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aotopmha · 5 years ago

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Attack on Titan Chapter 122 Thoughts

This chapter is pretty straight-forward in comparison to the previous ones, but in a deceptive way, where a lot of moments have a bunch of nuance, when they at first glance don't seem to.

Most of the chapter is very thoroughly "show, don't tell", which I can see getting people confused and leave them asking questions, but the key to this is context.

When taking this chapter as more stand-alonish, I feel like it would 100% feel much more obtuse and confusing, but almost every panel calls back to something and the story simply asks you to put the story together based on this. I feel it still definitely leaves some stuff up for potentially varying interpretation, but much less so.

Here's my take on it.

Firstly, the only voice in the whole Ymir flashback is that of King Fritz. Everyone else is silent.

There is much talk about how AoT is this morally gray series and there are certainly many morally gray elements here, but in truth, I'd phrase this idea more in the sense of the story having really well fleshed out antagonists.

It emphasizes humanizing every character, including all those that are presented as shitty people, in a specific way of giving them at least one quality that's if not sympathetic, then at least understandable from the characters' perspectives (this is something Isayama has actually straight-up mentioned to aim to do in interview material).

Karina is a horrible mother to Reiner, but she is a product of her environment and has never gotten to see outside of the world she lives in.

Alma treats Historia horribly, but her life is in danger because of a powerful man and the society she lives in.

Floch started out as a tactless asshole and has only grown worse, but there are understandable points in what he is saying during various moments in the story.

Gross is straight-up a candidate for the most hateable character in the series, but there is a spelled out, concrete perspective to his evil you kind of understand in a twisted way that also stems from the system he's living under, which often makes for my favorite type of antagonist.

I point this out because I think the first King Fritz is the most straight-forwardly villainous character in the series so far and I think that's fine.

The truth is, sometimes there isn't a "both sides". Sometimes there is a good and evil and in this case, Isayama opted for a powerful man that exploits the weak to further gain power for the evil, which is still a very real evil, but, as said, also pretty straight-forward.

He doesn't develop in any way - he's an abuser to begin with and in a position of power to begin with.

The only sliver of nuance to him is that he's a smart opportunist: he's a powerful man who knows to take advantage of the position he's in to gain even more power.

You could argue this also comments on power abuse and how a priviledged position and availability of the means to take advantage of others encourages to do so and gain even more power. People are more likely to use a gun when they are given access to it than when not.

But even then, as he says to keep passing down the spines of the Titans, due it being at the cost of the daughters he had with Ymir, whom he already saw as a tool to be used, he most likely doesn't even do it for the good of his people, but his own self-serving desire to preserve his position of power and influence and that way remain important and influental even after his death.

He's more interesting as a vehicle for exploring the social situation he creates than as a individual character.

Him being the only one to talk is thus another neat example of the story making a narrative point through meta elements. Abusers silence and take away people's voices through fear and conditioning and this is exactly what he does and therefore is the only one talking.

In this case, it's even literal, as we see a slave having their tongue cut out. We don't ever see this happen to Ymir, but it's an easy assumption to make that she might've had her tongue cut out, as well, based on what we see done with the other slave.

Regardless of any physical element, though, Ymir simply doesn't go against King Fritz because she doesn't understand she can do so. Her chains are entirely emotional. She seems to have been a slave for most of her life, never getting to see any other perspective regarding herself, so because of the conditioning and indoctrination stemmed from her position as a slave, she believes serving him is her purpose in life:

It's how she is lead to percieve herself that keeps her a slave.

This is interesting to me because this seems to reflect Armin's initial character resolve. The only reason he didn't believe in himself was because of his own, negative, perception of himself. It's through an alternative perspective given through Eren and Mikasa he grew to see himself in a different light. His arc is one of the first arcs in the story that involves a character gaining nuance in their perspective (technically Mikasa has a moment like this before him, but I think Armin's arc fits the comparison better because it very specifically relates to his self-image):

(Chapter 11)

This later also evolves into the Marleyan Eldians' single-mindedness and unawareness of playing into a corrupt system. Neither Ymir nor them simply never get an opportunity to see the world differently/in a more complex light.

In the case of a more typical damsel, the rescue would have had a much more straight-forward and simplistic explanation and through that in my eyes would have been much less interesting and I really appreciate whenever a story understands abuse like this.

Related to this, Eren's speech in this chapter probably makes it one of my favorites.

There are some uncertain connotations to it, as Ymir truly probably is in no good emotional position to make her own decision and Eren ultimately gives her two very specific options to choose from, but I think his words are genuine and the point of the speech still stands.

It's a powerful speech that says everyone is an autonomous person and is not obligated to be bound to anyone:

As said, the elements of a typical damsel in distress story are here, but I think it's more human than just a standard crying girl asking for help situation and on a meta level, the story says that whoever is in a similar situation also has a choice.

As also said, you could tear this into pieces when you focus on a bunch of the technicalities surrounding it, but I think as a general sentiment I really do think it’s incredibly powerful.

I mentioned how this chapter commented on how powerful men exploit women, but I think it's more gender neutral than it might initially seem. I think the general feelings here would work just as well if were Ymir a boy, with the only difference probably being another woman being involved to force him to have children. The story has gendered aspects, but it handles them with not only taste, but also in a way where the general point isn’t gendered, similarly to Mikasa's backstory.

Related to this, I think the final element to look at in relation to Ymir's story specifically is Historia’s pregnancy. I think it made it directly much more harder to make natural.

It felt artificial to begin with, but before this, I was much more open-minded about it.

Okay, since Historia genuinely seems to care for everyone, maybe this could've been somehow spun around her sacrifice being genuine and of her own choosing, but now it's as literal of a representation of history repeating itself as it possiblt could get and whether Historia chose the pregnancy or not, subtextually it will always represent history repeating itself.

