#seven major British parties

[whencyclopedia]

Siege of Yorktown

The Siege of Yorktown (28 September to 19 October 1781) was the final major military operation of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). It resulted in the surrender of British general Lord Charles Cornwallis, whose army had been trapped in Yorktown, Virginia, by George Washington's Franco-American army on land, and by Comte de Grasse's French fleet at sea.

Storming of Redoubt 10 During the Siege of Yorktown

Eugène Lami (Public Domain)

War Comes to Virginia

In the spring of 1781, as the American War of Independence approached its sixth year, the British came to Virginia. 1,500 British troops under the command of the American turncoat Benedict Arnold landed at Portsmouth in January, going on to capture and burn the city of Richmond. Arnold was joined two months later by 2,300 more men under Major General William Phillips; together, Phillips and Arnold defeated a Virginia militia force at Blandford in late April before going on to burn the tobacco warehouses at Petersburg. They remained in Petersburg as they awaited the arrival of Lord Charles Cornwallis, who was marching up from North Carolina with 1,500 men, the survivors of the costly British victory at the Battle of Guilford Court House. Cornwallis reached Petersburg on 20 May, several days after General Phillips had died of a fever. Arnold returned to New York in June, leaving Cornwallis in sole command of the combined British army, which numbered over 7,200 men.

Cornwallis was not supposed to be in Virginia. Indeed, Sir Henry Clinton, commander-in-chief of the British forces and Cornwallis' superior officer, had ordered him to merely suppress Patriot resistance in the Carolinas. A task that had, at first, appeared easy enough soon turned into a quagmire, as Patriot and Loyalist militias tore each other to bloody shreds in the South Carolinian backcountry. All the progress Cornwallis had made in pacifying the country quickly unraveled after two defeats at the Battle of Kings Mountain and the Battle of Cowpens. Even his eventual victory at Guilford Court House left a bitter taste in his mouth, as he had lost over 25% of his army and had allowed the elusive American general Nathanael Greene to slip through his fingers. It was clear that his strategy would have to change if he wanted to win the South, no matter General Clinton's orders. His solution had been to invade Virginia. Greene and the Carolinian militias counted on supplies and reinforcements from the Old Dominion; should Virginia fall, Cornwallis calculated the rest of the South would fall with it.

Now, with the strength of Arnold's and Phillips' armies added to his own, Cornwallis put his plan into motion. He first struck toward Richmond, sending a small American army under Gilbert du Motiers, Marquis de Lafayette, running, before dispatching raiding parties into Virginia's heartland to seize supply depots and disrupt lines of communications. Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton and his dreaded British Legion were sent to Charlottesville, where Governor Thomas Jefferson and the Virginia General Assembly had relocated after the burning of Richmond; warned of Tarleton's coming, Jefferson and all but seven of the legislators managed to escape into the mountains mere minutes before 'Bloody Ban' arrived to apprehend them. Finally, on 25 June, Cornwallis' main army arrived triumphantly in Williamsburg. It might have been the start to a glorious conquest – had Cornwallis not received fresh orders from General Clinton the very next day.

American War of Independence, 1775 - 1783

Simeon Netchev (CC BY-NC-ND)

The orders were for Cornwallis to suspend military operations in Virginia. Clinton had learned that a sizable French fleet was sailing up from the West Indies, and he feared that New York City (where Clinton himself was located with 10,000 men) was its target. Cornwallis, therefore, was to go on the defensive, march to the nearest deep-water port – Clinton recommended Portsmouth or Yorktown – fortify it, and wait there for further orders. Cornwallis was deeply frustrated by these instructions, as he believed that it was in Virginia where the war would be won. Nevertheless, he did as he was told. He marched out of Williamsburg, pausing only to lay an ambush for Lafayette's pursuing army; the resulting Battle of Green Spring (6 July) bloodied Lafayette's force but did not destroy it. Cornwallis pressed on, ultimately choosing Yorktown as his destination. By 6 August, he had landed his troops there and had begun to fortify both Yorktown and Gloucester Point, just across the York River.

Continue reading...

[thevexinator]

Since Asagiri won't give you Guild content, I will. Headcanons, but they're based on irl facts I found within 5 minutes of googling. [These are just my hcs you can add your own if you wanna]

Louisa May Alcott 💌

- Louisa and Nathaniel are family friends. Irl, Louisa's father was one of Hawthorne's pallbearers [pallbearer - someone helping to escort of carry a coffin]. In the setting of BSD, their families were in close relations due to operating at the same church. Even though Louisa doesn't remember, Nathaniel often looked after her since the older girls [Louisa's older sister Anna and Nathaniel's older sister Elizabeth] were often helping around with the adults.

- She really likes pulp fiction.

- She's knowledgeable about the medical field. The real Louisa was a nurse during World War 1.

- Speaking of war, Louisa is a major history nerd.

Margaret Mitchell ☂️

- While BSD Margaret dresses like what if Mary Poppins was a British aristocrat, the real Margaret Mitchell actually preferred dressing in men's clothes. Thus, whenever she's not on duty in the Guild, she's chilling in something she stole from Nathaniel.

- She's afraid of fire. Why? When Margaret was a child, her clothing ended up catching fire on accident. She's never been the same since.

- She also has driving anxiety. When she was 12, her dad hit a deer on the road. She's never been the same since.

Nathaniel Hawthorne ⚔️

- Generally avoids discourse about the Salem Witch Trials. An ancestor of his played a big part during it, two others were married to women who were accused of being witches. Thus, he added the 'w' to his last name.

- He's surprisingly good with glasswork. When the real Nathaniel and his wife moved into their home, the etched poems into the glass of the windows.

- For a large part of his life, he lived in a commune.

- Occasionally, he sees ghosts. The real Nathaniel once said he saw the ghost of his friend reading his own obituary.

Edgar Allan Poe 🦝

- He's an orphan. He doesn't tell people that.

- He likes being alone. Until he gets the feeling that someone is somewhere in the room with him.

- Insanely intelligent. He knows exactly what he's doing.

- Very weak constitution. One time, when the Guild were all drinking and whatever else they were doing, Poe blacked out after one drink of wine. Everyone genuinely thought someone tried to kill him until they found out he couldn't handle alcohol.

- Unphased. He's seen it all. Death? Child's play. Heartbeat under the floorboards? Normal Tuesday. Corpse falling off the roof? Crazy. Someone walking into the party dressed in red? Standard party etiquette.

