#in any case the bennet women were never going to be left out in the cold by the gardiners
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I always find it interesting that no one in P&P has any doubt that Mr Gardiner could and would have shelled out ten thousand pounds to bribe Wickham.
Mr Bennet is determined (at least at the time) to eventually repay him, when he believes Mr Gardiner paid it, but he does believe that. Mrs Bennet simply shrugs off the vast sum of money that everyone believes was expended to preserve Lydia's reputation. Her justification is that she and her daughters would have inherited all her brother's money if he hadn't gone and got married and had children of his own (how dare!). His assurance that she's going to be fine is not an empty one.
Elizabeth doesn't seem to doubt it, either. And earlier, at Pemberley, she assumed that Darcy had mistaken the Gardiners for members of fashionable upper-class societyâa believable mistake to make, apparently, and he is surprised that they're Mrs Bennet's relatives. (I mean. Fair.) Their summer trip is likely not a cheap one. They're doing quite well.
In any case, I do think the Gardiners' prosperity and its bearing on the Bennets' situation is kind of overlooked by the fandom.
#honestly i think mrs bennet's response to mr gardiner apparently paying ten thousand pounds for lydia to marry /wickham/#is pretty repugnant actually#the whole thing about how she would have been his heir#and he hasn't done anything except give presents to her children so he /should/ pay for lydia is. wtf.#(this is also manifestly false since elizabeth and jane frequently stay in the gardiners' house...)#in any case the bennet women were never going to be left out in the cold by the gardiners#anghraine babbles#austen blogging#austen fanwank#edward gardiner#m gardiner#mrs bennet critical
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Governor Cuomo Faces Multiple Sexual Harassment Accusations
By Sophia Gengaro, Villanova University Class of 2022
March 9, 2021
Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York is facing legal trouble, and it does not look like it will be going away. The Governor of New York has been accused of sexual harassment, both in the workplace and outside of it, by three separate women.
The first woman who came forward with accusations against Governor Cuomo was Lindsey Boylan. In December, she also publicly accused Cuomo of sexual harassment, but it never escalated. Lindsey Boylan alleges that âMr. Cuomo had a âcrushâ on her, said the governor went âout of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs.â In October 2017, during a flight back from an event in Western New York, Ms. Boylan said Mr. Cuomo told her they should âplay strip poker.â And in 2018, she said Mr. Cuomo gave her an unsolicited kiss after a one-on-one meeting in his Manhattan officeâ. [1] Governor Cuomoâs office continuously denied these claims.
The second woman who came forward, two days after Lindsey Boylan accused Governor Cuomo of sexual harassment was Charlotte Bennett. She is a 25 year old former aide of the Governor who left her job in the State Capitol in November. Charlotte Bennet accused Governor Cuomo of making inappropriate sexual advances towards her, asking âabout her sex life and whether she had ever had sex with older menâ and âif she thought age made a difference in romantic relationships, remarks she took as overtures to a sexual relationshipâ. [1]. After Charlotte Bennett told the Governorâs Chief of Staff about the inappropriate interaction between her and Cuomo, Bennet was transferred to a different job in a different place. Governor Andrew Cuomo denies the fact that he was inappropriate or harassing towards Charlotte Bennett. [1].
While the first two women who accused Cuomo of sexual harassment were women that he worked with, the third woman did not work for the Governor. At a wedding in September of 2019, Governor Andrew Cuomo allegedly inappropriately touched 33 year old Ann Ruch repeatedly. First, Governor Cuomo put his hand on her lower back during a conversation about a speech he gave at that same wedding. When Ann Ruch âremoved his hand with her own, the governor remarked that she seemed âaggressiveâ and placed his hands on her cheeks and asked if he could kiss her. Ms. Ruch said she pulled away as the governor drew closerâ. [1]
In light of these allegations, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo only âapologized  for workplace comments that he said âhave been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtationâ, but denied that he inappropriately touched nor sexually harassed any of the three women.â [2]While the investigation of accusations against Cuomo are not complete, ironically, in 2019, Governor Cuomo passed New York legislation which makes it easier for women to legally pursue men who sexually assaulted them. [3]Prior to these laws, it was difficult for women to make a strong case against a man unless the sexual harassment was âpervasive over a long period of time for you to be successful. The new law eliminates that requirement and even an isolated or singular incident could be the subject of a lawsuit." [3]In addition, these new laws give women who accuse men of sexual assault more protection from retaliation by the accused employer. Instead the new laws focus on how the harassment was interpreted by the woman and to what extent the actions affected her". [3]
The investigation will be led by Attorney General who will use investigators from a specially selected law firm that is independent from the government. These investigators will be given power to subpoena the governmentâs office, as well as the opportunity to interview any relevant personal from the governmentâs staff. In addition, electronic records such as text messages, phone calls, emails and photos will be searched through and elected. Once the investigators collect evidence and create a full report, âthose investigators will give their report to the attorney general to make a possible civil or criminal referral for actionâ. [3]
When the report is developed, it will be released to the public. In the past cases, of sexual harassment by elected officials has caused them to resign, regardless of whether or not the case is pursued in court. Public knowledge of the report by the investigators, once it is released by the Attorney General, has strong potential to force Governor Cuomo to resign and potentially face civil or criminal charges prior to during, or after his potential resignation from his elected position as Governor of New York. [3]
______________________________________________________________
[1] FerrĂ©-SadurnĂ, Luis. "Sexual Harassment Claims Against Cuomo: What We Know So Far." The New York Times. March 01, 2021. Accessed March 05, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/article/cuomo-sexual-harassment-nursing-homes-covid-19.html.
[2] FerrĂ©-SadurnĂ, Luis. "Cuomo Could Be Compelled to Testify in Sexual-Harassment Inquiry." The New York Times. March 02, 2021. Accessed March 05, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/02/nyregion/cuomo-sexual-harassment-testify.html.
[3] Plants, Author: Ron. "What Could Happen with Sexual Harassment Case against Gov. Cuomo." Wgrz.com. March 03, 2021. Accessed March 05, 2021. https://www.wgrz.com/article/news/politics/what-could-happen-with-sexual-harassment-case-against-new-york-governor-andrew-cuomo/71-0991f9c1-58bd-45b9-8522-54b1676557db.
Photo Credit: Delta News Hub
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Out of the Blue: Chapter 3
Cover art: @redheadgleekâ
Beta extraordinaire: @hkvoyageâ
Authorâs Note:
I'm in a terrible mood whenever I haven't slept enough, and Blaine in this story is just as moody and irritable when sleep-deprived :-) You have been warned!
Chapter 3: Mr. Grumps Down in the Dumps
Mr. Bingley had soon made himself acquainted with all the principal people in the room; he was lively and unreserved, danced every dance, was angry that the ball closed so early, and talked of giving one himself at Netherfield. Such amiable qualities must speak for themselves. What a contrast between him and his friend! Mr. Darcy danced only once with Mrs. Hurst and once with Miss Bingley, declined being introduced to any other lady, and spent the rest of the evening in walking about the room, speaking occasionally to one of his own party. His character was decided. He was the proudest, most disagreeable man in the world, and everybody hoped that he would never come there again. Amongst the most violent against him was Mrs. Bennet, whose dislike of his general behaviour was sharpened into particular resentment by his having slighted one of her daughters.
(An excerpt from Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)
That Saturday, Blaine was in a horrible mood. Heâd been woken in the middle of the night by loud squeals. Cooperâs latest conquest was a screamer, it seemed. Whatâs more, she hadnât left discreetly after the hook-up. Instead, she stayed for breakfast, never noticing how her shrill peppiness made both Anderson brothers wince, and she addressed Blaine like he was a child. Now, heâd be the first to admit that he wasnât too tall and that he looked young, but he looked teenager young, not toddler young.
When she exclaimed over his âcute curlsâ, and threaded her fingers through them, he gritted through his teeth, âDonât touch me!â and stomped away, his stomach growling in protest when he left his breakfast half finished.
He was working on an essay for school when Cooper came in and flung himself onto Blaineâs bed. âSheâs gone, squirt.â
âDonât call me squirt,â Blaine snapped. âAnd good riddance. You sure know how to pick them, ugh.â
âShe had great boobs.â
âThat must have been the only great thing about her.â
Cooper tilted his head to the side, conceding the point.
âAnd now Iâm starving because she chased me away from breakfast!â
Cooper chuckled. âAw, Blainey, you didnât like having your curls played with by a beautiful lady?â
Blaine shot him a dark glare, but it only made Coop laugh out loud.
âIf youâre only coming here to laugh at me, you can clear out. I have work to do, and I donât need any distractions.â
Coop rolled onto his stomach. âI came here to touch base about our plans this evening.â
âPlans?â
âThe wedding! It starts at 6.30 PM, it says on the invitation. And itâs in Brooklyn, so we should probably leave by 5.30.â
Blaine groaned. Heâd forgotten all about the wedding.
âI got you your guitar!â Cooper said, dashing out of the room, and coming back with a gleaming guitar case. âHere you go!â
Blaineâs fingers itched to open the case and try out the guitar, but he had school work to do, so with another groan, he turned away from Cooper and his bribe and focused on his research.
âAnd Iâll bring you a sandwich. And coffee. Okay?â
True to his word, Cooper brought Blaine food and coffee five minutes later. Blaine grabbed the sandwich right away, bit into it and mumbled a fervent thanks.
â5.30, squirt, donât forget!â
Blaine, his mouth full to bursting, just nodded, letting the âsquirtâ slide for now. Getting food in his system was more important. Ah, but he was hungry!
K&B
At four oâclock that afternoon, Cooper bounded back into Blaineâs room.
âBlainey⊠Shouldnât you be getting ready for the wedding? I know how long it takes for you to fix your curls and make yourself pretty!â
Blaine let out a deep sigh. âAll right, all right, Iâll stop working and hop into the shower.â
Cooper beamed. âIâll be in the living room.â
âOh, Coop? What did you buy them as a wedding present?â
âThe pet pavilion, of course! Theyâre going to be so pleased!â
Blaine rolled his eyes. âIf you want me to tag along, buy a NORMAL present in my name, please. You can waste your money on this ridiculous overpriced cat stuff, but I want to give the brides something useful.â
âLike what?â Cooper asked.
âLike a nice duvet. Or a set of bath-towels. Or some top-of-the-range kitchen stuff. Let me see the invitation, please?â
Cooper went to fetch it, and handed it to Blaine, who looked up the wedding registry. He was pleased to see that the brides had, in the meantime, added regular stuff like pots and pans and a clothes hamper.
âGet me that set of fruit bowls. Thatâs a nice gift.â
            Cooper saluted. âConsider it done. A fabulous gift from me and a boring one from you.â
By the time Blaine was showered and groomed and suited up, Cooper had bought a beautiful bouquet of flowers with a congratulations card for the brides as well, and handed it to him with a wide smile. âAll set now! Letâs go!â
When the town car came to a halt at the address mentioned on the invitation, Blaine frowned as he got out. The neighborhood looked derelict. And the people hanging around seemed a little too interested in Cooperâs gleaming car, which stood out like a sore thumb.
Blaine shivered and hoped they wouldnât get mugged. That was all he needed to ruin the day further.
Cooper seemed to get the same vibe, and said to their chauffeur, âBest not stay here, Bill. Iâll call you when I need you to come pick us up.â
âRight, sir. Good evening, sir.â
And the car drove off. At once, Blaine felt very vulnerable. Holding the bouquet, he wouldnât be able to fight if someone were to attack him.
âLetâs go inside,â he urged Cooper.
The building looked just as run-down on the inside. There was no elevator, and the stairs were worn and creaky.
The apartment numbers werenât clearly indicated, but there was music floating down, so they only had to follow the sound to find the right place.
When Cooper knocked, nobody seemed to hear him. Not the first time, not the second, nor the third. After five tries, Blaine huffed, shoved the flowers at his brother, and tried to open the door. It slid open easily to reveal a loud and colorful chaos. All the guests were clapping and dancing, and in the middle were two gorgeous women in white dresses, singing Valerie and dancing with each other and giggling.
âWell, nothing like jumping straight into the party,â Cooper said. He put the flowers and the card on the nearest table and joined the dancers.
Blaine stayed where he was, looking at the brides and their guests and feeling very much out of place.
âOoooh,â the brunette bride sighed as she sank onto the sofa after the song. âYou know, Britts, that was the first time. That I felt like⊠I wanted to be with you forever. You were dancing with Mike, and I came to dance next to you, and you smiled. And I just knew. That you were the one.â
âAwwww,â Cooper cooed loudly, and more than just the bridesïżœïżœ heads snapped up.
âOh, the last guests have arrived!â said a clear, high voice. âWelcome, welcome!â
The voice belonged to a tall man with blue eyes, a high coif and a clear complexion. He was dressed in a velvet burgundy three-piece suit that hugged him in all the right places.
Blaine felt attraction flare up bright and wild, but squashed it quickly when he saw that Mr. Gorgeous only had eyes for Cooper. Figures. Whoâd see me next to Coop?
He wished he could just disappear. Nobody wanted him here anyway, not even Cooper, who was charming everyone already and having a splendid time, so it seemed.
But he felt himself grabbed by the arm as Coop loudly proclaimed, âAnd this is my younger brother Blaine. He was in show choir too!â
Blaine, taken off-guard, could do no more than say, âUh, hi!â
Coop whispered in Blaineâs ear, âSmile! I saw you looking at the fashionable guy. If you want him, hit him with that Anderson charm!â
Blaine did as he was told, but he might as well have been invisible for all the reaction he got - a few polite nods and a once-over from a few of the girls. Mr. Gorgeous didnât even spare him a glance. He was too busy sucking up to Coop, and mentioning emphatically that he was single, and hadnât had much luck in love so far. Unlike Ohio, where he was from, New York City had plenty of gay men, but none that wanted to commit, it seemed.
Coop nodded. âI know what you mean. Iâm not ready to settle down yet, but my brother is, and he tells me the same as you.â
Coop helpfully pointed to Blaine again, but Mr. Gorgeous didnât look his way.
Blaine sank deeper into his sulk, scowling when Mr. Gorgeous urged everyone to head up the fire escape to the roof for the ceremony and then went up the stairs right in front of him, flaunting his endless legs and perfect ass in pants that seemed painted on.
He paid little attention to the ceremony, though he noticed that the man officiating was delectable too, tall, dark and handsome, and with a smile that rivalled Cooperâs in charm and intensity.
After the ceremony, Mr. Gorgeous and a tiny loud brunette went around with sparkling wine and platters of hors dâoeuvres. There was a wide assortment of finger food, all of it delicious, and for dessert a cake that was light and fluffy and so scrumptious that Blaine indulged in it until his stomach hurt, and then he felt disgusted with himself and even grumpier than before. He sat down on the nearest chair, feeling queasy, and hoping that Coop wouldnât stay too long.
The bridesâ first dance was beautiful. Even in the midst of his sulk, he had to admit that. Their faces were radiant, their moves were flawless, and they were perfectly in sync at all times. After the dance was over, they stayed put for another while, holding on to each other and whispering in low voices, punctuating each sentence with a kiss.
It wasnât until the others joined them on the makeshift dance floor that it dawned on Blaine he had seen hide nor hair of the bridesâ parents. Wasnât it customary to have a father-daughter dance? And where were the drunk uncles and the loud aunts? Come to think of it, Blaine hadnât seen anyone around from another age bracket than his own. Well, except for Cooper.
Even the officiant looked student-aged. HmmâŠ
Blaine looked around at the terrace. Tastefully decorated, yes, but it had clearly been done on a shoestring budget.
The food, too, however stellar, had all been clearly home-made, including the wedding cake. The sparkling wine had tasted great, but it had definitely not been champagne.
When he heard police sirens cut through the music for a moment, all his misgivings about the neighborhood came back with a vengeance, and he wondered who on earth would want to get married in a place like that.
It was nice enough for a party, he had to give them that. Lots of room, good acoustics. But it had more of a party vibe than it screamed wedding.
