#I am NO supporter of Theresa May but I think even she would have done more than BoJo

[swanlake1998]

Article: Tokenism vs. Representation: How Can We Tell Them Apart?

Date: January 19, 2021

By: Theresa Ruth Howard

Last year's Black Lives Matter protests jolted the ballet world into action. All of a sudden, things that once "took time" instantaneously became easy fixes, like it was an episode of Oprah's favorite things for Black people: "You get an opportunity, and you get an opportunity!" Much of this sudden, reactionary change has elicited high levels of skepticism, prompting the query: Is this true representation or is it merely tokenism?

There is empirical data that white people seldom keep word when it comes to BIPOC individuals. Social justice (especially when it comes to Black people) has almost always been a trend, a tool wielded to benefit white people more in the end, and there usually is an end marked by a lull and a slow, silent rolling back of the majority of what has been accomplished.

In the early stages of addressing systemic racism, until companies have a proven track record, it will always be a "damned when you do, damned if you don't" situation. Trust must be earned. Nothing done will be enough because it feels like trying to make an ocean out of a desert with an eye dropper.

That is not to say that there isn't meaningful progress being made. We are in the midst of a global shift. Power is being redistributed, rules and criteria are being altered. The standards of what was once acceptable, or enough, no longer suffice. People are no longer just "grateful" to have a seat at the table—not only do they expect to eat, they want to help plan the menu. The truth is, we lack a suitable metric to measure this progress because we have never been here before.

What is “representation”? What exactly is “tokenism”? 



The Oxford Dictionary defines "tokenism" as "the practice or policy of making merely a token effort or granting only minimal concessions, especially to minority or suppressed groups."

The complexity of the question "What qualifies as tokenism and what as representation?" rivals that of Blackness itself. There is often a conflation perhaps because representation is part and parcel of tokenism, making it difficult to discern one from the other, or at what point it shifts. What it looks like for the bystander may not be how it is experienced by the person in the situation.

It is important to note that the act of being the "only" or one of a few does not in and of itself amount to tokenism. Too often that assumption is made by the public and it is unfair, reductive and wounding to those holding those spaces. What determines tokenism depends more on why and how someone occupies the space.

This is where the process of diversification gets slippery, manufacturing conflicts of confidence for Black dancers who, like sacrificial lambs, may question the reasons they were hired, cast or promoted. Were they given an opportunity for their talent, or because they are Black, and in what measure? These are often the speculative whispers from colleagues, classmates, parents and patrons. It is a psychological head trip to which one will rarely get a satisfactory answer.

The way diversification is approached says everything. When the motivations are authentic, there will be respect, sensitivity and mindfulness; an effort to cultivate cultural competence will be made. This requires a great deal of humility. In order to be able to interact effectively with people of different cultures, racial and ethnic backgrounds, you have to admit that you have blind spots, and are ignorant of things and, more importantly, are desirous to learn. This requires engaging them as human beings, not just tools as a means to an end.

Faculty additions 

The recent hiring of full-time Black faculty members at Boston Ballet School (Andrea Long-Naidu), Pacific Northwest Ballet School (Ikolo Griffin), San Francisco Ballet School (Jason Ambrose) and School of American Ballet (Aesha Ash) all came to fruition during the COVID-19 crisis and the BLM reckonings. All four schools were part of the Equity Project's 21-ballet-organization learning cohort—the three-year partnership between Dance Theatre of Harlem, Dance/USA and the International Association of Blacks in Dance that aimed to increase the presence of Blacks in ballet, onstage and off. (Full disclosure, I was a member of the design and facilitation team.) There were a number of school directors in the room, including BBS director Margaret Tracey, PNB's Peter Boal (artistic director of both school and company), SFBS's former administrator Andrea Yannone and director Patrick Armand, and SAB's chairman of faculty Kay Mazzo.

One of the constant discussions was the importance of having representation on school faculties; it was drilled into their psyches. There were multiple conversations, and eventually the ball started rolling downhill. Unfortunately, the news of these faculty additions was only made public after last summer's social media protests by Black ballet dancers, making them appear reactionary.

The announcements began with a cacophony of press about Ash's appointment at SAB, which was met with underground backlash. Much like the overwhelming coverage about New York City Ballet's first Black Marie in 2019, which other companies had been quietly and consistently doing for years (without fanfare), the jump over contrition and bolt towards heroism for many soured representation into tokenism. In contrast, when Balanchine took Arthur Mitchell into NYCB as its first Black principal dancer, Mitchell asked that there not be a press release heralding the advancement. Instead, he wanted simply to appear onstage as a matter of fact.

When you wave a flag too hard late in the game, and are overly pleased with the little you have done over decades, you get no pat on the back. Though pleased for Sister Ash, inherent distrust has the Black community sitting with its arms folded, watching and waiting to be served the pudding that holds the proof of change.

This is the flip side of the representation coin. Organizations can dust their hands off and feel good about the progress they have made, while the actual burden and responsibility of "representing" gets laid squarely on these new Black hires. Ironically, these Black instructors return to the space of racial isolation they inhabited as dancers, with one major difference: Now they are expected to be an agent of change.

With the media blitz around her being SAB's first full-time Black faculty member, Ash is very clear when I ask her what her role is. "I am a teacher," she says. "I am not there to transform the entire structure. I was hired to be a teacher and I am hyper-focused on being the best darn teacher that I can be."

Her refrain sounds exactly like most Black ballet dancers who just want to dance, but whose very presence is a statement of silent resistance to a centuries-old system of whiteness. With this lack of representation, coupled with the increased visibility via social media—whether intended or not—they are instantaneously branded as "role models," and saddled with the pressure of expectations from the public at large, the Black community specifically, as well as their organization.

For these new faculty members, if and when their institutions make a faux pas, you can be certain the first question will be "Where were they?" When presented with this reality, Ash resolutely replies, "Let's make it very clear that I'm not the executive director or the artistic director of the School of American Ballet. But if I see things that don't look right to me, I'm absolutely going to feel very comfortable going in there and saying 'This does not look right.' " She sees her role as a long-time member of the Alumni Advisory Committee on Diversity and Inclusion as the space to do that.

Conversely, when asked what Ash's role is, Mazzo replies—along with giving glowing compliments about Ash's teaching abilities—"We feel that we hired an activist who wants to make more change," referring to her creation of her Swan Dreams Project. "We'll look to her for her perspective, her opinions or insights or feedback. It'll carry an enormous amount of weight as we continue to evolve and learn. I think she might not even realize what that means."

It could well be within this sliver of obfuscation that genuine representation can curdle into tokenism—the space where boundaries are unclear and assumptions are made. There has to be an agreement and clear boundaries with veto power enabling a person to control the way their Blackness, gender, sexual orientation or identity (in body and voice) are utilized both internally and externally for it not to wander into the realm of tokenism.

A person's desire to participate (and to what degree) should not be assumed because they represent a particular demographic. Having your thoughts, feelings, experience and emotional labor taken into consideration is something that is often not afforded to marginalized people. Being granted the power of choice with regards to participation, though not the norm, would be equitable. In this way the truest measure of whether something is tokenizing lies with the person in the experience: If they have agency and are empowered, it matters little how things appear.

In extending the invitation to Andrea Long-Naidu to join the Boston Ballet School, director Margaret Tracey was clear: "I need someone like this to hold me accountable. Knowing Andrea's commitment to supporting the Black student in the white ballet world made me think this is the kind of person I need on my team." The discussions between the two solidified what feels like a developing partnership.

Long-Naidu is looking for a space that will allow her to stretch into her desire to be a part of the change, and influence the field's push towards diversification. "I want to be at a high-level ballet institution where I am working with dancers, where I can make a difference," she says. Over the past five years she has been stepping into her power, both as an educator and as an advocate. "I am finding my voice in this work. I want to be a part of helping predominantly white institutions be more welcoming for Black bodies."

It helps that the two share history as former NYCB dancers, allowing for the uncomfortable dialogue necessary both for the learning curve and the strengthening of the new allyship. They align in their growth journeys: Tracey is prepared to receive radical feedback and Long-Naidu is ready to share. "Andrea is my first hire where I have shifted my focus from whether this outside person is a good fit for us to making sure that our environment is not stuck in a place that may not allow someone like her to fit in," says Tracey.

Casting and marketing

We all want to see Black and brown dancers rise through the ranks. What we don't want is Black dancers being cast when they are not ready, or prepared for a role just for a company to showcase it has them. This is the epitome of tokenism and sets dancers up to fail, a luxury, by virtue of their Blackness, they do not have. Blackness is held to a different standard so unlike their white peers, whose failings are their own, the "representation" Black dancers carry comes with the heavy burden of the entire race.

Artistic directors might not view it this way when casting, but being culturally competent would mean taking this into consideration. When fast-tracking a Black dancer, true equity would mean providing the extra support (technical and emotional) they might need to have them succeed. Hence, it's not about what is normally done; it is about what is necessary in this instance.

Tokenism in casting can stigmatize the dancer amongst their peers and the artistic staff, setting off the cascade of whispering echoes of "They only got it because they are Black." Even though white people have been getting opportunities because they are white for eons, it creates yet another level of isolation, stress and vulnerability in a Black dancer, potentially crippling both their confidence and their career.

Ballet organizations that have been actively working to educate and examine themselves, and are successfully expanding recruitment, increasing diversity in training pipelines, company rosters, faculties and administration, are grappling with how to best communicate progress without tooting their own horns too loudly. This is the space between a rock and a hard place; if they quietly go about their work, no one will know, and if they promote too heavily it could be perceived as pandering.

This culture shift demands transparency. Gone are the days of blind acceptance; the people demand receipts. Ballet has seldom had to explain itself, aloft at the pinnacle of the dance hierarchy, supported by centuries of tradition, the very act of "showing" deemed beneath it. Those days are on the wane.

The majority of ballet companies use the traditional rankings system. Star power is real, ballet lovers are loyalist, and marketing campaigns often follow suit by using images of principal artists or those performing lead roles. Hence, when most of your diversity (specifically Black dancers) resides in the corps de ballet, purposefully diverting from the marketing norms to telegraph the presence of nonwhite artists is by definition tokenism.

That is, of course, if marketing followed that hierarchy to begin with. When Tamara Rojo took the helm of English National Ballet in 2012, the company underwent a rebrand, highlighting ENB as a company that tells stories. Together with Heather Clark Charrington (director of marketing and communications since 2014), she transformed the promotional black-and-white backstage images into evocative art pieces capturing a moment, feeling or mood of a work. Together, Rojo and Charrington identify the dancer who can best capture it, regardless of rank or role. Many times there isn't correlation between the dancer on the poster and the principals on the stage.

Ironically, this nonhierarchical norm had gone unnoticed until 2018, when the breathtakingly stunning poster of Swan Lake featuring Precious Adams was released, and comments about casting and tokenism were raised. This is a prime example of when righteous indignation based on assumptions and lack of knowledge results in possible collateral damage to the very person you are advocating for. If companies are expected to do better by their artists, then the public needs to check itself, as well.

We need new procedures and practices to check our work. If your whole marketing department is white, perhaps consider enlisting the eyes of nonwhite members of the organization or cultivating external critical friends to look through a different lens to vet images and copy. The trick is you have to trust and listen to their feedback.

COVID commissions

The call to give Black choreographers opportunities was right up there with the call for ballet teachers, and the excuse was the same: "We can't find them." It seems that the glow from the world being on fire illuminated the field such that suddenly Black choreographers could be seen raining from the sky like extraterrestrial squids in Watchmen.

Black folk have been in the game long enough to know that the majority of recent commissions are purely reactionary. "Of course when I received multiple commissions, it crossed my mind that it was in alignment with the Black Lives Matter movement…and being a Black woman I tick two boxes," says Francesca Harper, who has eight commissions on deck. "I have been creating films since the beginning of my career—two of the companies came to me specifically because I can create something for film."

However, the nagging question of Blackness versus talent conjures uncertainty. "You wonder, Are they really looking at me?" asks Harper. "Are they looking at my work? That, for me, is always a painful moment."

Darrell Grand Moultrie is another of the numerous Black choreographers the ballet world is now inviting to take center stage, albeit virtually. While he has choreographed repeatedly on Atlanta Ballet, Colorado Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Cincinnati Ballet, BalletMet, Ailey II, Milwaukee Ballet, Tulsa Ballet, Richmond Ballet, Smuin Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, when American Ballet Theatre's Kevin McKenzie called to extend an invitation, according to Moultire, McKenzie apologetically said, "Unfortunately, I have not been exposed to your work."

Before Moultrie accepted the commission to choreograph in a bubble for ABT's virtual gala in November, he made three things clear: "First of all, I wanted this to be on the Met stage," Moultrie says. The second was a commitment to make that happen post-COVID. The third was he wanted to up McKenzie's "exposure" to Black choreographers in the game. McKenzie agreed.

"I think my commission with ABT is Kevin opening up to see who is out here," Moultrie says. However, that work should have already happened: Over the term of the Equity Project (which ABT was a part of), names of Black choreographers were often bandied about, including veterans Donald Byrd, Robert Garland, the overlooked Christopher Huggins, and Jennifer Archibald, who deserves a bump up, and Amy Hall Garner, who is on the come up.

The "it takes time" and "we can't find" mantras are to some degree the by-product of a lackadaisical attitude. One can believe that these recent gestures are earnest attempts to right a wrong. But the ease with which it could have been done before (and was not) is insulting, and makes it look and feel like tokenism.

It always feels like when Black people's houses are on fire, white folk can't seem to find a cup of water to fill it, yet when their houses are ablaze, here we come with buckets and hoses, always in service. At this critical time when the world is operating in crisis mode and on the learning curve of working remotely and presenting digitally, it feels like Blackness is used as a convenient tool to get out of the diversity doghouse. The fact that these opportunities are being given with anemic budgets cannot be overlooked and one has to wonder if these commissions offer parity.

Black people are too familiar with this type of post-woke euphoria, white guilt and shame married to a need to save face, creating just enough access and opportunity to smother the flames. Then, slowly, things begin to settle pretty much where they were before.

That being said, this time feels different (though we say that every time) because the landscape and the rules have changed. Increased exposure, transparency, the power of influencers' individual platforms and call-out culture all make it possible for anyone to write or contribute to the narrative. This collaborative quilt of divergent perspectives, which in time will become history, will now include more voices and experiences, forming a mosaic revealing a more comprehensive picture.

The work that ballet is attempting is a process, not a project. As to whether or not this is sustainable representation or mere tokenism, Moultrie sums it up this way: "We know what is happening right now is just a reaction. A good reaction, but only time will tell."

#article #ballet #theresa ruth howard #racism #anti black racism #aesha ash #andrea long-naidu #francesca harper #darrell grand moultrie #dance magazine

[datesoma]

                   Why you should get into Black Clover.

I know some people are undecided on whether or not they should give Black Clover a try, so I came up with a list of reasons why they might like the series, and why I think it’s worth the time. If you have any to add, feel free to!

