#inspector mundi

[twistsandturnsrp]

18+ roleplay based on HBO's The Nevers Original Characters are WELCOME! check the pinned post for info & links

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"Bound by Bandits, Cashier Is Robbed At Revolver Point," Toronto Globe. October 5, 1933. Page 9 & 10. --- Pair Surprise Leslie B. Millar Checking Money Alone in Orange Crush Office Description Tallies With Thugs' in Recent Hold-Up ---- ENTRY EFFECTED BY CONDUIT PIPE? ---- Threatened with a nickel-plated revolver about 8 o'clock last night, Leslie B. Millar, 160 Coleridge Street, cashier of the Orange Crush Company, 100 Claremont Street, was robbed while he was counting the company's money at the office on the second floor, and bound with a piece of electric cord and a leather belt by two gunmen, who escaped with $231.

Millar told the police he was checking the day's receipts, when suddenly the office door opened, a man entered with a revolver in his hand and ordered Millar to turn around and face the south wall of the building. Then the first gunman called to his accomplice, whom Millar failed to see, to get something with which to tie him.

Marched Into Washroom. Millar then said that the second bandit whirled him around and marched him into the washroom, which is next to the office, and there the two robbers bound his hands behind his back and lashed his ankles together with a leather belt. He believed that the till was emptied while he was still facing the wall in the office. The cashier worked loose from his bonds and then telephoned the police switchboard for help. He believed the two men had climbed up a Hydro conduit pipe to the window of the washroom on the second floor and made their entry there. He had no intimation he was not alone in the building until the first gunman opened the office door, he stated. The police, however, are of the opinion that the bandits entered the building by the front door, which was unlocked.

$10 in Silver Overlooked. Of the stolen money, $121 was turned in by the company's drivers last night, and the other $100 was kept in the office as petty cash. The gun- men also took an unknown sum of silver, but overlooked a $10 package of 25 cent pieces which was lying in the cashier's cage. The robbers revealed a knowledge of the office routine, as they picked a time when Millar is usually alone to carry out their raid. They were not in the building more than five to seven minutes, Millar said. He has worked for the company for ten years, and, as a rule, is through for the night about 8.30, after he has finished checking the day's money.

The gunmen showed surprising daring. as No. 3 Police Station is located only a few blocks down the street. Millar described the first bandit as follows: 24 to 28 years old, 5 feet 6 inches, 135 pounds, clean-shaven, dark complexion, wearing a dark suit and grey peaked cap. He could not describe the second man as he kept behind his back all the time, he said.

The description tallies with that given by Pobert Mundy, Langley truck driver, who was held up and robbed by two men on Monday evening.

No arrests were made up to a late hour last night. Chief Inspector Guthrie and Inspector Charles Scott are in charge of the investigation.

[lifewithaview]

Laura Donnelly in The Nevers (2021) Pilot

Three years after an inexplicable event suddenly equips them with extraordinary abilities, Amalia True and Penance Adair work to protect their kind from widespread, deepening antipathy. Meanwhile, police inspector Frank Mundi (Ben Chaplin) investigates a string of murders at the hands of a reportedly Touched and highly dangerous serial killer named Maladie.

[slightlysuspect]

Distracted

Obi-Wan sits in on yet another Jedi Council meeting.

Obi-Wan Kenobi

"The Republic is in complete financial ruin." Master Brand says. "How much longer are we going to remain bystanders while Orn Free Taa cripples the economy?" Another council meeting. Another day of arguing about the same things we've been arguing about. Brand is solely focused on Chancellor Taa, and thinks he's the root of the problem. And then Plo Koon will say...

"The corruption we're experiencing extends well beyond just the Chancellor." Right on queue. He continues, "I fear we may never be able to see eye-to-eye with the Galactic Senate." Plo Koon thinks it's time for the Jedi order to renounce the Republic, and find new allies across the galaxy.

I, however, would say, "There are many in the Senate who want to help the people of the galaxy, but are being exploited by corporate factions. We need to support the allies we already have, before it's too late."

If only we could make some progress in this argument. Unfortunately, it's time for Windu to say, "These concerns are secondary to Vader. He is destined to purge the Jedi, and until he's dealt with our existence is at risk." He's unusually fixated on Anakin.

"Once again I'll ask why I haven't been tasked with finding him, if he's such a substantial threat?" I don't know why I ask. The answers always irritate me.

"The fact you will not stop asking about it is proof enough that you're too close to the issue. Once he reveals himself, we will be ready."

"If we're only waiting for Skywalker to do something, then why are we still talking about it?" Master Rancisis asks. I must not be the only one getting irritated.

"Honestly." Shaak Ti says. "We need to focus on the poverty and corruption that are taking place right under our-" A faint boom. I look out the window and see an explosion on the Coruscant skyline.

"What in the world?" Mundi asks, then the power goes out.

"I'm gonna go check it out." Brand says, and runs out the chamber. Always on the move.

"I think I shall accompany him." Master Sinube says. "I would very much like to know why Coruscant is exploding."

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"No, no, there's no need for the Jedi to get involved." Despite the inspector's assurances, I remain skeptical.

"Right." I respond. "And this kidnapped Senator, you know where he is then?"

"Well not exactly." The inspector says. "But we have a lot of leads."

"Leads that we would like to hear." Plo Koon says. He accompanied me to this meeting the inspector was having with Senator Organa and Senator Mothma. Thankfully, Organa asked me to come or we would've had a much harder time getting informed. No one ever wants to tell us anything around here.

The inspector sighs and says, "Senator Organa already told you everything we know. A bounty hunter crew blew the grid in the process of kidnapping Senator Gane."

"And you don't have the faintest idea who this crew is or where they are?" Senator Mothma asks.

The inspector hesitates, "That's sensitive information-"

"That the Jedi are privy to." Plo Koon cuts in.

"Fine. We're still piecing some things together, but the working theory is this was Dirk Correia's crew." He passes me a hologram of a man with a low-cut mohawk, a scruffy beard, and three teardrop tattoos under his right eye.

"Well that is most concerning." I say. "Do we know where they are?"

"We have a few likely safe house locations, but kidnapping historically hasn't been their thing, so we think it's unlikely they still have Senator Gane." The inspector's words do little to reassure me.

