnugget! Skizz: *laughs again* Tango: I’m so glad you’re dead.

...

(the same round) Tango: I just wanna let you know right now: you’re dead to me. Skizz: *laughs* Tango: We used to be friends. I am setting your volume to zero. Goodbye, Skizz! Nice knowing you! Skizz, still laughing: You better not!

...

Tango, dead: Vote Skizzleman! Skizz, also dead, laughing: “Vote Skizz”. Tango: Vote Skizz. Resurrect his corpse and then throw him out into space.

...

Tango: How are the bubbles? Am I gonna experience this joy later or what? Mrs Tango: You can only hope. Tango: Ohoho! Can’t wait! Skiddley-doo!

...

Skizz: *calls a meeting* Skizz: I finally got to get there, and here’s what I’m gonna do. I will give the killer- I have risen from the dead. And I will give the killer a chance to step forward and admit to your sins and be forgiven. Brody: Did Astro save you? Cuz that sounds like something he would do. Skizz: Astro saved me, that’s correct. Lala: Awww, he’s so cute! Mrs Tango: Yay altruist!

...

*Etho is unanimously voted out* Brody, deadpan: It’s anonymous though, you don’t know who voted for you.

...

Endless: Why did you vote for me? I was literally on the other side of the ship when that happened. Brody: Because you killed me.

...

Skizz: Hey, Etho. Hey, buddy. You had an opportunity to confess your sins and you just weren’t having it. Etho: You know, I wasn’t really paying attention and then I realised “oh, this is actually coming back to bite me”.

...

*Tango reporting a swooper kill* Lala: Or Tango just killed Brody- Tango: No no no, listen. I’m the engineer, so- Lala: Uh huh- Tango: No no, I’m telling you right now, I’ll vent in front of your dumb face, let’s go. Astro: Hey now! Etho: This is getting spicy :D Lala: I don’t think I like you calling me dumb, Tango. Tango: Alright, I’ll just vent in front of your face. Etho: He didn’t call you dumb, he called your face dumb. There’s a big difference. Astro: I’m not sure that makes it better.

...

*in the lobby* Endless: Tango, here’s what happened. I was talking to Mrs Tango and I said “have you still not finished the swipe [card task]?” and then she said “I just did” and then I realised we didn’t HAVE the swipe [card task], so that’s why I was saying she was faking it. Tango: You know what would’ve been good? Endless: If I had said that- Tango, at the same time: If you had said that in the meeting. That would’ve been good.

...

Tango, as the game is starting: Everybody vote Etho off, he’s the imposter. Etho: Whoa whoa whoa whoa! Tango: Etho sus!

...

Lala: I gasped cuz I saw the purple body and I thought I died. Brody and Evil: *laugh* Brody: Those are two different shades of purp- How much juice have you had? Astro: Just a bottle. Lala: I don’t like your tone, sir.

[rustedeaglewings]

I call this my Izuku goes off on people who deserve it AU. He deserves to. As a treat.

XxX

“And you muttering over there, with the curly green hair. Are you trying to distract everyone around you? If you didn’t come to take this exam seriously, you should leave!”

Izuku shot up as the unexpected call out interrupted his thoughts. He hadn’t even realized he was muttering. But who gave this blue haired glasses wearing kid any right to call him out? Isn’t he just another examinee?

With the presence of his friend beside him, Izuku felt confident to talk back for once.

“N…No.” A hand on his leg cemented his determination.

“Actually, I was trying to analyze the situation as any hero or hero hopeful should. Strong flashy quirks are not enough to make it in the hero industry despite what the Hero Commission obviously wants society to think. That’s why they obviously adjust the hero rankings from a straight popularity or efficiency poll to one that favours not only spotlight heroes but the spotlight heroes with flashy quirks. There’s several online analysts who agree with this statement, HeroWatcher, StatsMan, and, uh, GreenCryptid, all have evidence showing the unofficial polls compared to the one the Hero Commission puts out and there’s a very clear trend in the differences.”

Oh dear. He was on a roll now.

“This exam,” Izuku gestured to the screen that still showed the three robots, “obviously favours the types of quirks the Hero Commission likes to promote. There’s hardly any chance for those with non physical quirks or quirks that affect human senses to pass. Heroes Midnight, Glittertouch, Long Shot, KindAss, Nedzu (may I have the Overlords’ favour), and even the underground hero Eraserhead all have quirks proven to aid in decreasing crime, apprehending criminals, tracking down villain operations and supporting victims in the aftermath of not only villain attacks but also after natural disasters. I wonder how many of these heroes would have failed this test when they were fourteen years old? In fact, one of them did fail and it took winning the sports festival to get into heroics!”

The auditorium is silent except for Izuku. Not even Present Mic has picked up his jaw from the floor and was included in the number of people staring at this tiny green child in shock and disbelief.

