#live nation alberta

[shotofstress]

Yesterday 90% of the people in my country was without electricity bc the transational company (Enel) that controls most of the services had "a problem". For hours people was without this resources showing how we have constructed society around it thoughtless of its implications. Once Chile owned its electricity but, of course, one of the dictatorship that USA made us took that also from us and since then it has be owned by companies of any other country except us. Spain, China, Italy, some funders of one of the present companies can't be traced bc they probably were nazis or the other colonialist germans that exterminated our indigenous people, and other of the present companies is own by Alberta Investment Management Corp.(50%) and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan(50%) which is even more disgusting bc the dictatorship also destroyed our education, teachers were forced to abandon the pension system of the state and change to the dictatorship usa imposed system. Many of them die in poverty and some died without ever had seen a cent of their money, most of them are poor and struggle to pay the electricity bill each month.

The terror campaign that the far right, the International far right and USA has keep on us for the last 50 years makes people think is Maduro and venezolanos the ones to blame, that the Peruanos (Perú) and the Brazileños (Brazil) could also be responsable. Someone say it was a meteor the responsable. People thinks everyone is to blame in place of the transational itself which also has control of this resource in other South American countries.

In the other hand, people was blaming the government and demanding answers when is not a state service. People at the same time thinks that private companies and transationals can do whatever they want bc if not that means the state is a dictatorship and that the president is a king that can do whatever they want and do everything and knows everything bc they don't know how a state works nor how burocracy or a democracy works. People doesn't ask why the transational has increased to the double the cost of the service, why is not nationalized, why there is constant problems and no indemnity, why last year a storm fucked it and left people without electricity for days, why in the terrible earthquake of 2010 we were without electricity for weeks. They also not wonder why the upper class areas have generators and why the transnational put more effort to return the services for them first as well the tranational mining companies that are killing us.

The private company service of "public" transportation that owns the subway don't have generators for emergencies in all its tunnels and didn't return the cost of the ticket to all people, yet no one wonders why about this things. No one ask why the private company that provides the service of "public bus transportation" wasn't providing the services even when they should had. People thinks both services are from the state but also that is a private company in some sense. People doesn't know how the country works nor that we own anything, yet they think that private companies are the pinnacle of society and goodness. This people don't remember that last time we tried to nationalize resources USA killed our president and make a dictatorship that by all means still control us to this very day. People think that knowing history and knowing USA crimes is wrong, immoral, "communist" (they don't know what communism is) and uncivilised. People no finds strange that simultaneous fire begun in the street in which the heart of the state is, the ministries buildings and other states buildings with their people as well and our Palace of government, La Moneda, were the president works and that the building has the bullet holes of the Pinochet dictatorship created by USA for you information and as a effort to keep memory of this, of all the killings and tortures and the assassination of our president that was made look like a suicide. Yesterday was the anniversary of the murder of Tucapel Jiménez at hands of usa trained agents of the dictatorships with 5 bullets to the head and the cut of his throat after bc 8 days before he said that the workers must keep unionised and form a unity with workers of other areas. His murder was blamed on a carpenter that was also murdered. and they tried to make it pass as a suicide. Yesterday our president was in the commemoration presenting his respects. No one can point me for wondering. Especially when recently our country and president received a menacing letter from american insurance group bc our chambers and president approved a little modification to make a little less bad the health insurance and pensions.

The transational still not gives answers to what happened. Whatever it was is not gonna face any consequence. Even if was an USA attack to force us to give them all out lithium and force us to buy Musk and USA tech, no one will question it, what's more, ppl will think that a soft imperialism and a soft dictatorship is desirable and that will make us white, blond, rich and usamericans-europeans. Tiktok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, the Internet in general and the news in general around the world will support this. We gonna become even more poor and stupid and sacrificial zones will grow and more cities and towns will become one.

No one remembers how every time USA runs out of money they go to take it from South America, like when they made the opium crisis and the cartels and cults to fund Operation Condor to then fund USA. But hey, let's ignore the 200 years of USA control and 7 coups that funded just in Chile and all the massacres/genocides and installations of companies that have us in enslavement, nah, it can't be that, can't be a problem caused by the transational don't maintaining the structures and systems, nor the global warming causing problems in tech, no, no, it must be the invisible non-existent communists and/or the countries that we hate bc they are not blond nor white and have some of them migrate here. Yes, that must be. Gonna hate the haitian or the fascist venezuelan that is as fascist as ur regular chilean in place of demand that the company pays for the deaths of the electric dependent patients or other people for the loss of electricity, the damage to equipment or the decomposition of food.

[patrick-jennings]

Lingering SMoke

Smoke from distant fires Mars the clarity of a blue bird day Find the moment’s beauty Even the haze cannot mar While I clear my mind Of moments past and future Smoldering there One breath Then another Blow the haze away Continue reading Lingering SMoke

[thestuffedalligator]

A couple years ago I was on a road trip and at one point we drove by what was obviously an overgrown golf course. Wild uncut grasses growing out of the fairway, weeds sprouting from cracks in the crumbling parking lot, a club house with outdated signage left to moulder and decay.

And as a lifelong golf hater my first thought was “LMAO get wrecked,” followed by “Actually it’s kind of weird they totally abandoned it. I’ve never seen an abandoned golf course, what’s the deal with that.”

So I looked into it.

The golf course was on Enoch Cree Nation west of Edmonton in Alberta.

It was closed in 2014 because unexploded WWII munitions were found on the golf course.

Unexploded WWII munitions were found on the golf course because during WWII the Canadian government ran bomb exercises on Enoch Cree Nation and dropped up to 100,000 live rounds on the nation.

The golf course was built because residents were told that only harmless practice rounds were used during the exercises, and the Department of National Defence declared the land safe for use.

But then in 2011 an independent contractor found evidence of live, heavy-action explosives on the golf course.

In 2020 the nation and the federal government agreed to a settlement of $91 million for loss of income of the golf course and for land cleanup. Not a day goes by I don’t think about this.

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Canada is in deep crisis. It’s unfashionable in centrist circles to say so, but it’s true. The country is literally on fire and facing extraordinary and growing threats from climate change. It is staring down rising extremism, creeping toxic polarization, and low trust. Wealth inequality is on the rise. Its federal system is showing cracks, particularly when it comes to the relationship between Alberta and the national government. Oligopolies and monopolies run wild, exploiting consumers.

There are plenty of other problems too. But of the lot, the confluence of a few major challenges scream, House of cards coming down! Those are the country’s housing crisis, consumer debt, and high — and potentially rising — interest rates. Taken together, they paint a picture of working people staring down lives they can’t afford in the day-to-day. This hellish scenario persists, no matter how hard people work, and no matter how rigidly they follow the rules of the game — rules they were told are fair and just.

Full article

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[stargirlshojo]

MORE H$ GHOSTS HEADCANNONS

- trevor regularly says “wanna scrump 😏” to hetty and this strangely enough gets her worked up enough that she says yes in meetmedownstairsin5minutes fashion

- trevor be using her skirts as a blanket because his legs are perpetually exposed and it gets cold

- alberta and isaac have a bet going on at all times whether or not they’re currently off or on

- everyone pretends like they don’t know that trevor sleeps in her room whenever isaac is with nigel

- she lovevvveveves his lack of grown out facial hair and is very grateful he died with stubble

- he is constantly trying to take her hair down because he thinks it would be hot but it just poofs back every single time

- he loves showing hetty all his favorite shows and movies and explaining everything she may not understand in them

- hetty discovers audiobooks and be listening to glided age bodice rippers and trevor tries to sneak in listens to get ideas of what she likes

- they love to just lay together and chat about life and death and life-after-death for hours on end

- whenever she says something he may not understand cause of the whole living in different eras thing he asks her to explain everything about it cause he just loves to listen to her explain things

- they both do NOT fw nigel (he’s mean to isaac)

- they’re alberta x pete biggest fans and are constantly rooting for them

- they attempt double dates with thor and flower but it never seems to end well

- trevor sometimes tries to imitate her accent(?)(is that what it’s called i mean i guess) and does it horrifically wrong like he will pull out an australian one and be like “was that close??”

- she thinks his socks r cute

ok gn hmoney nation

[cardierreh15]

Variants

This is just part one of two! Enjoy ⚡️🐺

***I do not give anyone consent to copy, translate or repost my work!!!

Warnings 18+: Cursing , Angst , Mild Violence .