Lucy Maud Montgomery 🪆

- Also an orphan. Doesn't tell people about it.

- Very charming. She can flirt. She just chooses not to. She knows she's too powerful.

- Cripplingly depressed. Self-explanatory.

- Has girl nights with Louisa and Margaret, basically a few hours of them doing girl activities. They tried to summon Bloody Mary at least seven times to no returns.

H. P. Lovecraft 🦑

- Lovecraft has monochromacy, a condition where someone can only see in grayscale. This is derived from irl Lovecraft's "The Color Out of Space," essentially Lovecraft's low education being the reason why he didn't know about the electromagnetic color spectrum.

- He's afraid of crowds. He hates it here so much.

- Has epilepsy. The only thing that can stop this eldrich monstrosity in a human trench coat is the average disco party.

- Loves cats. He is so normal about them. Cats run to him like crazy.

- He glows in the dark. Why shouldn't he? He's earned it. He's also deficient in vitamins science hasn't discovered yet. His ankles popping sound like rogue gunshots.

- AroAce. Intimacy is a concept he doesn't understand and doesn't want to.

John Steinbeck 🌳

- He's very much a dog person. His family keeps dogs. His favorite breed is the Australian Sheep dog.

- He was very sick as a child.

- Really into marine biology. [Steincraft fans stay winning.]

- Before the Guild, he worked as a construction worker, newspaper reporter,and caretaker.

- Ironically enough, he has a pollen allergy. It's not severe, just watering eyes and sniffles. He hates it.

Mark Twain 🔫

- So normal about the ocean. He takes Lovecraft and John with him when he goes boating.

- Into geology. He's the guy who collects rocks whenever he's outside.

- Guild game night isn't game night is Mark isn't beating everyone in every board game to ever exist.

- So normal about cats. The real Mark Twain has 19 cats, all with titles like Apollinaris, Beelzebub, Blatherskite, Buffalo Bill, Satan, Sin, Sour Mash, Tammany, Zoroaster, Soapy Sal and Pestilence to name a few. BSD Mark has one ginger cat he adopted off the streets of Yokohama he names Sal, occasionally calling her Sin whenever she's around Nathaniel.

- He almost drowned twice. One would think that would kill his passion for boating, but he baller'd his way out of it.

Francis S. K. Fitzgerald 🪙

- Dyslexic and in denial. Louisa tried to gently bring it up to him that half of his work email was spelled incorrectly, but he was in denial and chalked it up to it being 3 in the morning when he wrote that work email.

- He worked as a screenwriter before the Guild. Coincidentally, he met his wife there!

- He strikes me as a guy who owns a copy of "A Pickle For the Knowing Ones". If you don't know what that is, please look it up. I promise it's worth it.

- Makes too many dad jokes. John and Nathaniel officially want him dead.

- He forgets to sleep. He just forgets. Even though he looks like he died and got resurrected without prior notice and everyone in the Guild is asking him if he had a breakdown, he forgets to sleep.

Hermine Melville 🐋

- At some point in his life, he lived in the Pacific Islands.

- Hiking enthusiast. He likes the mountain terrain a lot.

- His office smells like smoke. No one knows why. It just does.

- Not much about him to be honest. I wish there was more screentime for him. <//3

[mariacallous]

theglobeandmail com/canada/british-columbia/article-british-columbias-election-campaign-kicks-off-with-ndp-conservatives/

British Columbia’s election campaign kicked off on Saturday with both of the main party leaders trading shots over key voter issues of health care, affordability and public safety.

New Democrat Leader David Eby spent the day touring key ridings that delivered his party’s majority in 2020, and warning supporters that his rival, Conservative leader John Rustad, would cut health care spending, make life more costly, and erase progress on the construction of affordable housing.

“If I earn the trust of British Columbians through the campaign, I will be laser-focused on reducing the costs they face everyday,” he told a rally in Richmond, the first official stop of the campaign.

Mr. Rustad made his first appearance at Vancouver’s Crab Park, which has been the location of a long-running homeless encampment that he referred to as a symbol of decline in B.C., after seven years of NDP government.

“B.C. is at a crossroads,” he said. “The question is, are we going to fight for our future, or continue to manage decline.”

He painted a bleak picture of the state of the province under the NDP, saying almost half the population is struggling to meet rent and pay for groceries, while the health care system is broken.

“We have endless potential but it is hopelessly managed,” he said.

“What we’ve seen from David Eby, quite frankly, is weak leadership,” he said. “He’s not been able to fix many of the problems we have in this province.” He listed off the deadly opioid crisis, access to health care and the construction of new housing “where he seems to think it’s government’s job.”

At another rally, Mr. Eby fired back: “John, I have a message for you. The premier does have a role in providing affordable housing.”

The day set up what is expected to be a hotly contested race between two veterans of the B.C. Legislature, although neither has campaigned as a party leader.

The lieutenant-governor signed the writ on Saturday, with Oct. 19 set as the election date.

Mr. Eby, who has served as British Columbia’s premier for almost two years, is facing voters in a campaign that is very different than the one expected just a few months ago.

The governing NDP enjoyed a comfortable, double-digit lead in public opinion polls until the spring, when their chief rivals, the BC United party, started to hemorrhage support to the provincial Conservatives under Mr. Rustad.

That shift prompted the abrupt collapse of BC United in late August, leaving just two main parties in a statistical dead heat in public polls, with the Greens trailing far behind.

The Conservatives have not won an election in B.C. in almost a century, but Mr. Rustad, who has served as an MLA since 2005, revived the party that he took over last year – after he was kicked out of the official opposition because he questioned the science of climate change.

NDP are promising that the investments they have made in health care, housing and public safety are now starting to bear fruit. “We are just turning the corner,” Mr. Eby told supporters in a packed campaign office, with an overflow crowd spilling out on the sidewalk.

His campaign schedule for the day includes stops in North Vancouver and Langley, where the NDP made inroads in 2020, and it hopes to hold in the Oct. 19 election.

In a bid to neutralize the Conservative’s populist promise to “axe the carbon tax,” Mr. Eby executed an about-face on carbon pricing just a week before the campaign began, saying he is ready to remove the levy on consumers – not industry – if the federal government drops legislation requiring it.

Mr. Rustad has consistently promised to end all forms of carbon pricing. The Conservatives also say they will return the province to balanced budgets, roll back the NDP’s housing policies, and lower taxes.