1. Asta is an amazing protagonist. He was born without magic in a world where everyone had it to the point that the only means of transportation are magic-based (spatial magic, brooms that you have to feed your mana to etc), and as an orphan in one of Clover’s outskirt villages to boot. Yet Asta worked hard every day anyway, and through his own efforts became the 2nd physically strongest character after Yami. Because of this, he got a Grimoire from which (so far) three swords can emerge, and which allowed him into the Magic Knights. Asta’s main sword cannot be held by anyone else both because of its massive weight (which Asta can easily endure because of his physical training), and because the sword sucks the person’s mana out of them (which doesn’t affect Asta since he has no mana).

Despite always seeming cheerful and headstrong though, Asta actually suffers from deep-seated insecurities and depression. Being the only person without magic in the world, he was subjected to ridicule, discrimination and comparisons ever since he was a young child; and in the beginning of the story he almost had his breaking point, had it not been for Yuno’s words helping him get back up, which is when he swore to never come close to giving up again, as well as made sure that his personal issues wouldn’t interfere with his self-image and relationships.

Asta also tries to understand his enemies, where they come from and what drove them to act that way, as well as tries to help them. He doesn’t like going straight into the fighting, and would much rather settle it verbally, since that wouldn’t result in any casualties. He values life, and doesn’t want to see others throw theirs away for something that could be easily resolved with words; so every time one of his enemies dies of their own volition, Asta is shaken by their actions. He also has respect for most of his enemies, and was even seen picking flowers and putting them at the enemy’s grave while being saddened by their death, even though he had no obligation to.

However, Asta does want to hold bad people accountable for their actions instead of symphatizing with their backstory right off the bat. He will understand their motivations, but if they’ve already done the evil deed, they’ll have to deal with the consequences and make sure they’ll never do anything like it again. Like I hinted above, by “consequences” I don’t mean death. Asta never stands for the death sentence, and instead tells his enemies that they’ll have to spend their lives making up to the people they’ve hurt, both by serving time in prison, and by apologizing and outright helping others. After they atone for their sins, Asta is also wholeheartedly fine with becoming friends with them and helping them be better.

Asta is a truly inspiring and refreshing character, and has come to be one of my favorite characters of all time, even though I don’t usually fall for the protagonists. He’s humane, kind and has a certain charm that drags you in; and he’s per overall a feel-good character who motivates you to be your best self.

2. Black Clover has the best fleshed out female characters in all of Shounen so far, and they’re not sexualized. It was made obvious in the latest popularity poll, where we had 5 women and 5 men in the top 10. The only issue I’ve seen from the fandom regarding Black Clover’s female characters is that “they all have a crush on someone”, but that’s wrong. Black Clover has some great female characters that don’t have anything to do with crushes and romance, and the most striking example is Mereoleona. Other than her, we also have Theresa, Puli, Dorothy, Fragil, Nebra, Grey, Mariella, Kahono, Charla, Elf Fana and the Witch Queen.

Noelle may have a crush on Asta, but it’s not her defining trait. She has her own personal issues that stem from her backstory, and she works through them as the story progresses. She gets plenty of character development, and a lot of screentime. The anime tends to exaggerate her crush on Asta for the giggles, but the manga handles it pretty well. Mimosa, Charlotte and Charmy are all strong women whose crushes only come in second place to their actual parts in the story. Their crushes aren’t there solely for the trope either, since they serve as one of the girls’ motivations to get stronger.

To top it off, the women fight on equal grounds with the men, and some of them are even stronger than the best male fighters in the series. Mereoleona for one, is done so well that even the men watching the show had to admit she’s probably stronger than Yami, who is one of the strongest people in the entire series, Asta’s mentor and one of the fandom’s favorites.

As for the sexualization, there have been three instances in over 200 chapters that I can think of, one of which was in the anime and I am fairly sure Tabata didn’t even want to add them in (I’ve read a post once that said Shounen Jump probably has an agenda of a minimum amount of fanservice they push onto all their authors, and it’d make sense if it's true).

3. Yuno is different from the typical Shounen rival in a refreshing way, the rivalries shown in Black Clover are generally healthy and the show makes a point of showing you’re always stronger when you’re supported by and working alongside your friends. Yuno doesn’t “turn evil” & isn’t on bad terms with Asta; instead, he’s supportive and genuinely wishes for Asta to thrive and become his best self. Their rivalry is based on mutual respect, friendship and trust, and they’ve known and lived with each other since their early childhood.

While Yuno does encompass the “gifted kid” trope, he never once thought he was better than Asta, and instead of gloating about his magic, he continued to work hard magic-wise and physically (which many wizards tend not to, especially the gifted ones). He holds similar values as Asta, and wishes to become the Wizard King to make the country more accepting, equal and overall a better place. Because of this, the end of Yuno and Asta’s rivalry could go either way, since both of them deserve the title of Wizard King, and there’s no way to tell which one of them will become the Wizard King for sure, even though Asta is considered the main protagonist (I sure hope Asta will, though).

Other important rivalries are Luck and Magna’s, two misfits who prank but nonetheless still respect each other and who would go to amazing heights to make sure the other is alright; Asta, Yuno and Leopold’s, which helped Leopold grow; and Nozel and Fuegoleon’s, who have a slightly more tense rivalry, but who have competed since their childhood and who care for each other despite some of their moments of animosity.

The Black Bulls are a prime example of the found family trope, and their relationships with each other played major parts in each of their character stories.

4. Black Clover deals with several issues we also face. One of the main themes of the show is classism, and the way the poor and the disabled struggle in the corrupt system made by the rich and abled. Despite being orphans from the country’s outskirts (meaning one of the poorest places with the least amount of magic in the entire kingdom) Asta and Yuno’s goal is to attain the title of Wizard King, who is the strongest and most beloved wizard in the entire kingdom. To do so, they have to gain the citizens’ support and approval, and tear down the walls that oppress the poor and uplift the rich; but because of several centuries of discrimination, most royalty and nobles believe they are superior to the peasants, and that’s painstakingly clear from the moment Asta and Yuno leave their village and head for the more noble-populated cities.

Family problems and abuse are present in a good chunk of the Black Bulls’ stories, but the blame is never put on the victims. Instead, each of them gets their own arc in which they deal with their trauma, and it’s all handled well. Their issues don’t magically stop in their respective arcs either, but rather that’s the starting point of the change.

There are also several instances thorough the show that deal with suicide (mostly from the enemy’s side), as well as Asta’s great distaste of it and attempts to stop his enemies from killing themselves for their cause. Asta’s speeches on this topic are always positive and motivational, and I like reading them since they make me feel better, too.

Another shared issue is the racism, which also delves further into genocide. I won’t say too much as to not spoil it for those of you who will read/watch Black Clover, but this theme is related to the humans and the elves.

5. On that note, there are several races in the Black Clover universe that we know of so far. They are the humans, who the series is mainly focused on; the elves, who play a very big part of the show’s first saga; the devils and the dwarves. It’s likely that we’ll also get introduced to more races as the story goes on, and so far all of them have been done nicely.

6. The art style of the manga is stunning and the anime is also getting good. Per overall, I’d say the manga has the better aesthetics, but the anime does come in clutch with some of the fights (a couple of them were also extended in the anime, which was great; and Black Clover is known for its use of different animation styles in fights), while the music also helps add a certain feeling to the scenes that didn’t hit so hard in the manga. The Black Clover anime’s openings and endings are by far one of the best in all of anime. Even if you don’t plan to watch the show, you should definitely watch those. Currently we have 8 ops & eds, and they’re all bops. They’re one of the many reasons why Black Clover has become famous, anime-wise. 

Also, since I’ve seen a lot of complaints about Asta’s voice in the earlier episodes, it does get much better. The VA was new so his voice acting wasn’t too good, but it’s really come a long way since and it now fits Asta’s character perfectly. You should give it at least ten episodes before you make an opinion on whether to continue or drop the anime version (although I’d say it gets really good after thirty).

7. The series lets you choose what kind of pace you want. If you’re into faster paces, then the manga’s the perfect fit for you. Some people complained that the story moves too fast in the manga, but I personally like it. If you’re into slower paces, you can try checking out the anime. Since Black Clover’s an ongoing anime rather than one split into seasons, Studio Pierrot had to try and stall for time so the anime wouldn’t close in on the manga too soon; meaning the original content got stretched over a couple episodes, but nothing too bad.

8. Black Clover doesn’t have many fillers. People complain that it does, but it doesn’t. As of right now (ep. 96), there have been 5 purely filler episodes, out of which some were recap episodes. Other episodes have had some filler mixed into them, but it’s not obvious and it does add well to the story. We also got Yuno’s first mission (ep. 13) and the Light Novels animated (ep. 55-56 & 85-86), and those are to be considered canon.

9. The mystery of Asta and Yuno’s backstory pre-canon. The series takes a different approach with the protagonists’ backstory, and instead of telling us everything outright, it only shows Asta and Yuno as babies, left at the door of a church in Hage village at around the same time, 15 years prior to the story. At the time, they only had their names written on their clothes, and Yuno also had a necklace. Right now, we still don’t know who their parents are, what were the circumstances of their birth, if they’re blood related or not, and how come they were both left in the exact same spot, nor why there out of all places. I’m assuming this will be important later on in the series, since one of the arcs has already teased a possibility that was denied by the end of said arc.

10. The story mainly takes place in the Clover Kingdom, but there are three others that will become a focus later on. Diamond Kingdom, a hostile country that deals with black magic, human experimentation and wars; Heart Kingdom, a neutral country rich of mana that prefers to remain unseen and whose citizens use an unique style of magic; and Spade Kingdom, the most massive of the four, and also supposedly a militant country of winter. So far in the story we have learned several bits about the Diamond Kingdom, while the information on Heart and Spade is still very new and brief. This does for a nice change of settings. 

Also, since I’ve brought up the ‘unique style of magic’, Black Clover has a great power system, based on the elements and their subtypes, and even the most bland-sounding magic you never even thought of, can do wonders.

11. Black Clover is a funny show and it has various types of humor. Not only does it have comedic relief, like with Sekke, Yami and Gordon, but in the anime we also get Petit Clover, which is a short and usually amusing chibi-styled moment at the end of each episode. This was derived from the manga’s omakes in the same style and I’m guessing it had some success, since earlier in the year we also got an entire Petit Clover-styled series, named Mgyutto! Black Clover.

I’m a fan of both the manga and the anime, so I’d recommend reading and watching the series, but it’s fine no matter which you choose, and I hope I convinced at least some of you to get into this great show!

Credits for some of the points: 1, 2 (spoilers), 3 (spoilers), 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

#black clover #thoughts tag #long post #I wanted to write this post for a while and I finally got to it

[queerchoicesblog]

A  Life So Changed (SC Titanic, Zetta x Adele Series, Ch. 15)

So, folks, here’s the new chapter of the series. Thank you so much for your support, hope you enjoy it!

Little disclaimer-favor: especially since the tags don’t seem to be working anymore, if you do enjoy it, please consider supporting the author & sharing this. A little gesture that means a lot!

Also, this chapter contains reference to THIS FIC I wrote about James and Zetta inevitable confrontation not showed in the original book.

Word Count: 2000+

Zetta x Adele Tag: @storyscaped​ ​ @storyscapefanficarchive​ @marmolady​ @animus-and-anima​ @hayley-carter19 @escako​  @everlastingchoices​ @indescribablechoices​ @ahrielstuff​ @bornonawdnsday​ @nazario-sayeed​  @h-doodles​ @adele-serda​ @marlcasters​ @brightpinkpeppercorn​  @michelleconnoly​ @charliejane-blog​ @ghost-of-yuri​  @choicesgremlin​  @lanzhansguqin​ @orange-elephants​ @wonder-falcon​

Zetta x Adele Series Tag: @eternal-langdon​ @nydeiri​

➡️ Ch. 1, Ch. 2/1, Ch. 2/2, Ch. 3, Ch. 4, Ch. 5, Ch. 6, Ch. 7, Ch. 8/1, Ch. 8/2, Ch. 9, Ch. 10/1, Ch. 10/2, Ch. 11/1, Ch. 11/2, Ch. 12, Ch. 13, Ch. 14

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What follows that night is a feverish dream. The following months flow in a haze as days blend into each other. New York, my apartment...all is familiar yet ever distant. As if I'm back home and somewhere far away simultaneously. I'm here and I'm not here.

