#ince ore

[postpunkindustrial]

Inca Ore - Vista Maria

[voraciousvore]

Big Corp Inc. (1/43)

Basic Plot: Candy Caramello is desperate to get a job. So desperate, in fact, that she accepts a job at Big Corp Inc. working with Giants who are hundreds of feet tall. She'll have to contend with a licentious boss, an office bully, being eaten alive, and all sorts of other hazards inherent to being a tiny human in a Giant world.

Total Word Count: 96,645

Content Warning: This story is intended for mature audiences. It contains several vore scenes and explicit sexual content (both sweet romantic intimacy and non-consensual). Warnings will be posted at the beginning of chapters as needed.

(As an aside, I welcome any comments/ feedback/ criticism you may have, so don't be shy if you have something to say! :))

Chapter 1: Call to Adventure

Candy Caramello urgently needed a job. She was getting desperate. One more missing rent payment, and she’d probably be evicted and living out on the street. Her landlord was an understanding guy, but she hadn’t paid any rent in months, and she was running out of money. 

Unfortunately, Candy didn’t have any marketable skills. She wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed either. She had dropped out of high school and toiled in low-wage retail jobs for most of her working life. Candy was cute and sweet, as her name suggested, but also incompetent and clumsy. Somehow, she managed to get herself fired from every job she worked at. Her last job was at a restaurant. In the few months she worked there, she managed to mix together the bags of salt and sugar, spilled drinks and food on several customers, and broke enough plates and glasses to make a full dining set. The manager liked her for her bubbly personality, but eventually got fed up with her costly mistakes and had to let her go. 

The story was similar at her other jobs too. For a short time, she had worked at a warehouse where she had to pick orders, pack them up in boxes, and sort them. She could never get the orders right. She’d always forget an item, or put an extra item in, or count the wrong number, or confuse the invoices. She’d make a mess out of the packing materials, tear up the boxes, and get her long blonde hair caught in the packing tape. A plethora of customer complaints regarding incorrect orders and hair everywhere led to termination of her employment. 

Needless to say, the more jobs she got fired from, the less anyone wanted to hire her. The situation had deteriorated to the point where she was notorious, blackballed from several industries in her city. Her references all warned against hiring her to new potential employers. Candy was in trouble. 

She did have one option left, but she was very hesitant to pursue it. See, Candy lived on the small side of the city, with all the other humans like her. Her city was split into two sections, the small side and the large side, which were kept strictly separate for safety reasons. The large side of the city housed the Giants, a race of people who were just like humans except hundreds of feet tall. Like most humans, Candy was scared of Giants. She had never met one personally, since she avoided crossing the barrier to the large side of the city, but in the instances where she was close by she had felt the tremors of their tremendous footsteps in the ground and seen their towering silhouettes from afar.  

Of course, the TV programs and the government propaganda flyers posted all over town proclaimed that Giants were perfectly safe to humans, and the two species could effortlessly live together in harmony. The human and Giant governments had been slowly working towards integration for years, despite the resistance of the majority of the human constituents involved. The Giant parliament had appropriated millions upon millions of Big Bucks (BB), the Giant currency, to building infrastructure suitable for humans in the large sector. Despite the sizable investment, few if any humans were brave or stupid enough to venture forth to the large side. Oftentimes, those who left were never seen or heard from again. 

This incontrovertible fact was a great embarrassment to the Giant government that had invested so much money into a failed project. Therefore, they decided to pass an affirmative action plan to encourage Giant businesses to hire human workers, in order to lure humans over to the large side of the city. This program was relatively new, and would grant substantial subsidies to private businesses to upgrade their offices to accommodate and employ humans. While businesses were more than happy to receive easy money from the government and spare the bare minimum expense to “upgrade,” finding humans willing to work with Giants was harder. 

In their glossy advertisement campaigns, painting rosy pictures of humans and Giants happily working together, these businesses targeted naïve, impressionable humans that were desperate for work—humans like Candy. Despite her reservations, Candy was easy prey. The idea of working with Giants made her exceedingly nervous, but after filling out hundreds of job applications with no response, she decided to shoot her shot and apply—after all, she had nothing to lose. She wasn’t familiar with too many Giant businesses, but she saw a promotional campaign from an establishment called Big Corp Inc. and decided to send in her resume. 

To her surprise, her phone rang within minutes. She jumped on it and answered, “H-hello?” 

“Is this Candy Caramello?” a deep, rich voice on the other end of the line asked.  

Candy’s breath hitched in her throat. She could tell that huge, full voice belonged to a Giant, and it was very intimidating. “Y-yes, sir.” 