Pairings: Logan Howlett (Cavillrine) x Ororo Munroe also known as Storm ⚡️

Description: Ororo wakes up in another universe, she meets someone familiar…

Word Count: 4.8K

Song: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen (but whatever your favorite version is)

Earth-811, Days of Future Present (my own twist) to Earth-199999

Side Note: Please keep in mind, this is not at all accurate and I am only writing something I thought up. Anything from how she got to this Earth from to her meeting Logan is not canon events.

Side, Side Note: Lyrics are in regular italics. Ororo's thoughts are in Italics Bold and OG Logan's voice is in orange italics.

Part One

Now I've heard there was a secret chord

That David played and it pleased the Lord

But you don't really care for music, do ya?

It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth

The minor fall, the major lift

The baffled king composing "Hallelujah”

It was a beautiful day on Earth 199999. Not a cloud to be spotted. The birds chirped and there was even a cool breeze to combat the humid air that the season had brought in on its back. But all of that was about to change.

With the bat of an eye, dark heavy clouds rolled into the view of the sun. Blocking out any rays that were toasting up some skins and feeding flowers. Violent lightning bolts filled the sky and loud thunder shook the ground beneath the feet of man. Rain beat down like rocks and the wind blew so strong, it toppled cars and pulled trees from their roots.

In the middle of that chaos, was a woman who would change the entire timeline of this world. Though, she had no idea where she was or whether she was even alive. But she was what this world needed.

Falling unconscious from the thunderous clouds, she collapsed into the pacific. Engulfed and swallowed up by the merciless deep blue. One would think that was the end of this Storm Goddess. But fate and destiny were willing to bend the rules when it came to fulfilling their name.

Upon her contact, the impact of her landing had not only caused hurricanes but water spouts that could tear up an entire island and record breaking tsunamis. Countless lives had been lost upon her ascend.

Months had passed on by and the world was slowly healing from the detrimental damage that came with Ororo’s hard landing. Reporters and storm researchers tried to get to the bottom of what could’ve caused something like this to happen so simultaneously and without warning. The UN (United Nations) had already started on their own journey trying to get to the bottom of it; if it was mutant related and purposeful. As if they give a damn about that really. On her Earth, the United States were the reason why she was here in the first place.

Ororo was found caught in a fishing net in Vancouver. She was well preserved and oddly enough, still warm to the touch. Yet, still knocked into a deep coma that not even inhaling water could wake her from.

A man, not from this plain, had noticed that she wasn’t exactly human. And if the other fisherman had suspected her of being a mutant, they’d have her shipped off to a lab somewhere in the US after they collected their reward. So, he took her back to his home in Alberta, Canada. Far away from society and where he could be himself.

The stranger would come check on the brown sleeping beauty every once in a while. Everyday in the morning before he went to chop wood to aid her fireplace and then once before sunset. She looked familiar to him, but he couldn’t exactly pin it. She was enigmatic! And the feeling of limerence grew the longer she stayed. The way her white finely twisted dreads lay splayed out beneath her head, her thick white brows and lashes. How the shade appeared to enhance her skin and feminine features. Even in her time of nadir, she took his breath away.

Almost like a forbidden kind of beauty. The one that came with a dark past.

Those days had turned into weeks and finally a month had passed since her arrival at the stranger’s residence.

Ororo’s eyes had flashed open, white as her hair as she inhaled so much air that instantly burned her lungs and choked her out.

Sitting up, she placed her hand over her chest before gripping the linens that she wore. She wheezed as salty tears streamed down her face as she fought to breathe. Her vision blurred, her head felt so heavy and it throbbed with an achy vengeance. The words of her lover repeated in her ears.

I love you, Ororo. You don’t have to come back for me. If you find a perfect world, stay there.

She coached herself to steady her breathing as her snowy eyes had faded into something more human. Brown as the Earth’s soil. Ororo hiccuped as her awareness finally hit her like a ton of bricks. She scanned the bedroom for anything to tell her where she was. Or at least, which part of the Multiverse she had landed in.

Pulling herself from the warmth of the heavy comforters, she felt as if she’d been only asleep for a day. Her limbs and balance worked as they did when she was fleeing from the Sentinels. Though, it came with only a little bit of soreness. That was from the battering of the waves.

She whimpered as she rotated her arm to aid the soreness there. ‘Aah. Where the hell am I?’ The bedroom was a piece of paragonal work. Lots of natural light that was let in by 3 large arched windows and a large skylight window that made stargazing comfortable when night came. 

The furniture was vintage; carved out of mahogany and donned with gold handles and knobs. All of the furniture was dusted clean, the mirror at the vanity didn’t see a speck or smudge. A telltale sign that someone had been in here to visit her quite frequently.

With the bedroom’s cleanliness, came no clues of where she was. Ororo began to rummage and search through the dresser drawers and the nightstand. 

Breathing heavily as she felt herself growing anxious with tears filling her eyes, she felt herself falling apart. 

Don’t come back for me. 

Logan please.

I mean it, thundercloud. If you find a perfect world, stay there. 

‘Ooh! Fuck you, Logan!’ She exclaimed through gritted teeth as tears fell from her eyes. ‘Fuck you! Fuck you!’ She exclaimed as she slammed her fists into the mahogany wood that cracked beneath her strength. 

A loud thunder crack echoed outside, with a bolt hitting right outside her bedroom window.

Tiny bolts of lightning danced around her fists as she brought them up before opening her palms. The tiny bolts flickered before vanishing completely and a tear fell in their place. 

Wiping her snotty nose with her sleeve, she took a deep breath and wiped her tears with her free wrist. How was she going to make it without him?

The sound of 80’s rock and roll brought her out of her misery. The same kind of music they’d listen to together on his motorcycle when times were much simpler. She used to peel the clouds out of the sky or simply push them over the next city so they could go riding. 

The smell of his cigar smoke mended into his brown leather jacket. The way his thick dark hair used to fluff about in the wind and how he used to risk their lives by rubbing her arm when she held him tight.

Good times.

Ororo rushed towards the large wooden door and tugged it open with its golden knob. She was met with fresh air when she rushed outside. The sound of the music was no longer muffled by the thickness of those wooden walls. Yet it did echo and bounce off of trees in the surrounding area.

Quickly making her way down the wooden steps, she founded the calls and howls of the infamous Axel Rose. It didn't take her long to find the host; just a cut around the cabin and she was standing in front of it. Catacorner from it was a makeshift garage. Old broken down cars, motorcycles, and tires lie scattered about.

This looked just like Logan’s garage. A mess and unkept.

She felt as if this was all some kind of fever dream. 

Inclined to meet the person who saved her, Ororo began to journey forward until she came across a mature and very large Fir tree that sported claw marks. She walked towards it as the fast music became a blur in her ears. She ran her finger tips over the marks. 

9 claw marks but in threes. She knew only one person who could pull this off. 

‘Oh my god— JAMES!’ Her heart fluttered like crazy as she sped walked to the garage and pushed the doors open. ‘JAMES!’

There he stood, back turned as he worked on his bike. He wore his classic white wife beater, denim jeans and brown boots. His skin was covered in a thin sheet of sweat as he squeezed the clutch of his bike. She was sure that he couldn’t hear her over the shouting of Guns N Roses and the purr of his motorcycle, so she reached her hand up towards one of the hanging lamps and shot a lightning bolt at it. 

A gleaming smile curled up on her lips with a twinkle in her eye.

That caught his attention, causing him to stand up straight.

There was a long pause before the individual reached over and turned down the old school radio that sat on the toolbox. 

‘You know it’s been a long time since someone called me that.’

His voice… He didn’t sound like the Logan she knew and loved. Though from this angle, he was the spitting image. Her smile remained. ‘Wh-what do you mean we—‘

The male finally turned around to face her. But the cloud of smoke from the cigar that he puffed on, made him impossible to make out.

She used to hate the smell, now she lived for it. Craved it.

‘You still smoke those-‘

Stepping through the cloud, the individual revealed himself. 

His hair was curly thick, styled up to resemble ears as if he were a puppy. The same way her James used to style his hair. He even sported that very same beard cut with the center of his chin shaved and his jaws furry. 

His eyes were bright blue unlike the original Logan’s, comforting brown.

Her smile faltered as she placed a hand on her stomach and took a step back.

‘Hmm.’ The man grumbled as he reached behind him and scooped up a white dirty hand towel to wipe his hands. He held his lit cigar in his jaw before taking it out with his clean fingers.

Ororo stood there, her eyes wide in shock and confusion. Her mouth opened to ask a question but the words just wouldn’t come out!

‘I didn’t think you’d ever wake up. You seem to be walking well.’

He was the one that saved her.

