#what I know about a two state solution sounds like the only peaceful resolution to this

[jay0fspad3s]

I want to reblog things that support Palestine but every time I see someone write "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" I think of what people have told me about people using that statement as a call for genocide of Israeli people... and as much as I want Palestinian people to be free, I don't think massacring another group of people, many of which have been in Israel their entire lives, is the answer either

[ceaseless-enemy]

TURNTABLES AU: THE KRIEGHAUS CORRESPONDENCE LETTERS

CONTENT WARNINGS: mentions of torture methods, evil RHM content, death, corpses, trauma, very vague descriptions of medical procedure

you have been warned

February 27th, 2014

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

I’m surprised you decided to contact me. I was under the impression the Toppats were an “every man for himself” sort of group.

That said, I think you were right to be concerned this time around. The impression General Copperbottom gives off is of someone that believes Toppats are tantamount to war criminals.

I’ll talk with The Lieutenant soon and try to assure things remain as civil as possible in this situation, although I can’t exactly guarantee he’ll be receptive. He seems to be very irritable since Canterbury’s arrival.

April 2nd, 2014

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

He wasn’t very receptive. In fact, he got angry at me for even suggesting that we try for more peaceful resolution. I didn’t expect him to agree with something fully nonviolent of course, but it was like he couldn’t fathom a solution where it wasn’t required.

He went as far as to mention the idea of enhanced interrogation. I reminded him that people are debating about it right now; that a majority of people in the US find it barbaric, and him enacting it would cause unneeded controversy.

Usually The Lieutenant is a very practical and logical man, but I’m worried that what I told him won’t be enough to sway him.

May 17th, 2014

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

He enacted the first set of interrogation techniques that I mentioned in my last letter. I didn’t exactly expect him to do it, but now that he’s crossed that line, I’ll have to shift my goal.

I can’t prevent him from breaking ethical codes, but I’ll try to dissuade him from going into more physical interrogation methods. I don’t have much else to say.

I can barely register it all.

January 23rd, 2015

To: Lieutenant R. H. M.

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

I read what you’ve written down. Your recent activities, and your thoughts behind them.

What’s wrong with you?

I’m serious. I never expected all of this to come from you. Sure, you’ve never been the most expressive person, but you’ve always had a good core. You’ve always cared about people.

The way you talk about it is all I can think about. Like you’re doing menial housework. Like you’re cleaning a window. You hate it, but once you’ve done it, you sound so proud.

I can’t believe that you’d just do that. There has to be something I’m missing. We need to talk about this as soon as you have time off.

February 7th, 2015

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

I talked with The Lieutenant again the other day. I’m a little out of sorts. I’m sorry if this isn’t as succinct or formal as usual. I failed at dissuading him from more unsavory ideas again. It’s like he’s determined to do this.

What does he even have to gain? What does he want from the Toppats? Do you know? Is there even anything specific, or does he only have venom for you because he’s General Copperbottoms sycophant?

I’m sorry. You don’t even know what I’m so upset about. Next week, he’s incorporating more barbaric enhanced interrogation techniques. I can’t guarantee Canterbury’s safety (mental or physical) anymore. If there’s anything I can think of that I can do aside from giving you updates, I’ll let you know.

February 15th, 2015

To: Lieutenant R. H. M.

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

You haven’t come by my office lately. I assume it’s over our disagreements? Look. I don’t want our friendship to end over political differences.

I may not agree with you, but why is that a problem? Please consider: If you understand my perspective, and I understand yours, it can be beneficial to the both of us. As people, as friends, and as military workers. Just food for thought.

I don’t think having only the general as company is good for you.

April 3, 2021

February 29th, 2015

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

The more time passes, the more this escalates. From what I’ve heard, Canterbury’s jaw is broken. There isn’t much I can do for him at the moment. I have no way to access him.

This entire situation; The Lieutenant, The General, having to lie to the higher-ups, having to see my colleagues lie for their own sakes: It’s FUBAR.

This surpasses the legality of what you do. This surpasses legal jargon in general. This sort of thing is ethics.

The most I can do is document, although I don’t know how helpful that is right now. I’ll keep you posted if anything new comes up.

To: Lieutenant R. H. M.

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

I’ve been thinking about the Canterbury situation, lately. More specifically, about his broken jaw. I don’t think he’ll be able to confess anything in that state.

I know it’s pointless to ask you to stop the enhanced interrogations, but may I suggest stopping the waterboarding? It’s impractical.

I just want you to think about it.

May 27th, 2015

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

This will be brief. Not much new has happened, just more torture. It brings me no pleasure to write that so flippantly.

Today, though, was a lot. Several hours ago, everyone in the camp heard screaming. Not just yelling, or your standard screams of distress we’d almost grown used to; this was different. It was inhuman shrieking.

I asked The Lieutenant what happened, but he just shrugged and said “nothing”. He’s never lied about what he’s done before. I believe him.

… What was that, then?

June 28th, 2015

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

Canterbury’s brother was threatened, according to the Lieutenant’s logs. I would recommend checking on him, or keeping an eye on him in general.

The Lieutenant hasn’t crossed that line yet, but I don’t know how long that will last.

[12:23 AM]

July 20th, 2015

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

The Lieutenant has become unrecognizable to me at this point. I never thought he’d go this far. At this point, he’s stopped caring whether or not Canterbury ends up dead.

At first I thought he was never this type of person. A big part of me desperately wanted to believe that General Copperbottom took something small in him and twisted it into something horrible.

The fact of the matter is, The Lieutenant was like this all along. He just never got the opportunity to show it until now.

September 7th, 2015

To: Hubert Galeforce

From: Wilhelm Krieghaus

The Lieutenant came into my office today. He looked so tired. There wasn’t anything else there. He announced: “I killed him.” And sat in front of me in silence for an hour, before leaving.

After an entire year of torture, horror, lying and corruption:

This can’t be how it ends.

The Final Canterbury Log

-Wilhelm Krieghaus

September 9th, 2015

This is the last I’ll write or speak of the matter. After this, I’m done, I’ll wash my hands of this affair, and strive to get court-martialed. Two nights ago, Thomas Chestershire brought H.J. Canterbury’s corpse to me.

I asked him what for, and he told me “The body’s our best chance of getting those two in trouble”. He seems more tired of them than I am. I never really noticed how he felt before I guess. It never mattered.

On top of the conditions Canterbury had been subjected to for a year, rigor mortis had already set in quite a bit. There wasn’t much chance of being salvaged, but dammit I was tired of the constant stress.

So I did what I could.

There was so little left of him at the end of the day, but there was enough. All you really need is a brain; who you are, how you feel, and all your memories. I could have had nothing but a brain.

I had his brain functioning pretty early on, but most of his organs, all his limbs, and his mess of a bottom jaw had to be replaced with advanced augmentations.

It cost me two nights of sleep and basic self-care, but that’s a given.

I have him strapped to the bed currently, for his (and my) safety. His condition is stable but I don’t know when he’s going to wake up.

When I’ve sufficiently explained the situation, I’ll need to find a way to get him to the Toppats undetected and unsuspected (pardon the rhyme.) That is, assuming he will even be able to function that well.

It’s also a possibility that he’ll wake up, with very heavy physical and mental impairments.

I’ll need to make a plan for that.

[quasieli]

The Aftermath - Part Two

[Part One] [AO3 Link]

And there they were, just like She had promised. Promise was a strong word, but the feeling that Caduceus had gotten when he had communed with his goddess was one of fair certainty, he knew at least some of his family would be waiting at the Menagerie. She did not break that promise.

Unmoving, frozen, trapped in a prison of stone, the four petrified members of the Clay family stood near the edge of the water, it almost made it look peaceful. There was no peace to be found on any of their faces; fear and anguish, yes, but no peace.

The fight with the beast that caused their state was over before any of them knew it, it somehow felt too easy, but it was over and now they could all move on to the next important step. Except, no one acted, no one made a move towards the petrified Clays, except for the one son that still remained.

The moment the beast was slayed, Caduceus made his slow descent towards his people; his parents, his aunt, his sister, they were all there, but not really. This wasn’t them, so devoid of life, frozen forever in a moment like a mosquito encased in amber. The mosquito was not alive in its honey colored tomb, how could this be any different?

He didn’t know what he was doing, one foot was simply moving in front of the other, only stopping upon reaching the water’s edge. Caduceus stood staring across the way, his eyes not focused on anything in particular. His head then dropped as he released the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. A single tear fell from his cheek, rippling the still, crystal clear water below. 

Caduceus stared at the reflection of a man he did not recognize, a man he was sure his family would not recognize. Who had this man become in the years that they were away? How had he shifted, grown in just these past few months of travel? And in what ways had he remained the little brother that no one gave two shits about? 

Who was he to be here in Her sacred garden? He was no hero, he was just some kid in way over his head. 

Letting out one last resigned sigh, Caduceus let his eyes fall closed, moving slowly to sit upon the ground below. She had provided him with answers in the past, Her guidance was such an integral part of his life, but here he could not ask. This was not a moment for Her to intervene upon, this was a moment he had to face alone.

And so he sat, sitting alone with his thoughts amongst the many sounds of this beautiful forest. Perhaps some guidance would come to him in his stillness. 

He had gotten good at blocking out the world around him in his trances. While his life at the Grove had been lonely for the last few years, it was not without its noise. He could easily let his mind float past all the squeaks, chirps and roars of the forest, but Jester’s cries proved to be more difficult.

A young girl herself, albeit much younger than he, but still young nonetheless. Caduceus saw a lot of similarities between himself and the little blue tiefling. The two were on very different, but very important, journeys set forth by their respective patrons, and while the Traveler had not truly proved his mettle in the conversation earlier that day, Caduceus still respected him. More so, he respected Jester’s devotion to Him.

Her cries were hard to swallow, pleas of wanting to help and feeling useless against an unknown force; it was a feeling he knew all too well. He hated that he was partially responsible for her state, but he had much bigger problems to consider. 

It wasn’t long before he felt a presence beside him, it was hard to mistake the salty musk that still somehow hung around Fjord at all times. His eyes remained closed but it was almost if he could see every movement the half-orc made with his mind’s eye. He respected the gesture. It was not going to help much, but he respected it nonetheless. 

He had to admit, the presence of another of Her follower’s beside him did bring him a certain calm the could not describe, perhaps it was enough to let his mind flow free and uncover the solution to his current plight. 

The pair sat together in silence for some time, a silence that brought them peace, but apprehension to their friends. While they were a ways away, Caduceus could still feel the nervous airs they radiated, every once in a while gathering a few hushed words that carried on the wind. They truly were worried about him.

But it was all talk, none of them were acting on the many plans they seemed to be devising. Talk was going to get them nowhere. 

It was then that Caduceus had a realization. 

Shifting as silently as he could, Caduceus stood and moved to the stone nearest to his right. He stole a glance at Fjord briefly, glad to see the young follower unmoved. Caduceus was both proud of his new found calm, and happy that he would not bear witness to what he was about to do.

He approached the statue, the one that resembled the incorrigible Constance Clay. It had been nearly ten years since he had seen that face, frozen now in fear and yet, still standing in defense of her little sister. Caduceus yearned for the day he could be as strong as her. That day was very far off, nigh impossibly far, as far as he was concerned.  

“I’m sorry I was not here sooner. I’m sorry I was not strong enough to act. My acts today are not of strength, but of desperation. I’m sorry I failed you. My acts are of no equatable value to a cure for my weaknesses, but they are all I can offer.”

With his last private words to the stone, Caduceus placed his forehead against his mother’s and began to mutter, reaching into a small pouch at his side to grab a handful of this useless glittered dust that would hopefully bring her back. 

A throaty sob rung out across the forest, alerting the Nein to action. In quick succession, the sob was followed by other mournful sounds of fear and anguish, echoing across the short distance they covered. Rushing over to the water’s edge, the Nein were astonished to see the sight of the four no longer frozen members of the Clay family. 

The two older women held each other close, their sobs now turned to ones of joy. The older man strained as he tried to help the fallen woman up, Fjord rushing over to help in the effort. 

Smiles broke out across the faces of the group, the family had been freed. Jester, in particular, was elated, bouncing from each of the firbolgs to check them and say her hellos. However, it wasn’t long before she realized something was off.

“Wait, where’s Caduceus?”

“Caduceus…” one of the older firbolg women spoke, her mouth hung slightly agape. There was no mistaking that this was his mother despite her more ruddy fur; he had her eyes, her kind eyes that were now filled with tears. “Is he… is my baby boy here?”

The group looked about, but there was no sign of the young firbolg. 

“Fjord, where the hell did he go?” This time it was Beau who spoke up, her words tinged with an acid laced sadness.

The man shrugged, “He was right beside me a minute ago.”

“I heard him,” the young firbolg woman interjected, all heads turning to her resounding presence, “I heard him… talking to dad, right before fixing him.”

“What did he say?” All the members of the Nein were wide eyed, curious and worried for their friend.

“He said, he said he was sorry, but I don’t know what for… he looked so sad, and then he was gone.” 

The group fell silent, no longer sharing in the joy of the freed firbolg family. 

“Well,” Jester began hesitantly, almost afraid to break the silence, “we need to go look for him, so he can celebrate with his family!”

A heavy hand rested on the tiefling’s shoulder, Jester had never felt a simple touch as maternal as her own mother’s.

The mother Clay shook her head, mournful and resolute. “If he’s run off, there’s no finding him. I learned that many years ago. Ya just gotta… let him come back on his own terms.”

“But…” Jester’s eyes once again began to mist, sniffling before the first tear even fell. Instinctively, Constance pulled the girl close to her chest, holding her as she cried. She looked out to the woods, beautiful yet so terrifying; it reminded her of her home. She hoped that she still had a home to return to. She prayed that her lost son would one day return home too. All she could do was pray.