Moving on is tougher than I could have possibly imagined. Sabine and Richard take care of me with tender compassion, doubling their usual efforts: it's heartwarming, truly. It leaves me wondering what I have ever done right in my life to deserve such adoration and, most importantly, affection because it's genuine concerned affection what I see in their eyes when our eyes meet. Sabine immediately added a newfound touch of sweetness to her proverbial efficiency and joins me at the breakfast table more often these days: sometimes it happens that I am not in the mood for talking and we sit together in complete silence. At first it made me nervous but my little Napoleon doesn't seem to mind: she would offer me a smile and gesture to the coffee pot or the plate filled with slices of my favourite bread and my nervousness melts away replaced by a sense of comfort. Richard visits me more than usual and invites me to join him for a walk at Central Park: "you always say how much you love that place, let's go together...it will do you good" he suggests, smiling sheepishly and offering me his arm. Just like Sabine, he doesn't mind that at times I fall quiet and melancholy takes over me. He would gently stroke my hand resting on his arm and keep walking at my side. One day, as I took a seat on a bench, he picked a flower, a gorgeous little daisy, and pinned it to my hat. He smiled at me and gave my hand an encouraging squeeze before taking a seat beside me. He's surprisingly sweet, sweeter than I deserve, and more mature than I thought when we first met. Richard never once mentioned nor complained about James. He would have every reason and right to question me about him after the secret letters my nephew sent him, asking for money. He never did: the day after our arrival, he even asked his friend John to make sure Mr. Eisler and his valet were safe in their New York apartment. Richard is probably waiting for the moment I'm ready to have that conversation. How could I never be ready for it? Yet, I must, I must confront my nephew: what he did is too hurtful and serious not to come with harsh consequences. Before I send a note to James, I share with Richard my decision: as much as I have little desire to see him now, he's still family and I have at least a moral obligation to him, the old oath I made to Theresa, so I will grant him a generous monthly income. I will set a few conditions, which include no more letters or inappropriate requested to Richard and no more interferences with the marriage under the treat of a legal action from my lawyers. I explain my fiancée the hideous scheme my nephew planned, omitting some details, and I assure him that I was in the dark about the letters: I knew nothing about them and I'm deeply ashamed and sorry he went this far. Richard listens to me carefully and gives me a painful smile as he take my hand into his. "I knew, Zetta. I always knew and I didn't suspect you when I received them, not even for a split second" he sighs. "I trust you, my darling". He just worried about me and he is still concerned because as much as it pains him to say that, my nephew seems dangerous and he has no sympathy for him. I assure him we won't see him anytime soon: after what he did, the things between James and I will never be the same. I don't even know if I will ever be able to forgive him. I repeat the same words to Jaime a few days later and having such a conversation with him is one of the toughest thing in my whole life. I'm angry and disappointed as I speak, wounded in the deep yet tortured by the familiar affection refusing to die inside me. When he close the door behind him, full knowing I don't know when we will see each other again, my heart breaks and I fall sobbing on my knees. My little prince is gone. There is a big fuss in town about the Titanic hearings: American and British authorities are investigating the disaster and the White Star Line company is covered with shame. The hearings are held in New York at Waldorf-Astoria Hotel so I try to keep updated. I spoke to a committing magistrate too: he asked questions about that night to see if I could provide valuable information for the official investigation. It turned out I had none or at least very little to offer him, aside from reporting the questionable decision of lowering half-empty lifeboats and the stubborn refusal to go against it of many officers, like the one I yelled at on the deck. I sign my deposition, which adds up to many others he gathered since the inquiry started. I don't need to testimony at court, he said, he has tons of other witnesses reporting the same issue and he will just add my deposition to the documents to be sent to the judge. "You can go, thank you for your time, Miss Serda" he smiles, vigorously shaking my hand. He praises my heroism but I don't know what he's talking about. Apparently, other witnesses claimed that they owe me their life or saw me protesting on the deck. I'm no hero, I think as my mind runs to the young steward who stayed behind, down in the belly of the sinking ship to keep the light on and give us all a chance to survive. I think his name was Charlie. A few weeks after the beginning of the hearings, about the end of May, I receive a letter from Lucille. She hadn't hear from me since our arrival and she's worried about me, she writes. She had sent me letters but I answered none. She profusely apologises for not waiting for me as she promised but "they had no choice, the chaos was mounting": she hopes this won't be the end of our friendship. Hoping so, she renews her invitation: Richard and I will be her most welcome guests if we fancy joining her and Cosmo for dinner at their apartment whenever it suits us. I don't know how to feel about this. Under different circumstances, it would have filled with joy, maybe relief after all we've been through, now...now things are more complicated than that. Unlike me, Lucille and Cosmo were asked to appear at court during the hearings to verify certain details. They had been all over the press ever since the news spread and I wonder if I'm being a bad friend "abandoning" her in a time like this. The press predictably feasted and is still feasting over the disaster: tragic stories, eye catching headlines, shocking revelations, heartwarming and heartbreaking pictures from the pier: ça vien sans dire, the touching embrace between me and Richard - "reunited lovers" as the caption said - made it to the front page. As weeks went by, my brief appearance was replaced by the new scandal involving nothing less than the Duff-Gordons, not only my personal friends but also a couple of incredibly famous socialites. When I first read it, my heart sank while Richard declared himself disgusted by what journalists write these days. Rumor has it that Lucille, sitting with her husband and secretary on Lifeboat No. 1, commented to her Laura something like, "There is your beautiful nightdress gone" in the aftermath of the sinking. When the Titanic disappeared to the bottom of the sea and poor souls were freezing to death in the ocean, begging us on the lifeboats to come back and save them. I still hear their screams in my nightmares. There's more though: reportedly Cosmo had bribed the lifeboat's crew not to return to save swimmers out of fear the vessel would capsize; he handed checks to them on board of the Carpathia. But Lifeboat No. 1 was designed to carry 40 passengers. Only 12 people were on board when it was lowered unlike the one I was on, filled beyond its capacity. How could an half-empty boat capsize? They could have saved so many lives that night! The thought made my stomach turn to the point that I feel almost nothing when I see the pictures of them during the inquiry: Cosmo looking grim and tensed in his seat and Lucile dressed in black, a mourning dress with a veiled hats, entering the court. I know better than to trust rumours blindly...but I know them. I've known her for ages and, as much as it hurts to say, I can't completely rule out the possibility that for once the press was right. Maybe I'm wrong but I can't vouch for them this time. And doubt is an uncomfortable thing... The final report by the inquiry is more generous than me and clear their names, even if - I'm sure - the general public will be less forgiving. Anyway, Richard is quite fond of the couple, we will surely go visit them... I do not pretend to be fine after what happened on my birthday's night -the sinking, James' betrayal, but I can conceal. I know how to conceal, if need be, in public, in front of people who cannot understand. I'm an actress, a great actress after all. But I feel numb, a ghost of my usual self. During the day I try to keep myself busy. My renaissance requires hard work and commitment as well as a good plan. Sabine and Richard are excellent helpers: I need new projects to work on to make my comeback and an efficient daily schedule to prevent me from drowning in my sorrow. I may conceal it but I dread the time when I have nowhere to run and my mind races back to that memory that fills me with excruciating sadness and guilt. My sweet revolutionary. At night I drink sherry and write letters to Adele. They're passionate, melancholic, tearful. I throw them away in the morning: my words flow on the paper but they ring hollow in the daylight. I don't know what I am supposed to write her. What should I tell her? What could possibly excuse my silence as times go by? I wish I could speak freely what's inside my mind but it's unbelievably difficult. More than she deserves, probably. For some time I tried to convince myself that our little romance on the Titanic was mere attraction, a secret affair favoured by the circumstances: two women growing close, Adele's protectiveness, my heart susceptible to women's beauty and charm just like hers. We found each other and it happened. That's all. But her memory lingers, it never fades away. Never. She always finds a way back to me. At night or during the day, by accident. She's everywhere even if this isn't a place she belongs to. She's in the announcement of a referendum for women's suffrage in Michigan: I read the news and think how excited she must be about it. Maybe she knows it already but I feel a silly urgency to send her the page of the newspaper: your dream may come true after all, see, my love? She's in a gorgeous dress I see hanging on a mannequin in a boutique and I know would fit her perfectly. I have to refrain myself not to buy it and send it to her with a sweet note because I don't care if she needs it, I just want her to have it. She needs beautiful things in her life too. She's in a witty joke I hear in a fancy cafe: I laugh and turn towards Sabine to say "Oh Adele would love this humour" but words die in my throat. When I turn, my cheer has turned into a grimace. Adele isn't here. I don't even know her address here. The thought pains me. I could ask Sabine to find it, I could visit her...but I find myself wondering if it would be the better judgement. I'd give up half my fortune or even more to know about her, even just a quick update. Is she fine? Is she still hurting? Did she and her sister settle down safely? Does she have nightmares at night? She looked so defeated and forlorn on the Carpathia, it pains me to remember seeing the light in her eyes flicker. But maybe this way it will be easier for her to move on. To forget me, if that's what we must get to, no matter how much it hurts. Sometimes I drink myself to a stupor to break the spiral of such thoughts and I'm quite ashamed of myself when Sabine finds me like that in the morning. I mutter nonsense excuses I don't owe her - but I feel like do, she's not a maid, she's my friend - as I hold onto her since I can barely stand on my feet at times and I burst into tears whenever she says: "You have nothing to apologise for, Madam" I do, though. I should - no I must apologise to Adele and Hileni too for disappearing and abandoning them on that pier. I must tell Adele how things really are, how I miss her, it's unbearable... So it's no surprise then that when Richard announces me his idea to postpone the grifter story project I've been working on in favour of a new one, "an homage to the Titanic tragedy", my mind comes find her once again. The project is a wise mix of ambitious opportunism - the sinking is still the talk of the town and people will love it - and genuine concerns. He says I'll not only play the main heroine but also pick the subject, he will just help assessing the script but he wants me to be the one calling the shots on the story to tell. I believe he feels it might be somehow therapeutic for me, aside from the alluring detail of having the star Zetta Serda co-writing an announced success. I consider it for a while, but in the end I write down the Carrem sisters story. I'm fully aware that the picture will hardly be able to bring back to life what it truly happened, the grandeur and the terror. I'm experienced enough to know that the audience can take only that much of the tragedy: they wanna cry and say that they felt as if they were there but they would scream and leave the room if I showed them the truth. A giant ship collapsing in front of you, officers shooting to maintain orders, stewards stubbornly denying desperate passengers their only chance to jump on a lifeboat and to survive, the screams of those who floated in the chilly waters and the dreading silence that followed their unmerciful death. They will never take that much. On the contrary, they will likely enjoy the story of two sisters separated and reunited, prevailing over the impending tragedy threatening to kill them both. It's an heartwarming story with an happy ending and the right amount of pathos and hope. It's also the story of my love that I'm writing down on paper and hand to the posterity. When I present it to Richard, he loves it. He himself couldn't have found a better story, he says, barely containing his excitement. I explain quietly that it's a true story, I just changed the names in respect of the real protagonists of this story. I can only hope Adele won't hate me for this when she sees it. Hate me even more than she's probably doing right now, I frown. I can only hope she will understand.

#titanic storyscape #zetta serda #adele carrem #zetta x adele #zetta x adele series

[wolfpawn]

I Hate You, I Love You, Chapter 26

Chapter Summary -  The newspapers give some of Taylor's thoughts on the matter, leading Tom to discuss things with both Luke and Benedict separately, while Danielle has to try and get back to life behind the camera, with people taking interest in her for what they've read.

Previous Chapter

Rating - Mature (some chapters contain smut)

Triggers - references to Tom Hiddleston’s work with the #MeToo Movement. That chapter will be tagged accordingly.

authors Note - I have been working on this for the last 3 years, it is currently 180+ chapters long.  This will be updated daily, so long as I can get time to do so, obviously.

So, the headlines are in Italics again, but most disturbing is the fact the four last ones are not ones I fabricated, but actually published pieces. If Taylor's PR is the ones putting these out there, then they are scum, if they are not denying it, they still are scum, and what scares me is the fact that there are some morons that will swallow this shit up. But she cannot always play the victim.

tags: @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog  @jessibelle-nerdy-mum@nonsensicalobsessions @damalseer @hiddlesbitch1 @winterisakiller

If you wish to be tagged, please let me know.

Taylor – Tom made me break up with Calvin; the worst mistake I could ever make.

Taylor holds head high after Hiddleston’s secret lover revealed.

Taylor broke off relationship when she suspected Hiddleston’s affections lay elsewhere.

Taylor Swift – “I knew there was something going on.”

Tom Hiddleston’s secret girlfriend, the real reason Taylor left him.

Taylor Swift “I feel used.”

Tom Hiddleston, Taylor Swift 2016: Actor Lied About Calvin Harris To Solo the ‘Bad Blood’ Singer?

Taylor Swift and Calvin Harris Split after Tom Hiddleston Lied about the DJ.

Tom Hiddleston Is a First Class Home-wrecker.

Taylor Swift: Tom Hiddleston Was the Reason Why She Dumped Calvin Harris.

Tom stared at the headlines that faced him before rubbing his face with his hands, sighing, and then groaning in frustration. He knew Taylor would say something, but he had not expected this. “So I am a Home Wrecker, a user, and abusive?”

Luke bit his tongue for a moment, knowing no good could come from him saying that the moment Tom introduced himself to the star; he was on course for terrible accusations against him once it all ended. “Apparently, yes.”

“Does anyone believe this?”

“A few, mostly fools who think that the woman is incapable of wrongdoing and blindly follow everything the brat says solely based on the fact she donates money to some good causes.”

“What?”

“I have had people watching social media; apparently her generous nature regarding charity absolves her from any faults as an individual.”  Luke scoffed. “There are too many fools in the world.”

“What are the chances she never releases more songs?” Tom groaned.

“As likely as Theresa May coming out as a supporter of left-wing liberalism.”

“Seriously, political sarcasm?”

“You asked.” Luke shrugged. “Any word from Ms Hughes?” Tom winced slightly. “I shall take that as a resounding no.”

“She hasn’t deleted me from her Facebook,” Tom commented hopefully.

Luke grimaced. “Please do not tell me you are Facebook stalking her?”

“She’s back in Ireland for a week, and then she is off to a new set.”

“Tom, that is not normal, I mean seriously, you get weirded out by fans that do that to you.”

“What am I going to do Luke?”

“Nothing, I told you, you need to back off, she has a boyfriend. Can you imagine how hard it will be for her to explain all of this to him?”

“He knows she is friends with the family, he has gone to dinner with Emma and Jack and mum has had him over.”

“That’s some good news, but if she mentions the kiss?” Tom did not respond, “You see, you have caused her enough trouble Tom, just give it time, she forgave you for the shit you pulled when you were seeing “PR Barbie", so she will probably forgive this too.” Luke gave an encouraging smile.

“I just…” tom shook his head. “Why didn’t I ever notice?”

“Your infatuation?”

“It’s not an infatuation.”

Luke rose to his feet. “You never realised your feelings for her because she never allowed you to realise that you were envious by not having a partner, and upon her having one, you, my friend, left it too late.”

“What do you mean? Do you think we could have if I had…?”

“Could you have started seeing her, yes. Would it have lasted, well, the odds, however, were never in your favour.”

Tom bit the inside of his cheeks. It was against the odds to succeed in Hollywood, but he had done it, he could easily have worked on making things work with Danielle too, if only he had tried.

*

The news reached the set before Danielle did, and much to her chagrin, she noticed that it seemed to be a popular topic of conversation for some people.

“Hughes, a word.” She grimaced as she walked over to Irlam. “You never mentioned that you know Tom Hiddleston.”

“His mum is my next door neighbour.”

“But you said nothing.”

“Why would I?”

“Well, in this industry, it helps to know people.”

Danielle’s nostrils flared slightly. “It may help, but there is no merit behind it, besides, what would I say? That I know the man to see once a blue moon between movies that comes to visit his mum for a day or two, that I salute him if I see him having a jog.”

“If papers are to be believed, you know him considerably better than that.”

“You shouldn’t believe everything you read.” She smiled and winked.

“He’s a great guy, isn’t he?” Irlam chucked. “I worked with him, so willing to try and do everything right.”

Danielle smiled sadly, “Yeah, Tom is a good man, those photo’s, he brought me and his mum to a restaurant to celebrate me getting all of this.” She explained. “Nothing else, just because I get on well with his sister and mum, and because I never try and use them for anything.” Her voice cracked slightly at the end, her hurt at what she perceived to be a mistake on Tom's behalf becoming harder to disguise as she spoke of him, and some of his traits she had always adored. “Sorry.”

“Are you alright?” Irlam asked in concern.

“Yeah, just…the publicity from all of this, I mean, I am…there’s a reason I wanted to work behind cameras, you know?”

“Well for me, I go with the idea that I have a face meant for radio.” He joked, causing her to laugh slightly, “But yes, I understand, I see it sometimes with actors, they realise that the life of anonymity is destroyed once they become famous. What you are saying is you are not even in a relationship with Tom, yet you are receiving the attention of such, an even more horrible situation; especially if you never wanted such in the first place.” He added more solemnly. “No to mention, you now have the attention of one bitter brat.”

“God, what is that bitch saying now?” Danielle was half afraid to ask.

Irlam frowned, “You’ve had interactions with her before?”

“Sadly yes, she was at his mum’s with him, and well, she is as crazy as that supposed skit song implies, like literally, batshit crazy. She genuinely thought I would be envious of her.” Danielle scoffed.

“Well, she is the victim.” Irlam began.

“When is she ever not?”

“And he is abusive, a user and a home wrecker.” Danielle felt terrible for Tom. “From what I have read, prepare for a song about you.”

“That’s what she does, isn’t it?” Danielle sighed.

“Sadly yes, now, back to what we do. I need to talk to you regarding a scene where we have the dragon breathe fire.”

“It had to be a fucking dragon.” Danielle groaned, readying herself for the madness of the day ahead.

*

“Do I want to ask?” Benedict walked into Tom’s London home, looking around at what would probably be described as slight untidiness to most other people, but in Tom’s case, could only be called chaos. “The place is a wreck.”

“I kissed her.”

“Who?”

“Danielle, I kissed her Ben, and she rejected me.”