‘H-‘ she swallowed, ‘How long was I out?’

Tossing the dirty cloth on the toolbox, he placed the cigar back between his lips and inhaled greatly. And when he exhaled, another large cloud of smoke shrouded the garage.

‘Well,’ he grumbled, ‘You’ve been here for about a month. I uh— suspect you have no idea what’s going on… do you?’

A month? There’s no way I have been here for a month! I stepped in that portal yesterday! 

Ororo placed her hand on her neck as she felt her blood pressure begin to spike. Her body began to gently rock side to side as her stomach twisted and turned.

‘Wh-where did you find me a-and where am I?’

‘You’re in Alberta…’

Her eyes grew, ‘CANADA?!’

‘Some fishermen in Vancouver found you sleeping in a net with some salmon.’ 

She brought her fingers up to her temples and began to rub that spot when her head began to throb. 

And right on cue, thunder roared outside. 

Logan looked up at the roof as rain drizzled and created a song atop the metal. Then he looked back at her. She appeared to be fighting a migraine. And the more she fought, the heavier the drizzle became.

Then it clicked.

‘You alright over there? Need some pain meds?’ He mumbled with his cigar in his mouth.

‘Mmph! It’s okay just—.’

‘Uh-huh. Y’know, there’s been some dangerous storms going on. Tsunamis, Hurricanes, typhoons, the whole nine.’

‘Mmm.’ Ororo grimaced at the pain, squeezing her eyes shut tight as she clenched her jaw together. ‘How long have I been asleep?’

‘I don’t know. But, the storms started about 4 months ago.’ 

I’ve been here for four months?! Oh my god.

‘I think I’m gonna be sick.’ Ororo whimpered as her vision blurred once again from tears. Her chest began to heave and her heart thudded hard in her chest.

‘Oh, whatever you do just—‘

Barf. Clear bubbly flim mixed with yellow bile splattered on the smooth concrete. 

‘Take that… outside. Aw shit.’

The woman collapsed to her hands and knees as he rushed over to her aid. She choked as her insides forced and fought to be on the outside. The taste of the raw acid burned at her esophagus and mouth. The rancid taste only made her gag more. 

‘Hey, it’s okay.’

It’s okay, Storm. If we’re meant to be… we’ll be.

Her eyes turned white with tiny bolts dancing around them, heaving harder as she stared at the disgusting vomit.

‘You have to look away! Look at me!’ 

As soon as Logan snatched up her hands, lightning zapped him to hell. 

Fortunately nothing that’ll kill him, but it stung like shit. ‘Aah!’ He hissed as he snatched his hands away, fanning them painfully. ‘Fuck!’

You’re my strong girl.

Ororo shut her eyes tightly as the heaving turned into a sob. ‘I can’t do this without you…’

The drizzle had turned into a heavy pitter patter. Thunder roared outside, causing the tin can of a garage to rattle. 

Logan’s brows tugged into one as the burning tingling began to fade into his hand. He watched as the woman crumbled into herself. 

This wasn’t tears of fear or confusion. But of mourning and grief. He could practically smell the pain exuding off of her. Logan knew what it felt like to lose someone. To be completely lost in a world that didn’t accept who he was. To be alone. 

Reaching out to her, tiny lightning bolts reached out to embrace his fingertips as if they were familiarized with his energy or aura. 

They didn’t burn him this time, just tiny manageable pinches. He placed his palm on her back and sighed softly.

If we’re meant to be…

His mouth parted to say something, afraid to say the wrong thing. 

Ororo blinked her eyes open before looking over at him. 

He was almost the exact same replica of her James. That same mean scowl that she adored greatly.

‘You’ve got blue eyes.’ She said in a hushed tone as she stared into his eyes.

‘You’re very observant.’ Logan said sarcastically with a small chuckle leaving his lips. ‘What is it that they call you?’

My Stormsy. Hey there, my lil’ thundercloud. Hang on lightning bolt! Stormy. 

‘Oro—‘ she sniffed, ‘Forgive me but, I don’t think you’d be able to say my name, white boy.’ She scoffed.

Logan raised his brow, ‘Oh yeah? Try me.’

She tried to muffle her giggle but it fell through, ‘Ororo.’

His brows rose and he blinked hard once.

‘Oro—OK, do you have a nickname?!’

Ororo’s small smile from her giggle had turned into a charming grin as laughter escaped her, ‘Yeah,’ she sighed softly. He was just like him. From his facial expressions to how effortlessly hilarious he was. She was comfortable near him.

‘Storm. Just call me Storm.’

‘Now that sounds… do-able.’ His smirk curled up into a small smile before he felt a raindrop fall upon his shoulder. They both looked up at the ceiling. Another fell on his forehead.

‘Well, that would explain the weather.’ Then wiped his head free of the water and looked back over at her, then it clicked. He was a terrible host.

Her white eyes began to fade into her brown ones.

Glancing down at the barf, he then glanced back at her, ‘You must be starving.’

‘No, no. It’s OK, I’ve been too much trouble already just—‘

‘No, I insist. You haven’t ate—‘

Wrrrrr. Ororo slapped her hand against her stomach as it sang its hunger song, as if she could shut it up like a finger to a set of lips. She snatched her eyes away from his gaze and shut them in defeat.

‘Mmm. I thought so. Alright, up, up, up.’ He took his large hands and helped her to her feet. ’

Rolling her eyes at his condescending tone, she pushed herself up to her feet with his help.

‘Ya alright?’ He asked as he slowly pulled his hands away.

‘Yeah,’ The electricity vanished once again within her, ‘Thank you.’

‘Mmm,’ his head fell to the side, ‘Don’t mention it. Look, I’m gonna get this cleaned up—‘ 

‘James, please—‘ she paused. 

He looked down at her for a long moment. ‘You’re the only one who can get away with calling me that.’ Turning away from her he walked towards the far corner of the garage. 

Ororo let out a sigh and placed her hands on her hips. Were they all the same in every universe? Hardheaded and guileless. Arguments were always challenging with him. 

‘You don’t have to clean up after me, I'm not some kind of damsel in distress.’

‘Well,’ he scoffed as he picked up a bucket and a mop, ‘You were just kind of sleeping beauty for ‘bouta month. I’d say you’re pretty damn close enough. Oh, and— Aurora… mind easing up on the rain until we get the food here?’ 

Her mouth fell before she stammered over her words. ‘We—I—‘

Wait a minute did he just call me beautiful? Damn, they are just alike. 

And he left her inside of the garage to retrieve water for the bucket.

***

Ororo did not in fact keep the rain in check. Instead, when she went back into the cabin she found herself missing James more and more. But, how could she miss him when he was right outside? 

Oh, she was so confused. Stuck in a whirlwind of emotions. But she had to count her blessings. Who knows what would’ve happened if he didn’t find her. She could’ve been poked and pried at beneath wandering eyes. Chopped up in itsy bitsy pieces and thrown in a particle accelerator to be sold to the highest bidder.

At least that was more humane than the chaos that ensued on her world. 

A knock echoed in her bedroom and the sound of the knob twisting followed.

Ororo was bent over the vanity, checking for any oddities that the portal could’ve left her with. So far, so good. The door creaked open and she turned torso to the side.

‘Hey—whoa—‘

With her voluptuous rump in view, she rested her chin on her fist, ‘Your mama ever taught you to knock? What if I was naked?!’

‘Well for one, I did knock. And my mama, didn’t exactly raise a gentleman if you want me to be honest. Come, I’ve got Chinese.’ 

***

The pair sat in silence as they indulged on their take out. Ororo did her best not to inhale all of it so she ate slowly.

Logan chuckled, ‘That’s cute!’ 

Shit, he was on to her.

‘Mmm? What?’ She grumbled as she placed her hand over her lips so that she wasn’t spitting out food.

‘Oh nothing. It’s just you’re trying so hard not to kill all of your food. Eat! Trust me, you definitely need it more than I do.’

‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’ She said as she stifled her giggle and took another bite out of her food. 

‘Right.’ He snickered and took a sip of his beer. 

The dining room grew quiet once again, soft thunder filled the silent void between them. Not necessarily on purpose but she was studying him. They were eating sweet n sour pork. 

James hated pork. He hated the smell, the salty-ness, the texture and the tummy ache and headache that it gave him after it all. She remembers having to cave in to buying turkey bacon. 

The things you do for love. The sacrifices you make.

James was also right handed. Everything he did started with his right side and eventually the left would aid it. Not that the left was as strong as the right, but when it came to swinging his claws, it always got the job done.

