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elmidol · 4 years ago

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Dirt You Created [Tyki/Reader] NSFW

originally written October 23, 2013

A/N: As stated, I am going to be posting a few of my older one-shots on here from DGM. I do plan on writing some new ones rather soon here, beginning with Tyki/RC. I am scheduling a batch of them now, which will all include this A/N.

These ones are unedited and include (y/n), which I no longer use in my current writing. Nothing wrong with it; just a personal preference. I do also want to state that there may be instances of mentions of face reddening and such, which I now know is not inclusive.

Fic Warnings: contains rape (not from Tyki; the Tyki/Reader portion is consensual); sex; canon-typical violence; slight plot;

Title is based on the song “Whore” by In This Moment

It had been a great honor to even look upon the gentlemen and ladies who entered your masters' home. You, a lowly servant girl, had been cleaned and primmed to look presentable. Still, you were not to speak to a single soul save for when you were spoken to, and even then short, simple answers were to suffice. Perhaps that was what had sparked your interest the most. The inability to speak to the man who garnered so much attention from the gathered guests. Even the hosts, your employers, paid him special attention.

Accustomed to being treated as nothing more than furniture, you were unsurprised and only slightly affected at the sight of the mistress's daughter emerging into your room along with the attractive gentleman. Their lips were locked together, smacking noises issuing from the pair as they further entered what the young lady referred to as a 'closet' and made their way to the bed. The girl placed the man's hands on her chest, his hands groping and caressing the mounds that were hardly concealed by the front of her dress. Why, if you had had such an outfit, you thought, you would have treated it with far more respect. As it was, you averted your gaze and set about to sorting what rags you did own from your position on the floor.

It was nice to be tucked away in a corner while the two enjoyed themselves on your bed. You shuddered at the idea of such sullied sheets you would be forced to occupy. Your eyes wandered about the ground. Perhaps you would slumber there for the night. You continued your silent nature when the master's daughter slipped out from the gentleman's embrace. You did not doubt there had been a lack of penetration; such young ladies kept their virginity intact even if every other part of them were whored out. She left your room after whispering to the man that her parents would doubtless be looking for her.

The gentleman chuckled, stretching out on the mattress and watching as the door was closed behind the female with whom he had just enjoyed himself. You paid him little attention, although your eyes did dart towards a certain portion of his anatomy. You had never before seen one so large despite the many lovers the young lady had brought into your room. The task of sorting out your clothing complete, you raised your head to observe the man. He had reached behind himself, slipping his arms under the pillow that he moved around his head. He paused, his brow furrowing, and withdrew a tattered photograph.

"Please put it back," you said, your voice cracking initially from its lack of use.

The man, clearly startled by your presence, did a double-take. His eyes widened and a hue of red crossed his features. He returned the photograph to its previous position then quickly set about covering himself up. As he tugged up the zipper, you moved over to the side of the bed and took the photograph. Clutching it to your chest, you watched as the man kept his eyes trained on you. His gaze wandered up and down your body a few times before returning to your face.

Not once did he speak a single word to you. You were quite used to this as well. Most aristocrats regarded you as nothing more than the help; as though that made you less of a human. Instead he was much too preoccupied with fixing his clothing, ensuring that he looked quite presentable. The man was nearly finished with this task when two of his male friends poked their heads into the room. They teased him for his latest bounty quite a bit before the shorter of the pair caught sight of you. He shifted into the room, walking over to you and touching you, appraising you as though you were cattle.

You stood with your chin slightly raised in the air, not uttering a single word. To do so would only incur punishment; be it from this man or from your master later. It did not surprise you that there was only minimal protest from the two other gentlemen present when their companion began tugging at his belt. He undid the front of his pants and wrestled you onto your already dirtied bed. You stared up at the ceiling, aware that the two other male parties in the room were watching as your virginity was taken by force. You refused to cry, to do more than grit your teeth and wait for it to all be over.

Likewise, when after the guests had all left and you were alone with your master and his family, you said nothing as your master berated you. His daughter had used you as a scapegoat to get out of punishment yet again. She had said that she had caught you entertaining men in your room. And your sheets had been her proof. When your master had his wife shove two fingers into your opening, she withdrew them to find, indeed, a man had been inside of you.

For weeks did you struggle through their punishments. Perhaps such cruelties would have continued had it not been for strange men appearing at your master's door, stating that you were to be taken away. That you were a potential. Potential what, you hadn't the slightest idea. Nor did you particularly care. You followed them out of the home you had known for a good portion of your life.

In silence did you endure your first years within the Black Order. Training to become a better fighter, to prove that you were indeed worthy of the Innocence that had chosen you. All the built-up frustrations from the years in your former master's home and your rape, you used it all to fuel your resolve. Those in Central even commented on how you impressed them. Regularly they began to have you sent out on missions. You learned to defeat akuma, the creations of the Millennium Earl.

When news of the Noah family arrived, you were not the least bit concerned. In your mind, you would view them as nothing more than an enemy to defeat, much like the akuma. Your first encounter, however, had left you nearly dead.

You had not believed that you would ever see his face again, much less in that sort of setting. The gray-skinned gentleman's countenance was unmistakable. Your knees had buckled when he had stepped into view, the organ in his hand being consumed by the carnivorous butterflies known as Teez. He had mocked you in a lilt, stating that you were quite young to be an exorcist. Too pretty, he had said.

Gritting your teeth in the anger that consumed your heart, you had launched yourself at him in a fury. The Noah, eyes wide, had just enough time to block your attack. The mace-like Innocence that you had nearly met the side of his head on your next attack. He ducked at the right time, his hand thrusting forward. You had felt the limb enter your body--go straight through your body as though you were made up of nothing other than air. This was it, you had told yourself. I'm going to die.

The instant he had looked up into your face, however, his hand--which had been on its retreat, ready to snatch an organ--froze. You stared at him, your face quite expressionless, and your eyes were trained on his. "...you recognize me, don't you?" you asked, your voice quiet and neutral. "You don't have to stop on account of our past, Mister Mikk." His limb trembled while inside you, his face assuming a morbidly amused expression. He reminded you quite of a Jack-o-lantern. "Or would you prefer to just stand aside and watch...an akuma could do it."

Tyki straightened his posture, covering the bottom half of his face--his twisted grin--with his free hand. It took him several seconds to get himself under control. When he had, the man removed his hand from your body without stealing a single cell. "I had been told your contract was terminated for promiscuous behavior." You snorted. You pretended his words fell on deaf ears even though your heart ached at the memories they invoked. "When I told Earl Markuson of what had occurred, he had said it didn't matter."

"It doesn't," you said in a deadpan. Tyki blinked at you, his lips twitching then pressing tightly together into a frown. "Oh, I see." You rolled your eyes. "You had a shred of decency in you and were able to feel guilt."

"I--"

"You don't even know me." You cocked your head to the side, adjusting your grip on your Innocence. "And besides, Mister Mikk, we're now enemies." Your mace had met his arm with a sickening smack.

By the end of the battle, it was you who had been injured the worst. A broken arm, several lacerations on your legs. Your Innocence had been damaged, although you had managed to keep it from being destroyed. Komui had fussed over it but repaired it all the same. It would not be the last time either. On five different occasions did Tyki Mikk damage your Innocence and leave you injured. During each occurence, the man had tried to start up a conversation, met only by your silence.

This sixth incident had you baffled. Tyki Mikk had approached you wearing his human skin. He had offered to pay for an outstanding bill the hotel you were vacationing in demanded you settle. You, having no money to your name, could only watch in silence as Tyki handed the coins over to the manager. You pressed your lips tightly together and frowned. Once the bill had been paid, you turned on your heel and left without a word to the Noah. Tyki swore under his breath and hurried after you, much to your dismay.

When he caught up, his hand seized your wrist and tugged lightly so that you were forced to stop. Without looking over your shoulder, you listened to what he had to say. "I had thought you'd done it before." You were not quite sure to what he was referring for several seconds until the realization dawned on you. You snarled; as though whether or not you were a virgin made rape any less brutal! You snatched your arm away. "Look, it's...(y/n), right?"

"Nope."

Tyki made a noise of confusion that had you turning your head to look at him. A light blush came to your cheeks upon noticing how flustered he had become. He looked nothing of the suave gentleman you had seen at your former employer's estate. You put your hands on your hips, shaking your head and hating yourself for even speaking to him.

"Look...what the hell do you even want? Forgiveness? It doesn't even matter anymore."

Tyki sighed, withdrew a cigarette from his pocket, and lit it. He puffed a few times on the smoke stick while watching you. You raised a brow. "I'd been worried he had knocked you up. That it was the reason you were forced to leave."

"Oh." You rolled your eyes again. "Your friend doesn't have some bastard child out there, you don't have to worry." He was frowning again. For some reason this was beginning to annoy you. "If all it is is that you can't get over the fact you only watched, forget about it. I was nothing more than dirt to you, right?"

He started to protest then, reluctantly, admitted that this was true. You nodded. It hurt to hear the words aloud like that even if you had always known them to be true.

"Alright, so--"

"You were just so pretty. I was going to do something, but then..." His words had the effect of silencing you. Your mouth was open mid-sentence yet no words were coming out. Feeling suddenly dizzy, you moved over to the wall of a building and steadied yourself by placing your hand upon the brick.

Tyki closed the distance between himself and you. His mouth met your cheek. When you did not push him away, he grew bolder and sealed your lips with his own. This shocked you out of your reverie. You jerked backwards, earning a moan of disappointment from the Noah. All the same, Tyki backed away from you without another word. He tipped his hat to you then left.

You had switched hotels after that, hopeful that the man would not track you. When, however, you continuously received gifts during the remainder of your vacation, you were at a loss of what to think. Sometimes you cried, sobbed and screaming into your pillow, at the roses and jewelry Tyki left for you. Other times you could only stare at the items. Once or twice you managed to throw away the gifts into the garbage without a shred of emotion.

It drove your comrades absolutely insane the way the Noah would flirt with you, would leave you trinkets, roses, and invitations to parties whenever you were on missions. You had attempted several times to get it through to Tyki's thick skull--via your mace--that you were not interested--maybe a little, although you refused to admit this--in his romantic feelings. Your comrades, likewise, interjected whenever the dark-haired man would so much as speak a single word to you.

After a mission, while your comrades were at either a strip club or sleeping, you had ventured to a bar. Upon entering, you had caught sight of a familiar gentleman, who was sulking despite several women attempting to gain his attention. You wove your way past the flirtatious ladies, ignored their protests and swears, and tapped the man on the shoulder. Tyki disregarded the contact, no doubt assuming it was from one of the other women who were around.

Sighing, you said, "Hey. Mister Mikk."

His head whipped around. Tyki visibly perked up at the sight of you then, after a moment, frowned, and turned away. So he was back to sulking, was he?

"You do know Akin was teasing you, right? He and I aren't a couple."

Tyki turned again, sliding off the barstool and grabbing you by the arm and led you out of the bar. A few of the women groaned audibly, while others lived out their disappointment quietly. "Are you still mad at me, (y/n)~?" he asked, a playful lilt to his tone.

"I have...never really cared enough about you to be mad," you stated honestly. He frowned at your answer. You averted your gaze and tucked a strand of hair behind your ear. "Don't get all upset, Mister Mikk. You said yourself you thought I was nothing but dirt."

"You were just a maid," he argued.

You jerked away from him as though he had burned you. And, with his words, he sort of had. "So that makes me less human? Man, I'd hate to know your thoughts on the homeless."

"That's..." He fell silent, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Okay, that's a good point. I care for the homeless."

"Just not maids?" you asked, incredulous.

Tyki smiled sheepishly at you. "I do now."

That day had been the start of several less violent meetings. After missions, regardless of who was the victor, Tyki and you would meet at a neutral location. He would deal a hand of poker that the two of you would play. From time to time the pair of you made it to ten hands before one or the other had to leave. During the games you were mostly silent, although you did speak to him on occasion.

When next Tyki deigned to kiss you, you did not pull away. Nor did you return the gesture. Since your rape, and possibly due to it, you had not been intimate with a man. His hands were gentle yet venturous, although he was careful to respect your body language; at the slightest tense of a muscle, he would back off from you. This was perhaps one of the reasons why, after nearly a year of knowing Tyki as a Noah, you returned one of his kisses.

Shyly, clumsily, you pressed your lips back against his. Tyki made a noise of startlement that preceeded a moan of delight. You allowed him to lead you to his hotel room, to begin to take off your clothes even though the actions made you feel ill; you could not help but remember the previous occasion of fornication. He, however, sat on the bed with you standing in front of him when the two of you were stark naked. His eyes ran up and down your naked body, a stream of compliments leaving his lips.

"Mister Mikk..." You swallowed, fighting off the feeling of nausea. Your eyes were glued on his erection, which had your legs tensing in apprehension.