Mr. Rustad has made public safety a key rallying cry, blaming Mr. Eby for the street disorder that escalated over the past year with the government’s failed decriminalization pilot project.

The Health Canada-sanctioned pilot meant adults in possession of small amounts of certain illegal drugs most commonly associated with overdoses would not be arrested or charged. The experiment was scrapped this summer after a widespread backlash over illicit drug use in hospitals, parks and other public spaces.

The third party, the Greens, have been relegated to a distant third place in recent opinion polls. Leader Sonia Furstenau spent the first day of the campaign on the street, holding a public rally in downtown Victoria.

“We’ve seen a campaign from the other two parties that has focused on mud-slinging, fear and anger,” she said. “The B.C. Greens have something else to offer, a vision of the province that can and should be the best place to live in the whole wide world.”

[onetimetwotimesthreetimess]

There will never be anything more despicable than building and celebrating, and forcing a nation to celebrate on the taxpayers money, a temple build on the mass graves of Muslims. The Hindu nationalist state, has proved again that this nation belongs to only Hindus.

Babri Masjid, 1992

Ram Temple, 2024

A bit of context for those who don’t know about the issue:

Babri Masjid, was a mosque in Ayodhya, India. It was built in the 16th century by the Mughal Empire. Babri Masjid was a holy place for the Muslims in the country. There’s a history of communalism (created by the British Empire) between Hindus (the majority religion) and Muslims (the minority) in the country.

In 1992, Babri Masjid was attacked and demolished by Hindu extremists who believed that the mosque was built on the site of birthplace of Ram (Hindu god). Thousands of people lost their lives. Thousands of Muslims were killed in cold blood by a hyper-nationalist state.

In 2010, after decades of Muslims fighting for justice, the Allahabad High Court upheld the claim that the mosque was built on Ram’s birth place. Muslims were also awarded one-third area of the site for the construction of a mosque. However, thr decision was subsequently appealed by all parties to the Indian Supreme Court, wherein a five judge bench heard a title suit from August to October 2019. On 9 November 2019, the Supreme Court quashed the lower court's judgement and ordered the entire site to be handed over to a trust to build the Hindu temple.

Today, 22nd January, 2024, marks the inaugural of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. On a site that is so deeply entrenched within a community’s blood, pain and trauma. While these Hindu nationalists celebrate, every Muslim in the country feels more scared. Muslims in India have always been unlawfully detained, persecuted, punished and killed throughout the past seven decades but it has only worsened ever since BJP, the ruling party came in power. Celebrities, sportsperson, politicians and millions of people travelled to Ayodhya to celebrate this tremendous failure of the state.

Today, the Indian constitution lies under those thousands grave.

If any one of you celebrated, I hope you understand the gravity of your actions. I hope you understand what you all set in motion. I hope that one day, you understand and that there is no redemption for you after that.

I hope you all rot in hell.

Here’s a short poem by Rabindranath Tagore about an old god, a new temple, an arrogant king and many hungry and homeless ordinary people.

[abhishekpandey123]

Elections in India

India’s national election will take place in phases over 44 days. Here’s why it takes so long

Nearly 970 million people or over 10% of the global population are eligible to vote in India’s general elections. The mammoth exercise is the biggest anywhere in the world and will take 44 days before results are announced on June 4.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is aiming for a third consecutive term in office. He is set to compete against a diverse yet faltering coalition of opposition parties who are finding it difficult to counter his popularity. The majority of polls forecast a comfortable victory for the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, solidifying his position as one of the most prominent and influential leaders in the country.

WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG?

Two primary factors contribute to this situation: the vast expanse of India, the most populous nation globally, and the intricate logistics required to enable each eligible voter to participate in the electoral process.

Over the years, the duration of voting has wavered. It took nearly four months to complete the vote in India’s first elections in 1951-1952, after it gained independence from British rule, and just four days in 1980. In 2019, voting took 39 days, and this year’s election is the second longest.

With 969 million registered voters, the size of India’s electorate is bigger than the combined population of the 27 European Union member states. This includes 18 million first-time voters, and around 197 million who are in their 20s.

The vote to choose 543 lawmakers for the lower house of Parliament takes place over seven phases. India’s 28 states and eight federal territories will vote at different times. Each phase is one day, with the first held on April 19 and the last on June 1.

Some states may complete their voting process within a day, while others might require more time. For instance, Uttar Pradesh, the largest state in India with a population of 200 million, equivalent to the size of Brazil, will conduct voting over seven days. This extended duration of the voting process in India's general elections has been criticized by Modi's opponents, who argue that it provides an advantage to the prime minister in terms of campaigning and travel, particularly in states where his party is not as strong.

EVERY VOTE COUNTS

The Election Commission of India is responsible for ensuring that a voting booth is accessible within a 2-kilometer radius of each voter. Chakshu Roy from PRS Legislative Research emphasized the extensive efforts election officials must undertake to enable every voter to cast their ballot. Around 15 million election officials and security personnel will travel across deserts and mountains, utilizing various modes of transportation such as boats, walking, and even horseback riding, to reach all voters.

It can be especially arduous. In 2019, when India last held elections, a team of polling officers trekked over 480 kilometers (300 miles) for four days just so a single voter in a hamlet in the remote state of Arunachal Pradesh, which borders China, could exercise their right.

Officials also traveled to a village tucked away high up in the Himalayas in 2019 to install a booth at 15,256 feet (4,650 meters), the highest polling station anywhere in the world.

This time too, polling stations will be installed in remote places, including one inside a wildlife sanctuary in southern Kerala state and another in a shipping container in western Gujarat state.

TIGHT SECURITY

Security is cited as a significant factor behind the multi-phase elections in India, according to experts. In order to ensure safety, a large number of federal security forces, who typically guard borders, are mobilized and work in conjunction with state police. Their primary responsibilities include preventing violence, escorting electoral officials, and transporting voting machines. Previous elections in India have been marred by deadly clashes between supporters of rival political parties, particularly in West Bengal. However, the presence of heavy security forces has contributed to a decrease in such incidents over the years, resulting in relatively peaceful voting. The geographical diversity of the country, with its rivers, mountains, snow, and jungles, poses challenges for the movements of security forces. Despite these obstacles, the chief election commissioner, Rajiv Kumar, has emphasized their commitment to ensuring a smooth voting process by going the extra mile for the convenience of voters.

