#the issue is most of what ive found is just biographies and like i already know that shit. i want a general literary analysis thats not | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bedtimestoriesforbrokengirls · 1 year

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This... Is BGNN

Things you might want to know, for Apr 18, 2023:

Netflix cancels second-ever livestream after 'Love Is Blind' reunion hit by technical issues — Gee, Netflix… ya need Twitch’s help or something? It’s not like you’ve spent a decade building out the biggest streaming infrastructure in the world, right?

The first CRPG is a min-maxing hell you can - and should - break — I played countless hours of Ultima III & IV back in the day, and even owned a biography of Richard Garriot that was released around the time of Ultima VI. I think it would have been fair to call me a fan. But I wouldn’t have wasted five minutes of my time of Akalabeth, ‘cause it was already antiquated by ‘83.

Mythic Quest's F. Murray Abraham Was Allegedly Fired for Sexual Misconduct — This is one of those surprising-yet-completely-predictable headlines.

Hollywood Writers Just Took a Huge Step Toward Going on Strike in May — Most of y’all were too young to appreciate the impact at the time, but the 2007 Writers Strike was a big deal. It disrupted the early seasons of Breaking Bad, directly resulted in the creation of Dr. Horrible, and extended the 2000s-era reality TV boom by a few more years.

Oklahoma county leaders caught on audio talking about killing reporters and complaining they can no longer lynch Black people — That they were saying it isn’t shocking. What’s surprising is that they were saying it openly, in a group of more than two, without bothering to encode anything or give themselves a trace of deniability… they were speaking without a hint of fear.

‘The Idol’ Gets Provocative New Trailer, Official Premiere Date

The End of Computer Magazines in America — This one is a bit of a heartbreaker for me. I wanted to grow up to write for one of those magazines when I was a kid… it never happened, but it was a dream. In fairness, the “real” magazines —like Byte— have been gone for many years, and the scraps that remained were a pale shade of what came before. But still… I miss my 800 page copy of Computer Shopper.

This set of TV catchphrases is pure Gen X nostalgia

Anna Nicole Smith Doc Examines the Troubled, Misunderstood Life of the Late Superstar Model

Cocaine worth nearly $440 million found floating in the sea off Italy

Rainn Wilson calls for 'Soul Boom' revolution: 'We are spiritual beings having a human experience'

‘Phantom Of The Opera’ Takes Final Bow On Broadway; Andrew Lloyd Webber Dedicates Show To Late Son — I never got to see it on Broadway, but I listened to the soundtrack about 10,000 times in my early 20s, which is directly responsible for me owning several Michael Crawford CDs.

A ‘Morning-After Pill’ for Sexually Transmitted Infections Is Almost Here

AT&T launches medical radar device that monitors older adults through walls

Adobe Firefly's new AI tools aim to cut down drudge work for editors

#news

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allgarbo · 3 years

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So ive been reading this book, the girls sappho goes to hollywood, and i can't help but think that the writer is somewhat biased towards Garbo? I am in the middle of it and the writer seems to point out always three things, how Garbo was mistreating Mercedes, how Salka was scheming against of their relationship and how every actress wanted to get into Garbo's pants (the only believable thing in this book lol). I mean, people wouldn't just leave her at peace, Jesus. Have you read the book? It also makes a wild assumption of Greta's and Marlene's encounter, it is pretty bonkers. Of course, if you know anything else about the two of them together, please share your info, i will gladly appreciate it

you're absolutely right! i have never been able to read this book precisely because i think the same thing as you. it's totally biased. i think the book is interesting when you're looking for gossip and trivia but to be honest a lot of the stuff that diana mclellan said was made up. about garbo's relationship with mercedes is a very complicated subject. it was a relationship that started very well and ended very badly. mercedes' personality was not so easy to deal with and as we already know, garbo also had her issues. i don't believe this information about salka. what i remember about salka talking about garbo's relationship with mercedes was after mercedes released "here lies the heart", saying that everything mercedes said in the book was a lie. about marlene, i love to joke that marlene lied about never meeting garbo but we don't really know if they ever met. in an orson welles biography he says he introduced marlene to garbo at a party but we don't have evidence like photos, videos... (i don't know why he would lie about that but okay).

