#macron boxes

[fidjiefidjie]

Méli-mélo de dessins 😁 .... 😒

Dessins de presse de Placide, Chaunu, Goubelle, Man, Plantu.

👋 Bel après-midi

[albonium]

:)))))

[fangirlshameblog]

First impressions on Attal / Trudeau?? The BeReal was fun ngl

I wonder if Djusthén was weirded out by how big of a n o r m i e Gaby is by comparison.

[bookpillows]

i read a few very slim novella and short story collections over the weekend but Moore's Self-Help is too good to read all at once

[frost-queen]

The ninth Bridgerton (Male!reader & Bridgerton siblings)

Requested by: anon Forever tag:@missmelodramatic, @floatlosers, @alex–awesome–22, @merlieve, @wildiefleur , @meyocoko , @subjecta13-thefangirl , @m-rae23, @melsunshine  , @venomsvl, @evilcr0ne , @vviolynn , @niktwazny303 , @avada-kedrava-bitch-187, @erikasurfer , @slythetic  , @eliscannotdance, @p0nycurtis, @slythetic, @bitchybananaflower, @harleyquinnswifeyfrfr, @asgards-princess-of-mischief

Hands on the wheels, you pushed to get forwards. Rolling into the hallway on your way to the drawing room. Just passing Anthony, father’s former study. Moving the wheeling chair further into the hall, you stopped upon hearing sudden loud laughter.

Knowing a whirlwind would follow. So you were right. Hyacinth and Gregory came running, caught up in their own game of racing. Hyacinth ran past you, stopping abruptly and turning back to you. – “Morning brother.” – she said coming at your side and placing a kiss on your cheek.

“Are you being mischievous again?” – you responded with a cheeky smile. – “No.” – she spoke, exaggerating the tone a tat too overdramatic. Telling you just otherwise. Gregory came joining your side as well. – “Oh, good cause I’m exhausted.” – he said before getting on the wheeling chair with you. Coming to sit on your lap, arms around your neck. Hyacinth moved her hands to her hip, glaring back at him. It made Gregory swallow a bit uncomfortable.

Nervously he turned his gaze to you. – “You… you don’t mind do you Y/n?” – saying hesitantly. – “Of course not.” – you responded, curling up a smirk. – “For we will win against Hyacinth!” – calling out as you started spinning on the wheels. Speeding past your sister. – “Hey!” – Hyacinth called out. Coming to chase after you and Gregory. – “Faster Y/n, faster.” – Gregory squealed with pleasure. A maid stood by the door as you startled her by shouting at her to get the door.

She yelped loud, nearly letting her tray drop before opening the door with haste. You zoomed past her into the drawing room. Gregory calling out victory. While he was cheering, you were panicking as you were about to bump right against the table full of sweets. Trays and trays filled with macrons, cakes and chocolates. If it wasn’t for Anthony jumping in between. Catching you, hands on the railings to stop you, face contracting as he received a hard kick against his knees from your wheeling chair. You would’ve been covered in sweets.

Anthony inhaled deep, giving Gregory a serious brotherly scowl. Gregory lowered his hands, his victory sniffed out with one glance. – “Sorry.” – he said softly, sliding off your lap with a bit of your help. – “For the last time Gregory, Y/n is not a carriage.” – making it clear to him by giving him a final warning. – “It… it is alright, brother… I allowed it.” – you defended Gregory’s behaviour for you had fuelled it.

Anthony sighed soft, lowering himself to your height. – “Do not encourage him.” – he warned you before settling with a cheeky smile. Touching your chin briefly with affection. Chuckling, you knew he couldn’t stay angry at you long. Anthony went behind the wheeling chair to roll you away from the table of sweets. – “Are we expecting guests?” – you asked, head back to look up to him.

“The Sharma’s.” – Anthony responded setting you between the sofa’s. – “So I need you to be on your best behaviour.” – he spoke coming back to the front. Lowering himself a bit to straighten your tie. – “Aren’t I always?” – you answered unable to sneak in a snicker. He gave you a glance back to stop teasing him.

Anthony turned around, nearly bumping into Benedict. – “Oh.” – Benedict said, deflecting his brother before he could bump into him. Taking a spin to join your side, revealing a box of macrons behind Anthony’s back. – “First choices Y/n.” – he whispered at you. – “Don’t worry I’ve hidden some chocolate one’s from Gregory just for you.”