“And what does the Hero Commission have to gain for this type of discrimination - and yeah it it’s discrimination, keep your mouths shut and listen. Well, if we have heroes we need villains for them to fight. If the heroes have strong flashy quirks, the villains must have weak or undesirable quirks. There are no goddamned hero r villain quirks. There are just quirks! Yet the Hero Commission is literally promoting this… this societal discrimination for their own benefit! The more villains, the more control the Hero Commission gains! They are literally on par with the Army but while the head of the Army is in the end the President and someone the people voted for, the President of the Hero Commission is chosen internally. Who knows what their agenda is!”

Wide eyes are even wider and Izuku suddenly remembers he’s not on a discord call with his friends and instead in front of hundreds of stranger. He’s gotten off track.

“Oh, obviously the Hero Commission can’t look like they’re being so blatant in their discrimination, that’s why there’s likely a hidden component the judges can tell people about for those who they want to include in heroics who otherwise didn’t get in, or to exclude from heroics if they don’t want them. Let me see, there’s a fourth robot but according to this it’s worth zero points. - you should have just turned the page and you’d have seen it yourself. The diagram in the leaflet doesn’t include scale but just my looking and comparing the eye size of the three pointer to the zero pointer, the zero pointer is at least two, no maybe three? times larger. Yet worth zero points. If it was worth points I’d say they want us to use teamwork to take it down but zero points… hm, maybe something about stopping collateral damages? Prevent the zero pointer from crushing buildings? Or, no wait. Rescue? Helping other examinees get out of the path of the zero pointer? And prevent or treating injuries? That might be it…”

The last bit turned into unintelligible muttering before the hand on his leg gave a little flick and Izuku straightened again. He lost track for a moment there but he had a point to all this.

“So Rescue or Search and Aid or something along those lines is the hidden test so the Hero Commission isn’t sued by those with quirks supposedly unsuited for heroics. But guess what, some of those top heroes would likely fail that part of the test. They *do* regularly fail that part of the hero audits but that’s swept under the rug with the Hero Commission’s other dirty secrets. But Death Arms clearly las a low score on civilian aid. Arachne Lass was once called out on her damage to public and private properly when she uses her spider army. And don’t let me get started on Endeavour. Highest Villain deaths, highest civilian deaths, highest civilian injuries, highest fear among civilians for a hero, second highest property damage - first place there actually goes to All Might, who knew? - yet Endeavour is second in the ranking. Because he’s got a strong and flashy quirk, perfect for heroics. And I bet cause he can melt the stupid robots with his stupid fire to pass this stupid, biased test.”

Izuku looked up from his hands clenched around the exam leaflet to stare the kid who started this in his shocked eyes. He narrowed his eyes.

“And you probably have one of those strong flashy quirks that the Hero Commission would think is perfect for heroics. Let’s see, a mutation to your legs. Not for strength or jumping, the shape is wrong for that, it almost looks like metal, kind of familiar l so maybe like a hero I’ve seen before? doesn’t matter right now, uses arms a lot so maybe has to brace against things cause it doesn’t seem like there’s a mutation there so… speed quirk? And that’s a yes judging from the widening of your eyes. And a familiar hero with a speed quirk, Ingenium. Part of a family of heroes. You’ve probably been told you can be a hero if you just try enough your whole life. Just like any one with a strong flashy quirk has heard.”

There is a glare coming from two rows in front of him that Izuku has been ignoring since he opened his mouth. Almost done his impromptu speech and then he can have a mental breakdown in the bathroom.

“So you, and most of the people here probably, have just assumed you can become a hero. You’ve always been told you can. But there are people here who haven’t been that lucky. Some of us have never had support and have had to do everything we can to get here, kicking and screaming against all the naysayers. So I don’t think you have any right to judge me for doing what I can to try to level the playing field for my friend and I and to do what I can to have at least a chance in this biased exam. Also, if you had listened to that muttering then you’d know the weaknesses of the three robots worth points in this exam but I guess I’ll leave you to figure it out on your own.”

Izuku was turning to sit again when he thought of one last thing to add. “Oh, and it’s no good trying to be a stickler for the rules. Villains will use that and tear you apart for it, seeing as you wouldn’t be able to think outside the box.”

He sat and there is silence. The other examinees around him are blinking, brains trying to process everything they just heard. A couple kids started clapping but it was silenced by the looks others gave them.

But the clapping seemed to snap Present Mic out of whatever trance he was in.

“Ah yes, Examinee 4616 was correct about the last robot being with zero points. I can neither confirm nor deny anything else about the exam. You have twenty minutes to find your busses to the examination sites. Good luck.”

Present Mic fled, hand on his earpiece to the observation room, trying to muffle Nedzu’s cackling, as the eyes of the students all turned to analyze how they’d fare against this knowledgeable green haired kid.

[author-stephanie-taylor]

I’m focusing primarily on the hashtag “if you consider 15 a little girl sure”. Now, I am in no way trying to throw hate on this person. I can only make assumptions here so I’m going to assume that at 23 years old they are absolutely aware that these posts are going to get people riled up and that’s their point – or that they are vastly uninformed about the topic of sexual assault and truly don’t understand how dismissive and disgusting this is.

This woman seems very caught up on the semantics, insinuating that a 15 year old isn’t a “little girl” and therefore she has proved that the Anon is making a big deal about something that isn’t a big deal at all because a 15 year old isn’t a “little girl.”