[workersolidarity]

🇮🇳 🚨

INDIAN ELECTION COMMISSION ANNOUNCES DATES FOR GENERAL ELECTIONS

The Election Commission for India announced on Saturday the dates for the coming General Elections, to be conducted in seven phases beginning on April 19th.

According to reporting on the announcement, more than 970 million Indians are expected to vote in the coming elections at over 1 million polling stations across the country.

Speaking at a Press conference covering the election scheduling, Chief Election Commissioner, Rajiv Kumar, said elections will run through the 1st of June, with vote counting to be conducted on June 4th.

Acknowledging what he called "major challenges" posed by the elections, Kumar said the biggest concerns were with bribing, threats, misinformation and violations of the model code of conduct for elections.

Current Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who belongs to the Hindu Nationalist BJP Party, seeks a third term, facing a challenge from an alliance of more than two dozen Parties belonging to the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), led by the opposition Indian National Congress Party who held power from the time of the country's liberation from the British empire in 1947, until the BJP's first National election win in May of 2014.

Modi and the BJP, for their part, have set a goal for winning 370 seats in the Indian Parliament, and 400 in total for the alliance it leads.

Previously, in the 2019 General Elections, Modi's BJP Party won 303 out of 543 seats in the lower house of Parliament, its best performance since the Party's formation in 1980.

#source

@WorkerSolidarityNews

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 3.5

1953 – Joseph Stalin, the longest serving leader of the Soviet Union, dies at his Volynskoe dacha in Moscow after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage four days earlier. 1960 – Indonesian President Sukarno dismissed the Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR), 1955 democratically elected parliament, and replaced with DPR-GR, the parliament of his own selected members. 1963 – American country music stars Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins, Cowboy Copas and their pilot Randy Hughes are killed in a plane crash in Camden, Tennessee. 1963 – Aeroflot Flight 191 crashes while landing at Aşgabat International Airport, killing 12. 1965 – March Intifada: A Leftist uprising erupts in Bahrain against British colonial presence. 1966 – BOAC Flight 911, a Boeing 707 aircraft, breaks apart in mid-air due to clear-air turbulence and crashes into Mount Fuji, Japan, killing all 124 people on board. 1967 – Lake Central Airlines Flight 527 crashes near Marseilles, Ohio, killing 38. 1968 – Air France Flight 212 crashes into La Grande Soufrière, killing all 63 aboard. 1970 – The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons goes into effect after ratification by 43 nations. 1973 – An Iberia McDonnell Douglas DC-9 collide in mid-air with a Spantax Convair 990 Coronado over Nantes, France, killing all 68 people abord the DC-9, including music manager Michael Jeffery. 1974 – Yom Kippur War: Israeli forces withdraw from the west bank of the Suez Canal. 1978 – The Landsat 3 is launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. 1979 – Soviet probes Venera 11, Venera 12 and the German-American solar satellite Helios II all are hit by "off the scale" gamma rays leading to the discovery of soft gamma repeaters. 1981 – The ZX81, a pioneering British home computer, is launched by Sinclair Research and would go on to sell over 11⁄2 million units around the world. 1982 – Soviet probe Venera 14 lands on Venus. 1991 – Aeropostal Alas de Venezuela Flight 108 crashes in Venezuela, killing 45. 1993 – Palair Macedonian Airlines Flight 301 crashes at Skopje International Airport in Petrovec, North Macedonia, killing 83. 2001 – In Mina, Saudi Arabia, 35 pilgrims are killed in a stampede on the Jamaraat Bridge during the Hajj. 2002 – An earthquake in Mindanao, Philippines, kills 15 people and injures more than 100. 2003 – In Haifa, 17 Israeli civilians are killed in the Haifa bus 37 suicide bombing. 2011 – An Antonov An-148 crashes in Russia's Alexeyevsky District, Belgorod Oblast during a test flight, killing all seven aboard. 2012 – Tropical Storm Irina kills over 75 as it passes through Madagascar. 2012 – Two people are killed and six more are injured in a shooting at a hair Salon in Bucharest, Romania. 2018 – Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) pause the Deir ez-Zor campaign due to the Turkish-led invasion of Afrin. 2021 – Pope Francis begins a historical visit to Iraq amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. 2021 – Twenty people are killed and 30 injured in a suicide car bombing in Mogadishu, Somalia. 2023 – The 2023 Estonian parliamentary election is held, with two centre-right liberal parties gaining an absolute majority for the first time. 2023 – A group of four prisoners escape from the Nouakchott Civil Prison, before being caught the next day.

[copiouscouples]

Scenes from a Marriage

Prologue

The Daily Prophet

NEW YEAR, NEW LAW

JANUARY 2, 1999

A new law has been enacted by the Ministry of Magic today. One day after ringing in the new year, the Minister for Magic along with the majority of senior officials have decided to start the new year with a bang by forcing unmarried witches and wizards to marry.

“Many lives were lost last year due to the Second Wizarding War. The British magical world is in crisis. We need to replenish our ranks. That is why we at the Ministry of Magic have decided to enact the Marriage Act of 1999,” Kingsley Shacklebolt, current Minister for Magic, stated during a press conference today.

The Marriage Act of 1999 will require unmarried witches and wizards to report to the Ministry of Magic’s offices over the next three months to begin the process of matchmaking. A series of personality and compatibility tests will be given to each witch and wizard. The unmarried witches and wizards will discover who they will marry June 1st. They will have until the end of June to marry.

The law also dictates certain rules that must be followed by the married couples. The rules are as follows:

Couples must procreate and produce 5 children.

Couples must have sexual intercourse once a week.

Couples are not allowed to have separate rooms or beds.

Couples must spend at least 1 hour a day together. Sexual intercourse will not be counted as part of the hour.

Couples must answer daily discussion questions over breakfast. Each couple will be assigned their own personal Love Bug to record and send replies back to the Ministry of Magic’s office.

If any rule is broken more than 5 times in a 6 month period, then said couple will receive mandated couple’s therapy.

If a rule continues to be broken after receiving therapy, then the rule-breaking party shall spend a week in Azkaban.

Divorce is not allowed.

“Five children? Are they trying to turn us into the Weasleys?” A bystander was heard muttering at the press conference.

“How will couples be able to afford five children? It’s expensive enough to feed and clothe one child much less five. How does the Ministry expect us to provide for a family of seven?” Belbius Bowler asked.

The Minister hemmed and hawed and said that those things had a way of working themselves out but the point was to build back the wizarding community better and stronger than ever to which the audience responded by booing.