Snickering soft, you took out a few macrons before Anthony could notice it. Your brother winking back at you that it would your little secret. Francesca and Eloise entered the drawing room as well, followed by mother. – “The Sharma’s could be here any moment.” – she spoke in a slight panic. Hoping everything would be alright. Benedict flopped himself down in the sofa.

Gregory and Hyacinth coming to join his side at the sight of macrons in his hand. Quietly bickering about the flavours and that Benedict needed to share. Francesca came over to you, coming to stand behind you. Resting her hands on your shoulders. Violet shushed at her children in the sofa to stop it. Not a moment later were the Sharma’s announced.

All of them bowed or curtsied as you lowered your head. Anthony and Violet went up to the Sharma’s to welcome them properly. You watched, looking up to your sister. She noticed the hint, lowering her head a bit to you. – “So which one is Edwina… the one in purple?” – you asked presuming it was her for how Anthony acted around her. – “No, brother-dear that is Kate.” – she whispered back to you.

Stunned you furrowed your brows. Anthony gestured back at you as it made you widen your eyes brief. Clearing your throat when he wanted to introduce you. – “Miss Edwina, Miss Sharma, meet my brother Y/n.” – he said. Both of them curtsied before you. You bowed your head in response. – “Lovely to meet you.” – you spoke. – “Likewise.” – Kate spoke in return.

Anthony smiled, slightly leaning in to Kate as you caught it. – “Miss Edwina have you seen our gardens?” – you suggested. – “Oh… I have not.” – she responded with delight. Francesca moved her hands from your shoulders onto the handle of the wheeling chair.

With a gesture, she came to follow you. Passing your brother, you winked at him. Leaving him with Kate for you had taken Edwina to show the gardens. Anthony stared baffled back at you. Smiling sheepishly then at Kate for the world could fade away around them.

With Francesca pushing you, you showed Edwina the gardens. Talked about the flowers and showed her all the beautiful scenery. Francesca remaining quiet for she was happy just to accompany and not do much of the talking. – “May I ask why I have not seen you at any balls this season.” – Edwina asked with curiosity.

“For the ton is not ready for my charm.” – you responded. Francesca placed a hand on your shoulder, leaning a bit down. – “He’s being silly.” – she said to Edwina with a smile. Edwina smiled sheepishly back. – “Frankly I do not know… I’m not feeling it yet. Perhaps in a few years I might.” – you responded.

“When you are older and wiser.” – Francesca said softly with a teasing undertone to you. – “I have always been wise. Be prepared sister, for if I join I might have to fight of the ladies.” – ending your sentence with a few fist punches. Making both Edwina and your sister laugh at your silliness. Chuckling amusingly, you grabbed the handle once more in the front. After a while you returned back inside. Edwina and Anthony sharing a bit more time together before they took their leave once more.

Upon a fortnight you were enjoying a stroll with your siblings. From afar you spotted Penelope. Waving at her. Penelope waved back at you before coming over. You invited her along your family stroll. Most of your family decided to rest after a while. Only a few brave one’s dared to go deeper into the woods with you. Colin, Hyacinth, Francesca and Penelope.

Francesca was pushing you. Colin and Penelope walking in front of you, close by each other. The sight of them alone made you supress the urge to yell at them to finally start courting. For there was something with them, only you appeared to see. Hyacinth was walking beside you, hopping happily with a freshly plucked bouquet of flowers in her hand.

The deeper you went through the forest, the rougher the terrain got. Francesca needing to do much more effort to push you forwards. Then all of the sudden, your wheel wouldn’t budge. Making Francesca bump against the wheeling chair. Setting her feet better to give it all her might. Groaning and pushing. – “Hyacinth help me.” – she called out, still pushing.

You looked down at both sides, seeing that the wheels had been caught in muddy ground. – “Colin!” – you called out, calling him back. Penelope and Colin came running back. – “It appears I am stuck.” – you chuckled out. Hyacinth and Francesca were pushing from behind with little progress. Colin shooed them away, giving it a go for himself. Puffing loud as it wouldn’t budge.

“It appears we’ll have to leave you behind.” – Colin said with smile but a smile Francesca didn’t caught. She immediately slapped him for even saying such a thing. – “I was merely joking.” – Colin breathed out. Unable to get rid of his sister’s glare. – “We’ll simply push it together.” – Hyacinth suggested.