“Tom.” Benedict looked at him sympathetically.

“I just…I don’t think this actually hurt so much before.”

“I…I get it, in a way, I mean I was with Olivia for a decade, I thought that she was it, and it wasn’t to be.”

“You think Danielle isn’t…”

Benedict raised his hands. “I am not saying she is or she isn’t, I cannot answer that for you, but I can say this; if it hurts this much, there has to be more to this than simple lust.”

“I love her.”

“Fuck Tom, I’m sorry mate.” Ben gave a sympathetic look. “What exactly happened?”

Tom relayed everything, the meal, the conversation, the paparazzi, and the issue outside her door. “The way she acted, she was almost crying as she told me to leave, like I destroyed everything.”

Ben cocked his head slightly, “Wait, what do you mean crying? She was crying.”

“No, nearly crying, she just kept begging me to leave,” Tom explained.

Benedict’s eyes darted side to side for a moment as he thought about what Tom had said. “You need to just get some rest; you’re off to Oz again tomorrow, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I need to redo a few scenes; apparently one of the minor actors has had to be swapped out.”

“The joys of the industry,” Benedict commented sarcastically. “Well, go, get some vitamin D, because fuck knows we are getting none here with this weather, and when you come back, we will have to further this conversation.” Tom scoffed a little, but said his goodbyes and made his way home to pack. Taking out his phone, Ben texted Sophie what Tom had just said, wanting her opinion on the situation. When his phone indicated a new message received a few minutes later, he chuckled to himself as he read his wife’s reply. “I thought as much.”

#tom hiddleston #tom hiddleston fic #I Hate you I Love You #chapter 26

[qqueenofhades]

So dare I ask what the nightmare in detail is regarding Brexit right now?

@tollers-and-jack said: I’m asking for the rant…

@rhymeswithtessa said: I’m a big fan of your rants gimme your thoughts on brexit

@onlymorelove said: Ahem. I am interested in your rant. If you feel like sharing. 💗

Ahaha wow. Apparently this is something the people really want to hear about. Disclaimer, just remember that you asked for this, and that this is, as Captain Holt would say, a trigger for me. So if this periodically devolves into incoherent screaming/application of capital letters and exclamation marks, and what have you, just know that.

So… I wrote these posts soon after Brexit in 2016 explaining what a spectacularly stupid idea it was even then. If I said anything optimistic in those posts, in a sort of grasping-at-straws-maybe-this-will-work sort of flailing way, please disregard it. We have had empirical evidence of how this played out. Spoiler alert: it failed. It failed so comprehensively on every possible level that it seems almost ludicrous for a supposedly modern political system, but this is 2019, the world is dogshit, and we are all retreating into our little late-capitalism xenophobia bubbles with our right-wing strongmen and our populist rhetoric and the UK is now a global laughingstock. Which believe me, the ex-British Empire richly deserves, especially given the part that anti-immigration paranoia played in this whole debacle, but also, I live here and really would Rather Not.

I do not even know how to sum up the ridiculousness of the past few months, where – almost at the end of the two-year period of triggering Article 50, with just a very short amount of time to the original exit date (29 March 2019) – the UK finally managed to secure a withdrawal deal. Mind you, it was a shit deal that both sides hated, but by golly, It Made Brexit Happen, and since the Theresa May-bot has only been able to repeat over and over that she will Make Brexit Happen, there you have it. Not surprisingly, it proceeded to be comprehensively defeated in Parliament by the largest majority ever seen since World War II. It then was subject to surface-level makeovers and cosmetic tinkering about the backstop in Northern Ireland (since among many other things, the ardent Brexiteers forget that oh yeah we share a land border with an EU country and peace in Ireland is kind of a thing that should be paid attention to). The DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) of Northern Ireland, whose 10 MPs prop up the minority Tory government, absolutely hated it and would not support it, since it would effectively introduce different regulations for NI than the rest of the UK and thus jeopardise the, you know, United Kingdom. Plus it would require the EU’s assent to end the arrangement, and also we can’t have that. Because reasons.

The deal was then thumpingly defeated for a second time, people got worried because uhhhh aren’t we supposed to leave the EU in like a week, Parliament had to institute emergency measures and hold a series of votes on Brexit alternatives, those also got defeated and May would not even commit to honouring the will of the House, 6 million people signed a petition asking for Article 50 to be revoked and the Brexit process cancelled (the biggest in parliamentary history) and got ignored. Meanwhile, Nigel Farage led a pathetic procession of 200 diehard Leavers against literally 1 million people in London calling for a new referendum, the deal got defeated for a third time after they had to do all kinds of fancy-dancing to get it back for yet another vote, they got the EU to agree to a crunch extension to 12 April, and now that that is three days away with absolutely no consensus in sight, have sent May back to Europe to beg Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron to extend the deadline to 30 June. They actually had to pass a bill (by one vote) forcing her to do this in order to avoid a no-deal Brexit. The EU is justifiably exasperated with this utter, unbelievable incompetence, the fact that the hard right wing of the Tory party pulled this absurdly irresponsible jackshit without any clue how to do it, and the way the UK still thinks it can just pick an a la carte deal where we’re great and the EU sucks and blue passports and blah blah Great Britain is Great!!! And there has been absolutely no collective awareness from either major party that maybe, just maybe, trying to undo a legal and political and cultural alignment that has existed since at least 1973 when we were a founding member of this project, in two years, with no idea how, to please a xenophobic lying campaign, WAS A STUPID FUCKING GODDAMN IDEA!!!!!!!!!!!!

(we pause while the blogger breathes and drinks heavily)

Anyway, that is the short version of Nobody Still Knows What The Fuck Is Going to Happen. Technically if we stayed in the bloc past 22 May, we’d have to hold elections to the European Parliament, which bitch bitch whine whine, the Brexiteers don’t want to do. Maybe we think we’re entitled to more special treatment (no scratch that, we definitely do) because we can’t sort our heads from our asses and have been so wildly and bogglingly arrogant and incompetent that it would almost be funny if people’s lives and livelihoods and futures weren’t at stake. And we have the goddamn European Research Group (aka the hard Brexit wing) yapping about how no deal wouldn’t be that bad and we should just take it on the chin because Blah Blah Blitz Spirit, Nationalism Patriotism Our Freedom From The Tyrannical EU. (Sidenote, if someone just punches Jacob Rees-Mogg in the elitist Little Britain face, you don’t know where I was, God I hate him so much.) Every single business, manufacturer, industry, finance, medicine, food, education, you name it outfit has been warning that no, actually, no deal would be catastrophic and the UK is not remotely prepared for it. To the point we have the military on standby to deliver basic goods if it happens??! How. How is this acceptable??!?!? I don’t understand??!?!

(And the Brexiteers who are like “this is Britain let’s all just hunt hares and grow food in our back gardens,” which, yes, is something I heard actually said, are out of touch to a truly stupendous degree. Yes I’m sure that a modern first-world country wants to resort to subsistence farming to feed its 66 million people. Do they. Even. Hear Themselves. Racism is a hell of a drug, my friends! And if you want to be like “oh no it’s not about racism/anti-immigrant sentiment, it’s about the economy,” let’s just say that the newsreader covering a Brexit march said that he’d never seen so many white people in one place and was forced to apologize, because racist white people don’t like it being pointed out to them that they are racist white people. That tells you a lot. And the Leave campaign has been convicted multiple times for breaking electoral law and just flat-out Lying to the public, so the people who voted Leave thinking they were in fact getting a better economic deal were deceived outright and have indeed often expressed regret that they were so wildly and deliberately deluded. So anyway. Fun!)

I cannot emphasise enough the sheer, staggering arrogance and delusion of the people who proposed this project and then forced it through, because the British public has believed throughout its entire history that it’s better than the whole world (see again: imperial nostalgia and Oh No The Foreigners Are Coming and etc) and has been fed for a good 25 years on this point on a lot of bullshit stories about how terrible and Liberal and Anti-British the EU is, because the British popular press is a flaming dumpster fire (you think Fox News is bad, and it is, but so many of the tabloids are basically Fox News UK). So the Brits feel as if they’ve been so unfairly repressed by the EU and need to Take Back Control (once again, there is a very long history of this  rhetoric of the English being supposedly attacked and repressed by foreigners, dating back to the idea of the “Norman Yoke” resulting from the Conquest, which became a big deal in the 19th century – I am a historian, I can pull receipts for days on this). Once again, they think they can just do whatever they want, the EU is the bad guy for not giving it to them, that we should set ourselves on fire and jump out the window rather than sit at the table like grownups with the rest of Europe, and just take our ball and go home and yet still think we are entitled to preferential treatment.

I just…. I don’t even. I DO NOT EVEN. I seriously lack the words. 

So we may get another rolling series of short-term extensions, we may not, nobody can come to any agreement on what should be done, May promised to resign to get the deal through, the deal did not get through, the whole setup is so unsustainable that it feels like a general election is an inevitability, and the obvious solution would be another referendum to see if the people even still goddamn want this. But the Brexiteers, for all they bluster about upholding the will of the people to leave, resist this with all their might (what are you fucking afraid of? If you’re so confident that you’re still the majority, you should WANT another referendum to confirm it, but you’re cowards and you know you’d lose and you’re tied to this stick of dynamite for Ideology Reasons, god damn it). The message has been always that We Must Deliver Brexit and This Is What The People Want, while the people are breaking records saying that no, actually, we’d like another say, because everyone has now seen that this is an absurd shitshow that cannot be accomplished (and ONCE AGAIN WAS NEVER! FEASIBLE! IN THE FUCKING FIRST PLACE!!!!) and it hey, actually was not a bad idea to be in the EU. 

This is again, the alignment of the entire post-WWII political and legal world. It confers countless benefits, freedom from tariffs, the single market, a customs union, visa-free travel, no roaming charges, the right to live and work in 27 other countries, etc. But because the ex-British Empire (which really wishes it was still the British Empire) has its fragile racist panties in a bunch about other people coming to live here (when as ever, the problem isn’t immigrants, it’s austerity budgets and the Tories absolutely gutting government and NHS funding and social programmes and thinking that the solution to knife crime is to punish teachers for not noticing their students getting into it), they have decided this is actually the best course of action. Because we don’t want those Non British People telling us what to do. Ew gross.

As people have said, it’s like trading a gourmet three course meal for a bag of crisps and feeling self-satisfied about it, because boy we sure showed them. It has been bungled to a degree truly stupefying to everyone who isn’t a marching Brexiteer ideologue, Labour have…. really not inspired any confidence whatsoever that they’d be able to handle it better (since they have wildly see-sawed between what they will and won’t support, if they’d revoke Article 50 or support a new people’s vote or so on) and the Prime Minister has failed on an utterly fundamental degree to build cross-party consensus or engage with other European leaders or display any ability to consider alternatives. The Tories have truly felt that they can ram this through without any reference to anyone or anything else, and fuck consequences, I guess. The British economy has already lost approximately £66 billion as a result of Brexit uncertainty and loses more every day, every major firm is moving its headquarters to somewhere they can take advantage of EU law, this will leave us poorer, more isolated, less secure, with fewer options, and generally a worse deal in every imaginable way, and yet, because again, racism and xenophobia is a hell of a drug, there are still some factions who feel like yes, this is absolutely what we should do. 

It is truly a slow motion car crash of nightmares, it’s completely avoidable and yet nobody has the backbone to do that, Parliament and the PM have completely broken down, nobody is listening to the British people for whom they are supposedly doing this, and once again, the British Empire absolutely 100% deserves this. But as someone who lives here and would actually kind of like to get a job here, Jesus Christ. Jesus. Christ. JESUS. CHRIST.

#politics for ts #brexit for ts #did i say everything #i'm not even sure i did #god #long post #romancelvr #ask

[go-diane-winchester]

Could Travis and Ty's scandals be linked to Misha?

Thank you for the ask.  Let me point out that these are merely my theories.  Although there is information that is unavailable to the public because in Travis's case, the investigation is still ongoing, my theory is based on the information that is available.  I am also a victim of abuse, so I am not being unsympathetic to Ty's victims, because Ty's victims really are victims.  Travis's victims are a little suspicious.   

Travis Aaron Wade:

I know what predators are generally like.  Because of being a victim myself, I was on the side of Travis's victims until I looked into the case.  There is more issues to pinpoint, but I am keeping the topic only to Misha here, because I have dedicated a few posts to both Travis and his ''victims''.  These are some notable points in the case.:

They were claiming that he was abusing them during breakfast panels and Saturday night concerts, in front of too many people, and yet they had no witnesses.

Two of the victims confessed to lying. 

All the victims were destiel shippers and Misha minions.

Misha, Briana, Kim and Matt Cohen know a few of the people involved personally, follow them on SM and leaving voice messages for them.  I heard Briana's voice message. 

One of the victims, Sara Burnhope, who knows Misha and his parents personally, told Travis on social media, that Misha hates him. 

One of them, Lua James aka Theresa Cotter [@Poptivist on Twitter], stabbed a knife into Travis's door and then fled California.  She is Kim's friend.  They were spending time outside of con. 

Why did Misha hate Travis 

Misha has two babies as far as his work on SPN went.  One is Destiel, and the other is the Wayward daughters.  These two babies ensured that he was always employed on a show that kills off every other non lead.  One of them, Wayward Daughters, derailed because Misha is wrong. 

Destiel

Travis threatened destiel because he was gushing over J2's friendship during his panel saying that he had never met two people more in love.  He described their friendship so much, that he was pulled out of the next con by Clif, the resident drama queen.  Way to be suspicious, Clif.  That is exactly what you do when you don't J2 Tinhats to become alert, blithering idiot.  In none of the gushings did Travis say anything regarding Jensen and Misha or Destiel.  Misha didn't want that.  Notice how destiel-positive Osric and gang are.  Even Alex is becoming destiel positive now, because when he wasn't, the hellers bashed him on SM.  They did the same thing to Samantha Smith.  But Travis not only didn't acknowledge Destiel.  He was elevating J2's friendship above all the other relationships on SPN.  And Misha was getting livid. 

Wayward Daughters

Wayward Daughters was something that only Misha and his hellers pushed.  I always wondered why he did it, because I consider him to be a liberal poser.  He pretends to supports something if it benefits him or his reputation.  Crusading for women's rights and then calling them perverts for having a love for shipping, seems hypocritical to me.  I think he pushed Wayward to secure a future for himself.  There is rumor that's been going on since last year and the Js want to finish of with SPN completely.  They want to long hiatus from acting.  Nobody knows when.  If that happens, Misha doesn't have a job, and we all know that other than the hellers, nobody else is impressed by his acting.  He gets laughed at.  If there is a spinoff, Castiel is likely to have a home there, because most of the fans will be Misha fans.  Misha would have still been able to bait his fans, by 'reminiscing' about Dean in a suggestive manner and if CW was on board, showing scenes between Dean and Cas.  He might have even confirmed Destiel because Jensen wouldn't have been around to stop him.  The bottom line is he would have used destiel to keep that job as well.   

