#this poll once again brought to you by Disagreement

[scotianostra]

Happy 77th Birthday to The Big Yin.

The comedian and actor Billy Connolly was born on November 24th 1942 in Glasgow, into a poor and not altogether stable family; he left school at age 15 and served as (among other jobs) a shipyard worker, a paratrooper in the Territorial Army, and a welder, the latter including a stint building an oil rig in Nigeria. Shortly after his return, Connolly quit working and, supporting himself with the money he'd saved, concentrated on learning to play folk music on the banjo and guitar. He became a regular on the Glasgow folk scene, instantly recognisable with his wild hair and beard; he drifted in and out of several bands before forming the Humblebums with guitarist Tam Harvey in 1965. Gerry Rafferty (later of Stealers Wheel and "Baker Street" fame) joined sometime later, and the group built a following with their live performances, which spotlighted Connolly's humorous between-song bits. 

As Rafferty's songs became the Humblebums' primary musical focus, tensions among the members escalated; Harvey departed, and Connolly and Rafferty recorded two albums in 1969 and 1970 before disagreements over Connolly's concert comedy split them up in 1971.

Connolly soon began performing around Scotland and northern England, concentrating more on comedy but still mixing occasional folk songs into his act. 1972 saw the release of Connolly's first album, Live, and also the debut of The Great Northern Welly Boot Show, a musical play Connolly co-authored with poet Tom Buchan based on his experiences in the shipyards of Glasgow. The show was a hit in Edinburgh and London, and Polydor signed Connolly to a recording contract. In 1974, his Solo Concert album sparked protests from the Christian community over a rowdy routine in which Connolly described the Last Supper as if it had taken place in Glasgow; all the publicity only helped his career, and he was quickly becoming one of Scotland's favourite entertainers. 

His 1974 follow-up album, Cop Yer Whack for This, became his biggest hit yet, going gold in the U.K., and the comic take on Tammy Wynette's "D.I.V.O.R.C.E." became a surprise number one hit single in 1975. That same year also saw Connolly put in star-making appearances on Michael Parkinson's chat show and at the London Palladium. He consolidated his success with a rigorous touring schedule over the next few years (including the massive Extravaganza tour of the U.K. in 1977), and continued to release comedy recordings on a regular basis into the '80s.

During the late '70s, Connolly began taking on acting roles in television and film productions, and tried his hand at playwriting, with somewhat less success. His first marriage dissolved in 1981 amidst an affair with comedienne Pamela Stephenson (whom he would later marry in 1989, the same year he shaved off his trademark shaggy beard). Taking up residence in London with Stephenson, Connolly continued his comedy career while taking on more theatrical and television roles. 

Toward the late '80s, his appearances on American television became more frequent, which -- along with an unsold pilot for a Dead Poets Society series -- helped Connolly land a gig replacing Howard Hesseman on the high school honour-student comedy Head of the Class in 1990. His highest-profile American exposure was short-lived, however, as the series was cancelled after just one season; however, Connolly was back on American airwaves in early 1992, starring in the sitcom Billy. It too was cancelled after a short run, and after appearing in the film Indecent Proposal, Connolly returned to the U.K. (though he still officially resided in the Hollywood Hills). 

In 1994, he hosted the acclaimed series World Tour of Scotland, which explored the flavor of contemporary Scottish culture. It proved so successful that Connolly hosted two further exploration-themed BBC series: 1995's A Scot in the Arctic, in which he spent a week on a remote northern Canadian island, and 1996's World Tour of Australia. Lent a new respectability, Connolly appeared in BBC Scotland's historical dramas Deacon Brodie and Mrs. Brown, the latter of which also featured Judi Dench and was released worldwide to much acclaim. n 2012, Connolly provided the voice of King Fergus in Pixar's Scotland-set animated film Brave, alongside fellow Scottish actors Kelly Macdonald, Craig Ferguson, Robbie Coltrane, Emma Thompson, and Kevin McKidd. Connolly appeared as Wilf in Quartet, a 2012 British comedy-drama film based on the play Quartet by Ronald Harwood, directed by Dustin Hoffman. In 2014, Connolly appeared in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies as Dáin II Ironfoot, a great dwarf warrior and cousin of Thorin II Oakenshield. Sir Peter Jackson stated that "We could not think of a more fitting actor to play Dain Ironfoot, the staunchest and toughest of dwarves, than Billy Connolly, the Big Yin himself. With Billy stepping into this role, the cast of The Hobbit is now complete. We can't wait to see him on the battlefield."

In September 2013, Connolly underwent minor surgery for early-stage prostate cancer. The announcement also stated that he was being treated for the initial symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

Connolly had acknowledged earlier in 2013 that he had started to forget his lines during performances, adding later he was finding it hard to remember how to play his banjo.

In 2017for his 75th birthday Glasgow bestowed upon Billy three 50 foot murals , to add to the many murals in the city, in 2007 and again in 2010, he was voted the greatest stand-up comic on Channel 4's 100 Greatest Stand-Ups. He once again topped the list on Channel 5's Greatest Stand-Up Comedians, broadcast on New Year's Eve 2013.

Recently Billy has spoken about his Parkinson's saying that  he now walks "unsteadily" and that his "hearing is going". He admits he would love to go back on stage but that "I don't know if I can do it with the state my mind is in." he appeared on Radio 2's Chris Evans show and told him "I don't think the way I used to," he went on..."....and steadily more symptoms come and it's incurable. It's not going to end. As a matter of fact, I had a Russian doctor in New York who said, 'You realise this is an incurable disease?'"And I said, 'You got to get a grip of yourself, stop calling it an incurable disease, say we have yet to find the cure. Give the guy a light in the tunnel.'"

Billy retired from his stage shows oficially last year, but he has kept himself busy, he hit our screens with a new series of his Great American Trail, which will follow him as he replicates the route taken by Scottish immigrants who came to America in the early 18th century. He also brought out a new book, called Tall Tales and Wee Stories, to launch it Billy's face was projected on to buildings in Galsgow and Edinburgh, as seen in the pics. The other pic is The Big Yins own art projected onto MacLellan's Castle in support of World Parkinson’s Day 2019. In November 2019, The Evening Times named Connolly as The Greatest Glaswegian as determined by a public poll.

In the independence referendum held in September 2014, Scotland voted to remain part of the United Kingdom. Connolly has previously expressed support for the union, this was no surprise to many, he has been friends with the Royal family for some years. However he said recently....

"Politically, [Scotland] is in extraordinary shape, It's beginning to stand alone, and they won't take crap anymore. They don't want to settle for whoever England votes for. Asked directly if he would support Scottish independence in the event of a second referendum, he replied: "I don't know. If Scotland would like it, I would like it."

I'll leave these poignant words of Billy's to end this post...Billy said he viewed old age as an adventure that was preparing him and  "It doesn't frighten me - it's an adventure and it's quite interesting to see myself slipping away, as bits slip off and leave me, talents leave and attributes leave. "It's as if I'm being prepared for something, some other adventure, which is over the hill. I've got all this stuff to lose first, and then I'll be at the shadowy side of the hill doing the next episode in the spirit world."

[calligraphist-artemisia]

Across Time and Space (Chapter 12)

Summary: Sequel to I’ll Take Her Place.  Slav is showing off a piece of experimental equipment, when it malfunctions and blasts Katie and Keithir to another universe. At the same time, it drags Pidge and Keith over into theirs, effectively swapping places. With their fate resting in the hands of Slav, will they be able to get back home? Or are they stuck to live the rest of their lives in the wrong universe?

Also posted on AO3 and fanfiction.net under the username “kishirokitsune”.

Only two (or three) more chapters left! Remember that I still have the poll up to decide what I’ll work on next and that will be closing the day after I post the final chapter of this fic! ( https://forms.gle/izPGqWsHD56RxgHg6 )

Chapter 12

“You were so young,” Travis murmured, staring at his son with a stricken expression. “You didn't have anyone? Not Kolivan or Thace or anyone else?”

Keith avoided looking at him as he shrugged. “I had Shiro.”

It was only the partial truth.  He didn't meet Shiro for another two years after his father died, and it had been a long road to learning to trust the man.

Shiro had saved him. Given him hope when he had none. Inspired him to do better when everyone else was set against him. And somewhere along the way, Shiro became his family. He never needed anyone else, so long as he kept believing in him.

“What about your mother?”

“I've never known her. I didn't even know I was part Galra until recently, when Kolivan told me after I passed the trials. And ever since then, I haven't...” Keith paused to shake his head. “There are more important things to focus on.”

“I don't think Kolivan would turn you away if you asked about her. Family is just as important as your work with the Blade,” Travis said.

“Maybe that's the way it is here, but things are different back home. There's nothing more important than ending the war. Not to the Blade.”

Travis was silent for a moment. “I know it's not the same, but I have a few pictures of her, mostly from after Keithir was born. Part of me always knew they wouldn't be able to stay on Earth and I wasn't sure that it was possible for me to go with them, so I took pictures, just in case.”

Keith eyed the small binder his dad brought with him. He'd been curious about it from the start, but knowing that it contained pictures of the mother he'd never seen or known filled him with a sense of anxiety.

Was he ready to see her?

“Tell me more about her?” Keith requested instead.

Travis smiled, happy to do so.

OLKARION – CASTLE OF LIONS

“I'm just saying, it's a bad idea,” Katie said, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared down Allura, Shiro, and Kolivan. Behind her, Keithir was muttering angrily as he processed exactly where they had recently been getting their intelligence on Galra installations.

“So far, everything he has told us has been truthful. We have no reason to dismiss his knowledge of the inner workings of Galra command,” Kolivan pointed out.

Had she known she would spend a good chunk of her morning arguing with them, Katie would have let Keithir convince her to stay in bed.