“Hello there, my name is Richard Hardon. I’m a manager over at Big Corp Inc. and I see you’re a human that just applied to work here. I have a few preliminary screening questions for you,” the Giant stated in a professional tone. 

“O-okay,” Candy stammered. 

“First question: How old are you?” 

“Um... 23.” 

“Okay, that’s acceptable. Second question: What’s your height and weight?” 

“I’m 5’5” and 130 pounds.” Candy had never heard of anyone asking for this information on a job questionnaire, but she figured there must be a reason. Maybe Giants had different workplace practices. 

“Ah, so you’re a cute little thing! Excellent! Third question: What’s your bra size?” 

Candy was baffled by this question, but not wanting to jeopardize her chances obediently answered, “I’m a D cup, but why do you need to know?” 

“Oh! Just for the work uniform, of course,” the Giant explained smoothly. “You sound like a good fit for our work culture. When can you come in for an interview?” 

Candy found his questions off-putting, to say the least, but she reminded herself that she needed this job badly. “I can come in today, if you’d like!” 

“Perfect! How does 3 pm sound?” 

“I’ll be there,” Candy confirmed with a gulp. 

“Okay then. You can find me on the third floor, in my private office. I look forward to meeting you, sweetheart,” the Giant affirmed, then hung up. Candy stared at the phone in her sweaty hand. She had some serious misgivings, but she felt cornered. She looked at the clock and realized she had no idea where this place was located, how long it would take for her to get there, or really even how to navigate the land beyond the barrier. She was overwhelmed and unprepared. 

She made the choice to leave as soon as possible, so she could feasibly arrive early and without incident. She had some used clothes she bought from a thrift store that she hoped would be appropriate for an interview for an office job. She put on dark slacks and a crisp gray button-down shirt with a collar. The clothes were a little baggy and wrinkly, but she figured they were acceptable. She couldn’t find a pair of nice shoes in her size that was within her budget, so she was forced to wear her ratty old tennis shoes instead. She prayed nobody would notice. 

She left her apartment, paper resume in hand, and stepped out into the early afternoon sun. The day was pleasantly warm, with a slight breeze and not a single cloud marring the pure blue of the sky. Candy was feeling optimistic. Maybe her luck was finally starting to change. She lived within walking distance of the barrier, since few people wanted to live within the vicinity of the Giants and housing was cheaper. Soon enough, she made it to the railway station. She had a bus card that was accepted for the high-speed rails as well, so she didn’t have to pay a fare. After looking up the location of Big Corp Inc.’s office building, and determining the correct route, she waited for the railcar. 

Nervous energy started to creep over her. The station, despite being new and modern, was devoid of other passengers. She was the only one waiting on the platform. The automated car pulled up and the doors slid open with a soft whoosh. After hesitating, Candy stepped inside. She was feeling too anxious to sit so she stood up and grabbed the built-in handrail for support. The inside of the car was suspiciously shiny and immaculate, as if nobody had ever ridden in it before. The car had large windows in the sides and ceilings that were spotless, free of any fingerprints or scratches. 

The doors whooshed closed and the car sped off with shocking speed. Candy hung on tight as the railcar shot underground, beneath the barrier, before reemerging on the opposite side, the side of the Giants. Candy’s palms were slick with moisture as she glued herself to the window with astonishment. The railcar was rocketing through a tunnel of clear glass, which protected the rails from being stepped on by Giants, since the railcars traveled alongside the sidewalk at ground level. The rail moved slightly underground when it crossed the roads, the glass becoming flat on top so cars could pass over. 

Candy couldn’t believe the staggering scale of the buildings, roads, streetlights, cars—all the expected trappings of civilization, really, except the foliage, which was normal-sized. Tall trees looked like tiny shrubs next to monumental concrete walls. And the Giants themselves! Candy had never seen a Giant up close, and even though she was safely tucked away inside a fast-moving railcar, she was terrified. The car moved too fast for her to get a good look, but she could see their shoes alone were larger than the entire car she was traveling in. She felt like she was going to faint. She must have made a terrible mistake, coming here—but it was too late. She couldn’t get away now. 

Far ahead, Candy spotted the Big Corp Inc. building looming on the horizon. It was a massive, gloomy, gray structure that stretched into the sky, truly one of the great wonders of the corporate world. The company’s name and logo were emblazoned on the building with immense steel letters that glistened in the sun. Her little railcar barreled towards it all too quickly. She was scared. She didn’t know how she would be able to work on this side of the city, or even get around, with everything being so gigantic. 

