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ms-demeanor · 5 years ago

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After reading your "ultra-long postivity post", now I have kind of a weird feeling because i relate a lot to pretty much everything you said, but i ended up approaching the "not everyone can x" from the opposite side, being the "gifted kid" teachers used to hold everyone to unrealistic standards (that i knew most couldnt achieve in the given timeframes), and now i get frustrated when i dont develop skills immediately, because i have done it before and feel like i should be able to and aaaaaaaaaa

Funny story: when I was a kid my parents had both my sister and I tested for learning and developmental disabilities. This testing included IQ testing.

It identified that we were both “gifted” kids* and that I’m dyslexic.

It totally missed my ADHD, though!

The problem with that is that my parents. Hm.

Okay my parents both grew up in very poor families. VERY poor. And they both wanted to go to college and knew the only way that they could was through scholarships. So they became debaters. They met at a tournament in high school.

Debaters are weird. You need an efficient working memory and strong recall and the ability to think quickly on your feet. Being witty and kind of an asshole are also good traits for debaters. Basically you’ve either gotta be really fuck-off smart to be a competitive debater or you’ve gotta at least *seem* really fuck-off smart.

And my parents were champion debaters at a national level. The Whittier College debate trophy has my mom’s name written directly under Richard goddamn Nixon. My dad was on the USC debate team and competed against Harvard and won. Not only that but he ended up coaching debate for USC and Cal Tech.

So as kids who grew up in extremely poor families and were able to go to college and get middle-class jobs and buy a house because of intellectual ability my parents placed A LOT of importance on intellectual ability.

So that IQ score became a large part of my life.

First we attacked the dyslexia. The approach was basically teaching me a bunch of sight words because sounding out phonics doesn’t work when the letters get screwed up. And because I was *gifted* we did a lot of really BIG sight words.

It took about six months to get me up to speed from “memorizing the pages of a story to match the pictures because I couldn’t read along in class” to “the first book I read on my own was The Hobbit.” I guess that counted as “cured” because that was the last time I got any kind of educational assistance.

At that time I was at a gifted school, a really tiny private school that was also an after-school daycare where we did full-day classes and then did gymnastics and swim from 3-6pm. I also was there over the summer because my parents worked.

So going from “tiny private school where the teacher has you stand up in class to read your failing grade in front of everyone so that she could shame you into performing better” to “fine public school in a suburb wealthy enough to have arts programs” was a major, major change. They did an aptitude test because I was transferring in from a different district and there was much discussion about whether or not to move me directly from the second to the sixth grade.

The district refused, thank fuck.

The public elementary school didn’t *have* a gifted program so it took very little time for me to become the Certified Weird Kid. My third grade teacher had me read aloud to our class for twenty minutes a day. I taught the class the multiplication table.

When it got to be time to go to the junior high school my mom went to a meeting for the school’s gifted kids program. APPARENTLY one of the kid’s dad’s basically said “I don’t understand why you’re wasting school funds on field trips for the stupid kids, the school should spend more of its resources on kids who have a chance of actually meaning something to the world” and my mom decided that while being gifted was important it was less important than making sure I wasn’t exposed to assholes of that caliber on a regular basis.

(thanks mom, I actually do really appreciate that reprieve)

Several teachers pushed me into advanced classes - my math teacher insisted that I take the advanced algebra classes in the seventh and eighth grade.

The GATE kids *WERE* assholes and were extra bonus special assholes to me because math was the only advanced class that I was in. (At my junior high school you had to pick your elective based on what level of classes you were in - to take the GATE classes you HAD to take a music elective; if you took art, drama, shop, or home ec you couldn’t take the smart kid classes. The algebra class was a new, separate addition to the program so *some* of the kids in the “electives for dropouts” program could take algebra. Schools are really fucked up, guys, in case you didn’t know schools are really fucked up and that was BEFORE No Child Left Behind).

I got a C in that algebra class and sat in my room for literally an hour screaming at myself for being such a selfish, distracted idiot that I let myself read my books instead of studying harder for the class. (clearly very healthy, normal twelve-year-old behavior)

When it was time to go to high school my teachers made a united plea to the district to transfer me into honors/IB/AP classes.

The kids in the honors/IB/AP classes continued to be kind of awful to me. I got extremely depressed and basically started doing the lazy-but-brilliant thing of completely ignoring homework or in-class work but performing spectacularly well on tests or essays in the classes that I wasn’t catastrophically failing

I was the only person at the school who got a perfect score on the vocab part of my SAT. I was the only honors kid who hadn’t been in SAT prep classes. There was only one other kid who graduated with the same number of units as I had, we’d outstripped the valedictorian and salutatorian but three classes each. I only applied to one college - I got accepted for painting but my interviewer urged me to move to the writing program and I got accepted for that too.

My financial aid didn’t come through and my dad wasn’t willing to cosign for loans on “an art program at a trade school.”

I got accepted to Pratt Institute on their Writing for Publication track which included an internship with the New York Times for third-year students in the program.

At that point I had a Columbia Scholastic Press award for my work on my high school yearbook.

Let me tell you, the community college that I went to and spent five years variously failing and succeeding at had a fucking *killer* newspaper and magazine when I was there. The local community newspaper that hired me when I was 21 was also much better designed and edited than it had any right to be for the three years I worked there (getting paid a whole eight dollars an hour and sometimes working 20 hours straight to get it in to the printer on time).

When I transferred to the state school I got perfect grades and worked full time and won every contest offered by the school’s English Honors society (which I couldn’t join because I was a transfer student and hadn’t done honors classes my freshman and sophomore years). I started a literary magazine with some friends when I graduated; we published four full issues online before it fell apart.

You know what’s also funny?

Even the food-service job I had to pay my way though the community college I felt terrible about attending was a skills test. I was a barista, so of course for a while I was a competitive barista.

I disappointed my parents a lot. I heard a lot of “we know you’re better than this.” I got told I was too smart to be screwing up this bad. I mentioned it a couple weeks ago but my results from that IQ test got compared to my sister’s and that was the justification for holding me to a higher standard. “You’re measurably brilliant, why aren’t you acting like it?”

Here lies the corpse of a gifted kid. Look on my works ye might and despair.

I am the perfect picture of a twice exceptional gifted kid and the reason I wrote all of this out is to tell you one thing:

“Gifted Kid” is a label that someone applied to you, it has nothing to do with who and what you ARE.

It’s very, very unfair that the adults in your life used you that way. I have an exceptionally terrible memory of being singled out as the only one who passed the first test in my IB World History class; “Why is Alli the only one of all of you who is writing at grade level? You’re supposed to be the smartest kids in the school, why did you all fail?”

That’s awful for the kids around you, that’s awful for you. It doesn’t do anybody any favors if people around you are being informed that you’re setting the curve they’ll be judged against. And it really, really doesn’t do YOU any favors because it doesn’t take long *at all* for your brain to learn that that’s all you’re good for. If you aren’t the best at a thing then what’s the point, you HAVE to be best because they already SAID you were best and if you aren’t then all these other people hate you for setting a standard that even you can’t keep up with.

You end up competing with past versions of yourself and focusing on those things that make the grownups in your life praise you because the grownups in your life has praised you in such a way that it’s turned all the other kids against you.

You know who bullied the fuck out of me? The kids I taught the times tables to, the kids I read to for half an hour a day.

Those kids were MEAN to me but the teacher who told me to read Boxcar Kids to the class after lunch everyday was NICE and she told me not to worry, they were just jealous and I should be proud of my gifts.

“Anon did this in three minutes. What’s taking the rest of you so long?” - what a terrible weight to put on a child. You’re right. Not everyone can do everything.

Fucking hell.

Adults what the everloving shit is wrong with us? Please don’t treat kids like that.

Okay.

But here’s the other thing:

If there’s any time in your life that it’s easy to acquire skills with no apparent effort it’s when you’re a child surrounded by a support system that is engaged in making sure that you can acquire those skills.

It took three adults, two dictionaries, and several hours a day to teach me enough sight-words to throw me into “look at baby genius*” territory but from my perspective as a little kid I was just reading cool stories.

I spent four hours a day in the yearbook room and ditched and failed other classes so that I could work on the yearbook. I collected hundreds of magazines to get an eye for layout. But from my perspective as a teenager it was a fun activity that I did with the closest thing I had to friends.

I’m sure that there are some skills that you had a natural aptitude for, some things that came naturally. But I’m also sure that you didn’t learn those skills with no effort, it’s just that now as an adult with a life and other shit going on it takes more effort to learn to do things.

In all likelihood you weren’t a savant who did everything perfectly the first time you tried. It just seems that way because even really smart kids don’t know when they’re bad at things and are mostly being compared against other kids (with the few rare exceptions of music prodigies or math prodigies or those kids who end up in science grad programs at 12 and boy howdy do I think there’s a whole other can of worms when it comes to the way child prodigies* interact with the world).

You wanna know what probably saved my life in the last few years?

That “anti-capitalist love notes” tumblr post.

You are worth more than your productivity.

I was actually kind of offended the first time I saw that post on my dash. “No I’m not,” I thought. “You’re only worth what you can do, everyone knows that. People care about what you do for them.”

And why the hell would I think anything else? That’s what I’d learned for pretty much my whole life.

It took me a really long time to understand that I was wrong. I matter outside of what I can do for people or how well I perform. I matter more than being able to perfectly recite poetry from memory or do calculations on command or sit down at a piano and play a piece I’ve never played by sight-reading it.

And you matter outside of that too. You’re more than your performance, you’re better than being gifted. There are people who love you for the way you make them laugh and how you listen to their stories and for the simple joy of your presence.

It’s nice to be clever, it’s handy in a lot of situations even if it does come with a lot of baggage for some people.

But god damn, it’s important to be kind.

* Personally I have issues with the way that society constructs the concepts of giftedness, genius, and prodigies. There are a lot of “gifted” kids who were the kids who scored in the top 5% of their class in school but there are also gifted kids who were doing high-level math or reading novels as toddlers; there are prodigies who showed an aptitude for music young and who were then schooled in that instrument to the exclusion of all other activities (and I bet there are a fair number of kids who might be considered prodigies if they were trained to play flute for nine hours a day and didn’t have friends but thankfully we don’t *do* that to very many people - side note, ask me my opinion about olympic athletes some time). Words like “genius” and “gifted” are very nearly meaningless and almost *never* accurately reflect skills proficiency or long-term success or are reflected in income or respect. People think that geniuses are hypercompetent robots with their shit together but literally every adult I know with a genius-level IQ is some variety or other of total fucking tire fire.

#congratulations you have unlocked level two of my tragic backstory #long post

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thesiroccoofthesea · 4 years ago

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Some Yamato stuff I've been working on. Featuring my favourite battlecarrier Flandre. Some lore I wrote for her:

A carrier built on a BBY-01 class hull with heavy modifications. Flandre was built as a sister to Yamato, Musashi, and Ginga, but her construction was paused when she was about halfway complete, due to Yamato's return to Earth. After being laid up, Flandre was then moved to the time fault to await her fate. It was then decided that Flandre would be the testbed for the new wave motion engine that would be used in the Andromeda class, which resulted in her being slightly longer and wider than the other members of the Yamato class. Flandre was also used to prototype deck parking and rapid launching, taking inspiration from the Garmillas Gaiperon class.

Flandre was lent to Garmillas as partial repayment and compensation for the seizure of the Wave Motion Gun ships by the Terran government in the face of Gatlantis's final assault on Earth. Flandre was given a hasty refit that saw her her open hanger plated over, several new medium caliber guns mounted, and increased command space. It was in this form that she was handed over to Garmillas.