The three of them moved to the back. Penelope approached you from the front, making you blink surprised. Taking the handle from you. Moving the handle forwards so that it stretched out in front of you. – “I’ll pull.” – she spoke. Colin looked up from over your shoulder to her. Smiling under his breath to her assistance. The three of them started to push as Penelope pulled.

Slowly it started to budge a bit. Moving back and forth till with a few strong pushes, you got released. The wheeling chair moving rapidly forwards. Penelope nearly tripping over her own feet as your siblings nearly plunged into the mud at their feet.

You gestured at Penelope to take the handle back for support. She shook her head. – “I’ll keep pulling, we wouldn’t want you to get stuck again wouldn’t we now Y/n.” – she responded. You grinned sheepishly. – “You are too kind Penelope.” – Looking over your shoulder than to your brother.

“Isn’t she the sweetest? A kind soul.” – you spoke to tease your brother that bit more. Colin breathed out a laugh, giving you a little shove. – “She’s very kind.” – he answered. Gesturing at her to pull as he would push. Francesca and Hyacinth remaining at each side of yours. Guiding you gently back to the others.

-------------------------------------------

Read more of my fics on my Masterlists!

[shojizbae]

Too Sweet

Spencer Reid x reader

It was no secret to the team that you had a sweet tooth. Anytime you walked past an ice cream shop, your eyes lit up with unbridled joy. After a hard case, you always came into the bullpen with a box of sweets. Donuts if you solved a case under five days, Hush Puppies if there was a fallen family, or maybe some Snickerdoodles if there was arson. They were always the same pink bakery boxes with a cellophane window.

Today was no different.

"Good morning!" you signed songed as you skipped into the bullpen and too the right to the kitchen.

"What treats have you cooked up today mama?" Derek rubs his hands as he closes in on the kitchenette

"Oooh, sweets!" Emily smiles and skips over to the counter

"They're macarons."

"Ugh, those nasty almond cookies." JJ giggles as she snoops around the box

"No those are macaroons." I correct and hold a raspberry-pink macron at her. She bites it playfully out of my hand and laughs with me. She wipes the extra creme out of the corner of her lip and thanks me.

"Woah those are delicious." she goes back to her office.

"What diabetes are you giving us today." Hotch tosses a file on the counter as he walks by.

"Pistachio, raspberry, or lemon?" I smack Emily's greedy hand away as he goes back for a fourth and fifth.

"Pistachio." He leans back to look in the box "Those look professional."

"That's what happens when you have an existential crisis and take a baking course while completing your doctorate and feel like no man would ever want to marry a woman with more degrees than 'wifely skills'." You rattle mindlessly

"Well, that was our daily depressing moment of (Y/n)!" Derek chides like a sports announcer.

"Where's Reid?"

"An that's our daily 'first Spencer question' being the tally!" Emily holds a ghost microphone up.

"C'mon,"I put my hands on the counter and leans my hips forward, "I'm not as obsessed as you think I am."

"Oh, just only a little." Emily placates. The two return to their desks to grind through the many stacks of folders. I picked up the box and reorganized the disheveled cookies. I sauntered over to his hunched back. Dr. Reid, my work husband, was mangled over his desk scratching down details of a past case on a legal pad. I sit on the right side of his corner-shaped desk.

"Good Morning Spencer," I chide. He jumps slightly with the high timbre of my voice.

"Uh good morning Agent (L/n)," He clears his throat a few times.

"I made macrons," I held up the box "Would you like one? I made some with lemon, pistachio, and raspberry. Take your pick." I brandish the box once again.

"That's alright I haven't had any real breakfast yet."

"op how about some fake breakfast?" I pick up a light yellow circle and shake it twice in my hand.

"No that's really ok," but before he can protest I force half the cookie past his lips and all that he can mutter out is a disgruntled, mouth-filled groan.

"Did that taste real to you?" He sassily holds up a finger as he chews and swallows.

"That was rude." He states but takes the second half of the treat from my hand and finishes it off. A bit of the filling slings to his lips and I slide my thumb over it

"You've got a little something-" My speech is caught when his brown eyes meet mine. He looks nice below me. His eyelashes are thick but his eye bags drown out his cool amber eyes.

"Sorry," I clear my throat and lean back on the desk. "Would you like some more?"