Her stop was fairly close to the Big Corp building, so at least by Giant standards she wouldn’t have far to go. However, the distance was still quite vast for a human. The railcar slowed to a stop, and the doors quietly opened. Candy hesitantly stepped out onto the platform, which had a cover over it to protect from the elements. The awning at least made her feel somewhat hidden from the Giants clomping around outside. She just wanted to curl up and hide as the pavement vibrated beneath her feet with the great weight of every Giant step. She imagined being crushed underfoot and shuddered. 

There were some marked human pathways with fencing on both sides to protect pedestrians from being smashed. Giants could easily step over the human-sized gates, so they didn’t block the enormous sidewalks at all. Even so, Candy was frightened to emerge from her shelter. The Giants themselves were larger than she ever imagined in her wildest dreams. Even if she craned her neck all the way back, she could barely see their faces so high up in the sky. 

Candy couldn’t bring herself to move. She was frozen in place. She instinctively wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go. The railcar had vanished; she would have to wait for the next one if she desired to go back. While she was tempted to flee, she was again reminded that she had no more options. This was her last chance to get a job. If she failed here, she’d become homeless. She exhaled slowly. Her whole body was shaking in terror. She checked her watch. She didn’t have much time left before her interview, especially considering the distance she would have to walk to get there. It was now or never. She took a deep breath and stepped forward into the sun. 

Next chapter

Table of Contents:

Ch. 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43

Character sheets (with art)

Writing Masterpost

[caughtonsamsung]

Gravel - Front Yard Photo of a sizable, fully-shaded, mid-century-modern front yard with gravel in the spring.

[desourire]

Chicago Front Yard Photo of a large mid-century modern full sun front yard gravel landscaping in spring.

[r-aindr0p]

"magical boys"

*BREAKS DOWN A WALL AMD CHUCKS MINI ROLLOS TO ANYTHING IN SIGHT*

WHERE?!

*visibly shaking* I am normal about this reversal trope of magical girls. I can definetely be trusted to not squeeze this mozarrella with a bowl cut to death. *mini rollo definitely being squeezed to death*

No idea if it's three anons or one but that's really sweet ✨ pls beware depending on which guy you plan to eat some of them give food poisoning or hallucinations (thinking abt some as those small colorful rainforest frogs)

I love magical girl animes very much, grew up watching tokyo mew mew (and somehow managed to watch wedding peach all on youtube a long time ago, i did not understand the english subtitles at all lmao, rewatched it years later and loved it), so imagine my surprise when I stumbled accross the first (if you ignore saint seiya) full on magical boy anime in 2015 and ever since I wanted to draw my own, and now I have my musketeers :)))

A lot more magical boy yapping under the cut because I love this trope so much

Anime I'm talking abt is 'Binan Koukou Chikyuu bouei-bu love' btw ! It's on the parodic side but not as much shitpost-ish as 'magical girl ore' for example. It takes itself "seriously" in it's own way. (and the ending song talks about 2 characters of the show that drifted apart and how there's 3 meters only separating them but it's enough for one to miss the other and aughhh my heart I could yap about this for ages)

LOOK AT THEM (couldn't find a decent pic of the season 1 clothes, this is season 2 and the pic is still low res augh)

Like, I was ?? idk in my last year of middle school maybe when I found this ?? fantastic discovery. Pink wombat mascot with the voice of an old man gives cute bracelets to 5 guys to save the earth. They have to say "love making" and kiss their bracelet to transform, I'm crying And here's the villains of season 1 and season 2 (twins) (silver haired bowl cut annoyed guy is my favorite, what a familiar description....)

There's 3 seasons in total to this anime and season 3 has a new cast of guys but years later at the same school !

Scenario is basically the same as season 1 but with different guys and villains, but omg the otter..... I love that yellow otter so much..... (look they have magical ace and deuce ) Villains of season 3 are called "edelstein knights" or something (ince again an angry guy with ridiculous bangs considered a villain, my beloved)

Other legit magical boy I love a lot is 'Fairy Ranmaru' !! It takes itself more seriously than binan koukou, in it's own scandalous way I'd say. They went ham with the fanservice during transformations it's crazy-(especially uruu's transformation) def +16 at least They do try to talk about serious matters and feelings/emotions in general. I cant' really tell if it's well written since I'm really an easy audience, I should watch it a second time... It's a visual experience at least if you're into that kind of designs

Blue guy my beloved.... Not showing any more, you can find the transformations on yt crunchyroll literally published them

Alright one last "magical" boy/girl, it's not even exceptionnal but it's a fever dream shitpost that has a special place in my heart : 'Classicaloid' So a girl's father created humanoids with the memories of classical composers and went to get milk, leaving them all. The classicaloids eventually decide to squat at the girl's house. They have magical powers called "musik" and have a small transformation animation. So to a certain extent I do consider this a magical people anime.