The pregnancy has a bunch of potential problems: erasing the gay part of a character (since Historia is the most overtly gay character in the series and this happens after her love interest is killed, it will come across this way even if it's not the intention), contradicting a character's arc, but more than that, at this point, I just don't see anything interesting and unique said through it specifically. All other options where the pregnancy is fake sound much more interesting to me.

If the story finds a way to somehow make the pregnancy work in a interesting way, I'll applaud it, but right now I don't see all that many possibilities in terms of how it could.

This chapter literally calls back to the image of the kind girl Historia saw in the book Frieda showed her that she went against and while this contradiction in her arc already existed just with the reveal of the apparent pregnancy, this now puts a big red exclamation mark on it:

It's so obvious that the story missing this contradiction and not even addressing it would be extremely puzzling (which I do think it will).

More than anything, as if it hadn’t done this as strongly as possible already, this also even further (as it possibly could at this point), fortified the idea that something definitely, most certainly, without a doubt, is up.

Moving on, though, in the same vein as I said there are points in the real world where good and evil exists, there is actually a truth in history. History is a series of facts interpreted by people and with showing the "real truth" here I think the story dodged a dangerous potential implication about history not being factual.

I think it also fixed some of the potential implications with the historical imagery the story has been using.

Firstly, the Eldian empire was born through the exploitation of the weak. We don't even know if Ymir and all the other slaves were all actually Eldians, so depending how you interpret this, it takes away the potentially historically revisionist perspective of the Jewish analogue race ever being the oppressor. There is no place for "both sides" when it comes to the Jewish parallels because it's one of the most black and white situations in all of history. If nothing else, this element at least makes it clear that the story simply wishes to explore the thematic element of the dynamics between the oppressor and the oppressed the idea of power abuse.

Then, through making the encounter with the parasite creature happenstance and the Titan power not biologically inherent to Eldians, it removes the potential implication of the Jewish analogue being biologically different, therefore being "special" compared to other races, which is not the case with any race.

The element that has been there for the longest in my eyes and I think didn’t even need to be elaborated on because it’s been there and explored so much already and that always removed the possibility of the story (at the very least intentionally) being racist to me, though, is that the story treats all characters from all races the same without ever resorting to using caricatures or excessive stereotyping. The Eldians specifically are the main characters of the story, with there being equally good and evil characters among them.

The key element to racism has always been othering and dehumanization and the story for the most part makes sure that even the characters that are awful people have fleshed out perspectives.

I think what also helps in this chapter specifically is having more of a history-inspired than strictly historical situation, showing it all through a fantasy veil compared to the more direct usage of imagery with Marley and the Marleyan Eldians.

Finally, I really liked the potential Titan lore this chapter presented us.

I think it's really neat how it might potentially connect mythology and biology with the possible inspiration being, both, the prehistoric creature Hallucigenia and the mythological dragon under the roots of the world tree Ygdrassil, Nidhoggr, more than that, though, I really like the potential "nature you scary" element of the Titan origins.

The creature driving a horror story usually either isn't explained or is explained through something like aliens, lovecraftian horror, a human-made catastrophe or an experminent.

In this case there are elements of all of these in here and I think any of these could still be revealed to be the direct origin of the Titan parasite, but I really like the potential "nature you scary" element here because we usually always look outside of our world to find horror because we fear what we don't know, but Earth's own nature has plenty of that, too.

Nature can be really unsettling and horrifying at points and I’d like to see that being taken advantage of more.

Overall, though, I really liked this chapter. I think it might be one of my favorites because of Eren's speech, but I also really enjoyed it for it's "show, don't tell" aspect. Sometimes one image can say much more than a thousand words and I think this chapter did a really solid job with that.

#Attack On Titan #Shingeki No Kyojin #AoT 122 #SnK 122 #Chapter 122 #AoT #SnK

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zipgrowth · 6 years ago

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For Students to Succeed, Social Capital Matter Just as Much as Skills—Here's Why

Let’s just debunk a big ol’ myth right now: No one, and I repeat, no one makes it entirely based on their own merit. The concept of “meritocracy” as a path to success is misguided, because so many external factors shape the privileges, opportunities and challenges that people experience in life.

As educators, when we tell students that they can do anything, we sometimes neglect something important, which is this—success doesn’t just boil down to one’s own skillsets or intrinsic abilities. It’s so much bigger and more networked than that. Alongside reading and writing, math, sciences and STEM, there’s an equally important subject deserving of attention and resources: social capital.

What Is Social Capital—and Why Should Schools Care?

Before we delve into the specifics of what “social capital” means, let me present a personal example to illustrate the concept.

Back in 2016, I was named to the Forbes “30 Under 30” list for the Education category. Abstractly, such a title might appear to be a self-driven honor, one that is earned based on an individual’s entrepreneurial work or career success.

However, I’m here to tell you that I did not earn that role by myself—far from it. As has been suggested by studies by education policy analysts, many awardees tend to hail from the same circles—they attend similar colleges and universities, know “30 Under 30” recipients from past years, or work at the same organizations as the collection of judges who bestow the honor.

And I’m no different. In 2016, I knew folks who had been on the list from prior years. Previous winners are oftentimes asked by Forbes staff to submit their nominations, and those nominations take great weight. And as such, my social capital is essentially what earned me the title of “Forbes 30 Under 30”—knowing people who vouched for me, including Teach for America alumnus (a program I was a part of) and acquaintances I’d connected with as far back as college. (Also, let’s not forget that I worked at EdSurge, which introduced me to a number of entrepreneurs on the business side of edtech.)

Social capital, as argued by sociologist James Coleman, is defined as those intangible resources that come embedded within interpersonal relationships or social institutions. They can be as strong as that of family members, friends, colleagues or fellow students, or as weak as distant LinkedIn connections. But when push comes to shove, a connection can mean the difference between a job and unemployment, between a college acceptance and rejection—even between sticking with high school and dropping out.