This Logan was an ambidextrous individual. Using both of his hands to work into his food without looking funny. It was so natural.

‘I can feel you burning a hole in my face.’ He murmured as his bright blue hues remained glued to his plate.

It was then when she finally blinked, ‘sorry you just— you just remind me of someone I—‘ she paused as her head fell into her lap.

Logan’s eyes flickered up at her for a second, reading her like a book. ‘Boyfriend?’

She remained quiet.

‘Yeah, I know that look. Sported it a few times myself. Would you like to talk about it?’

Oh she wouldn’t even know where to begin. Should she start with Mystique mercilessly murdering Senator Robert Kelly? Or how her blood contributed to the industrial process of the Sentinels that killed mutants or threw them into concentration camps? How this Logan sitting in front of her could be one of hundreds and maybe thousands of variants of her dead lover?

That was a lot to take in. He wouldn’t even believe her.

‘I—Honestly, I wouldn't even know where to start.’

‘I’ve got nothing but time.’

You take up all my time, Lightning Bolt. A punishment when I have to leave but a reward when I come back home to you. 

Inhaling deeply through her nose, she let out a gentle breath. ‘I’m —‘ Ororo tried to process it herself. If she hadn’t lived it, it wouldn’t have even made sense to her either. 

‘This is going to sound crazy.’ 

‘Trust me, I’ve seen and heard crazy. There’s nothing you can say to me that I haven’t already heard.’ 

He mustn’t be so sure.

Even that little comment was something James would’ve said. Verbatim. 

‘Alright.’ She sat up straight and let out another breath of air, ‘I’m not from… here.’

Logan sat quietly. She had his full and undivided attention.

‘I’m not from… here.’ She repeated.

‘Oookaaaay, I think I got that the first time.’ He sighed and folded his arms together. ‘What do you mean?’

Damn it was a lot harder to say than she thought. Perhaps she try a different approach. She would talk about… him.

‘My boyfriend… he uh— he was one of a kind. Smart, goofy, sweet… he was everything I dreamed of. He uh— and his brother had it rough. His family was well off… and in most cases the mother and father weren’t around much thus, was raised by their nanny. One night, some man comes into their home and kills their father. It was then when he discovered his powers. He grew—‘ 

Ororo glanced down at Logan’s fist as his fingers tapped against the table cloth. 

‘Claws.’ Her gaze rose to his once again. ‘He stabbed the man in hopes of getting to avenge his father… but it was then revealed to him that the stranger was in fact he and his brother’s biological father.’

Logan stared at her in complete horror. But he remained calm.

Your faith was strong, but you needed proof

You saw her bathing on the roof

Her beauty in the moonlight overthrew ya

She tied you to a kitchen chair

She broke your throne and she cut your hair

And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah.

‘What then?’ He asked before picking up his beer once again. 

‘He and his big brother ran away. Fought in World War II. Years later he met me at Xavier’s School of Gifted—‘

‘Youngsters.’

‘Youngsters.’ She repeated slowly. 

He stared at her for a moment before shaking his head, ‘How do you— How do you know all of that?!’

Swallowing her spit, Ororo pressed her lips together, ‘I know — so much more, Logan.’

‘So what, do you read minds like Charles?!’ His voice was a little bit more stern than before.

‘Ja-Logan, it’s not like that! I—I come from a different timeline!’

His eyes grew in disbelief and he raised his hands, ‘Alright. That’s enough sweet n sour pork for you. Now you’re just talking out of your ass.’ He reached over to grab her container but she grabbed his wrist tightly. It was heavy. Just as she thought.

‘Has it ever occurred to you why or how a complete stranger would know your name?!’ 

‘Maybe you’ve been looking at my mail?!’

‘Your name is James Howlett! You had a brother named Liev, also named as Sabertooth—‘

‘What?!’ He chuckled.

‘You were born 1882! Here in Alberta, Canada.’

‘These are all things you can look up on google sweetheart.’ He said as he gently pulled his fist away.

‘That would make sense if I could use google in my sleep!’ She bit back. She watched as he pulled her styrofoam container away. ‘And I don’t think you added your Adamantium skeleton to the census.’

I did my best, it wasn't much

I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch

I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool ya

And even though it all went wrong

I'll stand before the lord of song

With nothing on my tongue but hallelujah

He stared at her for a moment before swallowing hard.

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about? That metal doesn’t even exist.’ He added as he carried off their take out to the kitchen.

Now, she was annoyed. She folded her arms across her chest and slouched back against the wooden chair with her full lips in a slight pout. That was until she realized what he said.

‘Wait—‘ she quickly stood to her feet and walked into the kitchen, ‘I never said anything about Adamantium being metal!’ 

Logan opened the refrigerator to place the containers inside, ‘You didn’t? Well, it sounds like it would be metal. The “Tium” at the end of it adds the razzle dazzle.’ 

Ororo was growing irritated with his banter. So she snatched the refrigerator door handle and slammed it, not caring much if the food was in there properly. Her backside was pressed firmly against the cool stainless steel.

‘Hey!’ He glared at her.

‘You asked me if I wanted to talk about it and I AM—‘

‘I didn’t ask you for a damn biography on my life!’

Her head fell to the side before looking down at his fists. 

‘Show me.’

Logan stepped back, his thick brows tugging into one. ‘Show you what? There’s nothing to show you!’ 

‘I want to see them! Show me!’ 

‘Lady, you’re really losing it right now.’

‘I WANT TO SEE THEM— NOW!’ She exclaimed as her eyes glowed white with lightning and she raised her hand to cast a lightning bolt at his chest. 

The white electricity sent him flying back against the wall, leaving a large cave in, in its place. He fell to his hands and knees as he groaned and howled in pain. White lightning bolts danced and trickled around his torso, arms and neck. ‘GUH—AAUURGH!’ 

She hadn’t realized what she’d done until it was too late. ‘Oh my god! James!’ Ororo rushed over to him but stopped in her tracks when she heard the unsheathing of his blades. 

She blinked away her glowing eyes as he painfully pulled himself up to his feet. Bubbles of saliva dripped from between his teeth. At his sides were those infamous Adamantium claws. They were beautiful. 

She glanced up at him in caution as she began to slowly approach him. 

Logan growled, taking a step back as he breathed heavily through the pain. 

‘James please, I’m sorry! I know all of this sounds crazy ok? You have to believe me.’

‘B-believe y-you?! Hell, I d-don’t even know you!’ He sputtered through the pain.

The words pained her, ‘I-I deserve that. But I know you.’ She finally walked to him and reached out to wrap her small hand around his fist. Logan turned his head away from her.

Maybe there's a God above,

but all I've ever learned from love,

was how to shoot at someone who out drew you.

And its not the cry you hear tonight,

its not somebody who's seen the light.

‘In a different time— you loved me. And looking at you now…’ she placed her hand against his jaw and turned his gaze back towards her, ‘Means that I have a second chance. Think about it, you went all the way to Vancouver … you had no idea I was there but you came there for me.’

Logan stared down at her, his heaving panting began to slowly return to normal.

‘I know that you hate New Age music, I know that your hobbies include choking down cigars and chopping wood. I know that you love riding your bike on sunny days in the mountains! I know that you dreamed of living in a small cabin like this one.’ Her voice cracked as she did her best to fight back her heartbreak. He never got to see the life he deserved.

It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah.

‘I know that you’ve moved far away to keep from hurting others. I was there, Logan.’

Ororo’s words were almost inaudible; being choked up with tears, she stared up into his eyes as she fought hard not to cry again. 

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah.

Sheathing his blades back into the safety of his knuckles, he reached up to grab her fist gently into his large hand. 

‘How much did you love me—him?’

‘Oh James…’ her eyes fluttered as a thick warm tear fell down her cheek. ‘With all of my being…’

Those words ached him a little as if he knew that she did, as if he witnessed her love for him. He’d fallen in love many times. But they never amounted to anything in the end. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be.

Maybe—

If we’re meant to be— we’ll be.

Ororo burst into a gut wrenching sob before Logan brought her into his strong, heavy arms. He rested his cheek atop her head as she soaked his filthy wife beater. 

Hallelujah. 

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Week - June 6, 2023

1. Biden orders 20-year ban on oil, gas drilling around tribal site in New Mexico

Hundreds of square miles in New Mexico will be withdrawn from further oil and gas production for the next 20 years on the outskirts of Chaco Culture National Historical Park that tribal communities consider sacred, the Biden administration ordered Friday.