About two years into her Garmilas career, Flandre and the fleet of carriers she was leading was devastated by a carrier strike that had managed to outflank the main Garmillas fleet. Flandre's superstructure and upper hanger were complete destroyed, and it was only though excellent damage control and the quick thinking of the third bridge's commanding officer that saw her live to fight another day. A repair ship conduced emergency repair to allow Flandre to return to Garmillas. When she returned, Flandre was immediately put into dry-dock while the Republican navy figured out what to do with her. In the end it was decided, on the advice of the EDF, to convert Flandre into a Galvades style battlecarrier. A large bulge was added to her hull for increased seagong stablity as well as additional protection. A not-insignificant amount of the lower hanger was gutted and converted to a flip mount for six of her eight new fourteen inch guns. A Gevlades style upper hanger was constructed upon the remains of the original upper hanger, and a Yamato styled bridge and VLS were fitted. Flandre's original secondary guns were mounted on the hanger, as well half of the imported twelve inch guns. Finally, a Dreadnought style fire control rangefinder was fitted to the top of the bridge. At the end of the loan term, and after over a decade of distinguished service for Garmillas, Flandre was returned to Earth, freshly painted in EDF colours.

The EDF put Flandre though many trials to test the flip deck concept before she was put back into regular service. After over a decade and a half of service for the EDF, Flandre was decommissioned for the last time.

Preperations were underway to scrap Flandre, when several pleas for preservation reached the EDF command's ears. To their surprise, much of them originated from Garmillas, one even from the government. During Flandre's years in Gamlion service, the battlecarrier had become quite popular, often the focus of the press when limping back from battle with damage that would done in lesser ships. After some deliberation, the EDF agreed to transfer Flandre to Garmillas. The wave motion gun's safety locks and other systems were welded shut as part of the preperations to become a museum ship, though the main guns were not brought offline until the ship reached Baleras. Flandre landed in a specially built dock, not far from the docks where she was rebuilt. There, Flandre's engine was powered down for the last time, and the ship was handed over to the people of Garmillas. Today, the Flandre is heralded as a symbol of Earth-Garmillas friendship, and Earth officials often visit on trips to the capital. So, if you've ever wondered why a Terron ship dressed in Garmillas colours is docked in the city, now you know.

...I need to write a proper fan fic about Flan.

#Space Battleship Yamato #yamato 2199 #yamato 2202 #My Design #my art #aircraft carrier #lore #long post

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mostlysignssomeportents · 5 years ago

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Hertz's bankruptcy was caused by private equity looting

I have a weird soft spot in my heart for Hertz, because they were the first company to offer satnav systems, and since I have a sense of direction so bad that it verges on a cognitive impairment, this saved my ass a million times in the 90s and 2000s.

So I was saddened more than I anticipated by the news that Hertz had filed for bankruptcy, felled by the one-two punch of Uber/Lyft weakening demand for short-term rentals and then pandemic killing demand altogether.

Except, that's not what killed Hertz. The company was killed by private equity looting. Ford sold the company to Clayton Dubilier & Rice in 2005 in a $14.8b "leveraged buyout."

https://www.axios.com/hertz-bankruptcy-6f16b3a4-141f-43cd-8f7b-e6a60a01d5dd.html

That's when a plutes take out a loan on a company they don't own yet, in order to buy the company. That way, the new owners can suck huge sums out of their acquisition in "special dividends" while saddling the company with unsustainable debts.

PE colonized most sectors of the US economy, draining it of cash reserves and capital assets and drowning it with debt. It's why ER doctors and nurses are being laid off in the middle of a pandemic - their employers are PE companies, not hospitals.

https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/21/profitable-butchers/#looted

It's really hard to overstate how grifty PE is. It is the final stage of late-stage capitalism, in which ever profitable business that provides a useful and beloved product or service is bankrupted, and its assets transferred to the super-rich.

https://pluralistic.net/2020/04/04/a-mind-forever-voyaging/#prop-bets

Hertz's leveraged buyout was only six months old when the company paid $1B to its investors, "de-risking" them. A few months later, Hertz went public with a 95% debt-to-asset ratio (!). Swollen with IPO cash, Hertz grossly overpaid in acquisitions of Dollar and Thrifty in 2013.

Meanwhile, its private equity looters quietly "exited," leaving the company drowning in debt and saddled with overvalued acquisitions, its business model structured around grifty, performatively dull financial engineering.

Hertz created special purpose corporations that issued debt to buy cars that were then rented out and leased, while paying "coupons on the asset-backed securities, hoping to turn profits via the rentals combined with vehicle resale."

If you're reading that and feeling stupid because it's written in financial High Elvish, that's exactly how you're supposed to feel. "Baffle them with bullshit" is the only real financial business-model - like any con-artist, the billionaire grifter depends on it.

After all, they don't need to build a business that works - just one that doesn't immediately collapse, remaining upright until the grifter has blown town and deposited his winnings in an offshore account.

#pluralistic

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adeleymccormick1990-blog · 4 years ago

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queennicoleinboots · 4 years ago

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Office Woes, part 1 (Michael the Great Arc Angel POV)

It was yet another day amidst a pandemic of the Coronavirus and spiritual warfare. It was my appointed task from Ahayah, the true creator of this world and all worlds, that I was to protect and serve the people of Gwinnett County, Georgia. I also was appointed to protect the people of Walton and Clarke Counties by Xara Nahara Campinelli. I am honored to be Michael the Great Arc Angel.

Once again, I spent my morning flying over people who had no concept of how to drive. They were going the wrong way through the intersections, shoving their cell phones in their butts while driving, and playing rap sounds. Rap is not a form of music. It offends me and Ahayah. When I hear it, I burn the source of the sound with laser eye beams. If I hear the "Ooh shit! You Got Coronavirus" song one more time, I plan to stomp on the vehicle where the car is coming from and of course spare the life of the son of a bitch who played that song.

In other news, a goat in a suit and tie was jacking off while he drove. He looked like Paul the Goat, the same goat who helped with quality control of produce in Kroger later that day.

At least Gwinnett County drivers weren't as terrible as those in Conyers, GA. It was truly the city of apes. Every time I fly over that city, my Intelligent Quotient drains from my mind and soul. I have to walk tall among the apes because my large angel wings don't work there. I question my angelic nature when I am there. I am the man on the fence who shrugs his shoulders. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. So I acted like an ape until I could fly again. I'm still in therapy with Ahayah about that issue. I go twice a month.

I arrived at the office in my majestic splendor. The cops and I saluted each other as I walked in the building. Goats, humans, arc angels, and bears were processing paperwork and bitching at the pigs who did dispatch. I had to process the paperwork, call Paw Patrol, a series of small dogs who were good at life, if any social services were required, and sing if any babies or mothers were upset at or around each other. My baritone voice calms down the general populace.

"Good morning! Good morning!" Ned, a short goat with glasses, brown curly hair, and a white shirt with a pocket protector, shouted. He bleated.

"Good morning. What's the situation?" I asked as I walked with strength to my desk.

"Gwinnet County hasn't burned to the ground yet. Melissa is late for work. La Bamba in Walton County is running a special of five tacos for five dollars. Ricky Valens hasn't been brought back to life to sing 'La Bamba.' Satan still thinks he is going to win the spiritual war going on outside. And BLM hasn't been summoned yet. CERN is still at large opening portals to hell. Edward Snowden is alive and in prison. We still have no access to the Vatican's telescope on Mount Graham in Arizona," Ned took a deep breath before continuing. "And the son of a bitch delivery boy from Grub Hub spilled my drink on the desk."

"Very good. I authorize a pardon for Melissa's lateness. She is at a meeting with Ahayah. I think it's about female stuff," I spoke, but then shouted. "WHY THE FUCK HASN'T RICHY VALENS been brought back to life? He is supposed to sing a cover of 'Earth Angel' at NOON!!!"

"I'm sorry. The pigs at Dispatch are fucking up the resurrection spell!" Ned shouted.

"AAAAHHHH!!!! Ahayah, guide me! I need the voice of Richy Valens! I need to practice singing so that the 'Earth Angel' can bless Georgia," I shouted.

All of a sudden, I heard "Oooooooh Donna!" come out of my mouth in Richy Valen's voice. I sang "Donna" to calm the pigs at Dispatch and to the children who needed Child Protective Services.

Melissa the Great Arc Angel flew through the door. Her brown hair flowed in the air as she descended into the office. Her blue eyes showed fury in them. "Sorry I'm late. I would have been later if Richy Valens wasn't singing. Thank you, Richy Valens," she said in a strong voice as she went to her desk. "When are we going to lunch? La Bamba is running a special on five tacos for five dollars, and I'm ready to get my dance on?"

"No problem. This beats working for the Angel of Death for seven years. Those stories are still great to tell at parties. Unfortunately, I had to steal the soul of a Richy Valens fan one time. Did I mention that I was the one who stole the soul of Courtney Love? Her music was okay, but she needed to stay off the drugs," I said as I printed documents for the pigs at Dispatch to deal with. I would hate to be those sons and daughters of possible bitches. "Also, I think lunch will be after the singing of 'Earth Angel.'"

Melissa the Great Arc Angel laughed loudly. "I took the soul of Kurt Cobain. I was singing Nirvana songs for weeks afterward. I'd like to talk about it at lunch," she said as she sent faxes to the Gwinnett County Fire Department. She added a snarky office chuckle.

"Good riddance. Eddie Vedder has a much better voice. I'd rather hear those stories," I said. "Why couldn't you take his soul?"

"Excuse me! Ahayah required him to live!" Melissa the Great Arc Angel said vehemently. "Would you like to talk about our back story to the new hires?" Her blue eyes and smile sparkled.

"True. But still, Kurt Cobain? How about the son of a bitch who is the lead singer if Smashing Pumpkins. That mother fucker is talented," I said. "Also! Back stories are NEVER to be discussed with new hires! George Lucas specifically made that a rule! Those are strictly for the break room!" I slammed my fist on my desk.

"Billy needed to tell his life story on the Joe Rogan show, and NOT to the new hires on set. Sorry, Michael. He and I both have the same question. Is making music really something that has to involve signing your life away to these record labels?" Melissa the Great Arc Angel asked.

"He had no idea what he got himself into until it was too late," I said before the printer jammed. I looked at it before I said, "You son of a bitch I don't have time for this shit!"

The printer was jamming up and malfunctioning.

"Yes, you asshole, you already printed this page," I said to the printer.

The printer then started printing in Spanish.

"Do any of the pigs in this office read Spanish?!" I asked. I understood Spanish, but it wasn't my job to deal with these notes.

The pigs were oinking up a storm as they called the police, firemen, rent-a-cops, sanitation workers, other dispatch offices, and churches.

I sighed. I took the notes to the pigs. Fuck it. They can figure it out.

A female pig linked and looked at the notes. "Ay caca! Otra vez de los hijos! Mama y papa estupidos hijos de las putas!" She started swearing in Spanish at Child Protective Services. Those kids were forced to wear clown suits and make videos to entertain the country clubs in Gwinnett County. I was hot with rage.

"THOSE BASTARDS HAVE PLENTY OF ENTERTAINMENT!!! CHILD CLOWNS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE!" I shouted. The son of a bitch printer was still jammed.

What I read next was astounding. And I quote:

"An irate woman called the sheriff's department, the fire department, CNN, Fox News, and Todd from Myspace.com. She reported that Publix had moved the 'Whole Golden Kernel' corn 30 feet down the aisle from where it had been for over 20 years. The whole customer base was an outrage and wanted to beat the store owner's ass."

I screamed. "WHY THE FUCK DID THEY MOVE THE CORN????!!!" I shouted. I was so angry at all of this bullshit that I ripped the printer out of the wall and started beating the hell out of it with the sword.

"WHY THE FUCK WEREN'T THE POLICE CALLED FIVE MINUTES AGO?!" a bitchy pig from Dispatch asked.

"Michael the Great Arc Angel is beating the hell out of the printer!" Ned answered the bitchy pig.

"WHY THE FUCK IS HE DOING THAT?!" she asked.

"I DON'T KNOW! LET ME ASK!" Ned shouted. "MICHAEL THE GREAT ARC ANGEL, WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU BEATING THE PRINTER?!"