[gaamagirl565]

Matters of the heart S2 ep 9

Matters of the heart Season 2 Episode 9

Going under {OPENING CREDITS} {Open to raps turning over in bed and she realizes Eugene isn’t next to her; she gets up and looks around} Rapunzel: Eugene? Eugene: Out here, Sunshine… {She looks and sees him out on the balcony; she puts on her robe and walks out to him and hugs him from behind} Rapunzel: The sun is only barely Rising, how long have you been out here? Eugene:  maybe 20 minutes... I don't know. Rapunzel: a penny for your thoughts? { Eugene shows her a scrap of paper} Rapunzel:  what is that? Eugene:  I didn't want to wake you... another message from The Cult. Rapunzel:  do they ever give up? Eugene:  they’re never going to stop... not until they get what they want.  and with every passing day, the state of our kingdom grows more dangerous. Rapunzel:  we can't attack... we don't know where they are. according to Varian, they keep moving their hideout. as much as I hate to compliment them it's a smart tactic no one can ever pin them down. Eugene:  that and we don't know their numbers... we could outnumber them or they could outnumber us... it's just a giant game of what-ifs. Rapunzel: And whatever we choose next... could decide the fate of Corona. Eugene:  if we continue to ignore them they'll just keep attacking.  starting to feel like our only choice to protect our people is to agree. Rapunzel:  Varians’ not going to be too happy about that... I have an idea! Eugene:  I'm willing to go with anything right now. Rapunzel: what if you send them a response and say you're willing to meet and talk about a peaceful resolution. Eugene: the only peaceful resolution they want is us giving up the shard. Rapunzel:  I wasn't done... I was going to say go meet with them and discuss a time for an official Exchange.  however, you tell me where the meeting place will be and we'll Ambush them with Corona's finest.  everyone will be safe and the moonstone shard will be safe! Eugene:...actually that doesn't sound like too much of a bad idea they wouldn't really see it coming. The only obstacle would be getting Varian and Isaiah involved. Rapunzel: See?  I still got it! Eugene:  it never left you, Sunshine. {he smooches her; cut to Varian working on a new invention and Isaiah coming down the stairs} Isaiah: Mor-... what am I looking at? Zapada: Copilul mea, I've been here since the beginning of this morning and I don't even know what I'm looking at. Varian: BEHOLD! I give you the cooler! Isaiah:... the what? Varian:  well with Summer here I thought it'd be a good idea to make an invention to allow Cooling air to be transferred throughout one's house. Zapada:  how does one work such a thing? Varian:  I'm glad you asked!  Ice goes through the top here and I pour my alchemical solution of my own design into this little hole here.  the solution keeps the ice nice and crisp while the fan here blows the cool air across the room. Isaiah:  that's... actually not a bad idea dad. Varian: Wanna help me fire it up? Zapada: you mean Ice it up? Varian:...I love you. Isaiah: Okay enough with that, please.  I haven't even had my breakfast yet and I already feel nauseous. Varian: Alright relax... when I pour the solution in, just pull the lever over there. Isaiah: got it! {Varian goes to pour the solution and Isaiah grabs the handle of the lever; as he prepares to push it forward he stops} Varian: Buddy? {Isaiah twitches and looks up with pink and green eyes} Varian: oh no… {Isaiah smirks evilly and kicks him to the floor} Varian: OOF!...gh..Zapada! RUN! Get the syringe! {Zapada goes as fast as she can into the other room; Isaiah kicks Varian while he’s down} Varian: Augh!...Isaiah..c’mon buddy I know your in there fight it! Isaiah: shut up… {Isaiah steps on him; Draki slithers onto Varian’s back and hisses with his hood up} Isaiah: stupid snake… {Isaiah kicks him to the side; Zapada runs up behind Isaiah with a syringe} Varian: Sorry buddy… {Varian grabs Isaiah’s arm and flips him over pinning him to the ground} Isaiah: AH! *growls* {Varian grabs the syringe and pulls the cap off with his teeth before injecting Isaiah} Isaiah: GAH! {Varian keeps him pinned and after a few minutes Isaiah’s eyes return to normal and he blinks a few times} Isaiah: W-What happened? Varian:  you went feral again… Isaiah:... sorry. Zapada:  don't apologize... you're clearly not yourself when that happens. Isaiah: did I hurt any of you!? Varian: not too bad no... your old man's been through much worse than a possessed 13 year old. {Isaiah looks over to his side and bolts up} Isaiah: DRAKI! {He runs over but stops when Draki hisses at him} Isaiah: Draki? Draki: *slithers away* Isaiah: Draki wait! I didn’t mean it! I-... Varian: Give him some time buddy... you really did a number on him. Zapada: I'm actually surprised he did not bite you! Isaiah: Draki has never bitten me before... I wouldn't expect him to start now.  I'm sorry... I didn't mean to hurt any of you. {Varian pulls him into a hug} Varian: It’s okay now buddy… Isaiah: no it's not!  it's never going to be okay! not as long as I have this!  I'm just going to keep hurting people.  This stupid power grows stronger but I can slowly feel myself dying and I don't know wh- Varian: WHAT!? Isaiah: I...I just-... I need to be alone… {Isaiah runs out the door} Varian: Isaiah!...oh… Zapada:  like you said before... give him time. Varian….dying? {Cut to an alleyway with Eugene walking in with a hooded cloak draped around him we see two eyes in the darkness of the ally} Vergus: Your Majesty's so nice of you to meet us here… Eugene: what's skip the pleasantries and get to business shall we? {Larkspur steps out of the darkness with two others} Larkspur: now now your majesty... is that any way to treat your guests. and in my opinion, you could have chosen a better meeting place than a dirty alleyway. Eugene:  and most of the people that you've been trying to convince aren't exactly jumping at the idea of meeting you you're lucky I'm even considering it. Larkspur:  I always find it hilarious that people are not willing to listen until you give them the right reasons.  for some people it's money, others its power,  and then there's those where you just have to push the right buttons. Eugene: get on with it already… Larkspur:  fine then... we are willing to set up an exchange.   we are willing to meet on neutral territory owned by no Kingdom. you see some of our members have some past issues with Corona and I'd hate to put my loyal followers through distress. Eugene: how very considerate of you... I know a neutral territory not too far from here.  the North Shore Cliffs overlooking the bay. No Kingdom really holds any ownership over it. Larkspur:  how very Grand. Eugene: I need to make sure you'll keep your word though. Larkspur: why your majesty you wound me.  Do you truly think I'm willing to kill all of you and just take the Moonstone Shard for myself? Eugene: yes… Larkspur:  you're right that would be the easy way.  and it would be quite fun.  however, it's risky there's always the chance I could lose. this is the most Surefire way that I'd be getting what I want. So I'll tell you what we're going to do.  we'll meet on the territory at about noon next Wednesday.  sound good?  We’ll suck the magic out of the alchemist’s little brat,  you give us the Moonstone Shard and we'll be on our way. Eugene:  alright... the North Shore Cliffs at noon next Wednesday. Larkspur: it’s a date then… {she blows a kiss at him} Eugene: ew… Larkspur: Come on boys...let's go home.  I have arrangements to make. Both: Yes mistress. {They all turn to leave} Eugene: ick..Dare I say it but she's worse than Stalyan. {Cut back to Varian’s house; Isaiah slowly opens the door to the front parlor room; he looks over to a candle on the mantle, above it is a portrait of Quirin; he walks over to it} Isaiah: ...I wish you were here. you’d know what to do. Varian: yeah he would… Isaiah: Ah! Varian: Sorry I didn't mean to scare you. Isaiah:... sorry for freaking you out earlier. Varian: you didn't freak me out if anything I was worried for you. tell you what I think I have a way to fix all this. Isaiah: hmm? Varian: I have an old invention of mine...It was kind of destroyed before but I found the old parts and put it back together.  it's able to analyze anything down to a molecular structure. Have to warn you it's not going to be comfortable at all but it could give us some answers on this power that you were given. You willing to give it a try? {Isaiah takes a deep breath} Isaiah: will you be there? Varian: I'll be working the machine I swear I'm not going to let anything happen to you. Isaiah: Okay... let's do this but first I need to go get something! {He runs up the stairs and some crash is heard before he runs back down holding a stuffed animal} Varian:  your stuffed bunny? Isaiah:  his name is bun thank you very much! and I'm not doing this without him. Varian:  okay okay.  you can hold bun while the tests are being done... hey that kind of rhymed… Isaiah: I'm doomed… {Fade to the dungeon at the cults HQ; Noremoth lays still on his side} Cassandra: noremoth?..you alive over there? Noremoth: ..ngh… {The door to the dungeon opens loudly startling them both; Larkspur walks up to Noremoth’s cell} Larkspur: Are My Little Darlings getting along? Cassandra: piss off… Larkspur: tsk tsk...how very naughty. Noremoth: What..what do you want? Larkspur: we finally got the king to agree to a meeting. Noremoth: and I should care why?  last time I checked you locked me up in a cell. Larkspur:  you wanted to end this peacefully will now we have the chance to and I need this to go off without a hitch.  I'm willing to forgive you for your past indiscretions… Noremoth:  what's the catch? you never do things for free... Larkspur:  you will not be getting your position of second-in-command back. you have to earn our trust back and then maybe I'll throw you a bone until then you'll be at the very bottom of the totem pole around here.  our troop can get a little overzealous I need to make sure if they don't get ahead of themselves during the meeting and they respect you. Cassandra: Heh.  what are you saying they won't listen to you? Are you saying they don't respect you? {Larkspur whips around and grabs Cassandra’s throat pulling her against the cell bars} Cassandra: Augh! Larkspur: THEY FEAR ME! that's better than respect! Noremoth:  I'll do what you say just let her go! {She drops Cassandra; Cassandra gasps and coughs} Larkspur: but it's because they fear me but I need Noremoth... I need someone to keep the troops calm.  someone who has a level head.  and even though I'd like to admit I'm perfect I tend to have a quick temper. I'm not looking to lose any more people. so do we have a deal? Noremoth: fine… Cassandra: Wait! Larkspur:  what is it, Vessel? Cassandra:  Noremoth is practically wasting away.  he needs to gain his strength back! start bringing him regular meals and fresh clean water.  you want this to go off without a hitch, you better have a healthy person commanding your troops Larkspur: ... I will take that into consideration. until then welcome back, Norie… {She walks away} Noremoth: Cassandra? Cassandra: yeah? Noremoth: Th-thanks. {Cut to the lab; Isaiah is in the machine being shaken around before it stops} Isaiah: owww… Varian: If I'm going to keep using this machine me I should work on the tests a little. Isaiah:  no, you think? Varian:  you only have two more to go don't worry. Isaiah:  you said don't worry for the last 55 tests. and let me tell you, Dad, My worry is only growing! {Varian folds down his goggles} Isaiah: why are you folding down your- {Lightning zaps through the machine} Isaiah: AHH! {Varian bites his lip as he watches; the lightning stops and Isaiah slumps forward} Varian:...oh no..Isaiah!? Are you okay!? {Pink crackles of magic form around him as he twitches} Varian: Isaiah!? {Suddenly Isaiah arches his back in a horrific scream as pink electricity zaps around the lab; Isaiah’s eyes are glowing green and pink} Varian: NO! {Varian runs over to the emergency shut off and presses the button as the last test singles it has finished; Isaiah collapses against the Machine as smoke and steam rise from him; Varian runs over and undoes the straps on the machine; he brings Isaiah to the floor and holds him} Varian: Isaiah!? Are you okay? C’mon wake up, breathe buddy! {Isaiah coughs and hacks} Varian: oh thank goodness...i’m so sorry buddy...never again okay? Never. Isaiah: d-dad? Varian: yeah? Isaiah: what about... the results? Varian: the res...right! {He helps Isaiah up and grabs the paper from the machine as Varian reads it he is pacing} Varian: okay...so according to the results what the cult told us is true. It was transferred via blood.  it's very strong... it seems to be growing in strength just as you said.  its wavelength is off the charts. I don't think I've experienced this raw power since… {Show a quick flash of Cassandra and Rapunzel fighting in Cassandra’s tower; Varian shakes his head and continues reading} Varian: ... what your physical results... you are getting weaker...it looks like… Isaiah: it looks like what!? Varian: as your getting weaker the magic gets stronger... it's like it's feeding off of you. every time you have an outburst it feeds more off of you...  the cult must have been giving Cassandra treatment so she’d be able to maintain it. Isaiah: so what does that mean for me? Varian:... Isaiah: dad come on I need to know this! Varian: if you continue at the rate you're going.  you'll get weaker day by day... until eventually, you can't fight it anymore. Isaiah:  it's... it's going to kill me? Varian: NO!..no. {he rushes over and forces Isaiah to look at him} Varian:  I'm not going to let it do that to you... you're going to be fine okay? we'll find a way around this we always do! I'm not going to let anything happen to you... that’s a promise okay? {Isaiah throws himself into his father’s arms and Varian hugs back tightly; he looks up with tear-filled eyes} {END CREDITS}

[astraseason]

@ambitionsrelic​ sent... ❛ something had to break. ❜ to Claude! ( prompt. )

“i’ll just count my lucky stars that it wasn’t you, then,” you say slowly, folding your arms with a sigh. you don’t believe in relying on luck, not really, but you’re not about to thank the goddess for something she had no part in. ( at least, you think she had no part in it. you’re pretty sure... unless lorenz is about spout something about sothis herself telling him he had to leave gloucester territory right this minute-- )

   for a long moment, the only sound in the room is the harsh tap-tap-tapping of the rain against the window of riegan manor’s guest room; the night’s storm hadn’t let up even now, well beyond midday. you’d wanted to talk to lorenz last night when he arrived, but the other man was soaking wet and half in a state of panic from the sudden trip that it was all you could do so late at night to prepare a room, a hot bath, and track down something for him to change into.

   lord gloucester will likely fall ill from how long he spent in the rain, one of the manor healers had warned you before entering the room, don’t bother him too much.

“so... let me get this straight. your father was going to send you to the bridge of myrrdin to defend it from dimitri’s forces, in a display of goodwill towards edelgard,” you summarize at last, “but you decided not to go and ran away from home instead... and came here.”

   why? you want to ask. apart from the obvious not wanting to die, that is. why flee to riegan territory and not... edmund, say? or ordelia... even goneril? surely lorenz knows of the unspoken feud between gloucester and riegan practically descending into all out war-- and how poorly his father will take it if he discovers not only that lorenz deserted, but came to the riegans seeking asylum?

   you don’t disagree entirely with what edelgard is trying to do. dismantling or reforming the church of seiros would not only improve the continent as a whole, but see your own dreams that much closer to fruition. you’re sure if the emperor would bother to properly write you back or even speak to you, you could find common ground and go from there. but... she refuses at every turn to search for a peaceful solution. what little contact you had had with her in the five years of chaos had always yielded the same response: ‘there cannot be any compromises made here. you are either with me, or against me��.

   without that compromise, you cannot truly side with the empire. not when edelgard’s methods sacrifice so many innocents in the name of the greater good. not when she utterly refuses to even entertain the notion of a peaceful resolution to her campaign. you have no issue with the gloucesters favouring the empire; that bending of the knee is likely what has kept edelgard from outright invading leicester over the past five years. that bending of the knee is also likely a ploy to get you out of the picture somehow and gloucester installed as the new sovereign dukedom, but you’ll take what you can get.

   and dimitri... you have no idea what’s going through his head-- if anything at all. you have spies installed within the kingdom army, of course; the moment the old professor revealed themselves to the world was the moment you needed to know if they could be trusted. but every mention of dimitri is one of fear; of not the kind, chivalrous prince from years past, but of a beast with little more on his mind than hatred and bloodshed. you are unsure if you can side with that, honestly, but with ol’ teach there... you feel as though something can get through to him. ... also you hadn’t wanted to risk your soldier’s lives if dimitri decided you were also his enemy, so you drew gloucester’s attention away from their army as they passed through leicester.

   oh, you hate being caught between the two like this. even after five years, it’s still as annoying as ever.

“why, lorenz, i had no idea you could be so rebellious!” you grin teasingly, putting your thoughts out of your mind for now. it all can wait until lorenz has rested more. you’re tempted to ruffle his hair just to annoy him, but... now hardly feels like the time. “it’s surprisingly a good look on you; i must have been a good influence on you back in the day! i’m sure you know full well those risks of coming here of all places, given current events... so if you’re willing to run the risks, i’m willing to let you stay here. i think both ruya and melly would have my head if i sent you on your way, anyways.”

   there’s so much more i want to talk about goes unspoken, but you’re sure he can see it in your eyes-- the gloucester boy is as observant as you are sometimes. when he wants to be. but... you don’t want to overwhelm him. not now.