Kim and Briana were on his side, because they had vested interest in the project and are fake militant feminists.  Unfortunately, Cole [Travis's character] became so popular that some fans wanted a spin off for him, and when Cole was pitted against Jody and Donna by Geekiary, for best spinoff candidate, Cole won.  I can just imagine how angry Misha and gang were.  And it now makes sense, for Kim and Brianna to know the accusers and the implicated parties personally.  My theory is that they all got together and set Travis up to get him out of the way.  Until the case goes to court, and reaches a conclusion, that is all my assumption will be.  A theory. 

Ty Olsson

In his official response, Ty admitted that what he did was 100% wrong.  And he was.  Fans had cause to complain and feel violated.  I am not taking away from their grief.  They really are victims.  I think that, just like Travis, this guy is a complete idiot.  Travis was causing too many ripples because of his big mouth, and Ty was sipping from other people's drinks.  He said it was not enough to get drunk with.  He said that he was roofied.  Why do I believe him?  Because someone who had such habitually bad behavior would have a reputation to match.  He would have misbehaved at other cons and set environments.  Consequently, he would have not gotten hired for projects.  He would be blacklisted because he would cause terrible PR for any studio.

Ty has worked on SPN before.  He played a bartender during the earlier seasons.  That means, that J2 and co have known Ty for years.  There are women on that set too.  He has never misbehaved with any of them, but he chooses one event, especially when there are witnesses and victims have cameras and can film his bad behavior, to just go nuts?  Does that make sense?  Ty has also worked on other projects before and since.  In fact, after the scandal, he worked on 14 projects and even won an award in 2017.  He's around women on these projects too.  How come he isn't misbehaving now?  How come he lost total inhibitions and professionalism on one night?  And how come nobody is stabbing a knife in his door?  How come the fans are all a mixed group of people, and not just Misha's fans.  Who would roofie him and why? 

There are only two drugs that he could have been roofied with.  Rohypnol and GHB.  Rohypnol can cause euphoria, reduced inhibitions and reduced ability to make judgments.  Users may slur their speech.  That is why people thought Ty was drunk.  GHB effects begin 15-60 minutes after use [like in the Green room] and typically last up to six hours.  Just about enough time to do photo ops.  It can be detected in the urine up to 12 hours after ingestion.  This is why I agree with Ty, that he is a completely idiot.  He only guessed that he might have gotten sick [symptom of both drugs is nausea] because of roofies and only then did he do a urine test.  By then the GHB was undetectable. 

Ty guessed that one of that one of the fans roofied him.  But they were all drinking from their flasks, and none of them exhibited the same symptoms that he did.  So it had to be someone who had access to the Green room and Ty's beverage.  Time wise that would make sense. 

So who would benefit from Ty being out of the way.

Misha, is my guestimation.  Why did Ty bother Misha so much?  Because of Destiel.  Destiel is Misha's floatation device.  When Benny came on board, he had a strong connection with Dean.  And Jensen enjoyed working with him, according to what he said during his panels.  Ty even got to do a panel with Jensen.  Misha only gets one panel a year, on average with Jensen.  No other person, neither Rob nor Richard, has ever shared the stage with Jensen.  Ty got that chance.  I think Jensen was missing Jared but then why not get Misha to join him.  Why choose this guy?  That must have bugged Misha.  And no, he doesn't love Jensen.  He is not obsessed with Jensen.  He just loves riding Jensen's coat tails. 

People were even shipping Benny and Dean together, which is baffling because Benny and Dean were on screen while Cas was still there.  Purgatory was supposed to be a big moment for Misha and Destiel because Misha would have had Jensen all to himself without Jared being around to take the limelight away from him.  Misha probably assumed that this vampire was not going to pose any problems.  Misha doesn't know how slash works, does he?  At one point during Jibcon, Ty tried to make Jensen laugh, very provocatively.  He felt bad about making Jensen feel uncomfortable so he came back awhile later and apologized to Jensen in front of all the fans.  Jensen was shocked [as I was] and quickly said: '' You don't have to...are you kidding me?  I loved it.''  He sent him off with a butt smack and a ''I love you, man.  No worries.''  

Misha apologizes for none of the horrible things he has done, no matter how uncomfortable he makes Jensen feel.  Watching that footage again, especially Jensen's genuinely shocked and moved reaction, actually made me tear up a little.  Whoever roofied Ty, acted alone, did it in the Green room and the effect lasted a solid six hours or so.  So who has access to the Green room other than the actors and their handlers?  I will leave that up to debate.  Roofieing someone is dangerous because it can kill a person if mishandled.

I hope this answers the question. 

Below are citations and links

Ty apologizing to Jensen - 2013 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NutNcJH4JbA

Citation for roofie drugs

https://www.narconon.org/drug-abuse/signs-symptoms-rohypnol-use.html

Complete investigative report on Travis Aaron Wade

http://www.spntrollsvstravisaaronwade.com/

Ty's official response

http://ty-olsson.com/response.html

#misha #jensen ackles #destiel #cockles #jenmish #jensen and misha #deancas #casdean #dean x castiel #castiel #cas #bi dean #dean is bi #dean and cas #jenmisheel #dean winchester #destiel headcanon #jdvm #misha collins #sam winchester #sam and dean #jensen and jared #wincest #supernatural #jared padalecki #padackles #performing dean #sabriel #sammy winchester #j2

[haptureratch]

Today has been a day of magic.

I woke feeling very tired, having worked four of the last five days. (Including the shift where I stayed until after 10pm to watch the OLT after setting up CRRT and handing off to Gian.) Still, off to FIT I went because we must keep going. Sean worked my calves and glutes hard. Harder than I would have pushed myself, of course. There was a moment where I could have thrown up. All the blood being pulled from my gut to feed the lower half of my body, much more than half of all my muscle combined. (Just like my patient from the other day....except she had a calcified SMA and much more excruciating GI problems.) Knowing that leg day would stress my system more and leave me very sweaty, I brought clothes to change into so I could get to the library straight from the gym. Forgot a bra. Dammit. I ran over to TJMaxx just around the corner and found what is actually a really nice bra that fits well....score. Anyway, new bra on and protein smoothie (from my gym) in hand, I make my way to my community service obligation. Again, very tired. Extremely worn. Cannot hide it from my face. Really wanted to just eat a good meal and sleep. But I went because we must keep going. I got absorbed in my work for 3 hours. The last passed not too slowly. I got to enjoy a few moments of the empty, ecstatically quiet library while the doors were still closed to the public and the staff was in a meeting in their break room. And apparently I’ve been finding an exponentially greater number of books, etc. on their missing list than they ever do. “A lot of those were on hold for customers.” I savored the knowledge that I was helping people outside of the hospital. 2pm. Done. Time for solid food. Man am I tired....

I decide to finally see what Central Market was all about. It was a fucking madhouse. 3/10, would recommend for the aesthetic. Can get just as good pre-made protein for much less elsewhere but their salads looked good as hell. I get me a wad of a turkey pesto sandwich with red peppers on sourdough, some of the damn su’sh I’d been craving, and some cinnamon raisin oatmeal bites I’ve had in our breakroom before or at Mohammad’s or something. So good. I snap a pic of a BEAUTIFUL collection of big blooming roses*. They even had a faint scent. Store flowers never do these days. Or maybe they never did. Okay, okay, time to go now. Gotta get back and get on all this studying now that we’re to my days off....

I get home. I had a thought of “we’re on the right track” or “we’re balanced and we keep persevering” something like that. I was weary but dutiful. This is my life. I have to do this all so that I can prove I am good enough for med school my  next go around.

I do my dishes, which had been sitting in the sink uncomfortably long. So, so tired. I’ll relax in a bath for an hour and then get into studying. I debate which CBD bath bomb to try. I was contemplating strength of the product and scent mixtures with my Lush stash. I decided on a 100mg Powermint from Bath By Bex with half a Bling Crosby. I almost didn’t choose that special combo.

In the bath I am analyzing my body’s reaction to the CBD, trying to tell if my first time was just placebo effect. Yeah, it’s doing something. (Maybe more placebo.) I had my book--The Art of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo--on the rug and was intending to finish the last 30 pages. But I picked up my phone. Checked the notifications. Refreshed my email. Another from Theresa Silva. I’m accepted to UTMB.

I cry. My throat tightens. I choke. I hyperventilate. I LOSE MY FUCKING SHIT, OK. Middle fingers to everyone who didn’t support me. Bliss to me. I did it.

I called Mom. Then Dad. Dad was so giddy about it. I could hear him smiling through the phone; he may even have had a few tears in his eyes. Mom was more professional about it, but she was in clinic. (As she was hanging up the phone I could hear her start to say, “My daughter....” Surprised, happy tone.)

I had believed so strongly since I didn’t get match that I was going to go through the whole thing again. MCAT, essays, application, dogging people for letters, figuring out how to answer questions in the right way, interviews all over the country this time. Another year older. It’ll be okay. This is another year of money in the bank. Another year of dayshift experience and seeing how the attendings round on patients. But those damn residents were getting to me. So much doubt, not so much in myself but in the path I wanted. I think that hurt more than the self-doubt did. It took away my reason for living. But we must keep going. And I’ll try one more time even though I’m losing soul-steam for this. Maybe I can have adventures in the PNW as a travel nurse until I settle for CRNA or AGACNP.

It wasn’t until I was listening to Fall Out Boy that it sank in and I started believing it. If I can live through this, I can do anything. FUCK YEAH. Cloud 9 starting pouring through me as I stepped outside to run some errands to “Youth” by Glass Animals. Sunshine and smiles.

Fly Feel your mother at your side Don't you know you got my eyes I'll make you fly You'll be happy all the time I know you can make it right

I felt complete. I’m a future doctor. I walked around knowing that I have begun the rest of my life. The pieces fit. The only things that will change are my age and expertise. I am who I want to be and I will do what I want to do. I am made for this and I am actualizing my destiny. I am beginning what I have wanted to start for so long. This thing I have been wishing and working so hard for is now mine. I am me.

Later I realized that bubble bar had the note I sent to myself about med school. I had forgotten about it when I ran the bath. Oh, the magic. And at Lush? (Of course I flipping ended up at Lush.) They gave me Rosie*. (ASIDE FROM BEING INCREDIBLY SWEET AND KIND AND GENEROUS AND AMAZING) So meta. So fucking meta. The stars align, folks.

I was always looking for all of this connection and symbolism in a relationship. A magical, ethereal soulmate. Nah. It’s me. It’s in me. It’s all me.

#RETURN OF THE MAC (meaning my giant long diary posts) #Dr. Elias 2022 #when she wrote

[newstfionline]

Trump Won’t Visit London for Embassy Opening, Citing Location

By Austin Ramzy, NY Times, Jan. 12, 2018

President Trump said late Thursday that he had canceled a trip to London because of the cost and “off location” of the new United States Embassy in the city, where he had been expected to face protests.

Nearly a year ago, Mr. Trump accepted an invitation to visit from Queen Elizabeth II, which was extended by Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain while she was in Washington shortly after Mr. Trump’s inauguration.

That announcement set off a year of debate in Britain, where Mr. Trump is unpopular, and the timing of the visit was continually pushed back. British newspapers cited concerns about protests during a visit as officials tried to gauge how much pomp should greet Mr. Trump.

Last month the United States ambassador to Britain, Woody Johnson, said that while no trip had been formally announced, he hoped Mr. Trump would visit in early 2018 and dedicate the new embassy.

On Thursday night, the president took to his favorite medium, Twitter, and announced that he had canceled his trip because he was unhappy with the new building.

@realDonaldTrump: Reason I canceled my trip to London is that I am not a big fan of the Obama Administration having sold perhaps the best located and finest embassy in London for “peanuts,” only to build a new one in an off location for 1.2 billion dollars. Bad deal. Wanted me to cut ribbon-NO!

Mr. Trump’s British critics responded with jeers, saying the president was afraid of the reception he would get in Britain.

Ed Miliband, the former Labour Party leader, responded to Mr. Trump’s announcement on Twitter, saying: “Nope. It’s because nobody wanted you to come. And you got the message.”

The old United States Embassy, in a historic square in the exclusive Mayfair neighborhood, was deemed to be vulnerable to terrorist attacks. The new one is in a former rail yard on the South Bank of the Thames. Mr. Trump blamed the Obama administration for the move, accusing it of selling the old embassy for “peanuts” in a “bad deal.”

But the move was actually initiated during the administration of President George W. Bush.

The Trump presidency has complicated the normally close ties between the United States and Britain, which has often been called the “special relationship” since Winston Churchill used the phrase in a 1946 speech.

Mr. Trump has used terrorist attacks in London to support his travel ban on visitors from predominantly Muslim countries. He criticized Mr. Khan for his response to a bombing in June, misconstruing a call for calm as lack of concern about terrorist threats. And his tweets about a bombing in London in September suggested that the police had been monitoring attackers but done nothing.

His retweets of a far-right group’s anti-Muslim videos in November stirred criticism from across the political spectrum in Britain.

Mrs. May had been placed in an awkward situation, as Mr. Trump’s unpopularity in Britain prompted calls that she stand up to the president or even call off his visit. At the same time, her government is in the midst of complicated negotiations to withdraw from the European Union and under pressure to prevent relations with the White House from deteriorating further.

Boris Johnson, the British foreign minister, said last week that it would be a mistake to uninvite Mr. Trump, as one member of Parliament suggested.

“I think Her Majesty the Queen is well capable of taking this American president--or indeed any American president--in her stride, as she has done over six remarkable decades,” Mr. Johnson said.

#Britain #Trump #US embassy in London

[vivikawidow]

The chill wind the night was bringing whistled. It could have been the adrenaline of the chase finally wearing off but Agent LYDIA LOWE could have sworn the heat wave that had been swarming over the city was finally breaking.

“You swore loyalty to me you rat faced bitch!” Tabitha hissed at her as she was led up the steps of the Coldford Police Department with a firm grip. The same steps I had descended with the Boss Lady just the previous day after my wife, Theresa, had been murdered. Lydia didn’t respond to the vexation the way I assume Tabitha had hoped she would.

The agent remained calm.

“I never swore anything to you,” she replied, pushing her prisoner on, still with a firm grip around her arm. Tabitha of course protested.

“Anyone who flashes their tits on my stage, loyalty is a given.”

CPD had cleared of the busyness of the day staff. There were still a few low lights and some detectives working at their desks on cases requiring long hours.

Lydia led Tabitha to the office of DETECTIVE HICKES. “You are going to regret this,” Tabitha was still saying. “I have a lot of sway in this city.” “Oh, you’re something alright,” agreed the agent distractedly, looking for Hickes. “You bet your ass I am. Before I’m done you are going to wish you had stayed in your fucking northern hole.” Lydia – still eagerly awaiting Hickes – replied, “What are you going to do? Pull my hair? Push me in the mud?” Tabitha scoffed. “God! What a fucking tramp!” she exclaimed to herself. She turned then and looked behind her. “Oh, hi Hickesy,” she said with a grin.