Tyki blinked. "Oh, (y/n), you can use my first name~"

"T-Tyki... I..." You placed your hands on his shoulders to steady yourself when the world around you spun. "Oh, fuck, I feel so sick..."

The Noah released a frustrated sigh when you leaned over to the side and vomitted on the ground. "That really...killed the moment." All the same, he held back your hair and moved behind you, rubbing your back soothingly. When the contents of your stomach were emptied on the ground, you leaned back against him. You could feel proof of how turned off your throwing up had made him. His flaccid cock pressed against your thigh, where it twitched and began to enliven as you cuddled closer to him.

Tyki wrapped his arms around you, scooping you up and tucking you into bed with him. The man climbed under the covers with you. You said nothing as his hands wandered about the contours of your body. You could only look at his face, watch his eyes, which were glued on yours. He started to move closer, his lips searching for yours.

"My mouth probably tastes like vomit, Mister Mikk," you said. He groaned, raising a hand and massaging his forehead.

"You're killing me, (y/n)!"

All the same, he backed off. You later supposed that you had fallen asleep first. When you awoke, you found that during the course of the night Tyki had wrapped his arms around you as well as hooked one of his legs over yours. You attempted to wriggle out of his grasp, felt him tighten his hold, and then stopped moving. You watched the man as he slept for several minutes, slowly but surely untangling his limbs from yours.

When at last you were freed and dressed, you took the pen and complimentary notepad provided by the hotel, and wrote Tyki a short note. You placed the note where you hoped he would easily find it then snuck out of the room.

A month transpired during which time you did not see the man again. It was when your mission was complete and you were sinking into your bed to sleep that you encountered Tyki Mikk. You openly gawked as he used his ability to choose to enter your room. Startled, you chucked a candlestick at his head. Tyki ducked, held up his hands, and said:

"Hey, hey, (y/n)~ Don't be like that~"

You held your blankets up to your chin, quickly moving to hide your Innocence from view. "Make sure the door is locked." He blinked. Growling in frustration, you motioned towards the door that connected your room to your comrades'. "Lock it, would you, Mister Mikk?"

Tyki turned and did so. This gave you just enough time to stow away your mace in a location you doubted Tyki would search. With that task complete, you drew your knees to your chest and watched as the Noah closed the distance between the two of you. He climbed onto your bed, soon showering you with kisses. First on your forehead, next your eyelids, your cheeks, and finally your lips. He nipped at your bottom lip, his tongue swirling along it. Face red, you began to return the gesture.

You could feel him reaching past your covers with his ability, could feel your clothes being pulled from your body. The blankets shifted as he moved under them, his bare skin touching yours. Your hands shot up, palms flat on his chest as he shifted between your legs. Your eyes were wide. His erection brushed against your lower lips, and you swallowed hard.

"Mi-mister Mikk, I--"

He silenced you with a kiss. Pulling away for air, he said, "Tyki~"

"Tyki, I don't think--"

"That's not my strong suit either~"

You furrowed your brow, confused for a moment, your mind being preoccupied by other things, namely the way his body felt pressed to yours.

"Look, I'm an exorcist and you're a Noah--"

"--we'll worry about fighting tomorrow. I'm only aiming to destroy the Innocence~"

"You...you've broken my bones several times, and--"

His tongue thrusting forward into your mouth effectively shut you up. Tyki's fingers began to slowly explore your body as his tongue probed the contours of your mouth. You ran your tongue along his, your hands running up and down his chest before sliding towards his abdominal muscles. His fingertips ghosted over your entrance as one hand teased your breast. You shuddered, gasping loudly when his fingers found your clitoris. He rolled the nub with his thumb, which he had slickened with your juices.

"Ty-Tyki!" He groaned at the sound of his name coming from your lips. The man wrapped your legs around his waist and rocked forward. His erection slid against you, along your lips and clitoris, in a way that had your body aching. Your lips quivered and your eyelids fluttered. Again did he roll his hips into yours. This time you bucked up against him.

Tyki wiggled a single finger then a second into your entrance. He scissored you, stretching you to accomodate his size. You moved against the fingers that thrust in and out of you. Your hips rolled against his digits as they curled and uncurled. When he removed them, you released a disappointed groan. Tyki soon silenced you, practically knocked the air out of your lungs, when he thrust forward, entering you with his cock. It hurt initially. You rested your forehead against his shoulder as he adjusted his position and moved in and out of you a few times. His hands, massagining every portion of flesh they could grasp, helped to ease your pain.

The next time Tyki ventured to visit you in such a manner, you were crying in your pillow. When you saw him, you hissed with anger and rage. Your nails dug into his back, you swore at him, you whispered words of hate as he angled you onto his dick. "You killed him, you fucking bastard!" you said through grit teeth, your hands pulling at his hair.

Tyki said nothing in response, only kissed you as you abused his body. You knew that he could choose to forgo the pain, to only delight himself with your body. That he could use his ability to ensure your nails and teeth did not dig into his flesh. Yet somehow you found that he respected you too much to do so. You bit at his collarbone as you rode him, your walls clenching around his erection, which was buried so deep inside of you. The sensation of him moving within you, of his hands on you--this man who had mere hours ago murdered one of your comrades--had you hating yourself for a moment. You felt sick--you felt like you were less than dirt; a product created by the man you were fucking.

After the two of you had come down from your orgasms, you told him to leave. Tyki, after a kiss on your shoulderblade, obliged.

Such was your relationship with the Noah. The two of you fought one another, never moving in for the kill, always for the injury or insult. And each night afterwards you would comfort one another with your bodies. What made you feel as though you were more than dirt, more than a piece of furniture, however, were the gifts Tyki would leave for you. Not always materialistic objects either. At times his words would touch your heart. The way he remembered your birthday when not a one of your comrades had.

Resting your head on the man's chest, you allowed yourself to close your eyes. No doubt he would be gone by morning and a note would be left for you to read. That was how it had to be, however, lest your comrades discover what you did with your enemy.

"Mister Mikk," you whispered.

"Tyki," he said with a sigh.

You rolled your eyes, flicking your tongue out against his nipple. You heard and felt his moan from your position. "I love you too."

Tyki flipped you onto your back, his body soon engulfing yours. You could tell how happy you had made him by how thin the line between his white self and black self was as he made love to you.

#tyki mikk x reader #tyki x reader #d.gray-man #dgm #dgm fanfic

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whatdoesshedotothem · 3 years ago

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Wednesday 9 May 1838

11 20

very fine morning F70 ½° at 7 ¾ - packed – breakfasted – reasonable bill – had up the woman of the house – told her we were trés contente – Pierre in attendance gave him another franc – he saw us off from the hotel Grand Labourer Anvers (the S at the end pronounced) at 9 ¾ - A- amazingly improved within these 9 years – now a very good town – at Contigh [Kontich] poste supprimée, nice village, at 10 35 and drove undercover to bait 12 minutes, and then off again – beautiful day – everything looking green and pretty – In the autumn of 1829 passed this way to Brussels with Lady V.C. – great general improvement in the face of the country since then – great improvements in the town of A- new handsome theatre – finished about a year ago and ditto pretty little jardin botanique – great many new buildings – A- now a very good town – the new entrepot (government bonding warehouse) at the head of the great basin very handsome building – 5 stories I think and cellars – the damage done by the Dutch in November and December 132 nearly repaired – the railroad said Pierre has ruined some but benefitted many more – the Tête de Flandre from 12 diligences a day is now reduced to one, and there is now only one a day from A- to Brussels – the poste aux chevaux nearly knocked up - but mended a little by the going now all the way to Malines (Mechlin [Mechelen]) – Contigh [Kontich] being supprimée - But for the ruin occasioned by the Spanish bonds, Antwerp would have increased enormously – but all projects are laid aside for the present – fine road (pavé) from A- to Malines thro’ avenue of young elms all the way – gardens and good pretty campagnes all along particularly left all the way for some miles out of A- a pretty double hedge of elm inside and purple beech outside forming a sort of double escallop the points of one hedge being in the hollows in the other – very pretty effect – for the last 3 or 4 miles the tower of the cathedral seems to close the long avenue of road – very fine terminating object – at Malines at 11 50 paid the postilion – left the carriage (locked up) and all went across to the cathedral and there from 11 55 to 12 25 – fine modern monument to the late archbishop of Malines ob. 15 January 1831 by Géhotte put up last year – the archbishop kneed in his robes, an angel with torch à la main announcing the intelligence of death –‘fiat voluntas tua’ round the top of the darkish brownish marble background – the oak carved pulpit very fine here – at the foot of it the conversion of St. Paul (thrown from his horse) and on 1st parents at the top of the steps into the pulpit – a fine crucifixion by Vandyk [Van Dyck] – but no pictures by Rubens are now in Malines except la pèche miraculeuse (the miracolous draught of fishes) now at the church of Notre Dame – one sees the cathedral a fine church at Malines for the sake of its pulpit and crucifixion by Vandyk [Van Dyck] and the monument by Géhotte – and the church of Notre Dame for the pèche miraculeuse – from the cathedral back to La Poste – went upstairs for a minute or 2 – then at 12 ¾ left the carriage to follow and A- and I walked forwards to the church of Notre Dame – 10 minutes gazing at the picture and its 2 volets – very good church – (all the churches in the pays Bas good and clean and well kept) – off from the church of Notre Dame at Malines at 1 10 – in ¼ hour at nice village come up with the railroad Chemin de fer near on our left, and have it alongside us (left) about a couple of hundred yards distance for a long while – nothing on it – looks like a common dike or mound a few feet above the ordinary level of the country – too low to be striking – might not have observed it, had we not been on the lookout – Avenue of Elms all the way – nice clover and grass pastures and corn (much siegle) and fallow all along – very nice clean husbandry – at 2 ¼ stopt to bait at the now poste supprimée at Vilvorde [Vilvoorde] – off again at 2 23 – Tindal the 1st translator of the bible into English suffered martyrdom here in 1536 – nice little town – at the end of the town, had to wait 4 or 5 minutes till a vessel passed thro’ the bridge over the canal between us and the building, passed the canal, and then the large brick whitewashed house of correction – 4 stories of little windows of which 85 in a row – say 85 x 3 =255 yards length of building and the 3 sides of the building apparently of the same length – from Vilvorde [Vilvoorde] the fine canal to Brussels close on our left – no fence between the road and canal – might be dangerous in the dark – at 3 10 1st sight of Brussels and very soon after cross bridge over the canal and enter the allée verte, and Brussels, and then direct chez M. Proft hotel Bellevue and alight at 3 40 20 minutes choosing our apartment – at last settle n°99 rez de chaussée, sale à manger and salon and 1 large good chambre à coucher and cabinet for A- adjoining and room for Oddy adjoining the sale à manger and room for George en haut, le tout = 15fr. par jour – sided our things – dressed – A- and I strolled out from 5 to 7 –in the park – to the church of St. Gudule – closed – to the town hall and returned by the r. de la montagne – grapes very nice looking and fresh at 14fr. a lb. and large pears – did not ask the price – A- rather tired – a few minutes at Todds’ English library and bought a map of Brussels published by the useful knowledge society in London! and bought there also a piece of soap – home at 7 – dinner immediately – had a bottle of Médoc and ditto of St. Perrés by way of something mousse – had 4 champagne glasses a piece, and .:. I slept on the sofa till A- curled my hair and put en train for bed – she the better for 3 or 4 oranges, and I ditto for ½ a dozen and got into bed at 11 20 very fine day. F68° in my bedroom at 11 pm

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dragonrajafanfiction · 4 years ago

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The Crane Team: Part 3 - Sun Tattoo

In a conference room, ten chairs have been set up around a round mahogany table. The seven new clan chiefs, along with Nanami Sakurai and Yoko Uesugi, sat around it, facing each other and a screen that featured three high ranking former members of the Devil Clan who were teleconferencing in from behind bars.

Nanami Sakurai sat in a prim royal purple business suit, her hair up in a tight bun. Yoko sat next to her, her hair up in a high ponytail, covered from the neck down. When given the permission to speak, Yoko said, ��The legal department has agreed to take up the cases for appeal. They’ve also agreed to weekly status updates on these. However, this will take significant staff away from regular duties. I would like to request a budget for emergency staff members to handle follow up and logging of reports.”

“How many people are we talking about?” A heavy set man rumbled, completely unconcerned. His head was bald save two tufts of hair over his ears. He smoked from a long Japanese pipe. He was Minato Ryoma, a business mogul specializing in real estate. He was the late Clan Chief Genichiro’s cousin and had quickly inserted himself into the vacuum left by his death with very little fuss.

“My primary objective is to reassure the defendants that Hydra will take their cases seriously. I will therefore hire 45 people. No more than 10 cases per employee.” Yoko replied. “Pay should be a sufficient living wage for Tokyo on its own so that they will not need secondary employment to focus on this task.”