"So then we don't know where the Senator is?" I ask.

"Uhh, Dirk's been known to work closely with Kha'to, who's most likely the person that has our Senator." The inspector presses a dial on the holoprojector and shows us a ransom video.

"Our demands are simple." The Trandoshan in the hologram says. "We wish to deliver Mr. Edcel Bar Gane back to you safely, in exchange for a meager 1 Million Corporate Euro."

"He can't be serious!" Senator Organa says. "We can barely scrape together that much Euro ourselves!" Incredible. We can't even afford to bail out one of our own.

The inspector says, "Yes the negotiations no doubt will be tricky, what with everyone around here being broke." The Corporate Euro has ruined the economy of the Republic at every level. No matter how wealthy you were, you probably aren't anymore unless you found a way to get some Euro.

"Right." I say. "Well our best lead at the moment is this Dirk Correia. Where can we find him?"

The inspector gives me a smirk. "He's not that easy to find. We have 4 possible locations for his crew's safe house, and if you're gonna snoop around, you had best be careful. Last time we went after these guys, a whole platoon of clones got killed."

"What?" I ask. "Why did no one tell us about this?"

He just busts out laughing now. "You want to hear about every crime in the underworld? This is just stuff that happens, and it's really not anything you all need to concern yourselves with."

Plo Koon cuts in, "If whole platoons of clones are going down, I think we should be getting involved."

"Fine then, get involved." The inspector says. "But there's a reason we've been leaving them alone. You've been warned, Jedi."

"So the police are deliberately allowing dangerous criminals to remain at large?" Senator Mothma asks.

The inspector rolls his eyes, "Oh yea sure let's just play the blame game from our narrow perspectives. When's the last time any of you have gone to the underworld?" No one answers this question. I myself haven't been down there since the war. "Look, it's a whole different world down there, and as long as the bottom feeders are staying down there, we're better off leaving them alone. Obviously, since they came to the surface and kidnapped your friend, they need a reminder that they can't do that up here."

"So then what does that say about our philosophy in the underworld? Are we just leaving people to suffer down there?" I ask.

"Ok I'm done answering stupid questions." The inspector says. "I'll transmit you guys the coordinates, and you can go on a wild goose chase down there, and when you get back maybe we can talk some more about our philosophy."

"Unbelievable." I hear Senator Mothma utter under her breath.

Plo Koon turns to me and asks, "What's the move, Obi-Wan?"

I ponder this for a moment. "Maybe a little backup wouldn't be the worst idea. Let's get the 212th and 104th dispatched to help us take a look around."

"Fantastic idea. The Senate was gonna deploy clones anyway." The inspector says. "The more, the merrier. Tell your guys to meet up with the 501st for a debrief."

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The inspector was right about one thing. A few moments in the underworld is enough to shake your philosophy. The power must still be out down here from the incident, and you can't see anything at all. Although it works to our advantage at the moment.

"Alright Cody lets take it slow." I say. I'm leading the 212th to one of the safe house locations, and we're closing in on the coordinates. The clones are using NVGs, and I don't particularly need to see to know where I'm going. Fortunately, this area is completely abandoned, so we don't have to worry about any civilians getting rowdy.

"Yes General." Cody responds. "Scouts have eyes on the location." Cody speaks into his com link, "Does it look like anyone's there?"

"Negative, looks abandoned." Boil responds. "All teams are in position. We have the building surrounded." I give Cody a nod.

"Roger you are clear to breach." Cody announces, and the Commander and I move in with the team going through the front. Peel attaches a charge to the door, and blows a hole into the entrance. The clones move swiftly, clearing from room to room, but alas they find no one.

"Sir, the building is clear." Cody informs me.

"Indeed." I speak into my com. "My building is clear. Rex, Plo, have you found anything?"

"Nothing here." Plo says.

"Minimal activity so far." Rex says. "This safe house is in a high traffic area, and it's slowing us down a bit."

"Good copy Rex. Call up if the situation changes. I'll move to the other location near my position." I say.

"And I shall move to reinforce Commander Rex." Plo says.

Two of the four locations were in pretty close proximity, and the 212th was selected to investigate these two sites. As we move to the next location, we pass some streets that look like places people would go, but the silence is eerie. If I'm not mistaken, trillions of people live down here, but where did they all go? I guess I wouldn't want to be out in the dark either if I had a choice. A few establishments have their own generators keeping the lights on, but no one seems to have any patrons inside. What's going on down here? I think a conversation with the locals is in order.

"Just a moment Cody, I want to speak with-"

"Contact! Contact!" Rex announces through the com link. "We've found the bounty hunters! They're attempting to escape!"

"Stay on them Rex. I will be there soon." Plo Koon says.

Casual conversation will have to wait. "We're also heading your way." I announce, and the clones and I book it to the gunship.

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As our gunship pulls up to the scene, I see the 104th patrolling around the remains of a burning building, and Wolffe approaches to greet my ship.

"Commander Wolffe, what's the situation here?" I ask.

"The bounty hunters blew up their safe house and attempted to escape through the sewer." Wolffe says. "The 501st apprehended and neutralized them down there, save for one straggler, who General Plo went down there to help detain."

"Sounds like the situation is under control." I look over and see a 501st soldier with a prisoner. "Who's that over there?"

"That's Diego Fuentes sir. He survived the altercation in the sewers and we now have him in custody." What are the odds that kid knows where the senator is? I may as well ask him a couple questions.

"Hello Diego." Despite my attempt to be amicable, he seems to be rather distraught. "I was hoping you could tell me where the senator you kidnapped is being held."

"Huh?" The kid looks at me blankly for a bit. "Oh uh we brought him to some safe house for the Trandoshans." Well he certainly isn't a tight lipped fellow.

"Do you know where it is? Can you take us there?"

"Yea, sure. Whatever." I sense something is deeply troubling Diego, but unfortunately now isn't the time to dive into all that.

"Wolffe!" I yell. "I'm going to take Diego with me to go rescue the senator. Cody, load him up and get ready to fly.

"Yes, general."