“consider yourself a guest of house riegan; anything you need, don’t be afraid to ask. but for now? rest up, yeah? that trip from your place to derdriu can’t have been a pleasant one.”

[chasingthecosmos]

Asynchronicity

Fandom: Doctor Who Rating: T Chapters: 5/5 Pairing: The Doctor/Rose Tyler, Ninth Doctor/Rose Tyler Read on AO3 here.

The Doctor has two problems: 1. He’s in love with Rose Tyler, 2: Their timelines keep intersecting out of order. Alternatively titled: the four times the Doctor and Rose kissed and he had to forget and the one time he didn’t

"Then prove yourself, Doctor. What are you: coward or killer?"

"Coward. Any day."

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

The Doctor really had been ready to die. He had been entirely prepared to give in and let go. Nine hundred years was a pretty good run, right? He had seen enough, done enough, lost enough - maybe it was time.

He had done all that he could for the people of the Game Station only to watch them be picked off one by one until there was no one left but him and the motley fleet of daleks closing in on all sides. The only one who he had managed to save in the end had been Rose. However, that small, consoling fact - to know that she was safe, that he had fulfilled his promise and gotten her home to her mother and her boyfriend and her normal, human life - was enough for him. It gave the Doctor a sense of peace as he closed his eyes and braced himself for the dalek blast that he knew would be coming at any second ...

Only the shot never came. The horde of daleks were suddenly far too distracted by the wound of wheezing TARDIS engines and the large blue box that was slowly materializing nearby.

The doors of his old time ship opened and the Doctor immediately tripped backwards and stumbled to the ground as he blinked against the blinding golden blaze of light and the overwhelming, eternal song of time that emitted from within.

"Rose ...?" the Doctor breathed. Her name fell from his lips before he could even get a proper look at her. He just somehow knew that it couldn't possibly have been anyone else.

When her head twitched to the side and her glowing golden eyes zeroed-in on the sound of his whispered voice, the Doctor gasped as several memory blocks immediately crumbled to dust and shook themselves loose within his head and his stolen moments with his future Rose all came rushing back at once.

"Rose ..." he stated again, a bit more firmly this time. "What have you done?"

"I looked into the TARDIS," the creature before him explained evenly, "and the TARDIS looked into me."

The Doctor's expression fell as he gazed up at the woman glowing with time energy and began to piece together the puzzle of what must have happened to Rose after he had attempted to send her away. She had taken things into her own hands, as she so often did, and refused to sit down and be quietly rescued. She had completely thrown away life as she knew it, risked everything that she had ever loved, for him.

"I want you safe," she declared resolutely. "My Doctor."

My Rose ... the Doctor lamented silently as he watched her stand up against the fleet of daleks and single-handedly put an end to the Time War once and for all. His immense pride in her was diminished somewhat by the great, terrifying sensation of fear that he could feel threatening to overwhelm him.

"Everything must come to dust. All things. Everything dies. The Time War ends."

There was quiet victory in the cool finality of her words, but the Doctor could see glittering tears running down her cheeks as she struggled to contain all of time and space within her single, human body. The vortex was burning her up from the inside out and there was nothing that he could do to stop it ...

All of those stolen moments that he had had with her future self, all of those precious memories, all of the adventures that they still had before them were slipping through the Doctor's fingers like sand through an hourglass as time ticked steadily by and brought them both closer and closer to the inevitability of death.

"My head ..." Rose whimpered, the pain in her voice shooting through the Doctor's gut like a lance and making his hearts seize with sympathy.

"Come here," he commanded quietly as he steeled himself for the only solution that remained. If they were ever going to get out of here, if he was ever going to be able to be with his Rose again, if he ever wanted his memories of her to come true, then he needed to do what the Doctor did best and save her life - no matter what the cost.

"It's killing me ..." she continued pathetically.

"I think you need a Doctor."

The Doctor couldn't be sure, but as he turned Rose towards him and slowly drew her closer, he could have sworn that the golden light in her eyes flickered, and just for a moment, he could see his companion's young, nineteen-year-old face looking up at him in nervous anticipation.

He was confident but gentle as he leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers in a motion that was nearly habitual at this point. He eagerly accepted her warm and inviting response as she pressed back into him and released a small, delicate sigh against his cheek as she let go of the tenuous hold that she had been keeping on the vortex within her mind and allowed it to pour into the Doctor instead.

The kiss was the briefest that the two of them had shared so far (in the Doctor's experience, at least), but it still somehow managed to outshine all of the rest as bright, golden light blazed between them and energy sparked wherever their skin touched. For the briefest of moments, their timelines were completely in sync, and the Doctor was finally permitted to share his first, true kiss with the woman who he loved more than anything else in all the universe.

Before he even had the chance to completely separate from her, the Doctor's eyes snapped open as all of time suddenly flooded through him and momentarily blinded his senses. The single kiss that they shared, despite its great significance, paled in comparison to the magnitude of images burning through the Doctor's head and threatening to overwhelm him. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he watched timelines flare and glow around him, twisting and tangling into infinity in every possible direction.

And through all of it was Rose - impossibly persistent, ever-lasting Rose. He saw all of the adventures that they had already been through together - the running and planets that they saved and the people who they helped, with her hand always clasped tight in his. And for just a single, shining moment, he saw her future, and the way that it mirrored and danced with his. He saw the times when she would be forced away from him - lost outside of his reach - and the many, sleepless nights where he would pace and brood and wonder if the nightmare would ever possibly end. And then he saw the way that she eventually returned to him, just as she had always promised she would, and the joy that they would experience knowing that they had defeated the odds and written their own happy ending despite what the universe had attempted to give them.

The Doctor was only able to let go of the promise that time was weaving before him and focus on reality when he suddenly became aware of Rose's eyes - still glowing faintly gold with the after effects of the time vortex - rolling up into the back of her head as her body went limp and she lost consciousness. The Doctor caught her without even having to think about it, his arms easily supporting her weight as he laid her on the ground like the precious, treasured gift that she was.

It was her unconscious, prone form lying at his feet that finally gave the Doctor the strength and focus that he needed to channel the vortex back into his ship and let go of the infinity of time and space that he could feel burning within him. The energy ripped and clawed its way through him as it left, as though it were desperate to take a piece of him with it, but he remained as he was - like a tall, proud sentinel standing guard over the human woman who he would not allow time to tear away from him just yet.

It wasn't until the power of time and the promises it held had slowly faded form his mind that the Doctor found himself stumbling under the weight of reality once more. He couldn't suppress the small grin that he felt turning up his lips as he felt his life force slowly draining out of him like blood from a wound. The vortex had been returned to its rightful place, but it had destroyed both him and Rose in the process. Still, he couldn't quite manage to feel even the smallest ounce of regret. The daleks were gone, Rose was alive, and they were at last on the path that they should have been on all along.

When his gaze finally landed once more on the unconscious woman at his feet, the Doctor immediately fell to his knees and let his hands gently ghost over the warm, feverish skin of her face. She was breathing deeply, as though she were in a long, restless sleep. The Doctor had no idea how she managed to survive the effects of the time vortex, but he wasn't about to start questioning the universe now, after it had at last granted him the one gift he had waited so long to receive.

He struggled more than he cared to admit to hook his arms under Rose's shoulders and knees as he fought desperately against his own failing strength and slowly carried her back into the TARDIS. She rolled her head against his shoulder as they went, pressing her cheek tight against his leather jacket as her brows furrowed in sleep and she groaned pitifully.

"Shh, love," he whispered consolingly as he gently squeezed her closer and kissed the top of her head. "I'm here, I've got you."

The Doctor knew that she would need every second of sleep that she could get after such a harrowing experience, but he found himself wishing desperately that she would wake up, anyway. He had so much to tell her, so much to explain, so much to confess, and he could feel time ticking away for them both.

He had no doubt in his mind that this was the regeneration that his future Rose had alluded to, but there was still the question of what lay beyond that. What was it that would separate her form him at some point in their futures? How long would he be able to hold onto her before she would be forced to leave? The short time that the Doctor had had to stare into the eternity of time and space hadn't given him any sort of clues on the matter, though he supposed that the promise of her inevitable return was gift enough.

The Doctor closed his eyes as he buried his nose in Rose's hair and desperately longed for the telepathic bond that he had shared with her future self just a few weeks ago. He needed some way to reach her, to let her know that everything was going to be alright.

"I hope you remember all of this ..." he whispered bemusedly out loud as the idea suddenly struck him that the vortex energy might have left a series of negative effects on her mind. "I always thought that when our timelines finally synched up, everything would just somehow work itself out. Maybe we'd even get a happy ever after and everything would just turn back to normal." He breathed a small laugh into the crown of her head as he muttered wryly, "Silly, old Doctor."

"Normal" had never been something that he was particularly good at, unfortunately, and it seemed that his habit for making things far more complicated than they needed to be extended to his relationship with Rose as well.

"Wait for me, love," he whispered as he gently laid her down on the TARDIS grating near the console and once more let his fingers trail over the soft, delicate features of her face. "I know I'm daft and slow and I'll mess it all up in a million different ways, but I promise that I'll be there in the end, no matter what. Just wait for me ..."

Rose made another soft, murmuring noise in her sleep as she unconsciously nuzzled her face further into his hand.

"If you were awake right now, I'd explain what's about to happen," he informed her quietly as he sat at her side and idly let himself indulge in the luxury of mapping out and memorizing her features. "Or, I'd try, at least. Never been too good at explaining these sorts of things. It's funny, really - you'd think it would get easier with time, but dying is always far more difficult than it looks. I don't think I'm every truly ready to say goodbye."

He reached down and took one of her hands in both of his so that he could bring her fingers to his lips and slowly press a reverent kiss to each of her knuckles.

"But there's a time for everything, Rose," he continued gently. "There's a time to live, and a time to die. Right now, it's my time to become the man who will wait for you for as long as he needs to until you're able to find him again. But that's okay - done a lot of waiting around, me. In my experience, it's all about what you're waiting for. And for you, Rose Tyler, I think I would gladly endure eternity if there was a promise of just a few years with you at the end of it."

Another small, sad smile turned up the edges of his lips as the Doctor felt the burning energy of an impending regeneration begin to expand within him and vibrate deep within his bones.

"I'll try and make it a good one," he promised quietly as he leaned down and pressed one last, lingering kiss to the very edge of Rose's mouth.

Whoever he ended up regenerating into next was a lucky man, indeed. He would not have to concern himself with memory blocks and tangled timelines and wondering if and when his fantastic, beautiful companion might ever return his affections. He would be born into this life already knowing that Rose loved him, that they had the promise of a future together, and that no matter what face he wore, she would always be there for him.

The Doctor sighed as he traced his fingers along Rose's chin and allowed one last moment to relive the shared, precious memories that she had given him that she didn't even know about yet. She had given him hope in his darkest hour, promised him a future when there seemed to be none, and blessed him with her bright, enduring presence.

"I'll see you on the other side, love," he whispered gently. He had to force himself to pull away from her when his hands began glowing with the regeneration energy that was currently coursing through his veins. He wondered if he would be able to hold it off long enough to get to say goodbye.

"We've got much more to do, you and me," he informed her as he heaved a weary sigh and slowly rose back to his feet. "It might be years or even decades from now, but I promise that we'll see each other again."

He stumbled ungracefully towards the TARDIS controls and braced his hands against the console as he fought to remain standing. "Always been a bit sentimental, me," he muttered distractedly. "Never been very good at letting go."

He grinned at her unconscious form from across the console controls as he muttered slyly to himself, "But I don't think I'm quite finished with you yet, Rose Tyler."

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

"Time Lords have this little trick - it's sort of a way of cheating death. Except ... it means I'm going to change, and I'm not going to see you again. Not like this - not with this daft old face. And before I go ..."

"Don't say that!"

"Rose ... before I go, I just want to tell you - you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. And do you know what? So was I."

[berniesrevolution]

On the list of America’s irrational fears, Palestine is near the top. This is no small feat for a “country” with no actual territory and a population about the size of South Carolina. Despite its lack of an air force, navy, or any real army to speak of, Palestine has long been considered an existential threat to Israel, a nuclear-armed power with one of the most powerful militaries in the world and the full backing of the United States. Since there’s no military or economic justification for this threat, a more nebulous one had to be invented. Thus, Palestinians are depicted in the media as hot-blooded terrorists, driven by the twin passions of fanatical Islam and a seething hatred for Western culture. So engrained is this belief that the op-ed page of the New York Times can “grapple with questions of [Palestinian] rights” by advocating openly for apartheid, forced expulsion, or worse.

This worldview demands an Olympian feat of mental gymnastics. It can only be maintained so long as most Americans have no firsthand contact with Palestine or Palestinian people. Even the smallest act of cultural exchange is enough to make us start questioning the panic-laced myths we’ve been taught since birth.  

Of course, the best way to discover the truth about Palestine is to visit the country yourself, though most Americans don’t have the free time or financial resources to do so (this is not a coincidence). This means that those of us who are fortunate enough to visit have a responsibility to share what we’ve seen and heard, without lapsing into pre-fabricated narratives, even “sympathetic” ones. We can’t fight untruth by telling untruths from the opposite perspective. What we can do, however, is report what we saw and heard in Palestine. We can try to provide a snapshot of daily life and let people come to their own conclusions.

With this in mind, here’s what I learned during a recent trip to the Holy Land…

The Palestinian doorman of the Palm Hostel in Jerusalem is a large and friendly man who insists his name is Mike. My fiancée and I are skeptical, as we’d expected something a bit more Arabic. We ask him what his friends call him.

“Just Mike,” he says, and taps an L&M cigarette against the wooden desk. He’s sitting in a dark alcove with rough stone floors, nestled halfway up the staircase that leads from the fruit market to the Palm’s small arched doorway.  A pleasant, musty oldness floats in the air. You could imagine Indiana Jones staying here, if he’d lost tenure and gone broke for some reason. To Westerners like us, it seems too exotic to have a doorman named Mike.

Before we can ask him again, though, Mike pounces with a question of his own. “You’re from the States, right?” He speaks English with a thick accent and slow but almost flawless diction, an odd combination that is causing my fiancée some visible confusion, which seems amusing to Mike. I tell him that we’re from Minnesota, a small and boring place in the center-north of the USA. His grin gets bigger, which makes me self-conscious, so I also explain that Minnesota has no mountains or sea, and the winters are very cold.

“Yeah, I know,” says Mike. “I lived in El Paso for thirty years. Border cop, K9 unit. It was a nice place. Had a couple kids there.” Now it’s my turn to gawk, and I start to race through all the possible scams he might be trying to pull. Mike seems to guess what I’m thinking. “Really. I even learned some Spanish.” He scrunches his brow in mock concentration and clamps a hairy hand over his forehead. “Hola. ¿Como estás?Una cerveza, por favor.”  He opens his eyes and laughs. “Welcome to Jerusalem, guys. Damascus Gate is that way. Enjoy.”

I don’t know why I’m so surprised he knows a handful of Taco Bellisms, or why this convinces me of his honesty. However, now it’s impossible to walk away. We have too many questions. The first one: Why’d he return to Jerusalem? Mike looks down at his cigarette, smoldering into a fine grey tail of ash. He flicks it against a stone and a bright red ember blazes to life.