He headed to the table that held the presents from people who hadnât bought something from the wedding registry, and got even more suspicious. The only decent gift on the table was a set of crystal champagne glasses in a silver bucket, donated by someone who called herself Sugar. The rest was a mishmash of cheap kitchen accessories and low-quality booze. How anyone could think a six-pack of Budweiser constituted a proper wedding gift, Blaine couldnât fathom.
Nearby stood a tray with wedding favors. Blaine raised his eyebrows at the tulle bags holding a few tea lights. It was elegantly done, yes, calligraphed with the bridesâ names and a romantic quotation, but again, they had kept their expenses as low as possible.
If they were all this poor, how on earth had they gotten acquainted with Cooper? The Andersons were an old money family, and Cooper had struck out on his own and become richer still. He hung out with celebrities and other billionaires all the time. When and where would he have met the brides? Did they actually know him at all? Or did they just send the invite to angle for a handsome gift? That was it, wasnât it? Cooper had been duped into spending a fortune on that stupid pet mansion, or whatever it was! And they probably werenât even getting married for real, and this was all a sham for Coopâs benefit!
Blaine was livid in Cooperâs stead, and stewed in silence until the brunette bride tapped on the bedazzled pink microphone they were now using for karaoke, shushed everyone and thanked all the guests for coming, and in particular Kurt (pointing to Mr. Gorgeous), who was the best friend anyone had ever had, and who had planned the whole wedding, apparently.
Cooper whooped and clapped, and Blaine couldnât keep it to himself any longer, so he let it all out.
âOkay, this charade stops NOW! Maybe you fooled Cooper, but I can see right through you. This whole party is as fake as all get out! If it were real, youâd be getting married with your family surrounding you, not with just a handful of friends! If it were real, youâd have chosen an actual wedding venue, instead of this⊠this dump in the middle of nowhere! If it were real, youâd have had everything handled by professionals, instead of taking advantage of your friend to whip something up on the cheap for you. And all that for what? For that ridiculous pet pavilion that Cooper shelled out good money for? Is that really worth all this deception? You disgust me! Youâre awful to take advantage of my brother this way, and I wonât stand for it!â
As soon as Blaine had gotten it all off his chest, he looked at everyoneâs shocked faces and felt awful. Had he misjudged? The brides seemed aghast at his accusations, the guests looked at him like he was a train wreck happening, and Kurt⊠Gorgeous Kurt glared at him as if he wanted to tear Blaine limb from limb.
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TVD 9x05 Halloween Special (part 1 of part 2) Enjoy! =)
Cut back to â 1921, Halloween Ball at the secluded hotel. Stefan, Klaus, and Rebecca are having drinks at a private booth.
STEFAN: Well this is quite the party, loving the decadence.
KLAUS: Oh, my friend, the fun hasnât even begun.
REBECCA: (To Stefan) It seems like your plus one found something or someone to entertain him, heâs been gone for a while.
STEFAN: Heâs a curious guy, heâll be back eventually.
KLAUS: Remind me again why you brought him along? Or why we havenât torn into his vanes?
STEFAN: He is off the table, so lose the temptation.
REBECCA: Why do you even care?
STEFAN: Heâs a close friend, letâs just leave it at that. Anyway, what are we having for dinner?
KLAUS: Trust me, you will find it to be plenty tasty (snaps his fingers, a woman walks into the booth and sits beside them).
STEFAN: You know my tasteâŠ
REBECCA: And mine. (They tare into her neck; when they finish they leave the dead body sitting there as if nothing had happened).
STEFAN: (As he is wiping the blood from his mouth) Lovely appetizer, but Iâm ready for the main course.
KLAUS: Patience, mate, have another drink. Letâs get someone to clean our little mess, first.
STEFAN: Well, make it quick, Iâm still hungry.
REBECCA: (Serves him more champagne) Donât worry, love, Iâll go find someone to take care of this (kisses him, then leaves).
KLAUS: So, Stefan, are you sure it is safe to leave your âfriendâ to wonder about?
STEFAN: He can handle himself.
KLAUS: If you say soâŠ
(A breathtaking woman comes into the booth, they both freak out given the scene).
LADY: Relax gentleman, nothing I havenât seen before (winks, then casually sits next to the dead body and licks some blood from her neck). Yum⊠Care to offer this thirsty lady a drink? (Both, completely hypnotized by her beauty, head for the champagne bottle, Stefan gets to it first). Â
STEFAN: (As he pours her a drink) Can I just say you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. (Looks at her hands) Love the glove⊠looks beautiful, and dangerous (smirks)âŠ
LADY: (Flirting) Just as I am, dear (winks).
KLAUS: If ever I have seen true beauty⊠(kisses her hand).
LADY: Thank you, gentleman, you are not bad on the eyes yourselves. Listen, I brought you a gift from the Mayor (hands them a black box), a small token of his appreciation for attending tonight. (As they are about to open it) Not yet, my dears, they must be opened at midnight; trust me, they are worth the wait. In the meantime (she snaps her fingers and two beautiful women come into the booth; she kisses them on the lips then cuts their throats with her glove, licks some of the blood and kisses Stefan and Klaus), enjoy, boys. Â
STEFAN: Wait, you are leaving? Please, stay, indulge with us.
LADY: Iâd love to, but I have some business to attend to. Iâll be back for dessert, I promise. (When she walks out, Katherine, who has been lurking outside the booth, catches a glimpse of her, then vamps away).
Cut to Mattâs house. Tyler and Khuyana are having breakfast. On the background, playing on the TV is a breaking news story about a couple that has been found brutally murdered in a cabin outside Mystic Falls.
 TYLER: So, he left early this morning?
KHUYANA: I think so⊠Iâm not even sure if he came home at all. I went to bed alone and woke up alone.
TYLER: What do you think we should do?
KHUYANA: I know this might sound awful, but I think we should have a backup plan just in case heâs a no show.
TYLER: This is so strange, and totally out of character⊠we need to figure out whatâs going on with him. When did it start?
KHUYANA: I guess I started noticing some strange behavior when I came back from a trip⊠after the massive aneurysmsâ attacks.
TYLER: Bonnie told me about that, it happened before the Darius linking ritual, right?
KHUYANA: Yes.
TYLER: So this must be related to Darius⊠maybe his under some sort of spell?
KHUYANA: Canât be that, Bonnie put a spell block on all of us after the linking incident.
TYLER: There is a spell against being spelled?
KHUYANA: I guess so, I still donât understand how the witchy woo stuff worksâŠ
TYLER: Okay, well, Darius is also psychic, so, mind control?
KHUYANA: Canât be that either, Bonnie psych-blocked us against that too.
TYLER: Doesnât make sense⊠if heâs not under a spell or mind control⊠(Matt walks in).
MATT: Wow, you just wonât let it go⊠mind control, really? I told you guys, Iâm fine, just exhausted, irritated, and under a lot of stress. All I need is some sleep to recharge, then Iâll be good to go.
TYLER: Are you sure, man?
MATT: Iâm sure. Iâm gonna go take a nap (kisses Khuyana; as he is walking out, turns around) and please, stop talking about me behind my back, itâs annoying (leaves).
Cut to â Mikaelson mansion, Klaus and Danae in the living room.
 KLAUS: I still think you should have told themâŠ
DANAE: What for? Sometimes itâs better not to know.
KLAUS: Well, that is true⊠Are sure you are up for this?  Your migraines seem to be getting worse, love.
DANAE: Iâll be fine⊠itâs probably because subconsciously Iâm nervous about being so close to my brother.
KLAUS: You have my word that you will be safe; under no circumstances will he find out you are alive.
DANAE: Thank you, dear, you are my knight in shining armor, always and forever. (Kisses him on the cheek). You know, if I didnât have a thing for the ladies, Iâd be madly in love you.
KLAUS: I know, love, as would I (winks, gives her a tender hug). Everything will be fine, I promise (kisses her forehead).
DANAE: What about Bonnie? Do you really think she will be able to keep control? Once her psychic-block is released, there is no doubt that she will be overwhelmed; and yes, I can help control her energy levels but there is no guarantee that it will be enough. One psychic blast and she can wipe us all outâŠ
KLAUS: Bonnie is very strong-willed; I reckon she will find a way to keep it under control. To be honest, what worries me most is if she will be able to resist the temptation of not succumbing to her dark side.
DANAE: And if she does?
KLAUS: Well, if it comes to that, weâll deal with itâŠ
DANAE: As in, kill her? That seems a bit harsh, dear.
KLAUS: No, of course not, I mean contain her.
DANAE: With that kind of power, how on earth are we going to be able to do that?Â
KLAUS: Emotions always have a way to control us, and Iâm pretty sure I know her weak spot; we make her connect with those feelings so she doesnât lose her hold...
DANAE: Whatever happens, letâs hope it ends well⊠I really like her.Â
KLAUS: (Gives her a smirk) Oh, do you now?.
DANAE: Not like that, dear, I mean, if I knew I had a chance, donât doubt for a second that I wouldnât try⊠she is a spitting image of Marie⊠(becomes nostalgic).
KLAUS: I know...
DANAE:Â (Teary-eyed) No matter how many years go by, the hurt just doesnât seem to go away (Klaus holds her tight).
KLAUS: Itâs understandable, she was the love of your life. What happened to her was tragic, of course, the pain lingers, but eventually, you will find your way back to each other.
DANAE: Dear, I am immortal, how is that ever going to happen?
KLAUS: Never give up hope, love. After all, who would have thought there would be a way for the dead to make their way back? Look at Stefan, Tyler, Lexi, KatherineâŠ
DANAE: They all had a connection to Bonnie, thatâs the only reason they were able to come back.
KLAUS: I hardly think Bonnie wanted Katherine to return.
DANAE: It might have been a bad connection, but it was still a connectionâŠÂ
KLAUS:Â Well, there is no stronger connection than blood...
DANAE: Yes, but Bonnie never knew Marie, probably doesn't even know she existed ... Anyway, let me stop with the self-pity, we have more important things to focus on right now. Listen, how about I start preparing everything for the âpartyâ while you go get us some costumes, otherwise your friend Caroline is going to flip.
KLAUS: Oh, she most definitely will. Any special requests?
DANAE: Youâll be lucky just to find any so we really canât get picky; whatever you can find will work.
KLAUS: Okay, love, let me know if you need anything else, Iâll be back soon. (Kisses her forehead, then leaves).
 Danae starts reminiscing about her past love. Flashback scene to a 1920âČs partyâŠ
youtube
MR. NORTHCOTT: Ms. Bennet, I must say, I find your views on Baudelaireâs work rather controversial, and, if Iâm being honest, somewhat unstudied.
MARIE: Well, he was way ahead of his time which is clearly, not your case...
DANAE: Marie is quite the literary scholar; you can trust she knows what she is talking about, Mr. Northcott.
MR. NORTHCOTT: I mean no disrespect, but you must admit that it is not often that you find a woman with such views⊠it is somewhat intriguing.
MARIE: Really? (Rolls her eyes).
MR. NORTHCOTT: Please, donât misunderstand me, if anything I respect you even more. But, enough with controversy, let us have a toast... to literary masterpieces!
DANAE: (Whispers to Marie) Want to disappear for a while? This man is really getting on my nerves.
MARIE: (Whispers back) Iâve been waiting for you to say that all night⊠(they excuse themselves from the table and find a cosy spot to share some lovinâ).  Â
 Cut to â Elena and Sam in his apartment, he hands her a plate of chilaquiles.
 ELENA: You spoil me too much... (Gives him a lustful look) Come here... (kisses him).
SAM: Mmm... or we can just skip breakfast...
ELENA: (Composes herself) No, no, we need to eat at some point ... Wait, am I going to have to jug a gallon of water like the last time?
SAM: You are such a wus! Donât worry, I turned it down a notch.
ELENA: I mean, I loved them, but I seriously thought my brain was going to explode.
SAM: We are going to have to do something about that⊠when we go visit my mom, she wonât be as a lenient as I am.
ELENA: Great, now I have another thing to worry about when I meet her.
SAM: She is going to love you (kisses her). (Looks at his packed boxes) So, Iâm pretty much ready⊠we are actually doing thisâŠ
ELENA: We are! And Iâm excited about you meeting the rest of the gang tonight, even if itâs just for a brief hello, goodbye.Â
SAM: Is this the first time you are going to see Stefan and Tyler since they⊠well, came back?
ELENA: Yes⊠wow, I hadnât even thought of that!
SAM: Iâll be honest, Iâm kind of psyched about meeting more of your supernatural friends, itâs like going to Comicon but for real!
ELENA: (Laughs) I have no idea what a Comicon is, but I guess so?
SAM: Okay, just so I donât mess things up, let me see if I got this right: Bonnie  is a psychic-witch; Caroline, a vampire; Tyler, an undead hybrid; Stefan, an ex-vampire undead human; your ex, a vampire turned human; Alaric, a vampire hunter turned vampire then human again, Indiana Jones type of thing; Matt, a human, and the town Sheriff⊠am I missing anyone?
ELENA: Nop, thatâs pretty much the main core. God, hearing you makes me realize just how insane my life has been⊠I love them all but I have to admit that Iâm happy to be leaving that craziness behind⊠I just want a normal, human life, you know?
SAM: Well, normal and human is all Iâve ever known, so Iâm no point of reference⊠what about Jeremy, is he going to the party too?
ELENA: No, noâŠ
SAM: Arenât you going to say goodbye?
ELENA: We are, just not in person⊠Iâm afraid that if I see him, I wonât be able to leave, so, we decided video chat was the way to goâŠ
SAM: Are you sure?
ELENA: Trust me, Iâm sure.
SAM: Okay⊠So, I went to pick up our costumes earlier (looking very excited), I canât believe you agreed to go with it!
ELENA: Couldnât bear to break your geeky heart (kisses him, looks at her watch). Listen, I need to go to the administration office to finalize some paperwork, weâll start getting ready when I come back. Love you (kisses him, then leaves).
Cut to â 1990, Halloween night, Mystic Falls General Hospital. Paramedics bring a bleeding woman into the E.R.
 E.R DOCTOR: What do we have?
PARAMEDIC: Multiple stab wounds to the back, massive blood loss, heart rate erratic, pulse dropping fast⊠and Doctor, she is pregnant. Fetal heartbeat detected but itâs very low.
E.R DOCTOR: (To the Medical staff) Quick, prep the O.R for emergency surgery. (After a few hours, the Doctor comes out of the OR to talk to Police Officers).
E.R DOCTOR: Officers, there was nothing we could do; time of death was 24:05. Were you able to contact any family members?
POLICE OFFICER 1: The only family member we could track was her mother, but she has no idea who she is. She has been locked up in an insane asylum for years⊠other than her, she has no family.
E.R DOCTOR: Well then, I think you need to call child services, the victim was with child. Thankfully, we were able to save the baby, but he is in critical condition.
POLICE OFFICER 2: How on earth was the child able to survive?
E.R DOCTOR: If Iâm being honest Officer, I have no idea, the child should have been dead upon arrival. I donât believe in miracles but if I ever did, this would be the moment to make me doubt my beliefs.
POLICE OFFICER 1: If the baby makes it through, child services will take custody. For now, Doctor, we will need your, and your staffâs statements.
E.R DOCTOR: Of course, anything you need Officers.
Cut to - the Mayorâs house. Edward walks into his room and finds his costume laid out for him, along with a black box tied to a red balloon. He looks puzzled, somewhat scared. He slowly takes the box, unties the balloon and opens it. Inside, is the same chess piece he had sent Darius earlier, along with a note that reads: âTasty, tasty, beautiful fear. Who is checkmate now?â He leaves the box and note on the bed, walks to his turntable and plays âMr. Sandmanâ. Then, walks to the mirror, and stares in a dazeâŠ
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TVD 9x05 Halloween Special (part 2 of part 2) coming very soon! Hope you stop by, read and enjoy! =)
#TVD#tvd fanfiction#vampire diaries#bamon fanfic#bonnie bennett#damon salvatore#stefan salvatore#klaus mikaelson#rebecca mikaelson#elena gilbert#matt donovan#tyler lockwood#caroline forbes#animeeyes21#ilovefanfic86#absentmindeddreamer#minalblood#stephm1587#mademoisellevalerie85#bamon-iridiance#bamon shippers club#bamoniseternal#bamonisreal#bamonisawsome#awsomebamon#vj-veronica-jones#bamonites#maniq1#luanahensi#chanelnotwentytwo
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Can you explain why Anne Elliot is your favourite Austen heroine?