"I'M FIXING IT!!!" I shouted. "Goddamn mudder fudder..." I spoke in tongues at the printer as the reel ended up on the other side of the office. The black ink covered the dark green carpet which had ugly pink spots. The ink improved the carpet.

Miraculously, I fixed the printer and had it in working condition. Now that's what I call Imformation Technology! Orders were backed up, so the papers sprouted wings and flew to their respective desks. Everyone in the office was swearing as they tried to file paperwork. The pigs and bears were using the extra copies of the documents to wipe their asses.

Gabriel the Great Arc Angel burned his extra copies to relieve stress and anxiety. He also hired Peter Griffin for midday beer runs.

A call came in.

"Hello!" I shouted.

"Excuse me, sir. Are you sexually frustrated?" the caller asked.

I sighed and transferred that call to the pigs.

I was filing paperwork and checking E-mails before another call came in. "HELLO!!!" I shouted.

"Hello. Guiseppe would like to speak to you regarding business with the Mafia, Atlanta Chapter!" a guido sang to me.

"GODDAMMIT I TOLD YOU TO NEVER CALL ME ON THIS LINE!!!!" I shouted as I stood up and shot death lasers through my eyes at the wall in my cubicle that permanent permanent burn marks. The roof became temporarily detached from the building.

Ned came in and threw a cup of coffee at me before he galloped out of the office for a break.

I caught the coffee and drank it as I stared at that burn mark. The Guido transferred me to over to the Atlanta Mafia. The leader was a bear who was growling at me.

I growled in fluent bear and explained that there was a restraining order in place, and that those Italian bears were not to contact me. I faxed the documents proving that my loans were forgiven by Ahayah.

"SORRY! I WON'T BOTHER YOU AGAIN! THANK YOU!" the leader bear shouted as he hung up.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH BASTARD!!!" Melissa the Great Arc Angel screamed. "Send the fax to the Gwinnett County Medical Center you son of a bitch! PEOPLE'S LIVES ARE AT STAKE!!!" She was beating the desk near the fax machine.

I sighed, took a deep breath, and did what any responsible Great Arc Angel would do: rip the fax machine out of the wall and bang it against the top of my head several times over.

A black pig who looked like Mr. T just stared at me and asked, "What the fuck are you doing now?!"

"FIXING THE FAX MACHINE!" I shouted before the phone rang in my office.

Everyone else was too busy cussing at whatever to answer my phone. One exceptionally large male pig even screamed, "YES I AM SEXUALLY FRUSTRATED! WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT???!!!" So I walked over to my phone while I was still beating the fax machine against my head. Melissa the Great Arc Angel was singing "Part of that World" in Ariel from The Little Mermaid to someone on her phone line.

I answered the phone and started screaming and continued to beat the fax machine against the top of my head.

There was a pause at the other end of the line before a goat bleated.

I bleated, "I'm sorry we haven't faxed over the instructions to the EMTs at the Gwinnett County Medical Center. Our fax machine needs fixed."

He bleated, "That's some bullshit. A man is liberally being suffocated by COVID-19!"

I bleated, "Couldn't I just text the instructions over?" I was all the while beating the fax machine on my head.

He bleated, "I wish. Group texts never work. OH SHIT THE SONG IS PLAYING!"

I beat the fax machine to the rhythm of the "Ooh shit You Got Coronavirus!" song. I even added a dance as I finished beating the fax machine against my head. The damn thing was fixed, so I plugged it back into the wall near Melissa the Great Arc Angel. She was now singing "Poor Unfortunate Souls" in Ursula's voice. I think she was talking about everyone on Earth.

I bleated, "I'll be right over!" I then hung up the phone and flew the fuck out of the office at the speed of Superman. I used to be Superman until an orange female cat named Kissy meowed a great meow and called upon the Heavens in Swamp Business. Ahayah appointed me to answer the call of Kissy Anne Campinelli and gave me the title Great Arc Angel.

As I flew out of the office, a pterodactyl flew in and started screaming her head off. A goat spilled coffee and bleated swear words. That was a typical day at the office. My wings beat against the wind and rain outside. I sighed and flew over cars that were hydroplaning.

One of the cars was playing DarthSydePhineas nerd rap, and as much as I hate rap most of the time, this mother fucker is talented. I can see why Xara and Count Colonel Mac listen to this guy. I wanted to get on the ground and dance, but I had a life to save at the Gwinnett County Medical Center.

Some dumbass in a piece of shit sedan ran a red light in the middle of this storm. He was playing "Yeah!" by DarthSydePhil as he was speeding on the stream road: https://youtu.be/aZ7iZrpB2Lc

"No. Fuck this guy," I said as I sounded like DarthSydePhineas and swooped from the sky and lifted this guy off the road.

He screamed like the little bitch ass bitch he was.

I screamed back. "That's what I think of you. You damn near ran into that 2000 Toyota Tacoma who was rightfully trying to turn left. You're a bitch," I said.

"Am I going to hell?" the bitchass young kid driver asked.

"Not necessarily. It isn't my choice," I said as I flew his ass to the Gwinnett County Medical Center.

"I Spawn, I Die!" by DarthSydePhineas started playing from his radio. I agreed with the lyrics of the song: https://youtu.be/gVq03wz6DeA

"Where are you taking me?" the bitch ass bitch asked.

"To Gwinnett Medical Center. I have lives to save there. I am required to sing "Earth Angel" by Harry Waters, Jr. and Marvin Berry," I said.

"Who the fuck are they?" he asked. DarthSydePhineas was now talking bullshit about Fall Guys, a new video game in which everyone looks like a minion from Despicable Me.

"Musicians," I said before I threw that piece of shit sedan into the heavens. DarthSydePhineas's voice was fading away as his car flew the fuck into the sky. The last thing I heard DarthSydePhineas say "Oh shit. I got screwed!!!"

I descended into the Emergency Room and sang in my full baritone voice "Earth Angel" to an elderly couple that was close to death. It was then noon.

"Earth angel, Earth angel, will you be mine?

My darling dear, love you all the time.

I'm just a fool, a fool in love with you.

Earth angel, Earth angel, the one I adore

Love you for ever, and ever more.

I'm just a fool, a fool in love with you.

I fell for you, and I knew

The vision of your love's loveliness.

I hope and I pray, that some day

I'll be the vision of your hap, happiness.

Earth angel, Earth angel, please be mine.

My darling dear, love you all the time.

I'm just a fool, a fool in love with you.

I fell for you, and I knew

The vision of your love's loveliness.

I hope and I pray, that some day

I'll be the vision, the vision of your happiness.

Oh, oh, oh, Earth angel, Earth angel, please be mine.

My darling dear, love you for all time.

I'm just a fool, a fool in love with you."

The elderly couple ascended to heaven. Everyone was emotionally moved by this Code 1 situation, in which sirens and lights were sounding on cop cars around us.

The goat bleated and cried. "Thank you, Michael the Great Arc Angel," he said. "We are distraught. Can you sing songs to calm our nerves so that we can deal with living with this miserable world?"

A goat doctor announced, "They died from Covid-19. We get $8,000 from the federal government, but this situation is still sad."

I sang "Amazing Grace," "We Shall Overcome," "Like A Shepherd Who Feeds His Flock," "One Bread One Body," and "Ave Maria."

After my last note in "Ave Maria," a disgruntled pig called me.

"What code?" I sang in my booming baritone voice.

"CODE 1! A grass monster is attacking Dunkin Donuts in Snellville!" the pig screamed before he snorted and hung up.

I flew out of the Gwinnett County Medical Center and to Dunkin Donuts. A church choir was singing in the sidewalk. I sang a few notes before I damn near ran into Aladdin and Jasmine on the magical flying carpet. I sang a few notes before saying, "This fly zone is for government officials only!"

The grass monster was eating the donuts as he terrorized the customers of Dunkin Donuts.

I flew down in splendor as I flapped my large white wings for effect. My eyes were blue with rage. I stared at the grass monster. "Did you pay for those donuts?" I asked.

"YES! They fucked my order up. They forgot to add the corn to my cornbread donuts. Sons of bitches!!" the grass monster yelled as he ate the top of the restaurant.

"THOSE BASTARDS!" I shouted. "Did you kill anyone?"

"Not yet. Most of those assholes ran out of the building. Fuck them," the grass monster said as he ate the building.

"Good. Fuck them indeed. Anyway, I am heading to a better restaurant for lunch, care to join?" I asked.

"Hell yes. Where?" the grass monster asked.

"La Bamba," I answered.

"Ooooh. I love Mexican!" the grass Monster shouted.

"Let us go!" I shouted as I picked him up and flew out of there. What was left of the Dunkin Donuts building somehow became on fire. It was time for my lunch break. I didn't give a fuck. That Dunkin Donuts was horrible anyway.

We flew up so high in the sky that no one saw us. The grass monster was shouting with joy as we flew in the sky. Our descent was a bit rough. Aladdin and Jasmine were flying in the correct zone on their magic carpet.

"Excuse me! We're trying to get to La Bamba!" I shouted.

"Oh God! We always eat there! I'm trying to find a decent Middle Eastern Cuisine!" Jasmine shouted.

"Dilja Cafe Lounge in Decatur, GA," the grass monster said as we continued our descent into Loganville, GA.

"Thank you! Some asshole grass monster devoured the one we used to go to!" Aladdin called.

"The building tasted better than the food!" the grass monster called back.

We descended in the Loganville Crossing parking lot near La Bamba a few minutes later. I put the grass monster down before I brushed myself off.

He went in the restaurant. After flapping my wings to ensure no grass blades were on me, I walked in the restaurant.

Richy Valens was brought back to life. He was singing "La Bamba" in La Bamba! I hope to Goodness no one was going to say "La Bamba in La Bamba!" PeeWee Herman would be all over that.

Richy Valens's face was deep-faked on Melissa's body. Deep faking is a technology in which someone else's face can be programmed on your body. It's basic, really. I deep-faked Illidan's face on Grom Hellscream's face so many times when I played World of Warcraft, a popular multiplayer massive online roleplaying game.

I ordered the five tacos for five dollar special. The grass monster ordered the loaded nachos. He ate like crazy.

Richy Valens then returned to Heaven after he sang the song using Melissa the Great Arc Angel's body. Her face had returned.

"I'm starving!" she shouted as she stole one of my tacos.

"I PAID A DOLLAR FOR THAT!!!!" I shouted. The roof accidentally flew up from the restaurant. It then returned to its normal state.

"Sorry," she said as she finished her taco and ordered 50 tacos for $50. She WAS hungry.

"You will pay me back by not MENTIONING a back story on this restaurant," I said.

"I wasn't-" Melissa the Great Arc Angel started to say.

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copiosis · 4 years ago

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When Bernie Sanders Marries Ayn Rand

By Writer KJ McElrath

If there is a silver lining to the current coronavirus pandemic, it is that it has exposed fundamental weaknesses in the current capitalist free-market economic system that most of us have taken for granted our entire lives. People in low-wage service jobs, food-service workers, education support personnel, private tutors and instructors and others with jobs that frequently bring them into contact with the general public have been hit especially hard. Most of these workplaces – restaurants, lounges, schools and even libraries – are closed for the duration.

Today conservative leaders, who typically expect most people – including those they claim to represent – to fend for themselves, actually support massive financial aid programs...that's how bad it is. The Trump Administration's $2 trillion dollar stimulus package perplexes my imagination. That a conservative administration would offer such a thing boggles the mind.

Other governments around the world are following suit. For example, the U.K. government recently announced that it will pay 80 percent of worker salaries up to £2500 per month ($2900 USD) for 12 weeks, while offering tax breaks and interest-free business loans. Across the Channel, France is preparing to nationalize several industries while suspending tax, rent, and utility payments for small companies.

The problem is we, as a global, tightly interconnected economic society, now are in uncharted territory. Our economics can't handle much more of this and for two fundamental reasons:

One, our economics depends on endless growth and expansion. Coronavirus has stopped that dead in its tracks.