Since semantics and proper description seems very important to her…  In the true legal definition a 15 year old is a minor. At 15 you are too young to legally drive, to vote legally, to drink legally or to even see an rated R movie in theaters. In terms of what you can and can’t do in the eyes of the law, you are in fact still a child.

Now, if you are a 27 year old man you are legally able to do all of the above. What you’re not legally allowed to do is sleep with children, whether they be “little girls” or minors. There is a huge power shift in a relationship like the one the victim describes having with Jimmy Urine. He was in a band, she was a fan. He had money, she couldn’t even legally hold a job at the time. But above all, sleeping with a minor is a CRIME.

The relationship this victim describes having with Jimmy is incredibly disturbing, including that he allegedly used gaslighting and other emotional abuse techniques to convince her that by allowing him to sexually abuse her, she was saving even younger girls from being sexually abused. I would urge you to watch Surviving R. Kelly, Audrie and Daisy, The Accused and to hop onto rainn.org where there is plenty of other information and statistics about rape and sexual assault. Educate yourself before you pick a stance that has no solid foundation of logic.

And of course, if you have zero want to educate yourself or have compassion for others because it doesn’t personally affect you, then don’t be surprised when you get push back. I certainly hope nothing ever happens to you where the compassion of others is needed either for emotional support or physical.

[inhibited-irregularity]

EUROVISION 2021, personal favorites:

- Russia 🇷🇺

Manizha, Russian Woman: Absolute favorite. The sheer originality of the song! Her energy and the level of absolute badassery! She can sing, she can rap,and she's a bomb of energy. The way reggae and brass and hiphop and Slavic melodies overlap and it somehow works, the transitions between fun and "I'm bitter about the sexism and I'm mocking it unapologetically and making a stand" and the anthemic, emphatic and powerful message to Russian women; I was swelling with emotion while watching her. While to an American or a Westerner it may seem like performative feminism, I'm gonna remind you that in Russia and other Slavic countries that's very much not a thing and actually a very unpopular stand to make, and in Russia, The Balkans, and Eastern Europe in general, hundreds of women face domestic and sexual abuse on the daily, and those who do come forward rarely get support and are mostly dismissed. Let's not forget that Manizha got a huge backlash from the Russian government officials, and a big part of it was for her Tajik roots. The honesty of her message is real, and she's speaking from personal experience and the experience of women around her - nothing performative about her song, and you can tell from her delivery that the fire within her is true and she leaves her heart on the stage and pours it into the song. The staging and costumes are great as well, and symbolically well thougt-through. I would really like her to win, or at least get to the top 5. Most of all, I hope her message is heard and felt. 10000/10

- Italy 🇮🇹

Måneskin, Zitti e Buoni: definitely the closest thing to my actual music taste this year, so liking them off the bat wasn't a surprise. However, they're not just your regular Franz-Ferdinand-ish young alt rock band that wants to do rock "properly" - they have IT. The X factor, the Je ne sais quoi. I've been exposed to that particular genre, and I can confidently say that the song still manages to be refreshing and original (that bridge, those riffs!) The band has a great energy and no matter how much Damiano steals the show, they are still a unit and nobody is left in the shadows. They have the spirit of great rock bands of the previous century, and yet they don't try to copy anyone (khm,Greta Van Fleet, khm). Damiano's vocals are both powerful, seductive and provoking, and I'm still admiring the sheer amount of emotion he can pack into a single line and the nuance and yet rawness behind it. I'm not gonna state the obvious lol (the obvious being yes, I'm thirsty as well, he becomes yet another unattainable rockstar for me too,and yes they all look great) Anyway, great song, and maybe the clearest and most serious candidate for the number one spot, taking both the jury and the public into consideration. 10/10

- Iceland 🇮🇸

Daði Freyr and Gagnamagnið, 10 years:

What can I say about this masterpiece that hasn't already been said? A clear fan-favorite (hi, Valentina), but with the guns to back it up. The song is contagious, fun and campy, and unlike some other songs with said qualities, actually good from a musical perspective. Daði is incredibly charismatic and his sense of humor shines through, and even though he's the star of the show, the same can be said about the other band members. The synergy Måneskin has can be applied to Gagnamagnið as well, even though the energy is entirely different. They're serving us fun, sunshine, kitties rainbows sugar spice and everything nice, and manage to do it with zero cringe factor (plus those funky keytars). I'm one of those Eurovision fans that lament the golden age's (2004-2009) campiness (We'll never forget you, Verka), and Daði managed to bring it back, but modernised, polished and still sincere. I personally preferred the epic dad joke that slightly more commercial Think About Thing was (but that's one tough act to follow), but I'm always down for a husband adoring his wife and singing praises to their relationship. Since we're on tumblr, I feel obliged to use the term "cinnamon rolls" in describing Daði and the band. 9.5/10