the story of how they met according to orson welles: “(...) Marlene was the Welleses' houseguest in the big house on Carmelina Drive, and she asked Orson to introduce her to Greta Garbo. When Dietrich began to be popular in Germany in the '20s, the press often compared her with Garbo. Orson recalls that Marlene absolutely ''worshiped" Garbo but had never found herself in a room with her. So he arranged for the actor Clifton Webb (who always entertained with his mother) to give a party to which they would invite Garbo, and to which Marlene would come with Orson so that the pair could meet ''inadvertently." (...) Orson and Marlene were already at Clifton Webb's party when Garbo arrived. It was only natural that Orson would take Marlene over to meet her. But when Dietrich complimented her peer by comparing her to a goddess, Garbo uttered nothing more than a polite thank you. Initially undaunted, Marlene kept praising Garbo, who persisted in saying thank you, over and over. That was the extent of their meeting, which ended finally when Marlene gave up earnestly trying to engage Garbo in conversation. On the way back to Carmelina Drive afterward, Marlene did not say a word until suddenly she turned to Orson to pronounce: ''Her feet aren't as big as they say!" Back home, a few drinks seemed appropriate, and Marlene got going on her subject. "They say, no makeup!" Orson remembers her having exclaimed. "She has beaded eyelashes! Do you know how long it takes to have your eyelashes beaded?" lol (source: orson welles - a biography by barbara leaming) there's also this one: “During his touring days in The Barretts of Wimpole Street long before, actor Brian Aherne had befriended Garbo. He was now divorced from Joan Fontaine and married to Eleonore de Liagre. The Ahernes lived in Vevey, Switzerland, and visited Garbo from time to time. In July 1964, they took her to supper with Noel Coward, who saw them again a few days later at the Geneva airport: "Brian, Eleonore and Garbo (quivering with neurosis) were on the plane.“ Eleonore once asked Jean Negulesco if he would mind dining with three ladies— the other two being Garbo and Dietrich. "GG complained about the neighbor living in the apartment over hers,” Negulesco recalled. “He was building a new bath. Noise and copper pipes came through her ceiling. Marlene was comparing the rising prices from day to day on fruit and fresh vegetables. Two of the most famous women in the world exchanging banalities and kitchen talk!” x (source: garbo by barry paris) and that's all i remember about a possible meeting between garbo and dietrich. i bought a biography called garbo: her story by anton gronowicz and didn't need to read more than 10 pages to identify countless lies about her. there's so many opportunists, it's very easy to make up lies about someone like garbo. i’m glad you questioned what you read.

#ask

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btvs · 5 years

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Idea for a Study on Celebrity Mental Health

I wrote this for a psych class a few months ago; I’m really interested in this topic but I have no idea why I’m posting it here. I took out section III: the experimental design, but the rest of it is exactly how I turned it in. I guess if anyone is interested in this kind of thing, feel free to read it and check out the sources. Please do not take any of this without credit.

I. INTRODUCTION

There needs to be more research on the topic of celebrity mental health. The number of drug-related celebrity deaths seems to be increasing rapidly, and it is a huge problem. There are no popular studies on specifically why this is happening. Most of the articles I have looked at have delved into the effects of fame, but not specifically relating to the media. I am wondering how or if a celebrity’s mental health is affected by the media’s articles after the celebrity’s breakdown.

My hypothesis is that celebrities’ lives and mental states are affected somehow by the media’s coverage of the celebrity’s downfall. A study that I would like to conduct is interviewing magazine writers, bloggers, and other people in the media who write about celebrities. I would also like to interview the people that read those sources to understand their opinions of the celebrities from those sources, as well as people’s opinions of celebrities who do not read those media. Most of the sources I looked at all had a common theme: being a celebrity is difficult. I want to know why and how specifically, and how it relates to celebrity downfalls that are caused by drug use. What influence does the media’s perception of celebrities have on those celebrities?

II. ANALYSIS

Amaral (2016) addresses what the psychological impacts of fame are for celebrities and entertainers. This author wants to create more awareness of the effects of fame. The conclusion of the study is that there is a strong correlation between fame and a celebrity’s mental health. This correlation is not enough to be sufficient evidence though, since there could be many reasons why many celebrities end up with psychological disorders. For example, maybe they have a similar personality type that affects their behavior. Because of this, there needs to be another study done that can confirm the causation. Most of the author’s evidence comes from media and biographies because of the lack of information in research and articles, which is why there should be more studies on this topic. The three main topics of a celebrity’s life that the author explores are lifestyle risks, lack of personal space, and fall from grace. This article does relate to my topic because it is about the impacts of fame on celebrities, but it is not specific to drugs and the media. This study could apply to my hypothesis, but a new, more specific study would prove the causation more accurately.

In the article “Stars that crash,” the authors, M. Commons, L. Commons-Miller, R. Salaita, and C. Tuladhar, noticed that many celebrities have “downfalls”, and the issue brought up is that there are a lot of risk factors that contribute to these downfalls. The conclusion of the article is that the main risk factors are narcissism - and the reasons for that narcissism - in addition to environmental factors. Narcissism is a completely different reason than in my hypothesis, because my hypothesis addresses the risk factor of the media, and not personality types. Also, along with being a personality trait, narcissism has its own disorder (Narcissistic Personality Disorder), which makes no sense relating to my hypothesis because it is saying that a mental disorder leads to mental disorders. However, it is still the same overall topic of celebrity downfalls. The focus on narcissism is not where I want to go with my study, so I would like to create a new study that takes out that aspect. The study looks at eighteen celebrities who have experienced some kind of downfall, and looks at their whole life before the downfall, specifically the vulnerability factors displayed in childhood and before fame. There was also evidence that there is a positive correlation between the amount of risk factors and the larger the downfall. This correlation may or may not have a causal relationship; there could be other factors that contribute to the size of the downfall.