The new order from Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland applies to public lands and associated mineral rights within a 10-mile (16-kilometer) radius of the park. It does not apply to entities that are privately, state- or tribal-owned. Existing leases won’t be impacted either.

2. Groundbreaking Israeli cancer treatment has 90% success rate

An experimental treatment developed at Israel's Hadassah-University Medical Center has a 90% success rate at bringing patients with multiple myeloma into remission.

The treatment is based on genetic engineering technology. They have used a genetic engineering technology called CAR-T, or Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell Therapy, which boosts the patient’s own immune system to destroy the cancer. More than 90% of the 74 patients treated at Hadassah went into complete remission, the oncologists said.

3. Federal Judge Makes History in Holding That Border Searches of Cell Phones Require a Warrant

With United States v. Smith, a district court judge in New York made history by being the first court to rule that a warrant is required for a cell phone search at the border, “absent exigent circumstances”. For a century, the Supreme Court has recognized a border search exception to the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement.

4. Indigenous-led bison repopulation projects are helping the animal thrive again in Alberta

Indigenous-led efforts are reintroducing bison to their ancestral lands in Alberta, bringing back an iconic species that was nearly extinct. These reintroduction projects, such as the one led by the Tsuut'ina Nation, have witnessed the positive impact on the bison population and the surrounding wildlife.

The historical decline of bison numbers was due to overhunting and government policies that forced Indigenous peoples onto reserves. These initiatives aim to restore ecological integrity while fostering spiritual and cultural connections with the land and animals. Successful results have been observed in projects like Banff National Park, where the bison population has grown from 16 to nearly 100, providing inspiration for future wilding efforts.

5. Breakthrough in disease affecting one in nine women

Sydney researchers have made a world-first leap forward that could change the treatment of endometriosis and improve the health of women living with the painful and debilitating disease. Researchers from Sydney's Royal Hospital for Women have grown tissue from every known type of endometriosis, observing changes and comparing how they respond to treatments.

It means researchers will be able to vary treatments from different types of endometriosis, determining whether a woman will need fertility treatments.

6. Latvia just elected the first openly gay head of state in Europe

The country’s parliament elected Edgars Rinkēvičs to be its next president, Reuters reported prime minister Krišjānis Kariņš saying.

Rinkēvičs publicly came out as gay in November 2014, posting on Twitter: “I proudly announce I am gay… Good luck all of you.” In a second tweet at the time, he spoke about improving the legal status of same-sex relationships, saying Latvia needed to create a legal framework for all kinds of partnerships.

7. France bans short haul flights

The introduction of France’s short-haul flight ban has renewed calls for Europe to cut down on journeys that could be made by train. Last week France officially introduced its ban on short-haul flights.

The final version of the law means that journeys which can be taken in under 2.5 hours by train can’t be taken by plane. There also needs to be enough trains throughout the day that travellers can spend at least eight hours at their destination.

----

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[sickness-stricken]

Analyzing Lily Orchard losing her fucking mind in real time

@lily-is-a-gooner has the post debunking the fact that this event was not staged, but I wanted to go over some of the noteworthy things I think are worth dissecting. Strap in, this one’s probably gonna be long.

Video link for anyone playing along at home:

[3:15] “You’ve got these things causing fucking car crashes, cuz they go off in people’s cars, startle them and cause them to veer into oncoming traffic!”

I’ll need to see a source on that before I believe it. Looking up “car crashes caused by amber alert” only brings up instances of kidnapped children that the amber alerts were for being involved in a car crash. Wouldn’t there be some study showing that reports for car crashes have an uptick within the hour of an EAS alarm being sent out?

[3:26] “AND THEY SEND THEM ALL THE GODDAMN TIME! […] You’re gonna get one of these things once a fucking week!”

No you won’t. Like. That is factually false. Excluding the test that just got sent out this month I get MAYBE one every three months. They are NOT common.

I thought maybe I was the outlier in that I live in Middle-of-nowhere, Alberta so I asked my Ontarian friend if they were more common there (you know, given the larger population) and what do ya know

[3:42] “We had one of these come out when Covid was happening! Like, Stephen, we all knew Covid was deadly, we didn’t need you to blow up everyone’s phones over it!”

I was ready to clown on this given I thought she was referring to Stephen Harper who hasn’t been PM since 2015 but I THINK she’s referring to Stephen McNeil who was the Premier of Nova Scotia in 2020. I don’t personally remember that alert going out (but I also have the memory of an anemic goldfish so that isn’t a high bar to clear) so maybe it was only a NS thing but I would assume for a national state of emergency that would be sent out by the NPAC? So, all parts of Canada? What would that have to do with Premier McNeil?

Don’t take this part super seriously I’m mostly just spitballing, this very well could just be an honest slip up on Lily’s part

[5:52] “I get amber alerts for shit that happens in Yarmouth! That’s a 3 hour drive away from me, the fuck you want me to do?!”

Hey, you know how earlier you said the amber alerts are usually about kids that wander off or are taken by a parent in a CUSTODY DISPUTE? Ya think that parent taking the kid is gonna STICK AROUND? They very well could be in Halifax by the time the alert actually goes out depending on how far the parent is willing to go. I myself jumped provinces to escape an abusive situation, that’s not exactly a long drive in comparison.

[6:36] (I’m gonna paraphrase this but essentially she’s talking about how 911 got swarmed with calls just bitching about the alarm going off in the first place and when they said not to abuse the line Lily calls this hypocrisy)

Lily the alerts are reporting imminent emergencies. If a kid (or really anyone) goes missing and they aren’t found in 48 hours it’s safe to assume they’re GONE. Calling 911 to complain about the alarm waking you up (despite them not being responsible for it) clogs up the lines when an ACTUAL report could be trying to get through. This is not comparable to a province using an emergency line for something that needs immediate attention just because it doesn’t affect you directly.

Feel like it’s also worth noting I’ve never seen anyone who wasn’t a conservative complain about the alerts at night. If it’s really that much of an issue you can turn your phone off at night (which you really should do anyway, it’s better for the battery) and get an alarm clock. If you know this to be an issue for you and the solution is completely within your control it is your responsibility to avoid this specific issue.

[7:46] (paraphrasing again: Lily is accusing people who are okay with the alerts going off at night of being hypocrites because they’ll just click their phones off and go back to sleep)

Again, this reeks of self-centrism and I’m once again unsure if Lily is aware that people who aren’t her exist. Yes, the person who acknowledges night alerts as a good thing may dismiss the notification. However, they acknowledge that people working night shift, such as hospital workers or those working at 24hr drive thrus/gas stations ARE awake and able to keep an eye out for certain descriptors, licence plates etc. This is not a hypocritical stance.

[9:10] “I can’t do anything while [the alarm] is playing. I just have to clap my hands over my ears and wait for it to end.”

…no??? You can literally swipe it away like any other notification and the noise stops. What are you talking about.

[9:30] (Not typing allat: Lily uses Japan as an example of how they use different alarms for different emergencies)

Oh hey look! Lily saying Japan did something good for once!

Gotta love how she picked the one country that doesn’t have an alarm that’s ominous as hell because literally almost every other country has an alarm that is just as if not more shit-in-pants worthy than Canada’s if it was played abruptly and at max volume

Maybe this is just personal opinion but I think it’s a good thing that all emergencies are regarded at the same level here. If we had a different, lessened alarm for when a child goes missing then people could immediately go “cool don’t care” instead of reading it at least once quickly to see what it says.

Alright that’s it for me I didn’t have a closing statement I’m gonna go take a nap… with my phone off

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Jonathan Cohn at HuffPost:

Election Day is Tuesday. And while plenty of politicos and pundits are out there predicting what will happen, the reality is that … nobody knows. The polls are super close, nationally and in the swing states. Forecasting models see the race as a coin flip. But you can spot some clear storylines that say a lot about how the two presidential campaigns have unfolded so far, and that might even help explain the outcome after the fact. One of those storylines is the determination and enthusiasm of women who back Democrat Kamala Harris, including women who might be afraid to say so publicly because their husbands support Republican Donald Trump.

I first heard about this last week, in Michigan, while covering a campaign event for Democratic Senate candidate Elissa Slotkin. Slotkin said canvassers were reporting stops at houses with large Trump signs, where women would answer and ― when asked which candidate they were supporting ― would quietly point to a photo of Harris on the canvassers’ campaign literature. [...]