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"This is it." Diego says, as we approach a warehouse on 3377. As we approach, a few Trandoshans start firing on the ship, so we're probably in the right place. The gunship lowers us to the ground, and I jump out and ignite my blade, mostly trying to draw fire while the clones shoot down our foes. The perimeter security goes down easily, but we need to get through the door.

"Peel!" Cody yells, and in an instant Peel's ready to blow the door with a charge. I take point as we infiltrate the warehouse, and am pleased to get a visual on our lost senator who's still in one piece. The Trandoshans are far too few in number, and they're overwhelmed in a matter of moments.

"Senator Gane, are you alright?" I ask the liberated hostage.

"Oh yes thank you, thank you Master Jedi." It's uncommon to receive any gratitude these days, but it's certainly appreciated.

I switch over to my com link. "Master Plo? I have found the senator and have him in my care safe and sound."

"Cough... General... Kenobi..." Rex?

"Commander, are you alright?"

"I've been injured, might've lost consciousness for a bit."

"What happened over there?"

"It was... Commander Tano. She killed... so many of us." Ahsoka? Impossible. Why would she lead an offensive on the clones?

"Are you sure about that Commander? Where's Master Plo?"

"I'm pretty sure he's the fried corpse, but it's hard to say."

"What? No that can't be right. Plo? Plo come in!"

Author's Note

This is some really fun stuff. I hope the delivery on this ends up working out. These next few pieces tie in so closely to each other and I worry that it might all just be really jumbled. I think we're coming up on the best stuff I've written so far though, and because of that I'm very excited. Hold onto your seatbelts ladies in gentlemen. For better or for worse, we're going for a ride.

[weemsbotts]

Salvaging the Tebbs-Mundy House Through Photos & Memories

By: Lisa Timmerman, Executive Director

The Tebbs family dates their arrival to Virginia as early as 1687. Potentially emigrating as an indentured servant, Daniel Tebbs moved to Westmoreland County eventually importing two people, one probably his son Daniel. The family quickly established themselves within the social and political networks, so it is no surprise that James Tebbs (b. ca. 1717), William Tebbs (b. ca.1720), Foushee Tebbs (b. ca. 1723), and Willoughby Tebbs (b. ca. 1760) became influential key players of Dumfries during the port’s busiest age. Tobacco inspectors, church vestries, political representatives, and planter patriarchs categorize the careers of these men, while other Tebbs sailed the seas and explored Kentucky. Daniel Tebbs 1740 will list livestock, structures, and sterling shilling along with the enslaved persons divided amongst his wife and children: Abram, Great Jack, Tapsalom, Little Jack, Jack, Abram, Sara “with her increase” (children), and Frank. We find the Tebbs in local ledgers, such as Daniel Payne’s, when he recorded Major William Tebbs purchasing spice mortal and pestle, candlesticks, and alcohol. The Tebbs are in George Washington’s 1764 Cash Account records when he purchased enslaved persons, Harry, £45; Topsom, £43; Nan, £25.5; and Toney, £17.5, from Daniel Tebbs’ estate, using them for “the work of draining improving and saving the land” in the Dismal Swamp Land Company. The Tebbs also owned a lot of property in Prince William County, notably the Tebbs-Mundry House (in the Town of Dumfries) and Tebbsdale (Cherry Hill area near Quantico Creek).

(HDVI Archives: Tebbs-Mundy house, Elvan Keys reported to be one of the children)

It is easy to overlook Dumfries rich nautical past as most of the 60+ structures in the 18th century no longer stand. One of the last to fall is today named for the Tebbs and Mundy families who owned the property. However, older records also note it as “The Tebbs House”, “The Old Mundy House,” and “The Haunted House.” While Mrs. Warfield Brawner reported “the old house crumbling” and collapsing in the 1920s, it is more likely it fell during the 1930s, damaged from the Hurricane of 1933. Fascinating photographs and family reminiscences paint a spectacular picture of this living memory.

“The old house was in very bad repair for some years, and finally, in a heavy gale, fell in, but it was still standing a few years ago, and I remember it very well, but cannot recall the details well enough to fill in the architectural sheet. It was square, brick, of Flemish bond, with white stone trim. There were of six rooms on the first floor, three on the second, and five in the basement. Originally, there had been more rooms on the second floor, but had evidently been altered to make some exceptionally large rooms, and as if it had been used as a hospital and a school, that would seem likely.

There was a large center hall with removable paneling between that and the drawing room, so that for balls and such festive occasions it could be made into one large room. This paneling was very beautiful and sold to someone in New York, for a thousand dollars. The brick, was likewise, sold, and was taken to Fredericksburg. There were two double chimneys at each end, and large fireplaces in each room. The stone from the basement has been used to build a most attractive house on the same site by the present owner.

There are some of the old trees left, although until a few years ago there were some very large locusts standing that had been there for many years. There was a terraced garden in front that has been rebuikt by the present owner. Back of the house are the lovely woods of Grayson Hill. At the southwest corner of the house is a large well that was probably built by the original owners, this too, has been cleaned and repaired.”

Lee Lansing spoke with Elvan Keys, one of the young children in the photograph. “While many photos are available as mementoes of happier youthful experiences, they tell us of the details of this old house. Mr. Elvan Keys, when questioned of his experience showed us photos of he and his young friends peering from the open window of the second floor – but they told us more – of the relative thickness of the masonry wall, where the window frame had been removed – the modillion cornice and its deteriorated condition, as a result of the roof failure and the location of the window frame in relation to the exterior wall face – his description of the interior and its wall features after the removal of the interior woodwork to be placed in a museum in a far away location.”

Residents of the Town reported that the house and grounds witnessed tea parties with Washington, Col. Henry Lee shooting Willoughby Tebbs, medical treatments, and Civil War encampments. The story of the shooting dates to a 1936 article by R.C. Wright but family researchers have been unable to collaborate this probable folktale. It is more likely the house was a prominent center for social networking. “Miss Maud Ewell of Haymarket, Virginia, remembers hearing her grandmother tell of going there dressed in a rich purple brocade, that had just come in from one of the ships from London”. Not finding the stylish matching flowers needed, she apparently took clusters of purple grapes from the gardens to put “in her powdered hair” for a “striking headdress.”

