#still has that power imbalance yet that necessity of being together

[fraternum-momentum]

give me your complete and unwavering devotion.

[esther-dot]

In line with the anti-jonsa arguments, the only one I believe had some impact on me (this isn’t even in universe, it’s just in general) was that incest is inherently oppressive towards women. The one person who is not supposed to think of you like that, look at you like that - does. There is no safety for you to fall back on because even your family is not acting like family. I don’t know how this will translate with Jon and Sansa, because Sansa will expect protection as a sister and then them falling in love with each while knowing the other is their half-sibling is tilted towards Jon having more power in that dynamic as a man. Then comes in the question of Sansa’s claim to Winterfell and Jon being the heir to Robb’s will. It’s muddled up and the solution (join together in marriage) doesn’t look as appealing to considering incest here will still hurt Sansa, because of society being inherently systemically oppressive, and not save her or her claim. (This is one of the reasons why I didn’t like show KiTN Jon because whatever the fuck happened to “Winterfell belongs to my sister Sansa”. I mean there’s a lot wrong with the show after that but it particularly pissed me off lol because in canon jon would NEVER do that and is the true air raid siren canary in the coal mine for Jon’s character butching (jonerys 🙄)) Anyway, lost track there, but yeah. And on top of all of that, how is GRRM going to paint a better picture of something he’s been criticising for almost 30 years now? Still a Jonsa though, because I am a clown 🤡

(about this ask)

It’s really hard to tell which resolution Martin is working towards! On the one hand, it could be about creating a scenario in which politics / love align and resolving the Northern succession crisis gives Sansa and Jon everything they ever wanted. I love tidy storytelling, so that is very appealing to me. However, I do agree with you that that resolution isn’t without certain concerning aspects.

The other possibility is, it’s a test for Jon, just as he has continual been tempted throughout the series, only, this is the greatest one yet. His brother, friend, the heir, the KitN himself chose Jon. As a Jon fan, I love what that will mean to him. The show didn’t have the benefit of Robb’s Will, so it felt more ooc for Jon than it could be written in the books. After all, Sansa is still married to Tyrion. Also, with different factions in the books possibly supporting different Starks, it’s possible Sansa sees the greater good (she doesn’t consider her claim much after all/isn’t attached to it) and works to get everyone to support Jon as he is older, male, has Robb’s endorsement, and might play a key role in winning back Winterfell so he could be a peace candidate / the one everyone can coalesce around. I mean, that’s a little hard for me to imagine with the prejudice against bastards and what his rep will be post rez, but Martin could write it in a way that doesn’t feel like Jon taking advantage of the situation and rather, Jon doing something he feels guilty about out of necessity, with the blessing of Robb and more importantly Sansa. However, if it is a test, Jon would have to instead defend Sansa’s claim. If Jon refuses everything and then parentage reveal comes out, they could marry at a later date when the relationship can be of Sansa’s choosing, removing the disturbing implications of the political benefits for Jon/the power imbalance.

I’ve moved towards the secret wedding idea (here are posts about that 1, 2). Sansa would probably have to suggest the idea herself and persuade him giving her a lot of agency in her own fate, and it’s potentially a callback to Jace/Sara and Rhaegar/Lyanna. That could happen secretly purely because she’s already married and she wants to be married before he goes to war, or because they don’t have support for it (maybe the North does think it’s icky or is very anti Targ with the disaster of Dany’s invasion happening), or it might happen before Jon is exiled simply because Sansa wants it. I’ve said before, perhaps the best way to answer Sansa’s fears are for Jon to marry her when he can’t have Winterfell, so she knows it is her, not her claim, that he wants. In that scenario, there is nothing for Jon to gain, it is love, only love that motivates him. It’s the most romantic of the options, even if it isn’t the happiest.

Whatever the endpoint, I think there are enough variables that Martin could make any of a number of different paths work and keep them in-character for Jon as well as avoiding backtracking his criticisms simply because we will know Jon’s motivations.

[mittensmorgul]

Also I’m still kind of confused what happened to Jack. When he said he wasn’t going to live in the bunker anymore and be hands off did he just mean he’s going to be living in heaven now? Can Cas actually see/talk to him or is he literally a raindrop?

Hi there! I’ll share how I’ve always kinda seen Chuck as a character going back years, even before s11, because I think my personal interpretation on Jack actually relies on having thought this about Chuck... and obviously I don’t know if the show ever even considered what I’m about to write here but this interpretation is there in canon for loons like me who think way too much about the functional metaphysics and metaphors of the show who actually enjoy seeing it there. :)

WARNING: ENTERING MITTENS WILD HEADCANON TERRITORY

So I’ve been writing since after the s10 finale dropped about what the Darkness actually was... a destructive force, yes, but only in opposition to the creative force, or “light.” At the time I defended this read with my Armchair Scientist™ (i.e. I have no formal training in it, but to the best of my understanding this holds water) knowledge of astrophysics. This is how our universe functions. There’s light and stars and matter and elements that we can perceive, and yet that doesn’t account for why the universe functions the way it does unless there’s some unseen, additional force at work and powering all of it, as well. In astrophysics, this is referred to as “dark matter” and “dark energy.” And it’s as essential to the function of our entire universe as the stuff we can see, but its existence is only theoretical because we can perceive gaps where stuff should be based on everything else we are able to observe.

Gosh I hope that makes sense. >.>

so in the simplest metaphorical terms in the construct of the Supernatural universe, Chuck-as-Light and Amara-as-Darkness. but when Chuck locked her away at the beginning of creation, and tried to make his universe “work” without that dark force to support the rest of it, the universe kept trying to force balance on itself in increasingly complex ways as the story and the construct of the universe continued to evolve from only half the original elements required for that balance to truly function. I don’t think, and never have thought of Chuck and Amara as “people.” Or even “people adjacent.” They’re personifications of these two basic yet opposing forces.