Surely! (This literally took like, two and half hours of writing and editing. What is my life).
Background:
So, essentially, to get into this analysis, I have to preface this with Persuasion being written in 1817, near the end of Austenâs life and published six months after her death. Really, if you compare the type of satirical protagonists she was writing at the beginning of her career (see Northanger Abbey, which convinced my entire English Literature 2 class in university that Austen was insipid despite being prefaced as a gothic parody), to later, Pride and Prejudice, to Persuasion, I think it really traces the development of Austen as a writer (Austen referred to her in one of her letters as âa heroine who is almost too good for me.â)
Not to say she didnât have more âmatureâ protagonists early on; Elinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility is really my second favourite protagonist from Austenâs works, and she is essentially the one person in the Dashwood household who keeps everything together; without her, the entire operation would fall apart. Itâs the reason why sheâs the âsenseâ in the aforementioned title.
But where Anne Elliot differs I think, is that Elinor, despite being the âolderâ sister, is never really seen as being devoid of prospects in regards to her future and marriage, despite the family falling on hard times. Anne, on the other hand, is actually a marked difference from Austenâs usual protagonists. Whereas her other protagonists are usually concerned with climbing the social ladder of society (or essentially, scorning the playing of this game in society, but still knowing itâs expected of her anyway (See Lizzie Bennet), Anne is from a noble family that due to her father Sir Walter Elliotâs vanity and selfishness, is on its descent down on the social ladder, a caricature of the old, outdated, titled class in a world of new British industry.Â
Sir Walter Scott, and the Changing Ideal of The Gentlemen in Society:
This is another place where Jane Austen differs in her characterisation and brings up an important contrast that is lacking in her other work to an extent in terms of her other main heroines: while the other heroines are more concerned with upward mobility through marriage because that is what society has expected of them, Anne Elliotâs father (whoâs will dominates her own), is concerned with DOWNWARD mobility. The idea that he will be seen as âlesser thanâ for allowing his daughter to marry someone she loves.Â
The difference is, is where you have CHOICE to an extent in a burgeoning middle class family, even if you were marrying for money, you have that upward mobility. You have opportunities. When your family is so focused on maintaining the facade of an untouchable deity, you are literally frozen into that mold, even if you want to be a part of that changing world and changing model of what should be considered an âidealâ match, or a modern pairing.
While unadvantageous matches are dismissed in other Austen works, it is often due to the person having some fault of character (I.E: Philanderer, drunkard, etc.) thatâs obviously not going to change anytime soon, and what someone is, to an extent, able to control. People are able to control whether they cheat on someone or not; people are able to control showing up and embarrassing themselves at social functions if they have an inkling of self-awareness. And these matches are usually rejected outright because of the familyâs concern for the daughterâs feelings (See Lizzie and Mr. Collins, for example, even though it would be an advantageous match (-INSERT LADY CATHERINE DE BOURGH QUOTE HERE-)
But the sad thing in Anneâs case, I think, is that it shows the dying breed of noblewomen, who, once they get âolder,â have nowhere to go but down socially if they donât become a âspinsterâ or completely devoted to their family household and name. These older, more distinguished families during 1817, were slowly and surely becoming more and more obsolete, and I think itâs VERY astute of Austen to recognise that. Men could now make their fortune at sea- they COULD be ânew money.â More and more, these noble people who didnât work and didnât have a profession besides being a member of the landed gentry, were becoming more and more dated in the movement of England towards mechanisation and the new Victorian age of industry.Â
âCaptain Wentworth is the prototype of the ânew gentleman.â Maintaining the good manners, consideration, and sensitivity of the older type, Wentworth adds the qualities of gallantry, independence, and bravery that come with being a well- respected Naval officer.
Like Admiral Croft, who allows his wife to drive the carriage alongside him and to help him steer, Captain Wentworth will defer to Anne throughout their marriage. Austen envisions this kind of equal partnership as the ideal marriage.â
Meanwhile Sir Walter does not present this same sort of guidance for the females in his life. He is so self-involved that he fails to make good decisions for the family as a whole; his other two daughters, Elizabeth and Mary, share his vanity and self-importance. While Anne is seen as a direct parallel with her good-natured (dead) mother, she still has to deal with these outdated morals, before coming her true self. She still has to learn to support her own views, even if they are contrary to those in a position of power in her life, and essentially, dominate her day-to-day dealings and her actual character of how she defines herself.
Becoming Oneâs Self: Learning Self-Assurance and The Positives of âNegativeâ Qualities:
The one thing I do love about Anne is that she doesnât have a âweakness of character,â contrary to Wentworthâs bitter words which are clearly directed at her when they first meet again after so long. Thatâs one thing I usually see (predominantly male) commentators say Anneâs fault is as a female protagonist is as simple as a reading of the title; namely, that sheâs too easily persuaded.
However, thatâs an overtly simplistic view. Often people directly correlate an individual being persuaded as simply being âweak-willed.â Anne Elliot is anything but. She constantly rebels against the vanity of her father and the stupidity of her sisters, at the same time being aware of the social structure in which they must operate. She is the individual at the beginning of the novel who is dealing directly with money; and while this was at the time often seen as a âmanâsâ role, it is Anne taking control of getting their family back into good stead and out of debt after her dippy father gets them into debt and remains completely useless throughout the entire procedure except to complain about who they might let the house out to, simply because they ARE ânew money.â She IS open to new roles in society, and new conventions.Â
This leads directly to the biggest criticism levelled against her at the beginning of the novel: that after being dismissed by Anne, Captain Wentworth basically publicly declares (because #bitteraf) that âany woman he marries will have a strong character and independent mind.â
The funny thing is, Anne already has these. She never lacked them. âWhat âpersuasionâ truly refers to is whether it is better to be firm in oneâs convictions or to be open to the suggestions of others. Â
âThe conclusion implies that what might be considered Anneâs flaw, her ability to be persuaded by others, is not really a flaw at all. It is left to the reader to agree or disagree with this. â
Anne is not stupid in that she is convinced or persuaded by any Joe Schmow who comes along; she considers the opinions of those she respects. She ultimately comes to the right decision in marrying Wentworth later in life, but itâs understandable how a nineteen year old would doubt this decision when advised by those adults around her. It is now that she is older, in considering other peopleâs opinions, that she is more likely able to come to her decision herself, rather than letting other peopleâs opinions overweigh her own.
âAnne is feminine in this way while possessing none of what Austen clearly sees as the negative characteristics of her gender; Anne is neither catty, flighty, nor hysterical. On the contrary, she is level-headed in difficult situations and constant in her affections. Such qualities make her the desirable sister to marry; she is the first choice of Charles Musgrove, Captain Wentworth, and Mr. Elliot.â
Ageism: Austenâs Hinting at an Age-Old Philosophy against the Modern Woman:
At twenty-seven, Anne is literally considered a woman âfar past her bloom of youth.â She is constantly surrounded by younger women, both demonstrating interest in her father and in Wentworth. While ageism wasnât clearly developed as a recognised societal practice in the 19th century, I think it demonstrates, when Jane wrote this so close to her death, and having never married herself, the pressures on women in society even later in life. This is seen more bluntly in the character of Charlotte Lucas in Pride and Prejudice, but I think the fact that people constantly remind Anne of something she cannot control could arguably draw parallels to social status and how birth status cannot be controlled, by a more modern reading of the piece. Women cannot control ageing, any more than a man can control being born into a lower class. But while men could continue to marry for upward mobility or money (up to ridiculous ages and with ridiculously younger wives), women donât have that luxury once they are âpast their prime,â even if they also have the avenue of upward mobility through marriage (see Charlotte Lucas again).
Lost Love, aka THEY TOTALLY MIGHT HAVE BONED BUT PROBABLY NOT:
âThere could have never been two hearts so open, no tastes so similar, no feelings so in unison, no countenances so beloved. Now they were as strangers; nay, worse than strangers, for they could never become acquainted. It was a perpetual estrangement.âÂ
The best thing about Captain Wentworth and Anne Elliotâs love story is that we already knew they WERE in love; as opposed to all her other stories, which involve individuals arguably falling INTO love rather than HAVING been in love (Lookingâ at you, Mansfield Park), Wentworth x Anne Elliot was a THING. They were a hot and HEAVY thing.Â
I essentially have nothing to add here except that makes their entire story 10000000x more painful when they clearly still have feelings for one another and have to run in the same social circles.
That is all.
Separate Spheres: AKA LETS ALL HELP EACH OTHER MMKAY AND BE EQUAL PARTNERS IN LOVEEEE:
Lastly, Austen also considers the idea of âseparate spheres.â
âThe idea of separate spheres was a nineteenth-century doctrine that there are two domains of life: the public and the domestic. Traditionally, the male would be in charge of the public domain (finances, legal matters, etc.) while the female would be in charge of the private domain (running the house, ordering the servants, etc.).Â
This novel questions the idea of separate spheres by introducing the Crofts. Presented as an example of a happy, ideal marriage, Admiral and Mrs. Croft share the spheres of their life. Mrs. Croft joins her husband on his ships at sea, and Admiral Croft is happy to help his wife in the chores around the home. They have such a partnership that they even share the task of driving a carriage. Austen, in this novel, challenges the prevailing notion of separate spheres.â
As mentioned before, from the beginning of the novel, as a noblewoman, Anne is already crossing the line of separate spheres by undertaking financial and legal matters since her father is essentially too much of a pussy to do so (this antiquated ideal of gentlemanly qualities). She has already made a discreet step into the public domain by her actions, without ever really truly making a bold statement.Â
By the insertion of the Crofts within the narrative, it really foreshadows how this sort of relationship can work as equals, and how such an amalgamation of the spheres should not be looked down upon. Itâs a subtly progressive message that none of the other books really deal with (besides perhaps a tad in Sense and Sensibility with Elinor), and I love her all the more for it. â„
#I love how this slowly degraded into meme language and then I gave up#help me#it's 2:30 in the morning#Jane Austen#theory#literature#literature theory#Anne elliot#writing#reading#regency period#future reference#personal#answers#Persuasion#captain fredrick wentworth
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â ⊠° ⟠chloe bennet+ cisfemale + she/her â have you met clara munro? they are a twenty six year old known around town as the deadpan snarker. theyâve been in the gang life for three years, and currently work for the cobras as a thief. they are a bisexual gemini, which means they are strategic + adaptable, as well as cunning + uncouth. ripped jeans, muddy boots, split lips.
under the cut you guys can find claraâs new story.. her surname isnât the only thing iâve changed about her btw !! iâve completely retconned her entire backstory, so she has never been a member of the savages. cobra blood has always pumped through this girls veins !!Â
BACKGROUNDÂ
Clara spent most of her childhood in her fatherâs office, playing games such as pretending to be the CEO of a million dollar company and ordering his escorts around like she was the queen bee and they were her servants â most of the girls humoured her as she was simply a bored, harmless eight year old who had no siblings to entertain herself with. Most of the girls took sympathy on her, while others kept their distance and turned their nose up at the presence of a child at a brothel.
It wasnât an ideal situation by any means, but trust worthy babysitters didnât come by very often in Valdez and her mother had been killed in a mugging gone wrong ( or at least that was what the police reports said, but their was reason to believe they had been fudged )
Her father did his best to protect his daughters innocence, not wanting hers to be tainted from an early age just like his had been. But with a habit for being too curious for her own good, it was only a certain amount of time before Clara decided to sneak out of her fatherâs office in search of some other form of company other than her powerpuff girl dolls.
She had been told constantly by her father not to open the office door to anybody else but himself, so the first time she left his office in the middle of the afternoon while he was attending to business she crawled through an air duct she was just able to squeeze through â she wasnât technically breaking any rules, she didnât leave the office without his permission or open the door for anybody else.
Clara would spend hours in the air ducts, crawling through the building and spying on the women who worked for his father â some of them danced for men in expensive suits, others undressed themselves ( clara would scurry along when ever she came across those girls rooms )
Neither her father or his escorts were none the wiser of her escapades, she always returned to his office just moments before he would come to collect her to take her home, oblivious to the fact she was exposing herself to the world he tried his hardest to keep from her.
When Clara was fifteen years old, she witnissed one of the escorts being physically assaulted by one of her clientsâ she was in one of the air ducts at the time, holding her breath for what felt like a lifetime until the girl screamed at the man until he left. She followed him through the air ducts, dropping down into the alley beside the brothel and bumped into him as he fixed his shirt and adjusted his tie. It only took a simple collision, neither of them looking where they were going for Clara to scoop his wallet from his pocket. She slipped what money he had in his wallet under the door of the escort he assaulted, with a note that read: Heâs a douche bag, but now heâs a douche bag missing $400. Shhh!!
This became somewhat of a habit for Clara, watching the escorts from the shadows like a wraith and pick-pocketing the ones who would put their hands on them and sliding her scores under their doors like a thieving fairy godmother.
When she was just shy of her nineteenth birthday, Clara overheard her father arguing with another man about poaching his girls and stealing his income. Instead of asking her father who the man was or what he was talking about ( she was more than aware of who her father really was now ) she followed him home, cased the joint and broke in when she knew he wouldnât be home.
When she returned home that night, she emptied a paper bag in front of her father, thousands of dollars spilling across the kitchen table and told him that should more than cover what he lost to the man who had dared to step on his turf.
From then on out they agreed to have no more secrets, only complete and utter transparency between the pair of them. So, when her father was considering joining the cobras, he shared this with his daughter who told him she would go with him if he wanted to defect. Clara was never officially recruited into Balthazar Caitoâs crew, so it was easy for her to follow her father into the snake pit.
WANTED PLOTS
NO WOMAN SHOULD EVER SUFFER AT THE HANDS OF MEN
gimme a plot where clara has helped/helps one of the escorts out of a bad situation with one of their clients â this could be something where claraâs witnessed their client get physical with them and she either threatens/pick-pockets them like sheâs done in the past for the girls (Â iâm open to this being something thatâs already happened and has turned into a friendship or something we could write in a thread and develop the friendship from there )Â iâm also open to this being plotted between clara and other female characters affiliated with the gangs, it doesnât necessarily have to be an escort but bonus points if itâs between clara && a savage !!
WHATâS THE MATTER? WAS MY FORM OFF?
i really want somebody to teach clara how to fight tbh. sheâs been with the cobras for three years so whoever it is thatâs teaching her how to throw a punch and defend herself could have started teaching sometime in the last three years or more recently. iâm leaving this one open for discussion because i havenât really got a set direction i want this to go in???
ADDITIONAL INFORMATIONÂ
clara is the daughter of ajax andersonÂ
she believes harlow procter is her cousin, but in fact sheâs her sister !!
shares an apartment with ashley mills && nikki redford after they all joined the cobras around the same time as each other
raspberry ripple ice cream is her favourite flavour, if you eat hers she wonât be held responsible for any action taken against youÂ
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The law tearing Palestinian families apart 5.7.2021
The law tearing Palestinian families apart
The controversial Citizenship Law is supposedly about maintaining Israelâs security. In reality, itâs a tool to engineer Israelâs population.
BySamah SalaimeJuly 2, 2021
Palestinian women wait to cross Qalandiya checkpoint as an Israeli security officer stands guard outside the West Bank city of Ramallah August 28, 2009. (Issam Rimawi/Flash90)
In 2003, at the height of the Second Intifada, the Israeli government passed an emergency order titled âThe Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law (Emergency Order).â Since then, the legislation has taken on many names: the family reunification law, the demographic balance law, the âsecurity threatâ law. But the goal of this law has remained the same: to prevent Palestinians in the West Bank or Gaza from marrying Arab citizens of Israel, and thus obstructing their path to Israeli citizenship.