Two, our economics finances endless growth through debt cycles, which fall apart when debtors can't pay creditors. Debtors can't pay if they can't work.

If there was ever a time to think outside the box, it is now. Our immediate solution is for government to throw money — cash payments, low interest rates, subsidized loans or grants, etc at the problem. In the short term, this is indeed necessary as most of us have not slack in our finances to weather such storms.

But such actions treat the symptoms while ignoring the underlying disease. Biologically, coronavirus is most dangerous to those who have other health problems, such as compromised immune function. Economically, it appears to have a similar effect on unhealthy financial systems.

Socialism is not the answer

Would the type of socialism offered by once-presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders save us? For awhile, it could — but like government stimulus programs, it would be a stopgap solution. The problem here is that socialism can't spur innovations that benefit society.

Second, the idea that people should receive free anything — including housing, food, health care and education — is anathema to those who espouse unbridled, free market capitalism. Yet, lack of these basic survival needs, or even the threat of losing them, is at the root of virtually every problem society suffers today.

People can live without jet skis or the latest and greatest smart phones. They cannot live without food, clean water, shelter and medical care when needed. Without some degree of education, they cannot be productive members of society. Yet, our economies demand that all of these things be commodified and profit their providers.

Meanwhile, those very same providers must pay labor, cover raw materials costs, pay taxes, legal and other operational expenses.

To suggest that "necessities" should be “free” may rightfully evoke hard resistance from free market supporters, yet the stress from putting price tags on necessities creates crime, disease (mental and physical), environmental degradation and more — adding hugely to the cost of running society.

Perversely, money spent addressing these problems contributes to a nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Ergo, someone who contracts cancer living near a factory producing toxic waste actually contributes to GDP when they (or someone else) pays for their treatment. Law enforcement officers pursuing criminals become part of the GDP as well. Divorcing couples contribute to GDP through lawyer and court fee costs.

Is there a better way? Some visionaries believe so — and are working to bring it about.

A better way...

These visionaries recognize a major part of the problem is not capitalism, but rather the way the exchange of goods and services happen — i.e., money, or currency. Whether it is tangible cash, an amount recorded in a bank ledger or other account, or invested in securities, money can be transferred easily. That is a definite advantage, but there are downsides; money can be lost, stolen, taxed away (directly and indirectly), devalued and manipulated, and withheld when someone is prevented from earning or receiving it — as is happening in today's coronavirus pandemic. The consequences can be devastating.

Barter comes to many people’s minds as an alternative, but there are reasons why money replaced trading livestock, handicrafts, produce, etc. Unless people have many different productive skills and abilities others need, or offer wide ranges of services, the barter system can't alleviate poverty and inequality. Barter also involves material things that can be lost, stolen or destroyed (and even taxed, as many have discovered).

Imagine an alternative:

a means of exchange representing actions benefiting society and the planet, that cannot possibly be stolen, taxed or otherwise transferred away from owners

a system guaranteeing everyone access to housing, food, medical services and education without incurring long-term debt servitude or worry about a paycheck

a system based on free market principles that encourage innovation

a system in which only actions benefitting people and/or the environment in some way are rewarded

Such innovations are already underway, and have been for some time. They are made possible by rapid technology advances. As more working people suddenly find themselves idle for the long term, some are finding interesting innovations that onced looked ridiculous, but today are not so.

Humanity: where great ideas come from

Dr. Albert Einstein reportedly said, “Imagination is more important than Knowledge.” In light of Dr. Abraham Maslow’s famous Hierarchy of Needs (a review and explanation for the uninitiated is available here), imagine what humans might achieve if they were liberated from the need to “earn a living,” but still expected and motivated to strive for more by simply making choices and acting in ways that serve the greater good.

We all see it happening now, with the popularity of “humanely raised” eggs, poultry and meat, recycling and repurposing, reducing one’s ecological footprint, roadside miniature lending libraries, community tool and vehicle share programs and more.

In Portland, Oregon, homeowners are being offered incentives to provide shelters for homeless people on their property. Some small businesses specialize in making new products from existing and/or previously used components. Entrepreneurial individuals are creating solutions for environmental problems.

Admittedly, so-called “Utopian” societies have failed in the past. As floundering and corrupt as American capitalism has gotten over the past four decades, it has not yet become the total and abject failure that was the late U.S.S.R.’s Socialist Worker’s State.

That said, western capitalism is nonetheless a very large, unwieldy vessel sailing at a high rate of speed — one that needs to change its course fairly soon, if it is to survive.

As the Captain Edward Smith of the R.M.S. Titanic discovered too late, such sudden course changes are difficult at best.

Perhaps what needs to be changed is not so much the system itself, but rather the means of exchange. Such change must happen so nobody goes homeless, hungry, without medical and dental care, and everyone has access to education in any field. At the same time, the new system must encourage industry and innovation while respecting private property rights. Nothing would be confiscatory or redistributive, nor would taxes be assessed.

It sounds almost like “Bernie Sanders Meets Ayn Rand” or "Bernie Sanders and Ayn Rand have a baby". This has been one of the primary issues in recent elections: do we want or need the State to own and operate everything, distributing “to each according to their needs” while taxing “from each, according to their abilities”?

Or do we want to do away with government and regulation altogether, and allow individuals and organizations to become as wealthy and powerful as possible, regardless of any harm in done the process?

What if a society could have the best of both? What if one fed the other? What if, through Bernie-style socialist programs, more people were unleashed from having to have “jobs” simply to pay the bills in order to survive, and instead were free to pursue their passions, such as science, research, technology, engineering and invention as well culture, humanities and the arts? Can one imagine the new Renaissance that might come about?

Such a system has the potential of generating wealth and well-being in a private, free-market system beyond Rand’s wildest dreams.

You don’t have to look very far back to find examples. Would the world have had the genius of Leonardo da Vinci without the patronage of the Medicis? Would we have heard the music of Franz Josef Haydn without Prince Esterhazy?

Now, multiply those two examples by a few billion.

Passions can create our future

Would everyone throw themselves into their “passions”? No. Many may not even know what their passions are. For them, there are educational opportunities (which would bring their own rewards), or they may decide to sit on the beach all day — and as long as they do no harm, that’s fine. If they ever want something more, they’ll find ways to make the world a better place.

If not — at least they won’t go hungry and homeless. But really, earning that “something more” would not be difficult under such a system. In fact, it would be more difficult not to contribute in some way.

If the 1933 Harold Arlen — Yip Harburg song Paper Moon comes to mind, you’re not alone. Indeed, some skepticism is warranted. Nonetheless, two communities, one in California and the other in Oregon, tested out such a comprehensive economic system, with success. A devoted group in Portland continues exploring it over the last six years, and it has generated significant attention around the world.

This group’s website recently came online, where one can go to learn more about this alternative economic system in which there are no losers, and winners’ victories do not come at the expense of someone else. Under such a system, disparities of wealth will certainly still exist, but the kind of grinding poverty that causes hunger, disease, crime and other problems will not.

Meanwhile, the barriers to people who want to accumulate more will largely go away; there will be equal access to opportunity and tools to improve one’s material lot in life for those who choose to do so.

Greed will still exist, but in this new system it's harnessed and channeled into positive outcomes for everyone.

Now that so many of us are under lockdown or quarantine and are starting to clearly see problems existing in the current system, it is as good a time as ever to consider alternatives.

Learn more here.

#bernie sanders #ayn rand #conservatism #democrats #progressives #liberals #wage slavery #society without money #moneyless economy #UBI #AoC #Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez #Yang Gang #Andrew Yang

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eirian-houpe · 5 years ago

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The Library Beneath the Clock Tower - Chapter 4

Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, Belle/Gaston (Once Upon a Time)

Additional Tags: Bookshop On the Corner, slightly AU, Cursed Storybrooke (Once Upon a Time), Alternate Universe - In Storybrooke | Cursed (Once Upon a Time), Eventual Smut

Summary: Storybrooke has no library, and neither does Belle, not since the library where she worked in Boston discovered her past as an inpatient at a mental hospital. Taking her future into her own hands, Belle travels to Storybrooke where her intention is to open up the town library, but all does not go according to her plan. Obstacles and false starts, and diversion along very wrong pathways interrupt her journey toward fulfilling her dream, as well as taking her rightful place and becoming a part of the Storybrooke community.

Read here on AO3: [Chap 1] [Chap 2] [Chap 3] [Chap 4]

The journey back to Boston from Storybrooke had left her, not determined, but despondent. It was a long bus journey, and she couldn’t even read her book because, on opening her bag, she discovered she had left it at the diner. It did give her a small moment of a lighter heart as she thought on the irony of that, since she’d wanted to open a library there after all, and she wondered if anyone would read it.

With nothing to pass the time, all she thought about was how stupid she had been to allow herself to be almost duped by that jowley swindler of a man. She couldn’t imagine how anyone would want to buy flowers for special occasions from a man that was as obviously shifty as he was. At least, obvious to everyone else, she chastised herself. Maybe that was why he was behind in his loan payments: because everyone knew the kind of man he was. Still, she hadn’t seen any other florists in Storybrooke - hadn’t seen very much except one of everything, a real backwater town, which for a place with a dock as it was, seemed a little odd to her. Then again she supposed the bigger towns, with larger quays probably made Storybrooke’s dockside obsolete.

She grumbled at herself. There she went speculating again, trying to give herself a reason to turn around and go back. It was as though she were a fish, and Storybrooke had gotten its hooks into her. She even kept taking out her phone and looking at it, in case the garage owner, who’d promised to keep his eyes open for anything that might fit the bill for a mobile library, had left a message for her. There was nothing.

She sighed again, and finally closed her eyes. With nothing to do besides fret and worry, it would probably be better if she just tried to sleep the journey away. That wasn’t very successful either, so when the bus finally pulled into the Peter Pan Bus Terminal in Boston’s South Station, she was tired, disappointed, irritable and just plain ready to be home. Except it wouldn’t be her home much longer if she didn’t get her act together and try and find a place for all the books she’d gathered together in the hopes of beginning her own library. Ruby had given her a few months to look for a way to fulfil her dream, but that time was rapidly running out.

When Ruby got home from work later that evening, Belle was sitting at the kitchen table, still staring, purposeless, into an almost stone cold cup of tea.

“I take it it didn’t go well then?” Ruby asked as she slipped into the chair opposite Belle and replaced the cold cup with a hot one and then tipped her head to one side. “Even with the extra day?”

Belle seemed to awaken and looked over at Ruby.

“He tried to swindle me!” she announced without preamble.

“He did?” Ruby frowned at her and Belle wasn’t sure if her friend was following at all.

“Yeah, the man… the florist, with the van I told you about?” When Ruby nodded she continued, “Well he wasn’t looking to sell the van at all. Seems like he had fallen behind on his loan payments for the damn thing and was trying to sell the loan, so that he could keep the van and just…” she growled softly, “Ugh! I almost fell for it. It was a lovely van as well,” she said, “would have been perfect. Instead…”

“Instead, you did the sensible thing before stuff got out of hand and you lost any actual money,” Ruby interrupted, putting the matter sensibly and logically to Belle.

Belle sighed, “I know,” she conceded at last. “But what will I do, Ruby? There are no jobs here, and I can’t keep living off of you. I have to find something.”

“And you will, I know it.” Ruby reassured her, “You’re a smart woman, with a good degree. Something will come up.”

That was probably the moment Belle’s temper snapped.

“Well, much as I love your ‘glass-half-full’ sunny as hell attitude,” she scraped her chair leg against the floor as she stood up, raising her voice and grabbing her overnight bag from where it sat at the side of the kitchen. “I don’t share it. Storybrooke was my last resort. My last ditch attempt to not only find a way to actually support myself, but to do it in some kind of work that would make me feel wanted, maybe me feel needed , and that would actually satisfy me, not some… some… some…”

Ruby stood up too, and it seemed that Belle’s mood was contagious because she picked up where Belle left off, “Some dead end, nine to six or seven job that I hate with every ounce of my being but which pays our rent? Is that what you’re driving at?”