Minato snorted roughly, his stomach bouncing under the table. “Preposterous. Our finances have barely recovered from this disaster and you want to throw away this much money for this project?”

“Our recovery is pointless if we are lax in pulling the Yakuza gangs together and another war break-...”

Sakurai silenced Yoko with a stern look.

Yoko sat back against her chair. “My apologies.”

“I will make sure that we do a full review of our budget and accommodate as much as we can to the effort.” Sakurai Nanami spoke quietly and dutifully.

“Genji Heavy Industries is still a wreck. The contractor’s we hired are over priced due to the scarcity of workers and materials. We must build the house before we invite other tenants.” Ryoma grumbled.

The other clan chiefs seemed to agree, nodding to themselves.

“Perhaps priority can be given to the breadwinners within the former Devil Clan so that some of the children currently in foster can be reunited with their rightful families.” The newest clan chief of the Inuyama clan, Inuyama Ren, was a surprisingly young man of 21 years old. His face was smooth and handsome and reminded Yoko a bit of Chance. He was Katsu Inuyama’s last remaining son. The rest had died in the fighting. Yoko couldn’t argue the practicality of his suggestion but he could certainly see objections in her eyes. “Does Ms. Uesugi have a response to this?”

“Yes… I do agree that this is a good suggestion. However, placement of Devil Clan children can’t all be with Devil clan members. Particularly if their actual families are alive. Parents should raise their children.” She said softly. “Furthermore, the youth of the Devil clan are the least responsible for their crimes and the more likely to suffer future effects. I believe the younger members should have a high priority as well.”

Minato huffed again, “Future…” He muttered.

Yoko’s nails squeezed her hands but the effect of such emotion dampening tactics was hampered due to her gloves.

From the speakers of the computer, one of the Devil Clan representatives unmuted themselves. “It has been demonstrated that the increase in violence of the Devil Clan were the result of illicit drugs being produced to enhance the bloodline. Before these drugs, while there were violent and dangerous hybrids, the population of berserker hybrids was not nearly as high as after these drugs were produced. The Clan Chiefs of the Hydra could be excused for thinking all Devils are going to die young but that wasn’t always the case. Even the rules stated that Devils could be imprisoned for up to 40 years with hope of release.”

Minato huffed but didn’t dispute this.

“We will run an analysis through the accounting department. I can’t promise 45 employees but making sure each temporary hire is paid enough to focus fully on the work is wise.” Nanami nodded her head.

The meeting dragged on to discuss politics. The mass slaughter and outbreak of violence had alarmed non-hybrid officials. They were pushing through an anti-Yakuza bill and needed immediate reassurance that such shocking events weren’t going to recur. Yoko scarcely suppressed a yawn as she struggled to listen. Her Japanese was phenomenal for having studied for such a short time but the details and intricacies of parliament still escaped her.

Her cell phone buzzed at her side and she peered down.

The message: “The Fuma child was rejected this morning. He’s back at the orphanage.”

Her eyes widened. Why? It had taken ages to finally place that child with relatives after a thorough search. He had been marked, improperly, as violent. He’d understandably acted out after witnessing the death of his family. She had been reassured and thrilled that he would finally be placed with his own clan! Yoko looked up at Nanami Sakurai. “I’m sorry. There’s an emergency. Excuse me.”

Without asking permission, Yoko got up from the table, bowed to everyone and dialed the number to the group foster home.

The placement officer over the children’s group hostel answered right away. “Hello?”

“It’s Yoko. What happened? I thought we resolved all concerns?” Yoko stood outside the door and then walked a few more steps to further conceal her conversation from the conference room. Outside the room, people were passing back and forth but most of them were on phones of their own. Half the corridor was blocked off with construction tape to repair an earthquake damaged wall, making things extra crowded.

“His bloodline isn’t the problem. The problem is he’s not Fuma.”

“Not Fuma? Then what is he? All his paperwork said Fuma!” She said, dodging passersby and trying to find a quiet spot.

“We don’t know. We don’t know why he would falsify his information…”

“There has to be a mistake. He’s eight years old. How can someone his age falsify information?” Yoko started walking towards the exit. “I need to talk to him. How is he?”

“Distraught but…”

“Of course he is…” Yoko broke into a jog. After the assassination attempt, she wasn’t allowed to leave the Genji building without an armed escort and armored car, but this was an emergency! “Excuse me, are you headed out?” She approached a couple of Executive Board members who pointedly ignored her. Even though she chose to believe they were already busy with their own tasks, most of the Hydra members still thought of her as Ruri Kazama’s woman and wouldn’t willingly help a former enemy.

“Look, I'll try to get there as soon as possible.” Yoko hung up and walked over to the information desk. “Hey I need to get a ride to the foster home. Is there anyone available?”

The woman behind the desk looked harried and brushed aside hair that had gone askew. “This is not a scheduled outing and currently there are no armored cars available…”

“When will the next one be back?”

“Probably not until four pm and that will depend on traffic.” She said with some regret.

“No, this is too important. Can we recall one?”

Her eyes widened in outrage. “Recall one? And what are we supposed to do with the person who’s actually there on-site?”

“I’ll take her.” said an approaching voice.

The secretary’s eyes widened and she stood up.

Yoko turned her head and looked into a familiar face behind thin rimmed glasses. “Crow!”

She hadn’t seen the man since he dropped her off at Genji Heavy Industries after the Cassell Team departed. She thought he had retired. Crow was the last remaining man on Chisei Gen’s original team. Both Sakura and Yasha had died during the Dragon’s awakening. Sakura was killed by Ruri Kazama. Yasha died blowing up Kaguya’s core in Genji Heavy Industries. The man looked a bit thinner than she remembered and he looked like he had aged with dark circles under his eyes.

He stood there in his usual trench coat and colorful shirt. “Are you coming or not?”

“Thanks.” She smiled gratefully and followed him out.

The sun was bright but there was a noticeable chill that heralded the onset of the fall season. Hydra members walking by were looking up at Crow in shock, doing a double take, just as surprised as she was to see him back.

Crow led her to a red sports car but didn’t hold open the door like a regular driver. He just stepped around to get in.

“Did you see everyone’s faces?” She laughed. “Where have you been?”

“Taking a long vacation.” He slid into the driver's seat. “Where are we going?”

“The foster home for the Devil Clan children. What made you come back? If anyone deserves retirement, it’s you.” She said, buckling her seat.

Crow didn’t respond but pulled into traffic. His expression was stony and his eyes were grim.

Yoko’s smile gradually faded. “Did… something happen?”

“No, nothing happened. Old habits die hard.” He pulled up to a stop light and they waited for it to change. After a pause, he added. “I never got to thank you for saving Sakura that day. At Tokyo Tower.”

Yoko looked straight ahead. Sakura Yabuki had used herself as bait to trap dead slave monsters at the top of the Tokyo Tower. Once they were nearly on her, she threw herself off the tower and let them follow her down. Yoko knew there was a rope dangling from the tower, where Fingel had saved himself from falling only minutes before. She had grabbed Sakura and the rope and watched the dead slaves continue their descent to the ground, a full 8 second fall.

Unfortunately, Sakura would die anyway.

“I just wish I could have done more.” Yoko murmured

“Believe me, we all do. Normally, I probably would have just committed harakiri after the young chief’s passing, but I got my old man to take care of. Meanwhile? Might as well come back here.”

The light turned green.

“Do you really still hold to notions like that?” Yoko asked with a cautious glance. “I don’t think that’s what Chisei would have wanted.”

Crow’s eyebrows flew to his hairline. “Woah, you two were on a first name basis?”

“Ah… I…” Yoko stammered.

“Ha. I’m teasing. I know you’re not from around here.” He gave a vicious grin however.

Chisei and Yoko had an inevitable conflict. She was a member of the Cassell Team, a devil and in love with Ruri Kazama, the leader of the Devils. He’d hurt her deeply by killing a man named Chance who’d fallen in love with her and fought his hardest to stay alive. The killing was brutal. She couldn’t like him. But at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel that, had circumstances been different, she and Chisei would have been friends. It was true that Yoko had always referred to Chisei by his first name and she couldn’t remember him ever objecting or correcting her.

Crow had likely noticed that long before now.

The orphanage was actually a juvenile correction facility set back off the road by two layers of guarded cinder block walls, manned sniper towers and armed guards at the gates. Once inside, a large building that appeared to be something like a multistory hospital greated her with an imposing cliff-like presence. Were it not for the playground out back with its colorful slides and swings, you would have thought it was a military facility.

Crow walked in with her as she signed in but she stopped him from entering. “Dressed in that trenchcoat, you’ll frighten the kids. I’ll be right back.”

The only memories Devil Children would have of the enforcement department were invasive interviews that asked probing and embarrassing questions. One wrong answer and they would be sentenced to death or eternal imprisonment. While the caretakers were kind to them, fed them and let them sleep in comfortable beds, at the end of the day, they were locked behind vault doors that were secured by heavy chains.

It reminded Yoko a lot of Black Swan Bay. Only these children weren’t controlled by a clapper sound. The influx of orphans after the Hydra’s devastating purge had left the facility staggering and in dire need of funds and personnel. So placing these orphans with families was a top priority of Yoko’s work.

Thankfully, Sakurai, Inuyama and Miyamoto threw open their doors and opened their arms to the orphans. Fuma and Ryoma however had little room in their hearts for these children. Many of their clan members were orphaned at the Red Well when the massive influx of those strange white filaments swallowed up the Fuma Ninjas who had been stationed in the forest to guard the area. Fuma was extremely hurt by the fact that the Devil Clan leader, Kazama Ruri, viciously humiliated the Kotaro Fuma. But with some cajoling Yoko had finally been able to persuade them to take this one child… but he wasn’t even a Fuma child in the end.

She stopped in front of a door and pulled the file from the slot next to it. The name Tatsuya Fuma was crossed out and replaced with “Unknown”. She knocked twice and opened the door.

The boy who, up until now, had been named Tatsuya Fuma sat on a small bed. His room was neat, with a red rug and a shelf full of small toys that had been donated. Mostly toy cars and one toy gundam action figure. There was a TV but it was off. Tatsuya’s face was flushed and sticky from crying.

“Hey…” Yoko approached quietly until she was halfway across the room and then knelt down on the rug. “Hey… what happened?”

The boy hiccuped and sniffled, his knees gathered to his chest. He stared blankly at the wall.

“You didn’t do anything wrong. It’s not your fault.”

The boy shook his head sharply, clearly and adamantly blaming himself.

Yoko knew better than to argue. “Then what did you do?”

He looked at her and shook his head.

“Are you scared?” Yoko whispered.

The boy nodded.

“Why?” She opened her arms and beckoned him over. “Here, come whisper in my ear.” Her frequent visits to this boy made her known and trusted. He knew how hard she’d worked to get him placed and they’d grown a bit close. Day after day, she’d visited with candy and toys and talked to him, reassuring him that she was on his side.

The boy got down from the bed and hugged Yoko around the neck. He didn’t know it, but Yoko always wore a wire on these visits. Sometimes when she was with them, the children would whisper to her the secrets of their trauma, bits and pieces that they’d seen and heard. Little by little, Yoko was building cases against certain cadres of the Executive Board.Given the overwhelming dominance of the Executive Board of Hydra, getting witness testimony directly was nearly impossible. No one would dare speak of the vicious attacks on them. Their killers were still alive and well.

Tatsuya hugged her so tightly around her neck she nearly gagged. He was warm and trembled like a puppy. His arms were thin but his grip was strong, like iron. She could feel every bone through his cotton shirt.

“Tatsuya died. They shot him in the wall.” He whispered, then he sniffed loudly.

“Who did?”

“The people with the sun tattoo.”

“So you took his name?”

“Yeah...they were trying to kill me. So I can’t use my name. They thought Tatsuya was me. So I am Tatsuya now.”

Tatusya was a real child, not a falsified identity! This boy had taken the dead child’s name to hide from people who were looking for him. She'd sent the wrong child to the wrong family! That family had to find out on the day their son returned to them, that their son was actually dead. Yoko’s heart felt like it fell into her stomach.

“Okay honey… okay.” She ran her fingers through his hair. “Don’t tell anyone what you told me. Okay? I’ll find somewhere for you to be safe. Can you whisper to me your name?”

“Mitsue Ryoma…”

Ryoma. No wonder he never admitted who he was. Ryoma hadn’t adopted a single child since the purge. Yoko always had a bad feeling about them. Their Clan Chief’s dismissal of her proposal this morning was just one of many. They’d opposed unification at every opportunity. She couldn’t place this child with them. “You’re very smart. Okay. You can keep calling yourself Tatsuya.”

Crow had walked outside to smoke while Yoko was in the facility with the kids. He took a deep drag of his cigarette and imagined the young chief’s arm around him, shoving the cigarette in his mouth and lighting it in a sudden show of uncharacteristic affection. It was a cherished memory that came back to haunt him every once in a while.