And what is a Love Bug you might ask? A Love Bug is a charmed insect that not only has the power to record your conversations with your new spouse but will sting you with Veritaserum once a week to ensure that you are having the required weekly sexual intercourse.

If you have someone you love, marry them now. Otherwise, the Ministry of Magic will choose your spouse for you and they could be ugly or toothless or your sworn enemy. The Daily Prophet is certain that this, like many preposterous ideas of the Ministry, will end poorly. Very poorly.

Read the next chapter on FF.net or AO3.

[earth-6677]

Welcome to Earth-6677!

Do you want Agent Carter Season 3, or something close to it? Do you want that story to be a fanfic with various connecting fics taking inspiration from other Golden Age Marvel Heroes? Do you want stories that take place within the MCU, but are also a set-up for a soft reboot of the parts the authors don't like? You want gay shit? Then this project might just be for you.

Earth-6677 is a fanfiction project begun by @crash476, with assistance from @sparkyyoungupstart. Beginning as an idea of what happened to Peggy Carter's brother Michael, we have expanded it into a shared universe that slowly unveils a new history of the world that ties in both Marvel Comics, the MCU, and actual historical events.

Currently our focus is on the events of WWII and the post-war period of Agent Carter. Our main cast members are Michael Carter and an OC, Emily Gower, though we've combined them with elements of the comics characters Brian Falsworth (Union Jack) and Jacqueline Falsworth (Spitfire). So far a majority of our tales have focused on The Invaders, a team that in the comics punched Axis forces and starred Captain America, Namor, and the original Human Torch. They're not in our cast, but we hope the characters we did put in keep the same flavour.

We have hopes and plans to let the repercussions of our characters (and our own disappointments with several modern projects) echo throughout the timeline and into modern day - accompanied of course with more stories as long as we can find the time for them. For now, though, here's a rundown on what fics we have so far.

The Invaders series, focusing on the Golden Age (and in publishing order):

Death in the Golden Hour, a combination prologue and Flash Forward one-shot taking place immediately after the attack on Jack Thompson in the final moments of Agent Carter.

Sixes and Sevens, the story of Michael Carter's death being covered up during World War II. The Special Operations Executive see a golden opportunity, Carter is given a new identity - Brian Falsworth - and he's sent to join Operation Meridian, the British equivalent of Project Rebirth. When Dr. Erskine is assassinated in America, Major "Falsworth" is sent on a mission through the Middle East to track down an old colleague of Dr. Erskine's in the hopes that Britain can get their own super soldier. Joined by Emily Gower, the two must evade Nazis, HYDRA agents, and local governments in order to secure an advantage for the Allied forces.

Upon the Chaos Dark, a one-shot showing Roger Aubrey being captured and experimented on by Daniel Whitehall.

Shadow of the Eagle, where Carter's team embarks on a mission to destroy a U-Boat station in Greece, only to encounter several figures from his past.

Radio Chatter, a collection for various one-shots.

The Haunting of Villa Layla, where the members of the Fidonisi party regroup with their friends and share stories from their pasts.

Agent Carter: Phantom Pain, the point at which the story catches up to the prologue. Peggy and company must deal with Thompson's death, Dottie's return, the looming shutdown of the SSR, and Michael's return.

There is a House in the Mountains, where a contingent of Invaders are sent to rescue a spy on the inside of HYDRA.

Headfirst Slide into Latveria on a Bad Bet, where the other half of the Invaders go to Latveria to help a young Victor von Doom liberate his country.

We also have a TV Tropes page here; we've been updating it ourselves but our hope is that it can become self-sustaining if the series gets popular enough. After all, the more people who engage with our work the better our motivation to write more of it! So please, read and enjoy!

[tomorrowusa]

Malaysia wants the world to know that it is officially homophobic. They won't even let you tell time in a gay way.

Owners or sellers of rainbow-coloured timepieces made by Swiss watchmaker Swatch face three years in prison in Malaysia, the interior ministry has announced, as the Muslim-majority country rails against LGBTQ symbols it says could "harm morals". Homosexuality is outlawed in Malaysia and LGBTQ people face repeated discrimination. Malaysia's law enforcement unit at the interior ministry raided Swatch stores at 11 shopping malls across the country in May, including in the capital Kuala Lumpur, for timepieces bearing what it called "LGBT elements". Anyone who "prints, imports, produces… or has in his possession" such items now faces a jail term of up to three years, the ministry said in a statement.

FFS, the bigots in the Malaysian government are actually counting colors in rainbows.

A ministry official told AFP in May that 172 watches worth $14,000 were seized in raids because they bore the "LGBTQ" acronym and had six colours instead of the seven in a rainbow. The six-colour rainbow Pride flag is one of the most well-known LGBTQ symbols globally.

This isn't the first time recently that LGBTQ+ matters have been in the news in Malaysia.

Matt Healy, frontman of British pop rock band The 1975, kissed a male band mate onstage and criticised the country's anti-LGBTQ laws. The ban comes ahead of elections in six Malaysian states that will serve as a barometer of public sentiment for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's unity government against a powerful opposition consisting of Malay-Muslim political parties. He has been criticised by the opposition who allege he is not doing enough to protect Malaysia's Islamic values. Anwar says his government will not back LGBTQ rights.

^^^ That last statement is fairly obvious.

According to DSL, this is what Malaysia exports:

Malaysia’s most valued exports would be electronics and electrical goods. They make up a high percentage of Malaysia exports of 36%, followed by chemicals (7.1%), petroleum goods (7.0%), liquefied natural gas (6%), and palm oil (5.1%).

We shouldn't use palm oil from anywhere for environmental reasons; that's easy to do without. But when buying electronics or electrical goods, always look for the country of origin. If it says Made in Malaysia then look for an alternative. Tourism and business conferences in Malaysia should also be avoided.

We don't have to enrich homophobes in Malaysia who use religion as a cover for their bigotry. .

[southeastasiadiary]

Day Twenty-Seven: Bonus

It’s late. I have packing to do, and I really need to get to bed. But since tomorrow is the last day of the trip, I feel I ought to start doing some “wrapping up.” I’ll save the larger philosophical issues for tomorrow. But here are a few random (and very minor) things I learned over the last four weeks.