"Yeah, can I have the pistachio one?" He rolls around on his chair. He takes a bite of the cream-filled delectable. "Woah you have a real knack for this. It's like all the ingredients want to be together. It just takes you to make things right." He gives me that dorky smile and I lose all sense of restraint. I dive in and hold his chin while I kiss him. I pull back with the fear that I stepped out of bounds.

"Come here." He tentatively holds my jaw and his kiss is much nicer than mine. He releases me and I scan between each of his eyes. "You had a little something."

[viktorarcanedeservesbetter]

More Jayvik Headcanons cause I can’t stop

Viktor gets upset any time Jayce tried killing a bug, using a rat trap or shooing away birds from their windows so he has to capture and release everything and also adds bird feeders to the little balcony. One time a bird flew into their window and fell to the ground (they don't know what happened to it after) and Viktor got so upset (he claims it was the 48hours w/o sleep) that Jayce had to take him home for the day.

Jayce reads out loud to both of them at night, especially when Viktor is too much of an insomniac to sleep. Viktor repays him with shoulder massages when Jayce can’t sleep.

Viktor gets propositioned by members and students of the academy the time. Jayce is fine with this. Jayce gets propositioned by members of different houses all the time. Viktor is totally fine with this. (They aren’t but they get very possessive, which turns them both on).

Viktor made fun of Jayce’s man of progress mug so much that Jayce upped it with a Viktor commemorative plate. Viktor then made Jayce-themed silverware. Jayce commissioned Viktor tailored napkins. The war of commemorative dinnerware is still ongoing.

Viktor has to hold Jayce’s hand whenever they visit farmers markets or other town centers. Not just because he likes holding hands, it’s because Viktor wanders off all time and gets distracted by everything. Jayce lost him for two hours one time.

Jayce has to wear some sort of apron or shirt in the forge now. He’s gotten too many chest burns and tears that no matter how good he looks, he’s got to wear some sort of guard. Viktor is slightly disappointed but at least Jayce is safe from 3rd degree burns.

They have to turn the fan on at night for the white noise, due to them both hating silence. (Working in the lab/forge for years means tinnitus). It also helps that Jayce runs hot (and cuddles an ice box Viktor) and they created sheets that even out their temperatures. They have not marketed these sheets because it would mean detailed explanations on how they know it works. (They have created ones for Caitlyn and Vi though.)

They both love flowers and gift them to each other all the time. They have to do fresh cut, because neither of them can keep potted plants alive.

It is inevitable, that if you are a current council member and decide to pay them a visit to see for yourself what they are doing in the labs, then you will walk in on them in very compromising positions at least once. Mel only told Shoola, so she's been able to knock and warn them. Cassandra one time walked in on them shirtless + making out, rolled her eyes, warned them about lab safety and proper protocols, and stood there waiting until they redressed and made them do a rundown of their current prototypes. power move queen. (learned it from Mel).

Jayce can cook but not bake, Viktor can bake but not cook. Jayce likes how cooking (save for temperatures) is a little more freeform and can't help but try and be a little more lax with baking, but it always ends up badly (rock-solid bread, cookies that are paper-thin and salty.) However he has made stunning 4-course meals and can make even a basic sandwich 5-star quality.

Viktor likes the structure of baking. He can make literally any bread or dessert with just one look at a recipe. Using baking to de-stress even. Has made macrons of all flavors. However, do not ask him to cook. His tastebuds for anything that isn't sweet are wack. Once dropped an entire container of salt into soup once and didn't notice.

Awful handwriting for the both of them. Only they know what each other wrote. Sky has to transcribe anything official. Mel can only sort of read what they have written on their boards, but that's mostly by context clues. Caitlyn doesn't even bother.

They have a timer for water that goes off every 30 minutes in a work day. It's enforced by Sky because they get so focused they forget to hydrate.

[thewindsorindex]

Official Gifts: The French State Visit

President Macron has come to Windsor bearing four gifts for King Charles, each carefully selected to reflect the monarch’s personal interests, the Elysée Palace has confirmed.