Even though the Young Chief never talked about that girl who now called herself Yoko Uesugi, he could tell she was never far from his mind. Especially after she rescued Sakura Yabuki. Crow would notice the Young Chief staring at his reflection in his sword. Sakura returned that sword to him and told him that Yoko had saved her life. It was odd behavior and for a long time Crow’d wondered why he would stare at his reflection like that.

The door behind him opened and the girl walked out, head down, hands in pockets. “Let’s go.” She grumbled and jogged down to the sports car and stood next to it, waiting for him to unlock it.

Her sudden change in demeanor surprised him. “Did things not go well?”

She didn’t answer him. She just kept her eyes down.

Once they were in the car, she pointed to the cigarette lighter in the dashboard. “Does that work?”

“Yeah. You want one of mine?” He reached into his pocket for a cigarette. Yoko, however, removed one of her gloves, revealing the clear scales on her hand, and pulled the cigarette lighter. She took the glowing red-hot cigarette lighter and pressed it to her own skin!

“What are you doing?” Crow shouted. He reached out and snatched the lighter from her, but the damage was done. That white skin was blackened and turning red at the edges.

Yoko cradled her hand to herself.

“It’s fine… it’s fine.” She whispered but she was cringing in pain. “Look.” She held out her hand to him. The burn was already starting to fade, rapidly healing thanks to her elevated blood.

“Don’t do that again! What’s wrong with you?” Crow shoved the lighter back into the dashboard.

Yoko didn’t answer. She just turned her head back to the entrance of the orphanage.

Crow massaged his forehead wearily. “What happened there?”

“I can’t tell you.” She ran her hands over her face and massaged her eyes.

“Why not?” He asked, looking down at her from his glasses.

She looked him up and down silently. “Do you have a sun tattoo?”

“I got lots of tattoos… sun’s not one of them.”

“Do you know anyone who does?” Quiet anger boiled beneath those dark eyes.

“Why are you asking?”

She let out a loud sigh and turned back to the window.

Crow sat back, resting his arm on the steering wheel. “Anywhere else you need to go?”

Yoko squeezed the fingers on her burned hand. “Can we go to the track?”

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brookstonalmanac · 4 years ago

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Events 4.25

404 BC – Admiral Lysander and King Pausanias of Sparta blockade Athens and bring the Peloponnesian War to a successful conclusion. 775 – The Battle of Bagrevand puts an end to an Armenian rebellion against the Abbasid Caliphate. Muslim control over Transcaucasia is solidified and its Islamization begins, while several major Armenian nakharar families lose power and their remnants flee to the Byzantine Empire. 799 – After mistreatment and disfigurement by the citizens of Rome, pope Leo III flees to the Frankish court of king Charlemagne at Paderborn for protection. 1134 – The name Zagreb was mentioned for the first time in the Felician Charter relating to the establishment of the Zagreb Bishopric around 1094. 1607 – Eighty Years' War: The Dutch fleet destroys the anchored Spanish fleet at Gibraltar. 1644 – The Chongzhen Emperor, the last Emperor of Ming dynasty China, commits suicide during a peasant rebellion led by Li Zicheng. 1707 – A coalition of Britain, the Netherlands and Portugal is defeated by a Franco-Spanish army at Almansa (Spain) in the War of the Spanish Succession. 1792 – Highwayman Nicolas J. Pelletier becomes the first person executed by guillotine. 1792 – "La Marseillaise" (the French national anthem) is composed by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle. 1829 – Charles Fremantle arrives in HMS Challenger off the coast of modern-day Western Australia prior to declaring the Swan River Colony for the United Kingdom. 1846 – Thornton Affair: Open conflict begins over the disputed border of Texas, triggering the Mexican–American War. 1849 – The Governor General of Canada, Lord Elgin, signs the Rebellion Losses Bill, outraging Montreal's English population and triggering the Montreal Riots. 1859 – British and French engineers break ground for the Suez Canal. 1862 – American Civil War: Forces under U.S. Admiral David Farragut demand the surrender of the Confederate city of New Orleans, Louisiana. 1864 – American Civil War: In the Battle of Marks' Mills, a force of 8,000 Confederate soldiers attacks 1,800 Union soldiers and a large number of wagon teamsters, killing or wounding 1,500 Union combatants. 1882 – French and Vietnamese troops clashed in Tonkin, when Commandant Henri Rivière seized the citadel of Hanoi with a small force of marine infantry. 1898 – Spanish–American War: The United States Congress declares that a state of war between the U.S. and Spain has existed since April 21, when an American naval blockade of the Spanish colony of Cuba began. 1901 – New York becomes the first U.S. state to require automobile license plates. 1915 – World War I: The Battle of Gallipoli begins: The invasion of the Turkish Gallipoli Peninsula by British, French, Indian, Newfoundland, Australian and New Zealand troops, begins with landings at Anzac Cove and Cape Helles. 1916 – Anzac Day is commemorated for the first time on the first anniversary of the landing at ANZAC Cove. 1920 – At the San Remo conference, the principal Allied Powers of World War I adopt a resolution to determine the allocation of Class "A" League of Nations mandates for administration of the former Ottoman-ruled lands of the Middle East. 1938 – U.S. Supreme Court delivers its opinion in Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins and overturns a century of federal common law. 1944 – The United Negro College Fund is incorporated. 1945 – Elbe Day: United States and Soviet troops meet in Torgau along the River Elbe, cutting the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany in two. 1945 – Liberation Day (Italy): The National Liberation Committee for Northern Italy calls for a general uprising against the German occupation and the Italian Social Republic. 1945 – United Nations Conference on International Organization: Founding negotiations for the United Nations begin in San Francisco. 1945 – The last German troops retreat from Finland's soil in Lapland, ending the Lapland War. Military acts of Second World War end in Finland. 1951 – Korean War: Assaulting Chinese forces are forced to withdraw after heavy fighting with UN forces, primarily made up of Australian and Canadian troops, at the Battle of Kapyong. 1953 – Francis Crick and James Watson publish "Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid" describing the double helix structure of DNA. 1954 – The first practical solar cell is publicly demonstrated by Bell Telephone Laboratories. 1959 – The Saint Lawrence Seaway, linking the North American Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, officially opens to shipping. 1960 – The United States Navy submarine USS Triton completes the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe. 1961 – Robert Noyce is granted a patent for an integrated circuit. 1972 – Vietnam War: Nguyen Hue Offensive: The North Vietnamese 320th Division forces 5,000 South Vietnamese troops to retreat and traps about 2,500 others northwest of Kontum. 1974 – Carnation Revolution: A leftist military coup in Portugal overthrows the authoritarian-conservative Estado Novo regime and establishes a democratic government. 1981 – More than 100 workers are exposed to radiation during repairs of at the Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant in Japan. 1982 – Israel completes its withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula per the Camp David Accords. 1983 – Cold War: American schoolgirl Samantha Smith is invited to visit the Soviet Union by its leader Yuri Andropov after he read her letter in which she expressed fears about nuclear war. 1983 – Pioneer 10 travels beyond Pluto's orbit. 1988 – In Israel, John Demjanjuk is sentenced to death for war crimes committed in World War II. 1990 – Violeta Chamorro takes office as the President of Nicaragua, the first woman to hold the position. 2004 – The March for Women's Lives brings between 500,000 and 800,000 protesters, mostly pro-choice, to Washington D.C. to protest the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, and other restrictions on abortion. 2005 – The final piece of the Obelisk of Axum is returned to Ethiopia after being stolen by the invading Italian army in 1937. 2005 – Bulgaria and Romania sign accession treaties to join the European Union. 2007 – Boris Yeltsin's funeral: The first to be sanctioned by the Russian Orthodox Church for a head of state since the funeral of Emperor Alexander III in 1894. 2015 – Nearly 9,100 are killed after a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Nepal.

#Events

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brajeshupadhyay · 5 years ago