Here's everyone from season 1 (untransfromed) Beethoven and Bach (maybe mozart too tbh) are the most recognizeable but good luck to guess the others :') (Liszt and Tchaikovsky are genderbent) They are all so whacky together I love them so much, bach only speaks in musical terms "andante, pianissimo etc.." Chopin is the looser of all times, Mozart is.... Mozart, and Dvorak (season 2) became a pigmy hippo for literally no reason The animation is nice but the ending song illustrations ??? dang

First two pics are from season 2 endings, they all represent an important location for the composers or something related to them (for example Chopin's is the père lachaise cemetery in paris where irl one has a tomb) Really I'm amazed by all the ending art pieces, I can't put more than 10 pics per post, I would've showed them all otherwise eeee) On the thrid pic you actually see mozart in his musik outfit ! An in one ep he even lets his hair loose ahierjh

(takt:op is absolutely in my watchlist)

If you made it this far thank you for listening to the yapping, wether it was interesting or not ! :)))

[black-klok-youth-pastor]

Closer Look at the Dethklok Contracts

Y'know despite my last post I did take a second look at the episode real quick and thought the first contracts as an error since Damien was still in school at the time, but the contracts seem to be different even if I'm still not sure why Damien is on the first one

Date ________________ Contract This contract ensures that all parties of _______ agree to the _________ and all other statements stated, insinuated, described below with full intent and nessessary clarity, and all other forms ________ herein ___________ agree to this contract. 1. Dethklok agrees to any and all words presented in this contract and all following amendments and articles and appendixes attached. 2. Any amendments to this contract must be overseen by the entire band, a jury of no less that 13 trained accountants hand picked by Damien Cornickleson. Failure to honor this amendment will incur an hourly fine (note: untrained legal teams prepare to incur a fine to be determined), to be executed upon notice, and continued in perpetuity till amendments have been honored. 3. The undersigned agree to the appendixes and attachments in full, with no questions or withholdings, and will honor the attached binders with this first and only signed page. Mark the date here ________ Dethklok Band Members _________________________________ Signature Date _________________________________ Signature Date _________________________________ Signature Date _________________________________ Signature Date _________________________________ Signature Date Insurance Complete and Total. Apendix A-F, Articles 1-23.

Date ________________ Contract This contract is a binding amendment to any and all other contracts signed between Dethklok (Dethklok Inc.) and Crystal Mountain Records (CMR). All other contracts will be deemed null and void after the signing below to commence immediately upon the next business day of the calender day marked on this page. 1. All members both present and not present agree to the signature below, and waive any and all rights to any IP or rights to ownership to anything related to Dethklok and any and all of its music. 2. Any amendments to this contract must be overseen by the entire band, and be [no m]ore than two to three amendments off from the date of signing. All articl[es] [cann]ot be amended, and all appendix cannot be amended, upoon signing this [???] Any member of dethklok. 3. All attachments include and not included but aluded to in this contract will be honored and become the new agreement after the below sigining. Any and all previous contracts shall be null and void. Dethklok also notes, in signing to the contract creators, that any and all creative inspirations are owned and credited to Crystal Mountain Records. Signatory Dethklok Band Member _________________________________ Signature Date

[gregor-samsung]

" Erano degli eroi. Come ne moriva uno, un altro si faceva avanti per sostituirlo. Isolarono per primi il germe a Londra. La notizia fu telegrafata ovunque. L’uomo che aveva portato a termine l’impresa si chiamava Trask, ma nel giro di trenta ore era morto. Poi tutti i laboratori si impegnarono nella ricerca di qualcosa che uccidesse i germi della peste. Non si trovava un farmaco adatto. Il problema, vedete, era trovare un farmaco, o siero, che uccidesse i germi presenti nel corpo senza uccidere il corpo. Cercarono di combatterlo con altri germi, di iniettare nel corpo di un malato germi nemici dei germi della peste…». «E ’sti cosi, ’sti germi, non si vedono,» obiettò Labbro Leporino «e tu, Nonno, bla-bla-blateri come se fossero qualcosa, mentre non sono niente di niente. Quello che non si vede non c’è, punto e basta. Combattere cose che non ci sono con cose che non ci sono! Dovevano essere tutti bacati, a quei tempi. Per questo ci hanno rimesso la cotenna. Sai che ti dico: tu a me certe balle non le dai a bere». Il Nonno riattaccò con le lacrime, mentre Edwin prendeva animatamente le sue difese. «Guarda che anche tu credi a un sacco di cose che non si vedono, Labbro Leporino». Labbro Leporino scosse il capo. «Tu credi che i morti vanno in giro. E quando mai ne hai visto uno?». «E invece sì. Li ho visti l’inverno scorso, mentre andavo a caccia di lupi con mio padre». «Però sputi sempre quando attraversi un corso d’acqua» lo provocò Edwin. «Lo faccio per scacciare la sfortuna» si difese Labbro Leporino. "

Jack London, La peste scarlatta, a cura di Ottavio Fatica, Adelphi (collana Gli Adelphi, n. 353), 2023¹⁰, pp. 39-40.