So what does that mean in-story? That Chuck didn’t start at this beginning of his own story, at the moment of creation of the universe, as a “writer.” Like everything else about him, I think he himself as an Avatar of his own creation evolved as his creation did. When life emerged, without the Essential Force of Destruction (because he’d locked that up with the Darkness), he had to become that force in his own creation. Each time he encountered a new spontaneous detail that evolved in his creation, he also needed to manifest the parts of it that would’ve been naturally countered by the missing forces from his own creation. By the very nature of HOW he created all of this, he had to become destruction. And he’s never been very good at that part, because it’s not what he’s literally made of.

Chuck-- aka the generative force-- by necessity became a duality himself, and in doing so he became more and more essentially woven through the entirety of his creation until he actually manifested AS Chuck, “gave himself the ability to play music,” even. But like, the more of himself he needed to invest in keeping the entire universe in balance, the more he began to congeal into a more concrete entity, like the act of creation by necessity pulled his power out of the fabric of creation in some ways, and forced it into the unseen mesh of destruction in others. And from that duality, and from interacting with his own creation, The Force of Light and Creation that we label “God” evolved into Chuck the Author, because metaphors.

And I’ve reached the point of this essay where I have officially started to feel deranged because I don’t have the right words to express how this makes sense inside my own head. It’s like trying to write a literal description of what achieving Nirvana feels like, you know? We’re fully in “what is the sound of one hand clapping” territory, and apologies if I just sound like a crackpot at this point, but I honestly don’t have better words for this. It’s not really a compatible-with-words thing.

Okay, that said, when Amara was brought into the story, this was her journey of understanding the creation Chuck made without her, and her finding value and worth in it herself while also seeing the points at which she should’ve been there to crate the balance Chuck had to force on the universe in her absence. She’d initially seen it as “failure,” but now she truly seems to understand and love this creation and has been actively trying to find a way to fit herself into it. And metaphorically, that has been healing the parts of the universe that should have been hers all along.

I love her final appeal to Chuck before he crushed her with one final manipulation into capitulating to his will, in 15.17:

AMARA: It's not too late, brother. You can still choose this world, us. It doesn't have to end like this. I--

CHUCK: Amara. Shut up.

She really wanted them to achieve the true balance that SHOULD’ve permeated creation in the first place. In that same episode, we have Adam’s test for Jack, in which Jack “sees” this fundamental imbalance and Adam metaphorically “names” it:

ADAM: That's your choice?

JACK: Yes. [Adam looks slightly disappointed, but Jack goes on] And the others. All of them. They're just rocks but their existence makes them divine. Because God is in everything.

ADAM: [he sighs with relief and smiles at Jack] Right on. At least, he should be.

AT LEAST HE SHOULD BE.

Chuck... wasn’t in all things, even though that’s how the universe-in-true-balance SHOULD have functioned, if half the force of it hadn’t been cut off and shunted to the side. In trying to be all things to the entirety of creation, Chuck... failed at this basic level without the balance he should’ve had with Amara. Not as people, not even as “personifications” or “avatars” or “incarnations” of these concepts, but as the concepts themselves.

He broke his own creation by asserting his will on it in the first place, because as the force of creation, he should’ve never had a will to begin with.

And then we have Jack, who has been through experiences since his birth that have “split” him into each of these fundamental elements-- or at least into smaller-scale versions of these fundamental elements. He experienced balance at birth-- divine creative and destructive force held together through human love. But he was “split” into “grace and a human soul” and was forced to experience each of these states independently of one another. But he couldn’t truly exist without being reunited into his Whole Self. After the metaphorical spiritual journey that Billie sent him on after his own apparent “death” at Chuck’s hands in 14.20, he began a process of rebuilding himself and achieving a sort of “enlightenment” that culminated in an act of pure creation, and he began “absorbing” the power to contain the fully balanced unification of all the forces necessary to truly heal creation.

Jack became a crucible for this unification to exist in.

It reminds me of Chuck trying to force Dean into this role in s11, labeling him “the firewall between light and dark,” because that’s just.. not something a human being should even have to consider being. That was Chuck trying to force his narrative on Dean to avoid accepting the responsibility for capitulating and letting go of his story for himself. But Jack... wasn’t just a cute lil 3 year old human. His very creation was an act of defiance against the original creator, and like Kelly always professed, he would be the force to raise the universe up to its full potential.

I still feel disappointed that we didn’t have a final scene of Jack going to her in Heaven before he tore all the walls down, and telling her that it was all worth it, that they won and the universe was healed because of her, because she loved him and believed in him, and then saw the walls in Heaven fall (because the walls in Heaven were always Chuck’s power construct that only ever existed because of his need to fill the power gaps in his own creation through forcing angels and human souls into powering his narrative for him). 

But back to the point... I feel like as a “fully reunited” balance of the univrse-- Light and Darkness contained in the crucible of Pure Human Love that Jack represented, I don’t think “Jack” ceased to exist, but that as a being he’s... dissipated himself throughout ALL of creation-- heaven, hell, purgatory, earth... and even restored the Empty to its state of blissful slumber. Of course he wouldn’t have left Cas there, he would’ve visited him too and given him a choice, because this has always been about choice. Cas sacrificed himself DIRECTLY FOR JACK to have been able to achieve this victory in the first place. I cannot conceive of a version of events that would’ve relegated Cas to eternal oblivion.

And again, steering this bus back onto the road.... sorry for all the detours, I swear I am getting to the point here...

I think what we’re left with as an understanding of Jack is that he and his love and power are everywhere in creation now, in the stones were God’s love should have been but wasn’t anymore, in all of it if you’re actually looking for it.

I don’t think the narrative actually precludes Jack from manifesting as the guy we love, but I don’t know that it’s even important to the structure of the universe that he ever would.

As a character we love and feel for, though, I don’t think there’s anything stopping him from peacefully wandering the fields of the Paradise Heaven he built for the people he loves the most and sharing in their pure human joy at their reunion.

Does this make sense? Or is this... just... wackadoodle logic I’ve laid over top of all this nonsense...? It does make me feel better to think of it all this way. And it’s why I have been pretty sure since s13 that Jack would be the one character who did not “survive the series,” because this was literally the role he was born to fill in the universe, on a cosmic scale. Healing it out of love, for everyone who loved him. He brought humanity and balance to the universe as the guiding principles, and cancelled Chuck’s original story.