A study by V. Leung (2018), researched people’s perception of celebrities with MDD. The author’s conclusion is that people respond differently to celebrity diagnoses; some are sympathetic and others question the diagnosis. Interviews were conducted to discuss the topic of celebrities with MDD. Some of the interviewees did not see MDD as a personal issue, so they were not interested in learning more about it. Fans knew more about MDD because when celebrities talk about MDD it brings awareness to the disorder. This study has a similar conclusion and findings as my proposed study, although the topic is slightly different - this one is about depression while mine would be about addiction. Depression and addiction are often comorbid, which makes this article analogous to the article by J. M. Just, M. Bleckwenn, R. Schnakenberg, P. Skatulla, & K. Weckbecker (2016). This article points out that celebrities have a high risk of a drug-related death. The authors’ conclusion is that since celebrities also influence many people, celebrities have the ability to approach and combat the opioid epidemic. This hypothesis was not really researched, though, and instead the authors found that the opioid-related deaths of celebrities has been increasing, and as well as the general population. Both of these articles talk about the fact that yes, being a celebrity has consequences, and also they can bring awareness to those problems because they are celebrities and people will listen to them. In my hypothesis, I do not want to focus on how people will listen to the celebrities, but how people will listen to the media. My study would add on to this topic by providing a new point of view because of the different subject. This study already supports my hypothesis by acknowledging that some celebrities have mental illnesses.

The article by Rockwell (2005) is about the experience of being famous, according to celebrities. The study found that there are specific things that multiple celebrities talked about in relation to “self” and “other.” The author used a method called transcendental phenomenology to examine the celebrities’ experiences in the world. The fifteen celebrities interviewed were famous for different reasons. This article was interesting to me, but the study is not big enough to help my hypothesis. My study would also interview celebrities, but have a larger number of participants. It does provide some support for my hypothesis by actually being evidence from celebrities, proving that celebrities actually feel this way.

Sansone’s article (2014) brings up the question: is celebrity worship more than just being a casual fan? The author’s conclusion is that people who worship celebrities have poor mental health and distinct psychosocial characteristics. There is a scale specifically designed to measure celebrity adulation. College students and community members were examined using these types of scales. People who scored highly also exhibited the same certain traits. The author also notes that since celebrity worshipping is on a scale, these results make sense. The cause and correlation of this study is that being a fan of a celebrity will lead to certain characteristics. This study really has nothing to do with celebrities’ mental health, only the mental health of their fans, which is interesting but still does not support my hypothesis. The one connection that I can make is that celebrities and mental health are connected. Specifically, it makes me wonder if fans worshipping celebrities might impact the celebrities’ mental health by putting pressure on them to be seen as role models. What my study will prove is how the media and celebrities are directly connected, not just indirectly connected through the fans.

The article by R. Tiger (2015) explains that the media, specifically celebrity gossip blogs, spread information about celebrity addiction. This author’s conclusion seems to be that these blogs are contributing to the idea that addicts need to be in jail, and other biases, as well as having complete misinformation about what addiction is. The author did a case study of one blog, Perez Hilton, and the bias about addiction from that blog. This is the study that most relates to my topic, but the one thing I would really want to change is making it a bigger sample size, rather than one case study. Case studies can provide a lot of good information, but it cannot be applied to the big picture.

IV. SUMMARY

My hypothesis is that celebrities’ lives, specifically their mental health, have been affected somehow by the media’s coverage of the celebrity’s downfall. This is because the celebrity already would have to deal with the trauma of the event, and then on top of that, the media talking about it in ways that may not be accurate, or giving the celebrities flashbacks.

I predict that there is a correlation between the media spreading rumors - or even true facts - and celebrities’ mental health because it is distressing for anyone to have to deal with gossip. My experiment will help the issue because it might prove that the media affects celebrities negatively - which could let people know how to prevent more celebrity deaths.

References

Amaral, R. M. M. (2016). Bright lights, dark shadows: An integrative literature review of the psychological consequences of celebrity and fame for entertainers (Order No. 10010979). Available from ProQuest Central. (1766154458). Retrieved from https://login.glacier.sou.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1766154458?accountid=26242

Commons, M. L., Commons-Miller, L., Salaita, R. J., & Tuladhar, C. T. (2014). Stars that crash. Behavioral Development Bulletin, 19(2), 100-110. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/h0100580

Just, J. M., Bleckwenn, M., Schnakenberg, R., Skatulla, P., & Weckbecker, K. (2016). Drug-related celebrity deaths: A cross-sectional study. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, 11, 6. Retrieved from https://login.glacier.sou.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1853177923?accountid=26242

Leung, V. S. Y. (2018). The disclosure of celebrity major depressive disorder diagnoses in hong kong: Its effects on public awareness and understanding toward the illness. Community Mental Health Journal, doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10597-018-0274-4

Martin, G., & Koo, L. (1997). Celebrity suicide: Did the death of kurt cobain influence young suicides in australia? Archives of Suicide Research, 3(3), 187-198. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1009629219195

Rockwell, D. (2005). Celebrity and being-in-the-world: The experience of being famous. Aphenomenological investigation (Order No. AAI3177630). Available from PsycINFO. (621074175; 2005-99024-012). Retrieved from https://login.glacier.sou.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/621074175?accountid=26242

Sansone, R. A., & Sansone, L. A. (2014). “I’m your number one fan”—A clinical look at celebrity worship. Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience, 11(1-2), 39-43. Retrieved from https://login.glacier.sou.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1560820316?accountid=26242