What Schools Should Do in Preparation for 2019

For many students, getting an internship or a job—arguably what education is preparing them for—is so deeply connected to their social capital. Every student, and every human, for that matter, has social capital inherently.

But how are schools supporting that development? I’ve noticed over the past year that while more and more schools are focusing on social-emotional learning, they still dedicate a majority of time to developing hard and soft skills—and oftentimes forget the social capital piece.

There are exceptions. One, for example, is the Cristo Rey network, a Catholic high school system founded in 2000 that currently includes 35 schools throughout the United States. Since its founding, Cristo Rey has implemented its Corporate Work Study Program, through which students work five days each month at organizations in law, finance, healthcare, technology industries every single year of their high school career.

Not only do these students gain earn hourly wages in tuition support for their work, but they build a collection of connections and meet potential new mentors. “Access cannot be underestimated when regarding the corporate work-study model,” says Francisco Castillo-Fierro, an administrator at Cristo Rey San Jose Jesuit High School. “Students from underserved communities can network and build relationships with professionals, gain both hard and soft skills, and create future job opportunities for themselves.”

Other examples involve partnering with external organizations that offer social-capital support to districts through mentorship. Take iMentor, a nonprofit in Chicago, New York City, and the Bay Area that connects students to volunteer mentors.

For the past two years, Ariana Vergara, a programming specialist with YouTube Kids, has mentored students from the Bay Area with iMentor, discussing everything with them from getting into technology to Cardi B’s latest album. Last year, Vergara, a Hispanic lesbian in tech, was paired with a high school student who is also Hispanic, transgender, and potentially exploring a role in the tech industry. The impact for building that student’s social capital is especially powerful, given that Vergara is not just a mentor, but someone with whom this student connects with when it comes to ethnic and LGBTQ identity.

“I am a friend and confidante who truly encourages his own self-discovery and self-worth in all facets of his life, but especially in his voice and his potential career,” Vergara says. “This student can create his own door and path to do whatever it is that he wants in his life whether it is in tech or the music industry.”

Hard Skills + Soft Skills Are Incomplete Parts of the Equation

As a former teacher, I remember the days of coming back to the classroom in January. The bliss of holiday break was over, and now came the four-month push up until statewide testing in April. But nonetheless, here’s what I recommend.

Take the next four to six months to think about how your school and district can support students in widening their networks. Look to models like Cristo Rey as an example, or check out how others have attempted the journey. In her recently-published book “Who You Know,” researcher Julia Freeland Fisher explores school and district-based models, from Cajon Valley Unified School District’s World of Work program, which connects students to local employers and online industry experts, to Big Picture Learning schools, which partner with local employers to bring students into real-world work environments.

Do you think you have a student who can be on the Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list? I bet you do. I have you have hundreds. Now, let’s get them all the connections they need to make that happen—and more importantly, to give them every opportunity they deserve.

For Students to Succeed, Social Capital Matter Just as Much as Skills—Here's Why published first on https://medium.com/@GetNewDLBusiness

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kacydeneen · 6 years ago

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Health Care Vote a Pre-Existing Condition for Ill.'s Roskam

Susan Kaye Quinn joined the Republican Party in her early 20s for its conservative economic policies and said she was a dedicated member over the next three decades. She voted straight-ticket Republican, campaigning for candidates in her home state of Illinois and attending party events around her congressional district in the suburbs north and west of Chicago.

"I was a part of the party until they nominated Donald Trump," said Quinn, a 53-year-old novelist and former environmental engineer, in a phone interview. "But I didn't leave the Republican Party, the party left me."

Suspicious Packages Sent to Clinton, Obama, CNN Offices in NYC

Appalled by Trump's rhetoric and many of his policies, Quinn crossed party lines in 2016 to vote for the Democratic candidates for president and Congress, she said. Hillary Clinton carried Illinois' 6th Congressional District by seven points even as the Republican House incumbent, U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam, was easily reelected to a sixth term.

"The Republicans threw out their principles," Quinn said. "They overlooked moral issues, Russia meddling in our elections. They overlooked all of that to gain power in Trump’s popularity."

Young People Back Single-Payer Health Care, Poll Finds

This article, part 4 in a series, examines one of the key battleground races for control of the House of Representatives in the Nov. 6 midterm elections. Carried by grassroots momentum, Democrats must take 23 seats from Republicans to win the balance of power. They are contending with Republicans' experience and organization, and an outspoken but polarizing president.

Democrats looking to regain control of the House are hoping to separate socially progressive, economically conservative Republican voters in the 6th District from a Republican Party that moved further to the right on positions of abortion, immigration and LGBTQ rights, among other issues. Two issues they have seized on are health care and opposition to Trump's tax bill.

Agencies Were Blindsided by Trump's 'Zero Tolerance' Policy, Report Says

Republicans in districts that went for Clinton have been forced to thread a line between appealling to moderates fed up with Trump while maintaining support among the president's base.

“It’s a tough year for Republicans in suburban Illinois, we know it, but Congressman Roskam has stood up to the President on issues, especially trade and is unique in his style and not a cookie cutter Republican,” said Kirk Dillard, a former DuPage County Republican chairman and veteran of Illinois politics, in an emailed statement to NBC. “Peter Roskam is on sound footing with his base.”

Roskamin touts himself as a moderate who opposes Trump's trade war, has advocated for a universal background checks system and elimination of bump stocks. Despite voting repeatedly to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Roskam said he supports protections for pre-existing conditions and has proposed expanding access to pre-tax health savings accounts to help pay for deductibles. The 57-year-old from Wheaton is also staunchly anti-abortion and supports legislation banning the use of federal dollars from going to organizations that provide abortion services.

"Those are the things that I'm voting on and I think those are the things that represent voters of the 6th District," Roskam told NBC. "And the proof of that is I've consistently won these elections with these views."