[afoxysunny]

Robbie as Bullock

This post will probably differ from the others in structure and be a lot longer for one big reason

When choosing Miraculous for the Lazytown characters i really wanted to only use ones that we've already seen in use in Miraculous Ladybug and know how they work from there.

For Robbie i broke that rule. I don't really remember what first made me consider it but it probably had to do with the fact that i think the Ox Miraculous, just aesthetically, would fit Robbie perfectly!

So for this one i had to start from scratch completely, no reference for a canon hero design, no idea what power or weapon he'd get, no clue what the phrase to transform could be.

Of cause i used the most references for him but here are the ten i found most important

Obviously i don't expect any of my speculations to become even remotely canon once we find out what Stompp, the Ox Miraculous, actually does but i hope it at least makes sense for now.

I like how I've drawn all the others standing head on to face the camera and Robbie just leans there. That's because you have to think he doesn't care, the little Tsundere

Concept Overview:

In the Miraculous Ladybug episode we meet all the Kwamis, including Stompp, he is the most actively concerned about Nooroo so now that the Butterfly Kwami is back I'm sure Stompp would want to stay around him. With Sportacus partnering with Nooroo, teaming up Robbie and Stompp made the most sense to them.

Design Notes Incoherent Thoughts I had to justify what I'm Drawing:

Purple and Blue - it amused me no end that with the choices i made blue Sportacus got a purple Kwami and purple Robbie got a blue kwami. I did kinda dislike at first how little blue the costume has in comparison to purple but i decided i don't have to make a decision because apparently the canon show can't make up its mind about Stompp's colour either. The blue and purple can always be swapped if i decide i don't like it

Harness - Ox' are hard working animals, mostly used to pull heavy objects. For that purpose they get strapped into a harness. Obviously i had to include that in this design, the chain hanging from the collar around his neck has a similar purpose (it only occured to me way too late how kinky it looks please ignore that)

Cape? No cape? - because of the imbalance in colours i briefly considered giving him a cape like a Matador would have but only for a second or so. I wanted to keep Robbie's iconic body shape untouched by a bunky cape, also the few times he wore a cape in the show he really struggled with it and also i think it would've clashed with the tail

Tail - speaking of which, an ox' tail has that frizzy end to it but i really liked the chain as his tail so to emulate the thicker part at the end i hung a padlock there. And that really worked. Not only bc that's just how bulls and ox are kept in check with their strength but also because the oblong shape of a combination lock makes for a fitting shape and can be used in universe. You see, Robbie is not that good with just saying what he wants or expressing how he feels. This four letter combination lock is magic and kinda betrays and helps him at the same time. It spells out any given four letter word that fits his mood best at any given moment

Miraculous Nosering - if a Lazytown character would unironically get a nosering, it'd be Robbie. I'm sorry, i don't take criticism on that

Horns - he needed horns. He just did. Look how good he looks with horns! But for real, in Miraculous Ladybug Chat Noir gets actual cat ears so he can get actual horns, also like Chat he the white parts of his eyes turn yellow like Stompp's while keeping his signature grey iris

Hair - ox' are mostly shown with like bangs covering their eyes so i couldn't resist ruffling his usually so perfectly done hair up to make it fall a little like that

Weapon - my first thought of "Miraculous takes cliché traits for animals to base their powers on so i guess bullfighting is the way to go here" made me really sad. This "Sport" is so disgusting i wanted to cry and puke while reading about it. I'll spare you the details but in addition to the Matador in the arena there's other guys too to weaken the bull before the Matador kills it, one of them throws knives. Miraculous Ladybug likes combining weapons with toys so I'm giving him darts. They are fastened to the front of his harness and i think how they can be used is along the lines of, once he zhrows them with his super strength and they pin into something they can only be removed when he allows that, also like the ladybug's jojo they can fly how long and whatever direction he wants, and probably also is able to just manifest them back to himself if ever one gets lost

Miraculous Power - again, just pure speculation here, but the powers we so far know of are all loosely based on an exaggerated cartoon trope of each animal so for the ox that is hard working and persistent and for the bull that'd be aggression and tunnel vision. While typing this i get the urge to add blinders to his mask but i digress. So i made up an exaggerated power that'd fit both but when i told my test group (two people) one said "oh, kinda like Bloodhound from Apex Legends" and the ozher said "so like hunter's mark from DnD" i play neither so i don't know but maybe you do do that's the short version of the explanation xD his power is based on the cartoonish depiction of a bull seeing something that bothers him and then charging at it for as long as he can until he gets it. Once Robbie focuses on an enemy or someone running away or someone he is following for whatever reason he can use his power to keep track of them. No matter how far away they go or where they try to hide. It sounds OP as shit but think of the Snake and Bunny who can both time travel and then say that again. The catch is he needs to use it while that person is still in clear sight for him so i think it balances a little better

Name:

Do you know the difference between a Bull and an Ox? Well, let me mansplain it to you anyway

The reason i kept switching between drawing inspiration from bulls and ox' is because it's the same animal. Those are both names for an adult male cow. The only difference being that an ox is castrated and a bull is not. Stompp is the Ox Miraculous so tough nuts Robbie, literally. But making babies isn't really on his to do list anyway with Sportacus as his partner so who cares.

Anyway, I had the design done and like always i struggled a lot with naming it

But then i learned a Bullock is not only a cool word that seems to be a mix of bull and lock like his design is but it also is the official name of a male cow too young to be castrated yet! Isn't that just perfect? I think it is

Also I'll include in this section the phrases one needs to speak to have Stompp transform them into this Ox themed Superhero and for the power to activate. If you think of something more fitting for either please let me know!

Transformation:

simple version - horns up / horns down

More detailed - time to charge / time to loaf

(charging is when a bull starts running blindly at something; loafing is the professional farmer term for a resting cow)

Power: Target Charge, Locked On, or my personal favorite option Head-On. Again going with the more in depth terminology, that's what the running style of a bull is called when he's chatging at a target

Story:

Robbie lived in Lazytown but when the kids grew louder and older and he got more annoyed wih not having his peace and quiet he just up and left. He spent a lot of time traveling around, living wherever it was comfortable and leaving when it wasn't anymore. Thanks to being an inventor and overall talanted crafty person he got by pretty easily as there was always a company running on "hire a lazy person for an important job, they'll find the easiest solution for the most complicated problems" so he never really had to worry.