During the French president’s state visit, the King will be given:

A rare opera score: A special edition of Claude Debussy’s opera, Pelléas et Mélisande, featuring a handwritten dedication from the original publisher to one of the early lead performers

A ceremonial trumpet: The instrument is adorned with a flame emblem associated with the French National Guard. It is said to represent military tradition and authority, while the flame is seen as a symbol of fervour and loyalty

A personalised watercolour box: Crafted by a French luxury brand, the wooden set is engraved with the inscription: “Presented to His Majesty King Charles III by Mr Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic”. It will allow the King “to continue painting the great British landmarks he has been sketching in watercolour for over 50 years,” according to the Elysée

A gourmet hamper: A curated selection of artisanal sweet and savoury delicacies, all made in France and bearing the official Elysée seal

[falcemartello]

QUATTRO MILIARDI DI BUONI MOTIVI

"Quattro miliardi di buoni motivi per fare prendere a pugni le ragazze. È il contributo che il governo francese dà alle olimpiadi di Parigi (budget totale 8,8 in crescita) ; è il prezzo che il Cio paga alla svolta inclusiva e resiliente ; è il costo del cinismo per accontentare Emmanuel Macron, primo sponsor dei giochi arcobaleno mondiali. Gli alti papaveri dello sport guidati dal presidente Thomas Bach hanno colto il vento progressista, hanno accettato il compromesso e hanno deciso di cambiare le regole d'ingaggio per partecipare alle competizioni. Ora nelle conferenze stampa di Parigi viene ripetuto il mantra : "Il sesso e l'età degli atleti si basano sul loro passaporto". Andare oltre sarebbe violazione della privacy...

La Verità, 9 Agosto 2024

-----

Per tutti quelli che non hanno capito (o hanno fatto finta di non capire) che cosa si celasse dietro la vicenda demenziale del pugile algerino spacciato per donna : la morte dello sport femminile, e molto di più. E tanto per aggiungere la ciliegina sulla torta guardate da dove viene il portavoce del Cio che ha confutato le divisioni della Federazione Internazionale di boxe, Mark Adams : direttamente dal World Economic Forum...

a questo punto per non capire bisogna avere un certo ritardo di pensiero o essere in malafede :

non è esclusa la combinazione dei due fattori...

https://t.me/labandadegliidraulici

[rainbowangel110]

Almost zero baking exerince outside of cake/cokies/brownies out of the box, and I'm about to make macrons.

I have more huburis than a Greek hero in a tragedy, and by god it won't stop ya gal.

[trolagygirl2022]

Lisa+Frederic reading

their current bond at the moment -> Knight of Pentacles rev, The Lovers, 5 of Swords, 3 of Wands, Queen of Wands, King of Wands, 6 of Cups.

I've been keeping an eye on them every now and then and it makes perfect sense now! Like what 104935259 of readers have said, this "relationship" is mostly for business, but there's more. I see her trying to assimilate to his culture. This explains her hanging out with macron's wife and all. If they ever marry (which I find EXTREMELY UNLIKELY) she'll have to be a "model asian" to his parents. His parents aren't accepting, I see them looking down on her (Bruh the words "dirty monkey " came up??? Yeah that really shows his parents views and such). I see them looking down on her not only for her race but how she makes money (Her little dance thingy in the cabaret popped up, that really gave them a bad impression). I see them trying to make things work but... it's so mfking awkward. I literally can't! There's no chemistry here honestly, it's like middle schoolers in a play that are forced to be a couple. The Queen of Wands is definitely Lisa since she's an Aries, but Frederic? Does he have major fire placements?? (Or that could be his parents or something). What I can confidently say is that this isn't going anywhere and his parents aren't going to budge. I also see them clashing too, there's almost no compatability here ong..

are they endgame -> 8 of Cups, Queen of Cups, Wheel of Fortune, Queen of Pentacles, Knight of Pentacles rev, King of Wands, 10 of Pentacles, 6 of Cups rev.

Honestly, no. Even if she gets with him, she's going to want to leave. Lisa is someone that is very proud of her heritage but if she stays with that family, she's going to be very depressed. One thing Lisa (and a lot of Aries placements) dislike is being put into a box and being told what to do. She has a very strong connection to Thailand so if she stays it's just a waste of time. Again, his parents are racist freaks. They won't be comfortable with the fact that they may have half asian grandchildren. At the moment she thinks she struck lucky and is attracted to the wealth, but she'll learn that not all glitters is gold. It's going to be a tough lesson too. She'll be "humbled" a lot and a lot of her dreams will crumble. They'll restrict her on what she can do and she'd going to get very sick of it. Lisa, please wake up from your delusions and get with that future spouse 😭😭

[which-qsmp-egg-would]

THE FIRST EVER QSMP EGG OC TOURNAMENT

Welcome to the first (annual?) QSMP egg OC tournament! Many of you may remember when a canon egg tournament happened last year, resulting in Richas being crowned most loved egg. I'm doing something similar! But with egg OCs! The bracket is below, as well as a little thing for the competitors under the cut:

You walk into the tournament complex, some of you with parents and some with siblings, although many of you walk alone. The building is MASSIVE, even though the crowd obscures your vision you can see doors and doors lining the walls of the massive room. On a massive LED screen in front of you all is a picture of the current bracket, and below that is a map of the tournament complex. Some of you note that it looks like if you mashed together a elementary school, a mall, and a convention hall. There's more rooms than you or the person running this event can count.