“I thought you were just holding him prisoner,” Keithir said, reigning in his temper. There was an edge of steel to his voice that Katie rarely heard.

Allura mirrored Katie's stance. “He turned himself in and offered to help of his own free will. As Kolivan said, everything he has told us has only helped us free planets and make progress in the war. He truly wants to help.”

Keithir's ears pinned back in clear agitation, but he kept his voice controlled when he spoke again. “When I first started to hear rumors of Lotor's activities from the Blade of Marmora, I didn't believe them. I told Kolivan it wasn't possible, that they'd gotten it wrong. Lotor wasn't capable of the things they were saying, after all of the good I'd witnessed him doing. To prove that, I started to watch him more carefully, to find anything to clear his name. And through watching him, I found the truth.”

“Lotor lies to and manipulates those around him by offering partial truths. He'll give you exactly what you want or say what you want him to say, but I can guarantee that it benefits him more than it does you. If he's given information on Galra commanders and how to take down outposts, it's because they stand in the way of his own plans or because he sees them as expendable.

“Once he has your truth, he starts to ask for things. He'll start small and work his way up, until you're too deep in to see the truth. And when you're no longer useful to him, he'll betray you and you'll want to blame yourself for not seeing it sooner.”

“Think about before he turned himself in,” Katie suggested once Keithir was done. “Would you have trusted him then? Did he do anything to suggest you were on the same side?”

“No, he tried to kill us,” Lance spoke up before anyone else could.

“More than once,” Hunk added, a little less aggressive and more uncertain.

Allura made a soft sound of disagreement. “We were hardly friendly toward him. What was he supposed to do?”

“He attacked first!” Lance responded. “He set up that trap for us on Puig, remember? If he really wants peace like we do, why would he do that? Why not contact us and offer to form some sort of alliance? I'm with Katie and Keithir on this, we can't trust him!”

“Lance, that's enough,” Shiro commanded.

Lance backed down, clenching his jaw and looking away.

Shiro stepped forward to address the room. “It doesn't matter what he's done in the past, he's here to help now. Without this intel, we never could have progressed as quickly as we have and we would have lost many more lives. We're not discussing this any more.”

Katie heard Keithir growl in frustration and glanced back to watch him pivot on his heel and leave the room. “You know, for all that our realities are very different, there's so much more we have in common, especially when it comes to the people in them. I hope we're wrong. I hope Lotor is genuinely here to help. But I also hope you keep what we've said in mind.”

She stayed for a tick longer and then followed her husband out of the room. She picked up her pace as the door shut behind her, easily reaching his side.

“They need the real Shiro back.”

“Agreed,” Katie replied. “Whatever idea our Allura has, I hope she figures it out soon. Maybe that's part of the news we were promised tonight.”

“Maybe,” Keithir said doubtfully.

“We'll find out soon. We just need to be patient until then.” Katie took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly. “Would it help if you got to see where they're holding Lotor? There's a room next to his cell with a viewing glass. He won't even know we're there.”

Keithir considered it for a few ticks and then shook his head. “It's better if I don't. I think I'll go up to the training deck instead. Would you help me set up?”

“Of course,” Katie said.

The next time they saw any of the others was long after Keithir was finished beating up robots and running the invisible maze. He and Katie grabbed a late lunch after that, spent a few more vargas relaxing in their room, and then headed down to the Black Lion, where Keithir slipped back into the Astral Plane.

When he returned from talking to Shiro, Coran was waiting there with Katie, speaking in quiet voices. They both turned to look at Keithir as he approached.

“Allura and Kolivan have put a hold on more missions until they re-evaluate the situation,” Katie told him, though there was something off about her tone, like there was something about it that bothered her. “Shiro and Matt went down to talk to Lotor.”

“Is that a good idea?” Keithir asked, directing his attention to Coran.

Coran's mustache twitched with disapproval. “It does seem risky, but we'll just have to trust Shiro's judgement, as we always do. And Matt seems like a level-headed fellow! I'm sure he can keep things under control.”

“He does give that impression, doesn't he?” Katie said wryly.

Truly, Matt was a blessing to have around in stressful – or any other – situations. He had a way of knowing just what to do or say, except when it came to Shiro. Katie joked that it was a mild hero-worship at play, born from the days or their dad telling stories about the rising star of the Galaxy Garrison. Thanks to Shiro, Matt had found himself in trouble more than once since his rescue, and while they were all amusing stories, nothing was funnier to Katie than watching Matt get flustered because Shiro threw him for a loop.

Keithir suspected Shiro did it on purpose; a harmless, long-running set of pranks to play on his friend, not unlike the way Regris continued to treat him.

But that was their reality.

Maybe Matt could handle it and they didn't need to worry.

“We'll have to call them up if they aren't back,” Keithir said, turning to more important matters – at least for the moment. “Shiro says they have a lock on this reality and want to try sending us something. Whoever wants to be around for that should go to the workshop.”

Katie tilted her head in curiosity. “I wonder what they're sending through. I mean, it's likely something inorganic to test to odds of reaching us without trouble, but what? Something electronic? Or maybe they'll go more simple than that.”

“Only one way to find out. If we're right about the flow of time being the same in both realities, we should see something in thirty doboshes,” Keithir said.

Thirty.

Twenty-nine.

Twenty-eight.

Keithir counted down the ticks and tried to ignore how adorable Katie was when she was practically squirming with anticipation. The urge to pull her into his arms and kiss her was so strong.

He breathed in deeply and looked away.

Everyone was on high alert, waiting for something to happen. For something to appear. Slav stared hard at his incomplete version of the trans-reality extrapolator, as though expecting it to suddenly work.

A buzz filled the air, crackling so strongly with energy that Keithir's fur stood on end. He slowly backed away from the center of the room, pulling Katie with him, unsure of how the energy would react. He could almost see it, sparking and splitting the air, creating a rip that was visible for less than a tick. He blinked and it was gone and there in its place was a tall man with dark hair, cradling a familiar-looking machine in his arms.

Keithir's brow furrowed in confusion and a low whine built in the back of his throat. “Dad?”

ALTEA – CASTLE OF LIONS

Shiro knew before he stepped into the room that the air was rife with tension. He could feel it pulling tight across his connection to Allura and he wondered what the source of it was. Had something happened to the trans-reality extrapolator? Was it not ready after all? They'd been so sure just a few hours before!

He braced himself as the door slid open, but instead of walking into a loud argument like he expected, he was greeted by uncomfortable silence.

“What's going on?” Shiro asked, looking around in the hope that he could learn something.

Anyone who was in on the accidental swap was in the room, with the exception of Yorak, who was being looked after by his Uncle Sendak for the afternoon. (Shiro hoped they weren't getting into too much trouble, or that at the very least Sendak wouldn't try and give Yorak a sword again.)

“It would seem that we have a volunteer to transport the blueprints and materials to the other reality,” Alfor said.

“A volunteer?” Shiro repeated slowly, not sure he understood. Hadn't they decided there was too much risk in sending someone over? Did they find a way around that while he was away telling Keithir about their plans?

That couldn't be right. He wasn't gone for that long.

“I know the risks,” Travis spoke up. “I've heard y'all talk about this for days now. I know it's not likely I'll get back, but it seems to me that this'll be the best way to make sure the odds are the best they can be.”

“What about Keithir?” Keith asked, his worry leaking into his voice. “What about Yorak? Your life? You'd be leaving all of that behind!”

Travis's expression softened as he walked over and pulled him aside to speak quietly – too quiet for Shiro to hear on the other side of the room. Whatever he was saying made Keith more agitated at first, but he slowly began to look more at ease, or at least less like he was willing to argue, the longer Travis talked to him.

While that was happening, Alfor and Honerva struck up a hushed conversation with Slav and Allura slipped over to stand by Shiro's side.

“I've already briefed him on what he needs to do,” she said.

Shiro looked over at her, startled. “Allura, this isn't-! We can't ask him to do this! I thought there were more tests to run. What if something goes wrong?”

“We did not ask him to do this, he volunteered, and despite a great deal of protest from the rest of us, he seems pretty set on doing this. Shiro, he has been to all of our discussions about this and is well aware of everything that could go wrong. He is right when he says that this could be our best chance. We can get all of the pieces over, along with the blueprints, without worrying about them ending up in the wrong hands. And if we act quickly enough, we may be able to bring Travis home along with Katie and Keithir.”

Allura sounded so sure of what she was saying, that Shiro almost believed her. He wanted to believe her, but it couldn't be that easy. Not after all of the calculations and Slav's ever-expanding list of possible complications.

But at the same time, Travis had made up his mind, and in the end, it was his choice. They could only do what they could to support him.

Shiro took a deep breath. “Okay. What do we need to do first?”

[is6621]

How Films Have Been Impacted by Social Media – Daniel Wholey

I’m a huge film fan; I wake up in the morning and my morning news consists of the latest updates on the Spider-Man deal between Disney and Sony and the bidding wars that happened earlier this year. In fact, I haven’t gone a single day the past few months without seeing at least a few images of Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker on Instagram. It’s obvious to me that social media has played a huge role in creating attention for the latest films, and after our class discussion this week on social media posts gaining massive attention, I started thinking about how exactly this online attention has been affecting studios. In this blog, I’m going to discuss two of the latest major impacts social media has had on studios.

Creepy Sonic the Hedgehog

The advancements in animation has provided considerable benefits for many films, but it didn’t do too much justice for Sonic. When the first official trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog came out last April, fans were anything but happy.  Fans thought he looked too human-like and definitely not like the character they grew up with. Some went as far as to say that he even resembled “ET with fur.”

Director of the film, Jeff Fowler, responded on Twitter soon after the backlash stating that “The message is loud and clear… you aren’t happy with the design & you want changes. It’s going to happen.” The film’s release date was delayed by three months and Sonic 2.0 looks substantially better according to the fans.