The so-called Citizenship Law harms thousands of Palestinian families in Israel. It has been renewed every year since its passing â until this year. The order is set to expire on July 6, and currently the government does not have the parliamentary majority to re-extend it. While several MKs from the center-left Meretz and Labor parties have made their opposition to the order clear, it is unclear how they will vote next week when the law comes up for a vote in the Knesset.
Asmahan Jabali is one of those affected by the law. She was born in Taybeh inside the Green Line, but her parents were from Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank and were never registered as Israeli citizens or residents. As such, Jabali was registered as a West Bank resident, even though she has only ever lived in Israel. She married her partner, also from Taybeh, 26 years ago, and they have three children together. But her legal status in Israel was never sorted out. She has been undocumented, an âunlawful resident,â her entire life.
 âEvery year at around this time, I feel unwell, physically and mentally. I break down,â Jabali says. âDeep down, I know that the law will pass, but thereâs also always a spark of hope that humanity will win out, and that someone in the Knesset will come to their senses and understand how much their voice can affect my life and the lives of thousands of women.â
Jabali is intimately familiar with the hardships caused by this law. She knows that children who are out of status can only attend school as guests, that they cannot receive matriculation grades, and that they cannot go on to attend college in Israel. She describes what it is like to try and run a household under the shadow of this law, and sets out the agonizing path people like her need to take in order to pass the lawâs many âsteps:â from being undocumented to becoming a temporary resident, then getting an ongoing residence permit, then full residency, and finally citizenship, which is never granted to any Palestinian from the West Bank or Gaza.
Each of these steps has profound implications on everyday life. There is a drastic difference between a residence permit that doesnât allow for a driving license and one that does, or one that grants the right to work and one that does not. If someone works without the proper permits, tax and insurance payments reach unmanageable sums.
âItâs not just that I couldnât go to college or earn a living, Iâm also completely dependent on my partner, and Iâm not alone in that respect,â says Jabali. âIâm lucky, as I have a partner who can support the family alone. What can a vulnerable woman who is less fortunate do with a partner who is violent or unemployed?
âDeep down, I know that the law will pass, but thereâs also always a spark of hope that humanity will win out,â says Asmahan Jabali, an undocumented Palestinian affected by the Citizenship Law. (Courtesy of Asmahan Jabali)
âImagine that your child falls over at school and shows up at the hospital bleeding, and you need to sign paperwork in order for them to undergo surgery,â Jabali continues. âThen they tell you that you are not your childâs guardian and that they canât take your signature. What do you do when your child is waiting to have surgery and because of the âemergency orderâ the doctors wonât treat them? I experience these situations every day in the shadow of this law. Then thereâs the fact that as a family we donât have the right to fly abroad together. Iâm not allowed to fly out of Israel with my children, we canât have âfamily holidays.ââ
Jabali acknowledges that her situation is, relatively speaking, better than that of women who pay exorbitant sums for health insurance, yet who nonetheless discover that they are still not entitled to expensive treatments, such as cancer therapies.
And itâs not just medical treatment that is expensive. In order to settle their childrenâs legal status, every mother has to take a paternity test to prove that the father of her children is the person she is seeking to live with. This places a heavy burden on families, who need to pay thousands of shekels for each test, and sometimes repeat tests for the same child. No matter that it seems logical to do a paternity test for just one child in order to prove that both parents and their offspring deserve to live under the same roof.
 Israeli soldiers obstruct a symbolic wedding party in protest of the controversial Citizenship Law, near the Hizma in the occupied West Bank, between Jerusalem and and the Palestinian city of Ramallah, on March 9, 2013. (Issam Rimawi/Flash90)
Hilda Qadesa, a 48-year-old resident of Lydd who is also affected by the law, describes how the âemergency orderâ strips couples of the right to public housing if one of the partners is a resident of the occupied territories. And even if both partners work, they are not entitled to a mortgage.
For the past 22 years, Qadesa has been married to a man from Ramallah, and she is an activist against the citizenship law. Her partner was supposed to become a citizen just before the law passed in 2003, and the process has been stalled ever since, forcing the family to begin the application process from scratch.
Three years ago, as part of then-Interior Minister Aryeh Deriâs attempts at alleviating the situation, the government issued 1,500 residence permits â including the rights to work, drive, and obtain social security and health insurance â to those who began the naturalization process prior to 2003. Qadesa is not, however, getting worked up about the compromise currently being proposed, which would similarly issue residence permits including the right to work and drive to those who applied for citizenship before 2003.
âThe previous interior minister did this, and then MK Osama Saadi [Joint List] helped us present the most difficult cases,â Qadesa says. âThe minister can grant these permits at any time, with no need to do favors for Mansour Abbas [Raâam]. The humanitarian committee theyâre talking about is always running, and they didnât [give out any permits]. This [compromise] is idle talk to allow Raâam and Meretz to go back on their word. Qadesa is referring to the âhumanitarian committeeâ that was appointed as part of the passage of the 2003 law, and which has the authority, in exceptional circumstances, to grant legal status to those affected by the law. Adi Lustigman, legal counsel for Physicians for Human Rights â Israel, has represented hundreds of families in their legal battles with this law. She confirms that many women are negatively impacted by this law, and that the humanitarian committee almost never confers legal status, even in the most drastic cases in which women are in life-threatening danger and have nowhere to go in the West Bank. According to Lustigman, both the right and the left have rejected thousands of petitions filed on humanitarian grounds.
 Prime Minister Naftali Bennet with with head of the Raâam party Mansour Abbas in the assembly hall of the Israeli parliament on June 21, 2021. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)
Only those with family in Israel can petition the committee. It can grant temporary residence or a temporary identity card which confers rights upon the holder. But Lustigman notes that the committee almost never wields this authority, except for in cases that reach the courts and which put pressure on the Interior Ministry. And the committee cannot grant citizenship or permanent residence status.
The law has a profound impact on Palestinian women whose partners are undocumented or who are undocumented themselves. It can sabotage relationships and a coupleâs ability to have a normative and functioning family. Sumaya Abu Zar, also from Lydd and who married her cousin from Gaza 20 years ago, says that he insisted on being present at the birth of their third child, even though he did not have a residence permit.
âOne of the nurses realized that he couldnât fill out the forms and that he didnât have a blue [Israeli] identity card, so she called the police who arrived and arrested him, even as I was experiencing severe labor pains,â Sumaya says. âI gave birth alone, and went into a deep depression. I had three children and didnât see my husband for two years, until he managed to leave Gaza and enter the West Bank, and from there came back to us.
âMy baby didnât have a father for the first two years of her life, and it continues to be traumatic for the whole family. My husband is a diligent worker, a talented gardener, I opened a business in my own name, and drove him around for years because he was barred from driving,â Sumaya continues. âThat was my role â morning, noon, and night â to take him around from place to place, and take care of our children in between. Since we received the residence permit, my life as a woman and a mother has completely changed.â
Lustigman is representing a family in which the woman has been living in Ramle for almost 30 years, but continues to only have temporary status due to the law. Her son was seriously injured by Israeli Jews in a nationalist attack and another daughter has a severe disability. But because of the law she needs to renew her permits every year. She struggles to visit her parents who emigrated abroad, and the humanitarian committee is yet to respond to her.
Palestinian women cross the Qalandiya checkpoint, outside of the West bank city of Ramallah, on June 23, 2017. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)
The state argues that Palestinians who have been naturalized through family reunification have been involved in hostile activities. But Lustigman has been grappling in court with this claim for years. âThe data has never backed up the lawâs supposed security rationale,â says Lustigman. Rather, she adds, the law has always been about demographics, meaning, maintaining a Jewish majority.
âNo effort has been made in the past few years to support the security claims [of this law],â Lustigman continues. âThe law is causing serious and sweeping harm to [peopleâs] basic rights, in all areas of life. Its existence is unacceptable in a supposedly democratic country. Itâs no wonder that nowhere else in the world has a similar law that discriminates according to peopleâs origin.â
Israel claims that it knows how to identify Palestinians who are security âthreats,â and it deploys this so-called expertise when it issues work permits to tens of thousands of Palestinians every day. There is nothing preventing the state from applying these methods to similar adjudications regarding Palestinian couples, who have lived in Israel for decades and present no security threat whatsoever.
Itâs unclear why the state cannot grant citizenship to women and mothers who pose no danger other than being possessed of a womb. They âthreatenâ only the population registry and the Jewish character of the state. If the law is required to maintain the security of the Jewish state, how can extreme-right Knesset members oppose ratifying it? How dare they harm national âsecurity?â
We need to call things by their name. The purpose of this law is to control Palestinians and engineer the terms of their citizenship and presence in this country. It preserves and perfects 2021-style apartheid, which maintains a hierarchy of people who live here: at the top are the pure Jewish citizens, below them undocumented Palestinians, and perhaps beneath them asylum seekers and migrant workers. That, in my view, is the essence of the law. Demographics, and nothing else.
Hassan Jabareen, the general director of Adalah, which has submitted countless petitions against this âemergency order,â says that the law is one of the three most racist pieces of legislation in Israel, alongside the Absentee Property Law and the Jewish Nation-State Law. âThe state has repeatedly struggled to address the fact that no other country in the world that bars entry to a couple because [one of them is] of a different nationality,â Jabareen says.Â
Even apartheid South Africa, Jabareen adds, lost a famous court case involving a Black woman whom it had banned from her white boyfriendâs neighborhood. âThe right to family unity won out over apartheid laws, which segregated Black and white [South Africans],â he says.Â
Jabareen believes that the issue of the citizenship law will be examined by a special UN Human Rights Council committee, which is also supposed to investigate the most recent war on Gaza and the accompanying violence against Palestinian citizens in May. âThis is the first time that an international body is getting involved in [matters concerning] Palestinian citizens of Israel, and not just the West Bank and Gaza,â he says. âThe testimonies of those affected by the citizenship law will provide important material for opposing Israelâs policies against Palestinians wherever they are, and perhaps then we can start discussing the real question, which has persisted for 73 years: Is Israel a democratic state or an apartheid state?â
Iâm a woman who loves people and stories about simple folks like myself. They are the protagonists of the stories I write. Youâll hear a lot of criticism from me about Israelâs leadership but also creative solutions to problems that affect us all. Things that Iâve learned from life, in no particular order: sewing, criminology, cooking, social work, gender, fashion design, education and administration, embroidery and a little law â at least until I started dozing off in class. Youâll hear more about the connections between all of those things eventually. I can proudly say that I enlisted in the most gentle â and largest â army in the world, which tries to lead the longest and quietest revolution in human history: the feminist revolution. As a first step I started the AWC (Arab Women in the Center) NGO, which I manage pretty much on a volunteer basis. I was born 40 years ago to a refugee family Sajara in northern Israel (known today as Ilaniya), and most of my close family live in refugee camps in every corner of the world. I dream of the day when there is peace, some of them return, and we can build a home. We will have calm Jewish neighbors with whom we fight only about the question of whose dog (the Jew or the Arab) made a mess on our shared street. Until then I will be living in Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam raising my three boys together with my partner Omar, and no, we donât have a dog.
Since youâre hereâŠ
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More About Local Call
 Jewish parties âcompromiseâ against Palestinians and call it democracy
Negotiations over a settlement outpost and a racist law show that Zionist parties of all stripes will find common ground to deny Palestinian rights.
By Orly Noy July 1, 2021
Inside Beitaâs protests: âThe settlers didnât understand who they were dealing withâ
For weeks, Palestinians in Beita have been burning tires, shining lasers, and defying army violence day and night to resist an Israeli settlement outpost.
By Oren Ziv June 29, 2021
âOpen Gaza immediately,â says manager of Israel-Gaza crossing
The Erez Crossing manager debunks myth that restrictions on Gaza uphold security, believes Israel should engage directly with Hamas.
By Meron Rapoport June 21, 2021
Jewish parties âcompromiseâ against Palestinians and call it democracy
Negotiations over a settlement outpost and a racist law show that Zionist parties of all stripes will find common ground to deny Palestinian rights.
ByOrly NoyJuly 1, 2021
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett sits with Labor Party head Merav Michaeli in the plenum hall of the Knesset, Jerusalem, June 2, 2021. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)
Sometimes you need to give credit where itâs due. And to the credit of Israelâs center-left parties, they had prepared their constituents in advance for the fact that entering the new government â which, in any composition, was going to rely on a clear right-wing majority â would have to involve making serious compromises.
A few days before the last election, Health Minister and Meretz head Nitzan Horowitz himself said âwe will agree to make compromises to send Bibi home.â In the name of that same compromise, Labor chair Merav Michaeli agreed to relinquish top portfolios in order to sit in a government headed by a right-winger who once represented the settler movement, and who won the same number of seats as her party.
Meretz and Labor were required to foot the bill earlier than expected. Only two weeks after its inauguration, the government has already shown how far it is willing to go in order to reach a compromise with the outlaws of the Eviatar outpost in the occupied West Bank, in a shameful surrender that has once again rewarded the criminal behavior of the settler movement.
Political compromises are intended to enable the promotion of oneâs core ideological demands, while making certain concessions on less critical issues. And to do this, red lines must be drawn. I am not a Meretz voter, but it seems to me that the partyâs voters are entitled to a clearer understanding of its leadershipâs red lines, particularly given their disgraceful silence in the face of the Eviatar compromise. If deepening the theft of Palestinian land, expanding the occupation, and complete contempt for all legal or moral norms are not beyond their red lines, it is unclear what is.
Minister of Health and Meretz head Nitzan Horowitz arrives to the Presidentâs Residence in Jerusalem, June 14, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Is religious coercion â one of the partyâs foundational values â a red line? What about Netanyahuâs removal from power? Liberal Israelis could have easily voted for Avigdor Liberman, a right-wing nationalist who touts his liberal credentials, instead of Meretz and would not have noticed a difference when it comes to policy. If within only two weeks since the inauguration of this government, the differences between Meretz and Liberman have blurred almost beyond recognition, we are facing a very big problem.
But the crucial point in this story is not the compromise in the Eviatar affair, but the very essence of compromise in Israeli politics. In general, political compromises tend to be made by the strong toward the weaker party: men âcompromiseâ over womenâs rights, straight people âcompromiseâ over LGBTQ rights, and in Israel, above all, Jews âcompromiseâ over Palestinian rights.
In their moment of truth, the center-left Zionist parties â who during election cycles passionately court the Arab voice (Meretzâs last campaign focused heavily on opposing the occupation and the settlements), while promising to take care of their Arab interests â feel completely comfortable sitting around the table with other Israeli Jews and negotiating the extent to which the most basic rights of Palestinians can be denied.
Israeli settlers seen walking through the settlement outpost of Eviatar, West Bank, June 21, 2021. (Sraya Diamant/Flash90)
This goes beyond the occupation. The Knesset will next week vote on the family unification law, a âtemporary orderâ that for 18 years has been renewed in order to ban Palestinians from the West Bank or Gaza who marry Israeli citizens from living permanently in Israel with their spouses, while denying them a path to citizenship. This order has turned the lives of thousands of Palestinians into a daily hell and presents them with the inhuman decision between tearing apart family members or leaving their land entirely.
At best, Israeli Jews will yet again sit on both sides of the table and negotiate over the right of Palestinians to fall in love, marry, and lead a normal family life in their homeland. Although Meretz saved some of its dignity and has announced that it will not support the law, others will certainly keep their mouths shut in the name of that sacred compromise.
The recent decision by a number of leading human rights organizations to declare that Israel maintains a single apartheid regime between the river and the sea, including within its official borders, was received with anger by the Israeli public and the political establishment. But one must be voluntarily blind not to see how deeply these intra-Jewish âcompromisesâ on Palestinian rights are a profound expression of the apartheid logic that undergirds Israelâs regime of Jewish supremacy.