Tiger, R. (2015). Celebrity gossip blogs and the interactive construction of addiction. New Media & Society, 17(3), 340-355. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1461444813504272

#writing #pop culture #mental health #psychology

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carthanas · 4 years

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Biography

Aoife Sayre and Max Burbage had not expected the “gift” of their pregnancy with their soon-to-be daughter; Aoife was only seventeen at the time and still a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her parents demanded an immediate marriage between the two pureblood young adults upon Aoife’s graduation and instead she fled to the United States to stay with some of her distant relatives. The day of her graduation came and as the sun began to set upon that chapter of her life, the young, newly pregnant witch packed a few of her things and boarded a boat to the United States. She said goodbye to no one and only wrote a letter to her cousin Sonya as any indication of her plans. Unprepared to give up her freedom for expectation and duty, particularly because her family was not wealthy and a life of childrearing would likely amount to poverty for the sake of reputation, she spent the next year in the U.S. working with her cousins at the Ilvermorny School.

Aoife and Max were not in a committed relationship when she discovered she was pregnant. Max’s family was far more well-off, and though his parents were informed of the development Aoife never wanted to trap him into a marriage. There was never a shortage of cruel and sexist rumors in Hogwarts, whispers of young wixen securing their places in wealthy families with “unplanned” pregnancies, and at first that was exactly what his parents believed to have taken place. Max himself was upset as well, believing his life to be cut short for the sake of duty, but when Aoife fled he finally understood that to be exactly the opposite of what she wanted. After several months of searching, and with the help of her parents, he set out of the U.S. to go after her. When Max arrived he found Aoife stable and happy in a small apartment with a 5-month-old baby. Charity. Named for the gift of rebellion and independence that the new babe was to both of her parents.

ii.

The three stayed in the United States for another year making connections with MACUSA as Max worked his way into their offices. With Max’s encouragement Aoife reconnected with her parents and they likely would’ve stayed put had Aoife’s mother not fallen ill. They returned to the United Kingdom upon her diagnosis so Aoife could help care for her mother and daughter alongside a live-in mediwitch with their family. Max began working for the Ministry of magic, and a few days after Charity’s second birthday the pair celebrated their wedding.

The Burgbages lived in this multigenerational household through the decline and eventual passing of Aoife’s mother. Charity was the sole grandchild of two only-children, and despite the dramatic and somewhat shameful circumstances of her birth she was doted upon by each of her grandparents. For the Burbages, the ends justified the means; the events that led to her birth didn’t matter as much as the fact that two pureblood families had aligned in marriage and procreation. They were strict, strong, and secretive as a family, but under the influence of Charity’s bright and curious eyes they softened into loving grandparents. The Sayres were proud and stoic, but after thinking they had lost their only child due to their haughty expectations they, too, humbled somewhat in their ideas of arrogant supremacy.

iii.

Charity was allowed the run of the house as she was raised. The Burbages moved into a larger estate when she was 5 to accommodate their needs for her ailing grandmother and the frequency of her American cousins’ visits. Aoife began running a daycare from their house and Charity would attend her primary schooling during the mornings and return home to a yard and home filled with wixen children. She met most of her best friends this way, and during the summers her mother would employ two or three Hogwarts students to help with childcare and preschool. Max and Aoife Burbage were quietly very liberal in their beliefs and instilled in their daughter a sense of justice and duty to protect the weak and promote equality. Her grandparents reminded them that secrecy in these extreme believes was paramount as the political climate fell more and more in their conservative favor. For all intents and purposes, the Burbages re-established themselves as a respectable and well-loved family in the wizarding community despite the occasional whisper that they may not be as conservative as others might believe.

iv.

Charity’s maternal grandmother passed away a few months before she began attending Hogwarts. Her personality became more reserved at the time, and her ambition and leadership tendencies placed her in the Slytherin House after her mother. She was lucky that when she boarded the train at Platform 9 ¾ Charity already knew many students in her own and older years and it seemed she would have the pick of who and what she wanted to be with those connections.

As Charity aged she grew back into her warm personality; she was obsessed with Quidditch and attended every match until she was old and practiced enough to join the team as a Chaser. She wore her house colors with pride and boasted light-heartedly before every match that Slytherin would win, but she worked just as hard on the pitch for practices to back up her claims. No matter their House, Charity was always happy, willing, and able to go to the pitch to practice with any Quidditch player willing enough to face the winds and the weather. Her skin was constantly painted with windburn, strange tan-lines, bruises, and cuts, and she wore them like jewelry; a personal adornment of her dedication. When she wasn’t with her teammates or other Quidditch players she tutored younger students or volunteered to help her professors with classroom maintenance or grading. This was how she grew close to her Muggle Studies and Arithmancy professors; she’d rather spend hours marking third-year’s papers on a weekend than playing the game of popularity that many of her housemates found paramount.

She made many friendships across the spectrum of beliefs during her time. Charity found more value in connections with those of more liberal leanings. By her 7th year, one could not argue that Charity was a Slytherin; her name was announced time and time again at Quidditch matches and she was, in essence, a walking billboard for the House. However, Death Eaters were coming more and more into their power and pureblood supremacy grew its infestation in Hogwarts. Bloodtraitor was whispered after her in the halls, though very few students were willing and bold enough to say it to her face. It was as though she’d been issued a challenge and she took that demeaning label in stride as she eventually discovered that she would live to embody that word. Traitor to supremacy, friend to equality. That was what she wanted to be.