This decision not only brought substantial costs in terms of redoing the CGI, the changes also forced Paramount to adjust its marketing. They had to redo posters and cutouts, some of which were already in theaters. It was a huge effort on Paramount’s end, but at the end of the day, the message was “loud and clear” on social media; fans demanded a change. Thanks to social media, fans were able to directly communicate with the director and have a huge impact on the production and marketing of the film within a very short amount of time. Such a feat could definitely not be accomplished before the advent of social media, and this new relationship between the audience and film producers amazes me.

Spider-Man: Far From the MCU

During the summer, Marvel fans were faced with some very startling news; Spider-Man would not be in any Marvel movies anymore do to a disagreement between Sony and Disney. Fans were furious. Far From Home, the latest Spider-Man movie, passed $1 billion in box office earnings; it was a huge hit for marvel fans. When the news reached the internet, fans protested. Hashtags such as #SaveSpidey and #SaveSpiderMan flooded Twitter and Instagram feeds. In fact, even Jeremy Renner, one of the main actors in the hit Marvel films, protested through social media.

Furthermore, three days after the news broke out, three fans made a Facebook page titled “Storm Sony And Bring Spider-Man Home to the MCU.” 7,371 people indicated on the page that they would be willing to dress up in Spider-Man costumes on October 19th to peacefully protest at both Sony’s offices in New York and in Culver City, California. It was unfortunately cancelled, but all this activity on social media motivated Tom Holland to have a meeting with Disney’s CEO Bob Iger and Sony’s film chairman Tom Rothman to urge them to reconsider negotiating. As a result, on September 27th, the two major studios reached a deal; they decided to continue the Marvel Spider-Man series through a third movie. Fans and actors were satisfied once again.

Conclusion

72% of social media users write online comments about films they see, according­ to a poll conducted by the consulting firm Penn Schoen & Berland and The Hollywood Reporter. The poll also found that a third of social media users had seen a movie in a theater­ because of something they had seen or read on a social network. But nowadays, social media is not just creating hype for films; in a way, social media is helping direct films. Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook are all having a say in major Hollywood decisions. Directors, actors, and audience members are communicating through social media platforms to direct the course of a film. I love films, and I love the idea of fans being able to have a voice in the movie-making process. It might cost the studios a substantial amount of time and money, but as long as I don’t have to see Toby Maguire’s uncomfortable cry or awkward dancing, I’m pretty satisfied.

Sources

https://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2013/03/12/movies-depend-social-media-support-for-staying-power-box-office/mDRqLV2AaS1xqmLdFV1N5O/story.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/12/movies/sonic-the-hedgehog-redesign-trailer.html

https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/entertainment/fans-complain-about-new-movie-director-vows-listen-change-sonic-the-hedgehog/CYrRcnRbgths6MS3c8p1CL/

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/sonic-hedgehog-trailer-redesign-delay-release-date-a9199611.html

https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/08/sony-marvel-spider-man-will-no-longer-be-a-part-of-the-mcu

https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/08/sony-marvel-spider-man-will-no-longer-be-a-part-of-the-mcu

[famedroleplayarchive]

Hello! I’m coming to everyone with a few different updates today! This is a bit of a long post under the cut and there will be some more updates and announcements soon, but I wanted to split them up to avoid one super long post. Keep an eye out for another admin post in the near future, but this post still covers a variety of topics that are important for members to read!

Firstly, I want to ask anyone with an opinion on the matter to contribute it to this poll. I’ve been considering adding some of Brown Eyed Girls’ music (namely their three 2011-2015 albums and the rumored upcoming comeback if it happens) to Silhouette’s future model discography. Since Miss A and Fiestar are disbanded and EXID has only one guaranteed Korean comeback left with Hani and Jeonghwa confirmed to be leaving Banana Culture, it feels like a good time to start picking an additional group to give room for more songs to be released by them. Brown Eyed Girls is the standout above any other choices that fit Silhouette’s intended direction to me, but if members have a problem with this addition, I’ll reconsider. I’ll take the opinions of those with muses in Silhouette into special consideration, so if that applies to you, you’re free to message me directly if you have opposition to the addition! Should this addition happen, it is planned to play into a “renewal of Silhouette” plot line eventually (more towards the end of this year), with Gold Star’s creative directors trying to pull them out of what Gold Star perceives as a rut and keep them competitive by pushing the boundaries with more provocative, badass bu still sexy concepts like they were once known for. It will also contrast with the stricter creative and conceptual boundaries Gold Star’s younger girl groups like Fuse and Femme Fatale are kept within.

Secondly, the two previously unavailable BC Soloist spots have been removed. For BC Soloist 1, with Hyuna signing under P Nation, it’s unclear how often she’ll comeback once she starts releasing music again and the spot has been unavailable for so long now it only feels right to reopen it instead of continuing to wait. In character, this will be handled as a situation where an NPC soloist’s contract (someone who had a similar concept/sound to Hyuna, but not specifically Hyuna’s music anymore) simply ended and the soloist chose not to re-sign with BC Entertainment. This would publicly cause BC Entertainment to take a small hit in stocks, but there’s no major drama to it like there was with Goeun’s departure from Lipstick. BC Soloist 2 is being removed since, in the two years since the roleplay opened, I’ve learned it’s hard to tie soloists who fall further outside of the traditional idol bubble into the world of the roleplay, and BC Soloist 2 is the furthest outside still remaining. In character, for him, his existence as a soloist will be erased entirely from BC’s past instead of having left in-character. Hyuna’s and Dean’s discographies are now available as points claims. This means BC currently has no soloist spots for the time being. If your muse had a claim to a past feature or MV claim to one of those two soloists and you’d like to discuss replacing it, please message me! I may be willing to bend certain aspects of past claims rules to find a replacement if we need to since I’m inconveniencing you!

I’d also like to give a quick reminder to anyone who hasn’t done so lately (and maybe even if you have!) to please remind yourself of the in-character contract guidelines and make sure you (and your muses) are keeping those in mind! They’re important and do apply to everyone unless otherwise stated. Please take some time to refresh your memory of the rules elsewhere within the roleplay if you haven’t lately as well! 

On the subject of the rules, I have a few reminders about the general roleplay rules.

Please remember that while the rules are flexible about OOC posts on the dash to avoid the problems that can arise with a group chat, there are still rules to follow with OOC posts. Make sure to trigger tag OOC posts just as you would a piece of in-character writing (including tags for NSFW content) and don’t make posts about serious out of character conflict or disagreements on the dash, whether they’re direct or indirect.

Tag all NSFW posts as NSFW and put them under a readmore. It’s one little tag and if you aren’t sure whether something is NSFW, do it anyway to be safe. Muses and faceclaims who are minors in South Korea (under 19 international age) shouldn’t be involved in sexual content on the dash in any manner. Likewise, do not use gif icons or photo resources of a faceclaim when they were underage to accompany sexual content and discussions either. Smut is banned for faceclaims and muses who are not yet adults in Korea, and with that comes other discussions and threads of a NSFW context. This includes any flashback threads where a muse would have been under the age of majority at the time. Again, same thing applies for muns under 18. Don’t lie about your age to be able to write explicit sexual content with your muse, as that will result in a permanent ban from the group. In general, just be mindful and use common sense about what’s appropriate and what’s not when it comes to NSFW content.

Do not god mod or meta game. Don’t assume the actions, thoughts, or relationship to your muse of another muse or an established NPC/executive without getting approval first. Don’t assume your muse knows something about another muse that isn’t explicitly public knowledge just because you as a mun have read something about the muse. Just like NSFW tagging, if you aren’t sure, it’s better to be safe than sorry and ask the mun instead of ending up godmodding or metagaming.

Almost lastly, I’d also like to clear up some questions, address some details, and maybe even tackle some natural changes regarding the Exclusive blog. As the roleplay gets bigger, it gets harder to fit in every possible article someone may want for their muse in a timely manner, so please try to keep article requests and submission to major things like claims (if you’re writing your own claim article) or scandals and major plot progression articles (if they’ve been approved). A lot of occurrences that fall outside of that (though not all!) are going to need a viral moment claim to garner an article and be considered newsworthy. I don’t want to bring in super tight, strict limits to what can be used for an article, but please try to consider what might benefit from an official article and what might work better as a headcanon or detail in a self-para. Submitting an article earns a point because those articles are supposed to develop character/career or showcase a development of character/career, so keep that in mind. This reminder wasn’t brought around by any particular occurrence and it’s not been a problem yet, but I did want to put this out there. Since the Exclusive blog has been putting out more posts lately than it had before, now seems like a good time to mention this in passing! Exclusive is intended to be a news source in a similar vein to Dispatch, meaning they may have a reputation for being invasive and having under-the-table deals with companies, but are still a news source as opposed to a fansite or an idol-only outlet. If you’re ever on the fence about whether something might make a good article in that context, feel free to ask and I’ll be happy to answer!

Lastly, though it’s over a month late, I’d like to give every muse who’s currently in the roleplay (and all muns who have read this whole post) a free 5 points on their trackers in honor of our second anniversary that passed at the beginning of April. You can link to this post on your points tracker as the source of the points.

As always, I’m here for any questions, comments or concerns you may have, and thank you to everyone for your continued activity!

[thisdaynews]

Expect a frailer government to emerge from Canada’s election. Here’s why.

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/expect-a-frailer-government-to-emerge-from-canadas-election-heres-why/

Expect a frailer government to emerge from Canada’s election. Here’s why.

It’s known in the British parliamentary tradition as a minority government, and it’s actually quite common. One-third of Canadian governments have been minorities in the last 30 years.

A party trying to govern with a minority in the House of Commons can either cooperate with smaller parties to pass bills or browbeat them, essentially daring the weaker party to trigger an election.