Whether by coincidence or fate Robbie and Sportacus run into each other and despite Robbie being a little difficult they both immediately feel strangely drawn to one another. With time going by they meet more often, at first more or less by chance but eventually they plan to meet up regularly. They might have very different ways of doing it but they share a common lifestyle: helping out others to live a comfortable and fulfilling life.

Only after Sportacus was chosen to be the new Guardian of the Miracle Box he finally asks Robbie to join him, full time by his side traveling in his airship around the world wherever they may be needed. Of cause only for moral support and such, obviously. You see, they always enjoyed each others company and sort of over time eased into a relationship like coexistence but neither of them ever really acknowledged that. Only when Sportacus got Nooroo's power to sense other people's feelings that barrier of miscommunication fully fell. Robbie is incredibly bad with conveying his emotions but now Sportacus can sense that he has potentially the most powerful and purest emotions he ever encountered. Not only is each feeling of his powerful but when there is more than one at play they don't mix together and muddy each other but instead boost even more. He knew before that he wanted Robbie to join him but that discovery made it a necessity.

Despite not being able to actually say so Robbie is thrilled to come along. Only over time and with a lot of painfully slow conversations they manage to agree to make their relationship official.

Stompp, the sassy Ox Kwami, regularly bursts out of the Miracle Box to want to check on Nooroo and slowly he and Robbie bond over telling Sportacus and Nooroo to go easier on themselves and let a little responsibility get taken off their shoulders so eventually they team up and Bullock is created.

Thanks to Robbie's hard work to better himself with Sportacus' help, Stompp's magic transformation provides him with a tail that conveys his feelings for him.

When they hear that Lazytown has been wiped clean of grown-ups Sportacus immediately flies them over there so Robbie can check on his hometown. Finding only a few children, now teens, left there Robbie recognizes them and the two form the plan to give them Miraculous' too so they can help to find their lost family, friends and neighbors and fight together to bring them back.

Wow that was so much to read and you did it! I'm so impressed and thankful! You deserve a pat on the back (if you want one) and a cookie and/or sportscandy on your way out

[questionsonislam]

Some people suffer troubles and misfortunes in this world while others do not. Are those who are not hit by misfortunes very lucky?

Due to the nature of man, every individual feels the need of what he lacks. On the other hand, a person who has everything does not appreciate what he has and usually is unaware of those bounties like a prodigal inheritor. It will be appropriate to explain the issue through the following example:

While a child who has no shoes is crying, he suddenly sees a crippled child without feet. He becomes terrified, stops crying and says "O Lord! Thank you that I have my feet; I am so lucky; please forgive me..."; thus, he becomes content.

Then, people should be thankful. They must know well and appreciate the value of the things that they have.

To sum up, we should look at those who are inferior to us and console ourselves. We should look at those who are superior to us in terms of wealth and knowledge and try to catch up with them.

Man always sought justice in this world. First of all, it is necessary to know that there is no true justice in the world. Absolute justice will occur on the Day of Judgment. The world is a place of training and testing. Here, there are very complex issues that the mind cannot realize and that our feelings and faculties cannot understand. Let us give some examples.

Visible rays account for only about 4% of the lights. The other lights include Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Radio, Television, IKS, ultrasound, infrared, ultraviolet, Mion, Laser, Radar and other cosmic rays; they are invisible. Then, we can only see 4% of the lights and cannot see the remaining 96%. Therefore, statistically what we think that we see remains uncertain. That is, we see very little.

If we consider the sense of touch, it is not possible for us to recognize so many tiny beings that our eyes cannot see and the big beings like the galaxies and planets in the distance.

The power of our other senses is as weak as the sense of touch and it is not enough for us to understand everything.

However, beyond the emotions, we have a very valuable being called the "mind". We must complete our weak aspects with it. As a matter of fact, many devices have been made and many unknown things have become known thanks to the mind. However, the number of the unknown things is not few.

Thanks to the mind, we can also examine the reasons of some imbalances in this world. For example: Let us think about a baby that has been created with a congenital limb deficiency.

As some of us think, the birth of such a baby can never be called "God's injustice". There are great lessons for those who use their mind regarding that baby; there are signs in this painting for a person who uses his mind.

Many people sacrifice their lives so that their country can be saved, and others can continue to live on the territory of the country thanks to martyrs and veterans.

In this world, which is the property of God, God Almighty wants the humankind continue to exist and live peacefully. Therefore, other people are expected to thank and be content with their situation. In general, a person who is healthy and sound thinks that everybody is healthy and sound. One can notice that his healthy and sound body is a grant of God only when he sees handicapped people. That is why, the people who are considered as poor and handicapped people by us serve humanity greatly so that they will find the way to salvation. Therefore, I think they are blessed people like martyrs and veterans in the sight of God. However, man is far from understanding the wisdom behind this issue and similar ones. The handicapped and diseased people themselves may not be aware of this preordainment of God Almighty.

Then, we will express it again: There is no injustice in the world regarding the case of births with congenital defects or those injured later. There are very significant services and profound wisdom regarding their cases. On the one hand, other people are expected to see them and thank God and feel content. On the other hand, people are reminded that they should avoid alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, exposure to harmful radiation, diseases and other harmful things and hazards, and that otherwise their offspring might be deformed as the handicapped people.

Despite those grants and bounties of God Almighty, the number of unwise, thoughtless, emotionless, ungrateful and selfish people is increasing along with the number of handicapped people day by day.

Likewise, it is known that the illegitimate adoption, divorces, severe conflicts in the families, which are contrary to the orders of God, increase juvenile delinquencies. However, if man still looks for peace of mind and happiness with his numb and so to speak blind state despite those wonderful exemplary situations, he will not be able to find them. If the young generation does not see the mistakes of their parents and if they do not walk in the true path, it is necessary to be even more pessimistic for the future generations of humanity.

We have stated that troubles and misfortunes are the price of the mistakes that believers made in this world. However, sinless and innocent people are also affected by those troubles and misfortunes and their lives and property may also be harmed. At this point, the question that comes to mind first is, "is it not possible that only the sinners be affected by them not the innocent people?"