“Yes!” Belle snapped and then immediately, “No!... I mean… Ruby, no I just… I didn’t mean it like that I…”

“Yes you did,” Ruby countered. “Yes, you did, and I don’t blame you for wanting better after all that’s happened to you, but Belle, sometimes you just have to swallow it, like the bitter pill of BS that it is, and just… head down and do what you have to. They offered to transfer you to the stacks down-town, rather than just… let you go out of hand, and you were the one that poo-pooed that notion.”

“Because being a librarian isn’t just about the books,” Belle felt like screaming at Ruby. Why couldn’t she understand? “It’s about the people too, and I wouldn’t come into any contact with anyone down there - and that was their point - they found out I’d been in a mental hospital, and they didn’t trust me with people.”

“Well maybe they were right not to!” Ruby snapped, “You haven’t exactly been the world’s most compassionate and understanding person just now have you? And with all these books you keep bringing home, what’s the difference anyway?”

Belle gaped at Ruby. How could she say that… and mean it? How could she compare saving old books that still had a good deal of life in them to working in some dusty basement archiving books that statistics said no one wanted to read any more, until they could be legitimately consigned to the literary scrap heap. How dare she!

Without another word, Belle stormed off, taking the stairs of the apartment almost two at a time, her bag slung carelessly over her shoulder as she went, and on reaching her room, threw open the door with such force that it swung all the way back and rattled the dividing wall between her room and the landing.

Unfortunately, standing against that was was a rather precariously stacked tower of mixed hardback and paperback books that wibbled, and wobbled and finally passed beyond its fulcrum, and slid, as gracefully as a dame fainting, across the landing, wherein the uppermost book nudged the bottom of an equally poorly stacked pile of books.

Belle watched, as if someone had pressed a slow motion button on life, as that pile also spilled and then another, and finally another that sent a particularly heavy tome - a copy of The Complete Works of Edgar Alan Poe - sliding down the stairs as though delivering a tale of the ragged mountains* of books to Ruby’s prized, framed photograph of herself embracing a timber wolf. When the book had picked up enough momentum it flew off the stair tread, into the air, and shatter the glass of the picture.

Belle covered her mouth with her hand in horror, and Ruby came hurrying out of the kitchen to let out a strangled cry, and rush to the fallen keepsake. Picking up the photograph, and largely ignoring the broken glass, she looked up at Belle, and Belle looked down at her, knowing this was the moment they’d both been trying to avoid, the point of no return.

Later, when the crying was done, and the hugging and the eating of ice-cream in front of the television had ended in the declaration of a comingling of brain-freeze and a sugar induced headache, Ruby asked softly, “Where will you go?”

Belle shrugged, and said quietly, “I don’t know,” and hugged Ruby again. “But like you said, something will turn up.”

Notes:

*A Tale of the Ragged Mountains is a short story written by Edgar Alan Poe, and published in 1844. It concerns the (possibly hallucinatory) adventures of a man called Bedloe, who suffered with neuralgia and therefore retained the services of a Dr. Templeton, advanced in years, and a student of Franz Mesmer. The tale is told by an unnamed narrator who recounts the story as it was told to him by Bedloe, who, by the end of the tale has unfortunately met his demise. (Hey, it wouldn’t be Poe if nobody died).

#rumbelle #ao3 #AU (slight)#bookshop on the corner

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philadelphialunchrestaurant-blog · 5 years ago

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Obtain the closest Wells Fargo Bank in Portland

Find The closest Wells Fargo Bank and even ATM Locations in Portland, OR. Get Wells Fargo locations in addition to hours, expert services and driving a vehicle directions.

Wells Fargo Bank 97214

Wells Fargo Bank, 310 SE Taylor St Portland, OR 97214

Reviews

Comes to an end afternoon before the Toil Day holiday and just one teller to help- absurd wait- very aggravating! Clearly may care concerning customer service.

Reviews

I had the fee in the credit card My partner and i was trying to cancel. I referred to as customer program with 10/31, spoke to a extremely kinds individual who put in my dispute (#14854307) and stated I would have this funds launched within forty eight hours, We produce an email confirming that furthermore. This interest charges were released in 48 hours but not necessarily the charged. I known as again on 11/7 on 4: 10 spoke to a new man, provided proof my own request to the firm in order to cancel my demand. Described that again this budget in dispute were not introduced. This individual claimed that they ended up returned back to my abolished cc number in problem and that the funds would be back with my new card in 48 hours. Again most of these chats are recorded. Since 7: 45 this morning hours the money had even now not necessarily been credited. My spouse and i directed wells fargo a good e-mail, no response. My partner and i called on my break in which the call up ended at 9: 19. The first woman that will I speech to said that she found that will the request was submitted to have the credit rating transferred from terminated credit score card to the in service one, but that this will take 5-10 business enterprise days and nights to have the credit applied not really twenty four hours. I inquired her exactly why I was first lied to instead of provided accurate information on the decision on 11/7 in which often they already have the recording often the I was lied for you to and not really chosen appropriate information, She am not able to response my question, Specialists in order to communicate to a supervisor. My spouse and i spoke to Claudette who also again said of which this transfer would definitely not take place with regard to five to ten enterprise days, never ever after responding to the inconvience that was causing me or perhaps appoligizing for the problem that will caused the money to be transferred to a good cc number they will terminated or the other miscalculation they made in which will I has been certainly not presented accurate data. She performed not care. Definitely not solely does Wells Fargo generate false accounts, which can be fraudulence, but they outright along recorded calls lie for their customers. Never ever perform business enterprise with this bank. As soon as it is resolved I will always be going anywhere else!!!

Reviews

Super tiny location. That they only acquired one company when we went. Workers was friendly. Simply no restroom. Free 30 minutes airport parking out front.

Wells Fargo Bank in Portland

Wells Fargo Bank, 635 SW 6th Ave Portland, OR 97204

Reviews

I am the treasurer of the small non-profit group. Charitable contributions and book sales can be found in at random instances. The projects like educational shows, books etc can certainly take some sort of lot involving money. have been working with wells forgo for years however the costs incurred by Wells Fargo will be draining our balances together with reducing what we can do. $10/month for checking plus another $6/ month for savings. $192 a year- even though that amount seem to be like much it decreased what we are capable of doing. Bore holes Fargo wasn't willing to stop changing we closed both accounts and planning to a further bank that isn't asking fees.

Reviews

Are typically in a few times with regard to questions and am often still left happy in addition to secure together with my business with Water wells Fargo. Perfect people worki there way too, wish I actually could remember brands.

Reviews

My broker was so patient together with valuable setting up my trading accounts. Wells Fargo is some sort of huge loan provider but at this point at this place not any one will fall throughout the cracks. Feels nice to be respected and taken care of. Cheers Donald!

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Wells Fargo in Portland, OR 97201

Wells Fargo Bank, 1300 SW 5th Ave Portland, OR 97201

Reviews

Stopped here after job to downpayment my massive bonus offer check on an account I've had to get many years. I was admonished the fact that because it was soon after 4 on Wednesday that will the funds would definitely not be available until finally Friday. I say admonished for the reason that vibe I obtained seemed to imply that I has been some kind of felonious hobo trying to pull a quick one. I experienced no purpose of yanking the money outside correct after I put it in. Nevertheless , in this particular day time and era, We think it's total B. Ersus. that the cash isn't very available right away. Hell, whenever I employ my debit card, I actually can check my balance online five minutes later on and find out the transaction. Will Wells Fargo use the particular Pony Exhibit to fetch the cash through the banking companies that cut us inspections? Otherwise, I don't know precisely why those orders acquire times when other individuals get mere seconds. Made us grouchy.

Evaluations

Awful customer support, all people viewed like they will completely hated their jobs... often the manager(Sara? ) had been extremely impolite and less than professional. This only smiling face taking in the room seemed to be from the brokerage.

Testimonials

The customer services is here is really lacking. Let's be sincere. It merely requires plain sucks. My spouse and i was informed I'd include to sit down with an account supervisor to modify some thing minor on my own account. My spouse and i went inside on a good Friday plus no one surely could accomplish it so they told us they'd call myself very first thing on Wednesday to set up a great appnt. They even verified my own phone number. Some sort of couple of weeks later and I still don't have heard from these people. My spouse and i was initially just through there now, your bank was initially empty, I could observe four account managers at their desks, only a single which was helping a customer, together with We has been told someone would be perfect with us. Fifteen moments later, still zero acknowledgment, so My spouse and i received upwards and left. I've truly disliked having WF because my bank for quite a good while these days, and this particular has been the final hay. Give thanks to you to get ultimately pushing me to seek out a new bank/credit association to be able to transfer all of our accounts to!! I are going to be with a new standard bank by following full week. Cheers again!

Wells Fargo Bank Portland, OR

Wells Fargo Bank, 1405 Lloyd Ctr Portland, OR 97232

Reviews

I really like my local community, but you can find no financial institutions close to my home. The particular only ATM's within taking walks distance are those questionable convenient kiosks that charge a couple of bucks. Those CREDIT bandits are withdraw just, naturally , so any other banking orders My spouse and i have to accomplish need some sort of special trip in the car. That makes me grouchy. Gratefully, the people at this kind of Wells Fargo diverge together with generally very pleasant. Now i am welcome with a enjoyable hello and some cheery chit-chat. Nice folks.

Reviews

The customer service here is below doble, and Wells Fargo inside general has been leading to us issues. The on-line accounts encounter issues as soon as a good calendar month, and I've experienced anatomical problems having the ATM at this area. When calling and acquiring the tellers browsing on me through the windowpane, they just continued to consume their food and ended up hesitant to help even nevertheless they could observe everyone on the phone dialling with the window while his or her cell phone was ringing in addition to they were only 12-15 minutes from beginning.

Reviews

I traveling frequently and love to become ready to stop simply by limbs as needed. My spouse and i ended into this branch and was treated now kindly. Everyone had some sort of smile and you could say to many people come in often. I love seeing company's have a compact town feel, especially around a hustle and bustle town.

Reviews

Seems going to be able to this branch for a long time mainly because my possibilities will be confined. I steer clear of coming into this branch on just about all prices. Twice now, a couple months apart, the same teller offers incorrectly applied a pair number of dollar payment in my credit card. Give thanks lord the pin number pad questions the customer to verify in advance of processing! One card I use usually for big purchases and the additional merely actually has ten to twenty dollars charged to it. Currently, I possibly said, "payment on the Cash Smart to Visa please" and she EVEN NOW put it on the particular additional card. The credit card that is presently PAID OFF. Also, a few yrs ago, a banker almost closed my accounts I actually share with the mother while i was at this time there with my own ex-fiancé for you to close our mutual balances. No one seems for you to spend any attention to be able to the details in the dealings they are processing. Now i'm so glad My partner and i changed the majority of my banking must a Credit rating Union.

Reviews

I actually had a good negative opening experience with this loan provider. I should have identified going for walks in, when I actually was attacked by some sort of fellow purchaser that it was planning downhill. Not of which My spouse and i hold this institution accountable for that. But I went in to order a few Canadian currency like their web page specifically clarifies their normal operating time with an cosmopolitan teller. I go in plus stand in line through the given times merely to learn the fact that "international teller" has in reality gone home and Items need to return another day. I used to be then told to be able to be sure into the future in during the morning when to ensure what We wanted was obtainable. My spouse and i understand the currency is definitely "first come, initially served" but upon contacting before my next take a look at, My spouse and i was told that had been not necessary. Consistency in connection in particular with retail can be pretty significant if a person ask me.

Wells Fargo Bank 97209

Wells Fargo Bank, 845 NW 11th Ave Portland, OR 97209

Reviews

We have only had excellent experiences with this subset of Wells Fargo. Whenever I go in I am approached the instant I walk in and certainly not possess to wait more compared to a time to be helped. I have caused the brokers (John plus Mitch) on this side branch numerous times to deal with supervision issues about both business and private accounts and have always was feeling well taken care associated with and all problems possess been recently quickly solved. Kudos!