This goes far deeper than the denial of the rights of citizens in the occupied territories: the Citizenship Law deprives Palestinian citizens within the State of Israel â those who supposedly enjoy its glorious democracy â of the most basic right that is naturally reserved for every Jewish citizen of the country, and even Jews abroad.
Palestinians present their documents to Israeli Border Police members as they make their way through Israeli Qalandia checkpoint, West Bank. April 16, 2021. (Flash90)
This shameful racist law, whose supporters have tried to disguise its demographic aspirations under the cloak of âsecurity,â is further proof that under Israelâs apartheid regime, as far as the Palestinian public is concerned, the distinction between national and civil demands is meaningless. A young woman from Nazareth who falls in love with a man from Ramallah and wants to build a life with him does not do so as a political statement. She is simply demanding the basic right that every Jewish citizen of Israel enjoys. After all, the neighbor of that young Palestinian, a Jewish woman living in a nearby town who falls in love with a Jewish man from the settlement of Ofra near Ramallah, can marry him and live with him in her town without trouble.
If Israel insists on scrutinizing the security aspect of granting citizenship, then â as Joint List MK Ahmad Tibi noted at a recent Knesset committee meeting on occupation and apartheid â the number of Jews who were granted citizenship under the Law of Return and who committed acts of terrorism against Palestinians in fact far outweighs the Palestinians who were granted Israeli citizenship and committed acts of terrorism against Jews.
Israelâs proclaimed logic would therefore require the immediate abolishment of the Law of Return. But an apartheid logic that seeks to establish Jewish supremacy â including demographic supremacy â means there is one law for Jews and another for Palestinians. All of this takes place within the tradition of internal Jewish compromises over Palestinian lives, and with the approval of the Supreme Court of the Jewish apartheid regime.
Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid (right) and Raâam Mansour Abbas attend a discussion in the Knesset, July 01, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
One cannot understand these compromises without taking into account the positions and compromises of the Islamist Raâam party, which opted to join the government last month. It is true that Raâam also has to make difficult compromises to ensure the continued existence of this government. The partyâs Knesset members remained silent in the face of the Eviatar agreement, although one can only assume they were not pleased with it. But without criticizing or supporting Raâamâs decision to back the government, it is worth examining the list of demands it put forward before entering the coalition â not only to understand the partyâs red lines, but to learn something about the reality that forces a Palestinian party in Israel to remain silent while the rights of Palestinians are trampled upon.
In exchange for equitable education budgets; the possibility of receiving building permits; the recognition of villages, some of which existed before the establishment of the state; and an end to home demolitions of Arab citizens, Raâam must stay mum on Palestinian rights in the occupied territories. In exchange for these basic rights, which should be a given for every citizen of every democratic state, the MKs of Raâam are required to allow the government to do whatever it pleases to their brethren across the Green Line. This is not called political compromise. This is called apartheid.
A version of this article was first published in Hebrew on Local Call. Read it here.
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Orly Noy is an editor at Local Call, a political activist, and a translator of Farsi poetry and prose. She is a member of BâTselemâs executive board and an activist with the Balad political party. Her writing deals with the lines that intersect and define her identity as Mizrahi, a female leftist, a woman, a temporary migrant living inside a perpetual immigrant, and the constant dialogue between them.
Since youâre hereâŠ
A lot of work goes into creating articles like the one you just read. +972 Magazine is nonprofit journalism based on the ground in Israel-Palestine. In order to safeguard our independent voice, we are proud to count you, our readers, as our most important supporters.
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First Impressions Part 3
I finally have a little bit of down time so Iâm working on everything at once.Â
I changed the name of the Jaina character to Maya....for personal reasons. As soon as I can I will go back to the other chapters and change her.
Kind of a filler chapter, Jack is attracted to Lizzie, Lizzie is attracted to Jack and neither one of them is happy about it.
FIC MASTERLIST
Fine Eyes
FINE EYES
LIZZIE âWhat an asshole! I mean seriously, what a stuck-up, holier than thou fucking douche canoe. How dare he look down on me. Fucking prick.â
Lizzie was on a roll, ranting as Maya sat quietly on her bed. She just couldnât get over the gall of the man, his rudeness. Whipped up into a storm of self-righteous anger she managed to conveniently forget that her feelings were hurt. The twinge of disappointment she felt was covered now by fury at the way heâd talked to and about her.
He didnât know her, so who the hell was he to have an opinion about her looks, or her character, or her choice of language for that matter.
Sitting down with a huff on her own bed, Lizzie looked over to see the far away smile on her sisterâs face. Some of the wind blew out of her sails as other events of the day returned to the forefront of her mind.
âTom was certainly lovely, wasnât he?â she said with a smirk, watching Mayaâs eyes light up. âAnd handsome, charming, all the good things.â
âDo you think so? I hoped it wasnât just me. He really is so sweet and funny.â
âAnd sexy, which always helps.â Lizzie laughed as Maya lowered her head bashfully.
âI canât believe he sat next to me for so long.â
âI can, that man didnât take his eyes off you from the moment you were introduced. Heâs smitten.â
âOh Lizzie, he is not, donât be silly.â
âOf course he is, who wouldnât be smitten with my smart, kind and gorgeous baby sister? I bet Mom is looking at fonts for the wedding invitations right now...OOMPH!â
The pillow that Maya threw hit Lizzie square in the face as both girls laughed.
âIâm sorry Jack was such a dick to you. Maybe he was having a bad day?â
âDonât sweat it, itâs not worth the effort to worry about it anymore.â
âStill, it was really wrong of him to say what he did.â
âYeah. But it just, if it wasnât me he was talking about it wouldnât seem so bad. Itâs not the first time Iâve been insulted. Remember Kevin from high school? He used to call me fog light because I was so pale.â
That guy was an ass.â
âYeah, and I loved him right up until graduation. So Jackâs opinion doesnât blip on my radar.â
Maya just looked at her as if to say âwhateverâ and Lizzie shrugged, determined not to let it get to her any longer. Switching off the light, both girls settled down, Maya no doubt thinking about Tom and all his considerable charm. She tried to get comfortable but for her own part, try as she might, she couldnât get Jackâs words out of her head. As Mayaâs breathing evened out, Lizzie couldnât help but feel a twinge of jealousy, and then self-recrimination. Sheâd felt hope when she bumped into Jack that day, a spark of attraction and his disdain had flattened her. She wasnât his type. She wasnât anyoneâs type. As she drifted off to sleep, Lizzie admitted what she would only ever admit to herselfâŠ.
That she was lonely.
JACK
âI canât believe you Jack! Did you have to be such a prick?â Tom stormed through the door that joined their rooms.
Jack looked up from his book, irritated at the interruption.
âYe ever hear o knockin?â
âFuck you, mate.â Tom sat on the chair, obviously not about to go anywhere. âThat was really low, even for you.â
In honesty, Jack had already come to the same conclusion, he had acted like an asshole and the poor girl hadnât deserved that. But he also didnât take too kindly to being reamed out by his younger friend and his hackles rose.
âTom, fer fuckâs sake, did ye no see the whole thing was a fucking set up?â
âI knew Ben had daughters, jack. He told me, and he warned me about his wife, who by the way is by all accounts a very lovely woman. I was hoping for a set up because Carl had told me all about Maya and Lizzie and I was hoping to hit it off with one of them. Your fucking performance may have just ruined any chance of that.â
âGood. Tom do ye really wantae involve yerself wi some girl from the other side o the world?â
âIf sheâs the right one then fuck yes. And Maya is amazing.â
âSheâs gorgeous yeah, but what could ye possibly have in common?â
âTurns out, a lot. You find that sort of thing out when you talk to women instead of treating them like objects. You should try it.â
âIâll pass, I donnae need tae know anythin more than I already do.â
âLike youâd get a chance to now, Lizzie is likely to kick you square in the balls if she sees you again.â
Jack winced inwardly, knowing he would deserve it.
âWell good thing I wonât be seein her again then, me balls will stay intact. Go tae sleep Tom, go dream yer pretty conquest and leave me be.â
âJack, one day you are going to meet someone who will make you realise that Lisa was nothing, Â and I hope to God you donât treat her the same way you just treated Lizzie Bennet. No one wants to grow old alone, not even you.â
Once Tom had left, Jack threw the book aside no longer interested in reading. He had a point, not that Jack would ever admit it. He was an ass, and he made a point of pushing people away. Except for the women who offered him nothing but a few hours of their time. Admittedly he had become adept at escaping into meaningless sex with whoever was offering. They used him as much as he used them and he still felt empty.
For the past few months though he hadnât even indulged in that form of escape. Maybe he was extra irritable because he needed to get laid. He was fooling himself if he thought that was the case, he was a prick even when he was getting laid. He never called, never stayed, never bothered to even learn their names.
He was secretly heartily ashamed of himself.
That being said, even if he wasnât a cunt, that nightâs âadventureâ would still have  been met with derision. The family was a joke, he cringed at the thought of Chloe Bennetâs shrill admonishments, and the  gleam in her eye when Tom had been so struck with Maya. That look was exactly why heâd sat next to Ben rather than give into the momentary temptation to take the seat Lizzie had offered. He didnât want the woman to get any ideas about him. The girls themselves he just didnât understand, obviously several of them were adopted or something, but a more rag tag group heâd never seen. Lizzie and Maya seemed relatively normal but the other three, well they run the gambit from punk to nun to tart and he just didnât even want to understand it. They were weird and he didnât want anything to do with people who might embarrass him in the public eye.
It was just a shame that Lizzie Bennet had such big pretty eyes, he thought as he nodded up.
LIZZIE
More than three weeks went by before Lizzie even had to think about Jack Lowden again and in her opinion it wasnât long enough. She was still salty, but she kept quiet about it for Mayaâs sake. Tom had become a fixture at the house when he wasnât needed on set, much to her motherâs glee and delight. Lizzie was happy for her sister, anyone with half a brain could see that Tom was completely gone on her. She deserved to be happy, Maya was the best of them, Lizzie couldnât fault her choice as she already adored Tom.
Tomâs friends though were a whole different story. Jack notwithstanding, (pretentious bastard) their female co-star was apparently an old friend, a stunning woman in her early thirties who treated the whole family as if they were peons beneath her notice. Except for Maya, caro was all over Maya in a way that made Lizzie ill, but her sister wouldnât hear a bad word about the woman. Rather than cause an argument, Lizzie had simply stood back, her feelings on the matter secondary to Mayaâs happiness.
Coming home from work to find Tom, Caro and Jack in her backyard, however, was not something she could easily hide her displeasure at. It looked like her mother had decided on an impromptu party for Kateâs birthday, which Lizzie knew her sister would loathe.
Sure enough, she found Kate hiding in the kitchen as she snuck into the house.
âHow did this happen?â Lizzie picked up the dish that Kate was pulling down from the cupboard and piled it on the others.
âMom decided to have Dad pull out the grill and then Tom came by, so he invited Jack and Caro, then the neighbors started showing up.â
âIâm sorry kiddo, I know you hate the fuss.â
âDoesnât matter. Iâm 18 now so I can finally do what I want.â
âYour plan still to go to the Carmelites?â
âI leave in a week, havenât told Mom yet.â
âYou probably should, Katie, sheâs going to be hurt if you donât.â
âSheâs going to be upset.â
âYes, but itâs not a secret that you want this, and sheâll get over it. She loves you and sheâs going to understand that you have to do whatâs right for you.â
âWhat do you think about it?â
âI think that you were never meant for this world, not like that anyway.â
âYou always did understand Lizzie.â
âBecause Iâm the best sister ever.â Lizzie laughed. âI got you something.â
Kate teared up as she opened the small package to see a delicate gold cross, a tiny birthstone for each member of the family dotted along its length.
âLizzie, itâs beautiful.â âSo you donât forget your other sisters in your new home.â
âGirls!â Chloe came in the door, her shrill voice making Lizzie wince. âStop lollygagging about and get out there. What will our guests think?â
âThat we donât want them here and they should go home.â Lizzie muttered as she walked toward her room to change.
âI heard that Lizzie! You never know who Tom might know so you need to make a good impression.â
âBecause so far his friends are such stand up guys, right mom?â
âI admit I canât stand that Jack fellow, but he may know someone else whoâs eligible. Besides donât you want to prove that you are better than that Scottish prick?â
âMom!â Lizzie had never heard her mother talk that way.
âNo-one insults my girls, I donât care how famous, rich or whatever they are.â
Lizzie felt a wave of love for Chloe and pulled her into a hug.
âI love you Mom.â
âI love you too, now go show him what heâs missing out on.â
There was no way she cared what that asshole thought of her. No way at all. Still, Lizzie found herself pouting over the frizzy mess her hair was as she tried to tame it. And she pulled out a white top sheâd never worn because it was cut too low. She just wanted to look nice after a day sweating in a kitchen covered in flour. That was it. She didnât give two shits about what anyone else thought.
She managed to avoid everyone except Kate for at least a couple of hours, much to her relief. Not much of a people person to begin with, Lizzie found socializing difficult when she was tired and even more so when she wasnât fond of the company. For once there had been relatively few issues, and after her quiet talk with Lydia about her lack of clothing, the afternoon had gone smoothly.
Despite Kateâs protests, torches had been lit and music rang forth from the deck. Several guests were dancing and some were even playing âsoccerâ, Charlie included. Lizzie was making her way over to them when his Dad stopped her short.
âLizzie my girl, we havenât seen you in ages. Here, young man, trust me couldnât find a better dancer in this town.â
Lizzie groaned inwardly as he pulled her to where he stood next to the one person she wanted to avoid more than anything. Acknowledging Jack with a nod, she tried to move away, but Mr. Danielsâ grip was vice-like on her arm.
âYou know I donât dance, not since Charlie broke my wrist that time.â
âJack here says he doesnât dance either, but honestly, you wonât find a prettier girl in all Chicago to dance with with.â
In his defense Lizzie saw that Jack was as uncomfortable as she was as they looked at the people dancing. There was no way in hell that she was going to grind her ass against some guyâs crotch like that, least of all his.
Jack cleared his throat, cheeks pink.
âI meanâŠ..would ye like tae dance at all?â
The pity ask just made her irritated, after what heâd said why would he even think for a moment she would dance with him?
âThanks but Iâm going to go play soccer, I donât feel like dancing.â
She made sure she was polite, kept a pleasant smile on her face. No-one would ever be able to accuse her of being rude. Walking off though she could feel his eyes on her, a trend that continued as the game progressed. From time to time she would look over to where he stood, usually with a scowling Caro at his side, to see him watching her, face infuriatingly blank.
âSo Lizzie-bean, whatâs with you and the Scot?â Charlie had his arm around her as they sat on the swing, the game declared a draw.
âWhat the hell are you talking about, butt-wad?â the bastard was still staring, even when she met his gaze defiantly.
âHe hasnât taken his eyes off you all night, there something I should know?â he waggled his eyebrows, earning him a punch on the arm.
âHeâs just trying to intimidate me. I must have hurt his tiny man-feelings when I said no to dancing with him earlier.â
âBitch are you nuts? Why would you say no that?â
âHeâs all yours if you want him, Charlie. The guy is a prick.â
âBaby Iâd take him in a heartbeat, just thinking about what those hands would doâŠâ
âEwwww gross. I do not want the image of that man doing anything in my head. Fantasize silently for fuckâs sake.â
It was close to midnight before the party finally broke up, thankfully so because Lizzie was dead on her feet. Grabbing the soccer ball she snuck away from the goodbyes, aiming for the shed, coming up short when she saw the shadowy figures locked in a passionate kiss against the wall.
Damn Maya, go get him, she chuckled to herself as she backed away to give them some privacy, slamming straight into Jack.
Fuck.
âHave ye seen Tom?â
The man couldnât even be friendly. Asshole.
âHeâs ummmm, a little busy right now.â she turned, realising too late that Jack hadnât stepped back when  she ploughed into him.