These unstable parliaments tend to last about two years but can actually be quite productive amid the chaos. One particularly active series of minority parliaments in the 1960s introduced old-age pensions, a version of Medicare, the precursor to the current Canada-U.S. free trade agreement and the modern Canadian flag.

One of Canada’s best-known experts on the parliamentary system, Philippe Lagassé, says minority governments can keep going because few politicians have an appetite for another election. Parties are usually too cash-strapped to campaign again, and losing parties are often too distracted by their own internal nomination fights.

“It creates a real incentive to keep this thing going for a while,” said Lagassé, a professor at Carleton University‘s Paterson School in Ottawa.

As POLITICO outlined, there are five possible scenarios that could emerge out of the election, but some form of minority government seems most likely. The latest polls indicate that neither the Liberal Party nor the Conservative Party will win the 170 votes in Monday’s election to hold the majority outright.

If Justin Trudeau and the Liberals end up with a minority, they could strike a pact with the left-wing New Democratic Party. In such an alliance, the NDP might demand more expensive, single-payer universal prescription drug coverage in exchange for a promise to keep Trudeau in office.

“I can certainly imagine the Liberals and NDP doing [a deal],” said David Moscrop, a political theorist at the University of Ottawa. “I think there would be some pressure to sign an agreement.”

Trudeau may even be able to maneuver into a minority government without winning the most seats. He could choose not to resign and team up with party No. 3 to form a majority — although it would be unconventional, and certainly controversial, if Trudeau and the NDP tried such a move. Trudeau himself once disparaged the idea of a losers’ coalition.

A far more conventional approach would see the party with the most seats trying to govern alone with no formal ally.

The minority party could seek to cut deals on a case-by-case basis, passing bills with the help of different parties. For example, Trudeau might seek NDP support on one of his main campaign promises, a prescription drug bill. He could then get the Conservatives’ votes to ratify the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

If Andrew Scheer and the Conservatives take over, they’re expected to take the go-it-alone route. They have no natural ally in Parliament, especially on an issue they’ve made central in their campaign: undoing Trudeau’s carbon tax and climate policies and encouraging oil-and-gas development.

But many of the Conservative Party’s other campaign promises could easily find support in Parliament — such as stricter data privacy rules for tech companies and targeted tax policies aimed at families like tax credits for sports equipment.

Either the Conservatives or Liberals could also govern in the minority with a confrontational approach.

The smaller parties are sometimes so desperate to avoid an election that they’ll accept embarrassing indignities and still keep the government afloat.

Take the last Conservative prime minister, Stephen Harper, who ran two minority governments. He regularly browbeat his opponents into passing his agenda, because they were more afraid of an election than he was.

A very unlikely, but not unheard of, result is a formal coalition government, in which different parties share seats in the executive branch.

Though common in nations governed by parliamentary systems, a formal coalition hasn’t been in place in Canada in over 100 years. The last time was during World War I, when members of Parliament who favored the draft banded together to form their own Cabinet.

In such a case, the smaller party, likely the NDP, might get some seats at the Cabinet and gain serious influence over the daily government operations. It’s what happened in the U.K. a few years ago, when the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats teamed up to form one government.

A basic principle of what’s called the Westminster system is that members of the executive branch remain united; any disagreements that might occur around the Cabinet table are kept secret.

Yet these parties know that in the not-too-distant future, they’ll be bashing each other again in another election and arguing about the government’s track record.

“It gets really messy in the Canadian system just because we’re not used to it,” Lagassé said.

“In a county like Canada, where governments tend to be very secretive and don’t disclose a lot of information and guard their secrets very aggressively, to suddenly have another party that you’re continually competing with, in the room with you, making decisions, is something we tend to not do,” Lagassé said. “It doesn’t mean it can’t be done. It’s just much more complicated.”

Minority governments fall in one of four ways, Lagassé said.

The first test is the throne speech, somewhat like the State of the Union address in the United States, that opens the new Parliament.

If it’s defeated in a vote so soon, another party might try forming a government to avoid an immediate election.

Another way to lose power is if the minority government loses a vote on spending money. A government can also collapse in a vote on a motion declaring non-confidence. Or it could fail if the government declares something a matter of confidence and loses the vote on it.

Trudeau’s father, Pierre, led one type of minority government and defeated another type. When he was in opposition, he had announced plans to retire before his rivals tried to govern alone — and it backfired.

Having just arrived in office and facing a weakened Liberal Party organizing to replace Pierre Trudeau, the Conservatives in 1979 tried ramming through a budget bill and assumed it would pass. It failed.

They were toppled after just nine months. Trudeau came out of retirement, won a fourth term in office and capped his career by overhauling the Canadian constitution.

But it was another, earlier episode that could prove eerily similar to the fate awaiting his son on Monday. Pierre Trudeau’s towering first-term popularity had collapsed. After a suspenseful election night, he scraped along, barely clinging to power.

Pierre Trudeau got help from the NDP for two years, from 1972 to 1974.

Their alliance crumbled after two years. Trudeau correctly surmised he could win another election and shrugged off the NDP’s demands in a budget bill.

The NDP’s leader, David Lewis, called his erstwhile ally arrogant and brought Trudeau down.

“He thought we were frightened about an election,“ Lewis said. “ He was crazy. We’re not.” Lewis promised a campaign for lower living costs against his friend-turned-rival.

The episode exemplifies the inherent instability of life with minority governments: Within two years or so, even the friendliest alliance can end in acrimony and a new election.

Read More

[gyrlversion]

5 key takeaways from 1st night of the Democratic debate

The first night of the second Democratic primary debate in Detroit was billed as a battle between moderates sounding the alarm over progressive policies they say will make it harder to defeat Donald Trump in 2020, and on that front that billing was right.

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Senators Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the two highest-polling candidates at center stage tonight, both forcefully defended their policy agendas from frequent attacks from candidates like former Maryland Rep. John Delaney, Montana Go. Steve Bullock and Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan. A major point of contention between the candidates was an issue that continues to take center stage during the Democratic primary: health care.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

Democratic presidential candidates take the stage at the beginning of the Democratic Presidential Debate at the Fox Theatre, July 30, 2019, in Detroit.

Tuesday night was also seen as the last best chance for the moderate candidates, many of whom are mired towards the bottom of the pack in terms of polling and fundraising, to get their message out to a national audience before the Democratic National Committee imposes stricter rules to qualify for the debates in September and October.

Beyond the policy discussions, candidates also took aim at President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans, all hoping to earn the chance to deny him a second term in the Oval Office.

Here are five takeaways from night one of the second Democratic primary debate.

Warren, Sanders defend the progressive agenda

Much was made about Warren and Sanders, two of the most visible leaders of the modern progressive movement, taking center stage on Tuesday night, and sure enough a consistent theme Tuesday night was their defense of that movement’s agenda.

Amid frequent attacks on their policy prescriptions and visions Sanders and Warren remained steadfast in the face of criticism that their ideas are unrealistic or impractical.

Lucas Jackson/Reuters

Senator Bernie Sanders and Senator Elizabeth Warren shake hands before the start of the first night of the second 2020 Democratic presidential debate in Detroit, July 30, 2019.

“You can’t just spring a plan on the world and expect it to succeed,” Hickenlooper said during a back-and-forth with Sanders on health care.

“I get a little bit tired of Democrats afraid of big ideas,” Sanders said later responding to an attack from Delaney on “Medicare for All.”

“I don’t understand why anybody goes to all the trouble of running for the President of the United States to talk about what we really can’t do and shouldn’t fight for,” Warren, who frequently clashed with more moderate candidates, said in another response to the former Maryland congressman who said her and Sanders’ agenda is anti-private sector.

Despite the constant contrasting, neither Sanders nor Warren or anyone on the debate stage Tuesday said the name of the candidate currently leading the pack in polling: former Vice President Joe Biden.

Health care takes center stage once again

Democrats made health care a centerpiece of their successful campaign to re-take the U.S. House in 2018, and once again the issue continues to dominate the debating heading into 2020.

Roughly the first 30 minutes of Tuesday night’s debate were dominated by one subject: health care. More specifically it was about one policy, Medicare for All, which remains a dividing line among the Democratic contenders.

Sanders and Warren both vociferously defended Medicare for All from attacks from multiple candidates, including from both a clearly aggressive Delaney and an eager Tim Ryan.

“I wrote the damn bill!” Sanders said when Ryan challenged him on the specifics of what would be covered in his Medicare for All plan.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) (C) speaks while Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg (L) listen at the beginning of the Democratic Presidential Debate, July 30, 2019, in Detroit.

O’Rourke, Buttigieg and others tried to make the pitch that America will eventually transition towards a Medicare for All system by offering a public option to compete against private health insurance.

The former Texas congressman also pledged that middle-class taxes will not be increased under his healthcare plan, a point of contention and disagreement among those pitching Medicare for All.

Moderates try to make their mark, maybe for the last time

Tuesday was also billed as the last best chance for candidates mired towards the bottom of the polls to break out before the DNC imposes stricter debate rules for the fall.

Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

Democratic presidential hopeful former Rep. John Delaney participates in the first round of the second Democratic primary debate in Detroit, July 30, 2019.

That urgency was evident for candidates like Bullock, Delaney and Hickenlooper, who each repeatedly tried to pitch a broader and more succinct argument for why they’re the best candidate to unite the party and defeat Trump.

“I’m running for president to beat Donald Trump, win back the places we lost, and make sure that Americans know that where Washington’s left them behind in the economy and political system, I’ll be there,” Bullock, who was appearing on the debate stage for the first time, said in his closing statement.

“I have actually got a track record as a small business owner, as a mayor and as a governor,” Hickenlooper argued.