Elvan Keys noted, “It was always fun for a country boy to visit in Dumfries, because the town kids would take him on a tour of all the exciting places – the old grist mill, the 10 foot hole, the Cabin Branch Mine, and the Haunted House.” He frequented the house playing in the basement supposedly making strange noises up the chimney to scare anyone walking nearby. In 1937, the WPA worker visiting the property wrote, “This is one of the old houses that was the scene of so many stirring scenes in the past, and so many prominent people, who have made our heritage of history, have passed through its doors, that in spite of the fact that there are few physical remains of the old home, its atmosphere is felt.” The memories of the house and family remind us just how tight and interconnected the Town was in the 1700s as enslaved persons, free persons of color, Scottish factors, planters, workers, indentured servants, and many others walked and rode through this historical gem.

Oral history informants: Mr. Charles Callahan, Mrs. Robert Wheat, Mr. & Mrs. Warfield Brawner, Mr. Walter Keys, Miss Maud Ewell, Elvan Keys, C.W. Garrison, and Lee Lansing.

Note: March brings new opportunities to engage in your local history! On Saturday, 03/11, we will design, build, and fly kits in Merchant Park (weather permitting, free tickets here). On Saturday, 03/18, we will meet virtually to discuss fascinating detective fiction from a history & literary perspective (tickets here - member discount).

(Sources: WPA Historic Survey: Town of Dumfries, 1937; Kebler, John Frederick and Robert Steltz. The Descendants of Daniel Tebbs, Westmoreland County, Virginia; Lansing, Lee. The Town of Dumfries and The Honorable Foushee Tebbs (report marked inaccurate, only used the oral history & folktale regarding the photograph); Genealogist Traces History, Tebbs Family Lived in Historic Dumfries, Potomac News, 11/17/1971)

[moonmothmama]

i'm still mad (for a variety of reasons) about how interesting Frank Mundi is. someone pls talk about this sad fucker with me. surely i cannot be the only one here in this situation

[theothergaycousin]

The Nevers will never trend on Tumblr unless they actually deliver that good lgbt+ representation.

So far we’ve only seen glimpses of a bisexual dude who’s clearly morally corrupted and a closeted gay man who’s miserable.

If they actually go forth with Bonfire Annie and Nimble though, mark my words, it will trend. But unfortunately not as hard as it would if True Penance turns into a thing, which we all know will never happen.

[jamesginortonblog]

James Norton as Hugo Swann in The Nevers episode 1, with Tom Riley (Augustus Bidlow) and Ben Chaplin (Inspector Frank Mundi)

More promo photo of episode 1 on source: Spoilertv.com

[cookiepotofchaos]

*reads a list entitled The Nevers: 10 Most Interesting Characters*

The list:

10. Primrose Chattoway

9. Hugo Swann

8. Myrtle Haplisch

7. Lord Gilbert Massen

6. Inspector Frank Mundi

5. Augustus "Augie" Bidlow

4. Penance Adair

3. Dr. Horatio Cousens

2. Maladie

1. Amalie True.

Really? Did they stop watching after the second episode or something?

No Bonfire Annie? No Nimble Jack? No Harriet Kaur? No Desirée Blodgett? Hell, I want to know if Knitter got sent back somehow too! In terms of villainous wealthy white people, Lavinia Bidlow is more interesting to me than Massen just because Massen is an outright and predictable ass, while Bidlow is more conniving and manipulative, who the audience, but not The Touched, knows is up to no good.

Far more interested in any of them than Massen or Swann. Also, while she is a pleasant character, Primrose isn't the first person I'd think to put in a top 10 Most Interesting Nevers characters list...

[centaurianthropology]

A List of Older Fandoms for Quarantine Viewing

I thought it might be fun to put out a list of older fandoms or smaller fandoms that might be of interest to folks here.  As we’re all still stuck with quarantine, perhaps you’re looking for some new/old media?  Perhaps this list could help?

This is halfway between a rec list and a charting of my own fandom history.  For anyone looking for some new fandoms to check out that are various flavors of interesting and a little older, check ‘em out! 

Feel free to add your own!

In no specific order (other than maybe my DVD shelf??)

Patrick O’Brien books/Master and Commander - this was a fairly good-sized fandom back when the movie ‘Master and Commander’ came out.  A must-watch for anyone who likes historical fiction, age of sail, and powerful homoeroticism.

David Drake’s Royal Cinnabar Navy series - did you ever want Master and Commander in space, but Stephen Maturin is a librarian named Adele Mundy who is a sharpshooter and utterly terrifying and wonderful and beloved ace representation?  Fair warning: this series contains grapic descriptions of violence from an author who’s still working through his Vietnam PTSD.  Here be dragons.

Adam Adamant Lives! -  an Edwardian adventurer got frozen in a block of ice by his arch-nemesis The Face, thawed out in 1969, and now fights crime with a young woman sidekick and an actor-turned-butler who spouts limericks.  It is a completely insane show and joyously dumb.  Everyone involved is having a whale of a time.  It’s hard to come by, but so worth watching it for the pure silliness.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - I can’t believe this has become a fandom some people haven’t heard of, but here we are, far enough out from the massive cultural impact of Buffy that I need to remind folks.  1990s series about a cheerleader-turned-vampire slayer, struggling with both the supernatural and with high school (which is much worse).  

Angel - spinoff of Buffy, and in some ways my preferred series?  It has so many problems, and the writing of seasons 3 and 4 is quite weak, but the characters are strong, the stories are solid, and Alexis Denisof’s Wesley Wyndam-Pryce remains one of my favorite character arcs in television.

Marble Hornets - here’s another fandom that doesn’t feel like it should be old, but it’s now over a decade since its premiere.  One of the early webseries, Marble Hornets is still one of the best.  Well done horror with occasionally iffy amateur acting, easily overcome with a surprising touch for cinematography.  I’m a sucker for amateur film, especially when it’s well done and ambitious.

Babylon 5 - This was the first fandom I posted about on here, and still one of my great loves.  Arcs before arcs on television were a thing.  Huge overarching stories playing out over seasons.  Great political intrigue on a space station.  The grandest, most tragic Shakespearean romance that ever played out between two middle-aged alien diplomats.  