When Charity graduated Hogwarts, her Muggle Studies professor referred her to a friend in the Ministry and she soon had a job in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. She loved her position, but the atmosphere at the Ministry was drastically changing. Her father quietly retired as the new regime took over out of obligation to protect his family as rumors that her mother’s daycare may actually be working to aid fleeing muggleborns or bloodtraitors. With both Max and Aoife home, they were able to keep those rumors minimized to the occasional whisper from a disgruntled conspiracist in the dark corners of wizard taverns. Her paternal grandparents moved to an estate next door and the Burbage Estates became somewhat of a fortress of protection. Old money, new magic, and a quiet existence promoting childcare. Their old estate was left to Charity in their will, though for now it sits mostly vacant, upkept by house elves and the occasional visit from Mrs. Burbage. Unbeknownst the Charity, they were preparing for war. While the elder generation did not agree with Charity’s parents or their politics fully, they were determined to protect their small family whatever the cost. Fear and concern were expressed nightly amongst the grandparents, though those hushed conversations never reached Charity’s ears.

Many of Charity’s friends from Hogwarts had joined the Order of the Phoenix either in secrecy at school or in the basements of political “extremists” harboring only the need to do good. Charity joined as soon as she was asked, though for the most part she still keeps her head down both at work and in public. She rented a flat in downtown London and generally stayed weekends at her parents’ estate. Through this she learned that her parents were, in fact, offering safety to some who were struggling to leave the ever increasing danger of the U.K., often even using their cousin’s visits to smuggle people out of the country. While her parents refuse to pick a side, Charity certainly has, and is determined with youthful bravery to make a change in the world for the better.

#bio #about

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frmartinshomiliesandreflections · 5 years

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5th November >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Luke 14:15-24 for Tuesday, Thirty First Week in Ordinary Time: ‘Bring in here the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame’.

Tuesday, Thirty First Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)

Luke 14:15-24

'Not one of those who were invited shall have a taste of my banquet'

One of those gathered round the table said to Jesus, ‘Happy the man who will be at the feast in the kingdom of God!’ But he said to him, ‘There was a man who gave a great banquet, and he invited a large number of people. When the time for the banquet came, he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, “Come along: everything is ready now.” But all alike started to make excuses. The first said, “I have bought a piece of land and must go and see it. Please accept my apologies.” Another said, “I have bought five yoke of oxen and am on my way to try them out. Please accept my apologies.” Yet another said, “I have just got married and so am unable to come.”

‘The servant returned and reported this to his master. Then the householder, in a rage, said to his servant, “Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in here the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.” “Sir” said the servant “your orders have been carried out and there is still room.” Then the master said to his servant, “Go to the open roads and the hedgerows and force people to come in to make sure my house is full; because, I tell you, not one of those who were invited shall have a taste of my banquet.”’

Gospel (USA)

Luke 14:15-24

Go out quickly into highways and hedgerows and make people come in that my home may be filled.

One of those at table with Jesus said to him, “Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God.” He replied to him, “A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many. When the time for the dinner came, he dispatched his servant to say to those invited, ‘Come, everything is now ready.’ But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, ‘I have purchased a field and must go to examine it; I ask you, consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen and am on my way to evaluate them; I ask you, consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have just married a woman, and therefore I cannot come.’ The servant went and reported this to his master. Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ The servant reported, ‘Sir, your orders have been carried out and still there is room.’ The master then ordered the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedgerows and make people come in that my home may be filled. For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner.’”

Reflections (4)

(i) Tuesday, Thirty First Week in Ordinary Time

The beatitude spoken by one of the guests at the meal where Jesus is present looks ahead to the banquet of eternal life, ‘Happy the one who will be at the feast in the kingdom of God!’ However, the parable Jesus speaks in response to this beatitude shows that, whereas the banquet in the heavenly kingdom is future, the invitation to that banquet is a present reality. God is inviting people to that future banquet of life through Jesus. The parable suggests that God is a very persistent host. When those originally invited did not come, a new invitation went out at short notice to people in the town who rarely got an invitation to anything. Then when they responded and there was still room another invitation at short notice went out to another group beyond the streets and alleys of the town, until the banquet was full. Jesus is suggesting that God’s call, to the banquet of life is not in doubt; it is persistent. What is in doubt is our response. We can get so attached to the things of this world that God’s call gets drowned out. Reading a biography of John Henry Newman recently, it was said of him that he always had a sense of God present to him. He lived his life every day before God. Yet, he lived an extremely busy life, between his pastoral work and his lectures and writing. It is not busyness itself that prevents us from attending to God’s presence and call. Our response to the psalm was, ‘Keep my soul in peace before you, O Lord’. We are to live our lives before the Lord; we are to be present to his presence to us. Then we are more likely to notice his call, when it comes.