Reviews

It takes some sort of lot for me to assessment a bank. I click on over for my do the job dealings like expense record take a look at cashing etc. I could utilize the ATM but I get in every moment. The people are why. Super nice and good. I think they recognize myself. Probably. l certainly not but you get that will perception. Furthermore they constantly have straps connected with $2s and I love that. Parking would be testing nevertheless I walk together with cycle.

Reviews

Tom as well as manager Michael will be amazing. I used to work with regard to Wells Fargo and may honestly say I've never ever viewed such amazing customer care around my years of financial. Thank you for resolving my troubles in addition to being so eager to support.

Critiques

Ok which means this bank can be HELLA outside of my way for literally every thing My partner and i need and there are usually nearer locations I could use yet I may not go at any place although here because I really like these kind of people. This staff is really freaking sweet and friendly and My spouse and i feel want they may my personal good friends hoping for us to do well. The bankers are really knowledgeable trying to help me in just about any way they can. They're very invested in the life and it is very reassuring! Mike with this branch is the nicest man together with is generally there as i need him. Highly, REALLY highly recommend this specific office. Is actually great. And Wells Fargo as a financial institution is just great. Quick to get rid connected with fees along with the app is usually hella straightforward to navigate. I'm a enormous fan so far!

Reviews

This kind of has not necessarily been my usual branch to accomplish business throughout, but I've had excellent service in this article every time My spouse and i occur in. Most recently, I actually had a fairly obnoxious transaction that essential several verifications, and was assisted proactively by Claudia here. Cheers for your follow-up in addition to working with me!

#Wells Fargo #Wells Fargo Bank #Wells Fargo Locations #Wells Fargo Hours #Wells Fargo Near Me

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thechasefiles · 5 years ago

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The Chase Files Daily Newscap 26/11/2019

Good Morning #realdreamchasers. Here is your daily news cap for Tueday, November 26th, 2019. There is a lot to read and digest so take your time. Remember you can read full articles via Barbados Government Information Service (BGIS), Barbados Today (BT), or by purchasing a Daily Nation Newspaper (DN).

PAC GRILLS EX-MANAGER – The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) had lots of questions for former quality assurance manager at the Transport Board, Sylvan Codrington, yesterday, but for chairman Bishop Joseph Atherley his answers were mainly “vague”. However, Codrington, who worked at the state-owned agency for 45 years, 13 as quality assurance manager, was definitive about the thousands of dollars shelled out by the board for parts for buses that continued to break down after they were serviced and fitted with parts. He also expressed his past frustration at being unable to take some actions he considered within his purview. For example, he spoke of a $1.7 million bill for transmissions for 14 buses, and yet those same buses encountered repeated breakdowns. (DN)

CONSULTANTS HIRING AT TRANSPORT BOARD QUESTIONED – Shocked! That’s how the former Quality Assurance Manager at the Transport Board Sylvan Codrington said he felt after learning that Trinidadian David Bartholomew had been hired as a consultant at the state-owned enterprise. Speaking before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in Parliament this afternoon, Codrington said he was surprised Bartholomew was given the job as he had served in a different capacity while working in Trinidad. He made the admission after PAC chairman Reverend Joseph Atherley asked him whether he believed it was an error to engage Bartholomew’s services as a consultant. The Trinidadian was hired by the Transport Board in March 2016 on an initial six-month contract, to undertake the repair of 200 defective buses.. Codrington revealed that his duty as Quality Assurance Manager was to oversee all the engineering aspects for the Transport Board. “When he came to Barbados as the consultant I was taken aback because when I visited the Trinidadian Bus Company he was deputy engineer with that company. Then months after I heard he was a consultant with us, so I was shocked,” replied Codrington, who was QA manager from 2005 to 2018 . When further questioned by Atherley about his perception of Bartholomew’s effectiveness in the role, Codrington said, “It wasn’t coming over to me very clear as to what he was seeing because he was in one capacity and then he went into another capacity and operating as a consultant.” Despite those views, Codrington said he worked closely with Bartholomew. He said there was a spirit of cooperation between them even though from time to time “they had their differences with the engineering aspects of things”. However, Codrington took issue with certain notes which Bartholomew made in respect of the operations of the Quality Assurance Department. In a report handed over to the management of the Transport Board, Bartholomew claimed that personnel from the Transport Board’s Quality Assurance team had not visited service providers for an extended period and that there appeared to be a casual approach to the repair and return of buses. “That is incorrect,” Codrington emphatically stated. Bartholomew also suggested that the QA department lacked “the managerial and administrative skills needed to effectively monitor and manage the units at the external service providers…” But in rebuttal, Codrington said while he had a staff of 30 persons working in that department, only five were sufficiently trained. He said there was also a need for more staff. Codrington, who worked with the Transport Board for 46 years before retiring on December 31, 2018, denied that the QA department, which he managed, circumvented operating procedures at any time during his tenure. “We did not circumvent any operating procedures. Not to my knowledge,” he contended. In fact, Codrington said he considered his time in charge of the QA department a success noting that there over 100 buses in service, a far cry from the less than 70 in operation now. “It was a success. Based on my knowledge and when I left office I had something looking like 115 or so buses on the road and now that I am out of office I was made to understand that there 50 and 70 [buses] and they aren’t making it into the hundreds at all,” Codrington said. (BT)

PAYBACK FOR POWER OUTAGES STILL POSSIBLE – The utility regulator is giving the assurance that investigations are being carried out regarding the recent power outages, and “an appropriate action” will then be taken regarding compensation. This comes amidst increasing calls from residents and business operators for the Barbados Light & Power Company (BL&P) to pay consumers for two consecutive days of power blackouts last week. Information Specialist with the Fair Trading Commission (FTC) Nekaelia Hutchinson-Holder was not in a position to say if customers would definitely be credited for the break in service, or when. However, she pointed out that there was a process that affected customers had to go through. “Investigations are still ongoing as to the circumstances surrounding the electricity outages,” said Hutchinson-Holder. “As a result, appropriate action with regard to claims will be determined following an examination of the nature and cause of the outages,” she said. On Monday morning November 18 around 7:29, the BL&P’s approximately 130,000 customers were left without electricity for most of the day. While about 50 per cent of the power had been restored around 3 p.m. many remained with electrical power up until 11 p.m. when the full restoration was completed. The following day, the power went off and due to load sharing, customers then witnessed intermittent outages, which were compounded by water outages. The BL&P blamed contaminated fuel and aging generators for the disruption in service, which took individuals and businesses by surprise. The board of the electric utility company was asked to meet on the matter of compensation, but officials promised to speak to customers on that issue at a later date. In a brief statement, Hutchinson-Holder told Barbados TODAY the claims process for the BL&P included the completion of the Guaranteed Standards of Service Claim form on the BL&P website. “The form should be completed and returned to the BL&P’s customer service office at Garrison Hill, St Michael within three months of the date of the event giving rise to the claim,” she said. “The utility must then be given 14 business days to address the claim. If the customer is not satisfied with the outcome, they may contact the Fair Trading Commission for assistance. The Standards of Service, which outline each standard and the corresponding compensation when the standard is breached, may be accessed at the Utility Regulation link at www.ftc.gov.bb. Compensation is generally given in the form of a credit on the customer’s account,” she added. She also pointed out that in the case where an outage arises due to circumstances outside of the utility’s control, the utility company would be exempt from the Standards of Service requirements. (BT)

REVERSE TAX CREDIT COMING – Lower income Barbadians will soon be on the receiving end of a Government policy intended to offset some of the burden being borne by citizens under the Barbados Economic Recovery and Transformation (BERT), according to a top economic advisor to Government. Chief Economic Advisor to the Ministry of Finance, Economic Affairs and Investment Ambassador Dr Clyde Mascoll, while addressing the congregation at St Luke’s Anglican Church over the weekend revealed the reverse tax credit promised in the PM’s March 2019 budget speech would be honoured next month. The tax credits amount to $1300 for Barbadians earning less than $25,000 a year and according to Mascoll, have been made possible because of Government’s ability to stabilise the economy in a short time. This, he argued allowed Government to “re-engineer a few things”, allowing those at the bottom of the “economic barrel” to benefit from “unprecedented tax relief” since July this year. The economic advisor however indicated that the reverse tax credit could not be distributed monthly, hence why it is being disbursed as a $1300 lump sum payment. “It can’t be given monthly, so you may not have seen the immediate effects, but starting this month, Barbadians earning less than $25,000 a year will all receive a reverse tax credit to the tune of $1300, but that could not have been granted immediately,” Mascoll said during the service at which the officials of the Barbados Trust Loan Fund were the special guests. He added: “What is also happening that people are not realising is that we do other transfers to help the poor. The reason why we decided to pay university fees for Barbadians is because only the poor would be affected. So when you start to repay university fees you again start giving opportunities to the poor.” Amid the benefits being given to low income citizens, Mascoll stressed workers were not the burden-bearers of Government’s intensive austerity programme. Instead, he claimed commercial banks, insurance companies and large bond investors were making the greatest sacrifices. He added that the country has been able to stay above the line in interest payments to external creditors totalling $500 million a year. In addition to the cash being given during the yuletide season, Mascoll promised that other social services would be improved, including garbage collection and public transportation. “We also decided apart from education we had to rectify the social sectors because we were experiencing some difficulties in terms of garbage collection. But I am here to tell you that will soon be solved, because the trucks have been purchased. Last year at this same time we only had 12 garbage trucks and we now have 22 working,” said the economic advisor. (BT)

WOMEN’S CHOICE FOR MORE CHILDREN – Women have the power of choice to determine if they want children or not. Executive director of the Barbados Family Planning Association (BFPA), Anderson Langdon, said that in the 21st century, women should not be pressured into having children merely to prop up national insurance coverage and retirement funds. He was speaking against the background of statements made by Minister of Home Affairs last week when 64 people were inducted as citizens of Barbados. Hinkson said then the National Insurance Scheme and Pension Scheme were on the verge of collapsing due to the island’s low birth rate. (DN)

GREAT HOPE FOR GHANAIAN NURSES – Nurses coming from Ghana to work at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) and other public health care facilities are experienced and highly certified in specialty areas. This assurance came from the Executive Chairman of the QEH Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland who said that the nurses being recruited to start work from January 2020 were equipped with post basic qualifications. The hospital chief and a team of local health authorities recently returned from Ghana where they interviewed over 100 Ghanaian nurses. “We are really pleased with the quality of nurses that we saw in Ghana. They are solid nurses and I think they would be a complement to the nursing team that we have here. “We are going to get the opportunity to bring nurses in with specialist skills. And what is wonderful, is because it is a government-to-government programme they are coming to work with us, they are going to be having the same salaries and conditions of work as Barbadian nurses. “I understand that people have said that they are going to be paid different and better, that is not the case, that would be an industrial relations nightmare. There is a scale for nursing and it would be based on your years of experience and qualification,” she said. Speaking to members of the media following the hospital’s 55th Anniversary Service, held at QEH’s Chapel, this morning, Bynoe-Sutherland also indicated that Ghanaian nurses would receive a gratuity instead of a pension. “But as you have heard from the nursing fraternity, we need hundreds of nurses, so we don’t have enough of a throughput of local nurses. We are going to have to continue to supplement until we are able to get our basic and post basic programming up to provide the numbers that we require,” Bynoe-Sutherland added. Last Friday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Jerome Walcott signed an agreement for the recruitment of 120 nurses from Ghana. The agreement was signed when Prime Minister Mia Mottley paid a courtesy call on President Nana Akufo-Addo in Ghana. (BT)

REPUBLIC MEETING FALLS THROUGH – The latest meeting to resolve the dispute involving staff at Republic Bank did not come off yesterday. Management and staff of the bank had converged at the Labour Department in Warrens, St Michael, along with deputy general secretary of the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU), Dwaine Paul, before 10 a.m. Both parties remained tight-lipped before the meeting was scheduled to begin, with Republic’s managing director Anthony Clerk declining comment and Paul saying he preferred to speak after the meeting. However, the meeting never took place as it was reported that Minister of Labour Colin Jordan was unavailable. (DN)

PSVS GIVE NOD TO TWO-MONTH TRIAL – The Association of Public Transport Operators (APTO) is not opposed to the recent decision by the Transport Authority to enforce the controversial five-minute rule for a trial period of two months. The body’s chairman Kenneth Kenny Best told Barbados TODAY while the decision had been accepted by its members, he was hoping that once the 60-day trial was over the authority would uphold its promise to share the information with permit holders of public service vehicles (PSVs). Just over a week ago, the Transport Authority informed PSV owners whose vehicles utilize the Constitution River Terminal (CRT) that they would be limited to using the loading bays five minutes in peak hours and ten minutes during off-peak hours. In a letter circulated to owners, the authority gave the assurance that data would be collected during that period and a report would be prepared and made available to PSV permit holders on its findings and recommendations. Best said he was satisfied that the authority had listened to some of APTO’s suggestions. “We put forward some proposals and after the meeting with APTO and AOPT [Alliance Owners of Public Transport], everyone came up with similar ideas for the improvement of the sector. “Some of our suggestions were taken into consideration because at one point it was a blanket five-minute rule and then we were able to get them to change it to peak and off-peak periods,” Best said.