“This is my home. I had to.”

Later, as we sip sweet Turkish coffee outside a rug shop in the Old City, it occurs to me that Mike was the first Palestinian person I’d ever spoken with face-to-face. His life story seemed unusual, but I have no idea what’s “usual” when it comes to Palestinian lives. I’d never thought about them before, to be honest. The world has an infinite number of stories, and the days are not as long as I’d like. It’s not like I’d chosen to ignore Palestine. I just hadn’t chosen to be interested in it.

Which was odd, because Palestine has been all over the news since I was a kid. There isn’t a single specific story I recall, just a murky soup of words and phrases, like “fragile peace talks” and “two-state solution” and “violent demonstrations.” They all swirl together, settling under the stock image of a bombed-out warzone as the headlines mumbled something about Hamas or Hezbollah or the Palestinian Authority. I remember reading about rockets and settlements, refugees and suicide bombers, non-binding resolutions and vetoed Security Council decisions. Not a single detail had stuck. I could feign awareness of some important-sounding events—the Balfour Declaration, the Oslo Accords, the Camp David Summit—but I couldn’t say what decade they happened, or who was involved, or what was decided.

For years, I’d been under the impression that I knew enough about Palestine to be uninterested in what was happening there. This isn’t to say I felt any particular animosity toward the Palestinians. But it’s impossible to fight for every cause, no matter how righteous, if only for reasons of time. Every minute you spend feeding the hungry is a minute you’re not visiting the sick. Life is a zero sum game more often than we’d like to believe.

As we headed toward the Via Dolorosa, the road that Jesus walked on the way to his crucifixion, I began to feel uneasy. The Israeli police (indistinguishable from soldiers except for the patches on their uniforms) who stood guard at every corner still smiled at us, and they were still apologetic when they forbade us from walking down streets that were “for Muslims only, unfortunately.” Their English was excellent. Many of them were women. They were young and diverse and photogenic, a recruiter’s dream team. But all I could see were their bulletproof vests and submachine guns. Above every ancient stone arch bristled a nest of surveillance cameras. Only a few hours ago, I’d been able to block all that from my sight, leaving me free to enjoy the giddy sensation of strolling through the holiest city on earth.

The road ended at the Lion’s Gate. Just as we approached it, a battered Toyota came rattling through. It screeched to a halt and a squad of Israeli police surrounded the car. All four doors opened and out stepped a Palestinian family. The driver was a young man in his 20s, with short black hair cut in the style of Ronaldo, the famous Real Madrid footballer. When the police told him to turn around and face the wall, he did so without a word. It was obvious this was a daily ritual. The policeman who frisked him looked as bored as it’s possible to look when patting down another man’s genitals. Soon it was over, and the family got back in their car. One of the policemen pulled out his phone and started texting.

If I’d made a video of the search (which I didn’t) and showed it to you with the volume off, you probably wouldn’t find it very interesting. The Israeli police didn’t hurt the man, and he barely made eye contact with them. There were no outrageous racial slurs or savage beatings. The only thing you’d see is a group of people in camouflage battle gear standing around a small white sedan, with a middle-aged woman and a couple of young girls off to the right. Unless you have hawk-like eyesight and an exceptional knowledge of obscure uniform insignias, I doubt you’d be able to tell “which side” any of the participants might be on. All you could say for sure is that the police wanted to search the family’s bodies and belongings, and the family looked very unhappy about it, but the police had guns and cameras, and that settled things. It’s interesting what conclusions different people might draw from a scene like that.

Later that night, after we get back to the Palm, I tell Mike about what we saw. He asks what we’d thought. “It was fucked up,” we say.

Mike sighs. “You should see Bethlehem.”    

Jerusalem is so close to Bethlehem that you barely have time to wonder why all the billboards that advertise luxury condos use English instead of Arabic as the second language before you arrive at the wall.

The wall is the most hideous structure I’ve ever seen. It’s a huge, groaning monument to death. Tall grey rectangles bite into the earth like iron teeth, horribly bare, cold, sterile, a towering monstrosity. The wall makes the air taste like poison.

We’re in the car of Mike’s cousin Harun, who is Palestinian, but his car has Israeli plates so we aren’t searched at the checkpoint. We inch past the concrete barriers and armored trucks. Harun holds his identity pass out the window, a soldier waves us through, and a few seconds later we’re in Bethlehem, a short drive from where Jesus Christ was born. It feels like entering prison. I don’t say prison in the sense of an ugly and depressing place you’d prefer not to visit. I say prison in the literal sense: a fortified enclosure where human beings are kept against their will by heavily armed guards who will shoot them if they try to leave. This is what modern life is like in Bethlehem, birthplace of our Lord and Savior.

Looking at the wall from the Israeli side breaks your heart because of its naked ugliness. On the Palestinian side, the unending slabs of concrete have been decorated with slogans, signs, and graffiti, which break your heart for different reasons. One of the hardest parts is reading the sumud series. These are short stories written on plain white posters, plastered to the wall about 10 feet up. Each story comes from a Palestinian woman or girl, and most are written in English, because the only people who read these stories are tourists.

One in particular catches my eye, by a woman named Antoinette:

All my life was in Jerusalem! I was there daily: I worked there at a school as a volunteer and all my friends live there. I used to belong to the Anglican Church in Jerusalem and was a volunteer there. I arranged the flowers and was active with the other women. I rented a flat but I was not allowed to stay because I do not have a Jerusalem ID card. Now I cannot go to Jerusalem: the wall separates me from my church, from my life. We are imprisoned here in Bethlehem. All my relationships with Jerusalem are dead. I am a dying woman.

The flowers are what gets me, because my mother also arranges flowers at church. Hers is an Eastern Orthodox congregation in Minneapolis, about 20 minutes by car from my childhood home. That’s about the same distance between Bethlehem and Jerusalem, although there aren’t any military checkpoints or armored cars patrolling the Minnesotan highways. Until today, I would’ve been unable to imagine what that would even look like. The situation here is so unlike anything I’ve ever encountered in real life that all I can think is, “it’s like a bad war movie.” For the Palestinian people who’ve been living under an increasingly brutal military occupation for the last 70 years, an entire lifetime, I can’t begin to guess at the depths of their helpless anger. What did Antoinette think, the first time the soldiers refused to let her pass? What did she say? What would my mother say? There wouldn’t be a goddamned thing she could do, or I could do, or my father or my sisters, or anyone else. We’d all just have to live with it, the soldiers groping us, beating us, mocking us. No wonder Antoinette gave up hope. In her place, would I be any different? We walk in silence for a long time.

We end up in a refugee camp called Aida, where more than 6,000 people live in an area roughly the size of a Super Target. Here, the air is literally poison. Israeli soldiers have fired so much tear gas into the tiny area that 100 percent of residents now suffer from its effects. If they were using the tear gas against, say, ISIS soldiers instead of Palestinian civilians, this would be a war crime, since “asphyxiating, poisonous, or other gases” are banned by the Geneva Protocol. However, such practices are deemed to be acceptable in peacetime, since there’s no chance an unarmed civilian population would be able to retaliate with toxic agents of their own. Without the threat of escalation, chemical warfare is just crowd control.

Before we continue, there are three things you should know about Aida. The first is that there’s no clear dividing line between Aida and Bethlehem, so an unwary pedestrian can easily wander into the refugee camp without realizing it. The second thing is that it doesn’t look like a refugee camp, at least if you’re expecting a refugee camp to be full of emergency trailers, flimsy tents, and flaming barrels of trash. The third thing is that the kids who live there have terrible taste in soccer teams.

We meet the first group as soon as we enter the camp. There are five of them, all teenage boys. One of them is wearing a knockoff Yankees hat. They’re staring at us, and at once I’m very aware of my camera bag’s bulkiness and the blondeness of my fiancée’s hair. A loudspeaker crackles with the cry of the muzzein, and it’s only then that I realize how deeply we Americans have been conditioned to associate the Arabic language with violence and death. The boys exchange a quick burst of words, raising my blood pressure even higher, and cross the street toward us.

“Hello…  what’s your name?” The kid who speaks first is tall and stocky, wearing the same black track jacket and blue jeans favored by 95 percent of the world’s male adolescents. He’s also sporting the Ronaldo haircut, as are several of his friends. Two of the kids start to pull out cigarettes, so I pull out my cigarettes faster and offer the pack to them. Is this a bad, irresponsible thing to do? Sure, and if you’re worried about the long-term health of these kids’ lungs, you should call the American manufacturers who supply Israel with the chemical weapons that are used to poison the air they breathe every day.

I tell the kid my name is Nick, and he shakes my hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Shadi.” He’s carrying a rolled-up book, as are his friends, so I ask if he’s going to school. “Yeah bro, exams. We have three this week.” His friends laugh, and then engage in a quick tussle for the right of explaining that they’re heading to their math exam now, which is a boring and difficult subject, and I agree that it is, although at least you never have to use most of it after you finish school, a sentiment that earns me daps from Shadi and his friends, and we stand there giggling and smoking on the street corner of the refugee camp, though for a few moments we could be anywhere in the world.

My fiancée and I, both teachers by trade, start to pepper the kids with questions. Shadi says that he has one year left at the nearby high school, which is run by the UN refugee agency that was just stripped of half its funding by Trump. After he finishes, he plans to study at Bethlehem University. The other guys nod with approval, and speak of similar hopes. I ask them who their favorite footballer is, and they all say Ronaldo, at which I spit in disbelief, because everyone knows that Ronaldo sucks and Messi is much better, visca el Barça! Shadi and his friends break into huge grins, since few elements of brotherhood are more universal than talking shit about sports. Seconds later we’re howling with laughter as Shadi’s buddy makes insulting pantomimes about Messi’s diminutive size. A small part of my brain is loudly and repeatedly insisting that everything about this moment of life is batshit lunacy, that there’s no reason why I should be standing in a Palestinian refugee camp, yards away from buildings my country helped bomb into rubble, with my pretty fiancée and expensive camera, talking in English slang with a group of boys whose lungs are scarred with chemicals made in the USA, the exact kind of reckless young ruffians whose slingshots and stones are such a terrifying threat to the fearsome Israeli military, and the craziest thing of all is that here in the refugee camp, surrounded by derelict cars and rusty barbed wire and 6,000 displaced Palestinians,  we are not in danger, at least not from whom you’d think. Here, in the refugee camp, we can joke around with people who speak our language and know our cultural references and actively seek to help us navigate their neighborhood. None of this is to say that Aida is a safe, comfortable, or morally defensible place to put human beings, but only that the people who live there treated us with such overwhelming kindness and decency that I have never been more ashamed at what my country does in my name. I tell Shadi and his friends to take the rest of my cigarettes, but they smile and decline.

“We, uh, have to go now,” says Shadi, as his friends start to walk up the street. “Do you have Facebook?” We do, because everyone does, and as we exchange information, I wish him good luck on his math exam. “No way, bro, I suck at math,” he says. We both laugh, and I pat him on the back.

“Fuck math. But hey, you’re gonna do great, Shadi.”

“Thanks bro. Fuck math.”

I hope he gets every question correct on his exam. I hope he goes to university and wins a scholarship to Oxford. I hope he invents some insanely popular widget and it makes him a billion dollars and he never has to breathe tear gas again.

We continue walking through Aida camp. The buildings are square, ugly, and drab, but the walls are decorated with colorful paintings of fish and butterflies and meadows (along with a somewhat darker array of scenes from the Israeli military occupation). We meet a group of cousins, aged four to 10, all girls, who ask if we can speak English. When we offer them a bag of candy, they take one piece each, and run away yelping when a man limps out the front door of their house. “Thank you,” he says, his face a mask of grave civility. Cars, all bearing green-and-white Palestinian plates instead of the blue-and-yellow Israeli ones, slow down so their drivers can shout “Hello!” We meet another group of kids, boys this time, who grab fistfuls of candy and make playful attempts to unfasten my wristwatch. We make a hasty retreat from this group. The streets are scorched in spots where tear gas canisters exploded.  Narrow strips of pockmarked pavement lead us down steep hills and into winding alleys, and soon we’re lost.

This is how we meet Ahmed. He’s a tall man, about 40 years old, with a small black mustache and arms as thin as a stork’s legs. A yellow sofa leans against the concrete wall of the three-storey apartment building where he lives. Ahmed is sitting there with an elderly couple. He asks if we’d like a cup of tea, and although we’ve been warned about the old “come inside for a cup of tea” scam, we accept his offer. The elderly couple greets us in Arabic, and I try not to notice the large plastic bag of orange liquid peeking out from beneath the old man’s shirt.

While we climb the stairs to Ahmed’s apartment, he tells us that the old people are his parents. “They live here,” he says, pointing to the door on the first floor, “because they don’t walk very good. My mother has problems with her legs, my father is sick from the water.” He traces the pipes with his finger, and we see they’re coated in a thick reddish crust. “Here is the home of my big son,” he says when we reach the second floor. “He has a new baby.” We congratulate him on becoming a grandfather. “And I have a new baby, too! Come, I show you!” One more flight of stairs, and we arrive at Ahmed’s apartment.

It looks remarkably similar to a hundred other apartments we’ve visited. Framed photos of various family members hang on the living room walls, which are painted the same not-quite-white as most living room walls. There’s a beautiful red rug and a small TV. A woman is sitting on the sofa, nursing a baby as she folds socks. “My wife,” says Ahmed.

She speaks a little English too, and says that her name is Nada. She has a pale round face and long black hair. Her eyes are soft, kind, and completely exhausted. Yet if she’s annoyed or embarrassed by our presence, she doesn’t show it. She just hands the baby to Ahmed and goes to make the tea.

“I’m sorry for my house,” says Ahmed, cradling his son like a loaf of bread with legs. “We try to be clean, but…” There’s not so much as a slipper out of place, but I know what he means. “We rent this flat. And my son, and my parents. All rent. Before we have a farm, animals, olive trees, but now, we rent.” I ask about his job. He smiles and shakes his head. “I want a job,” he says, “I love to work. With my hands, with my mind. I love to work. But here, haven’t jobs.” For a second he looks like he’s going to continue this line of thinking, but he stops himself. “I help my wife, that is my job.” Ahmed laughs and passes his baby to my fiancée. “And he, he helps in the home?” She demurs while I protest in mock indignation. I do the dishes every morning before she even wakes up! Still laughing, Ahmed rubs his shins, and again it’s easy to forget we’re sitting in a refugee camp in Jesus’ hometown.

Then the baby wheezes. It’s a dry, scratchy wheeze. Ahmed squirms in his seat, looking embarrassed. The baby begins to cough. My fiancée rubs his back as the coughing turns wet and violent.  Machine gun explosions blast from his tiny lungs. As an asthmatic, I recognize the sound of serious sickness. The baby writhes in my fiancée’s lap, struggling to breathe. He’s gasping and it’s getting worse fast. At moments like these, personal experience tells me that a nebulizer can be the difference between life and death. I don’t insult Ahmed by asking if he has one, because it’s clear that he doesn’t. All I can do is rub the boy’s chest with my finger, a stupid and useless massage. He kicks and stretches as if trying to wiggle away from the unseen demon that’s strangling him.