Detective Hickes had arrived in a fluster. He ignored Tabitha and spoke directly to the agent. “Reynolds has been taken to General. I had to sort out the others.” By the ‘others’ he meant Simon Penn, Paddy Mack of the Mack and Sons brewery as well as some of the other Macks that had given them trouble when they raided the Knock Knock club. “I have holding ready for her,” he explained while brandishing a set of keys. Further into the belly of CPD, Tabitha was shown to what would be her residence for the foreseeable future. “I want to call my lawyer,” Tabitha stated, taking a seat on the bed. “This is barbaric. I haven’t even been processed properly.” Hickes finally acknowledged her. “You are being processed right now,” he told her. To Lydia he said, “I’ll send the paperwork over to Judge Doyle within the hour.” “I need to call my lawyer,”Tabitha piped up again. Hickes became frustrated. “You are a category A prisoner. In the city of Coldford that means we can hold you for at least 48 hours without giving you jack shit. More than that, if you don’t sit on your ass and stop running your mouth. It’s over Tabitha. Stay quiet and don’t make it any more difficult on yourself than it needs to be.” Tabitha leaned back on her elbows. “A take-charge man? When did you grow such big balls?” “Will she be secure enough in here?” Lydia put to Hickes. “She will. I’ll have someone on the door twenty-four hours. Havitz can take the first shift. As soon as she’s tried she will be moved to the Monte Fort.” Tabitha sat back up again at the mention of the infamous women’s correctional facility. “You sound so sure of yourself. Those big balls of yours must be ready for bursting.” Both the detective and the agent turned to her.

“It’s over Tabitha,” Lydia reminded her again. “The game is over.”

Tabitha rolled her eyes. “Then before you go and break out the parade you may want to take a look in the KNOCK KNOCK holding and help out your little reporter pal.” “SAM?” Lydia looked to Hickes. “He left with that little girl.” “Wrrrrrong!” Tabitha sang. “He tried to leave and made a pretty shitty job of it, too.” “They were just going to open up the hold when I left,” said Hickes. Lydia shook her head. “I better get back over there.” Hickes followed Lydia out. Securely locking the door behind them. Two CPD officers stood on the door with guns ready. “No one caring about little Sarah then? Just me? Mother fuckers!” Tabitha could be heard calling as she was locked in. Tabitha took a look at her surroundings. As someone who had been running amok in the Shady City for so long there was little satisfaction in having her in custody. Perhaps it was because they knew she was dangerous until behind Monte Fort bars. Most people would be beginning to question some of the choices they had made. However, even then, even at that late stage, Tabitha assumed the fight was far from over. It was just that the battlefield was changing. The evidence against her was set.

***

I had heard the commotion spilling in from outside. I had heard gunshots but there was nothing I could do. I assumed someone would come soon but time passed and I began to think Tabitha had fought off whatever attack had come. Still there was no word. Still dressed only in my underwear, I looked again at MADELINE’S lifeless body. I shivered. It was an internal shiver that reached into the core of my body. In the past twenty-four hours I had lost so much pursuing a story on the KNOCK KNOCK club. If I had known then what was still to come, I don’t think I would have been able to go on but, as I said, the story had to be told. Finally there was an explosion at the door. Tabitha had refused to give up the keys to be difficult and her minions weren’t cooperating either. “Why the fuck should I make it easier for any of them?” she had asked. “They brutalised my staff, wrecked my club and they want me to play nice?” Things couldn’t get any worse for her. Why should she make it easier for anyone else? LYDIA was the first to enter. My mind was still a little hazy from SIMON PENN’S knock out. I was still a little punched drunk, probably concussed too. “She attacked me,” was all I could say. “Madeline was going to kill me.” Lydia took a look at Madeline and had already deduced the story. She pulled me to my feet. “You’ll be alright, Sam,” she said. Her northern BOURNTON accent was warming. Her soft, naturally cheery voice reminded me that I wasn’t alone. Perhaps it was that that gave me the fight to go on. “Tabitha is in custody,” she said and, whilst those should have been the sweetest words to my ears at that point after everything she had done to me, I couldn’t help but feel unsettled. Crossing through the club was like crossing a field in the aftermath of a battle. Chairs were overturned, blood soaked the floors, and men and women beaten into submission cowered in the corners with guns pointed at them. “They came for Tabitha?” I asked of Lydia. Lydia knew where my thinking was leading. “She has a lot of tricks up her sleeve. CPD couldn’t be too careful.” I took note of the club members who were surrendering. Were they innocent? Perhaps not but was it really for the guns of CPD to decide that? They came for Tabitha. They had her. So why were CPD still holding club members?

***

“You could make this easier on yourself,” said Hickes.  “Just confess.” Tabitha folded her arms across her chest and sat back on her bench. “Why don’t you tell me what I’m confessing to?” Hickes groaned with impatience. He stood and leaned on the table. “You know what you’re in for,” he said. Tabitha shrugged. “Driving too fast?” Hickes clenched fists. “Damnit Tabitha, make it easier on yourself!” Tabitha laughed. “Look at you all in a rage. The little vein in your head is popping out and everything.” “They’ve been after you for years. They are looking for any excuse,” Hickes reminded her. Now that they have you they will make an example of you.” Tabitha fell silent for a few moments. “I notice you said they and not we. Whose side are you on?” “I’m on the side that doesn’t want to see this city torn apart,” he replied with a sigh. “It’s a pity,” she said, lifting her hand to inspect her fingernails. “What is?” enquired the detective. “What will happen to everyone my club protects. My AUNT TEE used that club to give shelter, food and support to so many. People like your sister for instance and your adorable little nephews. “Eunice was grateful,” Hickes said.

Tabitha puckered her lips. “My HEADLINERS were only too happy to help. I even made sure Stanley paid dearly for what he did to her without you having to get your little detective hands dirty. When you think about it, I’m kinda like a super hero.” Hickes shook himself off. “Let’s not lose track here. You are no hero. Stanley beat Eunice and those kids but what you did to him? No one should… “ Tabitha gave a laugh. “Yeah, it was quite creative, wasn’t it?” “What about the innocent people that died when a floor of the Weir Hotel was blown?” Tabitha shook her head. “If they were staying at the WEIR, trust me they weren’t innocent.” Hickes growled. “You don’t get to make that judgement.” “No? Then who does? Judge fucking cyclops?” Tabitha returned with venom, her reference meaning Judge Doyle of the Law Makers. The very one who had authorised her arrest.

“Helping some people out doesn’t give you the right to murder, steal or destroy this city.” Tabitha didn’t reply at first. Hickes thought he was beginning to get through to her. “I need to speak to someone,” she said. Hickes shook his head. “I told you, no calls.” Tabitha leaned forward. Her expression softened. The bravado still lingered but it was lower than before. “For the sake of Eunice and those kids.” Hickes’ nostrils flared but he too softened. “Who do you need to speak to?” “I need to see my Aunt Agnes.” AGNES WILDE was partner to Tabitha’s Aunt Tawny. They opened the club together and treated the Boss Lady like a daughter. Agnes was still on the board of the club, better known as the Broker. “I can’t…” “Just five minutes…” she hesitated. “Please.”

Enjoy this?

Next week we’re off to the PENN AUCTION HOUSE to catch up with our old pal and former club manager Dennis.

In the meantime: Here’s the story so far:

Free to read HERE on Vivika Widow Online or you can download for kindle by clicking HERE.

KNOCK, KNOCK: Episode 1: Welcome to the Club

Knock, Knock: Episode 2: Don’t Come Knockin’

Knock, Knock: Episode 3: Sleep Tight Sam

Knock, Knock: Episode 4: Take A Bow

Knock, Knock: Episode 5: A Room With A View

Knock, Knock: Episode 6: Picking Up Strange Women

Knock, Knock: Episode 7: No Kids Allowed

Knock, Knock: Episode 8: Kids These Days

Knock, Knock: Episode 9: Shootin’ The Breeze

Knock, Knock: Episode 10: Calling Last Orders

Knock Knock: Episode 11: Shady City Blues

  With the Boss Lady of the Knock Knock Club in custody, what are the next steps for Shady City's finest? The chill wind the night was bringing whistled. It could have been the adrenaline of the chase finally wearing off but Agent…

#blog read #crime fiction #graphic novel #horror #Knock #noir #thriller #vivika widow

[whitnei-writes]

Wow. Super dope. I am sure she walked straight out of my inner 8-year-old’s imagination. 😍 @theresafractale 🙏🏾 I bow. Nicely done. #fantasyart #artistsoninstagram #lovealways #letsgrow #herstun • @theresafractale The Imperatrice... Photograph : @lillianliuphotography Designer : @lindafriesen.couture MUA : @ladyfreakshow Hairstylist : @iamdhairstylist Lenses : @ttd_eye ( Promo code : Theresafractale ) Some of you may have seen this shooting album on many accounts. Most have not had the decency to add all the credits. Very Fortunately, some of you have alerted me or had the kindness and the honesty to quote me. I think that many people are unaware of the colossal work that this kind of shooting requires and at every level. Whether it is the Model, the Photographer, the Creator, the Make-up Artist or the Hairdresser, all this people present on this project have worked very hard. These are hours of practice. All these persons are really important. So I am amazed to see that many people take pleasure in sharing this kind of work without crediting anyone or even using it without even asking for prior permission for reproductions. The fact that there is a continuous images on this plateform, many people forget that this is our tripes here and not just a image which is intended for consumption or to feed a yarn. I would really like this notion of respect for the artist's work to be a little more up-to-date. That is so lacking today. If it's not your work and you can't respect an Artist don't touch. Thank you. For those who wish to continue to help me to support this kind of project you can help me by Paypal. [email protected] #Theresafractale #Model #GothicModel #Divine #Fantasy #Victorian #VictorianEra #Gothic #Spirit #Soul #TheSource #Godess #DivineConscience #Nubian #Queen #Beautiful #Theresa #WaveGotikTreffen #Alternativemodel #Egypt #Africa #Dark #Light #Baroque #golden #sun #theimperatrice (at Imagination Playground) https://www.instagram.com/p/ByisEiOgtOP/?igshid=13bxuhggkj5s8

#fantasyart #artistsoninstagram #lovealways #letsgrow #herstun #theresafractale #model #gothicmodel #divine #fantasy #victorian #victorianera #gothic #spirit #soul #thesource #godess #divineconscience #nubian #queen #beautiful #theresa #wavegotiktreffen #alternativemodel #egypt #africa #dark #light #baroque #golden

[hunterinabrowncoat]

Hi! I'm sorry to bother you, but I saw you reblogged a post about the general election and I was wondering why you thought May funding more grammar schools was a bad thing? I've heard a lot from both sides of the argument, but i don't have much experience with the state sector (I've spent my life at private schools) and I just wanted to ask your opinion. Thanks!

Hi anon! You’re no bother at all, don’t be afraid to ask questions.

I mean really it’s quite a complex topic, cos you gotta look at every aspect of British secondary education and class divides, but here goes...

So I didn’t go to public school for most of my life either. I was educated until I was 16 and finished my GCSEs at a small, independent faith school. The fees weren’t expensive, they were based on income, and I didn’t get a fantastic education, nor was anything about that school to be described as “posh” or “rich”. But it was a private school nonetheless.

There were lots of things that were terrible about this school, but on the whole I’m incredibly grateful for my education. I was educated in a very relaxed environment, in classes no larger than 15 at most (usually around 5-10 students), by teachers who knew me personally and honestly, actually cared about my well being.

I know for a fact I would not be able to say the same thing had gone to a comp school. Not least because, no matter how lucky I got with regards to having caring teachers, or stellar teaching, the law simply wouldn’t allow for most of the things I loved about my education. State school class sizes regularly push 30, sometimes even 35. Because of large numbers, state school classes are split up into sets, with the brightest, highest achieving kids in set 1, and the lowest achieving in set 3 (some schools have set 4 I think? depending on how many kids they have, but I’m not 100% sure. It doesn’t really matter either way...). It can get pretty demoralizing for kids who don’t respond well to the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach the system provides.

A brief history of grammar schools goes something like this:

They’ve existed since the 1600s, but they really became what they are today during the 1940s when education beyond the age of 14 became free. There were two types of schools for secondary education (age 11-16/High School) which consisted of grammar schools and secondary modern schools.

Grammar schools focused on academic subjects, with the intention that pupils would go on to University, whereas secondary modern schools focused on getting children prepared for the workforce in trade. Here, the 11+ was introduced. The 11+ is an exam sat by pupils when they’re 11 years old, which determines if they’re intelligent enough to be educated at a grammar school.

In the 60s, the Labour Party was adamant that this system just furthered class divisions, so began phasing out grammar schools, and introducing Comprehensive Schools, which educate everyone at secondary school age. Aaand voila! That’s pretty much the education system we have for secondary school now. Everybody has a local comp. ...but they’re usually pretty undesirable places.

So... grammar schools, class, and the 11+

As well as being privately educated, I also happen to have grown up one street away from one of only a handful remaining grammar schools in the UK, where my brother went to sixth-form (16-18yrs education, which at the time wasn’t compulsory), so I was blissfully unaware until a few years ago that they’re almost extinct in the UK.

And I mean I joked about it a lot as a teen, but the class difference has always been painstakingly obvious. Between the hours of 8-9am and 3-4pm our street would always fill up with really nice, expensive cars, because parents would park in our street to go pick up their kids from school. You could always tell which cars belonged to residents, and which belonged to parents, because nobody who lives on our street could afford a BMW. More to the point, nobody who could afford a BMW would live on our street!

And you only have to look next-door to see how class plays a part in making it into a grammar school. Right next to the grammar school is a prep school. A primary school literally designed to prepare children for entry into the grammar school. Who do you think gets accepted into that primary school? I can tell you it ain’t working class kids!

So the children who end up going to grammar schools are by no means more intelligent than those who go to comp. They’re just privileged enough to have had a very good (often private) education that helps them to pass the 11+. What usually happens is that parents pay private tutors to come prepare their kid for the exam from an early age, so that they’re far more likely to pass than a kid who’s come from comp education without tutoring, despite not necessarily being any more intelligent.

So in conclusion...?

Essentially, grammar schools are a remnant of an old education system that in theory separated the higher and lower achieving students, but in practice all it really does is allow children from more privileged background access to even more privilege through a better education.

I mean essentially what it boils down to with education, is that same thing that everything comes down to under capitalism:

Whatever the state provides - hell, whatever anyone provides - if you pay lots of money, you can get a better version.

Bought an event ticket? If you pay lots more money, you can skip all of the queues, get front row seats, and spend quality time with the celebs. Need a medical procedure? If you pay lots more money, you can skip all the waiting lists and go to private hospital to get it done immediately, by people who have the time to actually deliver quality patient care. Want an education? If you pay lots more money, you can get one-on-one quality tutoring or teaching from the most highly educated people around, and guarantee that you’ll get into University.

Rich people always get better things, and everybody else is always left with the “standard” which in the case of state-funded things are underfunded, understaffed, underqualified or sub-par. Rich people get better; not because they’re more deserving, or more intelligent, or more qualified. They’ve just been able to pay for more access to better resources that enable them to climb higher.

Political party stances

So currently there is a ban on grammar schools, meaning that no more grammar schools can be opened or set up. What Theresa May wants to do is repeal that ban, and fund 70,000 new places in 140 new schools with £320million, and she’s stipulated that those schools will be free to be selective. ie. they’ll be publicly funding the opening of new grammar schools.

Personally, I don’t care for grammar schools, for all of the reasons listed above. However, I’m not going to be campaigning for their imminent closure anytime soon. They’re a symptom of a system of elitism under capitalism that I don’t support, and honestly I’ve got bigger concerns about education, and about capitalism and elitism on my mind, to be honest.