For a microsecond everything stopped, the clean, spicy smell of him invaded her nose and her eyes landed on his hands. The image of those fingers on her neck as he pushed her against the wall and his mouth against hers, flooded into her brain and out again, leaving a surge of pure desire in its wake.
Jesus fuck, no. No way this was going to happen.
The moment passed, Lizzie was pretty sure Jack hadnât noticed a thing so she made her escape, stalking into the house.
âI hate you, Charlie.â she muttered as she closed the door behind her, resolving to never think about Jack Lowden again.
JACK
How Tom had managed to talk him into coming to this party was a mystery. For three weeks heâd been able to avoid every invitation heâd extended, using âlearning linesâ as an excuse. Tom knew it was bogus but he left Jack to it. Caro on the other hand was thrilled to spend time with the Bennets, mainly so she could bitch about them to a sympathetic ear afterwards.
Jack never bothered to tell her to stop, he just zoned her out as he had done for years. The only time his ears ever perked up was when Lizzie was mentioned, much to his irritation. Where Caro seemed to dote on Maya, she loathed Lizzie Bennet and made so secret of it. Her hair was too ginger, too curly, her skin too pale. She was barely civil, always coming home covered in flour, never showing Caro the respect she felt she deserved. It was petty and mean, but he never saw fit to put a stop to it. He didnât want to care about the woman whoïżœïżœïżœd so firmly put him in his place, without so much as a word. It still hurt his ego.
And yet, here he stood in said womanâs family backyard with a beer in his hand, wondering what the fuck he was doing, and where she was. An uncomfortable hour passed, Chloe Bennet shot daggers at him and Caro kept whispering in his ear about bad breeding and trash. Tom was so caught up in Maya he had no real idea what was going on.
Then Lizzie arrived.
He knew she worked as a baker so the white dust coating her was no big deal, despite Caroâs smug âI told you so.â He felt an unwanted twinge of disappointment as she went straight into the house, seemingly irritated with the whole thing. Finding himself watching the door for her he went and helped Ben on the grill, disgusted with himself.
He had to admit Ben was a stand-up bloke, simple in his love for his girls and his sports. Jack could respect that. They were discussing the rugby world cup when Jack noticed Lizzie reappear with bowls of salad. He couldnât help but admire her, hair loose making her eyes look huge. The shirt she wore was cut just low enough to make him swallow, imagining the curves that teased, just out of reach.
Well shit.
A few hours passed, his time spent mostly with Caro or Ben. Lizzie didnât come near him, which gave him ample opportunity to watch her. The she loved her family was obvious from every interaction, even when she pulled Lydia aside and had her go change. She did it in such a way that no-one but him noticed, sparing the girl any embarrassment. Even her mother was dealt with, an affectionate eye-roll and a hug to quiet her when she started on a tangent about getting her girls settled.
âCould that girlâs shirt get any lower? She looks almost as cheap as that other one.â Caro was in his ear again.
He refrained from pointing out that her halter showed off far more skin that Lizzieâs shirt. That he knew sheâd worn it for his benefit made him doubly determined not to point out the difference. Caro was a shark and Jack wasnât about to let himself get caught in her teeth.
When dancing began out of nowhere he cringed, noticing how quickly young couples started bumping and grinding on one another. He wasnât a dancer at the best of times, but what passed for dancing in the States justâŠ.there was no way. An older gentleman approached him as he twisted open another beer, introducing himself as Lizzieâs friendâs father. He seemed pleasant enough, though he seemed to thoroughly approve of what passed for dancing.
âYou younguns have it better than we did.â he chuckled. âWe would have been thrown out of any establishment if weâd tried dancing like this.â
âI prefer swing.â Jack answered honestly. âBack when dancing involved some skill and thought.â
âAh, an old soul. I bet you like Sinatra and old movies.â
âYeâd be right.â
âYoung Lizzie can dance like that, she used to fly that one did.â
âUsed tae?â
âNot sinceâŠ..Ahh Lizzie!â
She looked perturbed as she was all but dragged in front of him and offered up as a potential partner. Her cheeks flushed as she brushed it aside, something about Charlie breaking her wrist. He found himself, just for a moment imagining taking her out there, pressing up against her...rolling their hips together.
The stumbled invitation was out of his mouth before he could stop it, his own cheeks going pink as she looked both surprised and amused. Even with him she was firm but kind in her refusal, preferring to go play football instead. Against his own will he watched her, unable to take his eyes off of her.
Over and over he told himself the same thing. She wasnât his type. Her family was nuts. She was just some random girl from a backwoods, mouthy and probably not even willing to really do anything other than what she already did. A million reasons why he should look away. Until she looked, caught him staring, and those gorgeous eyes of hers flashed with annoyance.
He couldnât look away.
âGod, how much longer do we have to stay here? I feel like Iâm surrounded by rednecks.â
Jack wouldnât have gone that far, in fact the simplicity of the event rather appealed to him, even if the company didnât. He didnât give Caroâs bitchiness the attention she wanted, not even acknowledging sheâd spoken and instead sipping his beer as he watched Lizzie kick the ball.
âI see youâre having a marvelous time, Jack.â she cooed snidely. I bet youâre hoping we donât get roped into any more podunk soireeâs like this.â
âActually Iâm no havin a bad time. I was just thinkin about how pretty the Bennet girl is.â
Caro made a sound like a strangled seal.
âReally? I wouldnât have thought she was your type.â
âI guess ye thought wrong.â
He didnât bother watching her walk away in a huff, instead he went and found Tom, enjoying his and Mayaâs conversation until the evening began to wind down. Helping Ben put chairs away, Jack lost sight of Tom and found himself looking around aimlessly. Lizzie came around a corner looking preoccupied, and this time he didnât mind in the slightest when she bumped into him.
Have ye seen Tom?â
Honestly, he had nothing, he was tongue-tied, for some reason he just couldnât talk to this woman. She was stuttering about Tom being preoccupied, her cheeks were red and she wouldnât look him in the eye.
This was going well. Not.
He had absolutely no control over this situation, and he hated it.
She was gone again before he knew it, disappearing inside and leaving him to wonder what the hell was going on.
It was late when they made it back to the hotel, Tom raving on about Maya and Caro snidely poking fun at every aspect of the evening. Especially Lizzie. Jack felt his jaw tic as she launched into a tirade against the younger woman. No aspect of her was left un attacked, from her hair to the way she laughed. Still he said nothing, his mind preoccupied with his own conflicted attraction to her and his dislike for her family and the whole lifestyle of the area he was in. Not to mention the fact that Lisa had fucked him over so thoroughly that he could only see this attraction as an annoyance, something to get over or fuck out of his system.
Somehow he didnât think that the second option was going to be something that Miss Elizabeth Bennet would go for.
He was so irritated that he tossed and turned, unable to sleep as he wrestled with a mixture of lust and disdain. He was still awake when Tom came crashing through the door at 4am.
âGet up. Thereâs been a fire.â
#jack lowden#jack lowden fanfiction#jack lowden blurb#jack lowden fic#jack lowden imagine#jack lowden x reader#pride and prejudice AU
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a klutzy encounter
a/n: another little ficlet, this time with @jace-bennett thanks claire! this is exactly where I left off on my challenge 1 fic, but you donât really need to read that to get this. donât mind any typos, or the abrupt ending I got lazy. expect a fic with nate soon!Â
âOof- Oh gosh, Iâm so sorry,â I said as I backed away from the solid chest I had run into. Leaning back, I immediately recognized the person I had practically knocked. Jace Bennetâs face was one I had come to know well over the past few years, pictured usually right next to Nate. Although he normally looked friendly, his current expression was one of remorse.
âOh no it's my fault, I wasn't paying attention.â
I shook my head. âNo really, I definitely wasnât paying attention. Trying to deal with,â I gestured to my dress, âthis.â
He chuckled, looking at the obvious orange stain. âWhat happened? Get a little too nervous?â
I smiled. âSurprisingly no. Had an unfortunate run in with a Selected and her drink. Waste of a good drink, really.â
He easily returned my smile. âYeah, do you need help with that?â
âNothing a change of wardrobe canât fix.â
I furrowed my eyebrows, thinking back to how excited my maids had been showing me the stunning white gown this morning. âI do feel bad about ruining this for my maids, though. Think you can show me where I can clean this?â
âYeah, I'm probably not allowed to take you down here but whatever. Follow me,â he said, beginning to walk down the hallway.
I took a couple of quick steps to catch up with his long strides.
âAre you sure? I wouldnât want to get you in trouble.â I suddenly realized he probably had no idea who I was. âOh! Iâm Eloise by the way, Eloise Duval.â
He waved away my fear. âI won't don't worry. I'm Jace but you know that already.â
I smiled. âDefinitely. Best friend to Nate, and practically a royal yourself.â
He laughed. âPractically. So what are you?â I was confused for a moment, wondering if I should respond âa female?â before I realized.
âIâm a Four, my parents own Duval Studios, the record label.â I paused. âWell, a Three now.â
He let out an easy laugh, âYou should sign Nate, he's really good.â
âSo Iâve heard! He played it down during our introduction but I could tell heâs definitely more talented than he lets on.â
âIâll have to hear him before we sign him though,â I said jokingly.
âHe's not super confident playing in front of people he doesn't know. But he's getting better.â
I nodded. âI can understand that. Iâm definitely curious to hear him someday, though.â
He shrugged. âJust ask him, it's hard for him to say no.â As much as I believed him, I would hate to push Nate on something he wasnât necessarily comfortable with. I had seen far too often what stage fright could do.
I smiled gently. âIâll give him some time. What about you, any musical talent?â
He laughed loudly. âOh god no. You never want to hear me sing or even touch an instrument.â
âIâll be sure to keep my guitar far away from you then,â I said, giggling.
âThat would be best for the guitar.â He laughed. By now we had reached a part of the palace I didnât recognize, and he led me down a hidden set of stairs to what I assumed was the basement. We walked into a large room with washing machines and dryers lined up along one wall and tables scattered around the middle of the room. The servants took no note of us, continuing with their work.
âHere just hand them your dress, the stain will be gone in like 2 hours tops.â He said it so casually I doubted he realized what me taking my dress off would mean.
I raised an eyebrow. âSee, that sounds fine, but I donât exactly have anything else to wear.â
âOh um,â he trailed off, looking around for a moment, âhere just take this.â
He suddenly unbuttoned the first few buttons of his dress shirt, slipping it off and handing it to me in one clean move. I tried not to look at his now shirtless upper body, but it was difficult to avert my gaze.
Well heâs definitely not shy. And not unattractive.
I blushed, wondering if I should deny it but figured it was the best option for now. âUm- okay, thanks.â
I stepped behind a screen near us, tucked into a corner of the room. When I walked out a servant quickly came by and grabbed my dress, not sparing me another glance as if this happened all the time. I tugged on the hem of his shirt, unsuccessfully trying to cover my legs. At least I was short.
He laughed at my actions. âYeah, sorry I couldn't do any better.â
I shook my head with a smile. âI appreciate it.â I fiddled with the buttons on his shirt. âWere you headed to breakfast before I almost knocked you over?â
He bobbled his head slightly. âKinda, I wasn't sure if interviews were over and I didn't want to walk in a disrupt everything so I was kinda just pacing the hall until a maid or someone walked out that I could ask if they were over or not.â
âGotcha. You should still head over if you can, those pancakes are to die for.â The food was incredible, something I knew Alex would kill to try if he ever got the chance.
âI am a sucker for the palace pancakes, or really any pancakes.â He paused, examining my lack of clothing with a chuckle. âYou should probably change into something more than just my shirt.â
I flashed him a wry smile. âYour mom might have a heart attack if she saw me in this.â
His expression turned wary. âOh yeah I forgot about her. Hm I feel like no matter what if I walk with or without you it could look bad.â He thought the dilemma over before answering. âUm I'll just go with you in case we are seen I can tell the story.â
I laughed. âDoomed either way I suppose. Ready to head back?
âItâs more like are you ready?
I smirked. âBorn ready, in fact.â
âGood,â he answered with a smile.
We walked back up the stairs into the regular part of the palace, thankfully Jace leading the way so I didnât have to worry about accidentally flashing him. Although there werenât many people walking around, just a few guards in the distance, a maid stepped out of a room at the perfect moment to spot us. Her eyes widened at the state of our clothing, or rather lack thereof, and pressed her lips together to keep from laughing. I winced, feeling my cheeks warm, but Jace didnât seem to notice her or my reaction as the maid scurried off.
âSo other than the Selected being clumsy, what are they all like?â
I looked away for a moment, mostly to hide my blush, while thinking over the girls I had personally talked to. âEveryone Iâve met so far has been pretty nice, which is reassuring. Although no one seems to be remotely similar to one another,â I said with a laugh, âwhich should be fun for Nate.â
I peered back him once I felt the warmth disappear from my cheeks, curious. âWhy? Excited to meet the rest of us?â
âYeah I wanna meet all the girls, but I just really hope Nate finds someone good enough for him.â He shrugged. âjust looking out for him.â
His commitment to looking out for Nate wasnât what I was expecting of him, but I admired it. âThatâs sweet of you. I have no doubt heâll find who heâs meant to be with. Although Iâve heard that youâre a contender,â I added jokingly.
He rolled his eyes, laughing. âOh yeah that's both of our plan b's.â
âIâll be front and center at the wedding, wishing you the happiest of marriages,â I declared, giggling.
âI'll let you be my bridesmaid.â
I poked his shoulder, smiling. âIâm holding you to that.â
He pointed to his shirt, âAnd that's going to be your dress.â The image of Nate and Jace standing together at the altar while I stood off to the side in just his shirt and high heels was too much, making me laugh way too hard. I almost bent over, but realized at the last second that nobody needed to see what was underneath Jaceâs shirt.
âEven better. I can see it now, women all over IllĂ©a following my lead and starting the bridesmaid trend of the century.â
âObviously, and it's all thanks to the girl who spilled her drink all over you.â At that comment I tried to recall her face and see if I recognized her, but the interaction was so rushed and odd I only remembered her dark hair.
âAnd your chivalry of course. Where I would be without it?â I gave him a pointed look with a smile.
âNaked and afraid.â
I giggled at that. âOh completely. Although you definitely donât seem to have a problem with,â I gestured at his upper body, âlacking clothing.â
âThis isn't the first time I've walked around the palace shirtless, I do it all the time.â
That explains a lot.
I raised an eyebrow. âAdventures with Nate take a weird turn?â
âNo, shirts are just tight and uncomfortable,â he said, laughing, before he whispered. âAnd it's funny watching the maids try not to look.â
I shook my head with a laugh. âYouâre horrible, they probably have no idea what to do with themselves.â
âI know, that's the best part,â he admitted with a smile. Then he gave me a pointed look.
âYou do know all the guards have been looking at you.â
I looked around then, surprised at his comment, only to see several guards turning their heads away quickly when I made eye contact. âWell thatâs not embarrassing,â I muttered.
He gave me a look that said âI told you so.â
I rolled my eyes with a smile. âWhat a pair we are.â
âLook at us go making all the palace staff be jealous of us.â I wasnât sure if jealous was the word I would have used, but when a guy was⊠well endowed like Jace was, I could see why he thought that way.
âOne for the books, thatâs for sure. My parents will definitely be pleased to find out I ended up half naked, walking around the palace with an equally half naked guy. All in the first day.â I laughed, sincerely hoping that my parents wouldnât actually hear about this story. At least not for another year. Or two.
He laughed. âOnly the first of manyâ
âWe'll see about that,â I conceded with a smile. At this point we had reached my room, and I stepped up to the door to face him.
âThanks for the shirt, Jace. Give me one sec.â I opened up the door and scurried into my room heading straight for the dresser. I managed to find a suitable pale blue dress to change into, quickly taking off Jaceâs shirt and slipping into the dress. It was only when I was struggling with the zipper and felt another hand help me zip the dress closed, that I realized I wasnât the only person in the room. When I turned around, Blairâs green eyes were amused as she stood in front of me. Sienna and Harper looked shocked, their jaws dropped and eyes wide.