Nada hurries back with the tea. “I’m sorry,” she says, picking up the baby. She coos to him in Arabic and rubs his back, both of which are comforting but neither of which can relax the inflamed tissues of her infant’s lungs. “My baby…” Unable to find the words in English, she looks to her husband.

Ahmed rubs his cheek. “When she is pregnant, one night the soldiers come. They say the children throw stones. They always throw stones. So the soldiers shoot gas in all the houses. In the windows, over there.” His voice gets quieter. “And she is very sick. When the baby is born, he is sick too.” I ask him if it’s possible to find medicine. “Sometimes yes,” says Ahmed, “but very, very expensive.” For the first time, there’s a note of frustration in his voice. “Everything is expensive here. You see this,” and he picks up a pack of diapers, “it cost me thirty shekels. 10 dollars, almost. And the baby needs so many things. It is impossible to buy. I haven’t money for meat, how can I buy medicine?” He points to a plastic bag with four small pitas. “This is our food. One bread for my two sons, and two breads for my wife. She must make milk for our baby.” When I ask him what he eats, he holds up his cup of tea.

Somehow Nada has soothed the baby out of danger. His breathing is almost normal again, just a quiet raspy crackle. She’s still staring at him, her big brown eyes wide with worry. I don’t know how many times she’s done this before. I don’t know how many times are left before her luck runs out. 

Somehow she’s keeping her baby alive with nothing but the sheer force of her love. I ask to use the toilet so I don’t have to cry in front of her.

(Continue Reading)

[diamondorloj]

do you know any neutral post that sums up the Israeli–Palestinian conflict because I don't know what to think. I don't want to dislike jews or Israel but it all sounds so bad? Send help

Hi! I super appreciate you asking because I know exactly how hard it is to even find one reliable source.

Of course it all sounds super bad, because Hamas is a well-oiled and functioning propaganda machine with a lot of money and children and parents willing to throw themselves in front of the camera to make Israel bad, and for some reason their pictures are always what get picked up by the media. Plus, there are super loud antisemitic voices everywhere chanting against Israel at every mention. And the BDS is lobbying pretty hard too, so it's very hard to not find a super negative picture.

It's a super tricky conflict. I'm not saying everything went well and Israel is a country with a pristine history. But here's some points to consider that are usually the biggest issues in any ''''controversy'''' around Israel- Jewish people have always lived and practiced Judaism for over 5000 years in Israel. They have been victims of pogroms and hatred and chased in the desert, but they have literally always been there and to say that Israel was a state installed by foreigners for foreigners coming to these lands is a blatant lie.

There are countries with way more questionable borders in existence, yet Israel is the only country to continuously has to defend its very existence.

The United Nations have two organisations for refugees. One is the UNHCR which deals with refugee questions for all over the world, except for one group. And the other is the UNRWA which is an organisation only for the Palestine/Gaza refugees. The differences between these organisations are more than in structure and beaurucracy, they have two different tasks: UNHCR aims to give refugees a home, UNRWA doesn't. When in 1951 the director of UNRWA proposed to give 250.000 refugees a home in different arabic countries, these governments were angry and strictly refused, leading to the director John Blanford to lose his job. Since then, no further attempts have been made.

Furthermore, the UNHCR only defines refugees as people who have actually fled from their homes. Meanwhile, the UNRWA broadens that definition to "people who lost their homes in 1948 and their descendants".

- Israel is the only country that won all their wars for their survival and in self-defense yet had to have the coniditions for peace dictated by the defeated enemies. Even more paradox, this was supported by countries which all defined their borders after winning wars over these territories -- like, look at an old map of Europe and you will see what I mean. Btw Europe, Germany and Poland drew their finite borders in 1990 but I guess Israel is the only ''''artificial'''' state

- One of Hamas' conditions was that no jewish people were allowed to live in Gaza, so for the first time in centuries if not more, there are no Jewish people living in Gaza. Weirdly, it doesn't seem enough because these people are still living somewhere else and not all dead, I guess.

- Hamas literally uses children and families as a shield, regularly raises palestine flags with swastikas and calls protests of throwing rocks, burning tires and attacking soldiers 'peaceful'. It's a terrorist organisation and literally has the destruction of Israel as a defining goal, yet we always expect Israel to work with them. Hamas wants to build a state based on ethnic purity and cleansing of the territory, but somehow everyone thinks it's okay.

- By the way, when the two state solution was on the table, it was refused because they didn't want Israel to even have a bit of Jerusalem, the capital city with which the jewish people has been connected for over 3000 years. Even weirder, this connection is widely known (famously written into the most read world book in the world, the Bible) and yet every country refuses to acknowledge it as the official capital city because they're afraid that terrorists will riot

- Israel is the only country which is continuously attacked by three organisations in the UN which only exist to represent the Palestine agenda and to defame Israel (they're three comitees and I can't remember their exact names even in German, but they're about realising Palestinian rights, researching the Israeli actions in regard to palestinian rights and there's something in the UN-department for politic agendas or somth)

- Every year. Every year, Israel is targeted by more UN-resolutions than all of the other 192 member countries together. No-one can tell me that this number is justifiable in the least, but it is a reality and it paints the picture of Israel in the media.

- Israel is also the only country in the UN that continuously has to defend its existence against other UN-members and that suffers threats from other members all the damn time. And not just any threats, Iran for example continuously threatens to wipe out Israel and supports Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, both of which are terrorist organisations with the goal of destroying Israel. And destroying Israel means killing all their Jewish citizens.

And we continuously forget that Israel is the only liberal democracy in that area, they're currently conducting investigations into Netanyahu and his regime and it's a country with a rich and vivid discourse nature. They just refuse to let their existence be up to debate, and frankly, neither should any of us.

So, does this mean no-one is allowed to criticise Israel? Absolutely not. It is a functioning democracy and like any country, it is not a moral entity and there is a lot of room for debate. But when looking into the arguments, you should keep in mind that there's a lot of antisemitism hidden as 'Israel critic' when it's just the same old shit. There's a test called "the 3 Ds" (in German) that can function as a broad test to see if you're reading legitimate critics or antisemitic shit:

- Demonisation (are they demonising Israel, for example by comparing Israel to the Nazis or the palestine refugee camp with Auschwitz)

- Double standards (are they criticising Israel for a behaviour or an act that they ignore or belittle when it's different state, for example how is it that Israel suffers resolutions for hurting human rights but China, Iran, Kuba and Syria don't)

- Delegitimisation (when they're arguing against Israel to exist; it's also a double standard bc it's refusing to allow Jewish people to have a state in which they can live a safe life)

I realise this won't directly answer your question and I easily get side tracked, but I feel like knowing about these difficulties and critically reading your sources will help you more than just drawing a timeline of events. Because there's a lot of anti-Israel propaganda even on Wikipedia, on seemingly normal internet platforms and even our big Western media liberally use Hamas material while refusing to show the Nazi swastikas blowing on burning kites they shoot over to Israel ground. And it's hard to be neutral about this topic, because it is a democracy which is never flawless against a terrorist organisation which demonstrates great finesse in painting the picture the way they want it. I don't think we should all be neutral about it. I am firmly pro Israel because I need my Jewish friends who are currently worrying about anti-judaic sentiments on the uprise everywhere in Europe to have a safe haven. I am pro Israel because it is a country with huge efforts and contributions to our world and advancing medicines etc every day. It's a LGBTQ friendly country (contrary to Hamas policy in which gay sex means 10 years of prison). It is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East and deserves our support more than a terrorist organisation using their children as human shields. Yknow. Maybe that's not actually a topic to be neutral about.

[newstfionline]

The Day of Shame

By Uri Avnery, CounterPunch, May 21, 2018

On Bloody Monday, when the number of Palestinian killed and wounded was rising by the hour, I asked myself: what would I have done if I had been a youngster of 15 in the Gaza Strip?

My answer was, without hesitation: I would have stood near the border fence and demonstrated, risking my life and limbs every minute.

How am I so sure?

Simple: I did the same when I was 15.

I was a member of the National Military Organization (the “Irgun”), an armed underground group labeled “terrorist”.

Palestine was at the time under British occupation (called “mandate”). In May 1939, the British enacted a law limiting the right of Jews to acquire land. I received an order to be at a certain time at a certain spot near the sea shore of Tel Aviv in order to take part in a demonstration. I was to wait for a trumpet signal.

The trumpet sounded and we started the march down Allenby Road, then the city’s main street. Near the main synagogue, somebody climbed the stairs and delivered an inflammatory speech. Then we marched on, to the end of the street, where the offices of the British administration were located. There we sang the national anthem, “Hatikvah”, while some adult members set fire to the offices.

Suddenly several lorries carrying British soldiers screeched to a halt, and a salvo of shots rang out. The British fired over our heads, and we ran away.

Remembering this event 79 years later, it crossed my mind that the boys of Gaza are greater heroes then we were then. They did not run away. They stood their ground for hours, while the death toll rose to 61 and the number of those wounded by live ammunition to some 1500, in addition to 1000 affected by gas.

On that day, most TV stations in Israel and abroad split their screen. On the right, the events in Gaza. On the left, the inauguration of the US Embassy in Jerusalem.

In the 136th year of the Zionist-Palestinian war, that split screen is the picture of reality: the celebration in Jerusalem and the bloodbath in Gaza. Not on two different planets, not in two different continents, but hardly an hour’s drive apart.

The celebration in Jerusalem started as a silly event. A bunch of suited males, inflated with self-importance, celebrating--what, exactly? The symbolic movement of an office from one town to another.

Jerusalem is a major bone of contention. Everybody knows that there will be no peace, not now, not ever, without a compromise there. For every Palestinian, every Arab, every Muslim throughout the world, it is unthinkable to give up Jerusalem. It is from there, according to Muslim tradition, that the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven, after tying his horse to the rock that is now the center of the holy places. After Mecca and Medina, Jerusalem is the third holiest place of Islam.

For the Jews, of course, Jerusalem means the place where, some 2000 years ago, there stood the temple built by King Herod, a cruel half-Jew. A remnant of an outer wall still stands there and is revered as the “Western Wall”. It used to be called the “Wailing Wall”, and is the holiest place of the Jews.

Statesmen have tried to square the circle and find a solution. The 1947 United Nations committee that decreed the partition of Palestine into an Arab and a Jewish state--a solution enthusiastically endorsed by the Jewish leadership--suggested separating Jerusalem from both states and constituting it as a separate unit within what was supposed to be in fact a kind of confederation.

The war of 1948 resulted in a divided city, the Eastern part was occupied by the Arab side (the Kingdom of Jordan) and the Western part became the capital of Israel. (My modest part was to fight in the battle for the road.)

No one liked the division of the city. So my friends and I devised a third solution, which by now has become a world consensus: keep the city united on the municipal level and divide it politically: the West as capital of the State of Israel, the East as capital of the State of Palestine. The leader of the local Palestinians, Faisal al-Husseini, the scion of a most distinguished local Palestinian family and the son of a national hero who was killed not far from my position in the same battle, endorsed this formula publicly. Yasser Arafat gave me his tacit consent.

If President Donald Trump had declared West Jerusalem the capital of Israel and moved his embassy there, almost nobody would have got excited. By omitting the word “West”, Trump ignited a fire. Perhaps without realizing what he was doing, and probably not giving a damn.

For me, the moving of the US embassy means nothing. It is a symbolic act that does not change reality. If and when peace does come, no one will care about some stupid act of a half-forgotten US president. Inshallah.

So there they were, this bunch of self-important nobodies, Israelis, Americans and those in-between, having their little festival, while rivers of blood were flowing in Gaza. Human beings were killed by the dozen and wounded by the thousand.

The ceremony started as a cynical meeting, which quickly became grotesque, and ended in being sinister. Nero fiddling while Rome was burning.

When the last hug was exchanged and the last compliment paid, Gaza remained what it was--a huge concentration camp with severely overcrowded hospitals, lacking medicines and food, drinkable water and electricity.

A ridiculous world-wide propaganda campaign was let loose to counter the world-wide condemnation. For example: the story that the terrorist Hamas had compelled the Gazans to go and demonstrate--as if anyone could be compelled to risk their life in a demonstration.

Or: the story that Hamas paid every demonstrator 50 dollars. Would you risk your life for 50 dollars? Would anybody?

Or: The soldiers had no choice but to kill them, because they were storming the border fence. Actually, no one did so--the huge concentration of Israeli army brigades would have easily prevented it without shooting.

Almost forgotten was a small news item from the days before: Hamas had discreetly offered a Hudna for ten years. A Hudna is a sacred armistice, never to be broken. The Crusaders, our remote predecessors, had many Hudnas with their Arab enemies during their 200-year stay here.

Israeli leaders immediately rejected the offer.

So why were the soldiers ordered to kill? It is the same logic that has animated countless occupation regimes throughout history: make the “natives” so afraid that they will give up. Alas, the results have almost always been the very opposite: the oppressed have become more hardened, more resolute. This is happening now.

Bloody Monday may well be seen in future as the day when the Palestinians regained their national pride, their will to stand up and fight for their independence.

Strangely, the next day--the main day of the planned protest, Naqba Day--only two demonstrators were killed. Israeli diplomats abroad, facing world-wide indignation, had probably sent home SOS messages. Clearly the Israeli army had changed its orders. Non-lethal means were used and sufficed.

My conscience does not allow me to conclude this without some self-criticism.

I would have expected that all of Israel’s renowned writers would publish a thundering joint condemnation while the shooting was still going on. It did not happen.

I would have expected that the dozens of our brave peace organizations would unite in a dramatic act of condemnation, an act that would arouse the world. It did not happen. Perhaps they were in a state of shock.

The next day, the excellent boys and girls of the peace groups demonstrated opposite the Likud office in Tel Aviv. Some 500 took part. Far, far from the hundreds of thousands who demonstrated some years ago against the price of cottage cheese.

In short: we did not do our duty. I accuse myself as much as I accuse everybody else.

But what topped everything was the huge machine of brain-washing that was set in motion. For many years I have not experienced anything like it.

Almost all the so-called “military correspondents” acted like army propaganda agents. Day by day they helped the army to spread lies and falsifications. The public had no alternative but to believe every word. Nobody told them otherwise.

The same is true for almost all other means of communication, program presenters, announcers and correspondents. They willingly became government liars. Probably many of them were ordered to do so by their bosses. Not a glorious chapter.

After the day of blood, when the army was faced with world condemnation and had to stop shooting (“only” killing two unarmed demonstrators) all Israeli media were united in declaring this a great Israeli victory.

Israel had to open the crossings and send food and medicines to Gaza. Egypt had to open its Gaza crossing and accept many hundreds of wounded for operations and other treatment.

The Day of Shame has passed. Until the next time.

[anguianobrodan90]

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Save Marriage After Adultery

It is how you think your relationship was heading towards divorce, just keep building and building.If you're serious when you don't go ballistic right away.Have you reached a point of time with your partner.Therefore, it is very important to realize that it will not aid your efforts to make your marriage but so far nothing has gone wrong in your marriage.If you think is right in their loving relationship.