But Roskam's attempts to repeal the ACA while refusing to hold town halls with constituents hasn't sat well with a number of conservative and independent voters in the district. And neither did the $1.5 trillion Republican tax bill Roskam helped write, which will hurt some in high-tax states like Illinois by capping their state and local tax deductions.

"How do you respond when your representative doesn't hold a town hall to avoid hearing criticism and makes no bones about the fact the he has increased our tax burden?" Kenneth Hillman, a father of three from Cary, told NBC in a phone interview.

Others disenchanted with the congressman they once supported are evangelicals — voters Roskam has historically relied on — who feel that many Republican policies are contrary to Christian values.

Kristin Sterling, a 52-year-old bookkeeper at a Presbyterian church in DuPage County, told NBC she had voted for Roskam because their mothers were involved in a church women's group together and she believed "he was very religious and Christian. But the idea that we are all about ourselves, would strip health care from the poor and sick, and don't care about neighbors and the community, really bothered me."

The Democrat hoping to capitalize on Roskam's newfound weakness is Sean Casten, a clean-energy entrepreneur and political newcomer from Downers Grove. Casten emerged from a crowded field to defeat initial frontrunner Kelly Mazeski, a breast cancer survivor, in the primary.

Casten has made protecting and expanding health care access under the Affordable Care Act a top priority of his campaign. He says he's "unapologetically" pro-choice and supports legislation that will protect young immigrants living under former President Barack Obama's now-threatened Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Casten has also vowed to work on restoring state and local tax deductions and proposes investments in infrastructure and clean energy as a way to boost the middle class economy.

That appeal seems to be working. Earlier this month, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted its rating for the district from tossup to leaning Democratic.

"Democrats didn't get their ideal nominee here back in March, but in this kind of political environment, it may not matter," said Cook's David Wasserman in his ratings analysis of the race. "Roskam, who hasn't had a competitive race since beating now-Sen. Tammy Duckworth for this seat in 2006, is now trailing Casten in both parties' polling."

Red, Blue and Green The 6th District is predominantly white, highly educated and affluent. More than 50 percent of residents have college degrees and the median household income is just shy of $100,000, according to the Census. That's potentially bad news for Roskam in the current environment — a March poll from Pew Research Center found a larger share of college graduates favor Democrats.

Roskam's seat has been solidly Republican since the mid-1970s, reinforced in 2011 when the Democratic-controlled state legislature redrew the district to pack in Republicans and maximize Democrats' hold on surrounding districts. But despite the gerrymandering, the C-shaped district that arcs through Chicago suburbs in five counties has voted for presidents of both parties in recent years: Obama in 2008, Mitt Romney in 2012 and Clinton in 2016.

"When Hillary won in 2016 we realized there are more of us here than we think, and there are fewer hard-right Republicans in this district than we assumed," said Leslie Sadowski, a liberal who moved to Downers Grove in 2012. "In the past, I think most people took for granted that it was a red district and stayed home."

Peter Cooper, a lawyer from DuPage County, said he's never been involved in Democratic politics and voted Republican in the 2016 primary, but did not support Trump.

"I was so appalled by the tenor and tone of President-elect Trump that I began looking for opportunities to get involved," he said.

Cooper joined political activism groups, encouraged friends to consider runs for public office and has volunteered for Casten's campaign.

And Cooper is not alone. More than 67,000 residents voted in this year's crowded Democratic primary, up from just 8,615 in the 2014 midterm primary.

Roskam, who ran unopposed both years, received 56,544 votes this year. The Republican's vote total was down by nearly 9,000 from four years earlier.

Dillard warned not to discount Roskam's support among a "tried and true conservative" base, which includes evangelicals, and told NBC he believes they will be loyal to the congressman "even if some want to break with Republicans."

Both candidates have seen millions of dollars pour in from their parties and outside groups.

Roskam spent about $800,000 more than Casten and had nearly $500,000 more on hand through the end of September, according to their Federal Election Commission filings. More than $1 million has been spent by outside groups to attack Casten or back Roskam, compared to less than $200,000 to support Casten or oppose Roskam.

Roskam's Pre-Existing Condition: Voting Record Wasserman noted Roskam's vulnerability stems from his party-line votes. According to the political analysis website FiveThirtyEight, the congressman has voted in line with Trump's position 94.6 percent of the time.

"I don't see why we'd fire our representative to get back at the president," Brad Hagstrom, a Roskam supporter from Downers Grove, told NBC. "I believe Peter is an American first and a Republican second."

In a September debate with Casten, Roskam stood by his congressional record, arguing that many of the votes included in the FiveThirtyEight statistics were for "common-sense" legislation like hurricane and opioid relief, support for veterans, funding for government agencies and sanctions on Russia, Iran and North Korea. Roskam called Casten's claim that he's aligned with the White House an "over-characterization" and said he's condemned Trump both privately and publicly on issues like trade tariffs and funding cuts to the Great Lakes clean-up and preservation program.

But it was Roskam's repeated votes to repeal and replace the Obama-era Affordable Care Act, most recently by backing the GOP's American Health Care Act last summer, that voters who spoke to NBC found "reprehensible." The bill, a priority for the Trump administration, passed the House but was narrowly voted down in the Senate.

For months before the vote, Roskam had refused to hold town hall meetings with constituents who were concerned about losing pre-existing condition protections they had under the Affordable Care Act. Citing the "drama" at those types of events, he instead conducted tele-town halls, "which are much more civil," he told NBC.

Few of the constituents who spoke to NBC have been satisfied with the "don't call me, we'll call you" format, which selects callers and prescreens questions, and Roskam has been hounded by protesters demanding a public meeting.

Roskam told NBC that the ACA is a "catastrophic failure" because of rising premiums and limited providers in the exchange for some areas of the country.