And though the movement appears to have started on its own and spread over social media, lately the underlying sentiment has been getting high-profile support from figures like former first lady Michelle Obama, who in a recent Harris campaign appearance said, “If you are a woman who lives in a household of men that don’t listen to you or value your opinion, just remember that your vote is a private matter.” Are there enough hidden votes to change who wins a state? Probably not. But the emotional fuel for it, the determination of so many women to elect Harris over Trump, absolutely could prove decisive. If that happens, it would be one of the more ironic twists in modern political history ― and one of the more fitting ones, too ― because a campaign pitting men against women is exactly the campaign Trump and his advisers wanted.

The Boys vs. Girls Election

It’s no secret that this year’s gender gap is shaping up to be the largest in memory, with polls showing men favoring Trump by double digits, and women favoring Harris by a similar margin. In many ways, that gap was preordained not because of who’s on the ballot, but what’s at stake ― the future of reproductive freedom, and one side that’s actively pushing to regress back toward restrictive gender roles and limited rights. But instead of trying to counter that, Trump has leaned in. On the eve of this summer’s Republican National Convention, even before President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid and Harris became their party’s nominee, Trump campaign officials boasted about how they were hoping to create what Axios called a “boys vs. girls election,” with ”Donald Trump’s chest-beating macho appeals vs. Joe Biden’s softer, reproductive-rights-dominated, all-gender inclusivity.”

So powerful was this appeal, Trump’s campaign managers told The Atlantic’s Tim Alberta, that Trump would manage to peel off some of the Black and Hispanic men who would traditionally vote Democratic, enough to offset losses among women. “For every Karen we lose, we’re going to win a Jamal and an Enrique,” one Trump ally had previously told Alberta. The Trump campaign has unfolded just as his team promised ― which helps explain why, for example, Trump has spent the final weeks before the election appearing alongside former Fox News host Tucker Carlson (who recently suggested that the country needed Trump to be a “dad” who would deliver a “spanking”) while sidelining former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (who has been popular with independent female voters). And the strategy may very well work. Polls have shown Harris struggling to hit the margins among Black and (especially) Hispanic men that previous Democrats have.

But the Trump gambit depends on winning over more men faster than he alienates women. And that’s hardly a safe bet. In just the last few years, the gender gap has been increasing at a faster pace than before, as my colleague Lilli Petersen explained recently.

[...]

The Backlash And Its Potential

How is this all shaking out?

Overall, according to a recent Politico analysis, women are accounting for 55% of the early vote across battleground states. And in Pennsylvania, a state that many strategists consider the most important for each candidate, data suggests that early voting includes a relatively high proportion of Democratic women who did not vote there in 2020. Early voting is a notoriously unreliable predictor of outcomes, for the simple reason that the data about who is voting doesn’t say that much about how they are voting, especially in an environment without solid baselines for comparison. Early voting did not become particularly widespread until 2020, in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and with Trump advising his supporters not to vote by mail. (This year, he’s generally encouraged them to vote early if they can.) But women are a larger proportion of the population and, historically, they have voted at higher rates too. Last month, political scientist and Brookings senior fellow Elaine Kamarck ran the numbers on different scenarios to see what would happen if women came out to vote in the same proportion as in 2020, given the latest polling numbers available. She found Harris would win Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — enough to win the election.

Donald Trump got his wish of this election being fought on gender roles and reproductive freedom... but it won't turn out like how he wanted it to go.

Read the full story at HuffPost.

[patrick-jennings]

Glory's Moment

Daylight wanes With glorious eruption of colour While we stragglers Greedy for celestial glory’s Every moment Make our way To the last ride down Continue reading Glory’s Moment

[eretzyisrael]

by Gabriel Gaysinsky

In Canada, an open letter by city councilor Susan Kim and provincial parliament member Sarah Jama dismissed accusations of rape by Hamas as misinformation. This letter was endorsed by the head of the University of Alberta Sexual Assault Center. After facing significant backlash, Jama doubled down, blaming the “Zionist lobby” for pressuring the Canadian government into reprimanding her.

At the United Nations, it took eight weeks for an official condemnation of Hamas’ rapes to be released by UN Women. Sarah Douglas, Deputy Chief of Peace and Security at UN Women, has endorsed 153 tweets attacking Israel and Zionists, and attended UN meetings with pro-Palestine posters, violating UN neutrality guidelines. Suffice it to say that a key leader in the UN’s initiative to uplift women is actively working against the very women she is charged with uplifting.

The traditionally progressive Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, particularly its Chicago chapter, has also faced criticism for endorsing terrorism. Mere hours after the release of the first October 7th footage, BLM Chicago posted a tweet with a hang-glider image, referencing Hamas terrorists who used hang-gliders to attack and kill hundreds of partygoers at the Nova Music Festival. This blatant support for a violent attack on innocent civilians by an organization that has committed itself to the fight for equality is shocking, especially considering the fact that Hamas has held Avera Mengistu, a mentally ill Ethiopian-Israeli man, in captivity since 2014.

On college campuses, the situation is dire. Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at UC Davis, the university I attend, justified the October 7th attack and glorified the attackers. Their rallies have featured slogans like “We don’t want no Jewish state” — which is a call for the eradication of Israel — and “Globalize the Intifada,” which calls for the violence of the intifadas to be repeated against Jewish communities worldwide. Professors also joined in; Jemma Decristo, a university faculty member, tweeted threatening messages against “Zionist journalists.” Another professor stated that “all Israeli residents are legitimate targets,” actively calling for violence against his own Israeli students and colleagues. After UC Davis students began an encampment mimicking those already established on other campuses, several professors reportedly required classes to attend the space, or have given extra credit for doing so, despite the fact that many Jewish and Israeli students are extremely uncomfortable with its messaging.

The aftermath of October 7th revealed that the hatred I experienced at my university is not unique. Higher education, while more radical, mirrors the outside world. The antisemitism and disregard for basic principles of human rights when it comes to Israelis might start on college campuses but can spread throughout society. I see this hate everywhere. Unless progressives worldwide undergo a fundamental shift that includes Jewish and Israeli voices, I will never call myself a progressive again.

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Recently released data by Alberta’s government shows First Nations Peoples make up a disproportionate number of the province’s opioid-related deaths.

That includes people in Jody Plaineagle’s family.

“I had an uncle who lost his daughter to the addiction,” Plaineagle tells Global News.

Across Alberta, provincial government numbers show the rate of unintentional opioid deaths is more than eight times higher among First Nations Peoples.

“They’re fighting for their lives right now,” Plaineagle said. “They’re out there in survival mode trying to fight for their life.” [...]

Continue Reading.

Tagging: @newsfromstolenland, @abpoli

[atimefordragons]

fun related facts that are very important to me.

i. the comics establish that logan was born in the late 1800s, meaning that he could've been one of the first ever canadian citizens. Alberta became a province in 1905, so based on location, he was probably somewhere between tween-adult if/when he became a citizen.

ii. the x-men movies establish that he was born in 1832, while D&W says that he's over 200 years old, which Canadians and history buffs will point out means that he was born at least 35 years before Canada became a country.

iii. he still calls himself a Canadian

and yeah, okay, this math problem is most likely the result of Americans not knowing anything, but I'm gonna live in the reality where it's just his national pride. This guy is one of ours!

[lostinhistory]

Heritage News of the Week

Discoveries!

As construction crews churned up dirt to renovate a football pitch in Vienna last October, they happened upon an unprecedented find: a heap of intertwined skeletal remains in a mass grave dating to the first-century Roman empire, most likely the bodies of warriors killed in a battle involving Germanic tribes.

Obsidian artifacts unearthed in Alberta offer new clues on prehistoric trade routes

Inky black shards of volcanic glass unearthed in Alberta are helping researchers trace the movements of Indigenous people across Western Canada centuries ago.

“House of Life” among new discoveries at the Ramesseum

A joint French and Egyptian archaeological mission has made several major new discoveries at the Ramesseum, the mortuary temple for Ramesses II.

Walls of ancient Greek colony of Selinunte discovered

Italian authorities announced a series of new discoveries at the site of Selinunte that underscore the city’s illustrious past

A life-sized statue of a bejeweled ancient priestess is unearthed in Pompeii

Archaeologists in Pompeii have made the astonishing discovery of two life-sized relief sculptures of a man and a woman draped in classical robes. The pair, possibly husband and wife, stand within a niche on the boundary wall of a monumental ancient tomb.

Ukrainian soldiers unearth ancient Greek burial

Ukrainian soldiers digging defensive fortifications stumbled upon an ancient Greek burial site in southern Ukraine.

Tiny pot!

Ancient mausoleum with gladiator’s epitaph unearthed in Italy

Archaeologists excavating a necropolis in Liternum Archaeological Park in Campania, southern Italy, have uncovered two ornate funerary enclosures, one of which belonged to a gladiator and bears an epitaph etched in marble.