The effects of their performance won’t be fully known for a few days or weeks, but many of these candidates may have to face the reality that this was their last chance to stand toe-to-toe on a national stage with their fellow Democratic contenders and make their pitch.

Candidates address Trump, recent racial controversies head on

Not surprisingly many candidates took time on the debate stage to directly call out President Trump in concise and stark terms.

“The racism, the bigotry, and the entire conversation that we’re having here tonight, if you think any of this wonkiness is going to deal with this dark psychic force of the collectivized hatred that this president is bringing up in this country, then I’m afraid that the Democrats are going to see some very dark days,” said author Marianne Williamson, who had a few standout moments Tuesday evening.

“We need to call out white supremacy for what it is, domestic terrorism. And it poses a threat to the United States of America,” Warren said in response to a question from CNN’s Don Lemon about President Trump running a re-election strategy based on “racial division.”

Both Williamson and O’Rourke brought up the idea of reparations for the descendants of slaves.

“The legacy of slavery and segregation and Jim Crow and suppression is alive and well in every aspect of the economy and in the country,” the former Texas Congressman said, also pledging to enact a bill to study reparations authored by Texas Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

O’Rourke tries to regain his footing, Buttigieg takes aim at Trump, GOP

O’Rourke faced lofty expectations when he got in the race back in March after his electrifying run for the U.S. Senate in 2018, and thus far has struggled to deliver. Prior to Tuesday, he made it clear that this debate was an opportunity to regain his footing and boost himself back into the discussion as a legitimate contender for the nomination.

Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

Democratic presidential hopeful former Rep. Beto O’Rourke delivers his closing statement during the first round of the second Democratic primary debate in Detroit, July 30, 2019.

On Tuesday the candidate was prepared for a question on decriminalizing crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border, a topic that tripped him up during last month’s debate. The candidate also brought the focus to his home state of Texas, which will be critical to his chances of clinching enough delegates to capture the Democratic nomination.

“Bernie [Sanders] was talking about battleground states in which we compete. There’s a new battleground state, Texas, and it has 38 electoral college votes,” O’Rourke said to applause and agreement from the crowd his fellow candidates.

Buttigieg, who has arguably been on an opposite trajectory from O’Rourke, leading the pack in fundraising in the second quarter, unleashed sharp attacks on Trump and Republicans in Congress.

“if you are watching this at home and you are a Republican member of congress, consider the fact that when the sun sets on your career, and they are writing your story of all the good and bad things you did in your life, the thing you will be remembered for is whether in this moment with this president you found the courage to stand up to him, or you continue to put party over country,” Buttigieg said in one of the night’s most memorable moments.

Paul Sancya/AP

South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg participates in the first of two Democratic presidential primary debates, July 30, 2019, at the Fox Theatre in Detroit.

O’Rourke and Buttigieg are both running as aspirational candidates of generational change, and the competition for voters looking for just that type of candidate likely won’t get any easier after Tuesday’s debate.

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[olaluwe]

The quantity of dirty and unfit naira notes in circulation and scarcity of small denominations of N10, N20, N50 and N100 notes, is becoming a major concern to Nigerians, especially those engaged in commercial transactions. These days, even over-the-counter and Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) transactions are disbursing dirty and unfit notes, just as commercial banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) trade blames over who is responsible, directly or indirectly, for the situation. More worrisome to banks’ customers is that ATMs have not only become outlets for these dirty and sometimes, unfit notes, but are also deliberately mixing them with few new notes and once dispensed, even the same bank do not accept them back when presented in the banking hall. A customer of one of the top three banks in the country, who identified himself simply as Sampson, told The Guardian how he withdrew money across the counter and hurriedly left, but later discovered that two bundles of N500 notes were almost unfit.

“When I brought it back to them, they rejected the money and denied ever paying the money to me. I avoided creating a scene in the banking hall and could not push further because I was in a hurry to join a bus coming back to Lagos from Enugu,” he said. Taofeek of Festac Town, Lagos, also told The Guardian that he went to deposit money in another top three bank, but the bulk teller rejected some notes and told him that if she collected them, the amount would be deducted from her salary. “The notes were weak and some dirty, but the numbers are there and that was how I collected them, too, from others. “In fact, one of my customers withdrew some of the notes in my very presence from the ATM and paid me. Why are they doing this?” he queried. The Guardian’s poll of customers in 24 branches of 11 different banks, including the top five banks, across Lagos, showed that there are more of dirty notes and some near unfit ones than clean notes in many banking transactions these days. Another bulk teller said that his boss has told staff that the CBN charges banks for the unfit notes when returned for replacement. But spokesman of the apex bank spokesman, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, has consistently debunked this, saying banks have deliberately refused to sort the dirty and unfit notes and return them to CBN and instead choose to mix them up and when this happens, it will be sorted by the CBN and the banks charged as such. “They are playing tricks. They will see unfit notes and re-issue them again, because they don’t want to make investments in sorting the money. “It is their duty to return unfit notes to us and we will replace them with new ones. “If banks sort the money before bringing to CBN, we don’t charge them, but if they don’t, we will sort and charge them. “It is only when they mix up the unfit and good ones together, which is what they do, that we charge them for sorting. “But it is our duty to issue new notes in place of the unfit and that we have been doing,” he said. He advised any person with such complaints to direct it to CBN’s consumer protection department through cpd@cbn.gov.ng, stating the name of the bank. Okorafor reiterated that the problem for rejection should not be the dirtiness of money, but if the numbers on the money are complete, adding: “If the numbers are complete, no bank has any right to reject the currency, no matter how dirty it is.” Across the country, shortage of small denominations is gradually affecting commercial activities and transactions, thereby affecting the economy of the middle and low-income class. It is also breeding disagreement between service providers and customers, and “marriage of inconvenience” between transporters and passenger Happiness, a tricycle operator in Enugu, charges his passengers according to their distance. Most operators of tricycle charge N50 per trip.  However, “it is always a problem, especially, in the morning hours, to get passengers, who would pay you the exact fare,” he said. Asked how he has been coping with the development, he stated that he either abandons the passenger with the N50 note or look for those he would drop on charter. He told The Guardian that getting lower denominations of the naira is now a difficult thing, adding that in some cases, they pair passengers to enable them settle for a higher denomination before they are taken to their destinations. Michael Dibia, a resident of Ahoada, explained that the scarcity of smaller denominations have led to increase in the price of foodstuffs and transportation. “I have observed of recent that you could barely buy spices used for cooking soup at N5 or even N10. I blame this on the non-availability of smaller denominations. Most traders prefer to sell them at N20 or N50 and above. Before a customer buys something in the market these days, the seller will ask whether the customer has the required money. Very often, the customers, like me, have to compromise to buy what I don’t intend to buy because of change. This is affecting the cost of living for people like us,” he said. Similarly, Tonye Oruwari, who owns a grocery in Port Harcourt, stated that in the absence of small denomination currencies, the grocery shops have evolved a unique way to address the issue by offering chewing gums and sweets against balance, in place of the small denomination currencies. Also in Kwara State, while some traders complained of the scarcity, they agreed that it had assisted in swelling their profit margin. Alhaja Afusat Wakilu popularly called “Iya Azeez” at Lanjoorin Street, Murtala Mohammed Way, Ilorin, said many of her customers often forfeit their balances with her without realising the magnitude of gains conceded to her. “For instance, if you buy a sachet of water that used to be N10, few months ago, some customers would insist on getting their N10 balance while many others would not even wait for it. The implications of this is that such buyers without them knowing has added over 100 per cent gains to my profits margin,” she said. This has forced many traders to go to churches on Sundays, after services, to look for these denominations, from offerings, to enable them transact their businesses conveniently. A source from CBN, who pleaded anonymity, said the concern now should be more about preserving the currency and the law enforcement agencies being alert to their duty, as notes are being destroyed by the activities of currency hawkers, who make brisk business at various party centres across the country, particularly, Lagos State. Investigations showed that the sale of the clean notes for older ones currently goes for as high as 20 per cent of the value being exchanged, that is, exchanging N800 new notes for N1000 old notes. The source cited CBN Act 2007, Section 21, sub-section 3 and 4, which said: “For the avoidance of doubt, spraying of, dancing or matching on the naira or any note issued by the Bank (CBN) during social occasions or otherwise howsoever, shall constitute an abuse and defacing of the naira or such note and shall be punishable under Sub-section (1) of this section. “It shall also be an offence punishable under sub-section (1) of this section for any person to hawk, sell or otherwise trade in the naira notes, coins or any other note issued by the bank.” He urged Nigerians to embrace the alternative payment solutions being provided, such as the Point of Sale (PoS), Internet and mobile money services to reduce cash-based transactions and preserve the available notes. (Nigerian Guardian)

[melindarowens]

Will The Gov’t Shutdown? – Daily Pfennig

Chuck Butler’s: A Pfennig For Your Thoughts 

December 6, 2017

* Dollar Gets Bought…

* RBA leaves rates unchanged

 Good Day… And A Wonderful Wednesday to you! The Pfennig lost the coin toss this morning, so that’s the reason this is later than usual…  As I said last Wednesday.. Better late than never, right?  Things are still not back to normal around here for me, and so the Pfennig suffers. Hopefully, things begin to normalize for me…  Bob Seger and his Silver Bullet Band greets me this morning with their song: Turn The Page, which is exactly what I would like to do with this period of my life!   

Well, we finally saw some movement in the currencies yesterday and overnight, with the dollar getting bought, and the currencies slipping. Again, the move isn’t great shakes, but it still is noticeable, so therefore it registers on the Richter Scale.. HA!  