Carnivale - HBO prestige show before they had prestige shows.  Bought the DVDs on the cover art alone, and they were so worth it: “1934.  The Dustbowl.  The last great age of magic.”  Like most HBO shows, every possible content warning does probably apply to this show, though it’s not nearly as extreme as Game of Thrones, so if you could watch that, you can probably watch Carnivale.

Firefly - space western courtesy of Joss Whedon.  Only one series long, but really well done.  Probably Whedon’s best work.

Homicide: Life on the Streets - early 1990s police procedural with a twist: it wanted to be a very accurate, realistic portrayal of a homicide unit, based on a documentary novel.  The characters all feel real, you’re certain they all smell like cigarettes, coffee, and sweat.  Also, can we applaud a show that has a female homicide detective who doesn’t wear makeup, has frizzy red hair, and never wears heels?  Kay Howard is such a fantastic character.  Frank Pembleton and Tim Bayliss and John Munch and Gee are all such wonderful, real characters.  Another great show for prestige-television-before-it-existed.

The Last Detective - British detective series about a detective who gets small, mournful cases ignored by everyone else and solves them mostly through dogged work rather than brilliance.  This show is the most melancholy show I have ever seen, shockingly good in the quietest way possible, and remains one of my favorite detective series ever.

M*A*S*H - have you ever wanted a proper tragicomedy billed as a sitcom?  There’s a reason this show is still considered the greatest sitcom ever made.  Fair warning: the early seasons really haven’t aged well, and a lot of the comedy doesn’t land.  But if you’re willing to stick with it to the later seasons, you’ll find a show that shifts toward one of the greatest tragicomedies ever.  

Sapphire and Steel - 1970s/1980s British horror/sci-fi show about two mysterious beings that appear to resolve science fiction reinterpretations of horror concepts.  Despite a shoestring budget, the writing is phenomenal, and the acting is perfect, particularly the icy intimacy between the two leads, David McCallum and Joanna Lumley.

Sherlock Holmes - before the modern interpretations, there was the 1980s series starring Jeremy Brett.  If you want the single most accurate interpretation of Conan Doyle’s work, with characters who feel and look like they’ve stepped off the page (and the series that singlehandedly rehabilitated the character of Inspector Lestrade), this series is a must-watch.  This has been my go-to comfort viewing for years.

    Also, if you’re a Sherlock Holmes nut, and you’re desperate for more content, and willing to navigate a Cyrillic DVD menu for subtitles, might I suggest the late 70s Russian Sherlock Holmes series?  Vasiliy Livanov’s Holmes is such a different interpretation of the character, and he’s a delight.  And Vitaliy Solomin’s Watson is possibly my favorite Watson ever.  He’s so done with everything.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - sort of the forgotten middle child of the Star Trek series, but in many ways it’s one of the most ambitious.  It was a rival/developed at the same time and somewhat by the same team as Babylon 5, so there are some striking similarities (space station, overarching stories, etc), but while B5 manages the political intrigue better, DS9 does a war better.  It’s the darkest of the Star Trek series, investigating the more tarnished edges of the utopia.  The characters are more deeply developed and flawed, and I love them all.  Andrew Robinson’s portrayal of tailor-with-a-mysterious-past Garak is probably the best character Star Trek ever created in any series.

Hope those of you looking for new things to watch and dig into might find something in this list!

[thestorymonster]

The Nevers (2021) Episode 4

The Nevers (2021) Episode 4 #action #adventure #fantasy #drama #hbomax

The Touched grieved after losing one of their own. It was an especially sad affair for Inspector Mundi, who had a history with the departed. This man just can not get a break, I wonder how long before he snaps. An unseen benefactor attempted to provoke the Orphanage into an act of aggression. Since their ranks have increased, the citizens of London have gotten more paranoid of an uprising. This…

[foreverlogical]

The process of certifying Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States occurred in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, after being disrupted by rioters and delayed by Republicans who repeated false and misleading claims about the election results.

Six Republican senators and more than 100 GOP House members objected to the election results in Arizona and Pennsylvania in a failed final attempt to keep President Donald Trump in office.

Here we review some of the claims they made during the debate:

Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona falsely claimed that “a court found 3% error rate against President Trump” in Arizona’s results. Actually, a state trial court found an error rate of 0.55% in the state’s largest county, which the state Supreme Court said was not enough to question the results.

Gosar also baselessly claimed that “over 400,000 mail-in ballots” in Arizona were “switched” from Trump to Biden ��or completely erased from President Trump’s totals.” But there is no evidence to support such a wild claim.

Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York claimed Pennsylvania’s state Supreme Court and secretary of commonwealth “rewrote election law, eliminating signature matching requirements.” Actually, the court unanimously ruled that state law doesn’t require local election officials to determine the authenticity of signatures on absentee or mail-in ballots.

Stefanik also said, “In Wisconsin, officials issued illegal rules to circumvent a state law … that required absentee voters to provide photo identification before obtaining a ballot.” She’s referring to rescinded guidance that some Wisconsin county clerks issued ahead of the state’s April primary election — not the November general election.

Rep. Lee Zeldin took issue with a “Democracy in the Park event” in Wisconsin that he said resulted in “over 17,000 ballots transferred that shouldn’t have been.” The Wisconsin Supreme Court said the event, which allowed voters to bring completed absentee ballots to parks to be collected by sworn city election inspectors, met the letter of state election laws.

Republican Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania wrongly said the state Supreme Court had “absolutely no right” to allow the use of unmanned drop boxes where voters could drop off mail-in votes. A federal judge appointed by Trump and the state Supreme Court both ruled in favor of the use of drop boxes.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene falsely claimed that “all of the cases that have been thrown out have been thrown out on standing, not the evidence of voter fraud.” Most didn’t allege actual fraud, and several have been dismissed due to lack of evidence.

Sen. Josh Hawley claimed a law passed in 2019 by the Pennsylvania Legislature violated the state Constitution and said a case challenging it was “dismissed on grounds of … timeliness.” He neglected to mention that case sought to overturn the results of the 2020 election and was filed more than a year after the law passed.

False Claims About Arizona Ballot Reviews

During the floor debate on whether to accept Arizona’s Electoral College votes,Gosar misleadingly said “we have been told over and over” by the Arizona secretary of state that “the public today has no ability to simply double check the veracity of these results.”