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Thousands of us have picked up a surprise savings habit in lockdown, a Money Mail survey reveals today. The coronavirus crisis has inflicted job losses and pay cuts – and still threatens to kill off many struggling businesses. But despite the doom and gloom, many Mail readers have found they are saving hundreds of pounds thanks to lockdown, and becoming more financially secure as a result. Spending cuts: Despite the doom and gloom, many readers have found themselves saving hundreds of pounds thanks to lockdown and becoming more financially secure as a result Large expenses such as holidays, commuting costs and entertainment have vanished following unprecedented social-distancing restrictions – giving households the chance to set aside money during an economically uncertain time. Exclusive research for Money Mail by Consumer Intelligence today suggests 16 per cent of people now feel financially better off. Almost half are spending less since social-distancing restrictions were introduced, with 38 per cent saving more. Nearly four in five families say they have more money to spend since lockdown, with a quarter having between £200 and £500 more in disposable income each month. The findings come as figures from the Bank of England yesterday showed the nation saved £16.2 billion in April. In the six months to February households saved an average of £5 billion every month. What is more, households cleared an astonishing £5 billion of credit-card debt, which was more than double the previous record of £2.4 billion paid off in March. In a standard month the nation would usually clear £300 million of credit-card debt. Becky O’Connor, personal finance specialist at insurer Royal London, says: ‘A financial divide has opened up during lockdown. ‘While some are really struggling on reduced incomes, there’s another group whose experience has been almost the exact opposite. ‘If you are in a position to do so, there might never be a better time to ‘build back better’ and save.’ Here, Money Mail meets some of the nation’s new ‘accidental savers’. At last, I’ve managed to build a little nest egg By HENRY DEEDES All my life I’ve been a spender rather than a saver. Whatever I’ve earned during my career, my bank account has always puffed and wheezed its way through to pay day. I’ve tried to be sensible. I’ve opened saving accounts, dabbled in Isas. I even bought Premium Bonds once. Much good it’s done me. You see, any disposable cash I’ve ever had has this annoying habit of winking at me through the computer glass, urging me to go out and enjoy it. Terrible, I know, but there’s something innately therapeutic about rewarding yourself after a busy week with a little something. A case of wine, something new to hang in the flat. Perhaps another ill-advised addition to the summer wardrobe from a tempting online emporium. Invariably, no sooner have I clicked the purchase button and the boiler will suddenly crank to halt and there’ll be nothing in the cookie jar to pay for a repair. I never learn. Lockdown has changed all that. Like a lot of people, I imagine, being trapped inside an apartment for the best part of three months has brought about a vast reduction in expenses. No need now for expensive Travelcards, pricey gym memberships or all those overpriced cups of coffee every day. And that’s before you’ve taken into account what I used to spend going out to see friends. Remember socialising? Drinks rounds, restaurant bills. I dread to think how much I used to splurge on late-night Uber journeys during normal times. But it was a lot. And so with all these weighty charges lifted from my balance sheet, I’ve started to experience a novelty. When I check my balance at the end of the month, there’s now actually something left in the kitty. In the past I’d have been tempted to do something extravagant. ‘Why not?’ would have been my attitude. But in these times of enforced isolation, that thinking has been replaced with what’s the point? Instead, I’ve been putting it in an online investment Isa with savings app Moneybox. I pay a set amount in each month, as well as any additional funds I might have left over. It also has a nifty feature which rounds up all my debit card transactions to the nearest pound and automatically squirrels away the extra cash. H ow satisfying it has been, how oddly empowering. Each time I check to see how my savings are accruing I now get that same whoosh of excitement I used to get when an Amazon parcel would plonk through my letterbox. It would be nice to think that when this is all over, when the High Street tills begin to ring again and when the beer pumps start flowing, I will be able to maintain this spirit of restraint. If nothing else, this pandemic has taught us how quickly life can go south. In bleak times it pays to be prudent. Doubtless this is the last thing Chancellor Rishi Sunak wants to hear. As we re-emerge from lockdown, he needs as many idiots like me as possible flashing their plastic around with reckless abandon to get our ravaged economy moving. But if this crisis does make some a little more financially responsible, surely that’s no bad thing in the long term. I have cleared my credit card Olivia McCulla, who works in PR, has saved by moving back in with her parents By moving back in with her parents, Olivia McCulla, who works in PR, has saved enough to pay off her £1,000 credit card debt. She still pays £775 a month in rent for her flat in North-West London but gets £100 back that would usually go on bills because she isn’t there. Her £120-a-month travel costs and £150-a-week work lunch habit have also disappeared while she works from her parents’ home near Leeds. She has also saved thousands after the two hen-dos and four weddings she was supposed to attend this summer were postponed. However, she now has eight weddings in the diary next year to budget for. Olivia, 29, who wants to buy a property in the next few years, has opened a new savings account. She says: ‘It feels more important than ever to have a rainy-day fund with things being so uncertain. ‘In London I was paying £9.50 for a gin and tonic and through the nose for a very small flat I dread going back to. ‘Lockdown has made me question if I even want to buy in London.’ Before the coronavirus crisis, Olivia was saving about £100 a month. Her father Bernard, 65, and his wife Susan, 66, have seen their household costs rise slightly since their daughter moved home but are also saving money each month. They previously spent £100 eating out each week, so their bank balance is boosted by £400 a month. And instead of paying a tradesman £2,000 to replace his patio with a flower garden, Bernard did it himself and slashed the cost in half. Before social-distancing regulations were relaxed, Bernard was also saving £180 a month on his golf and walking-football memberships. He says: ‘We are very fortunate. Lockdown has made me think we should live more for today and enjoy our pensions more.’ I feel guilty I’m better off Quids in: Ashleigh Meale is saving between £500 and £700 a month Ashleigh Meale says her ‘stripped-back life’ means she is now saving between £500 and £700 a month. This is despite her grocery bill doubling to £400 a month and signing up to a TV and film- streaming service costing £60 a year. Before lockdown, the 27-year-old recruitment consultant, who is currently working from home, was putting away between £250 and £500 but would spend hundreds of pounds a month socialising with friends at expensive bars and restaurants. Now, she and her boyfriend Rob, 38, cook their meals from scratch at home. Ashleigh, who lives in Sheffield, is also saving £70 a month by working from home and not having to pay to commute by bus. She has also been unable to spend money on holidays since the Government warned against non-essential travel. Ashleigh admits that, while she is not a natural saver, she has now realised how much she spends unnecessarily and hopes to remain mindful about what expenses she reintroduces when restrictions are finally lifted. She says: ‘Feeling better off financially during this time is a strange position to be in and it does make me feel guilty when so many people are struggling. But it has given me time to re-evaluate things, and I have no intention of blowing what I’ve saved. ‘I don’t need to be out all the time spending money on eating out and drinks when I could be just as happy with a barbecue in someone’s garden. What I have missed the most is my friends — not the expensive socialising.’ Pay cut but £400-a-month saving Sally Walsh is saving an extra £400 a month on top of £200 she was already setting aside in a help-to-buy Isa Sally Walsh was worried when she was told she would have to take a 10 per cent pay cut in March. But despite the shock announcement, the 24-year-old engineer has found her finances have improved during lockdown. She is now saving an extra £400 a month on top of £200 she was already setting aside in a help-to-buy Isa. Since working from home, Sally has saved around £200 a month by not having to commute to central London, and a further £200 by not eating or drinking out after work. The only bill to go up is her food cost now she cooks almost every meal at home. Sally, who has lived with her parents in Bromley, South-East London since graduating, is determined to continue saving even after lockdown lifts. She says: ‘My goal is to move out as soon as possible. I feel like I am closer to it now. ‘I don’t have to spend so much on going out. I hope I will soon be able to have people over and cook for them.’ Childcare cut by thousands Claire Jarrett and her partner Jon Howell are saving £50 a day in train fares alone Claire Jarrett and her partner Jon Howell have saved enough since lockdown to pay for renovations on their home. The couple need to fix the roof on their house in West Malling, Kent, and want to make the garden more child-friendly for their one-year-old daughter, Eleanor, to play. Claire, 31, had only been back at work for two days after returning from maternity leave before staff were told they had to work from home. With Jon, also 31, working from home too, they are saving £50 a day in train fares alone by not having to commute to the insurance firm where they both work in Bromley, South-East London. They are also saving around £5 a day on lunches at work, £80 a month on petrol and £200 a month by not eating out. But their biggest saving has been on childcare. It usually costs £800 a month to send Eleanor to nursery — but the couple have not had to pay since March. It has helped the couple to replenish their savings after Claire’s maternity leave and move their renovation plans a bit further forward. However Claire says their financial gain is likely to be short-lived. She says: ‘Lockdown has made us realise we do not need to go out as much but lots of the costs will be re-introduced when life goes back to normal, unfortunately.’ Not relying on investments Retired Gerry Short is making savings by not playing golf, employing a cleaner or taking weekend theatre trips Retired Gerry Short has seen such a drop in his spending that he has decided to stop withdrawing income from his investments for the next couple of years. Gerry, 61, a former college principal, has two pensions that pay £20,000 a year. He gets a further £16,000 a year from investments. After the pandemic hit the stock market, his investments plummeted. While they have recovered slightly, he wants to give them time to recover. His reduced outgoings mean he can do this as he is making savings on weekend theatre trips which can cost up to £100 a time. He was refunded £60 of his golf-club membership. He also stopped spending £20 on drinks three or four times a week after games. The father-of-one, who lives in Leicestershire, also no longer employs a cleaner, which cost £100 a month. He says: ‘I was aware I was spending a lot as a distraction after my wife died and knew it couldn’t continue. Lockdown has given me time to plan further in the future.’ Windfall from lost holiday Dannielle Phillips has had to put expensive holiday plans on halt Dannielle Phillips, 32, spends most of her spare cash on trips away. But since lockdown kicked in, expensive holiday plans have ground to a halt. She has already got an £870 refund for a trip to Mexico that was supposed to take place in April. And she has received a £500 voucher she can use to re-book her holiday to Portugal in June for next year. Dannielle, a senior marketing consultant, had always put £250 a month into Premium Bonds, but has since increased this to £750 a month. Since lockdown began, she has saved around £2,500 in total, which she says would have been impossible for her before. She has always checked her banking apps frequently, but is definitely more aware of incoming and outgoing transactions now. Dannielle, who lives in Croydon, South London, says she also feels very lucky it worked out like this because she had originally handed in her notice in February and was planning to leave after finishing a project six weeks later. But the new job she had been offered fell through so her company agreed to rehire her. Dannielle says: ‘I am looking forward to lockdown ending but also dreading it because I will need to rebalance old habits. ‘I’m going to try to budget more at the weekends because I want to keep saving to buy a house. ‘Building up my savings has become more important to me because the future feels so uncertain.’ [email protected] Some links in this article may be affiliate links. If you click on them we may earn a small commission. That helps us fund This Is Money, and keep it free to use. We do not write articles to promote products. We do not allow any commercial relationship to affect our editorial independence. The post UK’s accidental savers: Poll shows many are better off in lockdown appeared first on Sansaar Times.

http://sansaartimes.blogspot.com/2020/06/uks-accidental-savers-poll-shows-many.html

#SEO #Local SEO training #daily news paper #daily news india #daily news newspaper #technology news a

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onemuseleft · 6 years ago

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Teacher au for the 5+headcanons

1) Steve actually had never intended to be a teacher, but when his mom got sick his freshman year of college he started offering art lessons for extra cash. He had a knack for it, especially with the kids and by the end of sophomore year he’s double-majoring in art and education. It’s a steady paycheck and has good benefits and a retirement plan he can’t get anywhere else, and he can still paint and draw in his own time.

2) Tony never really intended to be a teacher either. But after his father disowns him Tony needs to re-evaluate his options pretty quickly. And when one of his favorite professors gets him a job as a teacher’s aide to help pay the bills,Tony finds out that he really, really likes teaching. But not 100-levels, dear god, electives. But anyway, teaching will be a good way to pay the bills while he plans how to start his own company and run his father out of business.

3) Steve gets a job teaching art at a public school right out of college and immediately turns the whole place on its head because what do you MEAN there’s no shop or home ec anymore? These kids need to learn life skills or they’ll be floundering in the real world? He bullies his principal into starting a food pantry, shames the PTA parents who try to control the books in the library, and starts a bunch of after-school programs to teach kids how to repair car engines, garden and use power tools.

4) Tony has no idea what he’s getting into when one of the tenured professors talks him into agreeing to teach a summer robotics class for some inner city high school kids. The kids are awesome, enthusiastic and bright. And their public school teacher/chaperone/event organizer, Mr. Rogers, is pretty easy on the eyes. Every week Tony tells himself he’s going to ask the guy out, but every week he loses his nerve at the last minute. There’s only one thing for it - he suggests they set up a robotics club during the school year. Mr Rogers almost trips over himself agreeing.

5) It takes nearly an entire semester for Tony to get around to asking Steve out, two more semesters for them to move in together, and three more after that for them to get married. Steve paints over the summers and ends up with a hugely successful art show that brings in enough cash to pay off his mother’s medical bills and a chunk of his student loans. Tony builds the JARVIS artificial AI and revolutionizes literally everything. He does eventually quit teaching to start Stark Resilient and ends up taking back his father’s company in less than five years.

They still run the robotics club together every year.

#Anonymous #stevetony #stony

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newstfionline · 3 years ago

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Thursday, February 17, 2022

Ottawa’s police chief ousted amid truck protest in Canada (AP) Ottawa’s police chief was ousted Tuesday amid criticism of his inaction against the trucker protests that have paralyzed Canada’s capital for over two weeks, while the number of blockades maintained by demonstrators at the U.S. border dropped to just one. The twin developments came a day after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked Canada’s Emergencies Act and threatened to take tough legal and financial measures to end the unrest in Ottawa and beyond by protesters decrying the country’s COVID-19 restrictions and Trudeau’s government. Canada’s Emergencies Act allows the government to ban the blockades and begin towing away trucks. The government can also freeze truckers’ bank accounts and suspend their licenses, and target crowd-funding sites that are supporting the blockades. Under the emergency provisions, the government can also force tow trucks to remove rigs. Up to now, some towing companies have been reluctant to cooperate out of sympathy with the truckers or fear of violence.

Canada to ease travel requirements as COVID cases decline (Reuters) Canada will ease entry for fully vaccinated international travelers starting on Feb. 28 as COVID-19 cases decline, allowing a rapid antigen test for travelers instead of a molecular one, officials said on Tuesday. Antigen tests are cheaper than a molecular test and can provide results within minutes. The new measures, which include random testing for vaccinated travelers entering Canada, were announced by federal government ministers at a briefing. Canada will monitor conditions with an eye on dropping coronavirus testing requirements for fully vaccinated Canadians who make short trips—less than 72 hours—abroad, usually to the United States, Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said.

Inflation is growing on the farm (WSJ) American farmers are paying significantly higher prices for their weed-killing chemicals, crop seeds, fertilizer, equipment repairs and seasonal labor, eroding some of 2021’s windfall from rising crop prices. Higher farm costs could help push up grocery bills further in 2022, analysts say, following a year in which global food prices rose to decade highs. Supply-chain constraints and staffing problems are leading to higher prices for products and supplies across a variety of industries, especially food. U.S. inflation hit its fastest pace in nearly four decades last year. Food prices surged 7% in January, the sharpest rise since 1981, the Labor Department on Thursday said, as meat and egg prices continued to climb at double-digit rates.

Sea level to rise one foot along U.S. coastlines by 2050, government report finds (Washington Post) The shorelines of the United States are projected to face an additional foot of rising seas over the next three decades, intensifying the threat of flooding and erosion to coastal communities across the country, according to a report released Tuesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Climate change has accelerated global sea level rise to the fastest rate in more than 3,000 years. The report by NOAA and other federal agencies—updating a study from 2017—predicts that ocean levels along U.S. coasts will increase as much by 2050 as they did over the past century. This amount of water battering the coasts “will create a profound increase in the frequency of coastal flooding, even in the absence of storms or heavy rainfall,” NOAA said. “We’re unfortunately headed for a flood regime shift,” said William Sweet, an oceanographer at the NOAA National Ocean Service and the nation’s top scientist on sea level rise. “There will be water in the streets unless action is taken in more and more communities.”

Police detain ex-Honduras president Hernandez as U.S. seeks extradition (Reuters) Honduran police detained ex-President Juan Orlando Hernandez on Tuesday, escorting him from his home in handcuffs and chains, following a U.S. extradition request on drug charges that marked a dramatic fall from grace only weeks after Hernandez left power. In live footage shown on national TV, police officials gave Hernandez a bullet-proof vest and placed a chain between his handcuffed wrists and ankles before taking him to a nearby base for police special forces in Tegucigalpa, the capital. The right-wing former leader’s detention came after a Honduran judge on Tuesday ordered his arrest following the U.S. extradition request on drug-trafficking and weapons charges. A U.S. Embassy document, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, showed that U.S. authorities charged that Hernandez participated in a drug-trafficking scheme between 2004 and 2022.

UK inflation climbs to highest since 1992 at 5.5% (Reuters) British consumer prices rose at the fastest annual pace in nearly 30 years last month, intensifying the squeeze on households and reinforcing the chances that the Bank of England will raise interest rates for a third meeting in a row. The annual rate of consumer price inflation rose to 5.5% in January, the highest since March 1992. Working-age households are facing their biggest annual disposal income squeeze in 30 years—not least because Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government plans to put up payroll taxes for workers and businesses in April.