Researchers study erratic boulders from Frosh Giant legends

A study funded by The National Science Centre, Poland, has analysed both the geological and mythical origins of the erratic boulders scattered across northern Poland.

Rare wall paintings found in Cumbria show tastes of well-off Tudors

Rare and fantastical 16th-century wall paintings which shine light on the interior design tastes of well-off Tudors have been revealed in a former hunting lodge.

3-year-old picks up 'beautiful stone,' discovers 3,800-year-old scarab amulet in Israel

A 3-year-old girl who was walking with her family along a trail in Israel unexpectedly found a piece of history: a 3,800-year-old scarab amulet.

Extensive Roman settlement found beyond the borders of the Roman Empire

Archaeologists excavating in Delbrück-Bentfeld, northwestern Germany, have uncovered evidence of an extensive Roman-era settlement beyond the borders of the Roman Empire.

More caves discovered in Nottingham’s hidden subterranean world

Nottingham, nestled in England’s East Midlands, is famously known as the legendary home of Robin Hood. But beyond its folklore, the city also boasts the UK’s largest network of caves, carved by hand into the soft sandstone bedrock as early as the 9th century AD.

Stunning reconstruction reveals warrior and his weapons from 4,000-year-old burial in Siberia

A new full-body reconstruction depicts a warrior wearing armor and holding weapons, all of which were found in a 4,000-year-old burial in Siberia.

Hallstatt dagger discovered on Baltic Coast

Researchers from the St. Cordula Association for the Protection of Monuments have discovered a rare Hallstatt-era dagger, revealed after a storm caused a section of a Baltic Sea cliff to collapse.

Unknown human lineage lived in 'Green Sahara' 7,000 years ago, ancient DNA reveals

Researchers analyzed the ancient DNA of two mummies from what is now Libya to learn about people who lived in the "Green Sahara" 7,000 years ago.

AI assists archaeologist in mapping Angkorian-period structures

Archaeologists have created deep learning models, specifically with DeepLab V3+, for semantic segmentation to identify previously unknown reservoirs from the Angkor period.

Researchers posit new theory about children's role in prehistory

A new study suggests that children may have played a special role as mediators between the physical and spiritual worlds,

Traces of Ecuador’s first colonial-era city unearthed in Riobamba

Archaeologists from Ecuador’s National Institute of Cultural Heritage have uncovered remnants of an early colonial-era city that was destroyed by a devastating earthquake in 1797.

Oldest vanilla pod in Europe found in Prague

Excavations within Prague Castle yielded the oldest vanilla bean pod in Europe. Radiocarbon dating indicates that it was placed there between 1513 and 1666, a time that coincided with the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II.

Museums

From Guy Burgess’s briefcase to microdots secreted in talc, an exhibition reveals remarkable items from the agency’s archives – and the extraordinary stories behind them

Take two Van Goghs daily: the growing popularity of museum prescriptions

Research backs schemes that encourage doctors to prescribe time in cultural institutions to boost mental health and reduce loneliness

Smithsonian director pledges museum’s independence amid White House order of internal review

The Smithsonian Institution’s leadership is standing firm after the Trump administration ordered a review last month of its exhibits, accusing the museum network of pushing a “race-centered ideology.”

Dozens of museum agency workers put on leave amid Trump overhaul

Processing of 2025 grant applications has been halted after Trump moved to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

US museums seek to provide safe spaces for LGBTQ+ communities amid government rollbacks of their rights

As Republicans and the Trump administration target DEI initiatives and queer and trans communities, vocal leaders at a few institutions are standing firm

Three historical treasures rescued from London’s River Thames

Thanks to the efforts of mudlarks, Londoners can marvel at Tudor headwear and an elaborate Viking weapon.

God, I wish I could see this exhibit

'Last in England' smashed medieval statue recreated

A 15th century statue that was found smashed into 170 fragments behind a church wall has been painstakingly pieced together using computer animation.

Museums in southern Brazil still recovering after last year’s floods

Damage and destruction decimated visitor numbers to cultural events and institutions last year but optimism is high they will return in 2025

Yorkshire Museum crowdfunds to acquire ‘game-changing’ iron age hoard

The Yorkshire Museum in York is close to raising £30,000 through a crowdfunding campaign to acquire a major iron age hoard recently discovered in the local area by a metal detectorist.

Medieval scroll found in shoebox goes on display

A rare medieval illuminated manuscript uncovered in the archive of a York convent is going on display for the very first time.

Museums are losing social media followers amid users' mass X-odus

Some institutions have ditched their accounts in protest, while others have chosen to “quiet quit” and stopped posting on the Elon Musk-owned platform

Repatriation

The famed museum recently returned a 12th-century Buddha sculpture that it says was stolen from the Kathmandu Valley. However, the institute’s announcement failed to mention the statue had once belonged to wealthy donor Marilynn Alsdorf.

Heritage at risk

Videos of Sudan’s national museum showing empty rooms, piles of rubble and broken artefacts posted on social media after the Sudanese army recaptured the area from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in recent days show the extent of looting of the country’s antiquities.

EPA head shutters agency’s National Environmental Museum

In a statement issued on March 31, EPA administrator Lee Zeldin said the closure would save taxpayers about $600,000 per year. The small museum was created in 2016, dedicated to the nation’s environmental history, and included exhibits about prevention measures during the Covid-19 pandemic, environmental justice, and efforts to address climate change.

$600,000 a year is like one day of the military budget

ETA: I have been informed it's actually less than 30 seconds of the daily military budget o_O

Historians condemn executive order targeting Smithsonian

The American Historical Association, a D.C.-based advocacy group, has issued a statement condemning a recent White House executive order targeting the Smithsonian Institution, which relies on federal funding to drive a significant part of its operation.

New York Attorney General sues Trump administration over museum and library funding cuts

New York State Attorney General Letitia James has filed a lawsuit—alongside 20 other attorneys general—against the Trump administration over an executive order that effectively shuts down three federal agencies responsible for supporting libraries, museums, minority-owned businesses, and labor mediation services.

What the dismantling of USAID means for world heritage

Does USAID still exist? For the heritage world, this – and the fate of heritage projects connected to shrinking amounts of development funding more generally – is a pressing one. Building on previous American efforts in technical assistance during the early years of the cold war, the Kennedy administration founded USAID in 1961 at the start of the UN’s first ‘Development Decade’. Under the second Trump administration, however, the organisation has found itself cut to ribbons.

Odds and ends

Amid the site in rural Jamaica that once belonged to a Guardian financier may lie a treasure trove of artefacts that tell the story of Britain’s history of colonisation and enslavement.

Bid to boost Hadrian's Wall dog ranger volunteers

Volunteer dog rangers are being recruited to help visitors at Hadrian's Wall. Current rangers - golden retriever Mr Darcy and Bear, a mioritic shepherd dog - have been walking the area since last summer along with their owners, who offer advice and hand out poo bags, water and treats.

The best museum volunteers

Salvaging the historic tiles of California’s burned fireplaces

After devastating fires blazed through the region, residents are holding on to the intricate glazed tiles that survived — small but meaningful remnants of their homes.

Dublin's Molly Malone statue to get stewards to stop 'groping'

Stewards are to be stationed next to a statue of Molly Malone in Dublin to discourage people from touching it. Dublin City Council is running a pilot scheme for a week in May after complaints of people groping the sculpture's breasts.

Cute when it's a dog statue, weird and kind of gross when it's a woman

'I love my country': Ken Burns on showing the dark parts of US history

Ahead of his upcoming PBS documentary, The American Revolution, acclaimed film-maker Ken Burns tells BBC special correspondent Katty Kay about his unique approach to chronicling US history, from war and conflict to baseball and jazz.

In search of Greece's once-great Jewish city

Once home to a thriving Jewish majority, Thessaloniki holds fragments of a lost world. One traveller's journey to find them leads to something even more powerful: living memory.

Point:

Counterpoint:

Dinosaur tracks uncovered at site of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s refuge

When Bonnie Prince Charlie fled the Scottish Highlands after defeat at the Battle of Culloden, his route may have crossed the fossilised footsteps of massive meat-eating dinosaurs, researchers say.

Bonnie Prince Charlie being eaten by a theropod would be an incredible ending to Outlander

[piizunn]

september 30th, 2023

People who are not First Nations, Métis, or Inuit will never know the sickening feeling of finding out the playground you used to go to is the site of a former residential school, a school still in use by the town of Fort Smith, NWT.

fig. 1. Joseph Burr Tyrrell Elementary School in Fort Smith. Sarah Pruys/Cabin Radio.