I put my hands out in front of me. âIâll explain everything, but first I have to return this.â Before they could say a word, I picked up Jaceâs shirt that I had let fall to the ground and stepped outside of my room, handing it to him.
âI'll see you around, hopefully not about to knock you over or in need of your shirt,â I said with a laugh.
He quickly buttoned his shirt back on. âThis has been quite the mini adventure. And you're welcome for not letting you walk around the palace in just a menâs shirt all by yourself. I got you.â
âEver the gentleman,â I remarked with a smile, waving goodbye.
He waved back. âI'll see you down at breakfast. And try not to spill anything.â He gave me a pointed look, making me roll my eyes.
âWill do.â He pointed a finger at me and made an expression that said âIâm watching youâ before turning around and walking away.
Not wanting to linger around in the hallway - and knowing I owed my maids a lengthy explanation - I opened the door and stepped inside, leaning against it with a sigh as I closed it. They immediately stepped up to me, talking over one another and evoking a laugh from me. I then took the next fifteen minutes describing everything in detail, much to their content.
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blood status: pureblood clubs: charms club, hogwarts choir pronouns: up to player sexuality: up to player
BIOGRAPHY
to be written by player
CONNECTIONS
fabian prewett; the pest. from the day that she was born, bertha has been independent - exactly the way she likes it. her family comes from old money, pureblood riches lining their pockets for as long as they could remember. she grew up wanting for nothing, as any material item was given to her without a hesitation. rather than memories or friendship being used as the things to bolster her happiness, money and items were instead equated with joy in their household. and as her parents were more interested in being her friend than being her parents, they encouraged this materialistic behavior that had developed - whatever bertha asked or desired, she received the answer she wanted. to this day, it still remains the same way - only now thatâs sheâs gotten everything that sheâs wanted, thereâs nothing more that can truly excite her. the idea of spending time with people and simply talking seems trivial to her, as she figures that there are far better ways that she could be spending her time. interacting and conversing with people in school for anything more than her own personal gain is a waste of her time, and sheâs not afraid to make that known. most people seem to understand this by now, having come to the terms with the fact that bertha is not someone who is particularly friendly or outgoing. they keep out of her way - only coming to her unless they have tidbits of gossip to share with her, a desperate attempt to possibly save themselves from any impending wrath of hers. itâs refreshing and relaxing, not having to waste her energy on things that donât concern her anymore, as it seems that everyone has caught on. everyone, at least, for fabian prewett. bertha canât seem to shake them and their relentless attention. theyâre there around every corner, eager to talk to her or try to get her to spend time with them. perhaps theyâre not that intelligent, or perhaps they have nothing better to do with their time than chase pointless dreams, but bertha is growing tired of it. itâs difficult enough to constantly try and dissuade them from whatever their goal is, insults and annoyance dripping off of her tongue in thick waves. but to make it worse, fabian insists on staying persistent and refusing to give up. itâs not every day that bertha has to continually deal with the same person - unless itâs fabian prewett.
mary macdonald; the toxic relationship. it was supposed to be simple. bertha had wanted it to be that way when it had started - emphatic on the notions that this was going to be no strings attached, one time only sort of deal. mary has always been one of the few people that seemed to be immune to the cynical and cool nature that bertha gave off in waves - in the worst way possible. while bertha could say one thing that would leave others leaving without a second glance and questioning the decision to speak to her in the first place, mary was almost to impossible to rid herself of. no matter what she could say to her, mary would just respond with a shrug and a continuance to what she had been saying previously. it went like that in cycles - mary trying to seek bertha out and talk to her or give her attention, bertha acting cold, and mary not getting the hint. on one afternoon that bertha wasnât interested the same thing that happened again and again, she launched off into a tirade, hoping that it wouldâve been enough to get the other girl off her case. but instead of mary even saying anything in return or leaving - she found a way to finally shut bertha up, kissing her straight on the lips. it had left bertha stunned, because she wasnât expecting it, and more importantly, because she wasnât expecting to enjoy it. and despite her best tries to make a fuss and act as if it was a great offense against her, she knew that by letting mary kiss her - and in return kissing her back - sheâd already shown far too much of her hand. following that incident, bertha desperately tried to overcompensate with insults and anger, but time and time again the two of them found each other in the same way, tangles of limbs and soft lips that were tender in one instance and bruising in the next. she couldnât understand what was wrong with her, what was allowing bertha to let mary get under her skin like this - but she was there and she was annoying and bertha had to get her out. and just like the way that she knew best, bertha slowly began to use the information she had on mary against her - that mary was just something to occupy her time, that bertha wasnât even interested in women, that mary meant nothing to bertha. the words would flood from berthaâs mouth whenever she and mary crossed paths, determined to show that the other girl had no effect on her or her feelings. she would say it enough in hopes that she could get herself to believe it - even though knowing that mary macdonald meant⊠something. whatever it was.
peter pettigrew; the project. if thereâs something happening within the school, bertha makes it her mission to know what it is. thereâs something about knowing all of the information on people around her that makes her feel powerful - especially if itâs secrets that people want to keep hidden. knowledge is power, after all. and although bertha is not the type to exceed in the knowledge of spells or book smarts, sheâs found another way to show her power, and thatâs through the command of gossip. at first it started out small - learning the information of who was dating who, or who was cheating on who. sheâd do it through simple eavesdropping, for no one was suspicious of the small hufflepuff girl sitting alone in the courtyard, theyâd felt safe enough to start speaking about their secrets there and then. she could observe quietly and people watch from a distance in the great hall during meal hours, learning these secrets and putting together the puzzles before the people involved even had the chance to. but eventually, thereâs only so much enjoyment that can come out of relationship woes or friendship drama. bertha began to grow bored with these stories, and became hungry for juicier information. rather than passively sitting and waiting for it to fall into her lap, she began an active search for the stories that she thought were hiding within the school - like when she discovered that the seeker for the ravenclaw team had only been given the position because heâd slept with the captain. it left her feeling powerful, for who could doubt her intelligence or disrespect her when she had enough information to potentially ruin their reputation with just a word. the case of remus lupin, however - that one has proved to be the most difficult. they say that heâs just sickly, that heâs ill all the time or that heâs off visiting his mother at home. but bertha isnât that easily fooled. how coincidental that on every single time remus is off being âillâ, his friends show up late in the great hall with unkempt clothes and dark circles lining their eyes. how coincidental that he falls ill every single month, and the professors just seem to sweep this under the rug. she knows that sheâs onto something, and perhaps the quickest way to find out would be to go straight to the source of remus himself - but he wonât be that easy to crack. peter pettigrew, however. thatâs a totally different story.
rita skeeter; the rival. bertha has a way about her that makes it clear that sheâs not around to play games or to deal with people she doesnât want to. she was charismatic and manipulative, a dangerous duo when it came to twisting words and bending them all out of shape until it was impossible to remember which was was up in the first place. bertha had never been the smartest person in her class, as her mother was the type to emphasize the importance of beauty over brains. bertha wasnât born to save the world, sheâd remind her daughter. she wasnât created to change lives or to make a difference - her importance was within the family and continue their legacy. itâs clear that people show their authority in many different way - some get respect through intelligence and knowledge, others through power and intimidation. bertha, however, would show hers through her wealth and her personality. it was a force to be reckoned with, after all. people seemed to take notice, and they would listen to what she said without a second thought. that was, until she crossed paths with rita skeeter. rita was smart and sharp, she wasnât the type who could be easily swayed by the flash of something expensive or the words of intimidation. rita was headstrong like bertha, having gained a reputation on her own through her rise to the top of the social hierarchy. it was something of a question, though - because for the two of them, it wasnât as if the two of them were popular or well-liked among their peers. people feared them, people were intimidated by them, people respected them in a different way. but to bertha, it didnât matter if she was feared or if she was loved - what mattered was that she remained in the position that she so rightfully deserved - the position of the most powerful girl at hogwarts. itâs true, power was relative, for someone could easily say that the most intelligent student was the most powerful - but itâs not about that. power is knowing that people will go through with your every whim, and as long as rita skeeter is in her way, thereâs something in the way of her reaching that goal.
BERTHA JORKINS IS PORTRAYED BY CHLOE BENNET, AND SHE IS OPEN FOR APPLICATION.
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In-line meta 221B just before the hug
221B Scene. Discussion between John and Sherlock. End of TLD.
SHERLOCK: âPerhaps the drugs opened certain doors in my mind.â (Like closet doors, last time he took drugs, in TAB.) ⊠âIntrigued.â
JOHN: Makes dismissive/semi-humorous comment showing Sherlock Johnâs care for him is merely duty, a duty he is sharing with others.
SHERLOCK: âI thought we were just hanging out.â The softening of Sherlockâs gaze at the end shows this is the truth. He wishes they were just hanging out, but he thinks Johnâs there out of duty, not because he wants to be. Reinforces this with: âI do think I can last 20 minutes without supervision.â (Duty again. The tiny self-deprecating smile at the end. Heâs hoping John will joke back as usual, continue their old camaraderie. Heâs setting up for a private joke, but John doesnât respond.) Just says -
JOHN: âIf youâre sure.â Doesnât meet Sherlockâs eye, his gaze is straight ahead until the last second.
JOHN: Makes comment about going to Rosie.
SHERLOCK: (Voice soft). âI should come and see her.â (Beseeching look.) Unusually subdued. Ah yes, Rosie is the most important to him now. And instead of throwing out some joking, petulant statement, he calmly accepts he no longer can come first to John. The subtext: Do you still want me to be part of your life? Sherlock looks at John as John talks with head-Mary. John unsure how to take this - does Sherlock seriously want to spend time with Rosie?
 JOHN: Gives an unwelcoming yes. Heâs not engaging.
SHERLOCK: Looks away. How to make him stay, how to get this back on the old footing? He taps his hand on side of mug - frustration, indecision. Pleased he has found something to say, he looks up. The case. Yes. Johnâs always interested in the case. Thatâs why heâs interested in Sherlock, for the excitement, the two of them fighting crime together.Â
SHERLOCK: Starts in his light professional voice to discuss case. John isnât thawing. Sherlock trails off with a little laugh. Heâs nervous.Â
JOHN: âThatâs good.â (Low intonation at end, shutting down this conversation. Might as well have said âthatâs nice.â)
(This part of the scene, the stops and starts, and averted looks, talking about anything but the real story, reminds me of the Mr Darcy meets Lizzie Bennet scene in the Colin Firth version: A couple who are in love but donât know they are in love, have argued, and see each other again in difficult circumstances, donât know what to say to each other, or how the other feels.)
JOHN: Clenches hand (sign of Johnâs stress that Sherlock must have picked up on over the years).
SHERLOCK: Looks to his tea. This isnât going well. John is upset. John is leaving. Heâs going to have to go deep.
SHERLOCK: âAre you okay?â
(Such a loaded question. This isnât âhow are you?â as a greeting or a post-bomb check. His voice is raw, all pretence gone. He cares. Itâs hard for men to get onto this plane of conversation. He REALLY cares.)
JOHN: Laughs, but returns.
SHERLOCK: Watches Johnâs reaction, accepts the anger he feels is his due. He knows heâs broken them so no smart arse comments, he doesnât argue, he just acceptsâŠ.
SHERLOCK: âIn saving my life she conferred a value on it, a currency I do not know how to spend.â (Without you I donât know why my life is. He earlier said he couldnât commit suicide because of the value of his life to John, but he doesnât know how to live if John doesnât even want to be friends. He canât live or die without John.)
JOHN: Still not forthcoming, but his choice of words âIt is what it isâ have deeper meaning for the audience. Could be interpreted by Sherlock as âtough, this is what weâve gotâ.
SHERLOCK: Swallows. Thatâs all heâs getting. Heâs glad to get that forgiveness (he thought heâd broken any feelings romantic/platonic John had for him. He canât say anything here because Johnâs talking about Mary (on the surface), heâs still in love with her. Sherlockâs culpability (which he feels even if forgiven) means he canât talk about her. He has no right.
JOHN: Back to his duty - heâs on the 6-10 watch. The meaningful moment is over.
SHERLOCK: Tears in his eyes. Bravado: âLooking forward to it.â Itâs all heâs got left.
JOHN: âYeah.â A blank little âyeahâ and an eye-roll. Heâs not.
IRENE?: Text alert!!!
JOHN: Jealous.
SHERLOCK: Plays innocent. (Could he have set that up?) Starts analysing whilst John stalks back over. Why does Ireneâs ringtone make him come back. John was always jealous of Irene. âŠ
SHERLOCK: âOh. Okay. Thatâs good.â (For Johnâs deduction. He has no idea what this will be, Heâs wrapping a protective coat around himself. Complete change of tone - a subdued version of his own mocking tone. This tone last used when John asks him to be best man, and he really doesnât understand whatâs being asked. Eyes flicker, heâs analysing, possibly responding mentally. Sips tea at the end there too. (And why does he keep his birthday secret?) All very polite and formal between them.
JOHN: âSeriously, are we not going to talk about this?â
SHERLOCK: (This being him and John, or something else?) âWhat? (Doesnât dare say anything leading.)
Clarify 2 X more. Normally Sherlock predicts what John will say but here he really doesnât know.
JOHN: âWoman..â
SHERLOCK: Screws eyes shut. Seriously? FFS John, how dense can you be?
JOHN: Lots of subtext about losing chances, with a very hetero âmateâ as last seen in TSoT.
SHERLOCK: WTF? How can John still think heâs in love with Irene Adler? He made this clear. Heâs confused. Something heâs missing. Right. Revert to standard line. âRomantic entanglements, while fulfilling for other peopleâŠâ (Is this because he thinks if John really thinks Sherlockâs in love with Irene, than all his assumptions about what is between them must be flawed.)
JOHN: Talks about chance. âChances donât last forever⊠gone before you know it.âÂ
(Surface - about Mary, which means Sherlock canât really respond. Also foreshadowing Last Problem. Subtext - heâs talking about chances between him and Sherlock, and telling unwittingly telling Sherlock to go for it.)
SHERLOCK: Eyes fall. This hits hard, He knows heâs lost his chance with John, back before he realised he loved him. This is an incredibly raw moment. Sherlock has a raw, earnest expression.Â
JOHN: Talks about needing someone who completes you and makes you a better person.
SHERLOCK: âForgive meâŠ... I can safely say..â You complete me, you taught me to be a better man. Thatâs what love is. You are the better man, and you taught me. Except he doesnât get to finish what is basically a confession of love, unlike Culverton Smith, whose confession couldnât be stopped.
JOHN: âI cheated.â
SHERLOCK: Utter shock. Did he really not know? Then he realises Maryâs in the room, in Johnâs head. How can he replace a dead person. Itâs heart breaking watching John talk to his dead wife. Sherlock analysing - so he still sees her and talks to her, but he cheated. Sherlock calculating WTF is going on here?
JOHN: Confesses all to Mary, himself, and Sherlock. Subtext, despite Mary being the mother of his child, he still cheated. He was only with her for the baby, but even that couldnât stop him wanting more.
JOHN: âBut I wanted more.â
SHERLOCK: Analysing. More with Faith? Or more than he got from his relationship with Mary. More with Sherlock? This is the moment Sherlock starts to wonder if thereâs still a chance. He raises a wondering gaze, dawning hope in his eyes. John wasnât committed to Mary like heâd assumed. What does that mean? (Sherlock is probably never going to be great at understanding emotions, though heâs improving.
JOHN: âI still do.â
SHERLOCK: (With who?)
JOHN: âNot the guy you thoughtâŠâÂ
(Surface level to Mary and Sherlock - Iâm not a good guy. Subtext - Iâm not the (straight) guy you thought I was. Johnâs equating good and straight because of internalised homophobia.) âI never could be.â (Heâs always been this way - hmm that sounds familiar.)