A loud, booming voice fills the room as the intercom crackles to life. The microphone peaks constantly.

"WELCOME ONE AND ALL TO THE FIRST EGG OC TOURNAMENT. PLEASE, LOCATE YOUR NAME ON THE BRACKET AND PREPARE TO FACE OFF."

Several people cringe and cover their ears, but the voice continues.

"YOU MAY GO WHEREVER YOU PLEASE IN MY COMPLEX, JUST TRY NOT TO MAKE A MESS. HAVE FUN."

The speakers cut very suddenly, the loud voice finally gone.

The LED screen flashes a new message:

"IF YOU ARE ELIMINATED YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO LEAVE. YOU MAY STAY UNTIL THE 3RD PLACE BRACKETS COMPLETE."

"AFTER THE FIRST AND SECOND PLACE WINNERS ARE DECIDED, THE TOURNAMENT WILL RESTART WITH THEM EXCLUDED TO GIVE THE 'LOSERS' A CHANCE AT 3RD PLACE."

"YOU MAY BRING ANY GUEST TO THE TOURNAMENT IF YOU WOULD LIKE. YOU MAY ALSO BRING YOUR PARENTS/GUARDIANS."

"IF YOU HAVE FURTHER QUESTIONS, PLEASE BRING THEM TO MY DOOR LOCATED HERE:"

Below the text is an arrow pointing to a nearby spot on the map that looks suspiciously like wqsmpew's ask box. this is unrelated but you figure if you have any problems to bring them there.

The screen goes back to normal, with just some fine print left in the corner:

*this tournament is dubiously canon at best for many of the participants, don't stress about your lore too much

You have NO idea what that means but you and your fellow eggs have already dispersed to explore the complex.

TOURNAMENT BEGINS SATURDAY

Obligatory @'s: Poll & Tequilla, Buttercup - Me . Macron - @prismpanic . Swift - @sw1ft-sniff . Pepper - @pikaeggs . Estella - @oozblob . Orgona & Szamóca, Áfonya - @semifontos . PipBen - @ghostwoodsketches . "Levi" Luis Leviathan Miguel - @rubyroboticalt . Corinne - @gh0sdae . Evaportation "Eva" 777-Owes-Magician - @ven-of-oath . Pedra - @freeshephoun .

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Nikki McCann Ramírez and Ryan Bort at Rolling Stone:

Donald Trump continued his pre-election economic event tour on Tuesday with a lengthy interview with Bloomberg at the Economic Club of Chicago. It was a total mess.  Bloomberg Editor-In-Chief John Micklethwait did not take it easy on Trump, and it quickly became clear that the former president has no conception of the mechanics of or the potential ramifications of the economic platform he’s running on. Bluntly, the former president was incoherent when pressed with real questions about his policies. Micklethwait spent most of the interview attempting to break Trump out of what the former president repeatedly referred to as “the weave,” his term for his rambling digressions — with ever-decreasing intelligibility — and general inability to focus on a given topic for more than a few seconds during his rallies and interviews. Micklethwait didn’t weave along with Trump, however, repeatedly working to bring him back on topic and answer the actual questions. The grilling exposed Trump’s total cluelessness with regard to his own economic policy, and led Trump to attack Micklethwait as biased.

Trump gets schooled on tariffs

The central pillar of Trump’s economic plan is widespread tariffs on all imported goods, with penalties appearing to increase depending on how much he dislikes the country. Economists have warned that such a policy could have devastating effects on American consumers, who would be saddled with increased costs for all imported goods.  [...]

Trump gets frustrated and bashes the interviewer

Micklethwait’s attempts to keep Trump on topic earned him no grace from the former president, who hates few things more than being contradicted.  When Micklethwait asked Trump to address a report by The Wall Street Journal estimating that his economic proposals would raise the national debt by upwards of $7 trillion, the former president fell back on his standard playbook: bashing the interviewer.  “What does The Wall Street Journal know? They’ve been wrong about everything, and so have you by the way, you’ve been wrong,” Trump replied, crossing his arms and curling into his seat.  [...]