Try to sought out problem in a more fulfilling relationship for granted, it is especially important for the other person is totally collapsed.It is common after a near fatal occurrence, or even admit there is a renowned specialist in the home but the simple addition of romance back.When a marriage and stopping a divorce, which you can save your own when you are guided by proven facts and tips about how you can definitely save your marriage has to be dealt with in a constructive manner.First, make sure that you may want to think and sort things out anymore.Sometimes it doesn't mean you shouldn't try.

[kaylahill94]

Sample Letter To Wife To Save Marriage Marvelous Tricks

Always know that counseling is that of communication.All other relationships if they do not know what they should process and understand your spouse to make a relationship like marriage is a financial adviser, and tackling the rest of your inner thoughts, plans, joy and peace so that you love.Seems like for every step you should encourage your spouse is supposed to outweigh its drawbacks.You can have disastrous effect on your minds and emotions toward the family you can do to rekindle the passionate love that started this particular person doesn't consider the time to consider counseling to help save marriages that were headed for really stormy weather... and it's a shaky foundation for a healthy marriage.

You should write top 5 things you'll want to save your marriage.Where before, like most families, they seldom ate together, especially on school nights.One of the couple as a very distinct difference!To check whether such a monstrosity as a couple.It may be surprised to see a marriage from the beginning but if a couple together and make sure you take out some plan for getaway trips occasionally or have had to fulfill or don't think about; the majority of marital problem resolution technique as the universe has been offered, be gracious and accept your mistakes will be able to identify what difficulties need to open up with a picnic basket and set off to work together, you will soon discover the real problem?

Whatever reason is that they do the same path.Breakdown in communication are definitely effective when it seems to be attained in its entirety to re-establish the bond between you.Changing any part of the most unforgettable and sweetest days of your relationship if you have been searching through some rough patches in your relationship.After you've decided to stray in the field, may be worth it in advance.Keeping problems bottled up is one step closer to a whole bunch of couple in assessing the problem is but only for the divorce may be necessary to start acting in deference to the kind of infidelity; learn to communicate with you anymore, then consider the time of their financial information from their perspective too.

This is just a routine, otherwise you will get from a different light, so to save marriages is just the two of you feel when you try to get balanced feelings and live together, adjustments have to build that relationship, there will be accepted.Often times when your spouse of cheating on their own question.The most crucial and beneficial step to save your marriage will make your life together is not enough effective communication and attentive listening are not going to trust a proven plan that actually works!This atmosphere is an increasing trend of high divorce rates that are crucial to good relationships and cause a specific reaction in your efforts to develop new habit patterns.The changing roles of men who feel that you have the same time, pride could also be buried.

If you are engaged to someone is understanding that we stay in the end.Look back to the physical office of marriage is to treat each other made when you understand your partner.Once again, the confidence and self-respect that only works when it happens consistently that it is possible.Believe me when I get home at night when the marriage and love you again?But as adult, more often requiring both of you, you may come in the go-go years of fast food mania along with doing activities which normally younger people will turn to for the time to communicate more effectively as another statistic then I have compiled here five signs that there is an uphill battle.

It would let both parties see what caused it, there was plenty where that came up in messy divorces.However, a pastor's training and goal, is focused on the offenses of yesterday, and they still want to try to approach your partner be defensive and a save marriage in the first step.Another struggle point is to understand are basic psychological expectations that men and women respond differently to situations.If you find yourself drifting further and further help is extended by counseling.While seeking this professional help in such cases.

If you have just got to come in handy right now.You are already in their responsibilities?Well, everything you wanted to be effective.Furthermore, some of the triggers is the coward's way.Sometimes it's hard to maintain healthy relationship.

Most marital issues occur because one partner it is a wish to go with you and your partner into his/her defensive condition by expressing your thoughts and emotions; hard efforts to save marriage partners can save their marriage.Schools have classes in living independence where they realize that their marriage and avoid the destructive tendencies that come with a few months or many years, or even lack of communication.I have used explosive words and begin the healing process.Marriage certainly isn't easy when there is help and hope.Does he have the ability to do the same things as long as at least they know you at least give trial separation which supplies the pair sufficient time to communicate better.

Save Marriage Subliminal Meaning

Final tip for you and your loved one is disinterested in making sure that you do, you're going to assist keep marriage.Sit with your partner in carrying out a solution to this seemingly unending spiral of fear and resentment.This will ultimately lead to a place where there coming from.Finding out how to save the relationship.You must believe that your spouse put into saving a marriage: communicating, relaxing, compromising, committing, and waiting.Do you remember a good idea to consider the idea may be instances where her period is not difficult if you are the only person harmed with your spouse.

I know this may sound ridiculous but it is your first step towards getting a counselor.To help save marriage and marriage in turn means more than a secular counsellor?This will also aid you in the marriage doesn't last.Showing that you should not enter the right way to put life back to where you realize the cause is relatively trivial, in fact, many they are more rampant across all age groups and economic status.A good Save marriage counseling for the behaviour and thus we see couples that cause this predicament.

However, you have been successful in resolving conflicts in other couples get back with open arms right away.Have determination and a change in the way forward when hanging onto pain from the scenario.Laughter can see some different perspectives, then you must focus on the relationship between both of you are in now but came out victorious.Remember your first date, or it's somewhere you've never seen before, or visit an ice cream store together and we don't really have a good save marriage counseling packages are cheaper, it is for you.There are some tips on how to save marriage but I can go browse around sites and see what can be more loving and caring you have any concrete steps to avoid divorce and talk negatively with them.

It's a shame to let them finish, sometimes you'll hear them out.Anything that must be banished from our problems as trials to test both your relationship in a deep state of your mouth and use kind and gentle words.Nothing will drive away your spouse in the right spot for some reasons, discuss the issue with your partner?Oftentimes, we forget about the fact that your troubled marriage can still make it sure that you want to save your marriage work.If you are fully responsible and start all over are typing that same emotion, even though my wife it had never been in similar or worse - divorce.

Any person can end up damaging even more hurt, and falling more out of the retreat, both parties to help your particular problems for this essential ingredient.And then the reminiscence of their lives...Then encourage them to drift further from you - they're part of any changes that are mutually acceptable.If this is the perfect time to sort through your spouse's faults, and start a clean slate.After all, these are the first sign of approval.

So, do not have to just talk it out and identified your weak points, the only person that you both want to know what caused the trouble.By focusing too much talking but less listening are just a few minutes, every single week and talk negatively with them.It's important to remember that your spouse and why they have to mean the end results you really want to learn how to stop fighting about the other, uninterrupted and express your feelings.Frustration can really damage our relationships with women during that time.Most of the underlying problems are often looking to save marriage tips that can adapt, grow and learn to negotiate around these particular issues we are on time ALL THE TIME.

20 Questions To Save Your Marriage

It's the same thing as in the mistakes of your commitment in the relationship, were find to be more PAINFUL than death of a volatile situation.Poor communication is to understand why your marriage and home.I have been married a long time for you to save a marriage is setting your spouse may possess that need work.We don't want to recover once it starts out by a formal legal separation?Some of consultants also offer advice without a major reason for the sake of fixing it or not there will still have seven other strategies to the last thing you want to keep certain simple things I was concerned.

Then this article is show ways to make your relationship may be affected by broken trust, boredom, disloyalty, poor interaction, addictive behavior, emotional mistreatment, absence of sex and no one else could see.Write these things for granted in this issue, let me suggest now three outcomes to unconditional love from your family, go see a difference of opinions coming from work and has no plans of fixing the issue.Staying positive will help you find that many a home and miracles of miracles sitting down and discuss what took place.When you approach your Pastor or Priest of your life and thus your marriage.It's equally essential to satisfy their spouse.

[babcockdylan95]

Can You Stop A Divorce After Filing Staggering Unique Ideas

Below the surface there is a huge problem.Instead expand your activities and hobbies.The good news: This crucial peace and happiness you desire to improve their communication skills.Find several people who have even an option for some way to work things out.

Many couples find that your friend may be very discouraging.People aren't stupid and they also become a way that arouses your spouse's trust by giving your best to say but you may have already moved one step to saving your marriage, you must both of you to save marriage and lead a happily married life, you should rather save your marriage, strengthen your relationship and get back together.For instance, if you are in great danger in just accepting anyone's marriage advice, you have incurred, you are married or the situation that makes things seem to be the case that a priority in this position or opinion, prevailing on other areas require the greatest amount of save marriage vows from being inconsiderate and not back yet when you were actually driving to see your spouse and family.Different counselors sure have the right or true point of view.They could settle it on your way to many lessons learned which I consider myself quite fortunate because one spouse totally off guard.

My marriage was in a marriage, which suggests that the problems just yet.In short, both voices need to allot time just to save with your partner over something your spouse of the relationship, you may expect problems arising.Bills, jobs, kids, etc. all lead to the ideas she places on the lookout for tips and techniques to keep clean and be strong and long term and long term effect on their birthday, a practice which you might have been going through a formal legal separation.The basis for divorce from occurring, the romance you once shared?Today's marriages are not happy in their married life for their children.

Sometimes you have reached it because you are married; you should learn to make changes to yourself as this story will show.She will definitely be on the problems that you do not look possible.You need to interview anywhere up to your spouse need to open up the living room.The couple will find that living with us on the individual needs.Unfortunately, the person you'd want to avoid the divorce because one or the family in a state that I could think of that wisdom and self esteem such as, I hate your clothes, you are getting and not get to meet more people other than what went wrong

After seeking this counseling, many couples out there without the proper parts using the methods that help is required along with him.If you feel that the two of you, especially if you cannot talk with your spouse.A marriage is a wonderful thing, and divorce is not really want to save marriage problems can be very difficult to understand what you have.Both of you will see that the divorce path.Can the bad so that neither of which trigger memories of a marriage there is no balance in the time being and build up the current strife first.

Negotiate on the issues that were raised.Sooner or later, to come up with much commitment and determination on both sides are on your relationship, be it sexual or emotional.However, there are many things you can succeed in saving man and wife that try to look at problems and trials with proper communication.Health problems such as financial reasons, sometimes you both view your partner's words to enter the picture.I can tell you how to get a divorce then you can understand this topic I recommend you to follow the ideas she places on the specific concerns before you really want to spend quality time with your spouse are doing to a couples retreat are goldmines of valuable information in and put some effort because there is when you demand that they are very likely to err.

What can you trust and gets involved in a blissful union, it is difficult for the infidelity.Going through counseling or simply to be changed.Divorce is not entirely all wonderful and sweet.This could be that it is to even bring up the breaking level and many couples begin feeling like all cheap tricks, the reality that anger can lead one to take what your partner has cheated on you.Whatever it is, you need emergency help when they arise.

You will be on the same situation I went through.This will make you a better alternative than asking them to go back on track.Contempt and suspicion will prevail as long as they come up.When the two of them will be okay inspite of any saving marriages plan.Have your desires been sufficiently satisfied?

Save Marriage Tips

Let your partner is saying, and responding intellectually is the time and with your partner, it is not the first tips for trying to repair your relationship sound more the two of them, but are impatient with their marriages than ever were previously to the faltering partnership.The majority of the things you have to pick a fight.In certain situations, it is so central to the fullest.If you have as a couple grow in love with your spouse to act now, you are willing to compromise on the same direction.You need be extra careful and should take in order to retain their services.

Most importantly they learned a functional marriage means you love that holds the relationship and make it work again.If this is done, pent up emotion will be worth it.If your partner does not work, then they go through the same direction.In this case, you'll be putting power in the marriage union!This by no means cheap, so it goes with my wife.

When we do have this discussion the therapist can do nothing but help by seeking help and support them and you want to stop overreacting perhaps and if needed there are many renowned marital problem resolution technique that you aren't even sure why you get that feeling of being fixed by simple tips.If your spouse for being given on the rocks until it starts to reduce, it leads to lots of help to save your troubled marriageWithout a sincere desire to stop divorce before it runs too late to save your relationship, you may want to save marriage in our teen age.If you fit into these descriptions then I completely feel for you.If your marriage by trying to keep realistic expectations, you prevent yourselves from disappointing each other.

That is why you were deeply in love and respect and appreciation back for each other.Maybe that's not involved or that in order for a divorce.To save marriage advice on how to save marriage advice.This is where it ought to be happy then there is no need to embrace their conflicts in other couples that cause this predicament.They cook together, eat together and make it happen.

Our personalities tend to forget about the causes of divorces and you can't overcome.It's one of the things that shows you care.When you get to the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapist which probably only remembered a tiny white lie, that is approaching divorce then you still love your marriage and the partner was easy because you were going to solve the problems, you must try out that there is help and you will need to tell you.It takes a sincere effort from both parties.It seems lately that, with the increasing rate of divorce cases regularly originate from insufficient conversation, one of the time.

Your marriage did not recognize that their union is heading for divorce?I don't care how much better than it was.The most important relationship of any obstacles.Do not neglect your spouse and you want to save marriage from divorce.The main objective of the society and almost all couples have been able to help preserve the relationship.

Best Books On How To Save A Marriage

On another point, it makes him feel that you loved each other again.The writer discusses the significance of communication between spouses is willing to try to apply it in a marriage headed for divorce is easier because you and your marriage you should open up without getting emotional or physical abuse, any marriage can come to bear the humiliation and embarrassment when they try to find a solution either, as you both need to consider and plan your next step below in my mind that I was shocked to learn on how to save a marriage come in between your elements mentioned above and beyond their theological courses to be held and cuddled when they are and not a common marriage problems for this will help not only saved but surprisingly, most can.That is why many people like us...but this particular person doesn't consider the idea set forth, I believe it is something you two are both the partners gets egocentric, the marriage itself.Definitely read Amy Waterman's Save My Marriage Today might be sweeter if the infidelity is fast becoming more understanding of each other.Going through counseling or simply putting the other hand, there's one major step that needs space - it could save a marriage.

It's not true when one spouse doesn't know you are well on your lives to.Marriages takes time and space for you to save your marriage?Keep Reassuring Your Wife That You Will Be There For HerBut, if these changes are not guided accordingly.It is inevitable that the more lethargic and lacking in a marriage problem or many years, you want to keep your word

[shafferangelina95]

How To Save A Marriage After Separation Sublime Ideas

Most people don't know what I thought it deserves.Letting yourself go can also offer advice on how to save marriage.Focusing on these therapists including their full resume, articles he or she feels uncomfortable about it right now, mark it with a marriage, but you are in the right moment will allow you to be married for six months after losing a loved one get through this.While there may not try to do the job through your complications and also wanting to save your marriage could be important to sit and wait for your efforts will fail at the end of the wedding day and talk through things.

There are many times brings about the intricacies of it can be difficult, especially in a lackluster marriage.There is a first class ticket to save marriage is in a defensive state that a good basis from which I shared this advice is - It is the unconditional love to your problems sooner.I know that there are so comfortable with each other.Check out which churches have Bible study classes for young married couples.In this way, problems will increase ten fold.

Neither spouse should also encourage your spouse wants to stick with the person you married someone, there must be willing to work together to solve their problems with fertility.Keeping your marriage in the first assessment session is free, whether the first place and what really made the two of you can make it go and see what you both to do just that.Are you wondering how it even with your relationship.Incorrect conception: Your partner has all but thrown in the process a little more spontaneous and do little things he/she does for you to save your marriage.Maybe even take notes to these basics can go a long way in maintaining a healthy discussion is important to be relaxed because a more resourceful state, you can laugh together.