However, experts argue that a major factor behind rising premiums and the reduction of health care options was uncertainty over the law's future caused by frequent attempts by the Republican party to kill or weaken it. The average price of premiums for benchmark plans will actually go down by about 1.5 percent in 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced this month. That's because insurers who increased the price of 2018 premiums in reaction to the failed Republican repeal bill are now rolling back prices to correct for overinflation.

Roskam said he is advocating for a replacement health care plan that will increase competition, lower premiums and include protections for pre-existing conditions. But with the individual mandate repealed under the tax bill, many of the constituents who spoke to NBC said they question the feasibility of attaining a comparable level of coverage to the ACA without either increasing cost or cutting services.

"Insurance as a business model is made up of a risk pool. You need healthy people to balance the cost of the unhealthy ones," said Cooper, the DuPage lawyer. "I think it's disingenuous to suggest that we are going to reduce premiums but increase benefits, but we need to find better and more efficient ways to provide health care."

Cooper said he believes in access to health care for all and is skeptical of Roskam's "lip service" to pre-existing conditions without offering specifics on an overall plan.

Casten's platform calls for building on "Obamacare," as the Affordable Care Act is often called, and moving the country toward universal health care by creating a public option for people to buy into the Medicare system.

"What we should be doing from a data perspective is recognize that as a country we spend more per capita on health care than any other country in the world and have worse outcomes than every other country that has universal health care. And the ACA was not universal health care but it was closer than what we had before," Casten said in a phone interview.

Cutting the SALT on Taxes Like many Republican members of Congress in Democratic-leaning states across the country, Roskam faces the challenge of defending the $10,000 limit on state and local tax (SALT) deductions that were part of the Republicans' Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts of 2017.

In a high-tax state like Illinois, where more than 43 percent of returns claim SALT, property and sales taxes, many voters in the 6th District may be particularly hard hit by the cap on their SALT deductions, according to the Tax Policy Center.

Roskam, who is the chairman of the Tax Policy Subcommittee for the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, said the original version of the GOP bill had a zero-deduction allowance and that he insisted on the $10,000 break, calling it a "sweet spot" for his district. He maintains that middle-class families will see a net benefit due to changes in other parts of the tax law.

But constituents who aren't seeing a big bump in their paychecks are skeptical.

"My property taxes alone is over the $10,000 cap, so the SALT limit will definitely hurt my family this year," said Carolynne Funk, a mother of four from Lake Zurich, who plans to vote for Casten.

Proponents of the SALT cap, like Hagstrom and Deborah Kraus of Hillsdale, defend the decision. Kraus said that while she may pay more in taxes, limiting the deduction puts pressure on the "Illinois machine" to reduce taxes and tighten its spending belt.

For Crystal Lake resident Greg Alexander, his biggest concern is the long-term impact of the $1.5 trillion tax cut on the federal deficit budget. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that it will add $1.9 trillion to the national debt by 2028, and could be higher if provisions of the tax cut that are set to expire are renewed instead.

"Eventually the deficit will need to be paid down, and they are going to do that by cutting Social Security, Medicare and other safety nets," Alexander said. "It's just horrible."

Asked about concerns over the deficit, Roskam told NBC that said while he understands the criticism, the money borrowed to pay for tax cuts will keep companies and jobs in Illinois and the U.S. "The question is do you take on debt to buy something that is increasing in value and the answer is 'yes,'" he added.

Casten has vowed to restore SALT deductions and said he supports lifting the payroll cap, currently $128,400, on earnings subject to the Social Security tax in order to fund entitlement programs long-term. He said he also supports raising the gas tax, which was last increased in 1993, to pay for road and other infrastructure projects.

"These are the things that are going to help the economy and the middle class," Casten said. "Not huge tax cuts skewed to the very wealthy."

More Than Just 'Pro-Birth' Jeff Greenberg, a historically single-issue voter from Wheaton, told NBC he is abandoning the anti-abortion ticket this year to vote for Casten, a shift for a district that was previously represented by Henry Hyde, the namesake of the Hyde Amendment restricting federal funding for abortion.

Greenberg, a "pro-life evangelical Christian" who teaches geology and environmental science at Wheaton College, the alma mater of Rev. Billy Graham, said that while he disagrees with Casten on the issue of abortion, he feels his proposals for health care, taxes and for tackling climate change are more aligned with his Christian values than those of Roskam.

Greenberg said he had always voted a pro-life ticket, supporting Roskam in at least two elections. But with Roskam defending Trump's Muslim ban, repeatedly voting to repeal the ACA, failing to protect "Dreamers" and supporting a tax bill that "further widens the income inequality gap," Greenberg said he's realized that anti-abortion advocacy can't be the only thing he looks for in a candidate.

"To be a pro-life, you got to be more than just pro-birth," Greenberg said.

Roskam did not respond directly to the "pro-birth" criticism but he told NBC he's "not going to be defensive about being pro-life" and condemned Casten for not supporting the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Act — restricting abortions at 20 weeks — and favoring expanding the availability of taxpayer-funded abortions.

Casten maintained that abortion should be a decision between a woman and her doctor and not the government. He told NBC he believes the only way to actually reduce incidents of abortion is by decreasing the chances of unplanned pregnancy through access to contraception, maternity health services and sex-education. Those are all positions that Greenberg said he supports.

Casten is also capitalizing on a growing contingent of voters who support women's reproductive rights and are frustrated over the Republicans' resolve to defund organizations that provide preventative care like Planned Parenthood.

"As a college student and a young professional, I relied on Planned Parenthood for affordable birth control," said 49-year-old Erin Micklo of Glen Ellyn. "This administration's determination to destroy both affordable contraception for those who cannot afford it and their desire to make medical and reproductive decisions for women is abhorrent and terrifying."

Micklo has voted for Roskam four times, including 2016, she said. But the high school teacher said she is the parent of a gay daughter and a son with a disability and is actively working to flip the 6th in the midterms in order to protect the rights of LGBTQ Americans and pre-existing conditions afforded under the ACA so that her son will always have access to healthcare.