EU can withhold funds from Hungary, Poland, top court rules (AP) The European Union’s highest court ruled on Wednesday that the 27-nation bloc can suspend support payments to member states if they breach rule of law principles, and dismissed a challenge by Hungary and Poland. The right-wing governments of both nations had argued that such action lacked a proper legal basis. Both nations, large recipients of EU funds, have come under increasing criticism over the past few years for veering away from the Western principles of the respect for democratic values in their nations. “The Court dismisses the actions brought by Hungary and Poland in their entirety,” the European Court of Justice said in a statement. Poland and Hungary have faced criticism in the EU for years over allegations that they have been eroding judicial and media independence, among other democratic principles. The EU had found itself unable to do much to alter the course of either nation, and therefore turned to linking money to their adherence to democratic behavior. Poland and Hungary accuse the EU of imposing liberal values that stand against their conservative and Catholic societies.

Russia says it pulls back more troops amid Ukraine standoff (AP) Russia said Wednesday it was returning more troops and weapons to bases, yet another gesture apparently aimed at easing fears it is planning to invade Ukraine, even as the U.S. said the threat of an attack remained. On Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry released a video showing a trainload of armored vehicles moving across a bridge away from Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. It said the movement was part of a return of forces to their permanent bases. A day earlier, the ministry reported the start of a pullback of troops following military exercises near Ukraine. And Russian President Vladimir Putin signaled he wanted a diplomatic path out of the crisis, emphasizing that he did not want war and would rely on negotiations to achieve his key goal of keeping Ukraine from joining NATO.

Russians scoff at Western fears of Ukraine invasion (AP) While the U.S. warns that Russia could invade Ukraine any day, the drumbeat of war is all but unheard in Moscow, where pundits and ordinary people alike don’t expect President Vladimir Putin to launch an attack on its ex-Soviet neighbor. The Kremlin has cast the U.S. warnings of an imminent attack as “hysteria” and “madness,” and many Russians believe that Washington is deliberately stoking panic and fomenting tensions to trigger a conflict for domestic reasons. Putin’s angry rhetoric about NATO’s plans to expand to Russia’s “doorstep” and its refusal to hear Moscow’s concerns has struck a chord with the public, tapping into a sense of betrayal by the West after the end of the Cold War and widespread suspicion about Western designs. Speaking to reporters after President Joe Biden’s call with Putin on Saturday, Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov bemoaned what he described as U.S. “hysteria” about an allegedly imminent invasion, saying that the situation has “reached the point of absurdity.”

China Is Showing Off the Digital Yuan at the Olympics (Bloomberg) China is competing for more than just medals at the Winter Olympics in Beijing this month. It’s also quietly trying to define the future of money. Although attendees can pay vendors for food and souvenirs with a Visa or cash, they also have the option of holding up a phone, scanning a barcode, and paying with the “e-CNY,” or electronic yuan, one of the only so-called central bank digital currencies offered by a major economy. Inside the Main Media Centre before the start of the games, Cai Qianyi, a 42-year-old media professional, used his Android phone to purchase roast chicken and broccoli. “This is very convenient,” Cai says. “Compared to carrying cash, this way I avoid touching currency notes.”

France weighs withdrawal from Mali (AP) France is weighing a total military withdrawal from Mali, blaming soured relations with the West African nation’s military rulers and the arrival of Russian mercenaries, according to the European power’s top diplomat and two Western officials with knowledge of the plan.

#headlines #news

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themirthfulroadrunners · 3 years ago

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New Mexico Just off the Turquoise Trail

The first two days of this trip were troublesome, nearly problematic… sorta. We got an early (early!) start, leaving home at 4:45. Traffic wasn’t bad, not even the trucks. Of the 8 construction zones that Google maps identified, which turned into 11-12, none of them slowed us down much. No merging problems, and never below about 60mph. So we arrived at our reserved hotel at about lunch time – much earlier than we usually stop driving. (Exaggeration maybe, and gaining an hour at the New Mexico border did affect our timing. Plus, we had reserved a hotel, due to so many travelers escaping lockdown). But we used the free afternoon to drive a scenic road that was actually more cool than scenic with the find of some awesome old churches. And the location of where Coronado stopped over for 4 days to build a bridge across the Pecos River. We tried to find Pecos Bill. Maybe next time.

The troublesome, nearly problematic parts were in the area of our energy. After the activities of the 2nd day, we were toast. Debbie was so weary as to be sick from it. The hotel bed was heavenly, tho, so good rest was had.

The morning drive out of our stop (Santa Rosa) was horrific with the truckers. The rudest in the world apparently drive I-40 going west from Santa Rosa and we interacted with many of them. Speaking of Santa Rosa, the California city that was burned up in 2020, is where Wayne moved from in 1979 to return to the land of ancestry (on his dad’s side), Arkansas. Working in the Post Office in Santa Rosa, CA, he saw a ton of misdirected letters that should have gone to New Mexico. Conversely, a lot of Santa Rosa, CA mail that was supposed to go to another address in Santa Rosa, CA, took a side trip to Santa Rosa, NM first.

Our next hotel in Albuquerque, the city of Debbie’s birth (thanks to the United States Air Force) was touted as a ‘full-service’ facility, which means no free breakfast. Don’t know about you, but for 150 million bucks, we want free waffles! (and yogurt) And we ain’t payin’ no $25 for a hotel breakfast where you can’t even order what you want (free waffles!) Also, now, mind you that this is during the Covid19 Delta-variant-surging-wave, one of the two elevators in a 6-floor hotel is closed. Once while we were on the only operative one, descending from the 5th floor, it stopped at the 3rd where 2 employees and a customer charged in to join us. NO! We scored a strike bowling them down as we clamored over them to get out. WHAT’S A’MATTER WITH PEOPLE? (Besides bein’ knocked out.)

We got to our house sit and guess what? The promised hot tub doesn’t work, the homeowner had compromised the wiring while tryin’ to electrificate a tree that grows through the deck. After immediately kicking their two dogs (NO, we didn’t), the homeowners pledged that the promised hot tub would be repaired before our house sit was to start. Afraid for their pets’ lives, they did, it was, and a hot tub at 7000’ is sublime. All is well in New Mexico. And even better yet, the owners invited us back before we even unpacked. Now we feel bad for our earlier disappointment.

Speaking of hot tubs, this trip afforded us the best in terms of stars, satellites, and shooting (falling?) stars. They were awesome.

New Mexico, which should change its name to Carson State, or Navajo State, seems to have a distinct lack of historic, or cultural, heroes. Coronado, the famed Spanish explorer abused the native Indians (Pueblo, Navajo, Zuni, Apache, Comanche, Ute, Kiowa), and probably more, to the degree that they revolted in 1680. There was blood, followed by bad blood. Coronado was solely interested in exploiting both the people, and their wealth, had he ever found the lost cities of gold. Coronado aside, there were famous trappers and hunters, but none who benefitted the development of the state, or any people groups within. Kit Carson seems to be the singular stand out as far as heroic figures go. (There may be a bunch of indigenous folks, or folks of Spanish ancestry worthy of the acclaim, I don’t know.) Starved for notoriety of some sort (even bad press is better than no press), modern New Mexicans (Carsonians) point to Billy the Kid – almost to the degree of the George Washington slept here hype. While eastern states laud actual heroes: Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, John Paul Jones, Paul Revere, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, General Anthony Wayne (hah!), Ashley McBride (ha-ha!), and the like, New Mexicans extol a murdering punk, a villain. Oh well, even bad publicity …

Despite the obvious lack of historical heroes, New Mexico does not lack for historical enchantment. The sights are spectacular, especially the mountains and even the smaller rock formations. The people are friendly (excepting the murderous Billy). The food is great. Wayne prefers the red chili peppers while Debbie, the green. Wayne likes to actually see the mold in his food.

After a short two-mile hike with a thousand-foot elevation gain, it was time for Sparkly, our glittery black Ford Edge, to finally get his way, a trip up a bona fide Jeep/ATV road/trail. It used to be a road. In fact, we drove it with ease two years ago. A local told us that the monsoons they’ve had washed it away. Sparkly wanted to go fast, so Wayne let him have his head, doubling the recommended 2mph. Sparkly was sometimes difficult to restrain.

The adventure was worth it, offering a Stephen King Misery experience. A mountain lion crossed the ‘road’ just ahead of us. Wayne stopped and got out of the car to check out where it had headed. (maybe not the most clever of options) Low and behold, (BTW, we loathe and despise cliches, but sometimes it’s better than a sharp stick in the eye) A hundred or so feet down the nearly 90 degree drop-off was a vehicle smashed into a tree. Though there were no obvious signs of a recent departure from the ‘road’, it could have fairly flown over the nearby brush. Or it could have gone over when there was snow cover. Or … anyway, going down to check whether there was a corpse in the vehicle while theoretically possible, didn’t seem very well-advised considering that there might very well be a mountain lion finishing up what might be left and much preferring the live meat presenting himself on a veritable platter – Wayne.

Surprisingly, there was cell service in this remote mountainous area. From a Sandia Mountain trail map handout, we got through to someone who transferred the call to the proper authority. While they appreciated our call, they’d been aware of the vehicle and that it had been there for some time. But how weird, that the mountain lion crossed exactly where we could see the crashed vehicle. What if it wasn’t the same crash that the authority thought they knew about? What if the driver was just then coming to, only to see a mountain lion eating his face? (Limiting Wayne’s Stephen King intake.)

Another mile down the ‘road’ we saw a mountain lion kitten, though it was barely a kitten, nearly as large as its mother, and almost devoid of kitten colorations and markings. We watched it in awe for some time before thinking to take a photo. You just have to believe us (or not) that the blond blur in the below picture is the kitten.

Another quarter mile brought us to our promised hike, a trail to what was described as a Cave Man Cave. Unless we’d unknowingly driven across the Atlantic, it is doubtful that cave men had ever seen New Mexico, let alone inhabited this cave. More than likely the occupants, for which sufficient evidence supported the probability, were ancient indigenous people, no doubt using the cave to hide from mountain lions at night. The cave was cool, but there are better in Arkansas.

A serendipitous hike in the Sandia Mountains showed us a plethora of wildflowers; most were varieties this Arkansas couple do not normally see. But the star of the show was a large mule deer buck who calmly sauntered in the trail behind us when we stopped for a rest (hiking at high altitude is hard, y’all!).

A retracing of a trip up the Turquoise Trail from 2 years ago put us re-hiking a trail in Cerrillos State Park, just south of Santa Fe. Several old mineral mines dot this trail and their history is revealed in very good signage. Passing through Madrid (unlike the one in Spain, this one is pronounced MAA’-drid), we were stopped for several minutes on Hwy 14 due to a ‘special event’ which we could not see. When allowed to pass through the artsy, cutesy town, we saw evidence of a movie being filmed. After exploring Cerrillos, we returned to Madrid for ice cream and got to watch some of the preparations for more filming. We did not get to see the part where the clipboard snaps and someone yells, “ACTION!” but it was enough. This same town was used for some of the scenes in the motorcycle film Wild Hogs and one building still boasts the ‘Diner’ sign that was added only for the film. Sign on the door says they do not serve food there. One can understand the confusion for tourists. We found out the movie being filmed during our trip is titled Robots and is a futuristic comedy starring Shailene Woodley and written by one of the writers on Borat. Cool beans. We ran into the film company yet again a day or two later, this time in a couple of sites in the Sandia Mountains. Whether the finished movie turns out to be good or meh, we’ll be watching it to catch glimpses of the gorgeous New Mexico countryside. New Mexico and Colorado have several movie ranches sprinkled in the very scenic areas.

15 months, or so, ago we were house-sitting in Durango when paper Closed for Covid signs went up on doors in business-after-business. Here’s one for the whole town.

While touristing Old Town Albuquerque we suddened upon a shop managed by a very personable guy who gave us a cup of Arabica/piñon coffee. When we house-sat in Sante Fe last year we talked to a State Park Ranger dude who told us all bout people picking piñon nuts. Having marvelously (Debbie word) passed the aroma tests, we bought a box of K-cups of this unique, pinon flavored brew. The personable guy turned out to be the artist, David Behrens (DavidBehrensGallery.com and Facebook.com/DavidBehrensGallery).

This trip ranks among the best, or at the top of the list: obedient and FUN pets, very clean and comfortable home, fantastic hiking and scenery (despite the photo-compromising smoke), and very gracious hosts who offered us their entire refrigerator! Regarding the smoke, we shouldn’t be too self-centered considering it may be what’s left of someone’s home passing overhead.

Here are more pix from the trip. Enjoy!

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ramrodd · 4 years ago

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What does the Confederate flag represent to the people in the South?

COMMENTARY:

In the Army community before Vietnam, Robert E. Lee was sanctified, as defined by the Profession of Arms. Eisenhower lived in Gettysburg in the first house that belonged to Mamie and not to the US Army. Eisenhower kept a picture of Lee on the wall in his office for the same reason a master builder of bridges might keep a portrait of John A. Roebling on the wall of his/her work space, as a muse.