However, I am adamantly opposed to May’s proposal, which would use public money to fund the set up of yet more grammar schools.

We know the system doesn’t work. All of the evidence points to the fact that they don’t do much for working class kids. They continue to serve an elitist system whereby people with more money get better education.

More money > better education > top university > better paying jobs > more money.

The government should be funding comprehensive schools better, so that the education which everyone has access to is a better quality education. That’s not going to happen unless teachers are paid better, the education and training of teachers is funded better, the class sizes are smaller, and the system shifts to make room for children who don’t fit this ridiculous ‘one size fits all’ approach we currently have.

Furthermore, I can’t say that I trust the education system to the Tory party’s hands at all (although admittedly there isn’t really anything I can think of to be honest that I would trust them with!). Their track record with education is honestly appalling - just look at the absolute joke that was Michael Gove as Education Secretary, and then Nicky Morgan. Neither of them have ever had any experience in education aside from being a child in school, and neither of them have ever listened to what teachers have had to say about the effects of legislation. They’re slashing funding for the arts, placing priority on STEM subjects over everything else, increasing the stress on teachers through horrendous amounts of paperwork required, increasing the class sizes, and increasing the number of tests that children take, even at primary age and foundation phase.

Schools in impoverished areas always receive less funding, thus are unable to provide a better quality education due simply to a lack of resources. And thanks to our ridiculous league table system, all of the emphasis in schools is put on churning out as many GCSEs grade C and above as is humanly possible, rather than actually providing a holistic and quality education. So schools are often forced into demoralizing cycles where they don’t produce enough A*-C GCSE results, receive less funding, have less means to provide a good education, get less A*-C redults etc. etc.

Funding more grammar schools isn’t going to change that. It’s only going to widen the gap between working class kids and middle and upper class kids, who have parents with enough money to afford better opportunities for them.

TLDR;

Grammar schools in theory help kids from low-income backgrounds get better educations, but in practice they really don’t. Public funding should focus on making state education better, through more funding and better legislation, rather than pumping money into an elitist system that only serves to continue the trend of rich kids being high achievers, and poor kids being low achievers, because they’re not given the same opportunities. The Tories also have terrible policy on education generally, but this is a new low.

#anon #ask #reply #education #grammar schools #uk politics #Anonymous

[cripthevoteuk-blog]

Disabled in Theresa May’s Britain #40: KCD

From Wales

I don't usually like to get too political but with the election coming up I felt it was important to share my experience in the hope some people will re think their support of a gov who seems determined to undermine the NHS and disabled people. 

I was born with severe bilateral congenital talipes equinovarus - basically both feet turned in and down (aka severe clubfeet). 

Unfortunately as a child I didn't receive some of the more successful treatments e.g. Ponsetti method, but over the years I have had frequent surgical and non-surgical intervention. However, despite best efforts, I am still left with restricted mobility in my ankle joint and also osteoarthritis. Unfortunately, this had led to secondary issues of back, hip and knee pain and it also severely affects my walking. And, being totally honest, my disability is a large factor that has contributed to me experiencing depression and anxiety too. 

Most of the time I do try to get on with it , and will try to do things like go for days out etc and I try to work (on reduced hours) because I want to lead a 'normal' life like anyone else and be as independent as I possibly can. I was brought up to try my best, get an education and a job to support myself - relying solely on benefits was not an option I wanted. 

But, unfortunately,  it's not always that simple. Every time I leave the house I have to consider how far I will be walking, the terrain, gradient, opportunities for rest and also if there is parking close by. For 'big days' like a wedding or a trip out, I make sure I have nothing else planned for a while after so that my feet can recover, as quite often I experience pain, stiffness and discomfort after the event, as well as during. 

I rely on my family to help me with daily things like cooking, cleaning etc and more e.g bathing/dressing if having a bad day. I also rely on my automatic car (can't drive manual without adaptations) and the blue badge. 

While it is by no means as 'bad' as what others may have to deal with, my disability does affect me on a daily basis and I have relied on the support granted to me INDEFINITELY by Disability Living Allowance- which allowed me to have a Motability car. It also paid for the amount of wide fitting supportive shoes I have to buy as I wear through the heel of even the most supportive shoes every 5-6weeks. 

However, since the introduction of PIP, I have been reassessed to see if my disability 'fits the criteria' for support. I had to fill out endless forms and provided masses of evidence to support my claim, some of which was from a professor in this area who treats my feet. All of which I had already done when claiming for DLA in the past. 

I then had to endure a face-to-face "assessment" - a term I use lightly for this experience. What followed was a series of questions designed to 'catch people out.' I was also asked to do a series of hand grip tests (what relevance to foot disability?) stand on one leg (which I could not do) reach my hands over my shoulder (again, relevance?) walk approx 4 metres (with a limp!) and then sit down.  

At no point did the assessor LOOK at my FEET (which are clearly scarred and disfigured) despite me offering to show her. She also asked me to explain my condition as she hadn't heard of it before (what!?) 

What followed this frankly belittling experience was her summary of findings and a decision. They were not going to give me anything! I also had to give back or buy my car, which was a huge blow. I opted to buy it as I need it to get around.

After reading her summary, my emotions got the better of me, as there were several inaccuracies in there (e.g. She said I could crouch- she never asked me to crouch. If she had, she would have seen that it is a physical impossibility for me as my ankle doesn't move that way) She also said there was no disability in my upper or lower limbs! (Last time I checked, feet are definitely classed as lower limbs, or have I missed an important anatomy lesson?) 

There were also some downright lies - She interpreted me saying that I occasionally attend the pool on doctors advice as a non weight bearing way to strengthen my core muscles as 'she regularly does sporting activities!' -Anyone who knows me knows that I do not do sporting activities, and have been advised against weight bearing activities e.g running and sports. I was even excused from every single P.E lesson at school so I could attend physio instead.  It made feel me feel angry, but also small and like I had done something wrong. It made me feel like I was making a big fuss over nothing and that I should just suffer the disability I have had since birth in silence as 'they' had deemed it not bad enough. 

So I appealed, with the support of the Citizens Advice Bureau, who were great. I clearly highlighted the inaccuracies and lies and even went through each point on the marking criteria to put in how many points I should have had (and provided evidence for it). 

Unbelievably, the appeal was unsuccessful! So I went for a tribunal. Reluctantly, if I'm honest, as by this point I was utterly defeated by the process to prove my disability was bad enough - to the point where I had anxiety attacks and many sleepless nights! The decision to go for it in the end was made after my family said I needed to go and stand up for myself and say that the decision is WRONG! I needed to put the record straight on what had been said about me. 

The tribunal was held in the local court, which is quite intimidating, especially as I had never had reason to go there before. Personally, I associate 'going to court' primarily with wrong-doing, though I do know that is not the only use.   

I was sat with my mother on the lower levels facing the higher bench, where the presiding judge, the DWP representative and the medical professional sat. At the risk of sounding dramatic, it felt like a trial. 

What followed was a barrage of questions about me and my disability- how it affected me on a daily basis. Some of them were ridiculous e.g Q: in a week how many days would you say are bad days? - A: um I'm not sure! (surely that is subjective would depend on a variety of factors such as activity levels!) Q:Could I walk the length of a football pitch without stopping? - A: no, not without breaks. Q: How many breaks would you need? - A: I don't know! It would depend on how much I walked before hand, the terrain, the gradient, the walking surface, time of day, whether I'd woken up in pain! Q: yes but how many? ... I found the DWP rep very intimidating in her questioning technique, where she continued to ask the same question over again, wanting more detail than I could give her. She wanted her questions answered with very specific scenarios in mind that weren't realistic to my life. Q: Can you cook a meal just for yourself? A: Yes if I sit down to prep and don't have to walk far with heavy items. Q:Could you do it if it was cooked in a microwave? A:Yes, but I live with my family and therefore it's not just for myself and I don't want to eat just microwaveable meals (so what is your point in asking in relation to an unrealistic scenario?) Q: yes, but could you do it?... 

Though I'm not the most confident person, I would say I'm not easily ruffled. But, when I walked out of that court room and got outside the building, to my embarrassment, I burst in to tears. Overcome with emotion (and partly due to being pregnant) I was physically sick twice into the bushes. To say I felt a fool is no exaggeration! 

In all honesty, that was the most intimidating and awful experience of my life. I am so glad that I had my mother there to support me and also to speak up on my behalf, because without that I would have been more of a mess. I'm also glad I took the day off to go as there was no way I would have gone back to work in that state. I have to say that,  in fairness,  the Judge  was kind and I thought he was very fair, even helping me interpret some of the questions asked. He also gave me an opportunity to raise any other points at the end, so I highlighted inaccuracies and lies and also directed him to my most useful evidence. 

So, after going through all of that, I did get some good news. The tribunal overturned the decision and awarded me some PIP- not enough to get my Motability car back, but I went from having 4 points to 16! Finally some recognition and justification! And I can reapply for my blue badge now! 

What infuriates me though is that before PIP came in I had indefinite DLA for my condition (which unfortunately isn't going to get better but will slowly degenerate with age.) But I was still put through this ordeal. Not only that, it's not over. The DWP can still appeal this decision and go back to tribunal again, wasting more taxpayer money! And, even after that I will have to go through the claim process again when my current claim period ends in 2019 because they no longer do indefinite or longer period claims! 

This gov. shows a complete lack of respect for the disabled people in this country. This is shown by the cuts and the assessment processes put in place that show a complete lack of understanding about disability and how each individual's case can vary greatly. Even the title Personal Independence Payment is a joke as they are not helping people like me stay independent! I understand that nothing is perfect, and you do get those who abuse the system, but what Mrs May and the DWP fail to understand is that we do not fit neatly into a box, we are human beings. Is it too much to ask to be treated like one?

#disability #welfare reform #accessibility #politics #uk politics #ge2017 #theresa may #human rights #cripthevoteuk

[tremendouspeachduck]

Five Great Lessons You Can Learn From Natural Gas Extraction

aka What do you Need To Know About NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION/Fracking - Most Americans like the idea, why?

DYK?  U.S. carbon dioxide emissions from energy consumption are at the lowest level since 1994. Overall, carbon emissions from energy have fallen for five straight years. Natural gas, as the president pointed out, is having a direct impact as natural gas power generation is replacing dirtier coal power on a near 1-to-1 ratio. In addition to a big reduction in carbon emissions, the overall carbon footprint of natural gas extraction is becoming smaller.

DYK?  The manufacturing industry has announced more than 100 projects representing $80 billion to $100 billion in new investments thanks to fracking. The projects range from petrochemical plants to fertilizer manufacturers and are only possible thanks to cheap and abundant natural gas that's only unlocked by fracking.Photo credit: Chesapeake Energy.Fracking has fueled a 41% increase in energy-related jobs since the end of the Great Recession. The industry now supports 2.1 million jobs. It's expected to add another 1.1 million new jobs by the end of the decade.

On top of that, it's estimated that fracking has enabled the U.S. to add 530,000 manufacturing jobs since 2010 as companies took advantage of cheaper natural gas. Some analysts predict that another 5 million manufacturing jobs could be added to the economy by 2020 thanks to cheap natural gas that was unlocked by fracking.

DYK?  Over the course of drilling more than a million wells, the industry has continued to refine the process. Today's process of fracking is vastly improved from just a few years ago.

Halliburton is one of the companies leading the way to make fracking even better. The company has developed safer fracking fluids that are sourced with ingredients found in the food industry. The fluid is safe enough that Halliburton executives have even taken a sip at a conference.

Halliburton is also pioneering a water recycling solution that will enable it to frack new wells using water that is produced from other wells it fracked. The company hopes that by recycling it can reduce the freshwater usage in its fracking operations by up to 25% by the end of this year.

BTW - Please do your research – Was Civil War about freeing slaves – myth.  It was about taxation.  Were blacks in civil war times thought to be human – myth.  No, they were thought to be some sort of sub-species.  Did abolitionists cause a change in thought – True – But did it come from human decency or politics?  It came from North wanting South economy destroyed.  We need our statues and our history written as it was – as ugly as it might be – we never want it repeated, right?  This is how we learn from the past.

BTW -  Reparations?  Blacks, American Indians, Whites all bought and sold slaves, so who can we pin as the culprit? Of course we’re racist - from the Irish, Italians, Blacks and now Arabs and that won’t change.  We are human and fear other cultures and colors.  We can evolve with better ethnic education that will eventually lead to tolerance & admiring differences/abilities.When someone screams racist - I say yeah - so?  It’s a work in progress that NOT killing the target person or stuffing head in toilet is a great advancement.  Also, these feelings are coming from each race.  Maybe each race can tell tales about some other race and its unethical actions. The key to take home is that we are progressing.

Others are working on sustainable fracking initiatives. These will limit flaring, cut down on emissions, and reduce toxic chemicals used in fracking operations, as well as a whole host of other voluntary standards to clean up the process. That's in addition to stronger regulations that some states are placing on water testing and emissions. Bottom line: Fracking is getting a whole lot safer than many of its detractors realize. 

Many of the reasons the process is hated have either been disproved or have vastly improved over the years. That's why more Americans need to learn to love fracking, as it's doing a lot more good than many people realize. 

We should blame lack of education coming from Congress, right?

List of youngest members of the United States Congress!

What we have is a de facto House of Rep run by uneducated Democrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What qualifications do you think would be proper?

We need women in both parties. Representation of only one type of American female identity is problematic.  Check it out: 

North Carolina Teen Accepted to 113 Colleges, Awarded $4.5m in Scholarships

A Greensboro teen’s hard work paid off in a big way. Jasmine Harrison, 17, was accepted to 113 colleges and universities and awarded more than $4.5 million in merit-based scholarships.

Who are our female Senators and young House Rep?

The youngest female Republican House Rep is Elise Stefanik - what’s she up to?

Republican Senators:  Susan Collins,  Lisa Murkowski,  Deb Fischer,  Joni Ernst and  Cindy Hyde-Smith

Joni Ernst was the first female combat veteran and  Cindy Hyde-Smith  is the first woman from Mississippi elected to Congress.  Cindy Hyde-Smith ran on reigning in Fed Bureaucracy and the shutdown helped her.  Joni Ernst is singing my song  - cutting down on money spent 

All GOP both men and women are concerned with the subject of rape.   STUDY DESIGN: A national probability sample of 4008 adult American women took part in a 3-year longitudinal survey that assessed the prevalence and incidence of rape and related physical and mental health outcomes. 

RESULTS: The national rape-related pregnancy rate is 5.0% per rape among victims of reproductive age (aged 12 to 45); among adult women an estimated 32,101 pregnancies result from rape each year. Among 34 cases of rape-related pregnancy, the majority occurred among adolescents and resulted from assault by a known, often related perpetrator. Only 11.7% of these victims received immediate medical attention after the assault, and 47.1% received no medical attention related to the rape. 

We started off as twin baby girls but today we are both US Judges.

A total 32.4% of these victims did not discover they were pregnant until they had already entered the second trimester; 32.2% opted to keep the infant whereas 50% underwent abortion and 5.9% placed the infant for adoption; an additional 11.8% had spontaneous abortion. 