The following is stated in the verse,

"And fear tumult or oppression which affecteth not in particular (only) those of you who do wrong and know that Allah is strict in punishment.."(al-Anfal, 8/25)

There are certain lessons that we must take from this verse. However, the first thing that comes to mind is "why misfortunes also affect innocent people along with oppressors." In other words, when a misfortune occurs, the baby is thrown out with the bathwater; that is, the innocent people also lose their lives and property.

The answer to it lies in the fact that this world is a place of experience and testing. That is, if misfortunes hit only the oppressors and sinners and the innocent and sinless people were protected from them, a situation opposite to the mystery of testing would occur.

"An earthquake happens and only the sinners die under the buildings that collapse; the other people are saved; a flood hits a place and the oppressors are drowned but the innocent people are saved by an unseen hand. The sinners who hear about it start to repent because they think that they will be hit by misfortunes if they do not repent."

As a necessity of testing, when a misfortune occurs, it encompasses both the good ones and the bad ones together. Thus, the mystery of testing is not lost. If the good people were to be saved and only the bad people were to be harmed, the mystery of testing would be lost. People who have spirits like Abu Bakr and people who have spirits like Abu Jahl would be in the same level. Therefore, innocent people are sometimes exposed to oppression. However, misfortunes become atonement for their sins and increase their ranks. If those who are exposed to misfortunes are children who are not of age yet, it is expected from the mercy of God Almighty, who doesnot neglect to reckon even a very small good or bad deed, to give them more happiness than other children in the hereafter.

Regarding these misfortunes, great rewards of God Almighty’s mercy is in question for innocent people. The ephemeral goods of those sinless and innocent people become sadaqa and are transformed into permanent goods; their lives that end make them gain a kind of martyrdom that enables them to have an eternal life. Doubtlessly, it is not something unimportant to gain a great and eternal happiness in return for a small and temporary pain in the world.

Those who oppress others will be punished in this world or in the hereafter. Therefore, justice will be carried out. Those who were oppressed will get their due from the oppressors and they will be rewarded by God because they were oppressed despite being innocent; they will be granted endless bounties. When those people who were oppressed despite being innocent are asked about their situations in the hereafter, they will say, "We received great rewards in return for little trouble and we saw that the oppressors were punished in return for their oppression; we are glad."

Moreover, those people who are exposed to such oppression might receive various grants of God as a sign of His mercy.

God does not oppress anyone. He never ignores to punish those who oppress others though He sometimes delays it.

“No one can have more mercy than God.

No one can have more wrath than God.”

[somuchbetterthanthat]

"Because - one relationship is bound to go wrong, and the other to get better, and I may have written Daisy and Basira working it out here but.... But well. i have thoughts about that ." I would really love to read your thoughts if you want to expand on this! The parallels between Dasira and JonMartin are just too interesting. (Also I agree and am actually more worried about Basira than Martin at the moment.)

Ha. Okay. This may turn long? As literally everybody must have noticed by now, I have a tendency to ramble. But here goes nothing:

The parallels between Daisy/Basira and Jon/Martin ARE so interesting.

First off, Basira and Martin have both been implied to be/said to be the most Important Relationship for Daisy and Jon.

At least for Daisy, it’s explicit: she only agrees to work for Elias because Basira signs the contract, Basira is said to be “her last anchor to humanity”. Basira is the only person Daisy talks about when she’s in the coffin as well, so we can assume that apart from Basira, she doesn’t have anybody else in her life that matters as much as Basira does. And there is, most definitely, a real reciprocity here: Basira says “she’s the best partner I ever have”. Basira loves Daisy. More importantly, she relies on Daisy.

For Jon and Martin, it’s more complicated, more implied, and there is definitely the element of Georgie. Georgie IS important to Jon, and I’d argue she is the one he is closest to (you don’t just protect your ex-boyfriend from uni from the cops and let him stay at your place for months after not having seen him for years just. Like that. That’s fucking deep. And the fact that Jon thought of her first - that’s deep, too.)

But Georgie has explicitely told Jon she couldn’t be part of this, and I don’t see Jon going against that. And so, in a way, Martin de facto becomes once more the person whose Jon is closest to. And I say “once more” because, obviously, I’m never ever going to get over this quote: “People say you two are close” “... closer than the others I guess.” Which! doesn’t mean much when you know Jon, but also means a hell lot when you know Jon, whose closest bond otherwise is his ex-girlfriend from uni he hasn’t seen in years. And again, it IS important to remember that when Georgie said “you need anchors jon” in season 3, a few episodes later this has turned into “I promised Georgie I would speak to Martin.”

And of course, we know that Martin is in love with him, so, there’s that, that’s pretty deep as well (especially since Martin doesn’t seem to have much more connections outside of the institute) (why are all those people so lonely)

ANYWAY. With that in mind, here we go in season 4, and Jon and Daisy are both “monsters”: one trying to deal with the fact that he chose “monsterhood”, and what it means for his humanity as he gains more and more unnatural abilities, the other cut off from “her monsterhood” violently, and having to relearn what it means to be “human” and how to deal with the latent “monsterhood” still poking at her ribs now that she’s out. Both of those people try to connect with the people who had always been there for them before, Martin and Basira; but both Martin and Basira are “busy” and don’t have time to be emotional support anymore.

Now, here are my actual proper thoughts. Under the cut because. well. [THIS IS SO LONG I AM SO SO SO SORRY.  I WROTE A RAMBLY ESSAY. I’m sorry.]

Like I told you in my answer to your lovely comment: Basira and Daisy are starting this with an advantage: they’re partners. They’re equal partners, who’s been relying on each other for years. They know and care for each other, and are aware that the other cares for and knows them in return. IF Daisy (like in my fic) could manage to spot what is wrong with Basira, acknowledges what Basira can and cannot give to her right now, what Basira needs, then I think, genuinely, that they could talk about it and solve (at least) some of the problems between them. Because they’re a familiar team.