[Edizione originale: The Scarlet Plague, Macmillan Inc., NYC, 1912]

[tetrix-anime]

25 Fall 2024 Anime I'll Be Posting

2.5-jigen no Ririsa (2.5 Dimensional Seduction)

Acro Trip

Amagami-san Chi no Enmusubi (Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister)

Ao no Exorcist: Yuki no Hate-hen (Blue Exorcist: Beyond the Snow Saga)

Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou Season 3 (Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Season 3)

Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka V: Houjou no Megami-hen (Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? V)

Hitoribocchi no Isekai Kouryaku (Loner Life in Another World)

Kabushikigaisha Magi-Lumière (Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc.)

Kekkon suru tte, Hontou desu ka (365 Days to the Wedding)

Kimi wa Meido-sama. (You Are Ms. Servant.)

Maou 2099 (Demon Lord 2099)

Maou-sama, Retry! R (Demon Lord, Retry! R)

Nageki no Bourei wa Intai shitai (Let This Grieving Soul Retire)

NegaPosi Angler (Negative Positive Angler)

Party kara Tsuihou sareta Sono Chiyushi, Jitsu wa Saikyou ni Tsuki

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu 3rd Season (Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 3)

Rekishi ni Nokoru Akujo ni Naru zo (I'll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History)

Saikyou no Shienshoku "Wajutsushi" de Aru Ore wa Sekai Saikyou Clan wo Shitagaeru (The Most Notorious "Talker" Runs the World's Greatest Clan)

Sayounara Ryuusei, Konnichiwa Jinsei (Good Bye, Dragon Life.)

Seirei Gensouki 2 (Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles Season 2)

Sengoku Youko: Senma Konton-hen (Sengoku Youko: The Thousandfold Chaos Arc)

Shangri-La Frontier Season 2

Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online II

Tensei Kizoku, Kantei Skill de Nariagaru 2nd Season (As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I'll Use My Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World Season 2)

Yarinaoshi Reijou wa Ryuutei Heika wo Kouryakuchuu (The Do-Over Damsel Conquers The Dragon Emperor)

Anime that streams 7 days earlier than TV broadcast (I may not post episode previews for these anime):

Acro Trip

Hitoribocchi no Isekai Kouryaku (Loner Life in Another World)

Maou-sama, Retry! R (Demon Lord, Retry! R)

Saikyou no Shienshoku "Wajutsushi" de Aru Ore wa Sekai Saikyou Clan wo Shitagaeru (The Most Notorious "Talker" Runs the World's Greatest Clan)

Sayounara Ryuusei, Konnichiwa Jinsei (Good Bye, Dragon Life.)

Anime that streams 2 days earlier than TV broadcast:

Nageki no Bourei wa Intai shitai (Let This Grieving Soul Retire)

Anime that streams 1 day earlier than TV broadcast:

Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka V: Houjou no Megami-hen (Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? V)

Anime previews I will not post, but might post contents of it (e.g. artwork from magazine):

Hamidashi Creative

Anime I will not post (unless it is a new illustration from Megami Magazine):

Ao no Hako (Blue Box)

Dandadan

Mecha-ude (Mecha-Ude: Mechanical Arms)

Murai no Koi (Murai in Love)

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Andrew Perez at Rolling Stone:

EARLIER THIS WEEK, two Democratic senators announced they have requested a criminal investigation into Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas — regarding, in part, a loan for a luxury RV provided by a longtime executive at UnitedHealth Group, one of America’s largest health insurers. Thomas apparently recused himself in at least two cases involving UnitedHealth when the loan was active, according to a Rolling Stone review. Yet, he separately chose to participate in another health insurance case and authored the court’s unanimous opinion in 2004. The ruling broadly benefited the industry — shielding employer-sponsored health insurers from damages if they refuse to cover certain services and patients are harmed. Thomas’ advice to patients facing such denials? Pull out your checkbook.