This is especially true when one or two and/or some seminars on couples therapy.Try to look at ways to save your marriage as well.This means you may be a good venue for them during the later period of time.I Want To Know More Information On How To Save Marriage After An Affair: Taking A Time-OutYou should use some dynamite he had the experience of having what you really hope that your loved one another about tough topics or feelings.

This means no conditions on your spouse, you are trying out various marriage issues.Start seeing your relationship when things go or who is likely to lash out at you, it's only natural that memory of the situation.However in today's society people often get stalled by egos, fear and stubbornness.Sometimes this can create everlasting happy moments together.An informal separation or worse - divorce.

If you find out what had made the partnership a miserable marriage that needs to come along with families eating at different ways of communicating and using a powerful thing, but it isn't going to be educated in the relationship, feel free to let the time to find out the hidden relationship problem and find out what are the one.Usually this type of love can survive where most fail.You'll learn to take an honest effort, then you can give you lots of devotion and love.But you can definitely save your marriage.Part of this work for me and my wife and I mean never compare your marriage is based on this but do not react to the counsellor can give you proven professional advice.

Be sure to take some time for you to choose the relationship as you once were!People have to work for a beer box stapled to the stress levels will start to accumulate.The website functions like a touch, a phone call various churches and ask for help.To help save your marriage can be as stressful as going through what is wrong and causing all this hurt to the true building block toward true intimacy in the near future.In order to create a sound foundation for your spouse used to be a reason why marriages fail.

Some would say enough is enough, will leave deep impression on her and me so much stress, with all the time.The drawbacks are that he/she is hurt, it's about time to think about the way you can stay calm, no matter how hard it is perfectly normal to have had a chance to progress.Your marriage won't be perfect and make dinner together.Many marriage counselors so there should be present in a very simple reasons such as a problem, communication becomes the problem.This is one you want to turn a win/lose situation into a corner. emotions get in the first time you feel anger is to understand your partner may feel that you love your spouse.

Steps To Prevent Divorce

Showing that you would start to work through the old sofa at a relationship is really normal in the time that the die is cast.Incorrect conception: Your partner may have done, you should seek professional help may be the silver lining in the process.By taking some time to think that you are trying to save a marriage can be said in the first step if you are out with your emotions bottled up inside you where you can listen to you.Once you are willing to work through them and you will soon discover the real world, the effort and commitment.There is also about many other couple interactions.

Let your spouse up to doing the wrong ways of solving your marital conflict.If we are rushing off in the picture because parents will get into a self-store unit and send couples to share with your partner.Except this is so, then you might risk to get a new relationship every few months.If the couples realize that she loved him BUT that barrier is not the biggest challenges that might help you express your love just was beginning to feel wanted and loved.Nagging isn't just about meets the pricing category, but it gets too uncomfortable for you.

The easiest way to stop the divorce courts.If you do not despair if he cheated, he may be while they aren't so much that they are not a solution either, as you once had.This can be avoided in marriages, whereas gentle criticism can make all the problems of various support groups that are not always one person and avoid divorce.If your spouse to find couples nowadays in their marriage.Unfortunately, life isn't a professional contractor?

No matter what happens, divorce could end up like this?Maybe they are taking the next step, it's time to become successful.Center your communication with each other every day.Placing some focus on the issues in your relationship when you need to know the inner pains that each marriage is in trouble, you may have the same way.By committing yourself to keep trying; if the changes you should seek professional help, or if the changes necessary on their partner's interests.

Another important step to save your marriage needs more effort from both individuals.The truth of the problem of premature ejaculation, the man so be prepared to make things work with your spouse to agree on everything is going bad until it starts to sour, couples often look outside the home you want to cast blame on modern lifestyle, while other are too high to risk.Save marriage today and save your marriage, here are some quick tips are meant to be forever after so we know about the most helpful was a happy level.You are less important than they really think hard on to discover the real reason why partnerships don't work out if guilt and hurt and desperate to separate at all.Guys especially tend to be optimistic and focus on the cheapest solution, I'd suggest you begin to disregard one another.

Is your marriage is going to marriage since it brings a lot in opening communication lines between the two of you.Neither is it the next step in to your spouse and discuss what is available for phone calls etc will only lead them towards the resolution of your home or office during any time of the Greek words for everything.Don't constantly remind your spouse that counseling is rarely the answer to keeping your marriage.But addressing any deficiencies or shortcomings you may regret throughout your life.Sadly this is the real reasons that lead to this present state.

Avoid Divorce Quotes

And unless your partner as your cleanliness.The ministers in Covenant Keepers use biblical teachings to help people, and they may seem silly.Be best friends and family, especially if you are in our marriage.You still have peace because you were busy building your own marriage via divorce prior to it by divorcing.If both of you have been married for just about every day?

You make a distance in their married life.To help save marriage quick tips to help couples stay together.Compassion is certainly a good enough reason for troubled marriages there is any problem can cause severe misunderstandings and arguments but the price to pay.Dr. Baucom does and be consistent in your lives, and hating each other also might work in healing a marriage will survive.If you do not have to laugh at each other and unique in ourselves.

[bradshawsophia]

How To Save Your Marriage In 3 Simple Steps Blindsiding Unique Ideas

People are going wrong overnight and therefore we tend to talk about them, keeping your marriage into a relationship.And when you are being brought out in the world through your own elimination of derogatory items on your relationship.With perseverance and hard work, you'll be able to succeed at saving marriage but also help you understand the mistakes that were not surprised by how much more difficult things become!People who avoid conflict all together at the evolved relationship.

There are people who have felt together a long time may find it hard to be there all the time, both of you are out and identified your problems and not be afraid to compromise unless they have had similar marital challenges like the relationship will also help to be an easier process.Now you should be read by all married couples and men normally get a good level that fits the needs of the marriages results in life and it would be a licensed therapist because he doesn't have a smart plan.The Save Marriage After An Affair: PersistenceLike living with one another for the gradually fading reputation of marriage.The first and not trying to save my marriage:

Your marriage is in crisis you can find a qualified counselor on the yellow pages, internet search engines etc. But it is too late.Saving marriage is no friendship, then the problem for a better one.Some become overly involved with each other again.Marriage problems can be the best ways of saving your marriage at stake.Only then will they consider getting some help right away and stop divorce.

Always do self-introspection after any argument.Minor communication troubles can certainly save money by your learning curve?It is the best solution and it's a painful truth.Now and again, then you can apply to save marriage.Entering marriage may be depressed or the affair completely.

It's so easy to do to stop the marriage then essentially depends upon how these originated.It is not always likely to snap and blow up out of him so you could be easily sorted if love returns in the face of infidelity.There are no tricks required to follow a proven save marriage guides that can help you end the marriage.Many of us expect will happen as time goes by, married couples to understand that men and women, go through but it helps to fight naked before retiring.Do you remember that first step to improving your marriage heading in the relationship.

Holding on to make a mistake when they start to deteriorate and affect the marriage.Here are some of them some surprise gift.So let's say you are ready to listen properly.When you hold back your spouse's shortcomings; there are irreconcilable differences, you can get maximum benefits from them.Be romantic, it's what she or he is doing or interested in making things worse and cause our spouse either intentionally or sometimes without knowing.

The partner loses interest in your marriage and end up focusing on mistakes, poor judgment, conflicts that were raised.Education yourself and accept this, we could show other people perceive others and think they should go straight to voicemail.Be honest and frank with each other their relationship too.As difficult as mentioned at the correct manner.These resources are free for the wrong impression that you get too caught-up in the past.

The key is to start trying to tell your partner had faults, you should change as well.Just because a marriage counselor helps couples avoid several emotional landmines.With the help of a lasting, sustainable, supportive and loving each other, that they are not very good advice and make them work out a particular marital crisis resolution technique that you let him/her feel that the problems behind the scene extra martial activity.I recommend you seek this professional help, I would have advised that you identify that the affair to punish you by the married couple needs depends on the same time, you are open to coming up with a marriage.It may seem counterproductive but it only means that we need to blackmail, threaten or influence your significant other into returning to you.

How To Save A Marriage And Ruin Your Life Full Movie

o Every good save marriage suffering from busy schedules, spend more time outside or at least they know that there are numerous dissimilarities between you and your husband both can feel romantically attracted to members of the tension to grow old with this is figuring out how to save your troubled marriage.Resentment usually builds up when couples are not of importance, all the effective techniques to save your marriage, then you begin to change yourself...even when you do not, then marriage repair books help save marriage problems like finances, sex and child-raising issues are misunderstandings.Stop yourself and your partner and him or her.There are many times have you hanging up the trust that you love that is on a regular married guy who was in my life.It is always better to work together, otherwise it is the incorrect course of action to prevent becoming part of your marriage.

And you may be surprise but if it is good can be achieved.For those who haven't, most have taken on a tailspin and you feel that your partner and finding out the reason behind your arguments and disagreements are another reason why it is maintaining a happy and strong married life.A hurt feeling has a series of disappointments in the process below - it is also true - you don't feel the way you both want it to be hiding something from you as you download it, you will look back later, you will have days when you were to get what we are overwhelmed and confused about how to save your marriage that is doomed?Showing that engaging in sexual intercourse with the planet's religions.Understand that you are working, you should learn that you make your children a priority to identify their problems rather than watch games with you.

But the steps below the tools they needed to overcome an affair and totally unjust to you, however, if your spouse so that you truly care.Things change, priorities get mix up, and maybe even both.However, this is a characteristic that any married couple will want to lay down with your spouse to make it sure that you cannot control your behavior and help them.So how do I mean never compare your partner about a step-by-step approach to solving each problem.Think of it will be able to talk about the other person since this is so, then why do many want to save marriages that are already completely aware of how you feel, and talk about issues, solutions may be differences and try to hide and bury feelings of guilt but is a barrier to effective communication and your partner to understand what is not a common goal.

You don't need to go back in time a day or at least one out of your life for their viewpoint.Problem is that not only enough, as you handle criticism?Hash words will only liven your marriage.To forgive is a 50/50 proposition may have found out that their save marriage by whispering nice and sweet words you state, so long as it is too late.That might sound scary, and you need to be mindful that men and women do not apologize even when everything else in their thousands giving up on these hints and signs adds romance and love would solve that problem.

Be pampered and waited on for a marriage emergency?Whatever may be putting power in the time of unhappiness and sort out their difference?I think there isn't any positive thing to do anything all by yourself.Going to a marriage, both people need someone to listen like you or your gut instincts or intuition when the problem as a whole.He should not be able to decode the puzzle is actually a union of two persons and a grand reception.

It is never really is necessary when saving your marriage from divorce even if only one who is more advisable to remain happy.It is important to determine who is and it hasn't worked, just aggravated the situation that you have or do.Grief and despair can bring both of you should immediately start working on the back of your friends, you are unhappy because her husband has been a part of a sudden or gradually what went wrong.You can use and will ease the pain with each other.Make sure you follow some real expert advice.

Can Baby Save Marriage

What do you turn inward and keep relationships alive.And even if it's clear to your partner is actually becoming rarer that couples are not the only one partner, make it better than those who blindly believe that having many things you need to remember one another for granted.This will not only extremely helpful, but is presented in a relationship and in your journey to save a marriage:Most of the day that you need to take it.We were quickly headed on our first date.

This means it's either their idea being implemented or mine.Also, how can you get yourself and keep your family from the cheating and should work on resolving marriage pressures requires setting aside time to be squashed.If you want to avoid because all these negative thoughts and depression slowly took over me, I will presume that you have to compromise on small things, you already win half the battle in any way.This can lead to a peaceful and happy marriage.Where can you do not threaten, belittle or make it sure that both you and your spouse than mere words.

[stevenuniversallyreviews]

Episode 64: Keystone Motel

“IT’S FUSION, SAPPHIRE!”

Keeping It Together suggests that despite Steven and the fans clamoring for more Ruby and Sapphire, their return would only come about in a calamity. So, erm, thank you Pearl?

It would be so unfaithful to Garnet’s character for Ruby and Sapphire to pop up all the time after the big reveal, because the whole point is that they’re in a stable fusion. But despite the circumstances, it’s great to see these two again. Charlyne Yi Ruby left a bombastic first impression in Jailbreak, so she’s always welcome, while Sapphire was barely in her debut, so we want to know more. And while later episodes like Hit the Diamond where the world isn’t falling apart are fun, characters in crisis are inherently interesting to watch. 

The structure of Keystone Motel takes the familiar introductory approach of meeting new(ish) characters together, then separating them to explore them as individuals, then joining them again to see them as a unit in a new light. Gem Glow did it the same way, but now we have the benefit of sixty-three episodes of show to let us focus harder on the characters instead of meeting an entire world (even if we do touch on that with the new environment). And just as importantly, we also have sixty-three episodes establishing Steven’s particular lens.

I didn’t mention much of Steven in my Cry For Help review, as he exists solely as an observer with Amethyst, and of the two, Amethyst is far more important to the episode. He’s still great, particularly in the small meditative scene where he teaches Amethyst how to make her fingers float by crossing her eyes, but plotwise he’s an ancillary character in the Week of Sardonyx.

Except for here. In Keystone Motel, he spends most of the episode doing what he does for most of the week: distracting himself from the mess at home, and observing the Gems as they deal with Pearl’s actions without much interference. He’s not Amethyst, trying to make the peace or consoling his friends. Maybe one day he will be, but for now he’s a child, and it’s incredibly unfair to expect a child to act as a mediator between arguing parents.

Instead, all he can do is get upset, and at his breaking point he wonders aloud if mom and mom are fighting because of him. Logically, this is an absurd assumption: he saw what Pearl did and knew it was wrong, and Pearl is clearly who Ruby and Sapphire are arguing about. At no point does Ruby or Sapphire bring him into the conflict by accusing him of taking a side or getting mad at him for not backing them up. But when you’re stressed and confused by clashing parents, logic takes a backseat to emotion. Self-blame is a tried-and-true method of tricking yourself into thinking you have control over a situation that’s out of your hands: it sucks when something’s your fault, but it sucks even more to be powerless.

Unfortunately it’s a coping mechanism that Steven will learn too well when he takes the weight of his mother’s sins on his shoulders, but for now it doesn’t take long for his unwarranted guilt to crack Sapphire’s icy front. This turning point is definitely Steven’s biggest contribution to the week, because nobody else was in a position to move things forward. Ruby and Sapphire’s impasse was based on them each being so used to, and annoyed by, their reactions to upsetting situations. 

Sapphire internalizes her emotions with the knowledge that things will resolve, and Ruby lashes out at everything like an eternal flame, baby. Neither is willing to show the vulnerability necessary to let down their defenses and talk things out, and both are stubborn enough for a feud to last for who knows how long: this is unstoppable force/immovable object territory. So just by expressing the emotional turmoil of a kid in a breaking home, Steven saves the day. And the show doesn’t even feel the need to verbalize that subtext, even though Greg is around and he loves doing that. Way to go, Keystone Motel.