There’s an article on the Bloomberg this morning that’s talking about how the dollar will see more selling in 2018, even with the Fed in rate hike mode. The article points out that the dollar has seen its worse year in the last decade in 2017, and the analysts writing the article believe that the impetus toward a lower dollar in 2018, will come from a revival of global growth, and rate hikes that challenge the Fed’s rate hikes all over the globe…  

This article falls in line with the one I told you about on Monday from UBS that talked about how they saw a global tightening of credit in 2018..   So, remember earlier this year when I would talk about how I was seeing signs of a revival of global growth, and called it the “Global Growth Tent Revival”?  Once again I was ahead of the crowd on this call, but did anyone listen to me? I doubt it…  So, listen to me now and hear me later, this Global Growth thing has potential, and that’s it…  

There are plenty of athletes that have “potential” but very few of them “make it”…  So, while I agree with the article that the dollar will find it a tough row to hoe in 2018, I’m thinking it will have more with the Fed losing whatever credibility they have left, when they have to reverse their moves this year…  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!   

Things in the U.K. aren’t so rosy these days.. Seems PM May, is backing into a corner on her views regarding BREXIT, and the leaders of the BREXIT move aren’t agreeing with her views… And then there was this latest poll in the U.K. that showed a majority of citizens still believe in BREXIT, but believe it will end badly…   

Well, so do I, so we have something in common, eh?  The pound was flying high as last week ended, but these new developments with the BREXIT negotiations have pulled the pound back down. 

One day after seeing the A$ and kiwi climb to the top of the performers’ list, the both got sold overnight. The A$ took the biggest hit, and the kiwi selling was more of a “sympathy trade”…  The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) met last night and left rates unchanged, which everyone expected, but then the RBA had this to say, that I’m sure had something to with the A$ selloff..  The RBA said that they were in no hurry to hike rates, which led the markets to think that their earlier thoughts of a rate hike in the 1st QTR of 2018, will have to be pushed back…   

You know, I’m still amazed at the dollar’s underwhelming reaction to the passage of the Tax Reform Bill last weekend… I mean wasn’t this tax bill supposed to be the cat’s meow for the reflation trade here in the U.S. ?  Or… was all that already priced in to the dollar?  It sure appears that way to me…  

So, I’m thinking that if the dollar can’t mount a huge rally on the news that the tax reform bill, then it really is in the stage of beginning to end the strong dollar trend…    I’ll stop there and let that last thought sink in a bit…   

OK,  I’m back! Gold got whacked again yesterday.. UGH! Just what the heck these sellers are thinking is a mystery, and while I don’t plan to attempt to get into their heads, I will say that I think they are all somewhat lost…  So, Gold lost $9.70 yesterday with 302,000 contracts traded…  Craziness here too folks..  Gold closed below its 200-day moving avg. yesterday according to Ed Steer, and began the day at $1,265.90 today…

The U.S. Data Cupboard yesterday had the Rocktober Trade Deficit and it printed worse than expected! The Trade Deficit widened to $48.7 Billion up from the September print of $44.9 Billion… That’s a HUGE swing folks, and while it signals heaps of imports, it also signals that the dollar was stronger in Rocktober than in September…  

Today’s Data Cupboard has the ADP Employment Report, which is supposed to give us an idea what the BLS Jobs Jamboree print will be on Friday..  Last week, my fave economist, Danielle Di Martino Booth, asked readers to send in their favorite employment indicator. She was looking for something not followed by everyone but was better than the BLS report…  I almost sent her my feelings on the ADP report… 

I’ve said many times that I think the country should ditch the BLS and use the ADP report as their “employment go to report”… ADP is the payroll system for almost every corporation or small business in this country, and if they show that 190,000 jobs were added in a month, they should be the ones who know!  

To recap…  The dollar got bought on Tuesday and overnight but the moves aren’t huge. U.K. PM May is hearing it from all sides on BREXIT, and the citizens of the U.K. think BREXIT will end up badly… This all weighs on the pound. The RBA left rates unchanged and sent the A$ downward with some comments about not seeing the need to hike rates for some time…  

For What It’s Worth… Well, this Friday is the deadline for a budget deal here in the U.S. Recall that the lawmakers kicked the can down the street a couple of months ago, to this Friday… And I read this morning, that there will be another bill to delay it another two weeks… This is more craziness folks… And I doubt the Fed will hike rates on the 13th, if there’s no budget deal in place, or the Gov’t is in shutdown mode…  You don’t have to take my thoughts on this as James Rickards weighed in with his thoughts in the Daily Reckoning (www.dailyreckoning.com) yesterday, and I have some of that for you here…  you can click on the link above for the full story… 

Or… here’s your snippet: “Will Republicans and Democrats agree on a budget, and avoid a government shutdown after midnight Friday?

I’d say the odds are 50/50. Actually, I put the odds of a shutdown at about 55%. There’s certainly enough substance here to be wary.

The government could shut down because of disagreements over defense spending, funding for Trump’s wall with Mexico, deportation of illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children (the “Dreamer Act” also referred to as “DACA”), funding for Planned Parenthood, funding for Obamacare (called “SCHIP”), disaster relief and more.

There’s not much middle ground between Democrats and Republicans on many of these hot button issues.” 

Chuck again…  I don’t believe the lawmakers will allow the Gov’t to shut down, so look for that “extension” if you will, to save the day this Friday…  

Currencies today 12/6/17… American style: A$ .7585, kiwi .6899, C$ .79, euro 1.1804, sterling 1.3384, Swiss $1.0111, … European Style: rand 13.5260, krone 8.2605, SEK 8.4068, forint 266.41, zloty 3.5698, koruna 21.7142, RUB 58.69, yen 112.49, sing 1.3481, HKD 7.8126, INR 64.48, China 6.6140, peso 18.80, BRL 3.2385, Dollar Index 93.37, Oil $56.89, 10-year 2.33%, Silver $16.07, Platinum $907.14, Palladium $996.05, and Gold… $1,267.70  

That’s it for today…  Well, our Blues got back on the winning track last night in Montreal. They had gone into a funk, but looked much better last night. Winter weather has arrived here in the St. Louis area… I don’t like cold weather one iota, and longtime readers know that I head to S. Florida in January to get away from the cold. But then there’s always this cold weather in December that I despise! At least now that I’m somewhat retired, I don’t have to go out in it if I don’t want to! So I have that going for me, eh? Nilson takes us to the finish line today with his song: Without You…  And with that, out of the way, it’s time to go… I hope you have a Wonderful Wednesday, and Be Good To Yourself!  

Chuck

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[everettwilkinson]

Will The Gov’t Shutdown? – Daily Pfennig

Chuck Butler’s: A Pfennig For Your Thoughts 

December 6, 2017

* Dollar Gets Bought…

* RBA leaves rates unchanged

 Good Day… And A Wonderful Wednesday to you! The Pfennig lost the coin toss this morning, so that’s the reason this is later than usual…  As I said last Wednesday.. Better late than never, right?  Things are still not back to normal around here for me, and so the Pfennig suffers. Hopefully, things begin to normalize for me…  Bob Seger and his Silver Bullet Band greets me this morning with their song: Turn The Page, which is exactly what I would like to do with this period of my life!   

Well, we finally saw some movement in the currencies yesterday and overnight, with the dollar getting bought, and the currencies slipping. Again, the move isn’t great shakes, but it still is noticeable, so therefore it registers on the Richter Scale.. HA!  

There’s an article on the Bloomberg this morning that’s talking about how the dollar will see more selling in 2018, even with the Fed in rate hike mode. The article points out that the dollar has seen its worse year in the last decade in 2017, and the analysts writing the article believe that the impetus toward a lower dollar in 2018, will come from a revival of global growth, and rate hikes that challenge the Fed’s rate hikes all over the globe…  

This article falls in line with the one I told you about on Monday from UBS that talked about how they saw a global tightening of credit in 2018..   So, remember earlier this year when I would talk about how I was seeing signs of a revival of global growth, and called it the “Global Growth Tent Revival”?  Once again I was ahead of the crowd on this call, but did anyone listen to me? I doubt it…  So, listen to me now and hear me later, this Global Growth thing has potential, and that’s it…  

There are plenty of athletes that have “potential” but very few of them “make it”…  So, while I agree with the article that the dollar will find it a tough row to hoe in 2018, I’m thinking it will have more with the Fed losing whatever credibility they have left, when they have to reverse their moves this year…  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!   

Things in the U.K. aren’t so rosy these days.. Seems PM May, is backing into a corner on her views regarding BREXIT, and the leaders of the BREXIT move aren’t agreeing with her views… And then there was this latest poll in the U.K. that showed a majority of citizens still believe in BREXIT, but believe it will end badly…   

Well, so do I, so we have something in common, eh?  The pound was flying high as last week ended, but these new developments with the BREXIT negotiations have pulled the pound back down. 