In fact, Arizona law requires “a hand count of a sample of ballots to test the accuracy of the vote tabulation equipment, if there is participation from the county political parties,” according to the Arizona secretary of state’s office. Of the state’s 15 counties, 10 performed hand counts; six found no discrepancies and four found errors within the acceptable margin. That included hand recounts in the four largest counties (Maricopa, Pima, Pinal and Yavapai) that represent 85% of the state’s population.

Gosar later said “in the only audit done in Arizona” a court found a “3% error rate against President Trump. Vice President Biden’s margin of error was one tenth of that, at .03%.” He claimed that if that 3% error rate were applied statewide it would have been 90,000 ballots, but “the court stopped the audit and refused to go further.”

His claim of a 3% error rate is false, and his assumption of 90,000 additional Trump ballots is grossly exaggerated.

Besides the hand recounts, the only “audit” conducted in Arizona was prompted by a lawsuit filed by state Republican Party Chairwoman Kelli Ward’s lawsuit, and in that case the court found an error rate of 0.55% — not 3% — in Maricopa County.

In her lawsuit, Ward challenged mail-in ballots that had been duplicated in the county because voters’ first ballots “were too damaged or illegible for the tabulation machines to read, or were otherwise rejected by the machines.”

Her lawsuit led to a review of 100 duplicated ballots, followed by a second inspection of 1,526 duplicated ballots.

“Of the 1,626 total, there were nine errors, (1617 correct duplicate ballots) that if correct would have given the Trump Electors an additional seven votes and the Biden Electors an additional two votes,” the state Supreme Court said in its Dec. 8 ruling denying Ward’s request for an expanded audit. “The trial court concluded the results were ‘99.45% accurate.’”

In filing an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, Ward noted that there was a 2% error rate against Trump in the first review of 100 ballots. The suit said one vote was “erroneously ‘flipped’ from Trump to Biden, and the other [was] simply uncounted.” That may be what Gosar meant when he spoke of a 3% error rate, but his office did not respond to our request for information.

Even so, the error rate dropped to 0.55% when the county agreed to review more duplicated ballots.

In its opinion, the state Supreme Court said that extrapolating the 0.55% error rate to all 27,869 duplicated ballots in the county would result in a net increase of only 153 votes, which is not sufficient “to call the election results into question.”

C. Murphy Hebert, a spokeswoman for the Arizona secretary of state, said she is “not aware of other ‘audits’” in Arizona.

Baseless Claim of ‘Altered, Switched’ or ‘Erased’ Trump Ballots

Gosar also baselessly said that “over 400,000 mail-in ballots [in Arizona] were altered, switched from President Trump to Vice President Biden or completely erased from President Trump’s totals.” But there is no evidence to support such a wild claim.

As we mentioned earlier, the state conducted hand counts of sample ballots to make sure the machines are tabulating the ballots correctly. Under state law, representatives of both parties “randomly pick either 2% or at least two vote centers or precinct, whichever is greater, to compare a manual count of ballots done by volunteers to the count completed by tabulation machines,” as explained in a story by ABC15 in Phoenix.

In a Dec. 21 ruling, state Superior Court Judge John Hannah dismissed a state GOP lawsuit demanding that the state’s largest county redo its hand count, noting that the “hand counts verified that the machines had counted the votes flawlessly” in Maricopa County, where about 61% of the state’s population lives. Hannah called the lawsuit “meritless,” saying it “offered only suspicion of wrongdoing.”

And, as we noted earlier, a review of duplicated ballots in the county found an error rate of just 0.55% — which the state Supreme Court opinion said was not enough to affect the results. Biden won the state by less than 11,000 votes.

Hebert, the spokesperson for the Arizona secretary of state, said she wasn’t sure how Gosar arrived at his figure of 400,000 missing Trump votes.

It’s worth noting, though, that Gosar has made a similar claim with an even higher number. In a Dec. 17 tweet, Gosar claimed: “Over 700,000 votes stolen from @realDonaldTrump and given to Biden.” Twitter labeled that tweet “disputed.” Gosar linked to a video that baselessly claimed it provided evidence of “790,175 laundered votes.”

But, as Arizona Republic columnist Laurie Roberts noted, “If Trump really got another 790,175 votes, that would mean he won a whopping 72% of Arizona’s vote while Biden got a piddling 26%.”

Signature Matching in Pennsylvania

Stefanik said, “In Pennsylvania, the state Supreme Court and secretary of state unilaterally and unconstitutionally rewrote election law, eliminating signature matching requirements.”

That’s not so; the court unanimously ruled that the Pennsylvania Election Code never required signature matching for absentee or mail-in ballots in the first place.

In an Oct. 23 opinion, the court upheld September guidance, issued by Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth Kathy Boockvar, saying that local election officials couldn’t disqualify such ballots based solely on a signature analysis.

“We conclude that the Election Code does not authorize or require county election boards to reject absentee or mail-in ballots during the canvassing process based on an analysis of a voter’s signature,” Justice Debra Todd wrote in the opinion, which was cosigned by five of the other six justices. The other justice, Sallie Updyke Mundy, one of two Republicans on the court, concurred in the ruling.

It was the second time a court had rejected the Trump campaign’s claims that, to prevent fraud, state law required efforts to check that signatures on returned ballots matched signatures on voter rolls.

In its analysis, the state Supreme Court noted that state election law “enumerates only three duties of the county boards of elections during the pre-canvassing and canvassing process,” none of which included a stipulation permitting or mandating signature matching.

“Intervenors would have us interpret the Election Code, which now does not provide for time-of-canvassing ballot challenges, and which never allowed for signature challenges, as both requiring signature comparisons at canvassing, and allowing for challenges on that basis. We reject this invitation,” the court said.

Absentee Ballot Rules in Wisconsin

Stefanik also claimed, “In Wisconsin, officials issued illegal rules to circumvent a state law – passed by the Legislature as the Constitution requires – that required absentee voters to provide photo identification before obtaining a ballot.”

That’s misleading. The guidance was issued during the primary election — not the general — and it was quickly overruled by a state court. Wisconsin state law already says absentee voters don’t have to provide a photo ID when requesting a ballot if the individual affirms that he or she is “indefinitely confined because of age, physical illness or infirmity or is disabled for an indefinite period.”