"In some ways, at nearly 50 years old, I feel more alive and energized than I've ever felt in my life," Micklo added.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser. Health Care Vote a Pre-Existing Condition for Ill.'s Roskam published first on Miami News

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margert-maiava · 7 years ago

Text

Best Games Without WiFi

Competition Between the four important carriers in our country have pushed networks such as T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T to eventually reopen unlimited data plans for our telephones. In the long run, users that want the extra data can trust the programs supplied directly out of their carriers rather than having to be worried about their carriers charging overages and extra charges that finish in a costly invoice at the close of the month. However, while we appreciate the further data programs supplied from the country's top mobile carriers, they nevertheless retain two major problems: first, they are rather expensive and still carry throttling that can, sadly, restrict your internet usage rates if you cross within a particular percentile of information used state wide. Second, and possibly more importantly, each the data on the planet can not prevent dead zones or regions without a mobile system or WiFi.

So while our Whether you're on a very long flight, taking the subway to work, or just can not access your system from your present location, you might want to be on the lookout for a few superb portable games you can play while on the long run. Whether you're in your commute, travelling into some far off place for holiday, or bored while waiting in the line at Starbucks, these games for the two iOS and Android provide something a little special for players seeking to squander their time off.

Whether Not you are after a casual match, or anything with a little more depth to sink your teeth into, this listing of the best portable games available with no internet connection is sure to satisfy your thirst for a profitable single-player offline experience. Each of these comes completely tested and assessed to ensure great gameplay, promising you hours upon hours of offline play no matter what type of gamer you're.

Angry Birds 2

We are all Probably knowledgeable concerning the Angry Birds game series, initially released for iOS back in 2009. The sport was popular enough to establish an entire collection of product, spin-off games, television shorts, and even an animated feature film (along with an upcoming film in 2019). Strangely, despite the licensed spin-offs and complete scale console starts of the first game, Angry Birds didn't observe a comprehensive sequel printed until 2015, using Angry Birds two be a direct continuation of the original game. Even though the game functions very similarly to the original Angry Birds game in the last ten years, the series was revitalized here with new mechanics and reworked controls that make the sport feel much better than ever.

Much like The original Angry Birds and most of its assorted spin-offs, you play the game by starting small birds in your target, a series of platforms constructed holding pigs up you'll need to demolish. Employing a slingshot, you take your critterseach with their own unique powers--at the bottom, letting you crush the beans in as few turns as possible without losing lives. Angry Birds 2 changes a couple of things about this specific strategy. Instead of each bird being supplied at a really specific order on each and every level, you acquire a deck of these birds, permitting you to shoot the birds in whatever sequence you want to crush your enemy dinosaurs. You can boost your score and meet your "Destruct-O-Meter" to acquire access to fresh especial cards within the degree and perform supreme harm to your competitors.

Asphalt 8: Airborne

We won't Since Asphalt 4, the matches have made the move to Android and iOS, and largely have discovered themselves to be seriously and commercially rewarding. The most-recent main entry in the series, Asphalt 8, is almost four years old, but it is also among the very best racing games we've seen on either cellular platform, and if you are in to Burnout-styled games, then it is definitely worth checking out.

Like many Mobile racing games on phones and tablets, Asphalt 8 has several different driving schemes and methods you can use to drive your vehicle through races and classes, completing missions and other achievables. Tilt to move (the default mode for most racing games, which involves using your device's accelerometer), tilt with icons, on-screen controls, and tap to move are all options, though we found the onscreen controls alongside the tap to direct choices would be the most reliable for steering quickly and accurately. It's possible to collect nitro to better your auto, and you're able to utilize that nitro to burst through other automobiles, destroying the competition in the process.

As a Free-to-play sport, it must come as no surprise to readers familiar with this type of pricing arrangement that buying cars in Asphalt 8 might get fairly expensive. The sport has in-app purchases up to $99.99 on both the Android and iOS, both for automobiles and charge packs for purchasing accessories and other optional stuff. In-game cash can be got through racing, but as the game gets higher with respect to difficulty and levels, you'll find yourself earning less and less money for quicker and more powerful cars. The grinding for automobiles can get pretty extreme, but there is not any car that may not be obtained through some in-game devotion--even if the machine itself is marginally too grindy because of our tastings. But, Asphalt 8 sounds fantastic, even after four years of aging, and we all can not help but recommend the sport to other users that might be interested in some specific offline racing.

Shadow Fight Two

Action fans Here, the sport is for you. Bear in mind these kung-fu movies with the acrobatic moves and cries; well here you have the chance to attempt them on real enemies but with the inclusion of deadly weapons. Shadow Fight is a 2D game based on a character "Shadow "who dropped his physical body when he unleashed some powerful demons since he tried to save his home from invaders. The sport has numerous stages to make sure you'll always have a enemy to battle. The sport has some in-app purchases but is not impossible to play without.

Despicable me

The minions Are here, and they have brought with them plenty of enjoyment and bananas. Despicable me is a 3D runner game where you race with all the minions collecting bananas as you leap, roll, dodge or just scramble against other people in fast-paced assignments. In the game, you have to run through awesome locations inspired by the actual film as you update to awesomely outfits as you use hilarious weapons and power ups. You also get to combat villains such as Vector is amazing 3D graphics. The game is free for downloading on google play store but has in-app purchases. Banana!

Six guns: Gang showdown

Created by Gameloft, six firearms provides you with the authentic feeling of the wild west, and you better be strapped. Six guns is a third person shooter action game based on the actions scenes of the wild west Arizona and Oregon at a land full of cowboys, bandits and scary vampires. It's possible to unlock unique weapons clothes and weapons that can assist you off on your action filled adventure. The game is absolutely free to play and download on Google play store. Only the bandits and vampires cover it.