One day after seeing the A$ and kiwi climb to the top of the performers’ list, the both got sold overnight. The A$ took the biggest hit, and the kiwi selling was more of a “sympathy trade”…  The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) met last night and left rates unchanged, which everyone expected, but then the RBA had this to say, that I’m sure had something to with the A$ selloff..  The RBA said that they were in no hurry to hike rates, which led the markets to think that their earlier thoughts of a rate hike in the 1st QTR of 2018, will have to be pushed back…   

You know, I’m still amazed at the dollar’s underwhelming reaction to the passage of the Tax Reform Bill last weekend… I mean wasn’t this tax bill supposed to be the cat’s meow for the reflation trade here in the U.S. ?  Or… was all that already priced in to the dollar?  It sure appears that way to me…  

So, I’m thinking that if the dollar can’t mount a huge rally on the news that the tax reform bill, then it really is in the stage of beginning to end the strong dollar trend…    I’ll stop there and let that last thought sink in a bit…   

OK,  I’m back! Gold got whacked again yesterday.. UGH! Just what the heck these sellers are thinking is a mystery, and while I don’t plan to attempt to get into their heads, I will say that I think they are all somewhat lost…  So, Gold lost $9.70 yesterday with 302,000 contracts traded…  Craziness here too folks..  Gold closed below its 200-day moving avg. yesterday according to Ed Steer, and began the day at $1,265.90 today…

The U.S. Data Cupboard yesterday had the Rocktober Trade Deficit and it printed worse than expected! The Trade Deficit widened to $48.7 Billion up from the September print of $44.9 Billion… That’s a HUGE swing folks, and while it signals heaps of imports, it also signals that the dollar was stronger in Rocktober than in September…  

Today’s Data Cupboard has the ADP Employment Report, which is supposed to give us an idea what the BLS Jobs Jamboree print will be on Friday..  Last week, my fave economist, Danielle Di Martino Booth, asked readers to send in their favorite employment indicator. She was looking for something not followed by everyone but was better than the BLS report…  I almost sent her my feelings on the ADP report… 

I’ve said many times that I think the country should ditch the BLS and use the ADP report as their “employment go to report”… ADP is the payroll system for almost every corporation or small business in this country, and if they show that 190,000 jobs were added in a month, they should be the ones who know!  

To recap…  The dollar got bought on Tuesday and overnight but the moves aren’t huge. U.K. PM May is hearing it from all sides on BREXIT, and the citizens of the U.K. think BREXIT will end up badly… This all weighs on the pound. The RBA left rates unchanged and sent the A$ downward with some comments about not seeing the need to hike rates for some time…  

For What It’s Worth… Well, this Friday is the deadline for a budget deal here in the U.S. Recall that the lawmakers kicked the can down the street a couple of months ago, to this Friday… And I read this morning, that there will be another bill to delay it another two weeks… This is more craziness folks… And I doubt the Fed will hike rates on the 13th, if there’s no budget deal in place, or the Gov’t is in shutdown mode…  You don’t have to take my thoughts on this as James Rickards weighed in with his thoughts in the Daily Reckoning (www.dailyreckoning.com) yesterday, and I have some of that for you here…  you can click on the link above for the full story… 

Or… here’s your snippet: “Will Republicans and Democrats agree on a budget, and avoid a government shutdown after midnight Friday?

I’d say the odds are 50/50. Actually, I put the odds of a shutdown at about 55%. There’s certainly enough substance here to be wary.

The government could shut down because of disagreements over defense spending, funding for Trump’s wall with Mexico, deportation of illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children (the “Dreamer Act” also referred to as “DACA”), funding for Planned Parenthood, funding for Obamacare (called “SCHIP”), disaster relief and more.

There’s not much middle ground between Democrats and Republicans on many of these hot button issues.” 

Chuck again…  I don’t believe the lawmakers will allow the Gov’t to shut down, so look for that “extension” if you will, to save the day this Friday…  

Currencies today 12/6/17… American style: A$ .7585, kiwi .6899, C$ .79, euro 1.1804, sterling 1.3384, Swiss $1.0111, … European Style: rand 13.5260, krone 8.2605, SEK 8.4068, forint 266.41, zloty 3.5698, koruna 21.7142, RUB 58.69, yen 112.49, sing 1.3481, HKD 7.8126, INR 64.48, China 6.6140, peso 18.80, BRL 3.2385, Dollar Index 93.37, Oil $56.89, 10-year 2.33%, Silver $16.07, Platinum $907.14, Palladium $996.05, and Gold… $1,267.70  

That’s it for today…  Well, our Blues got back on the winning track last night in Montreal. They had gone into a funk, but looked much better last night. Winter weather has arrived here in the St. Louis area… I don’t like cold weather one iota, and longtime readers know that I head to S. Florida in January to get away from the cold. But then there’s always this cold weather in December that I despise! At least now that I’m somewhat retired, I don’t have to go out in it if I don’t want to! So I have that going for me, eh? Nilson takes us to the finish line today with his song: Without You…  And with that, out of the way, it’s time to go… I hope you have a Wonderful Wednesday, and Be Good To Yourself!  

Chuck

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New Neocon Mantra: Iran, like Soviet Union, on Verge of Collapse

The realize that #TraitorTrump, #LoserTrump is clueless and will be up for anything he hopes will make him look like a winner no matter what it costs others in life, family or homes.

By Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jul 7 2017 (IPS)

Iran hawks suddenly have a new mantra: the Islamic Republic is the Soviet Union in the late 1980s, and the Trump administration should work to hasten the regime’s impending collapse.

It’s not clear why this comparison has surfaced so abruptly. Its proponents don’t cite any tangible or concrete evidence that the regime in Tehran is somehow on its last legs. But I’m guessing that months of internal policy debate on Iran has finally reached the top echelons in the policy-making chaos that is the White House these days. And the hawks, encouraged by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s rather offhand statement late last month that Washington favors “peaceful” regime change in Iran, appear to be trying to influence the internal debate by arguing that this is Trump’s opportunity to be Ronald Reagan. Indeed, this comparison is so ahistorical, so ungrounded in anything observable, that it can only be aimed at one person, someone notorious for a lack of curiosity and historical perspective, and a strong attraction to “fake news” that magnifies his ego and sense of destiny.

This new theme seemed to have come out of the blue Tuesday with the publication on the Wall Street Journal’s comics—I mean, op-ed—pages of a column entitled “Confront Iran the Reagan Way” by the South Africa-born, Canada-raised CEO of the Likudist Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), Mark Dubowitz. I wish I could publish the whole thing (which is behind a paywall), but a couple of quotes will have to suffice:

In the early 1980s, President Reagan shifted away from his predecessors’ containment strategy toward a new plan of rolling back Soviet expansionism. The cornerstone of his strategy was the recognition that the Soviet Union was an aggressive and revolutionary yet internally fragile regime that had to be defeated.

Reagan’s policy was outlined in 1983 in National Security Decision Directive 75, a comprehensive strategy that called for the use of all instruments of American overt and covert power. The plan included a massive defense buildup, economic warfare, support for anti-Soviet proxy forces and dissidents, and an all-out offensive against the regime’s ideological legitimacy.

Mr. Trump should call for a new version of NSDD-75 and go on offense against the Iranian regime.

…the American pressure campaign should seek to undermine Iran’s rulers by strengthening the pro-democracy forces that erupted in Iran in 2009, nearly toppling the regime. Target the regime’s soft underbelly: its massive corruption and human-rights abuses. Conventional wisdom assumes that Iran has a stable government with a public united behind President Hassan Rouhani’s vision of incremental reform. In reality, the gap between the ruled and their Islamist rulers is expanding.

….The administration should present Iran the choice between a new [nuclear] agreement and an unrelenting American pressure campaign while signaling that it is unilaterally prepared to cancel the existing deal if Tehran doesn’t play ball.

Only six years after Ronald Reagan adopted his pressure strategy, the Soviet bloc collapsed. Washington must intensify the pressure on the mullahs as Reagan did on the communists. Otherwise, a lethal nuclear Iran is less than a decade away.

Dubowitz, who clearly has allies inside the administration, asserts that parts of this strategy are already being implemented. “CIA Director Mike Pompeo is putting the agency on an aggressive footing against [the Iranian regime’s terrorist] global networks with the development of a more muscular covert action program.” Dubowitz predictably urges “massive economic sanctions,” calls for “working closely with allied Sunni governments,” and argues—rather dubiously—that “Europeans …may support a tougher Iran policy if it means Washington finally gets serious about Syria.” As for the alleged domestic weaknesses of the regime, let alone its similarity to the USSR in its decline, he offers no evidence whatever.

Takeyh Joins In

I thought this was a crazy kind of one-off by FDD, which, of course, houses former American Enterprise Institute (AEI) Freedom Scholar Michael Ledeen, who has been predicting the imminent demise of the Islamic Republic—and Supreme Leader Khamenei—for some 20 years or so. Ledeen also co-authored former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn’s bizarre 2016 autobiography and no doubt tutored the NSC’s 31-year-old intelligence director, Ezra Cohen-Watnick, whose conviction that the regime can be overthrown has been widely reported.

But then a friend brought to my attention a short piece posted Wednesday on The Washington Post’s website by Ray Takeyh, a Council on Foreign Relations Iran specialist who in recent years has cavorted with Dubowitz and FDD and similarly inclined Likudist groups, notably the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA). Entitled “It’s Time to Prepare for Iran’s Political Collapse,” it also compared Iran today with the Soviet Union on the verge.

Today, the Islamic republic lumbers on as the Soviet Union did during its last years. It professes an ideology that convinces no one. It commands security services that proved unreliable in the 2009 rebellion, causing the regime to deploy the Basij militias because many commanders of the Revolutionary Guards refused to shoot the protesters.

…Today, the Islamic republic will not be able to manage a succession to the post of the supreme leader as its factions are too divided and its public too disaffected.…

The task of a judicious U.S. government today is to plan for the probable outbreak of another protest movement or the sudden passing of Khamenei that could destabilize the system to the point of collapse. How can we further sow discord in Iran’s vicious factional politics? How can the United States weaken the regime’s already unsteady security services? This will require not just draining the Islamic republic’s coffers but also finding ways to empower its domestic critics. The planning for all this must start today; once the crisis breaks out, it will be too late for America to be a player.

Once again, actual evidence for the regime’s fragility is not offered. Indeed, although he claims that the 2009 “Green Revolt” “forever delegitimized the system and severed the bonds between state and society,” he fails to note that May’s presidential election resulted in a landslide win for President Hassan Rouhani with 73 percent voter turnout, or that reformist candidates swept the local council polls in most major cities, or that the leader of the reformist movement, leaders of the Green Movement, and prominent political prisoners encouraged participation. Nor does he address the question of whether Washington’s intervention in Iran’s internal politics—in whatever form—will actually help or harm efforts by the regime’s “domestic critics” to promote reform, particularly in light of the recent disclosures of the extent and persistence of U.S. intervention in the events leading up to and including the 1953 coup that ousted the democratically elected prime minister, Mohammad Mossadeq. Or whether last month’s terrorist attack by ISIS in Tehran might have strengthened the relationship between society and state.