And/Or

(ii) Tuesday, Thirty First Week in Ordinary Time

The parable envisages a situation where people had already accepted an invitation to a feast and said they were coming. Then the second invitation went out just as the meal was ready, and it was at that point that they started to make excuses. Having initially said ‘yes’, they said ‘no’ at very short notice. Having said ‘yes’ to the invitation, they failed to follow through on it. Therein lies the challenge for all of us – to follow through on the ‘yes’ we make to the Lord’s call, to live out that ‘yes’ in the day to day affairs of our lives. The parable suggests that the Lord is determined that his feast would be a crowded affair. When the people originally invited said ‘no’, others were invited. There were to be no empty seats at table. The Lord’s determination cannot be questioned. He wants as many as possible to come to the banquet of life. What is at issue is our determination to respond. We might pray this morning that our response to the Lord’s invitation would be as persistent as his invitation, that our determination to be in communion with him would match his determination to be in communion with him.

And/Or

(iii) Tuesday, Thirty First Week in Ordinary Time

The householder in today’s gospel reading is a very determined host. He was determined to have people to dinner. The people that he originally invited and who had accepted his invitation changed their minds at short notice, just as the meal was ready. The host was disappointed and, indeed, angry. However, rather than give up on the idea of having a great crowd to a banquet, he sent out his servant to gather in the most unlikely of guests in that culture, the poor, the crippled, the blind, the lame, and complete strangers from the highways and byways. Come hell or high water, this householder was going to have a house full of guests. His desire to have people at his table was much stronger than the desire of some people not to be there. The householder’s tenacity speaks of God’s determination to gather as many people as possible into the banquet of eternal life. God remains a willing host even when he comes up against unwilling guests. Saint Paul expresses that conviction very succinctly, ‘where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more’. There is great consolation in that. Yet, even though God’s grace, God’s gracious initiative towards us, is powerful and enduring, it does require our openness, our willingness, our responsiveness, if God’s desire for our lives is to come to pass.

And/Or

(iv) Tuesday, Thirty First Week in Ordinary Time

In the gospels, especially in Luke’s gospel, Jesus is very often found at table. In this morning’s gospel reading he is guest at a meal hosted by a leading Pharisee at which other Pharisees and experts in the Jewish law were present. One of the guests utters a beatitude, ‘Happy the one who will be at the table in the kingdom of God’. In reply Jesus speaks a parable. Whereas the beatitude refers to a great feast in the future, Jesus’ parable is about a feast to which invitations have already gone out in the present. Jesus focuses people’s attention from the future to the present. The invitations have already gone out. What is to be our response in the present? In the parable, people who had initially said ‘yes’ to the invitation turn it down just as the meal was ready to be served, ‘Come along, everything is ready now’. They all get distracted by various worldly attachments, which are all good in themselves but are not the primary good. As a result of their refusal, a surprising invitation goes out to the kinds of people who would never get invited to anything. They have no strong attachments and are delighted to respond. The parable is a reminder to us to be attentive to the Lord’s invitation in the present moment and not to allow the good things of this world to so absorb us that we are not longer free to respond to his invitation as it comes to us in the here and now of our daily lives.

Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland.

Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

Parish Website: www.stjohnsclontarf.ie Please join us via our webcam.

Twitter: @SJtBClontarfRC.

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bestmarijuanaboutiques · 4 years

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Will Newly Developing Drug Breathalyzers Replace Other Forms of Testing?

New Post has been published on https://bestmarijuanaboutiques.com/?post_type=wprss_feed_item&p=23851

Will Newly Developing Drug Breathalyzers Replace Other Forms of Testing?

If you wish to re-publish this story please do so with following accreditation

AUTHOR: Judge Mary Celeste (ret)

PUBLISHER: CANNABIS LAW REPORT

Author Biography

Judge Mary A. Celeste (ret.) sat on the Denver County Court bench 2000-2015. She was the Presiding Judge 2009 and 2010 and the co-founder of the Denver County Court Sobriety Court. She is currently a law school professor teaching Marijuana and the Law at California Western School of Law and researcher under a contract with NHTSA and NORC on the topic of the prosecution of drugged driving cases. She is a former member of the Judicial Advisory Board member for the Foundation for the Advancement of Alcohol Responsibility (FAAR) and Faculty for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) and the National Judicial College (NJC). She has also served as the past chair of ABA National Conference of Specialized Court Judges; the President of the American Judge’s Association and the Colorado Women’s Bar Association Foundation, and, as a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Judicial Outreach Liaison. She has written many articles and is a national speaker on the topics of marijuana; marijuana and drug impaired driving, drugged driving and specialty courts. She has presented to AJA; ALA; NEADCP, NADCP, APPA, AJA, ABA, DATIA, NHTSA, NEADCP, Lifesavers, Pennsylvania DUI Association, Michigan and Louisiana Association of Drug Court Professionals and to Judges, Specialty Court Conferences, and Safety Highway Offices in the States of Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming and in Canada.

Contact: www.judgemaryceleste.com

For many years blood and urine testing for alcohol and drug detection has been the gold standard in the workplace, with law enforcement, and, in the courts. Blood and urine testing typically utilizes gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) in either a lab setting or on site and the results has been found to be scientifically admissible in a court of law. There are newly developing alternative testing devises that use oral fluid and drug breathalyzers. Several factors are contributing to the development and use of these alternatives.