As is common in Eastern countries, religious sites and many homes and businesses in Southeast Asia will have a raised threshold that you have to step over before entering. Almost always, you have to remove your shoes before doing so. A set of racks is helpfully placed nearby. If you ask someone why there's a raised threshold, these are among the answers you will receive:

1. To keep water out during heavy rainstorms.

2. To keep small animals out.

3. To keep evil spirits out.

4. To keep crawling babies in. (This reason is usually only given at private homes.)

5. Because, in order to step over the threshold, you have to look down. You are thus bowing and giving the place you are entering a sign of respect.

In most cases, I was given two of these reasons, typically one of them “practical” and the other one “spiritual.” But they were rarely the same two reasons as I moved from place to place. People tend to mix and match their explanations according to their personal beliefs or local custom and then to generalize those explanations.

Also, it is generally protocol to step over the raised threshold, not on it. Once, however, I was surprised to see one of my guides step directly on the threshold. I was (I must admit) a bit shocked, and I said, “I thought you weren’t supposed to do that."

He looked at me with some surprise and replied, “Meh. Old superstition. No one believes that anymore.”

I suppose I should've known this, but I also learned that Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos are considered Indochina, but Thailand isn’t. That division both makes sense, and it doesn’t. It doesn’t make sense because the borders of all four countries have been highly fluid throughout history. Territory that was part of one country for a certain number of years often became part of another country later. And just keeping track of all those shifts can be an intimidating task.

But it makes some sense, too. There’s a different “feel” when you move from Indochina to Thailand. One rather obvious shift: Because of French influence, people drive on the right in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Because of British influence, they drive on the left in Thailand. It's a small change, but it's noticeable.

In addition, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos have had a major and lasting influence of the Communist Party. They’ve gotten rid of their kings, and they seem quite happy about that. Thailand still has its king, and the Thais seem pretty happy about that, too. Suum cuique.

As a result, Thailand was an ally of the US when the US was waging war in Indochina. That war has left deep scars in those countries, particularly in Vietnam and Laos. If the impact of what the French and Americans did in this region seems less of a daily presence in Cambodia, it’s only because (as the Cambodians will freely tell you) they did worse things to themselves … and they will tell you this with that haunting Cambodian smile. There are similarities but also important differences among the peoples of this region.

It has been a somewhat unreal experience “vacationing” in cities and regions with names that, when I was growing up, were daily mentioned on the news as war zones. Hanoi. Da Nang. Cambodia. Laos.

It was unreal but also, in a strange way, affirming. If those places that were once so associated with bombing and death are now places where we can go for culture and relaxation, who’s to say that other spots that today are associated with bombing and death may not also one day be places where future generations go on package tours “to get away from it all”?

Maybe someday someone will be writing a diary about a leisurely month they spent in Ukraine or Gaza and commenting on things so seemingly trivial as which side of the road people drive on.

We can only hope.

[whencyclopedia]

Battle of Kings Mountain

The Battle of Kings Mountain (7 October 1780) was a significant battle of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), fought in the backcountry of South Carolina between large parties of Patriot and Loyalist militias. The battle exemplified how the American Revolution could often take on the characteristics of civil war, as most participants on either side were Americans.

The Subjugation of the South

On 12 May 1780, the city of Charleston, South Carolina, fell to the British army after a grueling six-week siege. It was one of the greatest British triumphs of the war so far. Charleston was the largest and most important city in the American South, and its capture provided the British with an excellent base from which to invade the rest of the region. Sir Henry Clinton, commander-in-chief of the British army, did not believe that the subjugation of the South would be a difficult feat. It had long been rumored that the South was replete with Tories (or Loyalists) who felt oppressed by their new revolutionary governments and yearned for the return of royal authority. Clinton believed that the mere presence of British soldiers in the region would trigger a massive revolt of thousands of southern Tories, who would help the soldiers reconquer the South in the name of the king.

Once Charleston fell, Clinton immediately turned his attention to prodding South Carolina's Loyalist population into action. To achieve this, he appointed Major Patrick Ferguson as Inspector of Militia for the Southern Provinces, tasking him with the recruitment and organization of Tory militias. The Scottish-born Major Ferguson seemed to be an excellent candidate for such a task. A career soldier, Ferguson had entered the British army in his teens and had fought in the European theater of the Seven Years' War (1756-1763). He had patented a new kind of breechloading rifle that allowed for a higher rate of fire than the standard flintlock musket, even in wet weather; his British comrades, however, preferred the familiarity of their 'Brown Bess' muskets, and only 200 of Ferguson's Rifles were ever manufactured. Major Ferguson also had a sense of military honor. He claimed that during the Battle of Brandywine (11 September 1777), he had had an opportunity to shoot an American officer that he believed to be George Washington but had declined to do so, believing that it was dishonorable to target officers.

Ferguson was still only a major after his decades of military experience and was eager to prove himself worthy of his new command. Shortly after his appointment as Inspector of Militia on 22 May 1780, he rode to Tryon County, which was heavily populated by Loyalists, and spent the following months recruiting Tory militias. By August, he had raised around 4,000 Tory militiamen from across the South Carolina backcountry; while these numbers were impressive, they fell far short of the total number of Tories that Clinton had expected would rally to the British cause. But Ferguson made good use of what he had. During the summer of 1780, his Tories performed well in a series of skirmishes with Patriot militia that took place in the territory between the fortress of Ninety-Six and the North Carolina border. By the end of August, Ferguson had successfully driven most Patriot partisans from the northwestern part of South Carolina.

Ferguson's success against the Patriot militias was soon bolstered by an even more significant British victory. On 16 August 1780, the main British army under Lord Charles Cornwallis decisively defeated an American army at the Battle of Camden. The battle not only secured British control of South Carolina but also cleared a path for Cornwallis to launch an invasion of North Carolina (Cornwallis had taken over command from Clinton, who had returned to New York to keep an eye on Washington's army in the north). In early September, as Cornwallis prepared to march his army to Charlotte, North Carolina, he ordered Ferguson to enter the state first and begin recruiting and organizing militias of North Carolina Tories. Ferguson was then expected to defend the left flank of Cornwallis' army as it commenced its invasion. The Scottish major quickly rode into North Carolina to fulfill this new mission, eager to help play a role in Britain's subjugation of the South.

Continue reading...