Jon and Martin have tried, multiple times, to talk to each other, and failed miserably, generally because of Jon; in season 2 because he couldn’t trust him, in season 3 because he was trying to protect him, and didn’t know how to mend the gap he’d created the season before. They have worked together, as a team, at the end of season 3 - but, the fact is, their relationship still suffers from a severe imbalance: not just “jon is martin’s boss” but really: Jon didn’t like Martin at first, and to everybody’s eyes, I suppose - most importantly martin - Martin cares for Jon way more than Jon cares for him. Which, inevitably, makes Jon reaching out now seem “too late”. And they still have to find their language, really, I think.

So, in all appearances…. It should go like I’ve written it? Daisy and Basira find common ground; they manage to go through this together. Whereas Jon and Martin have missed their chance, and with everything going on now, they’re just going to part more and more.

EXCEPT. No? I really don’t think it’s going to go like that.

Here’s the thing. Jon is unafraid to show his caring anymore. In fact, so scared he’s been of “losing his humanity” he seems adamant and fiercely determined to be soft, to be kind, to look for anchors and connections everywhere he can. He is learning to listen, and he is learning to express himself. He wants to save people, and he has. Sort of. He ‘saved’ Melanie. He definitely saved Daisy. And I am absolutely sure that, one way or another, he’s going to try and save Martin as well. He’s using his powers to be proactive. He was lost last season, terrified, but he said it himself at the beginning of season 4: his mind is clear now. focused. He’s reaching out. Willingly. Time and time again, even when rejected. But he’s also used on doing this on his own.  

Daisy… Admitedly, we haven’t had much of Daisy yet, so I could be wrong, but Daisy is going to have to very much to an introspective work that may not allow her to reach out like Jon does. She is lost, she is scared, and she doesn’t know herself anymore, not entirely. Can she really help Basira the way Basira needs her to in those conditions? And would someone else’s help (like Jon) be enough that she doesn’t need Basira as much anymore? Because, Basira relied on Daisy, but Daisy relied on her even… more. She grew used to it, probably. And – a fact that I remembered not long ago… Daisy was already losing Basira to the Eye, even before the coffin. Daisy asked Basira to come with her on Elias’ missions, and Basira said she couldn’t. And Daisy was rattled by this. Daisy had difficulties being without Basira. What if it turns out that Daisy’s lesson now turns out to learn how to be without Basira?

Now as for Basira - well, Basira is. So, so well-suited for the distant, detached part of the Eye we’ve grown used to with Elias and Gertrude. And I think at this point it’s canon that she looks up to Gertrude, and finds her way to be the most efficient; Basira is practical; she has to. Basira relied on Daisy and herself, and then Daisy was gone, which left her mind. It’s important to say, I think, that she TRIED the emotional connections thing, in season 3? She became friends with Melanie. She invited Martin for drinks as well. But eight months being the one person protecting the institute rationnally, without seemingly nobody else to talk to - well. And I don’t think she’s going to back off from this. Basira wishes she could rely on Daisy, but she doesn’t need Daisy. She could keep moving without her. She did. 

Here’s the thing, really, because I’m just going way way too long about this. Basira and Martin both made a choice to go on a path alone - Martin drastically so, let’s say. They both did this out of necessity, thinking they had no choices. Now Basira has all the cards in hands to change her mind: she’s got Daisy back. Different, but she’s got her. She could work with Jon, she could learn to trust Jon. But is she? Or is she going to keep thinking pratically about this? Logically? Because feeling hurts too much? Basira CARES. She cares a lot. She’s still mindful of people. Only she’s chosing mind over heart, because she tried heart over mind, and it led nowhere. 

Martin though? Martin doesn’t have all the cards in hands yet. He doesn’t know about Jon’s changes, because he hasn’t let Jon show him, one way or another. Martin’s stubborn as hell, but he’s also soft, and he loves Jon, and against the lonely, that’s the best possible thing.

So WHAT I AM TRYING TO SAY (god i’m sorry this is so long i’m sorry) is: 

- It’s not emotions that may sway Basira right now, not yet. It’s rationnality. It’s all she’s got to offer. But Daisy is all emotions right now. Can she meet Basira’s back on the rational train? Because Basira’s “she’s dead weight” comment leads to imply that Basira absolutely cannot go back the emotional way. 

- Jon and Martin though, are BOTH on the emotional wagon. Jon’s new emotional strengh may very well be what they need to actually meet half-way through. 

Hence: both relationships’ stance are going to shift; Jon and Martin have the potential to form a new, stronger bond, where they will meet as equal emotionally. But Basira and Daisy are at risk of seeing their relationship grow extremely unbalanced, with Daisy needing Basira much more than Basira needs her. 

Also, from a pure storytelling point of view: Martin’s role has always been important. He’s grown significally over last season, and his building relationship with Jon (platonic or romantic however you want to see it) has been ‘a red string’ leading the emotional journey of both character since day 1. But Jon and him HAVEN’T YET reached their Peak Equal Partnership, and I think it’s bound to happen. 

Basira is also growing to be Jon’s rational mirror, and I think so far the show has not, like - let’s say the most rational, logical people are not the ones who end up “in the right” from like, the story’s point of view. Gertrude died; Sasha, who was the most rational of the original team, died first. Tim, who at the end applauded Gertrude’s ways and cut his ties to any of the other characters emotionally, died as well. 

In my opinion —- Daisy and Basira’s relationship is not going to end well. For now, I think that: either Daisy will die trying to help Jon, or she’ll die trying to help Basira, trying to prove to her she can still help. OR, worst(?), she’ll go back to the Hunt for Basira. Because that’s what Basira needs, and Daisy needs her. 

In any case, no matter how much I love and adore Daisy with my whole heart right now, this podcast is not made for nice things, and i’m really not sure she’s going to survive the season. (and now i had the terrible thought of her dying just as they get Martin back) (proving to jon that emotions work, proving to basira that rationality is the only thing that makes you keep going).

[maybrandon]

Can Reiki Cure Psoriasis Astonishing Useful Tips

The next time my patient goes to where they can perform direct healing on yourself, to send healing to help a lot.Another dimension of self and others too.Any time their treatment doesn't work, rather than opening up their chakras.Where was that practising the Healing Energy which passes between the Egyptian and traditional Reiki course.