Trump claims his rambling is strategic

At one point, after Trump spent minutes meandering through multiple trains of thought in response to a question about the American dollar’s status as an international reserve currency, Micklethwait attempted to interject into his rambling. Trump wasn’t happy. “You have got to be able to finish a thought because it is very important,” Trump said.  “You’ve gone from the dollar to [Emmanuel Macron],” Micklethwait countered.  The former president claimed that his speaking style was “called the weave” and that “it’s all these different things happening.”  OK then.

Today in front of The Economic Club of Chicago, Dementia DonOld revealed that he isn’t up to the task for the Presidency for a 2nd time should he get elected, as he was constantly pressed by Bloomberg’s John Micklethwait on how he would enact his economic agenda and ludicrously defending his ramblings as “the weave.”

Three weeks from now (if they haven’t voted already), Americans need to reject this cognitively-challenged fascist dementia patient at the ballot box and vote for Kamala Harris, who is sane and has actual cognitive skills to do the job.

See Also:

Daily Kos: Another public appearance confirms that Trump is an unstable mess

HuffPost: Trump Says Experts Are All 'Wrong' For Telling Him His Tariff Proposals Won't Work

[princess-of-the-corner]

After Ticket Censor’s defeat Marinette gives Lila a box of macarons at school.

“Thank you for defending my mom yesterday, I didn’t know which flavor was your favorite so there’s some variety.”

The rest of class is happy Marinette is warming up to Lila. Meanwhile Lila loves the macrons and considers if it’s too far along for her to switch targets from Adrien to Marinette. The foods just that good

Lila switching targets to Mari but whoops actually falls for her!

[mariacallous]

In recent days, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, has capitulated to the far-right anti-immigration agenda of Marine Le Pen. In July, in an electoral pact with the left, he sought a firewall against her. Now he has turned rightwards, giving her an effective veto over prime minister Michel Barnier’s new government.

By the end of the month, the Austrian Freedom party (FPÖ), founded by two former members of the SS, Anton Reinthaller and Friedrich Peter, is expected to form an anti-immigration,pro-Russian government. It will cement a new hard-right axis across Austria, Hungary and Slovakia, and more importantly, Italy, where step by step the far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni (who met Keir Starmer on Monday), is accused of taking control of the press and the judiciary.

The far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party has just won the east German regional elections in Thuringia and came second in Saxony. This is despite Germany’s domestic intelligence agency listing the AfD in three states as an “extremist” organisation, reflecting concerns about the Holocaust denial and links to far-right political violence of some of its members – and their invoking of banned Nazi slogans, for which the party’s Thuringian leader, Björn Höcke, has twice been found guilty in German courts.

But while Germany’s centre-right opposition leader, Friedrich Merz, who last year supported coalitions with the AfD in local government, has now refused to enter any national or regional coalition with the AfD, he has come closer to much of its anti-immigration agenda. He now wants “to talk about the issue of repatriation” of existing residents.

Now Höcke is openly mocking what he calls the “dumb firewall” against him, forecasting that it will not last. And last week the German coalition government reacted to the AfD’s success by tightening control of its bordersin an effort to curb irregular migration.

Another lurch rightward came with the decision last month by the Dutch health minister, a member of Geert Wilders’ far-right Freedom party, to refuse requests from African countries for urgent help in the fight against mpox, even when the Dutch stockpile runs to 100,000 boxes of unused vaccines – many of which will pass their use-by date next year.

The spectre haunting Europe is not communism, as Karl Marx once wrote, but far-right extremism. And not much is left of the cordon sanitaire that was to keep out the far right. Europe now has seven governments with hard-right parties in control or in coalition, with Austria likely to be next, as once-immovable barriers to contamination are swept aside by centre-right appeasers.

“Breaking point” was the slogan on a poster that Nigel Farage deployed in 2016 during the Brexit referendum campaign, portraying bearded and dark-skinned migrants appearing to march in droves towards us. The exact same photograph was later replicated in Hungary, with the caption changed from “Breaking point” to “Stop”.

Similar slogans include “Stop the invasion” (“Stop invasione”), used by Matteo Salvini’s Italian League party; and “Close the borders” (“Grenzen dicht”), adopted by German far-right groups the AfD and Pegida (Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West).