This is not to deny that the regime is both oppressive and highly factionalized, but why is it suddenly so vulnerable—so much like the Soviet Union of the late 1980s—compared to what it was five or ten or 20 or 25 years ago? Only because Khamenei is likely to pass from the scene sooner rather than later? That seems like a weak reed on which to base a policy as fraught as what is being proposed.

Again, I’m not sure that this Iran=USSR-at-death’s-door meme is aimed so much at the public, or even the foreign-policy elite, as it is toward the fever swamps of a White House run by the likes of Steve Bannon or Stephen Miller or Cohen-Watnick. But here’s why a little more research into the new equation really got my attention.

And Also Lieberman

Dubowitz’s article, it turns out, was not the first recent reference. The most direct recent reference was offered by none other than former Sen. Joseph Lieberman, who incidentally is one of three members of FDD’s “Leadership Council,” in a speech before none other than the annual conference of the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK) and its cult leader, Maryam Rajavi, outside Paris July 1. Seemingly anticipating Takeyh (plus the Rajavi reference), Lieberman declared:

Some things have changed inside Iran, and that’s at the level of the people. You can never suppress a people, you can never enslave a people forever. The people of Iran inside Iran have shown the courage to rise up… To just talk about that, to just talk about that, to hold Madam Rajavi’s picture up in public places, is a sign of the unrest of the people and the growing confidence of the people that change is near. The same is true of the remarkable public disagreements between the various leaders of the country…It is time for America and hopefully some of our allies in Europe to give whatever support we can to those who are fighting for freedom within Iran.

He then went on, “Long before the Berlin Wall collapsed, long before the Soviet Union fell, the United States was supporting resistance movements within the former Soviet Union”—an apparent reference, albeit not an entirely clear one — to the Reagan Doctrine and its purported role in provoking the Communist collapse.

And, in a passage that no doubt expressed what at least Dubowitz and his allies think but can’t say publicly at this point:

The Arab nations are energized under the leadership of King Salman and Crown Prince [Mohammed] bin Salman. [Saudi Prince (and former intelligence chief) Turki Al Faisal Al Saudi addressed the “Free Iran Gathering” just before Lieberman.] They’re more active diplomatically and militarily as part of a resistance against the regime in Iran than we’ve ever seen before. And of course for a long time the state of Israel, because its very existence is threatened by the regime in Iran, has wanted to help change that regime. So you have coming together now a mighty coalition of forces: America, the Arab world, and Israel joining with the Resistance, and that should give us hope that we can make that [regime] change.

Putting aside the question of just how popular or unpopular Madam Rajavi is in Iran for a second, there are a number of truly remarkable things about Lieberman’s speech. How much will it help “the resistance” in Iran to be seen as supported by the Saudis and the “Arab nations?” And how will it help to boast about Israel’s assistance when most Iranians already appear to believe that the Islamic State is a creation of the Saudis and/or Israel? Is there any “mighty coalition” more likely to permanently alienate the vast majority of Iranians? Is it possible that the MEK has become an IRGC counter-intelligence operation? It’s very clear indeed that the group is lobbying heavily—and spending lavishly—to become the administration’s chosen instrument for achieving regime change. But advertising Saudi and Israeli support for the enterprise will likely make that goal more elusive. The MEK’s reputation in Iran was bad enough, but this is really over the top.

Lieberman no doubt received ample compensation for saying what he said. Other former prominent US officials, including John Bolton, Rudy Giuliani, and Gen. Jack Keane—all of whom probably have closer ties than Lieberman to the White House – also spoke at the MEK event, which, incidentally, makes me think that the White House is indeed seriously considering supporting the group as at least one part of its Iran policy. I suspect we’ll find out soon enough.

This piece was originally published in Jim Lobe’s blog on U.S. foreign policy Lobelog.com

The post New Neocon Mantra: Iran, like Soviet Union, on Verge of Collapse appeared first on Inter Press Service.

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Long-distance passenger trains in the US are operated by Amtrak. The organisation has made an operating loss every year since it was set up in 1971 though last year the deficit shrank to $227m, the lowest since 1973. The presidents so-called skinny budget for 2018 terminates Federal support for Amtraks long-distance train services, which have long been inefficient and incur the vast majority of Amtraks operating losses. The White House document, entitled America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again, says the move would allow Amtrak to focus on better managing its State-supported and Northeast Corridor train services. Individual states such as California and Texas subsidise some services, while the line from Washington DC via Philadelphia and New York to Boston is profitable. But public transport campaigners are dismayed by President Trumps plan to end subsidies for long-distance trains in America. Richard White, President and CEO of the American Public Transportation Association, said: The American economy and communities of all sizes would be losers." His association says that recent polls showed three out of four Americans support increased public transportation investment. Additionally, a November election poll found that 81 percent of Americans who voted for Donald Trump oppose any cuts to the current levels of public transportation investment, said Mr White. View photos The famous Empire Builder train (seen here in North Dakota) is at risk (Amtrak / Jason Berg) More Mark Smith, founder of the Seat61 global rail website, said: Unsurprisingly perhaps, Trump wants to kill the Trains that Make America Great. Amtrak now covers an unprecedented 94 per cent of its annual operating costs from revenue, so it hardly seems necessary in pure financial terms this is essentially politically motivated. It would mean the only public transport from coast to coast will be flying, or three days and nights on a bus.

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ET Updated at 1:23 a.m. ET Who will claim the cellar-dweller battle in Gosford? MATCH DETAILS Central Coast Mariners v Adelaide United Central Coast Stadium, Gosford Kick-Off:5:35PM(Local) (5:35PM AEDT) Referee: Kurt Ams Assistant Referee 1: Owen Goldrick Assistant Referee 2: James Cleal Fourth Official: Shaun Evans TV Broadcast: Live coverage on Fox Sports 505 from5.00pm (AEDT)and delayed coverage on Sky Sport 4 (New Zealand) Radio Broadcast: ABC Grandstand Online & via the ABC Radio Mobile App A-league Live, Coast FM 96.3 Join the conversation on Twitter using the hash-tag #CCMvADL To purchase tickets visitwww.aleague.com.au Central Coast Mariners squad: 1.Ivan NECEVSKI (gk), 2.Storm ROUX, 3.Scott GALLOWAY, 4.Jacob POSCOLIERO, 5.Harry ASCROFT, 7.Fabio FERREIRA, 8.Nick MONTGOMERY (c), 9.Roy ODONOVAN, 11.Connor PAIN, 12.Trent BUHAGIAR, 13.Kwabena APPIAH, 14.Adam BERRY, 16.Liam ROSE, 17.Josh BINGHAM, 19.Jacques FATY, 20.Paul IZZO (gk), 21.Michael NEILL, 22.Jake McGING **two to be omitted** Ins: 19.Jacques FATY (promoted), 20.Paul IZZO (gk) (returns from suspension), 21.Michael NEILL (promoted) Outs: 30.Adam PEARCE (gk) (omitted) Unavailable: 6.Blake POWELL (knee 1 week), 10.Mickael TAVARES (ankle indefinite), 23.Jake ADELSON (ACL indefinite) Adelaide United squad: 1.Eugene GALEKOVIC (c), 2.Michael MARRONE, 4.Dylan McGOWAN, 5.Taylor REGAN, 7.Jae-sung KIM, 8.ISAIAS, 9.Baba DIAWARA, 11.Sergio CIRIO, 12.Mark OCHIENG, 13.Marc MARINO, 14.George MELLS, 15.Ben WARLAND, 16.Jesse MAKAROUNAS, 17.Nikola MILEUSNIC, 19.Ben GARUCCIO, 21.Tarek ELRICH, 30.Daniel MARGUSH (gk), 92.Eli BABALJ **two to be omitted** Ins: 8.ISAIAS (returns from injury), 13.Marc MARINO (promoted), 14.George MELLS (promoted), 15.Ben WARLAND (promoted), 16.Jesse MAKAROUNAS (promoted) Outs: 10.Marcelo CARRUSCA (suspended 1 match), 18.Riley McGREE (international duty), 24.Jordan ODOHERTY (ankle indefinite) Unavailable: 3.Iacopo LA ROCCA (hip 3 weeks), 22.Ryan KITTO (hamstring assess), 23.Jordan ELSEY (knee season) BLUFFERS GUIDE As they near the end of a season theyd probably rather forget, both sides are fighting to avoid the wooden spoon. The Mariners were tenth last season and will be desperate to prevent a repeat, while the Reds could suffer the ignominy of finishing last as defending champions, a fate not befalling any side since the Jets in 2008/09. Adelaide are coming off just their fourth victory of the season, a 2-1 home win over Brisbane Roar with the winner coming deep into added time via the penalty spot. Meanwhile, the Mariners will also be buoyed by restricting Premiers-in-waiting Sydney FC to a 1-0 scoreline at Allianz Stadium last Friday. OPTA DATA Central Coast Mariners have won their last two games against the Reds, and have scored exactly two goals in each of their last four matches against Adelaide. Adelaide United have won on two of their last three trips to Central Coast Stadium, having previously failed to win there since January 2009. Central Coast Mariners have scored exactly two goals in five of their last six games at home; only against Melbourne Victory, who kept them scoreless, did they not score twice. Adelaide United havent won in New South Wales since Round 26, 2015/16 when they beat Sydney FC 2-0. Central Coast Mariners goalkeepers have been required to make 103 saves so far this season, by far the most of any team in the competition.

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