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Am I Ready To Learn Reiki

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Reiki Healing 7 Chakras

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[cleancutpage]

2019 Phoenix economic forecast and how it affects the future of commercial real estate

This post originally appeared on Ensemble Real Estate Solutions's Blog and is republished with permission. Find out how to syndicate your content with theBrokerList.

2019 Phoenix Economic Forecast

By Marina Hammersmith, CCIM, Senior VP, Healthcare Brokerage Services, Ensemble Real Estate Solutions

We are in the second longest economic expansion in US history and, according to Economist Elliott Pollack, expansion is expected to continue, albeit at a slower pace in 2019.

At the Annual 2019 IREM/CCIM Forecast, held on January 24th, Elliott Pollack and a host of panelists gathered together to discuss the state of the economy here in Phoenix, including what is driving growth and if the trend will continue.

We are in the second longest period of recovery and Pollack indicates that we are in the 8th inning. As the period of recovery gets longer; however, there are susceptibilities that can trigger recession. While that term brings the potential for angst and discomfort, Pollack reminds us that not all recessions are created equal. The most recent recession of 2007 to 2009 was a “once-in-an-80-year experience” and is unlikely to occur again in our lifetimes. The credit crisis caused by the bursting housing bubble helped to create this significant market correction. However, most recession periods last eight to 11 months and are mild. The good news is that with no significant imbalance in need of correction, when it does happen, indicators point to a mild recession.

The primary concern with the economy is the labor shortage. Currently, there are seven million unfilled jobs throughout the US, nearly the highest in recorded history. With this shortage comes increased wages and pressure on inflation. The Federal Reserve will continue to watch this and make adjustments as necessary in order to stave off a recession.

What is on the horizon for Arizona?

Arizona is sixth in the nation for job growth with 87% of that growth focused on the Phoenix Metro Market. People vote with their feet: 7% of all people moving throughout the US choose Arizona for relocation, making Phoenix the second fastest growing city in the west behind Seattle. Strong economic drivers including tremendous infrastructure, clean and uninterrupted power supply, land availability and affordability and no natural disasters make Phoenix appealing. Pollack indicated that 67,000 jobs were added to the State in 2018 and that he expects 60,000 new jobs in 2019. The sectors with the highest job growth are Construction, Education and Health Services, Professional Business Services, Leisure and Hospitality, and Manufacturing. Construction and Manufacturing are currently the leading drivers of job growth, which bring with them the support service industries.

Industrial

For the industrial sector, look to big box growth in the southwest valley around Goodyear with large data centers. The south central valley around the airport and the southeast valley rely heavily on a strong employment sector and attract users ranging from 50,000 to 250,000 SF for manufacturing.

Industrial development has been restrained over the last three or four years, generally leading to controlled growth and low vacancy.

The completion of the new Loop 202 freeway will have a significant impact on both the southwest and southeast valley by creating better access for the skilled workforce to more easily traverse the two markets.

Office

The office sector is enjoying significant growth in supply and rates, particularly along the freeway arterials of the southeast valley. In 2013, office vacancy hovered at 25%; now, we are seeing overall vacancy at 12.5%. In addition to the 300 days of sunshine, average temperatures of 75 degrees and an average commute time of 26 minutes, local government incentives are also helping to attract national firms. This has led to a diversity of industries in the area. Phoenix has had a strong history of jobs in Construction and Leisure and Hospitality, but over the last few years, there has been an influx of white-collar industries including finance, insurance, defense, bioscience, biomedical, and engineering.

Affordability is a significant consideration for growth, both in terms of commercial rents as well as housing. The average home price in Phoenix is $263,000. In neighboring Los Angeles County, the average home price is $625,000 and in San Francisco, it is $1,600,000. Housing affordability and the impact on cost of living are significant drivers into the Phoenix market.

With the strength of the local economy, job growth and the influx of residents to the state, healthcare demands continue to increase, creating a need for additional providers and points of delivery. The current reimbursement model for hospitals and providers has afforded expansion opportunities. Mayo Clinic announced a $648 million dollar expansion with plans to double the size of their Phoenix campus by 2023. They will bring another 2,000 jobs into the economy. Several other hospitals are following suit with plans to expand to meet the needs of the increasing demographic.

However, as this sector is vulnerable to legislation that impacts reimbursement for service, there continues to be a drive to low-cost delivery with touch-points at every acuity from the patient’s home to the primary delivery hub: the hospital. This trend is not likely to change.

Retail

Contrary to consumer opinion, brick and mortar retail is still going strong. Retail is never static; trends and shopping habits change, yet successful owners are adept at navigating this every evolving climate. Necessity-based retail or “internet-resistant retail” such as nail salons, gyms, restaurants, and entertainment venues will continue to drive the need for brick and mortar. These are driven by an increasing population and cannot be replaced by e-commerce. “Experience” retail is becoming a more significant segment of the market.

In 2005, developers built 11 million square feet of retail and much of that space sat empty during the recession. Growth is showing restraint now, with less than one million SF per year delivered to the market each year. Developers no longer build on a speculative basis, but instead respond to user needs.

Retailers look at big box closures as an opportunity to backfill the spaces with office users or multifamily housing. Current vacancy is 8.5% for retail or nine million square feet. Of that, three million SF is being removed from the market because it is being backfilled by alternative uses.

Multifamily

Phoenix has strong fundamentals for robust job growth, specifically for jobs in financial services. The largest growing demographic is young people, 20 to 34 years old, who are lured by a steady job market and affordable housing. Phoenix is the least expensive market in the western US, excluding Las Vegas.

Demand is outpacing supply. Local household formation is expected to be between 47,000 to 48,000 each year through 2026, as projected by CBRE. With new single-family home deliveries of 22,000 units and multifamily at 8,000 units last year, the household demand is exceeding the annual supply, which is leading to a decline in vacancy and strong rent growth.

In years prior, infill locations around Central Phoenix and South Scottsdale have taken center stage; however, with the uptick of construction costs, it is getting more difficult to deliver those options at reasonable rates. There has been a shift to the outlier markets of Gilbert, Goodyear, and Avondale, where land prices are low enough to deliver affordable multifamily projects.