Plants vs Zombies 2

Everyone Adored plants versus zombies and two is here. The game was once on PCs until it came to mobile stage in 2013. The plants have many capacities like launching corn or soy missiles in the zombies. Plants vs Zombies two includes funny and stimulating new levels to keep you entertained all through. The game is free to put in on Google play shop.

Fruit Ninja

Fruit Ninja Is an arcade which has gained great popularity on tablet computers and shortly on computers. This easy offline game will appeal to both adults and kids.

One of those Benefits of this game is the support of the function "multitouch", in other words, the capacity to operate at once several points of the display (by way of instance, with two hands or playing with a friend). It is very convenient when many fruits fly on the screen and you may cut them all at once.

The sport is Recommended for those who want to have fun before the display of this smartphone. Fruit look almost like real ones, and by the sounds of pulp and juice pouring from them, appetite stems.

Starving Shark Evolution

The game has Stunning 3D images and interesting special effects.

As you pass The sport, brand new, more massive and strong species of the animals will become accessible. Keep the whole underwater world in check! Incidentally, a shark shark could easily terrorize and horrify the entire coast, such as land! Hungry Shark Evolution contains seven different kinds of sharks in the arsenal; the first may be gotten from the start, every one of the others open whilst passing the numbers.

The Hungry Shark Evolution sport is exceptional. All things considered, you can fully experience other people of underwater depths.

Townsmen

This match is An economic system in the middle Ages. It all starts from not the ideal situation -- an old village and a few inhabitants -- "hard workers". In the game, you'll have a remarkably tough job -- to turn this gloomy settlement to a enormous populated town with a developed infrastructure. The building method is available in many variations: you can start in the previously prepared situation, and you can begin everything from scratch.

Pictures, Drawing, and animation at the match causes only favorable feelings -- the atmosphere of the time is delivered in the best way. Remember about the environment -- the trees move, alongside the hares are galloping around and butterflies are flying. The musical accompaniment goes well with the gameplay.

Dragon Mania

Dragon Mania Is a sport in which you might cultivate and enlarge dragons of all kinds and breeds until you collect all.

The sport Each breed has human skills and more than a dozen basic qualities which highlight their

uniqueness. So as to cultivate a dragon, then you'll have to take decent care of the habitat and dragon food. That is how you can increase their degree and attract new dragons into the island.

Additionally, Participation in fights also lets you raise the level of the dragon. Thus, getting a monster master in Dragon Mania You Have To collect and grow in your own island as many dragons as Possible, giving them a house in excellent harmony.

PUZZLES

This game is Quite simple and has a very clear interface, trendy design, in addition to a huge variety of levels. The principal task is to launch the procedure for the red block, which has to be taken from this game grid.

Do not Forget that you always have the opportunity to pick the suitable amount of difficulty all on your own. Obviously, initially, it's well worth practicing and taking the simplest in the beginning. The toughest one is another level.

Special Attention deserves the amount of amounts from the game Unblock Me. Right now There are approximately 1200 of these. The approximate period of all these Is a half an hour. Therefore, this sport is going to be a great Way to unwind.

0 notes

ineversleep26 · 7 years ago

Text

Best Games Without WiFi

Competition In the end, users who want the extra info can trust the programs supplied directly from their carriers rather than needing to be worried about their carriers charging overages and additional charges that end in a costly invoice at the close of the month. But while we value the further data programs supplied from the country's top mobile carriers, they still retain two big problems: first, they're rather pricey and carry throttling that may, sadly, limit your internet usage rates should you cross over a particular percentile of information utilized state wide. Secondly, and possibly more importantly, each of the data on the world can not prevent dead zones or areas with no mobile system or WiFi.

So while our Need for mobile data is enormous and growing all the time, not everyone has the luxury of an unlimited data plan or a WiFi network available to play on. Whether you are on a very long flight, taking the subway to work, or just can't access your network from your current location, you may wish to be watching out for some superb mobile games you can play while on the long run. Whether you're on your life, travelling into a far off place for holiday, or bored while waiting in the line at Starbucks, these matches for the two iOS and Android offer something a little special for players looking to squander their time away.

Whether or Each of them comes fully examined and vetted to ensure great gameplay, promising you hours upon hours of offline play no matter what kind of gamer you're.

Angry Birds 2

We're all The sport was popular enough to establish an whole set of merchandise, spin-off games, television shorts, and an animated feature film (along with the upcoming movie in 2019). Strangely, despite the licensed spin-offs and complete scale console starts of the first match, Angry Birds did not see a comprehensive sequel printed until 2015, with Angry Birds two be a direct continuation of the original game. Even though the game works quite similarly to the original Angry Birds game in the last decade, the series has been revitalized here with new mechanics and reworked controls that produce the game feel better than ever.

Much like The first Angry Birds and most of its assorted spin-offs, you play the game by starting small birds in your goal, a set of platforms constructed holding pigs up that you will need to demolish. Employing a slingshot, you take your critters --each with their own unique powers--in the base, letting you crush the pigs in as few turns as you can without losing lives. Angry Birds 2 affects a couple of things about this specific strategy. Rather than each bird being supplied at a very specific order on every single level, you acquire a deck of the birds, permitting you to take the birds in whatever sequence you want to crush your enemy dinosaurs. You can increase your score and meet your "Destruct-O-Meter" to obtain access to new exceptional cards within the degree and perform supreme harm to your competitors.

Asphalt 8: Airborne

We will not Lie for you: Gameloft's Asphalt show, dating back to 2004 with an entrance to the first Nintendo DS, is mostly a replica of Burnout, the preferred 2000s high-speed racing game. Since Asphalt 4, the matches have made the transfer to Android and iOS, and mostly have found themselves to be seriously and commercially profitable. The most-recent principal entry in the show, Asphalt 8, is nearly four decades old, but it's also among the very best racing games we have observed on either cellular platform, and if you're in to Burnout-styled games, then it is definitely worth checking out.