The obvious factor is that blood and urine testing are more invasive techniques than oral fluid and breathalyzers. Another may be the length of time it takes to conduct the test or to send and get the results of the testing from an outside lab. Yet another factor is specifically related to law enforcement. Law enforcement has seized blood to check for driving impairment for alcohol and other drugs routinely without a warrant until recent U.S. Supreme Court cases[i] mandated a warrant first. The issuance of a warrant requires a review and execution by a judicial officer or judge. Because alcohol and drugs remain in the bloodstream for a somewhat short timeframe, with active THC leaving the blood within hours,[ii] this new mandate has made it difficult for law enforcement to speedily retrieve the blood. Blood retrieval requires licensed phlebotomist or medical personnel in a setting other than at the roadside. Some states have resorted to training law enforcement as phlebotomist to accelerate the process.[iii] This challenge has resulted in several states creating expedited warrant systems[iv] and prompted oral fluid testing pilots.[v] Roadside oral fluid testing is already in place in the UK, Australia, Canada and parts of Europe.[vi]

In the workplace context, urine testing is still premier, however there is growing usage of oral fluid testing so much so that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) “has established scientific and technical guidelines for the inclusion of oral fluid specimens in the Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs. It will allow federal executive branch agencies to collect and test an oral fluid specimen as part of their drug testing programs.”[vii]

Oral fluid testing although growing in popularity[viii] is not without some stated issues. “Oral ﬂuid collection is easy and noninvasive and is therefore a valuable alternative to blood in DUID cases. However, unlike blood, the composition of oral ﬂuid varies widely both intra-and inter-individually and the determined drug concentration depends on the way the oral ﬂuid is collected.”[ix] “One study of 301 drivers in Norway found that one of these oral fluid devices had a 14% false positive rate for marijuana, and 87% false positives for cocaine, compared with blood tests.”[x] Another study found the devices “frequently failed to detect high concentrations of THC with false negative rates of 9% and 16% respectively, When saliva THC concentrations were very low or negligible, with false positive rates of 5% and 10%”[xi] Even a legal challenge has been brought against the results of one of these devices.[xii] There may also be relatively hefty price tags for these machines[xiii] and no court scientific admissibility as of yet.

Alcohol breathalyzers have been used at the roadside by law enforcement for many years. These devices typically use infrared (IR) spectroscopy[xiv] and are admissible in court. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) maintains a conforming products list of breath alcohol devices approved for evidentiary use.[xv] Drug Breathalyzers are being heralded as the drug testing panacea as they are the least intrusive form of testing device. It is starting to make a showing with many companies jockeying for position in the marketplace. One company is currently involved in a law enforcement roadside pilot.[xvi] Another is postured to release their devise and has a pending patent for a marijuana car interlock.[xvii] Some of these devices test for a variety drugs while others test for marijuana[xviii] or marijuana and alcohol. With the exception of one devise being developed at the University of Pittsburgh who claims that they can accurately detect THC levels from breath,[xix] these devices cannot quantify the amount of the drug present although one company proports to be able to determine that marijuana was used within the last three hours.[xx]

These devices are also not without issues. Should the Pittsburgh devise come to fruition it could assist law enforcement in those states that set per se marijuana driving laws but per se levels aren’t always indicative of impairment.[xxi] “Even though a few states have enacted laws that attempt to put a limit on how much THC causes impairment, no consensus has been reached on what level is unsafe for driving.”[xxii] Also detecting that someone has used marijuana within the last three hours does not necessarily equate to driving while impaired or being impaired at the workplace. All of this just opens the door to toxicological arguments in the courts. If the objective is for law enforcement to establish probable cause for further roadside investigation or arrest swiftly, it would probably be cheaper to use saliva testing strips that are typically used as a screen in the courts and workplace.[xxiii] The strips do not quantify and merely identify a positive presence of a drug or alcohol. [xxiv]

Additionally, if the devise renders an actual THC level or does indeed determine that use occurred within the last three hours, it may be helpful to the workplace setting if any level is detected or if the three-hour timeframe unfolds during working hours, and, most importantly, it is a zero tolerance workplace. But again, like law enforcement challenges with breathalyzer results, arguments related to recent use could end up in the courts on the issue of impairment. There is also the caveat that there may be protections for the medical marijuana user/employee under local or state laws or appellate caselaw. For example, some states by statute or appellate decisions protect an employee who uses medical marijuana in hiring, discipline, testing and termination.[xxv] In this instance, the use may be legally acceptable which leaves the employer having to prove impairment. There is also the fact that these devices have not been found to be scientifically admissible in a court and may have a relatively hefty price tag.

Intelligent Fingerprinting technology that utilizes antibody nanoparticle science and sweat is not to be ignored.[xxvi] This device is optimally the least intrusive approach in that it only requires placing a finger on a pad and does not require any human secretion other than the antibodies and sweat. It meets the objective of identifying a positive use of a drug and does not proclaim to provide any specific levels or determine timeframes of drug use. For law enforcement and zero tolerance workplace environments, this may be incorporated for the purpose of establishing probable cause for arrest, further testing that is admissible in court, or potential workplace determinations like reasonable suspicion.