JOHN: âBut thatâs the pointâŠâ You love warts and all.Â
SHERLOCK: Subtext: Sherlock can be loveable even though heâs not perfect. John could love Sherlock.Â
JOHN: âWho you thought I was is the man I want to be.â (2 levels - good man/straight man. Equating these is a sign of his internalised homophobia. And heâs telling the audience and Sherlock, that they have made false assumptions (thatâs heâs straight).
MARY-in-Johnâs-head: âWell, John Watson, get the hell with it.âÂ
(Emphasis on hell. John has seen Mary tell Sherlock to go to hell, so links hell with Sherlock. Heâs telling himself to get the hell on and tell Sherlock before itâs too late.â What else could this refer to - the recovery at surface level (John, get the baby, come back to life), but itâs much much deeper. As John stares, Mary smiles and disappears. Johnâs two sides (the conflict between Mary/John in his head, AND his good and bad side, and his side where he loves women and side where he loves men). John is integrated again. He accepts himself, warts and all, good man and bad, and all parts of his sexuality.
JOHN: Sobs, overwhelmed. He has given himself permission to be the man he was always supposed to be, to love himself entirely.
SHERLOCK: Absolutely serious, raw, none of the usual jokes and mania or glee, just entirely genuine and natural, puts down his tea and slowly, quietly, goes to John to comfort him. (He presumably hasnât heard Maryâs contribution in Johnâs head, only Johnâs side. So he only sees John admit to Mary that he cheated, that heâs not the guy they thought. He doesnât know John has just told himself to go for it. He seems John overwhelmed with guilt, as he sees it, not relief.) THEY HUG.
Compared to the wedding hug, which was so awkward, like John teaching Sherlock to hug, this is so natural. Mr Homes knows exactly what to do. Sherlock still cautious. Not sure how heâll be received, this is not the moment for any declarations. But the hand on Johnâs neck is possessive and intimate, and John lays his head against Sherlockâs chest.
SHERLOCK: Glances up at the sky (thank god? Is this right? Am I doing it right?) All he cares about is that John is hurting.
Like the scene at the end of TSoT when Sherlock deduces the pregnancy, leaving him to realise thereâs no chance with John now, this is such a raw, open, tender scene. They are being honest with each other and within themselves. There are still some miscommunications to clear up, but they are born of love and waiting for the right moment.
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Expert: The summer of 1919, called âThe Red Summerâ by James Weldon Johnson, ushered in the greatest period of interracial violence the nation had ever witnessed. During that summer there were twenty-six race riots in such cities as Chicago, Illinois; Washington, D.C.; Elaine, Arkansas; Charleston, South Carolina; Knoxville and Nashville, Tennessee; Longview, Texas; and Omaha, Nebraska. More than one hundred Blacks were killed in these riots, and thousands were wounded and left homeless. The seven most serious race riots were those which occurred in Wilmington, N. C. (1898), Atlanta, Ga. (1906), Springfield, Ill. (1908), East St. Louis) Ill. (1917), Chicago, Ill. (1919), Tulsa, Okla. (1921) and Detroit, Mich. (1943). â Robert A. Gibson, The Negro Holocaust: Lynching and Race Riots in the United States,1880-1950 A war of extermination will continue to be waged between the two races until the Indian race becomes extinct. â California Governor Peter H. Burnett, 1851 At the time, Executive Order 9066 was justified as a âmilitary necessityâ to protect against domestic espionage and sabotage. However, it was later documented that âour government had in its possession proof that not one Japanese American, citizen or not, had engaged in espionage, not one had committed any act of sabotage. These Japanese Americans, half of whom were children, were incarcerated for up to 4 years, without due process of law or any factual basis, in bleak, remote camps surrounded by barbed wire and armed guards. â Michi Weglyn, Years of Infamy: The Untold Story of Americaâs Concentration Camps, March 1, 1978 The recent attack in Charlottsville hardly stands out as in any way unique in American history. But there are several very telling aspects to this display of organized white supremacist values. First, how is it the police allowed it to happen? Well, ok, we know the answer. That was rhetorical. The next question would be perhaps the media coverage of this. Third would be the President and his response. In a sense, the media coverage actually encloses the other issues. For the narrative being manufactured by the NY Times and Washington Post and all the rest, CNN and MSNBC is pretty much the same, with only variations that are designed to target specific demographics. The story of U.S. racism and colonial plunder, of a settler mentality and the reality of Manifest Destiny and genocide is simply erased. In its place is the fairy tale of white American goodness that I and millions of others were taught in school. Charlottsville is thus not a result of Trump, of his personality, of his friends such as Steve Bannon. It is part of a deep current in the collective psyche of the U.S. There has never been a time when America was good. There was goodness in America, certainly in culture, in art and even in certain movements for social justice. There was the Wobblies and early socialists and union organizers. But the overriding reality has been one of acute racism, both institutional and individual, and of conquest and since WW2 of a rabid all consuming anti communism and quest for global hegemony. The U.S. was founded on the twin pillars of slave labor and the genocide of six hundred indigenous tribes. It is a settler colonial project that has never wavered in support for the Capitalist system. It was founded by rich white men, and that also has never changed. Blacks canât run it. Nowhere, and they wonât be able to for a hundred years, and maybe not for a thousand. ⊠Do you know, maybe one black country thatâs well run? â Richard Nixon (Whitehouse tapes) I donât go so far as to think that the only good Indians are dead Indians, but I believe nine out of 10 are, and I shouldnât like to inquire too closely into the case of the 10th. â Theodore Roosevelt I mean one could just go on and on. Woodrow Wilson worked to keep blacks out of Princeton when he was that Universityâs president. Calvin Coolidge, Andrew Johnson, James Polk â who deserves a special place as the most pro slavery president, perhaps, in U.S. history. In fact, itâs pretty hard to find a president who wasnât overtly racist. While it may be tempting to dismiss 500 knuckle-dragging racists marching through Charlottesville waving Confederate flags as unrepresentative of a nation that takes pride in values of tolerance and racial equality, it would be wrong. Those who took part in those ugly scenes are the reality rather than the myth of America. They know that the American exceptionalism which Obama, while president, declared he believed in with every fiber of his being, is in truth white exceptionalism â âwhiteâ in this context being not only a racial construct but also an ideological construct. â John Wight, âCharlottesville: Outrage, Hypocrisy & Obamaâs Betrayalâ, Greanville Post, August 16, 2017 But what has struck me is the outcry from the educated white class. Those gatekeepers to media and what passes for culture these days. The outrage is extreme and this has served to amp up the anti Trump sentiments even further than they already were. But none of these people uttered a peep about Obama and his CIA support for radical head chopping takfiri killers in Syria, and not a word when Hillary Clinton and Victoria Nuland (and John McCain) orchestrated the coup in Ukraine that installed a full-on Nazi Party, complete with swastikas. But then U.S. foreign policy has a long history of support for fascism. In Africa, the U.S. supported war lords and mass killersâŠas Keith Harmon Snow wrote⊠The violence wreaked on Congo-Zaire by Yoweri Museveni and Paul Kagame was exported by perpetrators who first waged genocidal campaigns and coups-dâĂ©tat that violated the most fundamental international covenants on state sovereignty first in Uganda, then Rwanda, then Zaire (Congo). On 6 April 1994, they assassinated heads of state from Rwanda and Burundi, again the most fundamental and egregious violations of international law. The U.S., U.K., Canada and Israel could not have been happier. These first campaigns of Tutsi-Hima guerrilla warfare set the stage for unprecedented violence as the terror regimes of Yoweri Museveni and Paul Kagame tortured, slaughtered, raped, disappeared, assassinated, and terrorized millions of innocent non-combatant civilians from Uganda to Rwanda to Burundi to Congo (and in South Sudan). They had the backing of western intelligence and covert operations at the start. Or take Haiti. The U.S. ushered out President Aristide at gunpoint and replaced him with former Ton Ton Macoute fascists. The U.S. removed Zelaya in Honduras (on order from Hillary Clinton) and replaced him with a far right wing fascist. The U.S. supports fascist Leopoldo Lopez and his friends in Venezuela at this very moment. But rarely if ever do I hear a word from those people *outraged* at the tiki torch Blood and Soil pro confederate neo Klansmen in Virginia this week. The U.S. openly supported the fascist loving Croatian secessionists under Franjo Tudjman, an ardent admirer of the fascist state of Croatia in the 1930s under Ante Pavelic, as they dismantled socialist Yugoslavia. The racist murderers in Charlottsville are ideologically the same as countless parties and leaders the U.S. has supported for sixty years. No, for two hundred years and supports today. I read a meme on social media yesterday that described Trump as having disgraced the office of the President. This is from a liberal and a Democrat. Honestly Iâm not sure what one would have to do to disgrace that office. Harry Truman ordered the destruction of two Japanese cities with Atomic bombs, the murder of hundreds of thousands of civilians, women, children, the elderlyâŠeveryone. Disgrace the office? The School of the Americas, now rebranded, taught torture and subjugation to several generations of right wing dictators, and helped train death squads throughout Latin America. I suspect that if Barry Goldwater returned from the dead and ran as a Democrat today he would be hugely successful. There is a certain swooning adoration for rock ribbed conservatives in liberal America. It is the result of an endless inculcating of the idea of money equating with merit. Most Americans have an unconscious knee jerk respect for the wealthy. Listen to how the owners of major sports franchises are talked aboutâŠit is always MISTER Bennet, MISTER Dolan, MISTER Snyder, MISTER Kendrick. It is a kind of weird hologram of the plantation system brought to you on network TV. While demanding an Open Door in China, it had insisted (with the Monroe Doctrine and many military interventions) on a Closed Door in Latin America-that is, closed to everyone but the United States. It had engineered a revolution against Colombia and created the âindependentâ state of Panama in order to build and control the Canal. It sent five thousand marines to Nicaragua in 1926 to counter a revolution, and kept a force there for seven years. It intervened in the Dominican Republic for the fourth time in 1916 and kept troops there for eight years. It intervened for the second time in Haiti in 1915 and kept troops there for nineteen years. Between 1900 and 1933, the United States intervened in Cuba four times, in Nicaragua twice, in Panama six times, in Guatemala once, in Honduras seven times. By 1924 the finances of half of the twenty Latin American states were being directed to some extent by the United States. By 1935, over half of U.S. steel and cotton exports were being sold in Latin America. â Howard Zinn, A Peopleâs History of the United States, 1980, Chapter 16, âA Peopleâs War?â The white liberal today operates from an ideological position of intellectual containment. One might think Hiroshima would be condemned without qualification. This is not the case. The intellectual containment is to partition aspects of history and simply ignore the disturbing parts â things like the reality of slavery, for example. Hollywood goes a long ways in sanitizing the story of the slave trade, and more, of the enduring scars, emotional and psychic, that such barbarism produced. White supremacism is, as John Wight rightly notes, is an ideological construct. So back to Charlottsville. The goofy Hitler haircuts and ridiculous tiki torches (Wal Mart sells them by the by) make for good TV and provide an easy target for hand wringing liberals, but the reality is, of course, that most people have no desire to upset the status-quo. How many white American football fans applaud Colin Kaepernickâs refusal to stand for the anthem? According to a Reuters poll 72% of Americans saw Kaepernick as unpatriotic. The overt racism and fascist symbols in Virgina are easy to denounce. They seem almost made for that. And the attendant cries of how empowered the Trump base is seem almost silly (for one thing Trumpâs real base is upwardly mobile whites, suburban usually, and nominally educated). The cartoon crackers in Virginia are not a significant force. But they do have symbolic weight. And yes, a woman died. Killed by a former Marine. Quelle surprise says I. The police watched. The U.S. domestic police system was born of militia hunting runaway slaves. It has not traveled a very great ideological distance since. As an internal colony in what some refer to as a prison house of nations that characterizes the U.S. nation state, black communities are separated into enclaves of economic exploitation and social degradation by visible and often invisible social and economic processes. The police have played the role not of protectors of the unrealized human rights of black people but as occupation forces. â Ajamu Baraka, âPhilando Castile, Charleena Lyles: The Body Count in the U.S. War against Black People Continuesâ, Black Agenda Report, June 21, 2017 The U.S. society is one in distress. There is a desperation in the affluent classes that suggests a growing recognition that the system they believe in, that has protected their privilege, is starting to fray at the edges. And maybe worse than fray. A recent study on addiction to smart phones among teenagers links depression and feelings of isolation with smart phone usage. It also has resulted in a generation that goes out less, has less sex, and desires independence less. Teens live at home longer, and wait longer to get their driverâs license. One in four Americans take anti depressants. Jonathan Craryâs excellent book 24/7 dissects the global present in which most Westerners today live. And disruptions of sleep play a prominent role in the infantilization of U.S. culture. Everyone today sleeps less. Six and half hours a night compared to eight hours only a generation ago. In a society that metaphorically sleepwalks when awake, the material reality is that people sleep less. They are more anxious, and more afraid. The anti war movement (of the 60s) had spawned an identification with pacifism and public empathy for the victims of war; but in the 1980s the conditions nurturing these currents had to be eliminated and replaced in all areas with a culture of aggressivity and violence. That millions of supposedly liberal or progressive Americans will not dutifully avow that they âsupport our troopsâ while remaining silent about the thousands murdered in imperial wars attests to the success of these counter measures. This marked the conscious ridicule of the sixties counterculture in mass media. It also marked the start of an aggressive re-writing of history, even recent history. Today it is a criminal offense in many places to feed the poor. It is criminal in many places to grow a vegetable garden in your front yard. It is illegal to criticize the Israel, too. Poverty is shameful, and worse. Against this has come an onslaught of demonizing all communist leaders from Castro to Mao. Chavez is routinely called a dictator, a caudillo, a strongman. Never mind this is only more racism, it is also untrue, factually untrue. No matter. It is a society of mass propaganda on all levels. So Charlottsville will distract the educated white populace for a week or so, and Trump will be made fun of and denounced. One wonders who watched his TV show, though. I mean it canât have been just those guys in Hitler haircuts, right? Now Trump is a vile and dangerous man. Clearly close to illiterate, weak, resentful and insecure. But Trump is only a signifier for a wider problem. And that problem is that the United States has never altered its basic course. It began as a settler colony, one with genocidal tendencies and a thirst for violence. And so it is today. Eight hundred military bases across the planet. And allies like Saudi Arabia, where women are beheaded for being witches. Where confessions are the result of torture. Torture that isnât even denied. The UN appointed Saudi Arabia as head of their human rights council. You see the problemâŠits much bigger than Charlottsville. If a society has stopped reading, and cannot sleep, and is the most obese in history, and where fertility rates are in steep decline; well, one suspects this is the dawn of the Empireâs collapse. Ajamu Baraka summarized it best I think. Looking at white supremacy from this wider-angle lens, it is clear that support for the Israeli state, war on North Korea, mass black and brown incarceration, a grotesque military budget, urban gentrification, the subversion of Venezuela, the state war on black and brown people of all genders, and the war on reproductive rights are among the many manifestations of an entrenched right-wing ideology that cannot be conveniently and opportunistically reduced to Trump and the Republicans. George Jackson wrote⊠The Capitalist class reached its maturity with the close of the 1860-64 civil war. Since that time there have been no serious threats to their power; their excesses have taken on a certain legitimacy through long usage. Prestige bars any serious attack on power. Do people attack a thing they consider with awe, with a sense of its legitimacy? The U.S. military lays waste to parts of every continent on earth, or threatens to. There are U.S. troops killing people in Yemen, in Syria, in Afghanistan. The U.S. threatens small nations without real power. And the leadership today, and not just Trump, is infantile and narcissistic and ill-educated. It is as if the very worst and most stupid people in the country are now running it. But this has been trending this direction for thirty years now. It is not new. It has only gotten much worse, I think. There were mass pro Nazi rallies in Madison Square Garden in the 1930s. Americans adore royalty, too. The same Euro royals who have supported and protected fascists for hundreds of years. There is an unmediated worship of power and authority. Nearly anyone in uniform is fawned over. The American bourgeoisie always side with authority. With the status quo. With institutional power. Charlottsville is indeed a symptom, but it is not in any way an aberration. http://clubof.info/
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