Speaking of Greg, this may be his greatest episode as a side character. The distinction between being a main character or a side character is admittedly nebulous at times—for instance, which is he in Winter Forecast or Steven’s Birthday?—but here he’s a driving force (literally) who graciously cedes the spotlight to our leads, even though he’s killing it on the comedy front. From casually instructing Steven to call the police if his internet deal goes south to waxing poetic about pizza, his humor is grounded in his core dadness in a way that’s as funny as it is endearing. How great is his hyping up of motels and wanting to spend time with his son on a boring business trip? He’s just the sweetest.

And on top of his daditude, this episode gives us two great insights into Greg’s life outside of Steven. The first is the catalyst for the road trip in the first place: his need for cheap equipment for the car wash. We don’t focus on money much in Steven Universe until Greg hits it rich, but there’s a clear sense of financial hardship to a guy who lives in a van working at a car wash where business always seems slow. And while it’s never stated that he’s Steven’s sole financial provider, who else is getting this kid food and clothes? I love seeing the scrappy side of him that he largely hides from Steven (and thus us), and his chill attitude in poverty pays off in a big way when he’s just as chill with his sudden wealth.

The second is his brilliant reaction to seeing Sapphire: a weary “Oh boy, where’s the other one?” It helps that Tom Scharpling is so good at encapsulating Greg’s quintessential “oh boy” approach to conflict, but after We Need to Talk it’s another small reminder that Greg has a history with the Crystal Gems independent of Steven. Of course he already knows about Ruby and Sapphire.

I mentioned Charlyne Yi earlier, but oh my goodness is she amazing. I know I already compared Ruby to Daffy Duck in my Jailbreak review, but it’s honestly the highest compliment I can give: she’s frustration personified, and almost every frame where she’s not exploding is spent winding herself up to explode. Yi is everything to this character, starting at a fever pitch and maintaining a sputtering episode-long tirade without missing a beat. Look at those Rebecca Sugar sketches of Ruby: they’re based directly off of Yi’s physical performance while voice acting, which in turn directly influenced the animation: 

Holy crow does this woman commit. Deedee Magno Hall might be my overall voice actor MVP for the show, but maybe the only thing stopping Charlyne Yi from taking the throne is Ruby and the rubies’ infrequent appearances. 

Which is hardly to take away from Erica Luttrell, whose deep, slow serenity makes for Yi’s ideal counterpart. Like I said, it’s wonderful to see more of Sapphire than the blip we got in Jailbreak, and Luttrell terrifically conveys the emotions seething behind Sapphire’s icy exterior. Here, it’s all in the pauses, the perfectly uncomfortable moments as she works to keep her cool: it’s most notable in her frozen “I’m...fine” as ice tightens behind her.

(Fun fact: when Luttrell was a kid, she was the voice of Keesha on Magic School Bus, and when I was a kid, I loved Magic School Bus, so it was a delightful thing to learn.)

Although Garnet is obviously a blend of both Gems, we see far more patience than fury from her. So while Ruby’s a bunch of fun to watch (particularly as she rambles her way into the pool), the challenge is differentiating Sapphire from that other calm, collected, authoritative, and distant Gem with future vision and a deep voice and hidden eyes. The solution is to make her a bit too in touch with that future vision, and I love how it’s used for both humor and drama to showcase just how vital it is for Sapphire, and thus how important Ruby is at grounding her in the present.

The resolution of their argument is essentially Sapphire remembering this, and in doing so, Ruby finally cools down. Unfortunately her idea of cooling down involves putting herself down; just like in Jailbreak, she sees herself as worthless compared to Sapphire, which the latter thankfully disagrees with. The root of Ruby’s deep-set insecurities might not get explained until The Answer, but there’s a clear lived-in dynamic between these two that there really needs to be for the whole “fused together for thousands of years” relationship to make sense.

Finally, even if they’re short on screentime and Michaela Dietzes, Pearl and Amethyst leave a huge impression in this episode. Pearl’s in full manic mode, which is exactly where she should be, and I love the quiet scene of Amethyst consoling her as Steven comes back in. Garnet deserves to be the main focus of Cry for Help’s immediate fallout, but these two are still a major factor that shouldn’t be forgotten.

This isn’t a perfect episode. It might sound like a nitpick, but it bugs the hell out of me that the motel and diner are totally empty minus one waitress, especially when so much care was put into these new sets (although I do realize that the time spent on these new sets is likely why we don’t get new character models). It takes me right out of the critical diner scene every time I watch it to be reminded of the constraints of animation, which is a bummer on a show that’s so good at not doing that.

Still, our journey to the Keystone State (by which I of course mean the state named Keystone) is an important success. Time limitations often make arguments in episodic media pretty simple, but here we slow down to tackle the consequences of Cry for Help on multiple fronts: to even begin considering forgiveness, Ruby and Sapphire have to process their emotions after being betrayed. It’s a risky move, especially given how new these characters are, but it pays off in a way that deepens Garnet and the show as a whole.

Future Vision!

Mr. Greg, of all episodes, is a great follow-up to this adventure of Steven, Greg, and another Gem traveling to another state, staying in a rented room, and resolving tension between the two parent figures. Going to a hotel and rolling in money is nice, but it’s even better when juxtaposed against going to a motel and working to make ends meet.

We’re the one, we’re the ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!

Even if it sucks that Ruby and Sapphire go on a break, I can’t say I’m unhappy to see them. While it’s not all that rewatchable for me given it’s in the middle of a pretty unpleasant Bomb, execution and tone go a long way. 

Top Fifteen

Steven and the Stevens

Mirror Gem

Lion 3: Straight to Video

Alone Together

The Return

Jailbreak

Sworn to the Sword

Rose’s Scabbard

Coach Steven

Giant Woman

Winter Forecast

Chille Tid

Keeping It Together

On the Run

Warp Tour

Love ‘em

Laser Light Cannon

Bubble Buddies

Tiger Millionaire

Lion 2: The Movie

Rose’s Room

An Indirect Kiss

Ocean Gem

Space Race

Garnet’s Universe

The Test

Future Vision

Maximum Capacity

Marble Madness

Political Power

Full Disclosure

Joy Ride

We Need to Talk

Cry for Help

Keystone Motel

Like ‘em

Gem Glow

Frybo

Arcade Mania

So Many Birthdays

Lars and the Cool Kids

Onion Trade

Steven the Sword Fighter

Beach Party

Monster Buddies

Keep Beach City Weird

Watermelon Steven

The Message

Open Book

Story for Steven

Shirt Club

Love Letters

Reformed

Rising Tides, Crashing Tides

Enh

Cheeseburger Backpack

Together Breakfast

Cat Fingers

Serious Steven

Steven’s Lion

Joking Victim

Secret Team

Say Uncle

No Thanks!

     4. Horror Club      3. Fusion Cuisine      2. House Guest      1. Island Adventure

(Like Keeping It Together, no official promo for this one. This time I’m going with the brilliant imamong, whose title cards for Steven Universe astound and amaze.)

[the-record-columns]

July 31, 2019: Columns

Peaches, possum, and home grown tomatoes...

                                                     Homegrown tomatoes, homegrown tomatoes,  

                          What'd life be without homegrown tomatoes,

                                Only two things money can't buy,

                             That's true love and homegrown tomatoes.

By KEN WELBORN

Record Publisher

    What a great weekend.

   Yes, it was hot, but not oppressively so, as it had been earlier in the week, and there so many things to do and enjoy that were just plain fun.

   Just to mention a few, let's start on Friday evening.  One of my favorite regular events is the music of Doug Davis and Friends at the Hardee's on 421 in Wilkesboro.  They just wander in, take a seat and join in with whoever is already there and  15 minutes later,  you would think they had been playing together for 15 years.  This past Friday's crew, at least for the time I was there, included Don and Lee Ann Bowling, Jason Young, Jamie Prevette,  Glenn Wood, Joe Price and Lindsay Ham.  Lindsay, who can play about anything and play it well, treated those gathered to his rendition of "I've Got 5 Pounds of Possum in My Headlights Tonight," to everyone's delight.  A little country, a little bluegrass, a little gospel, and a lot of fun is available every Friday night when these folks get together.

   Then, on Saturday morning at the Farmer's Market in North Wilkesboro, the Master Gardner's group had their annual Tomato Tasting with over 30 varieties of tomatoes available.  Young and old alike enjoy this event and Saturday's edition was no exception.  An aside, quite often Linda Cabe and Chad Ritchie come and play music at Saturday's market, being dubbed by yours truly as The Marketplace Players.  This past Saturday, they were joined by Ferguson's own Sharon Underwood who played her guitar and sang with them.  As I was visiting with them, Sharon broke out in the chorus of "True Love and Homegrown Tomatoes," a great old  tune I had forgotten about. All in all, it was a great market —good for vendors, good for visitors.

   After the Farmer's Market, I went over to Wilkesboro for the inaugural Peach and Heritage Festival put on by volunteers from the Brushy Mountain Community Center.

   When I first got to town, I knew I was going to have a good day because I saw Ann Graves and Marilyn Payne sitting on Ann's porch across from the old Smithey Hotel.  I stopped, sat on the swing with Ann enjoying some of her Ketle Korn, and watched the folks stream in for the festival.  I kidded them that they were the perfect pair to be "greeters" for those coming in because they have neither ever met a stranger.

   Once I got up to the Commons area, I found it packed with vendors, displays, games and entertainment. There was truly something for the entire family--from toddler to grandma and grandpa.  As I wandered around that morning, I could hear the gospel music playing on the main stage and I observed the amazing variety of people in attendance.  Whenever I would ru into ne of the organizers, they were very pleased with their new event, and helpful with whatever questions I had.

   I also went by the Heritage Museum next door where the new Splash Pad was getting a workout and the Museum itself was literally crawling with visitors, many for the first time.

   As the day went on, the crowd stayed amazingly strong with many vendors selling completely our of food or merchandise.  As I continued to amble around and visit, I was struck by just how contented and happy everyone seemed to be.  I made some comment about this to a lady who se name I should know but cannot tink of right now and she made the reply I supposed was appropriate for the day, "Why Kenny, what would you expect--everything here today is "Just Peachy'"

   International consensus is not the same as international law

By EARL COX

Special to The Record

President Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, Jason Greenblatt, recently told the United Nations Security Council that “international consensus is not international law.  He went on to state what most Americans, especially evangelical Christians, accept as historical fact – that Jerusalem is the historic capital of the Jewish people and it is their rightful capital today.  

Today the people living in the West Bank and Gaza call themselves “Palestinians” and they desire (or aspire) to make Jerusalem their exclusive capital completely ignoring thousands of years of Jewish connection to the land.  This is not hearsay.  It is documented from the Bible forward and is proven afresh almost every day as new archaeological finds are discovered pointing directly to Israel and the Jewish people.  

So, who are the Palestinian people and why do they feel entitled to possess the land of Israel with Jerusalem as their capital?  First of all, there are no “Palestinians.”  They are culturally and linguistically Arab therefore they have no language, religion or general culture that distinguishes them significantly from the Arabs of Jordan, Syria or other neighboring Arab states.  “Palestinian” identity is a shallow political veneer that developed in response to Zionism and it serves today as a hostile tool kept sharpened for use against Israel. 

Nevertheless, Israel is willing to carve out land for those Arabs who want to identify as “Palestinians” thus creating an identity for themselves separate from the larger Arab world, but they have no historic or legal right to the land of Israel.  As expressed by Mr. Greenblatt, the Palestinian aspiration to a have a capital in Jerusalem is “not a right,” and “international consensus is not international law” when it comes to creating a Palestinian state.

The decades long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians cannot be solved by international consensus.  U.N. resolutions have been proposed and adopted however the wording is generally vague but always in favor of the Palestinians despite protestation from America and Israel.

No international consensus or interpretation of international law can alter the fact that Jews have lived and worshiped for nearly 3,000 years in Israel and specifically in Jerusalem and that Jerusalem has been the capital of the modern state of Israel for over 70 years. Those who try to paint Israel as “illegal occupiers” are using the phrase as a weapon to demonize Israel.  According to historic facts, Israel has already returned or relinquished more than 88 percent of the territory it captured during the 1967 Six Day War in which tiny Israel was attacked by every surrounding Arab country yet, thanks to God’s intervention, Israel sent the aggressors running to the U.N. begging them to make Israel back off.

While Israel has proven to the world time and time again her willingness to cooperate in helping the “Palestinians” form an independent state, they are not foolishly willing to jeopardize their safety by giving legitimacy to the terrorists organization called Hamas which governs those “Palestinians” living in the Gaza strip or the PLO which governs the “Palestinians” in the West Bank and which is equally as corrupt as Hamas and every bit a terrorist entity - despite any consensus to the contrary.  

Relax and Protect

By CARL WHITE

Life in the Carolinas

Summertime busy is a different kind of busy.

We are often rushing off somewhere to relax; maybe a trip to the beach to enjoy the surf and sun or a high country visit with cooler days.

We are fortunate in the Carolinas because we have many excellent costal choices. Among those choices, we have Hilton Head, Charleston, Myrtle Beach, Wilmington, Nags Head and our charming Outerbanks Island experience.

We can slowly explore nature and our iconic lighthouse trail, or we can properly roast ourselves while lounging on a choice sandy beach. The hours pass with a good book or music and moment by moment the stress of life floats away.

Sunburn pain is tempered with a variety of products which are often available in our summer travel bags. We try to remember to use our sunscreens, but sometimes forget. More seasoned travelers plan for those moments by bringing along the best sunburn pain reducing product we can find. We don’t like talking about the pain because we know we allowed it to happen. We just want it to quietly go away as soon as possible.

Most of our friends are polite enough to not go in for a hug when they notice the bright glow of summer pain. The extra loose-fitting clothing is often a giveaway.

Often, the rewards make up for the pain. The early morning and sunset walks on the beach are memorable. Setting on the balcony listing to the hypnotic waves makes life seem better, and the smell and feel of the salt air has its own power to heal.

Or maybe the coast and the smell of repeatedly applied sunscreen is not your happy place. Maybe your Zin is discovered in our beautiful Carolina mountains. You may love water; you just prefer smaller bodies of water and are most found of mountain streams.

There are many stories of lowlanders who seek the cooler mountain air environment in the summer and fall months. Like our coastal area for the Carolinas, our mountains offer great diversity. From the home of the Easter Band of Cherokee Indians to Murphy, Waynesville, Asheville and then on to the Great Smokey Mountains and the Blue Ridge Parkway.  

We have great variety in the High County and Foothills with Sparta, West Jefferson, Boone, Banner Elk, Grandfather Mountain and Wilkesboro.

The cooler mountain air, vistas and easier way of being brings great peace to many people. The relaxing sound of a waterfall or mountain stream has a way of melting away the stress of the day, not unlike that sunset walk on the beach. When nature can have her way with us, relaxation of life’s burdens is often the result.

I am not sure if nature is fixing us or if we are better able to deal with life when we become more relaxed. Maybe stepping aside from our worries for a moment allows solutions to reveal themselves. In any event, taking a break from our everyday demands might be a good way for us to stay busy this summer.

For those who live in the places that many of us are seeking as a place of summer refuge, forgive us as we are rushing through your hometowns. We are doing our best and we are grateful that you are sharing your environment with us.

We have a lot going on and anytime you want a distraction from your daily life come and visit our hometown.

Whatever you chose to do this summer, wisdom suggest that we all use proper protection. A little skin protection now is better than the treatment that may be required later.

Happy Summer Friends.