It’s true that on March 25, Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell and Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson advised eligible Wisconsin voters that, for the April 7 primary elections, they could claim to be indefinitely confined because of state-issued stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic. Doing so, the clerks said, would allow those people — stuck at home and unable to provide a photo ID — to skip that step in the ballot application process.

But on March 29, the Wisconsin Elections Commission issued its own guidance, clarifying that, “Indefinitely confined status shall not be used by electors simply as a means to avoid the photo ID requirement without regard to whether they are indefinitely confined because of age, physical illness, infirmity or disability.”

Then, in a March 31 decision, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that McDonell had given “legally incorrect” information to voters and ordered McDonell to “refrain from posting advice” that was “inconsistent” with the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s own guidance.

That also led to Christenson issuing revised guidance that month that said, “It is very important to note that ‘indefinite confinement’ based only upon the Governor’s Safer at Home Emergency Order cannot be used to legally avoid the photo ID requirement.”

‘Democracy in the Park’

Presenting what he said were facts and evidence that courts circumvented state election laws, Zeldin cited this as one example: “The Democracy in the Park event in Wisconsin had over 17,000 ballots transferred that shouldn’t have been.”

Zeldin added: “These are all facts.”

That’s actually an opinion, and one not shared by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Zeldin is referring to two events held in Madison, Wisconsin, one in September and one in October, called “Democracy in the Park” in which people were allowed to bring completed absentee ballots to parks to be collected by sworn city election inspectors. The inspectors also could serve as witnesses if a voter brought an unsealed, blank ballot.

In a lawsuit, the Trump campaign contended the 17,271 absentee ballots collected at these events amounted to illegal early in-person voting.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court disagreed. Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn, a conservative, sided with three liberal justices in a 4-3 decisionopposing the Trump campaign’s efforts to strike those votes.

In his written opinion for the majority, Hagedorn wrote that given the park events were all publicly announced, the time to contest them was before the election. The court stated it was “patently unreasonable” for the campaign to file the lawsuit after the election, and for those votes to be thrown out given that “thousands of voters relied on the representations of their election officials that these events complied with the law.”

Furthermore, Hagedorn stated, the events complied with Wisconsin election law, which requires voters to return absentee ballots by mail or “in person, to the municipal clerk issuing the ballot or ballots.”

“A sworn city election inspector sent by the clerk to collect ballots would seem to be an authorized representative as provided in the definition” of the statute, Hagedorn wrote.

People who brought completed absentee ballots to the parks had to have previously requested them. No absentee ballots or ballot applications were distributed at the events.

Pennsylvania Drop Boxes

Perry wrongly said the state Supreme Court had “absolutely no right” to allow the use of unmanned drop boxes where voters could drop off mail-in votes. A federal judge appointed by Trump rejected a lawsuit from the Trump campaign that sought to prevent the use of drop boxes.

Perry, Jan. 6: The Supreme Court authorized the use of drop boxes, where ballot harvesting could occur. The legislature never authorized that form of voting, and the court had absolutely no right to do so.

In September, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that the state’s election code permitted the use of drop boxes for submission of mail-in ballots. The court ruled that the competing interpretations of whether the state’s election code allowed drop boxes were both reasonable, rendering the code “ambiguous.” It ultimately determined that the law “favors the fundamental right to vote and enfranchises, rather than disenfranchises, the electorate” and that “the Election Code should be interpreted to allow county boards of election to accept hand–delivered mail–in ballots at locations other than their office addresses including drop–boxes.”

The following month a federal judge knocked down the Trump campaign’s effort to bar the use of drop boxes.

The opinion was written by U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan, a Trump appointee.

The Trump campaign argued that drop boxes would lead to the potential for the counting of “fraudulent or otherwise ineligible ballots” in the presidential election.

But Ranjan said the Trump campaign had not presented enough evidence that potential voter fraud was a likely problem. “While Plaintiffs may not need to prove actual voter fraud, they must at least prove that such fraud is ‘certainly impending,'” Ranjan wrote. “They haven’t met that burden.”

In his comments on the House floor, Perry raised the specter of “ballot harvesting” which refers to third parties collecting and delivering ballots, and which is not permitted in Pennsylvania. But no evidence has emerged to date that that was a problem at any drop boxes in the state.

Trump Cases Lacked Evidence, or Even Claims, of Fraud

In objecting to Pennsylvania’s electoral votes, Greene falsely claimed: “I’d like to point out that all of the cases that have been thrown out have been thrown out on standing, not the evidence of voter fraud.” Several of the Trump campaign’s legal challenges have been dismissed by judges for a lack of any evidence of voter fraud.

For example, in one case seeking to nullifying about 2,000 absentee ballots in Pennsylvania, Bucks County Court of Common Pleas Judge Robert Baldi, a Republican, wrote in his order: “It must be noted that the parties specifically stipulated in their comprehensive stipulation of facts that there exists no evidence of any fraud, misconduct, or any impropriety with respect to the challenged ballots. There is nothing in the record and nothing alleged that would lead to the conclusion that any of the challenged ballots were submitted by someone not qualified or entitled to vote in this election.”

In five other cases in Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge James Crumish denied the suits, writing in each of the five orders that the campaign made “meritless” arguments and “concedes that all ballots by a qualified elector in this category were timely received.”

In yet another Pennsylvania case, Judge Stephanos Bibas, a Trump appointee on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, wrote: “Free, fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy. Charges of unfairness are serious. But calling an election unfair does not make it so. Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here.” The court had unanimously upheld a lower court’s dismissal of the case.

In late December, the New York Times analyzed 59 court losses the Trump campaign suffered among 60 lawsuits and found that most — two-thirds — didn’t actually claim there had been voter fraud. About 12 cases that did allege fraud had “their days in court,” the Times wrote, “and consistently collapsed under scrutiny.”

In dismissing a Nevada case, District Court Judge James T. Russell wrote in a lengthy dissection of the lawsuit’s claims that the campaign “did not prove under any standard of proof that illegal votes were cast and counted.”

Some courts have dismissed cases because the plaintiffs lacked standing, meaning a right to sue. For instance, the U.S. Supreme Court cited standing in rejecting the state of Texas’ attempt to sue four swing states Biden had won. But Greene is wrong to claim “all of the cases … have been thrown out on standing.”