“I would hope that the information and the data would be shared, so I am looking for that day to come so we would know where we’re at going forward.” Back in September, upset and irate PSV operators staged a protest following the authority’s decision to restrict their loading times in the CRT’s bays to just five minutes. A few days later the authority’s chairman Ian Estwick said following discussions, a decision had been taken to extend the loading time to ten minutes during off-peak hours ((5 a.m. to 6 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.) He pointed out that the five-minute rule during peak hours (6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.) would remain. Surprisingly though, Best said APTO members had accepted the authority’s most recent decision without much fuss. “We have had no complaints thus far. I don’t know if the other association had complaints but I haven’t had any complaints at all,” he said. Efforts to reach public relations officer for AOPT Mark Haynes proved unsuccessful. (BT)

DO MORE TO FIGHT VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN, CARIBBEAN URGED – Caribbean countries are being urged to do more to deal with the issue of violence against women as the region Monday joins the global community in observing International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. In a statement, the UN Women Multi-Country Office (MCO) Caribbean Representative Alison McLean said research conducted in the Caribbean in the past two years reinforced that violence against women and girls (VAWG) including rape is so entrenched and normalised that both men and women have a high tolerance for its manifestations. She said notwithstanding women’s well-known and often-touted gains in public life and the introduction of laws, policies and initiatives to promote women’s equality, prevailing socio-cultural attitudes that perpetuate unequal and hierarchical power relations reinforcing notions of female subordination and male domination, mitigate against these gains and in turn fuel VAWG. The UN Secretary-General’s UNiTE by 2030 to End Violence against Women campaign is focusing on rape as a specific form of harm committed against women and girls, in times of peace or war. The UN System’s 16 Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women and Girls activities is taking place under the global theme Orange the World: Generation Equality Stands Against Rape. McLean said that the UN Women-supported research, which is available for four Caribbean countries to date, shows non-partner sexual violence (NPSV) which includes rape, attempted rape, unwanted sexual touching, and sexual harassment, is reported at significantly higher rates than intimate partner sexual violence and a significant risk factor is being young. In Guyana, most women reporting sexual IPV reported being forced to have sexual intercourse when they did not want to and nearly as many women reported having sexual intercourse with their partner because they were afraid to refuse. On the other hand, one in every five women in Guyana reported non-partner sexual abuse in their lifetime; with a significant number experiencing this abuse before the age of 18. One-fifth of Jamaican women reported being sexually abused before reaching 18 years of age. Further one in seven women reported that their first sexual experience was before the age of 15 years. Under Jamaican law, the age of consent is 16 years old; any sexual intercourse under that age is statutory rape. The Suriname GBV prevalence survey revealed that the prevalence of NPSV among all women is almost double that of sexual IPV/intimate partner violence. In Trinidad and Tobago, the prevalence of NPSV is almost four times higher than that of sexual IPV. McLean said that without reliable and relevant data, it is not possible to adequately treat, reduce and prevent violence against women and girls. “UN Women has invested significantly in supporting member states in strengthening capacities to fill the data gaps on violence against women and girls. Working with regional partners, the Caribbean Development Bank and CARICOM, we developed the CARICOM Prevalence Survey Model. “The CARICOM Model is based on the long-tested global World Health Organization (WHO) model which is considered internationally to be the best practice for national, population-based studies on prevalence data on GBV.” She said this CARICOM model also “allows us to capture information on the consequences of GBV for women, their children and families, women’s help-seeking behaviours and risk and protective factors for violence. It allows in a real way for the voices of women and girls to be heard.” She said national-level efforts should seek to de-stigmatize the experience of intimate partner violence and to shift gender norms and roles in order to create a society in which violence against women is openly rejected and firmly addressed. Information on where women seek help and where they do not, should inform how services to support victims should be designed and located. Data on women’s and girls’ vulnerabilities, partner characteristics and other socio-demographic factors should guide how to prevent and respond to this violence,” she said. The MCO Caribbean Representative said UN Women, along with other UN agencies will be using the data gathered from these surveys to support national efforts to prevent intimate partner violence through school-based and community-based initiatives; including working with men and boys through Batterer Intervention and Prevention programmes and private sector initiatives that prevent work-related spillovers of family violence to create safe spaces at work. (BT)

MONEY NO PROBLEM FOR QUALITY DATA – Lawmakers were today warned not to allow the state of the economy to jeopardize the country’s chances of having quality and up-to-date information so better decisions can be made at all levels. Francisco Javier Urra, the Inter-American Development Bank’s Chief of Operations for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean suggested that the hemispheric bank would provide the funds to help nations gather reliable data. Urra was speaking at the opening of the Caribbean thematic conference: Managing a Statistical Organization in Times of Change at UN House on Monday. Acknowledging that Barbados was currently undergoing an International Monetary Fund-backed (IMF) programme, Urra said it was now common for the IDB, which is also providing support, to have regular discussions with Government about making “strategic choices about budget allocation”. He declared: “We at the IDB, we believe that undermining the capacity of a country to have solid and accessible data would be a terrible mistake.” Stressing the importance of timely statistics for “good decision-making”, the IDB official said poverty and other issues facing the region were becoming more complex, required “good data” in order to find solutions. Urea said: “This is why for policymakers, for high-level officials, for those who try to enable policies that are cross-cutting, having that ground it is almost like a beacon in this time of austerity and this time of information and fake news. “So the role of having strong statistical offices is more relevant than ever.” Over the last two decades, the bank had provided $60 million (US$30 million) in the form of loans and technical assistance for the region’s statistical development. Barbados is in line for an $80 million (US$40 million) IDB loan to help modernize the public sector, including the upgrading of the Barbados Statistical Service (BSS). Praising Government for its modernization efforts, Urra disclosed that the loan should be approved by Wednesday. But he pointed out that while Barbados and other Caribbean countries performed “relatively well” in a number of areas of development when compared to Latin America and other countries, there was a lack of quality data, which he described as a “complicated situation”. Declaring that adequate data “goes beyond the walls” of the national statistical departments in the region, Urra said the IDB was willing to work closer with those agencies so they could help to strengthen the data collecting capacity of ministries and other agencies. Pointing to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) as an example of an institution that was lacking critical data, Urra pointed out that without critical statistics it would be difficult for the island’s main medical institution to get technical assistance from some development partners. While the digitisation of the BSS has started, the agency’s work has been set back by a lack of money and manpower. BSS director Aubrey Browne said the last modernization exercise ended two years ago with recommendations for a change in the agency’s organizational structure so that several units would produce statistics to be fed into a national digital database which would then be available to the public. Browne said: “One of the things we really have to work on now is developing a release calendar for the release of statistics. “We still have a way to go in terms of that development and the main challenge is [not] having the available resources to support the statistical organizations. “As you would be aware we are still operating under an IMF programme so we are having challenges in allocating resources. That is the main challenge we are facing at this time. “So right now we are operating at less than optimal situation.” Browne give an assurance that Government was moving with alacrity to sort out the BSS’s issues. Statistician with the CDB Dindial Ramrattan warned that demands from residents were constantly increasing, and if officials were not ready to deliver timely and adequate data they would have to contend with “fake news” and incorrect use of available information. Adding that the increased data demand was also driving increased scrutiny, and that technology was changing the way information was being shared, he said national data collecting agencies should operate in a timely and efficient manner by being “proactive, reactive and responsive”. The CDB official also urged Caribbean countries to learn from each other, development partners and the rest of the world, as he called for a change in mindset “where we are more social in how we deal with our matters, recognizing that social media, while our best friend with free marketing and free publicity, is also our biggest critic that is not always with accurate facts”. (BT)

FOUR MAIN REASONS WHY YOUTH CAUGHT IN CRIME WEB – With more than six out of ten ex-convicts caught in a criminal justice revolving door, the Government’s top crime researcher and a panel of experts worry that an “unforgiving society”, childhood trauma, drug abuse and mental health issues work to keep young people trapped in a life of crime and violence. Director of the Criminal Justice Planning and Research Unit, Cheryl Willoughby, expressing concern at the rate at which people who had been jailed end up back behind bars also noted that many employers appear to punish ex-cons after they’ve paid their debt to society – by refusing to hire them. She said: “The recidivism rate is now over 65%, and in our research, we found that substance abuse problems were among the factors contributing to this, along with mental health issues that they were being treated for in prison but they stopped after they were released. “Another matter that concerns us is when we look at unemployment of ex-offenders, 70 per cent of employers said they never employed anyone who went to prison, and 50 per cent said they would not employ anyone who had gone to prison.” Willoughby was among experts appearing in a Barbados Society of Psychologists’ panel discussion on Preventing Youth Violence at the Barbados Public Workers Cooperative Credit Union’s Harcourt Lewis Centre. Principal Consultant at the Potter Centre, Toney Olton blamed a lack of job opportunities for ex-prisoners on an “unforgiving society”. He added: “A lot of places are asking for Police Certificates of Character as well, and if the Certificate of Character does not expose the person’s past, someone in the community will call and let the employer know the person has a criminal record, which jeopardises them in the job.” But the experts agreed there was little attempt to get to the real root of youth violence and crime or seek to understand the psychological issues behind the rising tide of homicides and assaults. Olton said: “All learning has an emotional basis. In today’s society, the busyness of parents and guardians means that they are spending less time with their children, and have replaced affection and guidance with material things. “Many of our children also experience abuse and neglect fuelled by frustrated and emotionally unintelligent parents and the fragmentation of the family unit.” In comparing the violence to a volcano, Olton declared: “Once the lava is spitting, there is a lot going on under the surface; and in this case, the lava we are not seeing are feelings of inadequacy, inferiority, feelings of abandonment, unresourcefulness, sadness, depression, resentment and anger.” Primary Coordinator at the Substance Abuse Foundation, Allison Gotip, said while the majority of her clients were between the ages of 18 and 35, two children aged 13 and 15 are now on her list. Childhood trauma, such as abuse in all its forms, tended to lead to addiction, violent behaviour or even suicide, she said, expressing concern that children were not allowed to express their emotions freely and there was still too much of a stigma attached to mental health issues in Barbados. Gotip said: “We must allow our children to have a voice, to start listening to them and have meaningful conversations with them. “We have also found that when people come into our facilities in the throes of addiction, they have a lot of undiagnosed mental illnesses because there is a stigma to having mental illnesses over here. “So with all that suppression, along with domestic violence, divorce and separation, a lot of children deal with these, and statistics show that those who have experienced four or more adverse childhood experiences are more likely to commit suicide or suffer with depression.” Dr Sherri-Ann Catwell, the Senior Registrar at Ward C4 of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, said most of her patients had experienced a traumatic situation in their home. She told the audience: “A lot of these people came from families with a lot of interpersonal conflict, had bad relationships with peers, were exposed to abuse or drugs, and there was an association between suicide attempts and violent behaviour when exposed to drugs early.” Some of the solutions the panel identified entailed getting parents and grandparents involved in discussions on why their charges were acting out, since the behaviour was often fuelled by what they experienced in the home, or unresolved trauma the parents or grandparents themselves had never addressed. Olton also suggested a greater emphasis on emotional intelligence, that is, helping people to understand what influenced their behaviour and showing them more appropriate ways to deal with the challenges they faced. (BT)