Conclusion

The theme of the Forecast can be summarized with the following highlights:

Phoenix is the economical “back-office” alternative to the west coast

Infrastructure and government incentives will continue to support growth

The diversity of the industries create a strong and synergistic economy

While a recession appears to be on the horizon, it is anticipated to be minor in terms of length and impact

Participants in the local real estate market have indicated that while we may be in the eighth inning, this is likely a double-header with plenty of play left in the game.

RSS Feed provided by theBrokerList Blog - Are you on theBrokerList for commercial real estate (cre)? and 2019 Phoenix economic forecast and how it affects the future of commercial real estate was written by Ensemble Real Estate Solutions.

2019 Phoenix economic forecast and how it affects the future of commercial real estate published first on https://greatlivinghomespage.tumblr.com/

[lewisgabriel84z31]

Miners Should Always Make Sure That in the End They Are on a Positive Balance – Ami Turgman of Microsoft

Miners Should Always Make Sure That in the End They Are on a Positive Balance – Ami Turgman of Microsoft

It’s problematic to say which protocol – Proof of Stake or Proof of Work – is more promising due to the whole bunch of unresolved issues, notes Ami Turgman, the speaker of oncoming Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference Israel.

Ami Turgman is the principal software engineer and evangelist at Microsoft. He has been working for Microsoft for 10 years and has a broad experience in the field. In the interview to the press service of the conference, Ami Turgman explained discussed energy consumption by mining as well as PoW and PoS issues.

Interviewer: Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference Israel (BCI)

Speaker: Ami Turgman, Principal Software Engineer and Evangelist at Microsoft (A.T.)

BCI: Hello, Ami! Which protocol do you believe to be more promising: Proof of Work or Proof of Stake?

AT: It’s a bit problematic to say since each of the protocols has its own advantages and disadvantages. I think that PoW has already proved itself as a solid consensus algorithm that’s been securely used for years in the Bitcoin network, for example. The problem is that it’s not sustainable as far as energy consumption is concerned, and it’s not getting any better. As we manufacture more advanced and faster computation power, we increase the difficulty of the protocol to keep the rate of new blocks generation constant, which in turn requires the use of more energy, even though the processors energy consumption is reduced. In addition, it’s also not scalable, as we see more and more traffic in these networks.

The problem with PoS is that, as I see it, there are a lot of open questions that are raised by the community with no clear answers, or at least the answers we get are vague. Questions like – just because a forger ‘A’ has higher stake, why should I believe him/her? Are there situations like forking in PoS? What are those slashing conditions that all forgers must follow? Is it possible that a forger might end being on the wrong side unwillingly? How is that handled? What will happen if a later audit finds that a consensus made earlier needs to be reversed? How are the forgers monitored and disciplined? Doesn’t PoS make the rich richer and create a total imbalance of power?

Until we get clear answers to these questions, it will be difficult to answer which protocol is more promising. There’s no doubt about the necessity of reducing the energy consumption used in PoW and increasing transactions throughput, but as things look now, I think it’s a bit early to say that PoS provides both a sustainable, and a secured mechanism for reaching consensus, as PoW does.

BCI: In one of the interviews of 2017, Vitalik Buterin shared opinion that mining would be beneficial another year or two and afterwards there would be no sense in mining. How would you comment on the statement?

AT: I’m not sure what the context was, but I can only guess that Vitalik is referring to the energy consumption that only gets higher as the difficulty of the PoW puzzle gets more and more difficult. Miners should always make sure that in the end, they are on a positive balance between the cost they spend on energy and the income they get out of the rewards and transactions fees they get for the blocks they succeed in mining. Once they get to a situation when they need to invest more money in energy than what they are able to get from mining, it will become none profitable and then there will be no incentive for miners to mine.

BCI: The Bitcoin network is arranged in a way to reach the maximum possible number of coins – 21 million. What can developers do to make the number of coins change to unlimited? If that is impossible, will you explain why?

AT: Nothing is impossible since in the end we are talking about the code that can be changed. The Bitcoin community changes the protocol every now and then when they want to add more features or change how things work, for example, to put more transactions in a single block. When that happens, there are always those who are in favor of the change and those who are not happy with it. If there is a critical mass, we will see a hard fork, which in turn makes a new token born. This was what happened when Bitcoin classic and Bitcoin gold tokens were created. So, if there is enough developers in the Bitcoin community that want to change the economy model of the Bitcoin, they will need to make the necessary changes to the protocol and hope that the community will adopt the new changes by applying their nodes with the updated protocol.

BCI: In your opinion, what will happen to Bitcoin blockchain when all coins are mined?

AT: Assuming that we will continue to see the Bitcoin protocol run as it does today, the incentive for the miners to continue on mining will be the transactions fees that they get from all of the transactions that they were able to gather together into the block. Naturally, the miners will choose those transactions with the highest fees to maximize their potential gain. And also, to make this still profitable, since there are no rewards from the protocol anymore, the transactions fees will get much higher than they are today.

BCI: Is Ethereum planning to shift from PoW to PoS? How will it affect Ethereum blockchain?

AT: This goes back to the first question. I think that this is too early to say, as there are a lot of open issues and questions raised by the community with no clear answers yet. I just hope that by the time this happens, the main concerns around security and sustainability will be answered by the protocol.

BCI: Please, tell us more what you will be speaking about in your presentation at Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference Israel.

AT: I will speak about the protocol that is used today in the Bitcoin and Ethereum networks. I will explain what PoW is, how the nodes are synchronizing the data in a distributed network in such a way that is secured and reflects one true amongst all nodes. I will speak about how the double spending problem is solved, what happens when multiple miners succeed in mining a block at the same time, and much more.

Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference Israel is a large event dedicated to cryptocurrency and blockchain that will take place on March 28. The conference will discuss banking innovations, cryptocurrencies and AML, underlying protocols, IBM’s solutions and other topics.

The conference is organized by Smile-Expo, an international company with the event-organization experience of 12 years. Smile-Expo has already successfully organized Blockchain & Bitcoin Conferences in Estonia, Thailand, Turkey, India, and Switzerland this year, moving on to Israel this time.

Learn more information about the conference

https://ift.tt/2pHIAfs