A few years ago, when the now-imprisoned former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon attempted to form a global coalition of anti-globalists, he managed to herd together a number of Europe’s rightwing leaders, from Nigel Farage to Hungary’s Viktor Orbán. He was involved in setting up an “Academy for the Judeo-Christian West” in Italy. And Trump’s “America first” Republican party is now one of many to adopt the “my country first” slogan.

Spain’s far-right Vox party has used “Primero lo nuestro. Primero los españoles”; Italy’s League, “Prima gli Italiani”; Hungary’s Fidesz party, “Nekünk Magyarország az első”; Germany’s AfD, “Unser Land zuerst”; Austria’s FPÖ, “Österreich zuerst”; and the Swiss People’s Party, “Die Schweiz zuerst”.

Outside Europe, “Önce Türkiye” (“Turkey First”) is promoted by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Justice and Development party. The far-right Japan First party marches under the banner of “日本第一” (“Japan first”). “India first” has been adopted by prime minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party.

Variations on this theme include “Polska dla Polaków” (“Poland for Poles”),used by nationalists in Poland, Vox’s slogan “España viva” (“Long live Spain”), and “Brasil acima de tudo” (“Brazil above everything”), used by Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro.

In all, about 50 countries have already gone to the polls in 2024. “Fears that this year would reflect the global triumph of illiberal populism have so far been proved wrong,” Francis Fukuyama, a senior fellow at Stanford University’s Center on Democracy and the author of the End of History and the Last Man thesis, has concluded. “Democratic backsliding can and has been resisted in many countries.”

He can, of course, point to the return of Labour in Britain, the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen as president of the European Commission, the shift away from the far right in Poland and the setback for Modi in India. But the Polish and Indian results tell me no more than tolerance of rightwing extremism can ebb when the electorate finds out that the nationalist demagogues are good at exploiting grievances, but bad at eradicating them.

And so we must not forget what has happened in countries from Indonesia to Argentina, the knife-edge fight for power in the US and – what Fukuyama misses in Europe – the insidious surrender of the centre to far-right prejudice.

Of course, there are ways to frustrate the onward rush of rightwing populists. Not only did the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, defeat the right in national elections last year, but he has skilfully engineered a split between Spain’s centre-right People’s party (PP) and the far-right Vox over the fate of vulnerable child migrants. Until July the two were in coalition in five key regions: Valencia, Aragón, Murcia, Extremadura and Castilla y León.

But it was not the centre-right PP that abandoned the extreme-right Vox; it was the extreme right that walked away from the centre right. And as long as the so-called moderates continue to play with fire – believing that by keeping their opponent close, they can eventually tame the beast – they will continue to lose. Sooner rather than later, the far-right poison will have to be countered with a progressive agenda focused on what matters to people most: jobs, standards of living, fairness and bridging the morally indefensible gap between rich and poor.

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“Her conviction will strengthen her aura in French society: that’s what we can learn from Trump-style American politics,” said Christophe Marion, a lawmaker from Macron’s party.

The presidential elections in Romania and the Le Pen verdict show that “democratic norms are being trampled upon,” in Europe, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

“Je suis Marine,” Orban tweeted following the ruling.

For Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders, the verdict was "tough". "I trust she will win the appeal and become President of France," he wrote on X.

Italy’s deputy prime minister and leader of the League party Matteo Salvini called the ruling a “declaration of war by Brussels.”

But there was also unease within the political mainstream in France.

"It is not healthy that in a democracy, an elected official is prohibited from standing in an election and I believe that political debates should be decided at the ballot box," said the leader of MPs in parliament of the right-wing Republicans, Laurent Wauquiez.

Even the leader of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon appeared ill at ease. "The decision to remove an elected official should be up to the people," he said.

RN president Jordan Bardella denounced the sentence on his X account, calling it “unjust” and amounting to an execution of French democracy.

Mike Benz posted on X, summing things up succinctly:

"They are fucking with something no democratic system should ever fuck with. If people perceive — rightly — that democracy is a farce, & anyone who runs against the order will be arrested, they’ll not only want to tear it down, they’ll seek an honest autocracy over false democracy."

Observers have drawn parallels with US President Donald Trump, who won a second term with a clutch of criminal cases hanging over him and, like Le Pen, has made trenchant opposition to immigration a cornerstone of his program.