Like most Portable racing games on phones and tablets, Asphalt 8 includes many different driving schemes and methods you can use to drive your vehicle through races and classes, completing missions and other achievables. Tilt to move (the default mode for many racing games, which entails utilizing your device's accelerometer), tilt with icons, onscreen controls, and tap to maneuver are all options, though we found the on-screen controls alongside the tap to direct choices are the most dependable for steering quickly and accurately. You can collect nitro to enhance your vehicle, and you're able to utilize that nitro to burst through other automobiles, destroying the contest in the process.

As a Free-to-play game, it must come as no surprise to readers familiar with this type of pricing arrangement that purchasing cars in Asphalt 8 might get fairly expensive. The game has in-app purchases around $99.99 on both Android and iOS, both for automobiles and charge packs for purchasing accessories and other optional stuff. In-game money can be obtained through racing, but as the game gets higher with respect to levels and difficulty, you will end up earning less and less cash for quicker and more powerful cars. The grinding for cars can get pretty intense, but there is no car that can not be accessed through some in-game devotion--even if the machine itself is marginally too grindy due to our tastings. However, Asphalt 8 seems fantastic, even after four decades of aging, and we can not help but urge the sport to other customers that may be interested in certain offline racing.

Shadow Fight Two

Action fans Here, the game is for you. Bear in mind these kung-fu movies with all of the acrobatic moves and cries; well here you've got the opportunity to try them on real enemies but with an addition of lethal weapons. Shadow Fight is a 2D game based on a character "Shadow "who lost his physical body when he unleashed several strong demons because he tried to save his home. He exists as a proficient shadow warrior who needs to fight the demons and their various bodyguards in his quest to get back what he lost. The sport has numerous stages to make sure you'll always have an enemy to battle. The game has some in-app buys but isn't impossible to play without.

Despicable me

The minions Are here, and they've brought with them loads of pleasure and bananas. Despicable me is a 3D runner game where you race with all the minions collecting bananas as you leap, roll, dodge or just scramble against others in fast-paced assignments. In the game, you have to run through amazing locations inspired by the true film as you update to awesomely outfits as you use hilarious weapons and power ups. In addition you get to combat villains like Vector is amazing 3D graphics. Banana!

Six firearms: Gang showdown

Created by Gameloft, six firearms provides you with the authentic sense of the west, and you better be strapped. You have to complete 40 missions, as you race horses, take outside robbers and complete off waves of enemies on the way. It's possible to unlock unique weapons clothes and weapons that will help you off in your action filled experience. The game is free to download and play Google play shop. Just the bandits and witches cover it.

Plants vs Zombies two

Everyone Adored plants versus zombies and two is here. The match was once on PCs before it arrived to mobile stage in 2013. The crops have many capacities such as launching corn or soy missiles from the zombies. Plants vs Zombies 2 includes funny and stimulating new levels to keep you amused all through. The game is free to install on Google play shop.

Fruit Ninja

Fruit Ninja Is an arcade that has gained great popularity on tablet computers and shortly on computers. The notion of the game is simple; you need to cut the fruit and berries (apples, oranges, kiwi, peaches, strawberries, watermelons, coconuts, bananas, pineapples) with the sword, and at the specific same time try to not cut on the beans, which can also fly in the screen inadvertently.

One of those Advantages of this game is the aid of the purpose "multitouch", in other words, the capacity to operate at once several points of the display (by way of instance, with two fingers or playing with a friend). It is very convenient when many fruits fly on the display and you may cut all of them at one time.

The sport is Recommended for those who want to have fun before the screen of this smartphone. Fruit look almost like real ones, and by the sounds of pulp and juice pouring out of them, appetite stems.

Starving

The game has Stunning 3D graphics and fascinating special effects. In Hungry Shark Evolution, you need to become a bloodthirsty shark that'll grow and grow right before your eyes.

As you pass The sport, new, more massive and strong species of these animals will become accessible. Maintain the entire underwater world in check! By the way, a shark shark may easily terrorize and horrify the whole coast, such as land! Hungry Shark Evolution includes seven distinct sorts of sharks in the arsenal; the first can be obtained from the start, each of the others open whilst passing the amounts.

The Hungry Shark Evolution sport is unique. All things considered, you can fully experience other people of submerged depths.

Townsmen

This match is An economic system in the middle Ages. In the game, you'll have a remarkably tough task -- to turn this gloomy settlement into a enormous populated city with a developed infrastructure. The construction method can be found in many variants: you can start in the previously prepared scenario, and you are able to begin everything from scratch.

Pictures, Drawing, and animation at the game causes only favorable feelings -- the atmosphere of the time is delivered in the very best way. Remember about the environment -- the trees go, along with the hares are galloping about and butterflies are flying. The musical accompaniment goes well with the gameplay.

Dragon Mania

Dragon Mania Is a sport in which you may cultivate and enlarge dragons of all kinds and breeds until you accumulate all.

The sport Each breed has individual skills and more than a dozen basic qualities which highlight their

uniqueness. So as to cultivate a dragon, then you will have to take decent care of the dragon and habitat food. That's how you can increase their level and attract new dragons into the island.

Additionally, Participation in conflicts also allows you to increase the degree of the dragon. Thus, getting a monster master in Dragon Mania You Have To collect and grow in your own island as many dragons as Possible, giving them a dwelling in excellent harmony.

PUZZLES

This match is Quite straightforward and has a very clear port, trendy design, in addition to a huge number of degrees. The primary job would be to start the procedure for the red cube, which has to be obtained from this match grid.

Do not Forget that you have the chance to pick the appropriate amount of difficulty on your own. Obviously, initially, it is well worth practicing and choosing the simplest in the beginning. The toughest one is another degree.

Special Attention warrants the amount of amounts from the match Unblock Me. Right now There are roughly 1200 of them. The approximate phase of all these Is a half an hour. Therefore, this game is going to be a excellent Way to unwind.

0 notes