While UnitedHealth was not a party to the case, the company belonged to two trade associations that filed a brief urging the Supreme Court to side with the insurers.  “As we saw so starkly this term, Supreme Court decisions can have sweeping collateral implications: If the court rules in favor of one insurance giant, for instance, it tends to be a boon for all the other insurance giants, too,” says Alex Aronson, executive director at the judicial reform group Court Accountability. “That was the case here, and it’s a perfect example of why justices shouldn’t accept gifts — especially secret ones — from industry titans whose interests are implicated, whether directly or indirectly, by their rulings.” The public had no way of knowing about Thomas’ RV loan at the time of the decision: The loan was only exposed by The New York Times last year. Senate Democrats investigating Thomas believe that much or all of the loan, for a $267,230 motor coach, was ultimately forgiven. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) recently requested the Justice Department investigate whether Thomas reported the forgiven portion of the loan on his tax filings, after he failed to disclose it in ethics forms.

Meanwhile, Thomas’ health insurance opinion has had wide-ranging, long-lasting ramifications, according to Mark DeBofsky, an employee benefits lawyer and former law professor.  “It hasn’t been rectified. The repercussions continue,” DeBofsky tells Rolling Stone. “People who are in dire need of specific medical care, and [their] insurance company turns around and says, ‘That care is not medically necessary,’ and there’s an adverse outcome as a result of the denial of the treatment, or hospitalization, or service — there’s no recompense for what could have been an unnecessary death or serious injury.” Since last year, the Supreme Court has faced an unprecedented ethics crisis, with much of the focus aimed squarely at Thomas. ProPublica reported that Thomas received and failed to disclose two decades worth of luxury gifts from a conservative billionaire, Harlan Crow, who allegedly provided free private jet and superyacht trips to Thomas and his wife; bought a house from Thomas and allowed the justice’s elderly mother to live there for free; and paid for at least two years of boarding school tuition for Thomas’ grandnephew.

[...] Federal law requires Supreme Court justices to recuse themselves in any case where their “impartiality might reasonably be questioned.” The justices decide for themselves when such a move is necessary — and when they do withdraw from a case, they rarely say why. Thomas does not appear to have explained his decision to withdraw from the two matters that directly involved UnitedHealth. Thomas did not take similar steps in Aetna Health Inc. v. Davila, a case that broadly affected the health insurance industry. He instead authored the court’s opinion, which expanded insurers’ favorite tool for limiting liability: ERISA. Congress passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, commonly known as ERISA, in 1974 to protect employee benefits. The law is relatively vague when it comes to “welfare benefits,” and contains a broad preemption clause. The courts have filled in the blanks — including in the Aetna Health case — with distressing results for patients. Half of Americans have employer-sponsored health insurance coverage; nearly all of these plans are governed by ERISA.

Rolling Stone exposes how SCOTUS Justice Clarence Thomas received a $267K RV from a health insurance executive.

[mrros-e]

HC about Mario Bravera

we know he went back to his show due to his cameo in Slug Fu Showdown. But when did he restart his career?

Lets ask another question. Blakk gained low-level employees as s2 went on because after the beast forge he consolidated his power and many people were probably forced to work for him. And we know the real reason why no new, high-level villains show up near this end - as a show, its not wise to introduce too many new characters at once, especially at the climax of the story. BUT, still, it does ring suspicious that, other than more regular guards, there's no more well-known slingers who turned to Blakk's side.

UNLESS: Mario Bravara's show. He didn't start slinging again quite yet, but unlike the shane gang, relying on the shane status but still obviously run by kids, he had a cultural pull. AND, c'mon, he was famous and gave that up - anything he did while returning to the spotlight would be worldwide talked about.

I think he restarted his show, and didn't exactly go the Trixie route and gain footage from the warring caverns - he did interviews with Blakk Inc. survivors. Imagine? Celebrity comes around out of nowhere, just as charismatic, and this time, there's a deadweed minor talking about how he's had breathing problems since blakk inductries basically killed him, took him away from his family, and left him to rot. Next week: a mother who was forced to sign away her home for the Slugterran Express. Gretchel and his crew, describing in horrific detail the quick and for all we know deadly attack on the beast forge. Scientist staring in horror at the data coming out about dying caverns and what ghouls do to their homes, their caverns, and their resources as a society. The Lumino Ore minors with guns pointed at them as they still surrendered their rights. ALL these stories, on blast.

Maybe it wasn't helping Eli directly, but the publicity maybe helped the West move on quicker than it would have if Blakk's war crimes were left buried. And stopped more better shooters from joining Blakk's cause - Blakk has the greedy shooters, but maybe Mario prevented more fame-and-people-pleaser-hungry shooters from joining, too.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from the Associated Press (AP):

The Navajo Nation has approved emergency legislation meant to strengthen a tribal law that regulates the transportation of radioactive material across the largest Native American reservation in the U.S.