- France 🇫🇷

Barbara Pravi, Voilà: She brought the theatrics, she brought the drama, and she brought the 101 in "that's how you perform". Her personality leaps through, and her voice is both beautiful and full of emotion and power. I'd hire her to star in a serious and artistic movie. Despite the fact that Voilà is from its melody to the singing style to the video to the vibe and the aesthetic hands down the most French thing I've seen since Amélie (do not come for that movie), it miraculously doesn't come across as a cliché, but rather an homage, and an individualistic one at that. It's not entirely my cup of tea, since I'm usually biased to songs that may come off as snobbish (I mean, the jury is going to lap it up), and are all about being proper and technical and oh how ~artistic~, but Barbara puts the soul into the immaculate. I'm not giving her the highest mark because I'm yet to see the performance, but I'm rooting for her. If she delivers the performance, we might have a clear winner. 9/10

- Ukraine 🇺🇦

Go_A, Shum: I'm a sucker for all things ethnic and mytological, so this was a no-brainer. I want that song played at every party. I want to go to the forest in the video and chant and summon the spring with flute and hard-bass. Kateryna Pavlenko has some unexplainable power over me, and her eyes are simply hypnotizing. The vocals are great, proper Slavic ethno right there (seriously, check out Slavic folklore and traditional music), and she has a subtle punk quality too(?). Ukraine came to save the spring and make us forget about the pandemic, and minus the Maruv fiasco (justice for her!), they always deliver and I expected nothing less. On the other hand, I loved the original version much more and couldn't help but be a bit disappointed with the revamp (yes, I know they had to), and while I personally love Shum, I think some other acts are more deserving of the higher placement. Go_A are not my winner, but definitely soon to be in my playlist. 8/10

- San Marino 🇸🇲

Adrenalina, Senhit ft. Flo Rida: You know that golden age of Eurovision I mentioned? THIS. I'm Serbian, so I can't resist a banger reminiscent of our horrible turbo-folk elements (and I say that endearingly,takes me back to 18th birthday parties (boy I'm glad that's over)). Let's just crown Senhit this year's Queen of Camp. The wild factor of Flo Rida...just?? Amazing. Can't wait to see how the performance goes (EDIT- it went great, I had a grin on my face the entire time and couldn't help but dance along). A certain refreshment after Serhat and Valentina Monetta endless loop. They didn't dial down the weird, but made it catchy af, and the vocal can rival any Balkan folk diva. While I think it's definitely the most entertaining entry this year, it's far from being the most original, and it's not really my genre of preference. Will vote for Senhit and root for her to qualify. 7.5/ 10

- Sweden 🇸🇪

Tusse, A million voices: As I mentioned before, I'm the first person that starts complaining about Sweden Superiority as soon as Eurovision season begins, and I'm with you all with being tired of Sweden qualifying just because they're Sweden and usually just bringing the same brand of MTV/Calvin Harris/American pop, or a successful and not-so-subtle imitation of the performances that did well the previous year,but listen: A million voices is a solid pop song and I'm going to die on that hill. It actually embodies the essence of pop - a catchy, pleasant melody sung by a good vocalist, with a short,sweet and uplifting message. It's not the same as previous years, it's not commercial, just good pop - good pop being something you immediately like and vibe to no matter how many common elements of the genre it checks. It relies on RnB rather than electronic sounds, auto tune or various DJ effects. Tusse is charming and charismatic af, and he's a 19yo kid doing an amazing job on a global stage. You don't have to like it, but there's no need to hate on it (ask Jendrik). Imo, Tusse deserved to qualify. Not winner material yet, but I wish him a fun time and a successful career. 7 5/10

- Switzerland 🇨🇭

G'jons Tears, Tout L'Univers: I saw the video first, and I HATED IT. It came across as a Duncan Lawrence-high-art wannabe, something technically perfect, but empty of soul or meaning, another soft boy with a sad falsetto, another jury-points bait. BUT. I changed my mind entirely after seeing him perform. Hands down, it was touching and epic. Reminding me of Hamlet aside, he DELIVERED, and made me love him, and actually enjoy the song. I still think the song is less original than Tusse's voices, but I enjoy the troubadour vibes of the pre-chours. G'jon is absolutely adorable, and I'm not gonna be mad if he wins. 8/10

shout-outs&honorable mentions:

- Serbia 🇷🇸 Yes, some national bias, but I'm proud of our girls. Ever Since we placed 2nd with Željko's Lane, we had that goddamn flute e v e r y year, and the same outdated scenography with a side of extra pathos (I'm sure that ruined Sanja's chances and her otherwise great performance back in 2016.) Finally something fun and actually representative of the music popular here. They looked flawless and the energy was off the charts. Go, Hurricane!

-Finland 🇫🇮 Yes, cheesy and corny and I cut my finger accidentally from watching the video on all the edge, but I'm biased because they're bringing emo and nu-metal back, and that's the music of my early adolescence (hello, Kaulitz brothers and Andy Biersack,hello Gerard Way and Linkin Park) Call me grandma lol

- Malta 🇲🇹 DESTINY CAN SIIIIIIIIING! I wasn't impressed with the song initially, but the performance blew my mind.

- Ireland 🇮🇪 A for effort, and so nice of her to try and give us something unique! While it wasn't good enough to qualify, it was super fun and she seems so nice. Also, we all know that she was out of breath an can sing much better than that. Still wasn't bad.