I feel the same way about Lee. He wouldn’t be my inspiration. My inspiration was Bill Mauldin’s Willie and Joe. These are the guys that took the same oath as the Oath Keepers and slogged their way through eons of drudgery and sudden moments of the Fear of the Lord commingling with an eleven on the Pucker Meter. When they came back from being Up Front for the duration, they didn’t storm the Capitol. The idea of actually assaulting the US Constitution by force of arms, such as January 6, was played out in the minds of the Greatest Generation by the civil rights movement in the South and the anti-war movement more or less universally, but they left the fighing to the constitutional authories to sort out. That’s the point of the 2nd Amendment: the Ku Klux Klan does not fall within the actionable boundaries of the UCMJ and, as both Socrates and Jesus concur, the civic duty of a citizen in a society defined by the secular rule of law, as opposed to any theocracy, is defined by Romans 13″1 - 7: it’s why we elect the leadership of the Republic.

And, in the Profession of Arms as the moral substance of the Clausewitz Paradox that defines the instrumental relationship between the civilian playing the role of POTUS and the terrible swift sword. Robert E. Lee is the absolute metaphysical Archetype of the republican terrible swift sword.

What the fuck do you thing war is all about?

America has been doing war against the African-American community for 40 years with the War on Drugs. SWAT means “Special Weapons and Tactics” which are principally the urban warfare tacticts the Army and the Marines took to Fallujah. SWAT tactics were just being introduced into the civilian police forces when I got back from Vietnam in 1971 in response to the boutique terrorism of the Weather Underground and extreme Maoist black counter-terrorism gangs. The whole Patty Hearst thing brought it to a head and people like Christopher Hitchens began to re-think the charms of the Trotsky insurgence. Munich in 1972 demonstrated that the battle had gone to another level and the Radical-Liberals on the Upper East Side began to keep their distance from Yoko Ono.

And, when the Reagan people took over Washington, which was nearly 70% black at the time, the PeterMeter on racism went off the scale. All these preppy white bigots like Klukker Karlson began showing up at saloons all over town and they began to transform the DC culture to their version of We, the People Land, like a Disney-version of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington to make white supremacists feel safe and cozy.

White people are scared to death of DC because it is Chocolate City run by black folks who are determined to get some pay backs from the white bigots who come into town to buy their drugs or hook up with their whores. I live in DC because I have always felt safe here and I’ve been held up at gun point twice. It comes with the NRA version of the 2nd Amendment.

But DC is really pretty much a Rainbow culture in the government. I’ve been involved in affordable housing since the Carter administration and I was part of the Housing for All campaign that was launched by the Community for Non-Profit Housing and Economic Development organization to capitalize the Housing Production Capital Fund with $100 million annually to preserve, repair, replace and create affordable housing to and to constantlly mitigate and prevent homelessness. As you shift people off the streets and into permanent housing, you begin to make significant shifts in the costs in public healthcare from the fiscal budget to a capital budget, which is far more cost effective than the current paradigm. I just watched a ZOOM broadcast between Anita Bonds and Stephen Glaude about raising the capital pool to $400 because Mayor Bowser’s affordable housing programs are such effective investments that, like the Parable of the Talents, the city wants to double down on it.

So, I’ve watched this city government at work since 1971 and the farther away we get from Congress running things through the Committee on the District of Columbia, the better the city works to support the mission of the Congress. DC has been a playground of elected officials since Congress bought it from George Washington and you have assholes like Matz Gaetz and Ron Johnson who are offended by anything negro at all unless its shining shoes or setting the table for 8 dinner party in Georgetown.

And that’s what the Confederate Flag means in the South as distinct from Robert E. Lee. It’s a banner that reads “We can do any fucking thing we want to do because we are white, free and 21 and, if you’re not. get your ass out of town by sundown or swing in the lyrics of “Strange Fruit” by morning.

And these are basically the assholes who claim to be Oath Keepers because they are white and free to buy as many guns as their budgets can afford and be just like the predominately white SWAT Team officers, busting down doors and shooting their way into the living room according to doctrine.

Officers like Robert E. Lee were in charge of soldiers and Marines breaking into the homes and neighborhoods in Fallujah. What are SWAT Tactics to Oath Keepers looking for glory as a fashion statement was just another day in Paradise for the soldiers and Marines veterans of Fallujah.

Lee was able to avoid the scorched-earth tactics of Sherman and Sheridan by remaining primarily on the defensive, but that’s not the reason for his sactification. It is because he is a nearly prefect model of the republican citizen soldier and hoodwinked instrument of state in the Clausewitzian paradigm and paragon of Duty as the essential virtue of the Profession of Arms.

Donald Trump is a living example of a moral code based on avoiding any civic duty as an organizing principle. And that moral anarchy defines the moral context of the relationship between the Oath Keepers and the Confederate Battle Flag.

Which is metaphysically divorced from everything Robert E. Lee represents in the Profession of Arms.

As I say, the US Army was a Southern institution when I was growing up, but in the George Thomas sense of the word. George Thomas was from the Virginia aristocracy like Lee, but he remained in the US Army and destroyed two rebel armies during the war. Beyond discussing the causes of the war on a purely academic basis, the politics were generally avoided. Any enthusiasm for the rebellion was generally avoided as distasteful and the reality of the systemic lawlessness in the civilian community that the Confederate battle flag represented remained off post.

Robert E. Lee is the exact opposite of what the Oath Keepers represent and the white supremacists who drive around in pickups flying that banner are engaged in stolen valor. The irony, of couse, is that the Oath Keepers believe their are sprinkling themselves with the pixie dust of Robert E. Lee’s honor by appropriating the symbol of the southern patriot in battle who abided by their paroles after Appomattox as tenaciously as they obeyed Lee’s orders before the last ditch ended their service.

Lee was the paragon of Duty, but Honor is the weasle word soldiers on both side give him a pass in regards to his soldiering for the South. Lee went from being the offensive coordinator for Lincoln to being the offensive coordinator for Jefferson Davis. There was nothing personal about it, just business, devotion to Duty.

After 911, nobody was flying Confederate flags until Toby Keith decided to define “patriotism” with a little right-wing cancel culture on the Dixie Chicks and, after that , every time the White Supremacist National Anthe (Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the USA), was played, more and more Confederate flags began popping out, hoping to start a fight, somewhere.

And that’s what the Confederate battle flag means in the South.

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whatdoesshedotothem · 4 years ago

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Wednesday 9 May 1838

11 20/..

very fine morning F70 ½° at 7 ¾ - packed – breakfasted – reasonable bill – had up the woman of the house – told her we were trés contente – Pierre in attendance gave him another franc – he saw us off from the hotel Grand Labourer Anvers (the S at the end pronounced) at 9 ¾ - A- amazingly improved within these 9 years – now a very good town – at Contigh [Kontich] poste supprimée, nice village, at 10 35 and drove undercover to bait 12 minutes, and then off again – beautiful day – everything looking green and pretty – In the autumn of 1829 passed this way to Brussels with Lady V.C. – great general improvement in the face of the country since then – great improvements in the town of A- new handsome theatre – finished about a year ago and ditto pretty little jardin botanique – great many new buildings – A- now a very good town – the new entrepot (government bonding warehouse) at the head of the great basin very handsome building – 5 stories I think and cellars – the damage done by the Dutch in November and December 132 nearly repaired – the railroad said Pierre has ruined some but benefitted many more – the Tête de Flandre from 12 diligences a day is now reduced to one, and there is now only one a day from A- to Brussels – the poste aux chevaux nearly knocked up - but mended a little by the going now all the way to Malines (Mechlin [Mechelen]) – Contigh [Kontich] being supprimée - But for the ruin occasioned by the Spanish bonds, Antwerp would have increased enormously – but all projects are laid aside for the present – fine road (pavé) from A- to Malines thro’ avenue of young elms all the way – gardens and good pretty campagnes all along particularly left all the way for some miles out of A- a pretty double hedge of elm inside and purple beech outside forming a sort of double escallop the points of one hedge being in the hollows in the other – very pretty effect – for the last 3 or 4 miles the tower of the cathedral seems to close the long avenue of road – very fine terminating object – at Malines at 11 50 paid the postillon – left the carriage (locked up) and all went across to the cathedral and there from 11 55 to 12 25 – fine modern monument to the late archbishop of Malines ob. 15 January 1831 by Géhotte put up last year – the archbishop kneed in his robes, an angel with torch à la main announcing the intelligence of death –‘fiat voluntas tua’ round the top of the darkish brownish marble background – the oak carved pulpit very fine here – at the foot of it the conversion of St. Paul (thrown from his horse) and on 1st parents at the top of the steps into the pulpit – a fine crucifixion by Vandyk [Van Dyck] – but no pictures by Rubens are now in Malines except la pèche miraculeuse (the miracolous draught of fishes) now at the church of Notre Dame – one sees the cathedral a fine church at Malines for the sake of its pulpit and crucifixion by Vandyk [Van Dyck] and the monument by Géhotte – and the church of Notre Dame for the pèche miraculeuse – from the cathedral back to La Poste – went upstairs for a minute or 2 – then at 12 ¾ left the carriage to follow and A- and I walked forwards to the church of Notre Dame – 10 minutes gazing at the picture and its 2 volets – very good church – (all the churches in the pays Bas good and clean and well kept) – off from the church of Notre Dame at Malines at 1 10 – in ¼ hour at nice village come up with the railroad Chemin de fer near on our left, and have it alongside us (left) about a couple of hundred yards distance for a long while – nothing on it – looks like a common dike or mound a few feet above the ordinary level of the country – too low to be striking – might not have observed it, had we not been on the lookout – Avenue of Elms all the way – nice clover and grass pastures and corn (much siegle) and fallow all along – very nice clean husbandry – at 2 ¼ stopt to bait at the now poste supprimée at Vilvorde [Vilvoorde] – off again at 2 23 – Tindal the 1st translator of the bible into English suffered martyrdom here in 1536 – nice little town – at the end of the town, had to wait 4 or 5 minutes till a vessel passed thro’ the bridge over the canal between us and the building, passed the canal, and then the large brick whitewashed house of correction – 4 stories of little windows of which 85 in a row – say 85 x 3 =255 yards length of building and the 3 sides of the building apparently of the same length – from Vilvorde [Vilvoorde] the fine canal to Brussels close on our left – no fence between the road and canal – might be dangerous in the dark – at 3 10 1st sight of Brussels and very soon after cross bridge over the canal and enter the allée verte, and Brussels, and then direct chez M. Proft hotel Bellevue and alight at 3 40 20 minutes choosing our apartment – at last settle n°99 rez de chaussée, sale à manger and salon and 1 large good chambre à coucher and cabinet for A- adjoining and room for Oddy adjoining the sale à manger and room for George en haut, le tout = 15fr. par jour – sided our things – dressed – A- and I strolled out from 5 to 7 –in the park – to the church of St. Gudule – closed – to the town hall and returned by the r. de la montagne – grapes very nice looking and fresh at 14fr. a lb. and large pears – did not ask the price – A- rather tired – a few minutes at Todds’ English library and bought a map of Brussels published by the useful knowledge society in London! and bought there also a piece of soap – home at 7 – dinner immediately – had a bottle of Médoc and ditto of St. Perrés by way of something mousse – had 4 champagne glasses a piece, and .:. I slept on the sofa till A- curled my hair and put en train for bed – she the better for 3 or 4 oranges, and I ditto for ½ a dozen and got into bed at 11 20 very fine day. F68° in my bedroom at 11 pm