First, I’d like to make clear that to my knowledge none of my my immediate family members are residential school survivors, I share community and space with many people who are and I personally attended the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and I will only be speaking on my own experiences. I descend from 7 historic Métis Otipemisiwak families by the names of Berthelet, Caron, St. Germain, Larivière, Dazé, Dubois, and Boudreau, who come from the historic Red River Settlement and Batoche. I come from Amiskwaciywâskahikan, Treaty 6 and I now make my home in Mohkinstsis on Treaty 7 land. I introduce myself in this traditional way of the Métis Otipemisiwak to contextualize my knowledge and experiences, honour my family, and situate myself on this land and in this conversation.

Today is Orange Shirt Day, a day that honours Phyllis Webstad, member of Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation (Canoe Creek Indian Band), and survivor of the Residential School system. Her story is what has inspired this national day of honour and action. Beyond wearing orange I would like non-Indigenous settlers to really consider the history around them and the experiences of survivors and those who lost their lives. I would like you to physically step up for us, be there for us when we are being beaten down, sit with Elders and listen to their stories, learn about their joy as well their pain.

I attended Grandin School, an elementary school in Amiskwaciywâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta) before it was renamed to Holy Child. For anyone outside of the area I will describe it; the school is over one hundred years old in a historic neighbourhood. Near the school is an LRT station underground and on one side of the platform was a large mural depicting Bishop Grandin, a nun holding a native child, an Indigenous family at camp, and a residential school. Based on the fact that Bishop Grandin spent time working in Saint-Boniface of the Red River Settlement, Fort Chipewyan in what is now Alberta, and Île-à-la-Crosse in what is now Saskatchewan, it can be assumed that the family is either First Nations or Métis, however it must not be forgotten that the Inuit of the north also suffered these institutions.

A quote from Bishop Vital Grandin haunts me to this day, more now than ever.

“We instil in them a pronounced distaste for the native life so that they will be humiliated when reminded of their origin. When they graduate from our institutions, the children have lost everything Native except their blood.”

- Bishop Vital Grandin, 1875

Fig. 2. “A mural depicting Bishop Grandin at an Indian Residential School is located at the Grandin LRT Station in Edmonton.” Image courtesy of Jake Cardinal and Alberta Native News.

I remember teachers taking us to the Is platform to sse the murals but it was not a critical conversation they were very much pro church and viewed residential schools from a sinister paternalistic perspective.

The mural was eventually covered up but the narrative in grandin elementary was that they were "helping native families. I remember inside the school by the main stairwell there was a portrait of Old Grandin and it was literally so scary to me hated walking past it so much I would sprint up the stairs whenever I walked past him alone.

I attended the seventh and final Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s national event in March of 2014, at the end of one of the days I was there I took the train to see my old elementary school, to see the mural and to really consider what I had been taught in school versus what my community and family has taught me. Again, none of my direct family are residential school survivors but many Métis are and this history is often hidden. Prayers up and tobacco down for every single survivors, living and in spirit form.

Fig. 3. The mural depicting Bishop Vital-Justin Grandin at an Edmonton LRT Station was covered in orange Tuesday, June 8, 2021. Kirby Bourne, Global News

First Nations, Métis, and Inuit have been talking about their family members who did not come home and the abuse they experienced. This is not new information, and you have to sit and listen no matter how uncomfortable you are because nothing is more uncomfortable than colonial violence. When news came out about the children of Kamloops in 2021 it was devastating how many people I knew personally that were completely ignorant of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the history of residential schools. What happened in these institutions are absolute atrocities many people would rather not face even the knowledge of what happened to these children, both alive and passed on. Like the survivors, the perpetrators of these horrors live on and have never been held accountable.

Continue to honour your community, stand up and show up for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit. Learn about the history of settler-colonial occupation of this land and how you yourself are directly benefitting from this ongoing genocide. Residential school survivors and the children who never came home are in your community; they are the kind kokum down the hall as well as the middle aged man living on the street, their children young adults, teenagers, kids, babies, they still carry these experiences and memory down to the atoms that make up each of their cells.

works cited

Bourne, Kirby. ‘Mural at old Grandin LRT Station to be removed this fall,’ September 23rd, 2021, Global News.

Cardinal, Jake. ‘Edmonton Paints Over The Grandin Mural’, Alberta Native News, June 10th, 2021.

Grandin, Vital-Justin. On the goal of residential schools, 1875.

Pruys, Sarah. ‘MLA calls for new Fort Smith schools, citing residential school legacy’. Cabin Radio, March 5th, 2023.

Webstad, Phyllis Jack. Phyllis’ Story In Her Own Words, OrangeShirtDay.Org

[petervintonjr]

"Our mother has also behind the scene setting forth those motherly cares, the lack of which leaves a missing link in life."  --Martin Luther King, Jr., from a 1950 essay while at Crozer Theological Seminary

It occurs to me that no comprehensive observance of Martin Luther King Day is truly possible without at least some understanding of the man's formative years. Accordingly I'm devoting today's lesson to the study of --and deep appreciation for-- the life and the accomplishments of his mother, Alberta Williams King. The dual tragedies of both her son's murder and her own, often cloud the merits of the lives that came before.

Born in 1904 Atlanta, Georgia, Alberta Christine Williams was herself the only surviving child of Jennie Celeste Williams and the Rev. Adam Daniel Williams of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta (yes, that very church, which probably merits an entire entry of its own). Alberta earned a teaching certificate from what is now known as Hampton University in 1924, and married her longtime boyfriend Michael (later Martin) King, Sr. on Thanksgiving Day, 1926. She had intended to embark on a career in teaching but, at the time, the local school board did not permit married women to teach. The couple lived in the Williams home and had three children: Willie Christine (later Farris), born in 1927; Michael (later Martin) Jr., in 1929; and finally Alfred Daniel ("A.D."), in 1930. Martin Jr., would later write at length about his close bond with his mother, and also about the unusual closeness to his two siblings, and would even playfully recollect that his father Martin Sr. "happens to be the kind who just won't argue." While justifiably proud of her children, Alberta was by no means content to settle solely into the life of a mother, and earned her BA from Morris Brown College in 1938. By this time her husband had succeeded his father-in-law as the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist, and had begun using the name Martin --as did his namesake. Alberta had confidently stepped the role of a pastor's wife and not only directed the choir but would also serve as its organist, from 1932 to literally the rest of her life.

Perhaps more significantly than even her church life, though, was her active membership in the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom. No stranger to the cause of civil rights, Alberta and her husband marched as early as 1930, in protest against segregation laws and Black voter suppression. It is sometimes asserted (even today!) that "true Christians" by definition cannot possibly be advocates for social justice because that would conflict with their beliefs --a bad-faith and frankly racially-motivated argument; one usually put forward by white people whose status quo is being inconvenienced, or who are having their narrative challenged. Alberta was having NONE of that, and her commitment to equal justice under the law clearly had an impact on her children --particularly her eldest son! In the years following Martin, Jr.'s ordination and his emergence into the public spotlight, Alberta frequently appeared alongside her famous son at many of his public appearances, became a target of many of the same threats, and unapologetically advocated for improved voting rights and an end to segregation.

This instillation was clear in her Alberta's other two children as well --perhaps to the surprise of no-one, in the wake of his older brother's April 4, 1968 assassination, youngest sibling Rev. Alfred Daniel (A.D.) solemnly stepped into the role of pastor of Ebenezer Baptist, but horrifyingly this tenure would not last --A.D. drowned in a swimming pool accident a mere fifteen months later. Thus bearing the agonizing weight of now having buried both of their sons, Alberta and Martin Sr. quietly began to step away from public life, but renewed their commitment to their church and of continued service to humankind.

But worse was still to come.

\While playing the organ during Sunday services at her beloved Ebenezer Baptist, on June 30, 1974, Alberta was shot (martyred, really) by a self-proclaimed "Hebrew Israelite" assassin with an unreasoning hate for Black ministers. She, along with another church deacon, died later that day at Grady Hospital. She was just shy of the age of 70. "I thought I had made it through the worst days of my life, recounts daughter Christine King Farris. "I was wrong."

Now more than 40 years after her murder, there has been a renewed interest in Alberta' role as the "First Lady" of civil rights, and a desire to not gloss over her legacy, and what she represented. Visit Alberta's page at the Martin Luther, King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, at: https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-alberta-williams