[gwendolynlerman]

Separatist and irredentist movements in the world

Western Canada

Proposed state: Western Canada

Region: Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, and Yukon, Canada

Ethnic group: Western Canadians

Goal: independence

Date: 2019

Political parties: Maverick Party

Militant organizations/advocacy groups: -

Current status: active

History

11th century - first European explorers

1497 - British claim

1534 - French claim

1763 - New France is ceded to Great Britain

1791 - Constitutional Act

1840 - Act of Union

1858-1866 - Colony of British Columbia

1867 - Canadian Confederation

1870 - Manitoba Act

1871 - British Columbia joins the Confederation

1905 - Alberta Act, Saskatchewan Act

1982 - Constitution Act

2019 - beginning of the Wexit movement

2020 - creation of the Maverick Party

The first European to arrive in present-day Canada is believed to have been Norse explorer Leif Erikson. However, the first large European settlement was established in the 16th century, when England and France claimed parts of the North American continent.

After the Seven Years’ War, France ceded its territories in North America to Great Britain. The 1791 Constitutional Act divided the country into English-speaking Upper Canada and French-speaking Lower Canada. Both regions were joined through the Act of Union. The country was finally united in the 20th century, with Alberta and Saskatchewan as the last provinces to join the four original provinces of the Canadian Confederation.

The Wexit movement for the independence of Western Canada began after the 2019 federal election, and Wexit Alberta was born. Its grievances include the excessive focus on Quebec sovereignty and economic issues. In 2020, it changed its name to the Maverick Party, which ran for the first time in the 2021 federal election, achieving only between 1 and 4 percent of the vote.

Western Canadians

Around 11.7 million people live in Western Canada, accounting for 32% of the country’s population. The majority of them are white, descended from Europeans.

English is the predominant language and Christianity is the most practiced religion, with 53.3% of Canadians professing it, of which 29.9% are Catholic and 11.4% Protestant. The dominant economic sectors are energy and agriculture.

[mariacallous]

India’s election calculus is tricky. When Narendra Modi led the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to power in 2014, he increased his party’s parliamentary seat tally to 282 from 116, essentially by gaining 12 percentage points of the popular vote. It was the first time since 1984 that a single Indian party won enough seats to form a government on its own.

The Indian National Congress party led the ruling coalition that Modi and the BJP defeated in 2014; the party’s vote share fell by 9 percentage points, but its seats dropped from 206 to a mere 44. Five years later, the BJP’s vote share rose again, to 37 percent, giving Modi’s party 303 seats. Congress increased its number of seats to 52, but as in 2014, that wasn’t even enough to merit a formal leader of the opposition in parliament.

In the six-week national election that concluded this month, the BJP’s vote share dropped only marginally, to around 36 percent, but its number of seats fell dramatically, to 240—causing the party to lose its majority. Although Congress’s vote share rose modestly to around 21 percent, its seats increased to 99. As a result, India will have an official leader of the opposition for the first time in a decade. Rahul Gandhi, the Congress party leader and heir to India’s most illustrious political dynasty, may well play that role.

That may seem like a small achievement for India’s beleaguered opposition—and the election result was still the third-worst performance for Congress since India’s first vote in 1952—but it represents a change surprising and seismic enough for some analysts to conclude that Modi’s latest victory was “Pyrrhic,” and that the opposition now has a foundation to win in 2029. As the former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson quipped, “A week is a long time in politics”—and five years an eternity.

In 2029, Modi will be 78 years old, but this year, he still ran a campaign based on his own record and personality. The BJP’s manifesto included more than 50 photographs of Modi. Much commentary about the results has focused on Modi’s declining popularity. Given his political dominance, it is natural for his critics to enjoy a moment of schadenfreude. On the campaign trail, Modi’s rhetoric sounded more shrill, critical of minorities, and insulting toward his opponents; during the election, he even implied that he was divinely ordained to lead India.

This year’s election has also undermined the argument that Modi’s main rival, Rahul Gandhi, is a political lightweight overwhelmed by India’s complexities. Gandhi is descended from three former prime ministers, including India’s first, Jawaharlal Nehru. (His mother, Sonia, serves in the upper house of parliament.) Now 54, Gandhi has been a member of parliament since 2004, winning six of the seven elections that he has contested. Yet the BJP has carried out a relentless and remarkably effective propaganda campaign against him. Modi has described him as a shehzada, or crown prince, while BJP ministers have dismissed him as Pappu, a pejorative term for a young boy of limited intelligence.

Unlike Modi, Gandhi does not assert that he has all the answers; he listens, an approach that may have helped him during the election. He likes to engage the public, and since September 2022 he has led two long marches across the country—the Bharat Jodo Yatra (Unite India March) and the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra (Unite India for Justice March)—that electrified the masses and transformed his image. According to some estimates, Gandhi wrested 41 parliamentary seats from areas where he marched. He talked to constituents, listened to voters, and spoke about social justice, women’s emancipation, empowering the weak and the dispossessed, and bringing people together.

Those topics may seem mawkish, but India’s last decade has been a period of considerable strife. Discrimination against Muslims has grown, with mosques targeted or claimed by Hindus, homes bulldozed, and interfaith marriages discouraged. The triumphal inauguration of a Hindu temple—sanctioned by the Indian Supreme Court—on the site of a mosque razed in 1992 only further alienated Muslims. The BJP’s policy of imposing the Hindi language in states where it is not spoken widely has fueled animosity. Youth unemployment has risen in many parts of the country, along with inequality.

As in the past, Modi’s campaign focused on divisive issues—but more voters than in the last two elections seemed to listen to Gandhi this time around. These voters likely don’t care about more Indians being listed in global rankings of billionaires; they are uninterested in gleaming high-rises and malls, speedier trains, superior airports, or toll roads connecting long distances. Their concerns are for more access to water, food, electricity, jobs, and justice. Gandhi seemed to fashion the Congress manifesto to respond to those concerns.

This is not to suggest that, if elected to power, the Congress party would meet these perennial needs. Having ruled India for 54 of its 76 years since independence, Congress must bear the blame for India’s lack of development. The party deserves credit for introducing economic liberalization in 1991, but its support for free-market reforms has often been cautious rather than enthusiastic. Furthermore, although Gandhi speaks of harmony, there have been several disturbances under Congress party rule in India—the most notorious being the massacre of Sikhs in 1984 in retaliatory violence after the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Rahul’s grandmother.

Nonetheless, Gandhi’s spirited campaign, decency, and collegiality stood in marked contrast to Modi’s personalized and abrasive style. Gandhi seemed to avoid a personality cult by building a consensus-driven campaign and not projecting himself as the face of the opposition alliance. In the leadup to the election, he continued to be ridiculed as an entitled politician, but he focused on his message. And wherever he marched, he chipped votes away from the BJP. One analysis showed that between 600,000 and 700,000 votes going the other way in 30 constituencies would have led to a different outcome.