Whatever the devise or approach to drug testing, the old GC/MS science and technology should be respected primarily due to its admissibility in the courts where impairment issues are addressed and resolved. Unless these newly developing devices can establish that the underlying science and technology can meet the legal standards under case law for admissibility,[xxvii] which could happen with the right arguments and skills, they may only serve as good screening tools.

SOURCES

[i] Missouri v. McNeely, 569 U.S. 141 (2013); Birchfield v. North Dakota, 579 U.S. ___ (2016)

[ii] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3484320/; https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3570572/

[iii] https://www.azduiatty.com/law-enforcement-phlebotomy-program.htm; https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/msp/about/Documents/Law%20Enforcement%20Phlebotomist%20Training%20Announcement%202018-2.pdf

[iv] https://www.scottsdale-duilawyer.com/blog/2014/05/expedited-search-warrants/; https://www.sanantoniocriminaldefense.com/texas-criminal-law/new-program-may-expedite-blood-search-warrants-during-dwi-arrests

[v] https://www.chicagotribune.com/marijuana/illinois/ct-marijuana-roadside-drug-test-20191025-zr2ouoci6jfxdnjnjcifhtv3s4-story.html

[vi]https://www.chicagotribune.com/marijuana/illinois/ct-marijuana-roadside-drug-test-20191025-zr2ouoci6jfxdnjnjcifhtv3s4-story.html

[vii] https://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/press-announcements/201910290830

[viii] https://www.chicagotribune.com/marijuana/illinois/ct-marijuana-roadside-drug-test-20191025-zr2ouoci6jfxdnjnjcifhtv3s4-story.html; Journal of Analytical Toxicology, Volume 42, Issue 4, 1 May 2018, Pages 248–254,https://academic.oup.com/jat/article-abstract/42/4/248/4835625; http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/ct-met-police-drug-driving-test-20171205-story.html

[ix] https://www.academia.edu/20183595/Conventional_and_alternative_matrices_for_driving_under_the_influence_of_cannabis_recent_progress_and_remaining_challenges?auto=download

[x] https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/marijuana/illinois/ct-marijuana-roadside-drug-test-20191025-zr2ouoci6jfxdnjnjcifhtv3s4-story.html&ct=ga&cd=CAEYACoTMzIwMDg0MzcxMzU1NjI5Nzc3MTIaMTBjZDEwODM3OWJiODMzMDpjb206ZW46VVM&usg=AFQjCNHOqQiyLxk-s_PCnlcm3bH-qReOFA

[xi] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/dta.2687; see also https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/canadian-studies-suggest-thc-levels-may-not-measure-marijuana-impairment-accurately/Content?oid=21779434; https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-12/police-roadside-cannabis-drug-testing-devices-questioned/11502436

[xii] https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/pot-test-maker-standing-by-roadside-device-1.4559684

[xiii] https://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/index.php/2015-11-20-20-52-15/active-studies/62-ab266http://www.ksn.com/news/local/khp-equipped-with-new-device-to-fight-drugged-driving/1011654963

[xiv] https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/automotive/breathalyzer4.htm

[xv] https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2012-06-14/pdf/2012-14581.pdf

[xvi] https://www.timesdaily.com/news/drugged-driving-state-looks-for-more-information-prosecution/article_aedd94e0-efe6-5358-86ae-6f7472c687cd.html; https://landline.media/michigan-drug-testing-pilot-program-expands-statewide/

[xvii] https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2017/11/07/1176414/0/en/Cannabix-Technologies-Files-THC-Based-Ignition-Interlock-Patent-Application-and-Provides-Update-on-Marijuana-Breathalyzer-Development.html

[xviii] http://archive.bluelivesmatter.blue/how-marijuana-breathalyzer-works/

[xix] https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/marijuana-breathalyzers-blood-breath-thc-levels-law-driving/; https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190827123239.htm

[xx] https://houndlabs.com/

[xxi] https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.dot.gov/files/documents/812440-MJ-impaired-driving-report-to-congress.pdf at page 12; https://www.summitdaily.com/news/colorado-increases-in-MJ-opioid-use-are-clear-determining-whats-impaired-driving-is-not-so-easy/

[xxii] https://dui.findlaw.com/dui-arrests/a-marijuana-breathalyzer-is-here–but-skepticism-remains-high.html

[xxiii] https://www.confirmbiosciences.com/products/saliva-drug-tests/

[xxiv] https://www.confirmbiosciences.com/products/saliva-drug-tests/salivaconfirm-saliva-drug-test-premium/?msclkid=8d9697458c3f1a9e0e9cca8601347db0&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=New%20Saliva%20Drug%20-%20Desktop%20Tablet%20Heavy&utm_term=%2Bsaliva%20%2Bdrug%20%2Btest%20%2Bstrip&utm_content=Drug%20Test%20Strip%20(Saliva%2FOral%2FFluid)

[xxv] https://www.goodhire.com/blog/video-new-employee-protections-may-impact-your-marijuana-screening-policies; https://www.fox23.com/news/medical-marijuana-law-protecting-oklahoma-employees-set-to-begin/978551295; Barbuto v. Advantage Sales & Marketing, LLC, 477 Mass. 456 (2017)

[xxvi] https://smartox.com/intelligent-fingerprinting/technology/

[xxvii] Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923); Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993); Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael, 526 U.S. 137 (1999)

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