The move is in response to the revival of a uranium mining operation just south of the Grand Canyon that has drawn much criticism from environmentalists and Native American tribes in the region.

Navajo President Buu Nygren signed the legislation Thursday as talks continue among tribal officials and Energy Fuels Inc. to craft an agreement that would address concerns about any potential risks to the public or the environment.

The updated law calls for more advance notification of plans to ship uranium ore from the Pinyon Plain Mine in northern Arizona to a mill in Utah. The payment of transport fees and the filing of emergency preparedness plans also are among the mandates.

The tribe in 2005 banned uranium mining across the sprawling reservation, pointing to the painful legacy of contamination, illness and death that was left behind by the extraction of nearly 30 millions tons of the ore during World War II and the Cold War.

Despite that ban, tribal lawmakers in 2012 stopped short of prohibiting the transportation of uranium across Navajo lands. Instead, they declared the tribe’s general opposition to moving ore across tribal lands and adopted regulations to protect human health and the environment by requiring notification and financial assurance, among other things.

Navajo leaders said it was time to strengthen that law and require earlier notification of shipments by Energy Fuels as the company ramps up operations.

Nygren said notification under the existing law didn’t happen when Energy Fuels shipped its first two loads of ore in July and his efforts to have tribal police intercept the semi-trucks were too late.

“The purpose of this legislation is to provide for the protection, health and safety of the Navajo Nation and its people and our precious resources such as our water,” he said in a letter thanking lawmakers for prioritizing the issue.

[ourtalechara]

I did it again

Welcome from FICSIT Inc. to our brand new engineer

We're thrilled you picked us, we're here to bring you a brilliant new career

Yes, it's true that the terms of your servitude are a little bit unclear

But don't fear the years you'll be spending here, you're a lifelong pioneer!

You're entering planetfall to a planet full of resources

Your contract calls that your life revolves around rounding up and exporting

And if you happen upon our previous ones, well, it's your job to report it

Take inventory of the spent debris, but best to leave any corpses

No time for grief, so take relief in this briefing

These core values, FICSIT needs you believing

You'd better learn them if you want to be leaving

But if you miss it, then we'll keep on repeating

Construct!

Rebrand that land before you as a grandiose factory floor

Automate!

Command it to handle it, so you're free to construct more

Explore!

You'll fall to a world of wonders that none have seen before

Exploit!

Convert that fertile earth to a furnace for churning ore

Flora and fauna, forced to the boundaries

Par for the course when your sport's tearing down trees

Pounding them down into powder to power these

Towers you've founded to round our accounts

Seize bountiful mountains of countless amounts

Each ground into compounds bound for the foundries

Sound of it drowns out the howls of the foul beasts

Ousted and out for revenge, so look out

Deep down underground, a fortune awaits

We've just got to burn down what's in the way

How fortunate that you have opted to stay

With your life on the bottom line for our pay

So slave away and save the day

In place of wage, you'll pave the way

Stay in the black with shades of grey

Keep sending stacks, you'll get back someday

We enterprise and synergise

You improvise and synthesise

To bring supplies and tint the skies

With inky spires as chimneys rise

The market cannot be denied

We couldn't stop it if we tried

That natural snapshot that you prize

Is simply profit in disguise

Drop a thousand rods in the pod

Ship them off, don't stop and move on to the Modular Frames

The Rotors and Cables

The table says we are waiting on lots of Crates

And if we haven't got enough on your plate

Well, we haven't got enough of the plates!

And the state of the Caterium isn't great

So fill the elevator by end of the day

Mother Nature is minted, it's evident

If we're her kids, then what is the precedent?

Where there's a will, there's a way to inheritance

Whether we killed her or not is irrelevant

No defense for delay, it's expensive

So pay up, foreclosure's a moment away

Financially, we're fine actually

So contractually say it again!

(i couldn't be bothered to color this next section in)

Construct!

An industrial wonderland with a hundred belts to ride on

Automate!

Set beams to plunder and then find somewhere else to siphon

Explore!

There's a whole ton of funds to be funnelled under that horizon

Exploit!

So tear it asunder with thunderous, sulfurous pyres and pylons

This is a FICSIT reminder!

It's a lizard-doggo-eat-lizard-doggo world out there

But that doesn't mean it won't also try and eat you

So be careful

Those uniforms aren't cheap

You've been hurled without leave to build worlds without leaves

Scorch the earth, burn the trees, crush the birds, squash the bees

Yes, the customer may moan, kicking creatures from their home

But they'll scream and rant and rave if they don't get their mobile phone

You may think that it's a lot, slaying nature so our stocks gain

You may rethink extinction when your neck is on the Blockchain

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small

Will be scanned and logged and processed for the shareholder's bankroll

It's a little bit of sweat, a little bit of toil

And a big blind eye to the wildlife spoiled

If they go the way of the dinosaur

What you crying for? We're just making oil!