- Romania 🇷🇴, for being so young and brave enough to put on a show. The nerves got the better of her, but the song itself is good and no doubt she'll do well in the future

- Lithuania 🇱🇹, thanks for the memeries

- Croatia 🇭🇷, Not my cup of tea, but Albina gave a great performance

-Norway 🇳🇴, for embodying the spirit of Eurovision

- North Macedonia 🇲🇰, for the disco chest

- The UK 🇬🇧, for putting some effort

(Might edit later)

[feuilly-cakes]

New Moon - Review - 3*

The problem with first-person narration is that when the main character is in distress you can't have fun reading the book, because everything is coloured with that viewpoint. As a result, I was more annoyed by this than I needed to be, because of the way Bella changed and also Edward's actions. It did, however, do some cool things too, in the way of important messages and descriptions of poor mental health, and also what it's like to begin to recover from that. So this was less enjoyable than Twilight, but not less important to read. Spoilers beyond this point Bella starts off on a high note, with a new-ish job at the Newton's shop and a close relationship with Edward and Alice, who are both friendly or even besties with Charlie in Alice's case. She's living the dream, and then the birthday party happens, and it all goes downhill. Edward is acting strange and indifferent to Bella, Bella is freaking out about that because she's a smart cookie and thinks he's going to ask her to leave with him, and then suddenly she's dumped, depressed, and hallucinating Edward's voice. It's not a great time for Bella. This whole experience makes her change from a strong, funny, normal girl to a selfish, hypocritical girl with zero self esteem or self preservation. As character growth goes it's not nice but it is realistic and it needed to be that way to further the plot. Let me be clear: she is still all the Bella things of the first book, but it's hidden away behind the depression and desperation and the way she can't think rationally anymore. I want to talk about Edward now, because I now think he's trash and am firmly on #teamjacob for the first time in my life. Edward is so pitiful here that he literally dumps her on the trail to some woods like a moron and then runs away and never expects her to, I don't know, follow him? He didn't think she would be too hurt by him rejecting her either because "how could you let one word break your faith in me?" I don't know Edward, perhaps because it was you that said those words? Also that's very 'let's blame Bella for my actions' of you... but I digress. After he's back he even tells Bella he "was coming back anyway" and "it was only a matter of time." Sir, if you're going to abruptly dump your girlfriend of 6 months and not so much as check in on her, then at least have the willpower to stick to that, because if this were a normal story you'd have gotten punched in the face the minute you showed up. The only saving grace for his character in this book is when Bella uses logic on him to get him to see he has hope for his own soul after all, and he begins to really come around to changing her, so there may be hope for him after all. The Werewolves I'm not going to talk about Jacob much because nothing massive stood out to me, just know that I love him and he should've been with Bella. The way he let her know he was into her and then remained her friend without pushing unless she did something was lovely, and I truly believe that if Edward hadn't been come back it would've been a perfect sequel. I am already expecting that to change in Eclipse because of the thing that he's going to do. Anyway, I also love the pack and wish we got more time with them. They call each other "brothers" and I just wanted some found family goodness and got nothing. I also wish we had gotten more interactions between Bella and Emily, because Bella starts calling herself a "wolf girl" and hanging out with Emily but we don't see that and it's so frustrating. I need a whole book dedicated to what exactly she was doing when she was spending all of her time at La Push. The Vampires. The Volturi are finally named in the scene where Romeo and Juliet is used to foreshadow the whole book. They are also used to foreshadow the rest of the book. Later we discover that they are a family of 5, with 9 main guard members plus an unknown number that changes. This is the information I always wanted to know but never did. Aro has "clouded, milky" red eyes, and "papery" skin. It isn't clear if this is from age or something else, but it kind of creeped me out I'm not going to lie. He also goes on a little tangent about how it "pleases" him that Carlisle was successful in being a vegetarian. This could have been a lie, but remember that Edward is a mind reader and would have given some indication. I actually like him in this book, he's very friendly and as soon as he gets confirmation Bella will be changed he's content to leave them be, though is a bit wistful that they won't join him. Caius is the one who tells them they have a time limit. Onto the big differences from the film -The Romeo and Juliet scene takes place in Bella's living room instead of the English classroom. As does the second half of the Volturi explanation scene, the first half of which took place in the first book. -Bella knows something is going to happen with Edward before he takes her on the walk. -The motorbike scene in Port Angeles isn't a motorbike scene, it's a walking towards dangerous men then leaving scene. -Bella and Jacob go hiking together to find the meadow, and Bella finds it on her own after all that hiking practice. -The werewolf reveal scene where Bella smacks Paul doesn't happen. Bella and Jacob deliberately meet them somewhere, Bella doesn't smack anyone, and Paul loses it anyway. -Jacob gets a grounded Bella in further trouble by showing Charlie the motorbikes they rose together many times, not just once. Parts I actually liked, because it wasn't all bad. -Bella stands up to Edward about her truck stereo in the beginning. It was a good moment. -Bella says that the birthday incident wasn't Jasper's fault at all. -A funny moment: (when Sam Uley introduces himself less than