The BJP has portrayed itself as pro-business, and analysts sympathetic to the BJP have described Congress as leftist, with BJP leaders reinforcing the link. Indeed, Congress introduced many welfare schemes for the poor—but the BJP has not canceled any of them during its time in power and has increased support for some programs. Historically, Congress was a centrist or center-left party reliant on the support of Indian businesses that pursued a prudent fiscal policy. The party was distrustful of private capital and free-market economics. But it was also Congress that took early steps in liberalization, invested in technology, and boosted India’s telecoms network.

For Congress, the road ahead remains long, but its rejuvenation raises interesting possibilities. Most Indian voters are too young to remember a Gandhi—or Nehru—as prime minister. Now, there could soon be three Gandhis in parliament: On Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi’s sister, Priyanka, announced that she would contest one of the two seats that her brother won during this election. Some observers see Priyanka as more charismatic and savvier than Rahul.

Furthermore, a sizable segment of India’s population is under the age of 30, and this generation has rising expectations and aspirations—including an impatience to get rich. Can Congress reinvent itself as India’s so-called banyan tree party that includes everyone under its shade? The BJP offers a muscular nationalism with angry overtones; Gandhi promises that he wants to revive an older idea of India, based on equality and tolerance. Do these younger voters want a calmer, gentler India?

Indian politics has entered a new phase, and the time to ignore Rahul Gandhi may be over. He may still never become India’s prime minister—after all, it seems unlikely that someone from the Gandhi family would want to lead a shaky coalition. But even if he simply persists in emphasizing equality, justice, and empathy, Gandhi will have played a transformative role in Indian politics.

The last decade has shown India’s angry and assertive side, but its founding fathers built the country’s reputation as a soft power that punched above its weight. Reclaiming such moral authority has its virtues. The rules are changing in India, and Gandhi may not only be the son who rises, but also the son who surprises.

[beardedmrbean]

Feb. 27 (UPI) -- British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday, announced a deal settling a dispute over trading arrangements for Northern Ireland.

"Together, we have changed the original protocol, and are today announcing the new Windsor framework," British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said at the joint news conference in Windsor, outside London Monday.

"Today's agreement delivers smooth flowing trade from within the whole of the United Kingdom, protects Northern Ireland's place in our union, and safeguards sovereignty for the people of Northern Ireland."

The agreement on the Northern Ireland protocol is the culmination of an all-out diplomatic push mounted by Sunak over recent months, and removes a major Brexit stumbling block that has poisoned relations with the EU and left Northern Ireland effectively without government for the past 10 months.

RELATED Northern Ireland unionists warn no deal with EU risks breakup of country

Sunak now needs to hold cabinet meeting before going to parliament to make a House of Commons statement.

Any vote on the deal is unlikely before next week in order to allow lawmakers sufficient time to digest the agreement's legal text.

The talks took place in Windsor, just outside London, where in a sign of the importance of the breakthrough, von der Leyen met with King Charles III. However, that ignited a fresh row over involving the monarchy -- which normally remains neutral -- in politics.

RELATEDBritish PM Sunak launches bid to resolve Northern Ireland trade row with EU

Sammy Wilson, a spokesman for the Democratic Unionist Party, the second largest party in Northern Ireland, criticized the meeting between the monarch and von der Leyen calling it an abuse of the king.

"Not only is the Prime Minister naive if that's what he was planning to do, but this is a cynical use, or abuse of the king.... [it would be] dragging the king into a hugely controversial political issue, not just in Northern Ireland but even within his own party."

The protocol, designed to avoid a hard land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland which is part of the EU, moves the border with the EU to the middle of the Irish Sea instead -- preventing free movement of goods from other parts of Britain.

The DUP has refused to participate in a power-sharing government with Sinn Fein, the largest party, since May in protest over the protocol which they argue treats Northern Ireland differently than other parts of Britain.

The protocol gives the European Court of Justice the final say in disputes over the protocol, a role the DUP also wants ended along with eurosceptics within the ruling Conservative Party in London.

They are demanding the country be treated in exactly the same way as the rest of the United Kingdom where the laws in Northern Ireland are British laws, not EU laws.

The deal on the table would see a customs check-free "green" lane for goods destined for Northern Ireland and a "red" lane for goods passing through the province en route to the Irish Republic and establish an arbitration panel made up of Northern Ireland and EU judges.

The panel would try to settle disputes in the first instance, avoiding the involvement of the ECJ in most cases.

It remains uncertain if the DUP and so-called Brexiteers in the ruling Conservative Party will support it.

The Irish News reported the DUP was expected to accept the protocol deal.

But leader Jeffrey Donaldson said in a Twitter post, "We'll take our time to consider the detail and measure a deal against our seven tests."

Mark Franciois former chairman of the party's eurosceptic European Research Group said EU law must be "expunged" from Northern Ireland.

Former Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers, who campaigned for Britain to leave to EU, said it was "crucial parliament has a vote".

[theworstfoundingfathers]

Who is the worst? Round 1: Charles Wilson Peale vs John Quincy Adams

Charles Willson Peale (April 15, 1741 – February 22, 1827) was an American painter, American patriot, scientist, inventor, politician, and naturalist.

In 1775, inspired by the American Revolution, Peale moved from his native Maryland to Philadelphia, where he set up a painting studio and joined Sons of Liberty, the Pennsylvania militia, and ultimately the Continental Army under the command of General George Washington, where he participated in active combat against the British Army during the American Revolutionary War.

Despite his support of antislavery legislation and expressed distaste for human bondage, Peale was a slave owner for many years. Though Peale had freed Lucy and Scarborough [an enslaved couple he owned], their son Moses remained an enslaved apprentice until his manumission at the turn of the nineteenth century, at twenty-seven years old.

John Quincy Adams (July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American politician, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States Secretary of State from 1817 to 1825. During his long diplomatic and political career, Adams also served as an ambassador, and as a member of the United States Congress representing Massachusetts in both chambers.

During Adams's presidency, the Democratic-Republican Party split into two major camps: the National Republican Party, which supported President Adams, and Andrew Jackson's Democratic Party. The Democrats proved to be more effective political organizers than Adams and his National Republican supporters, and Jackson soundly defeated Adams in the 1828 presidential election, making Adams the second president to fail to win re-election (his father being the first).