So the seas may boil and the skies might burn

But we'll reap the spoils of the prize you've earned

No quarrel, it's morally grey, just quarry away

Morals make for downturn

Mother nature ought to be

Hung, drawn and quarterly

Diced up and torn to pieces, export and reset

Our big spreadsheet says more for me

Unlike a life, a price is dependable

Cutting expenses to keep you expendable

Spreading our message, we made you a prophet

So make us a profit, we'll grant you ascension

All manner of valuables need our attention

The fact that there's animals ain't worth a mention

If there's a creator, I guess in a sense then

That we are a case of divine intervention

Beyond the heavens, there is revenue to glean

So turn that greens to black and we can turn it back to green

Tax law is more lax for planets unseen

And in space, no one can hear the machines

Right, I want ten thousand steel beams at my desk by four

No, not literally, where would I put them?

[where-dreamers-go]

The Disney Dreamlight Valley Livestream had SO MUCH INFORMATION.

Seriously, whoa!

There's stuff I couldn't even write fast enough or at all.

I highly recommend watching. It's about 30 minutes long.

Some highlights:

Disney Dreamlight Valley game soundtrack

Huge update later this year (December basically)

Winter Star Path with new outfits for the princesses.

Jack Skellington is coming to the Valley.

Valleyverse with the start of multiplayer with features like exchanging items like iron ore and visiting each other's McDuck stores

Biggest amount of fixes.

We then got shown a roadmap for 2024

Hello!!!!?!

Monster's Inc realm with Mike and Sully.

New Star Path with each update.

Tiana in the summer!

Then:

The expansion pass that is huge!!!

Secret places in a map just as big as the Valley!

Jafar messed this place up big time!

A story line with characters you can bring back to the Valley.

Old experiments

Royal hourglass (staff looking thing) can help find treasures lost in time too.

EVE was watching over the Hourglass

Gaston was shipwrecked.

Rapunzel is alone and painting.

New biomes: Ancient's Landing was a port town with experiments and stuff. Then a biome the was ripped in two with desert and jungle.

New animal companions, veggies, fruits, meals like arepas, and cinnamon (exclusive to this expansion)

Friendship quests and rewards like an archery set.

New mechanics. Old Ruler (s) had more tools. A board game to play to collect coins. Ancient Machines to craft and bring to the Valley. Like an Auto-Cooker and something to water your garden.

It looks so cool!!! Those visuals and what the developers were hinting at!!!

Also:

DDVBALLOON

DDVHEADBAND

(but some are saying the codes aren't there.)

[tau1tvec]

CYDONIA // Cydonia has the distinction of being humanity's oldest extraterrestrial colony. It was founded in 2112 in the Cydonia region of Mars by Deimos Staryards Inc to extract ore for ship construction. Due to the naturally inhospitable environment of the Martian surface, most of the city was built underground.

[justlarkin]

New LAH event

In the extremely hot Orient City, the king of a certain country appears before you when the doors of Parallel Flight Inc. open. You are asked to accompany him on a sightseeing trip...! Together with a brotherly mineralogist who is also a participant, you visit a planet famous as a summer resort. There you meet a passionate surgeon in pursuit of good health and a self-proclaimed alchemist with a suspicious appearance....? The group hit it off by chance, and enjoys the bustling tourist city together. But a disturbing shadow looms over these heroes. ......A summer of adventure unfolds in the city of water and trees, where a refreshing breeze crosses the city.

"A mineralogist registered at Orient City University, he is a bovine-animaloid alien. He is a fieldworker who travels around the galaxy in search of rare ores, and has the curiosity to dive into the unknown and the vitality and toughness to satisfy his curiosity. He and Marfik, who belongs to the same office, have a mentor-student relationship from their student days. Perhaps because he is mainly engaged in field research, he is not good at operating non-specialized equipment, especially precision machinery. He grew up in an orphanage and has been taking care of younger children since his childhood, making him a big brother and a good caretaker."

"Clothing covering his entire body and a mask with a unique design that hides his face. He is an alchemist with a monstrous appearance that would make most people look twice. His body is a homunculus (artificial life form) with a slime-like body that was created by an alchemist from a dead planet. He has been living for quite a long time, and even after losing his home planet, he has been wandering around by himself, continuing his research on alchemy. He has little interest in anything other than research, and is a bit unfamiliar with common sense, probably because he has had almost no contact with humans." His name is Goobert. He might not be 1boshi, but Broker be damned if I don't know a birdfuck when I see one ig.