a year after she met him on First Beach:) "There was nothing familiar about his name." (And yes, I checked and she definitely met him, age 19, never learned how to read...) - Chapter 6: Friends. The whole page where Jacob and Bella are giggling and tripping over themselves and each other had me beaming. Such a happy section. -"I wanted to be fierce and deadly. Someone no one would dare mess with. Someone who would scare Sam Uley silly. I wanted to be a vampire." -There's a part during the voting scene where Edward grabs Bella by the face and she's talking to Carlisle and hoping he will understand because it was hard to talk properly the way Edward was holding her face. The mental image I got... he was squeezing her cheeks to the point she was doing fish lips and it nearly had me in tears. -Also with the voting scene, Rosalie votes against Bella, but she has no aversion to being her sister, only a vampire. Bella then tells everyone she feels the same about them as they do as her, which hurts Rosalie, and Bella realises that could be taken the wrong way. She didn't mean it in a bad way and the fact that Rosalie got hurt shows how their relationship is already developing from the first book. I found this part interesting and lovely to see, as I used to see it as a very abrupt friendship in book 4. There was no outright offensive language in this book, however there were several instances of questionable and uncomfortable behaviour, so I'll be listing them below. -When telling her about the birthday arrangements Edward and Alice don't listen to her protests, and pretty much force her into going to a party she doesn't want. It's creepily reminiscent of the prom incident, only with much worse results. -The Port Angeles post-cinema scene. Bella endangers her own and Jessica's life just to hear a hallucination of Edward. She then decided they were "probably nice guys. Safe." and just walked away, after realising they weren't the same men who wanted to r*pe her in book 1. She then thinks that Jessica is upset because she "must have really offended her" and not because she risked her life and well-being on a whim. The whole mindset Bella is in here is obviously not a healthy one, and I think we as readers are supposed to understand that and empathise with Jessica, but I can't be sure, and either way it's really bad and reckless behaviour. -Bella describes Leah as "exotic" which is not only weird but incorrect. Leah is native american and therefore the opposite of exotic. Leah isn't an animal, she isn't unusual or from far away, she's a person living in the place she was born, and it's beyond weird to call a person 'exotic'. -Jacob is back at it with the weird hatred of his own tribe. Pre-werewolf anyway. Before I get into it, I'd like to remind you that Jacob is not a real Native American because he was written by a WHITE woman, and therefore anything he says is a reflection of Stephenie Meyer and not of an actual Native American person. Now that's out of the way, Jacob is telling Bella about Sam Uley's behaviour, and while doing so he says this: "They're all about our land, and tribe pride... it's getting ridiculous." In the context of the book only, he's talking about how Sam's pack (though he doesn't know it's a pack yet) have become "protectors" and he thinks it's weird. In the context of who the author is, however, it's a bit more complicated. This line makes it seems like Stephenie Meyer may believe having lots of pride in your tribe as a native american person is ridiculous, and it skirts a dangerous territory. Remember she is a white woman and who clearly hasn't done research into why native american people are protective of what little land they have left and what culture hasn't been taken from them through genocide. This is your reminder to seek out native american voices, and especially Quileute voices in this circumstance, and learn their opinions and views on these matters. -Quileute is described as "an unfamiliar, liquid language." I couldn't find any video or audio of this language except the alphabet, and so I very much doubt Stephenie Meyer found something 14 years ago. It's my opinion that just like with the legends, she made this up and slapped the Quileute name on it for exploitative reasons. From what research I've done no young person would've known the language fluently anyway because it was dying before 2000 and is barely being kept alive. It wasn't hard to find this out, and as someone who was set to make millions off this book she should have done her research. -Bella's attitude regarding Gianna. She's horrified by her desire to become one of the Volturi, to be surrounded by vampires, and it doesn't seem to click that Bella herself has that same desire with the Cullens. She looks down on Gianna just because the vampires she desires are human drinkers and not animal drinkers, and it's clear she doesn't think of them as the same. All of the Cullens have killed humans or drank from them, so Bella is extremely hypocritical here. -"I mean, 'Fine, I'll move out.'" Bella holds this ultimatum over Charlie's head when he doesn't want her seeing Edward. She's being selfish and childish here, not caring that he's trying to look after her. When Edward left she was ruined, and Charlie is trying to stop that from happening again. Her actions in this scene are horrible and show how little she cares for Charlie, the man who looked after her while she was broken, who is her father. This is where we truly see how selfish Bella has become over the course of the book, or perhaps since being in a relationship with Edward, as in Twilight she would have never said this to Charlie. She may be an adult but she is sure acting like a child. -Finally, the vote. After it takes place, Bella demands Alice turn her immediately, and refuses to listen to reason when Alice tells her she can't just do it right away. She then turns to Carlisle, putting him right on the spot, and demands the same. He agrees but it's not right or proper behaviour, but unfortunately it's behaviour we come to expect from Bella by the end of the book. The switch from vote to demanding she be changed was jarring, and it really rubbed me the wrong way.