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orbemnews · 4 years ago

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Jeff Bezos endorsed higher corporate tax rates. But it won't cost him much Hardly any other company leaders have come out in support of Biden’s plan. But it’s a relatively easy plan for Bezos to get behind: His company pays nowhere close to the current 21% corporate tax rate, let alone the 28% rate Biden is pitching. According to company filings, Amazon’s federal income tax bill came to $1.7 billion in 2020. That doesn’t mean that its actual payments came to that much — but that $1.7 billion tax figure nevertheless came to only about 7% of the pretax income of the $24.2 billion it reported to investors. Thus Amazon only paid about a third of the 21% rate. One of the only other executives to endorse higher corporate tax rates is Lyft co-founder and president John Zimmer. But with Lyft (LYFT) still losing money, his firm won’t be paying any corporate income taxes for years to come. Amazon (AMZN) isn’t doing anything illegal or improper — or unusual. Few corporations pay 21% of their reported pre-tax earnings in corporate income tax. That’s because there are many ways to reduce the amount of taxable income subject to that tax rate. “They care a lot less what the rate is than they do with their ability to continue to reduce their taxable income,” said Matt Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), a nonpartisan think tank. “Of all the things Biden administration might try to push through, raising the corporate tax rate might be the one that hurts them the least.” And that’s why those who advocate for raising the amount that corporations pay say it’s important that any tax law passed by Congress does more than just change the corporate tax rate. It must increase how much income is subject to taxes versus how much is sheltered from being taxed. “Increasing the tax rate would be a tragically incomplete way of repairing that,” said Gardner. Biden wants to increase the corporate tax rate to pay for his $2 trillion infrastructure legislation. Bezos said recently that it’s the right time for a major infrastructure investment and that Amazon is “supportive of a rise in the corporate tax rate” to help pay for it. Amazon paid zero federal income tax as recently as 2018, making it a favorite target for those, including Biden, who argued that rich, profitable corporations are not paying their fair share. Analysis by ITEP shows found that 55 major corporations paid zero taxes for 2020, including Nike (NKE) and FedEx (FDX). It said that there are 26 of companies that paid no taxes since the Trump tax law went into effect in 2018. ITEP analysis also shows the average effective corporate tax rate paid by profitable Fortune 500 companies was only 11.3% in 2018, the year that Trump enacted the 21% rule. And Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation found that US multinational corporations paid even less than that on average: 7.8%. “This beating up on Amazon is a little overblown compared to what other companies are doing,” said Martin Sullivan, chief economist at Tax Analysts, a non-partisan, nonprofit publisher of news and commentary on tax law. “Other companies are shifting far more income into overseas tax havens. To me they’re on the borderline of the good guys.” The ongoing criticism probably is what prompted Bezos’ support of higher rates, Gardner said. “It signals they’re not completely tone deaf to the political situation,” he said. Amazon defends its tax bill Amazon’s lower federal tax bill comes because of a number of tax breaks, none of which are disclosed by the company. It’s likely that the most significant break was Amazon’s ability to immediately reduce its taxable income by much of its capital spending. It also likely got some breaks for its hiring, depending on how many of its new workers came from disadvantaged backgrounds. It added 500,000 workers worldwide in 2020 as it expanded its network of distribution centers. And tax breaks for research and development spending and money spent on green energy projects also probably helped Amazon, according to experts. The company says the reduction in its tax bill are due to tax code provisions that are good for the country and the economy. “Our investments have grown the economy by $315 billion over the last decade while we created nearly a million U.S. jobs,” said the company’s statement. “US tax laws were designed to encourage exactly what Amazon is doing to move the US economy forward.” Biden’s plan proposes to reduce some of the ways that companies decrease their taxable income, although many of the breaks that likely provided significant savings to Amazon would not be at risk. Under the administration’s plans, Amazon’s taxes could see the largest increase from the proposal to impose a 15% minimum tax on the amount of money the company reports in pretax income. That could have conceivably more than doubled Amazon’s tax bill to $3.6 billion. There is also a separate provision to impose a minimum tax on companies’ overseas income. Experts say that no matter the impact on Amazon, the proposed minimum tax on overall pretax income wouldn’t be the big source of additional tax revenue as other provisions of Biden’s plan. “The increase in the statutory rate and the closing of loopholes that encourage profit shifting overseas, that is where you have the biggest bang for the buck,” said Frank Clemente, executive director of Americans for Tax Fairness, a group pushing for greater corporate tax collections. But Gardner said a minimum tax on reported pretax income is important because it promotes a sense of fairness, and prevents companies from escaping higher taxes by sheltering all their income. “It should be obvious that 21% of nothing is pretty much the same as 28% of nothing,” Gardner said. Source link Orbem News #Bezos #Business #corporate #cost #endorsed #higher #Jeff #JeffBezosendorsedhighercorporatetaxrates.Butitwon'tcosthimmuch-CNN #Rates #Tax #Wont

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dipulb3 · 4 years ago

Text

Jeff Bezos endorsed higher corporate tax rates. But it won't cost him much

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/jeff-bezos-endorsed-higher-corporate-tax-rates-but-it-wont-cost-him-much/

Jeff Bezos endorsed higher corporate tax rates. But it won't cost him much

Hardly any other company leaders have come out in support of Biden’s plan. But it’s a relatively easy plan for Bezos to get behind: His company pays nowhere close to the current 21% corporate tax rate, let alone the 28% rate Biden is pitching.

According to company filings, Amazon’s federal income tax bill came to $1.7 billion in 2020. That doesn’t mean that its actual payments came to that much — but that $1.7 billion tax figure nevertheless came to only about 7% of the pretax income of the $24.2 billion it reported to investors. Thus Amazon only paid about a third of the 21% rate.

One of the only other executives to endorse higher corporate tax rates is Lyft co-founder and president John Zimmer. But with Lyft (LYFT) still losing money, his firm won’t be paying any corporate income taxes for years to come.

Amazon (AMZN) isn’t doing anything illegal or improper — or unusual. Few corporations pay 21% of their reported pre-tax earnings in corporate income tax. That’s because there are many ways to reduce the amount of taxable income subject to that tax rate.

“They care a lot less what the rate is than they do with their ability to continue to reduce their taxable income,” said Matt Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), a nonpartisan think tank. “Of all the things Biden administration might try to push through, raising the corporate tax rate might be the one that hurts them the least.”

And that’s why those who advocate for raising the amount that corporations pay say it’s important that any tax law passed by Congress does more than just change the corporate tax rate. It must increase how much income is subject to taxes versus how much is sheltered from being taxed.

“Increasing the tax rate would be a tragically incomplete way of repairing that,” said Gardner.

Biden wants to increase the corporate tax rate to pay for his $2 trillion infrastructure legislation. Bezos said recently that it’s the right time for a major infrastructure investment and that Amazon is “supportive of a rise in the corporate tax rate” to help pay for it.

Amazon paid zero federal income tax as recently as 2018, making it a favorite target for those, including Biden, who argued that rich, profitable corporations are not paying their fair share.

Analysis by ITEP shows found that 55 major corporations paid zero taxes for 2020, including Nike (NKE) and FedEx (FDX). It said that there are 26 of companies that paid no taxes since the Trump tax law went into effect in 2018.

ITEP analysis also shows the average effective corporate tax rate paid by profitable Fortune 500 companies was only 11.3% in 2018, the year that Trump enacted the 21% rule. And Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation found that US multinational corporations paid even less than that on average: 7.8%.

“This beating up on Amazon is a little overblown compared to what other companies are doing,” said Martin Sullivan, chief economist at Tax Analysts, a non-partisan, nonprofit publisher of news and commentary on tax law. “Other companies are shifting far more income into overseas tax havens. To me they’re on the borderline of the good guys.”

The ongoing criticism probably is what prompted Bezos’ support of higher rates, Gardner said.

“It signals they’re not completely tone deaf to the political situation,” he said.

Amazon defends its tax bill

Amazon’s lower federal tax bill comes because of a number of tax breaks, none of which are disclosed by the company.

It’s likely that the most significant break was Amazon’s ability to immediately reduce its taxable income by much of its capital spending. It also likely got some breaks for its hiring, depending on how many of its new workers came from disadvantaged backgrounds. It added 500,000 workers worldwide in 2020 as it expanded its network of distribution centers.

And tax breaks for research and development spending and money spent on green energy projects also probably helped Amazon, according to experts.

The company says the reduction in its tax bill are due to tax code provisions that are good for the country and the economy.

“Our investments have grown the economy by $315 billion over the last decade while we created nearly a million U.S. jobs,” said the company’s statement. “US tax laws were designed to encourage exactly what Amazon is doing to move the US economy forward.”

Biden’s plan proposes to reduce some of the ways that companies decrease their taxable income, although many of the breaks that likely provided significant savings to Amazon would not be at risk.

Under the administration’s plans, Amazon’s taxes could see the largest increase from the proposal to impose a 15% minimum tax on the amount of money the company reports in pretax income. That could have conceivably more than doubled Amazon’s tax bill to $3.6 billion. There is also a separate provision to impose a minimum tax on companies’ overseas income.

Experts say that no matter the impact on Amazon, the proposed minimum tax on overall pretax income wouldn’t be the big source of additional tax revenue as other provisions of Biden’s plan.

“The increase in the statutory rate and the closing of loopholes that encourage profit shifting overseas, that is where you have the biggest bang for the buck,” said Frank Clemente, executive director of Americans for Tax Fairness, a group pushing for greater corporate tax collections.

But Gardner said a minimum tax on reported pretax income is important because it promotes a sense of fairness, and prevents companies from escaping higher taxes by sheltering all their income.

“It should be obvious that 21% of nothing is pretty much the same as 28% of nothing,” Gardner said.

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tech-latest-blog · 5 years ago

Link

Some most famous personalities/celebrities including Microsoft Owner Bill Gates, Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and some other's Twitter account are hacked on Wednesday, Twitter is said to be the most secure social networking site and its security is breached Yesterday.

The hackers posted a similar tweet in all of the accounts, which was seems to be promoting bitcoin scam. The posted tweet was beseeching contributions via Bitcoin on the validated prominent Twitter profiles yesterday. .

According to a tweeted post on Microsoft's founder, Bill Gates Twitter account said that "Everyone is asking me to give back, and now is the time. I am Doubling all payments sent to me by BTC address for the next 30 minutes. You sent $1,000, I send you back $2,000." And then a BTC address has been provided at the end tweet was saying that "Only going for 30 minutes! Enjoy! "

And similar tweet was posted on the official Twitter account of Elon Musk and on some other prominent companies and celebrities accounts too, the tweet was promising to double the bitcoin data if sent to a provided address.

Twitter Account Are Hacked- Be Aware

The Other Hacked Accounts

The Twitter accounts are hacked not only of one or two famous celebrities - a number of famous people accounts were affected and asking for bitcoin, some of the other affected account includes:

Barack Obama

Elon Musk

Apple

Joe Biden

Bill Gates

Wiz Khalifa

Warren Buffet

Uber

Jeff Bezos

MrBeast

Floyd Mayweather

‘God’ (@TheTweetOfGod)

Mike Bloomberg

XXXTentacion

Kim Kardashian

CoinDesk

Gemini

Gate.io

Cash App

Binance

CZ_Binance

Tron

Justin Sun

Ripple

Charlie Lee

Coinbase

Coindesk

Screenshot of All Tweets (Gallery)

[su_image_carousel source="media: 11207,11204,11205,11203,11202,11195,11196,11197,11198,11199,11200,11201,11194,11193" crop="none" align="center" captions="yes" link="lightbox" autoplay="3"]

According to The Verge, Entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss also had their accounts hacked. After this most of the tweets are deleted instantly, while others are retweeted for a number of times.

According to the CEO of SocialProof Security and cybersecurity expert Rachel Tobac, "This is massive, This is most likely the largest attack I’ve ever seen. We are extremely lucky that these attackers are monetarily motivated and not sowing mass chaos all over the world."

The hackers also shut down the network partially, and that's why some users were unable to tweet over the biggest social media platform. The hack isn't confirmed yet, what actually happened? whether Twitter's own internal system control was compromised or something else. The scam tweets were posted at 4 PM ET onwards and this scam lasts for more than two hours.

Twitter recognizes the situation after an hour and writes on Twitter Support "We are aware of a security incident impacting accounts on Twitter. We are investigating and taking steps to fix it. We will update everyone shortly." Then after a few hours at 7:18 PM ET, Twitter updated another Tweet which was saying that “We’re continuing to limit the ability to Tweet, reset your password, and some other account functionalities while we look into this. Thanks for your patience.”

https://twitter.com/TwitterSupport/status/1283518038445223936

Another tweet was posted by Twitter at 8:41 PM ET, saying "Most accounts should be able to Tweet again. As we continue working on a fix, this functionality may come and go. We're working to get things back to normal as quickly as possible." Everyone got shocked by such a huge attack in which Twitter accounts are hacked.

https://twitter.com/TwitterSupport/status/1283562446196596737?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1283562446196596737%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com%2F2020%2F7%2F15%2F21326200%2Felon-musk-bill-gates-twitter-hack-bitcoin-scam-compromised

But this repairing gave huge time to the scammers they got nearly $118K valued Bitcoin. According to a tweet by The Hacker News, "DO NOT PAY; IT'S A SCAM! The #bitcoin address used in this scam has already received 12.8 BTC — nearly $118,000. " And this is the biggest crypto attack/ cyber scam till now in which Twitter account are hacked and asked for the Bitcoin.

Also, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York tweeted: “Hey everyone — there seems to be a large Twitter attack right now targeting large accounts. Please be vigilant about any bitcoins scams and do NOT click on any suspicious links. Just in case, if my account tweets any bizarre links related to cryptocurrency, do NOT click on it.”

Lenovo Legion Gaming Phone Pre-Order Registrations Started Ahead of Official Announcement

Microsoft Releases Warning for a ‘Wormable’ Critical Windows DNS Server Vulnerability

How to Run Two WhatsApp Numbers Simultaneously Your Phone

via TechLatest

#IFTTT #TechLatest

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