Pennsylvania Objection: No Claim of Fraud

Hawley prefaced an objection about a Pennsylvania voting law by saying it was “quite apart from allegations of any fraud.” Instead, Hawley misleadingly described an expansion of mail-in voting in the state, passed with Republican support in 2019.

Hawley, Jan. 6: Last year, Pennsylvania elected officials passed a whole new law that allows universal mail-in balloting and did it irregardless of what the Pennsylvania Constitution said. … And then when Pennsylvania citizens tried to go and be heard on this subject before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, they were dismissed on grounds of procedure, timeliness, in violation of that Supreme Court’s own precedent.

The state law in question, Act 77, was passed with bipartisan support and signed into law by Gov. Tom Wolf on Oct. 31, 2019. The law, which went into effect for the primary elections in 2020, expanded mail-in voting in the state, allowing for the first time no-excuse mail-in voting, which means registered voters can request a mail-in ballot without providing a reason for wanting or needing one. A total of 34 states plus Washington, D.C., allow no-excuse mail-in or absentee voting.

Hawley is right that the state Supreme Court dismissed a case challenging the constitutionality of the law because the Republican plaintiffs, including U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, had waited too long to bring the suit — but he neglected to mention they waited more than a year and only filed the suit after Trump had lost the election. In the suit, the plaintiffs had asked for the invalidation of mail-in ballots cast under the statute. In dismissing the case in late November, the court wrotethat the plaintiffs showed a “complete failure to act with due diligence in commencing their facial constitutional challenge, which was ascertainable upon Act 77’s enactment.”

In a concurring statement, Justice David N. Wecht wrote: “It is not our role to lend legitimacy to such transparent and untimely efforts to subvert the will of Pennsylvania voters. Courts should not decide elections when the will of the voters is clear.”

The U.S. Supreme Court declined a request to intervene in the case.

As for the Pennsylvania Constitution, it says: “All elections by the citizens shall be by ballot or by such other method as may be prescribed by law.” Kelly’s case argued that expanding mail-in voting in the state could only be done through a constitutional amendment, not legislation. It cited another section in the state Constitution on absentee voting, which says the Legislature “shall, by general law, provide a manner” for absentee voting for qualified voters who may be “absent from the municipality of their residence” or who have other reasons they can’t vote at their polling place, such as illness, disability or religious observances.

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[twiceminded-archived]

Anonymous said: [splitting at the seams] Hey inspector! What’s it like having a dumb mundie for an assistant?

“The problem isn’t her intelligence,” Fendi cuts in almost immediately from his desk. “It’s good enough to keep her here. Even with occasional prompting she’s still able to find things I may not have noticed while we’re examining the scene, but then again, that’s more indicative of her perception...”

“Anyway, the problem is how she tends to brute force near everything she can no matter how much I protest. Honestly, I’m tempted to cut her strength down a little -- except my cuts are irreversible, so... maybe not.”

Ouch. It doesn’t even seem to bother him that he was made to tell the truth...

[briefnewschannel]

Illinois Police Chief Charged in Bribery Scheme Tied to Heroin Dealer

Illinois Police Chief Charged in Bribery Scheme Tied to Heroin Dealer

By TCR Staff | May 26, 2022 Summit, Ill., Police Chief John Kosmowski and building inspector William Mundy have been charged in a bribery scheme related to a liquor license at a bar run by a politically connected drug dealer in the southwest suburb, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. This is the latest case to emerge from the federal government’s ongoing political corruption investigations in…

[moonmothmama]

i'm thinking now of Frank Mundi in regards to the whole, "he beats up suspects" thing that gets said repeatedly by several people and yet we never see him actually do it, though he has plenty of opportunities.

the closest he got was when he went towards those guys who were yelling disgusting shit and harassing mourners at the funeral of the woman he'd previously been engaged to (maybe he's gay but he pretty clearly loved her even if only platonically or somethin. like he wasn't just pretending to care for her. and even if he hadn't that's an absolutely fucking deplorable thing to do), and even then he stopped when Penance asked him. she didn't even have to try that hard, she was just very quietly like 'please don't do this now' and he didn't. plus... that was a funeral he was attending. personally. not as a cop.

then there was when he manhandled Hugo, and physically threatened him, but a) he didn't actually go through with harming him b) it's pretty damn clear that he's there in a personal capacity with Hugo rather than a professional one. he's not there to do his job, he's there because he's fucking sick of the man and he can't take it anymore. also like... they're fucking. or they were, rather, since he says straight up that they're done "across the board." my point being that is most certainly NOT scotland yard business. Hugo practically says this himself, pointing out that someone implicated him specifically because if anyone else were implicated Frank would be out doing his job.

and he defends himself when 'Maladie' attacks him but he just, like, subdues her as quickly as possible, as i recall

so.

we know he's an ex-boxer, with such a fierce reputation that a much bigger dude immediately backs down when he's identified.

does he, has he ever, actually beaten up a suspect? that one guy says he could 'beat a confession out of a tombstone,' Lucy says that he 'likes knocking suspects about, even if they're as innocent as christmas.' but he hasn't actually been shown to hurt anyone, unless i'm seriously forgetting something. so...

is that just a rumor? did it happen once? what's the deal there? are we meant to believe it?

i'm also thinking about that whole exchange between him and Hugo, where Hugo asks him why he took a job that he hates, and he answers "because i work with the people that love it." and how he goes on that whole rant to him in the billiard room about how "if it's not you it's one of them toffs you play chess with," talking about the rich "grinding up" the oppressed for "an extra penny on the pound, or the rights to a patch of sand, or a fuck." and then when that one cop tries to pull a knife on "Maladie" when she's in custody and he slams the guy against the wall threatening to have "badge and balls off any man who tries that."

like this man obviously has some serious problems but is he actually deserving of his professional reputation? with everything we've seen, and haven't seen, i can't help wondering. i want to know more about him, i want to figure this sad fucker out

(and i just wanna say right here yes ACAB, yes fuck the police, but this is a fictional victorian era cop we're talking about here. i'm talking about character stuff and where the story is going, not any kind of real life shit, ok? fuck the irl police)