EDEN LODGE PRIMARY DEFACED – Students of the Eden Lodge Primary School had to be temporarily relocated this morning after offensive graffiti was discovered on several walls of the school. The Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF) was called in and the school given a security sweep, while students were housed at a nearby church. After conducting investigations, members of the RBPF gave the all clear for students to re-enter the school around 10:43 a.m. Officials from the Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training have covered the graffiti temporarily. The Ministry plans to have the walls repainted this weekend. (BGIS)

ST PHILIP MAN SLAIN IN SHOOTING INCIDENT IN ‘VIETNAM’ – Barbados TODAY now understands the residence is that of his two-year-old son and the child’s mother, 41-year-old Nichole Alleyne which he visited from time to time. Efforts to speak with Alleyne were unsuccessful as she was finally resting after enduring a sleepless night. A close relative and neighbour informed Barbados TODAY the incident occurred during the night, when most people were sleeping. The source however was awakened by what sounded like someone “killing a centipede with a shoe”. Residents later found out it was the sound of numerous bullets being fired. At the end of the gunshots, Scarboro was left dead at the residence where a four-year-old girl, a 21-year-old woman and their mother also lived. “The youngest child wasn’t able to see what occurred, but the girl that is four saw everything, and even when the officers came they said she would need counselling,” the source recalled, while indicating it was extremely difficult to get them to sleep after the commotion. Residents however indicated they knew very little about the dead father, who they saw in the area sometimes. At his Farm Road home in the same parish, a male middle-aged male answered the door. While declining to identify himself, he indicated that none of Scarboro’s family members were at home and he did not know the young man well. Next door, one woman said she did not know the young man well but was shocked to hear of his passing. (BT)

ACCUSED MUST ALLOW FINGERPRINTING – Allegations that a 42-year-old man robbed another at gunpoint while on Glendairy Road have resulted in remand time at Dodds prison. Matthew Mortimer Phillips, of Lennox Avenue, Goodland, Black Road, St Michael is accused of robbing Rommell Nanton of $15,000 in jewelry on October 18. The jewelry comprised a chain and pendant as well as a ring. The unemployed man was not required to plead to the indictable charge before Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant today. He is also charged with using a firearm on the same date in commission of the crime. Before he was remanded, the magistrate imposed an order that Phillips allows lawmen to fingerprint him. Phillips will reappear before the No. 2 District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court on December 23. (BT)

SURETY TO FORFEIT BAIL MONEY – Not only did a woman who absconded from court lose her freedom for the next few weeks but her surety now has one month to pay half of the bail amount or she too will find herself behind bars. “Ms Marshall has been missing from the court for a long time. It took a new charge sheet to get her back here,” Station Sergeant Cameron Gibbons told the No. 2 District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court today about the accused Kesha Melissa Fiona Marshall. The 33-year-old, of Dunscombe, St Thomas had been before Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant on two offences allegedly committed on April 25, 2017 – refusing to leave the premises of Savings Plus Supermarket when told to do so by a person in authority and assaulting Selvin Lovell causing him bodily harm. She had been on $3,000 bail since her first appearance after denying the charges. The accused however, appeared in the No. 1 District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court on November 22 on a theft charge to which she entered a not guilty plea. She was again granted $3,000 bail but it was revealed that warrants had been issued for her for failing to attend court on the pending matters. “When I came to court last Friday and they said I missed court . . . but I was in prison until last year May,” Marshall told the magistrate. However, a check of the court’s records showed that she had not been before court since July 2018. “You were given the date of July 20, 2018. You were not in prison then,” Cuffy-Sargeant said even as the accused’s surety said that she would like to say something. The surety explained that she had only come to court today because she had been informed that Marshall had missed a March date last year. But the magistrate pointed out that it was now November 25 and “You are coming here . . . for a date in March 2018? She is your responsibility as a surety. She has been MIA (missing in action) since July 20, 2018. The bail sum is $3,000 you have to pay half of that.” The magistrate then gave the surety a month to pay the court $1,500 or spend three months in prison. The accused Marshall meantime was remanded to Dodds to reappear before Cuffy-Sargeant on December 20. (BT)

PATIENT STEALS DOC’S PHONE – Sticky-fingered glaucoma patient Paul Devon Francis has been placed on a bond for the next 12 months for stealing a cellular phone belonging to a health care official at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. If the convicted No. 12 George Street, Belleville, St Michael resident breaches the order imposed on him today by Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant, he will spend six months in prison. The complainant Kristen Da Silva had completed an examination on Francis when she left the patient room for talks with the doctor. On return to the room she noticed Francis closing his bag near to the area where she had left her $3, 260 cellular phone. Thinking nothing of his actions at the time, she gave him his six months appointment, and continued performing her duties. It wasn’t until sometime later that Da Silva realised that her electronic device was missing. The matter was reported after she was unable to locate it despite checks. “She is the doctor that check my eye cause I have glaucoma. I ain’t no tief. I ain’t know why I get in that deh. I should have never taken it. She had leniency on me, so I don’t know how you can deal with it. I suppose to have another appointment at the hospital to check my glaucoma. I won’t let it happen again because it ain’t me,” the convicted man said. The police report said that Francis admitted that he had sold the device and purchased a pair of slippers and a phone with the money. The stolen phone was recovered. “At least I feel good that she get back her phone,” Francis said prompting the magistrate to tell him that he was missing the point. “No ma’am I should not have taken up it”. (BT)

ARCHER SUBJECTED TO RACIAL ABUSE – New Zealand Cricket says it will apologise to Jofra Archer after the fast bowler received “racial insults” from a member of the crowd following his dismissal during the first Test against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui. Archer made 30 from 50 balls on the final afternoon of the match, but was unable to prevent New Zealand from sealing an innings-and-65-run win to go 1-0 up in the two-match series. However, that achievement was overshadowed shortly after the finish, when Archer tweeted about the treatment he had received as he left the field at the end of his innings. He said: “A bit disturbing hearing racial insults today whilst battling to help save my team, the crowd was been amazing this week except for that one guy, @TheBarmyArmy was good as usual also.” In a statement, NZC said that the perpetrator had not been located, but that the board would be in touch with Archer to apologise. “New Zealand Cricket will be contacting, and apologising to English fast bowler Jofra Archer, who was racially abused by a spectator as he left the field at the conclusion of the first Test at Bay Oval, Mt Maunganui,” read the statement. “Although security providers at the venue were unable to locate the perpetrator, NZC will be examining CCTV footage and making further inquiries tomorrow in an endeavour to identify the man responsible. “NZC has zero tolerance towards abusive or offensive language at any of its venues and will refer any developments in the case to police. “It will contact Mr Archer tomorrow to apologise for the unacceptable experience, and to promise increased vigilance in the matter when the teams next meet in Hamilton.” Archer later confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that the abuser had been a solitary New Zealand spectator, making comments “about the colour of my skin”. He also claimed that the same person appeared to have contacted him via Instagram with further insults. “I don’t think it would happen in England,” Archer said. It was a tough match for England, but particularly Archer, who was required to bowl a marathon spell of 42 overs in New Zealand’s solitary innings, and came in for criticism for an at-times lethargic display. He picked up a solitary wicket, that of BJ Watling who top-scored with 205, but also served a reminder of his menacing attributes when he struck Henry Nicholls a heavy blow to the helmet on the second evening. The ECB later confirmed that an investigation into the incident was ongoing, in conjunction with NZC, “NZC and ECB ensure that clear guidelines are in place at every venue so that watching a cricket match is safe and enjoyable for everyone,” said the ECB in a statement. “Whilst this is a relatively isolated incident there is absolutely no place for anti-social or racist behaviour within the game and it is vitally important that all spectators feel able to come forward to report such behaviour and feel safe in doing so.” (BT)

WALES, ELLERTON WINS SET UP FINAL DATE – Weymouth Wales emphatically booked their spot in next Sunday’s Capelli Super Cup final after a pulsating 3-1 win over arch-rivals Barbados Defence Force Sports Programme (BDFSP) in their semi-final clash on Sunday night at the Wildey Turf. Wales have had the longest and arguably most difficult route to the final, but saved their best performance to date for the clash with the BDFSP, with goals from Romario Harewood, Shaquille Boyce and Walton Burrowes settling the matter for the Carrington Village side. In the other semi-final, Crane and Equipment Ellerton prevailed over difficult playing conditions and earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory over the University of the West Indies (UWI) Blackbirds. (DN)

KOLIJ SWEEP THE POOL – The Kolij Lions didn’t seem to miss top swimmers Danielle Titus and Nkosi Dunwoody. Without the two who are now competing under the SMS Cougars banner after helping the Lions to several triumphs in the pool, Harrison College secured the girls’ and boys’ titles during the finals of the Secondary Inter-School Swimming Championships at the Aquatic Centre yesterday. They took the girls title with 273 points and were followed by Christ Church Foundation and The St Michael School with 176 and 165 points, respectively. The boys reigned supreme with 540 points, Queen’s College placed second with 327 and St Michael finished third with 311 points. (DN)

SLUICE GATE OPENING: BEACH TO BE CLOSED – The sluice gate at the Graeme Hall Swamp, Christ Church, will be opened on Tuesday. The Ministry of Environment and National Beautification says this is necessary to reduce the high water levels and to re-balance the swamp. As a result, Worthing Beach will be closed to the public from 6 p.m. tomorrow, until noon Wednesday. Red flags, which indicate no swimming, will be in place along the beach, and bathers are asked to adhere to the flags and any other signs erected by the National Conservation Commission. (BGIS)

UBER LOSES LICENCE TO OPERATE IN LONDON- Uber will not be granted a new licence to operate in London after repeated safety failures, Transport for London (TfL) has said. The regulator said the taxi app was not "fit and proper" as a licence holder, despite having made a number of positive changes to its operations. Uber initially lost its licence in 2017 but was granted two extensions, the most recent of which expires on Monday. The firm will appeal and can continue to operate during that process. London is one of Uber's top five markets globally and it has about 45,000 drivers in the city. Overall, there are 126,000 licensed private hire and black cabs in the capital. If its appeal is unsuccessful, some think Uber drivers would move over to rival ride-sharing firms such as Bolt and Kapten."There would be competition that would fill that void quite quickly," Fiona Cincotta, a market analyst at City Index told the BBC. TfL said it had identified a "pattern of failures" in London that placed passenger safety at risk. These included a change to Uber's systems which allowed unauthorised drivers to upload their photos to other Uber driver accounts. It meant there were at least 14,000 fraudulent trips in London in late 2018 and early 2019, TfL said. The regulator also found dismissed or suspended drivers had been able to create Uber accounts and carry passengers. In one example, a driver was able to continue working for Uber, despite the fact his private hire licence had been revoked after he was cautioned for distributing indecent images of children. Helen Chapman, director of licensing at TfL, said: "While we recognise Uber has made improvements, it is unacceptable that Uber has allowed passengers to get into minicabs with drivers who are potentially unlicensed and uninsured." London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: "I know this decision may be unpopular with Uber users, but their safety is the paramount concern. Regulations are there to keep Londoners safe." (BBC)

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