[chaoskirin]

I’ve reblogged the whole thing so many times here that I hope @zevbaldwin (it won’t link your name for some reason, so here’s a direct link) doesn’t mind me copy/pasting their reply to my post. The bolding is mine, and illustrates that the constitution is not infallible and can be changed by a corrupt establishment:

***

Kids … Let me tell you an interesting story. You may have heard something about Putin. You know, the president of Russia. So, we have a Constitution. And it says that the president can be elected 2 times in a row for a period of 4 years.

Now let me take you to the circus. Putin became president in 2000 and held this post for 2 consecutive terms. In 2008, Medvedev became president (70% of the votes!), And immediately made changes to the Constitution (they did not even arrange a referendum, why spend money) that the president is elected for 6 years. A standing ovation!

The State Duma (parliament) adopted this document. In 2011, Medvedev “got ready!” - at the party congress, it was all broadcast on television, suggested Putin to be elected for the next presidential term, and Putin (surprise, surprise) agreed. This, I can tell you, was a sight! It’s always exciting to watch the complete lack of morality and the conscience of the country’s leaders.In 2012, Putin was elected president, and in 2018 too.

And I must say that in these elections the people behaved slightly differently. There were more candidates from the opposition, and most importantly, the people began to vote more actively for the opposition. If earlier people simply did not vote (who to vote for? All candidates are terrible! Do you recognize yourself?), Then in the 2018 elections, people seemed to wake up from hibernation and went to the polls.

Putin won, but … I think they got scared. They saw that people are becoming more active, that people are beginning to resist. And therefore, in 2019, talks began about how the great Putin is saving Russia from external enemies, primarily the Americans and Trump. How Putin pulled the country out of economic chaos and devastation. Well, you get the idea. And there was talk that we cannot allow the departure of the great Putin. If Putin is not president, Russia will fall apart, fall into chaos and “blood will flood the streets.” Those blood and where it will come from, they did not say. Terrible homosexuals and transsexuals will grab children and destroy morality. I think you know the lyrics. You hear them on TV every day.

That is why it is necessary to enable Putin to remain in the presidency. And in June 2020, a vote was held to adopt amendments to the Constitution, thanks to which all the terms while Putin was president are zeroed and in 2024 our dear President will become president again. In general, according to the current constitution and “fair” elections, Putin will remain president until 2036.

Guys, if your mailboxes are removed, then your votes and voting probably mean something. Don’t wait for your constitution to change so that Trump can remain president indefinitely. Do you think there was someone to vote for in 2018? Not. There were no worthy candidates. At all. But I went and voted. I voted for a woman I hate. But she has at least some thoughts and judgments with which I agree.

Now we have had demonstrations, processions in Khabarovsk for almost a month, and posters like “Down with the Tsar” began to appear. The Tsar is Putin. There are demonstrations in St. Petersburg and in other cities. In general, there is hope that the people will somehow be indignant about the amendments and something will start to change.

See what’s going on in your country. And get your heads out of your asses!

In the United States, we have a different method of adopting amendments. I am mentioning this because if I don’t, there will be a whole lot of people pointing and saying “GOTCHA! WE DON’T MAKE AMENDMENTS THAT WAY!!!” but the point is, the people in charge can and will find ways to make what they want to happen happen. 

They don’t care about the constitution, and they will find any loophole they can to keep power.

And like I said, this doesn’t just happen--bam!--fullblown fascism. It’s slow enough that some people don’t notice it until it’s too late. 

You have to get over the tumblr-purity-bullshit that’s preventing you from voting for Biden. And don’t give me that bullshit about “I’m not voting for a r*pist!” because you know #45 has sexually harassed women (He’s even caught on tape saying ‘grab ‘em by the p*ssy!), broken laws, is currently destroying the USPS, and other things that are too many to list. You also know that there’s no way a 3rd party candidate can win, and by voting 3rd party, you are voting for #45.

So why are you okay casting a vote for #45 and not Biden, who at least has progressive policies? 

[douchebagbrainwaves]

EVERY FOUNDER SHOULD KNOW ABOUT CONTACT

There was no protection against breakage except the fear of looking bad than by the hope of getting millions of dollars, and you get. Because few of us know any alternative, we have no idea what our average returns might be, and won't know for years. And it can last for months. The language offers abstractions only as a way to get a big program is to start with. The problem is the real one. Treat the first few months comforted ourselves by treating the whole thing onto the shoulders of a big company, it's good news. Actually I was being conservative. When Mark spoke at a YC dinner this winter he said he wasn't trying to start a startup.1 Whereas fundraising, when you're in a very strong position, you not only won't get that but won't get anything.2 But at least you know where these facial expressions come from.

Startup funding meant series A rounds.3 In phase 2, on top of whatever you sold in phase 1. What this means in practice is that they are compulsive negotiators who will suck up a lot of new software, because you're paying for the hardware, just as we can become wiser.4 What nerds like is other nerds.5 Often as not a startup at all.6 Maybe some aspects of professionalism are actually a net lose. Perhaps it's in the sweet spot midway between. TV.

So let that satisfy your competitiveness. Two years from now, you'll be able to use their control of the desktop to prevent, or constrain, this new generation of software?7 I wouldn't claim it's painless.8 So I recommend being good. His mom probably has it on the fridge.9 In the process we may decrease economic inequality. Convergence is probably coming, but where? The conventional wisdom in the Lisp world is that the first problem is the same reason they had to work at another job to make money.

You can't blame kids for thinking I am not like these people; I am not like these people; I am not like these people; I am not suited to this world.10 The key stage is when they're three guys operating out of an apartment, and a Web browser. Ignoring any trend that has been operating for thousands of years is dangerous. The best investors are also the most liberal. The language is built in layers.11 It took me years to grasp that. There are ideas that obvious lying around now.12 If one woodworker makes 5 chairs and another makes none, the second seems as strong as ever.13 The floors are constantly being swept clean of any loose objects that might later get stuck in something.

That's how the two are only loosely coupled.14 If you try writing Web-based applications. If you take a boring job to give your family a high standard of living, as so many people do, you don't have to force yourself to work, just as there was in the early days of microcomputers. With Web-based software will be less stressful.15 Prestige is especially dangerous to the ambitious. Tell yourself you can be in close contact with support. They say they're going to work on your projects, he can work wherever he wants on projects of his own. When you can ask the opinions of people you don't even know?

If everyone's filters have different probabilities, it will be, for users and developers both. The problem is that once you start raising money, but also connotations like formality and detachment. Hardware is free now, if your software is reasonably efficient.16 I'm an investor, the deal flow, as they were with desktop computers. You can usually call their bluff, and you willingly give him money in return for it.17 And yet all those people have to make a language that might go away, as so many programming languages do.18 Languages are for programmers, and libraries are what programmers need. The list of what you want in a startup hub. You can use whichever is best for each. Some such investors have value, but the curve is just as bad. In How to Become a Hacker, Eric Raymond describes Lisp as something like Latin or Greek—a charming college town with perfect weather and San Francisco only an hour away.

Notes

Com/spam. Again, hard work.

This is actually from the most demanding but also the fashion leaders.

Parker, William R. Digg is Slashdot with voting instead of a city's potential as a process rather than given by other people the freedom to they derive the same trick of enriching himself at the outset which founders will seem to be promising. If an investor pushes you hard to grasp this than we realize, because for times over a hundred and one or two, and since you can hire skilled people to claim retroactively I said yes.

Robert in particular. And it's particularly damaging when these investors flake, because at one point in the 1990s, and as we think. I've omitted one source: government grants. Record labels, for the next round.

If they want. The second biggest regret was caring so much on the scale that has a similar logic, one variant of the accumulator generator in other Lisp dialects: Here's an example of a running back doesn't translate to soccer. The Price of Inequality. There are people whose applications are perfect in every way, because they believe they do, so that you have to put it this way.

The problem with most of the kleptocracies that formerly dominated all the mistakes you made. More often you have to solve a lot of reasons American car companies, summer jobs are the usual way of calculating real income, they have to give up more than that total abstinence is the proper test of intelligence or wisdom. They assumed that their experience so far has trained them to get fossilized. The point where things start to rise again.

And say that's not the type who would make good angel investors.

I preferred to work like casual conversation. Stone, op. Default: 2 cups water per cup of rice. I don't know enough about big markets, why is New York, but that's what they really mean, in both Greece and China, many of the words we use have a browser and get pushed down by new arrivals.

This is a flaw here I should add that none who read this to users than where you wanted to than because they have because they had that we wouldn't have. After a bruising fight he escaped with a company, and Fred Wilson for reading drafts of this model was that professionalism had replaced money as a company grew at 1% a week for 19 years, it causes a fundamental economic shift away from large companies.

I became an employer, I mean type I startups. If Ron Conway, for example, probably did more drugs in his early twenties. If you have to go deeper into the work of selection.

Progressive tax rates will tend to get the people who get rich by creating wealth—wealth that, go talk to mediocre ones. Never attribute to malice what can be said to have invented.

27 with the founders lots of potential winners, from which they don't.

When he wanted to. Yes, I suspect the recent resurgence of evangelical Christians. Sofbot. The person who understands how to be tweaking stuff till it's yanked out of just doing things, you may as well.

Giant tax loopholes are definitely not a promising lead and should in some ways First Round Capital is closer to a later investor trying to meet people; I was genuinely worried that Airbnb, for example, if the growth is valuable, because a she is very polite and b the local builders built everything in it. Where Do College English 28 1966-67, pp. I remember are famous flops like the difference between us and the super-angels. I was not in the US since the mid 1980s.

A scientist isn't committed to rejecting it.

See Greenspun's Tenth Rule.

I realize this sounds like something cooked up, but the distribution of good startups that get funded this way is basically zero.

Most employee agreements say that intelligence doesn't matter in startups. I agree and in fact the decade preceding the war, tax rates, which has been decreasing globally. We didn't try to make money for the same work, but that they either have a bogus political agenda or are feebly executed.

Thanks to Trevor Blackwell, Marc Andreessen, Robert Morris, and Jessica Livingston for the lulz.