Republican John James will run again, this time against Sen. Gary Peters The Michigan businessman’s run could shape the presidential race in a key swing state. 

CONCLUSIONS: Rape-related pregnancy occurs with significant frequency. It is a cause of many unwanted pregnancies and is closely linked with family and domestic violence. As we address the epidemic of unintended pregnancies in the United States, greater attention and effort should be aimed at preventing and identifying unwanted pregnancies that result from sexual victimization. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 1996;175:320-5.)

If the victim is shy - there is still a way to conviction without evidence.   The GOP stance is victim accusations is not enough to convict - by itself.  Absolutely no crime can be substantiated with just an accusation.

Lastly, since most rapists are known to the victim, incidents go unreported and my fav solution is to shoot them evaporates - especially if a family member.

More and more women are coming around to this view.  Welcome to the GOP  or Republican Party!

A hero without a cape

Her name is Theresa Kachindamoto, and she is a senior chief - political leader of a region with a population of about 900,000 people.

She didn’t run for election; she was appointed, without her knowledge, while she was living and working in a completely different part of the country. She just received a call one day telling her to come back to her childhood home, because she was in charge now.

So she did; and when she arrived, she discovered widespread sexual abuse of children. She browbeat 50 uncooperative local leaders into accepting her decision to annul all the marriages. She then fired four of them when they continued to allow children to be married off in their areas. She still faces widespread opposition from parents who consider it their right to sexually abuse their daughters if they want to; but Kachindamoto very evidently does not give a fuck, and is continuing to use political and legal means to protect children in the region.

She’s not just an anonymous do-gooder; she’s an effective political leader despite incredibly difficult circumstances. Theresa Kachindamoto.

Child Bride World Wide Issue

The Noura Hussein Plea for justice

Arranged marriages are allowed and promoted in Islam as long as they are accepted by both the bride and the groom.

THE TRUTH – warning, may be brutal to your ears

DYK?  According to a 2016 census done by Global Slavery Index almost over 45.8 million live in slavery - nowadays.

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#slavery #fracking #oil #government #politics #foreign

[ag-pointer]

Indie Author Rants About: Mental Health in the UK

So I wrote this a while back and then my laptop crashed and then I had a few weeks of being a chicken. 

The UK is facing a mental health crisis. Every year there is a mental health awareness week that fills up our social media with helpful thoughts on how to cope with anxiety and depression whether you suffer with it or know someone who does. But we do not need a mental health awareness week. What we need is definitive action, desperately. Unfortunately, many of us are already all too aware of mental health problems and the monumental obstructions they place in the way of day to day life. If you are reading this and you do not think you have a mental health problem, you probably know someone who does. Following Theresa May’s announcement on mental health in January this year, the BBC released an article citing some upsetting figures on mental health in the UK. 

According to official figures from the UK government, 1 in 4 people are affected by mental disorder at some point in their life. Young people are more likely to be affected as over half of problems begin to show at 14 and 75% at 18. Whilst the government recognises that young women represent the ‘highest mental health risk’ the rates for suicide are higher than ever in young men. It is also no coincidence that every ‘mental health awareness’ barrage seen on social media seems to focus mostly on depression and anxiety and related problems. Rates of people diagnosed with depression, anxiety, or both, are soaring in the UK.  And whilst I am often the last person that would advocate attempts to reduce causes of depression and anxiety down to being situational alone, we have to face the figures on this. 

A UK wide survey for the Prince’s Trust this year found that over 58% of 16 – 25 year olds said that political events had made them fearful for their futures, with 41% more anxious than a year ago. 50% felt that it is harder to get a job than a year ago, and 42% felt traditional goals like home ownership or a steady job were unrealistic. Almost half of young people in this country see a steady job and home ownership – basic human needs – as unattainable. Is it any wonder they are suffering from depression and anxiety when they are constantly afraid that they may never find a viable job to pay for soaring rent, let alone afford to buy a home? And where does this leave our young people? At home with their parents far longer than any generation before them, craving an independence constantly glamorised on the tv, on Instagram and facebook etc, yet always out of reach. 28% of those surveyed felt out of control of their lives.

This is a recipe for a mental health crisis in anyone. And that is without the additional pressures faced by today’s youth from social media like Instagram and snap chat, with their unattainable beauty standards and the constant race to keep up with them. 45% of those surveyed were stressed about body image. In a world where it is an uphill struggle on a bike that is on fire just to find a job that will maybe at some point get you out from under your parents’ feet, young people are also being told they have to lose weight for that ‘beach body’, yet somehow possess the buns of Kim K and don’t forget to get those eyebrows just right! That beach body, by the way is a potentially deadly goal for many – thigh gaps, visible rib cages and ‘bikini bridges’ for many young women come along with eating disorders that wreak havoc on physical and mental health. And it isn’t just women feeling the pressure in this regard – young men too are increasingly worried about their body image to the point where their mental health is suffering.

Depression, anxiety and eating disorders are some of the biggest health challenges faced by young people. Yet the government admits there is a disparity between the understanding and treatment of mental and physical health. My own GP informed me, after diagnosing me with depression and anxiety disorder that they no longer refer patients for counselling. Instead, I was ushered out of the door with a print out of a few charities in the area that 'may be able to help'.

The Macquerie Youth Index found that the overall well-being of young people in the UK is at its lowest since the index was commissioned in 2009. Jeremy Hunt admits that care for young people with mental health problems is a ‘black spot’ in need of immediate attention. So what is being done about it? It would appear that since the advent of Conservative rule in Britain, mental health has been on a frightening downward spiral, exacerbated by socio-political events that have decimated the quality of life for young people in this country. Well in January this year, our PM got up and told us her plans to deal with this crisis.

https://www.conservatives.com/sharethefacts/2017/01/transforming-mental-health-support

Mrs May told us that mental health was being dangerously disregarded. Her solution? To focus on schools. She announced plans to introduce mental health first aid training in schools, and ‘trials’ to strengthen links between schools and NHS Specialist staff. But Education professionals are echoing concerns raised by the charity known as Sane which pointed out that plans needed to be ‘matched by substantially increased funds to mental health trusts’. As Jeremy Corbyn Pointed out last year on PMQs, around 40% of mental health trusts have seen budget cuts year on year since 2011. Meanwhile, demand for mental health services has risen by around 20%. Yet there has been no mention of increasing funds to these trusts, or increasing the NHS budget for mental health. The PM went on to pledge more focus on community care such as ‘crisis cafés’ and local clinics with an extra £15m towards this. That is £15 million, for the whole of the UK. I am all for local clinics. But with a relatively minute budget,  and a reluctance to deal with mental health within the NHS,

I doubt the sincerity of this gesture. As for crisis café’s, whilst they are theoretically a nice concept, the reality is that they offer little to no professional help for those in need of it. At best they may help to dissolve some of the stigma that surrounds even mentioning one’s mental health. But they aren’t a new concept. They have already existed across the UK and whilst a helpful resource for some, government investment in this as opposed to clinics and mental health professionals is a waste of funds. Speaking to people with experiences of the mental health system here in the UK, it is clear that many regard group therapy as a cop-out – a kind of self help service which gets you no real diagnosis and thus no real help from the system. But this comes as a part of the government’s plans to remove emphasis from patients visiting GPs and A&E and instead placing it on ‘community care’, which, quite frankly, sounds a lot like shirking government or NHS responsibility, and leaving it to charities to deal with the growing mental health problem. I for one cannot see how this is in any way going towards fixing the disparity between care for mental and physical health. It seems that the attitude of this government is to sweep mental health under the carpet and hope it goes away.

Sure, they did pledge to divert around £67.7m on of their existing NHS digitisation budget towards online services such as a mental health symptom checker before getting a face to face appointment. But don’t those already exist? And exactly how does this help in improving care? An online symptom check is not an official diagnosis, you will still have to see a GP. And without an official diagnosis there is no chance of receiving any kind of disability benefit if your mental health is affecting your ability to work. Nor are concessions made for those forced onto Universal Credit as they look for work. One is expected to spend 35 hours a week looking for work if unemployed. That’s five hours a day. And along with this you must attend weekly meetings with a work coach who will look at the list of things you have done, print off a sheet of paper that threatens you with withdrawal of funds should you shirk on your duties, and send you on your way, with permission required to leave the country or take any kind of holiday. It is a frustrating, stressful and altogether unpleasant situation to be in, for anyone. Add anxiety or depression into the mix and it becomes a recipe for disaster. Even if you get a diagnosis from your GP, there is little to no clear information on what to do next if you are struggling. So, Mrs May, that £67.7m is only another waste of time and crucially, funds that could be used to improve care rather than delay it.

A diagnosis is difficult enough to get without more of NHS funds being diverted towards creating more hoops to jump through. Last week I interviewed a young woman in Dartford who told me about her struggle with mental health, and in particular with the NHS to get the correct diagnosis and following this, the correct treatment. I spoke with an acquaintance from the Dartford and Gravesham area about her experience with mental health problems. (Name omitted) is 23 years old and has bipolar disorder. She tells me that it took years to get her diagnosis. She kept getting ‘lost in the system’, was given antidepressants which worsened her bipolar disorder due to a misdiagnosis, and was frequently told that they did not want to label her. “Antidepressants just ruined my life. They still said they didn’t want to label me. They put me on antipsychotics – this is working, but they still wouldn’t give a diagnosis. And that’s because they would lose money in diagnosing me.” She is not alone in her struggles. GP’s have been offered incentives to avoid referrals, and as a diagnosis is needed to be considered for disability benefits, there are a great number of people with serious mental health problems going undiagnosed, expected to soldier on.

The only counselling offered to (Name omitted) was a group therapy session, which she felt would be less than helpful, and a referral to a Christian charity, not an NHS professional. Now that she has finally been given a diagnosis, she tells me she still feels that mental health services here are at an appalling standard: “I have to say the mental health team in this area has been rubbish, I never get letters from them, I’ve missed appointments and been discharged because I never got the letters. I went for an appointment once in Swanley, they left me alone in that room for 20 mins, there was a shattered frame in that room and I could hear them talking about my case in the next room. They’ve now actually shut down that institution.” This is just one example of poorly trained unprofessional staff and facilities unfit for purpose – and frankly dangerous. And the closure of facilities is no solution. This comes as a direct result of the lack of funding for mental health in the UK. The serious lack of funding had led to many humanitarian disasters up and down the country, with frequent reports of the mentally ill being kept in police cells or inappropriate wards due to the lack of beds and facilities.

With everyone's attention on Brexit, it is important to make sure that we don't forget the urgent problems people face in the UK. If you, like myself, have found it a struggle to get professional help with mental health in your area, I urge you to contact your local MP, as I will be doing. We cannot let them brush us under the carpet again and again. Mental health is being talked about in the media at the moment, so we need to make sure people keep talking, and talking about the issues that matter most.

#mental health #politics #depression #anxitey

[stoweboyd]

I think Krugman is too quick to dismiss France’s populism, which is at its core more about the consequences of globalism than white nationalism. He doesn’t mention Mélenchon in this piece, but his supporters are -- in the conventional sense -- far-left antiglobalist populists. When you consider the immigration issues of France -- and Europe -- as an outcomes of hypercapitalist globalism and former colonialism, sovereignty is an economic question, not just a cultural one. 

I am not suggesting that Le Pen would be a good outcome for France, but I equally abhor Macron and his metropolitan Eurocratic, hypercapitalist, globalist vision.

Here’s Krugman, stepping back and looking at what ails Europe:

it seems clear that votes for Le Pen will in part be votes of protest against what are perceived as the highhanded, out-of-touch officials running the European Union. And that perception unfortunately has an element of truth.

Those of us who watched European institutions deal with the debt crisis that began in Greece and spread across much of Europe were shocked at the combination of callousness and arrogance that prevailed throughout.

Even though Brussels and Berlin were wrong again and again about the economics — even though the austerity they imposed was every bit as economically disastrous as critics warned — they continued to act as if they knew all the answers, that any suffering along the way was, in effect, necessary punishment for past sins.

Politically, Eurocrats got away with this behavior because small nations were easy to bully, too terrified of being cut off from euro financing to stand up to unreasonable demands. But Europe’s elite will be making a terrible mistake if it believes it can behave the same way to bigger players.

Indeed, there are already intimations of disaster in the negotiations now taking place between the European Union and Britain.

I wish Britons hadn’t voted for Brexit, which will make Europe weaker and their own country poorer. But E.U. officials are sounding more and more like a jilted spouse determined to extract maximum damages in a divorce settlement. And this is just plain insane. Like it or not, Europe will have to live with post-Brexit Britain, and Greece-style bullying just isn’t going to work on a nation as big, rich and proud as the U.K.

Regarding EU’s plans to exact the maximum damage on the UK for Brexiting, I’ve noted that they seem to have left the spirit of Article 50 behind in their acrimonious and sanctimonious attacks on Theresa May. Is she supposed to kiss the hem of the EU’s robes? After all, article 50 is constructed around the premise that members of the EU might decide to leave, and spells out how it’s to be done. It does not state that EU officials should work to make such an exit a failure. And in fact -- despite what Merkel says about not talking about the future relations until the divorce agreement is settled -- Article 50 says the EU must take into account ‘the framework for its future relationship with the Union:

2. A Member State which decides to withdraw shall notify the European Council of its intention. In the light of the guidelines provided by the European Council, the Union shall negotiate and conclude an agreement with that State, setting out the arrangements for its withdrawal, taking account of the framework for its future relationship with the Union.

I think Krugman should read Chris Caldwell’s The French, Coming Apart (here’s my notes), which is about Christophe’s Guilluy’s views on what’s up in France. In particular,he should check out  Guilluy’s observations on the viewpoint of the Left Behinds, the average French living outside the metropole filled with the elite, out past the banlieues filled with immigrants, out in La France périphérique, which is 60% of the population.

If not this election, then in the next, Eurocrats' hubris will clearly become their nemesis.

#macron #christophe guilluy #paul krugman #le pen #antiglobalist populism #mélenchon #france #eu #greece #left behinds

[gloss80]

General Election 2017 - Man Like Corbz done good!

I am certain when the Exit Poll dropped on Thursday night shortly after polling stations closed there was a collective amount of jaw dropping across the nation and I can imagine several near heart attacks across CCHQ! I know Labour HQ were quietly jubilant but wanted to wait to see how the night transpired. No one saw this coming…. It was seriously a “where were you when you heard..” moment!! I stared at my TV screen thinking “Please, please, please let this Exit Poll be correct!” Why? Because it predicted a Hung Parliament and showed a brilliant Labour surge in the vote against all the odds. Many political commentators were urging caution whilst some remained steadfast in their belief that May would win the majority she needed to carry forth her mandate into the Brexit negotiations. I could feel something brewing in the air. Big crowds would turn out to see Corbyn at events across the country. He even packed out a football stadium with the crowd shouting: “Oooooh Jeremy Corbyn!” People wherever I went were talking about Corbyn and Labour’s Manifesto. On Thursday afternoon I was walking out of Wembley Park Tube Station and a group of School girls ran up to me and stopped me. They said “please vote Labour!” I answered “already done!” They cheered “Team Jezza! Bun the Tories!” and we all high-fived! That really warmed my heart! Young people engaged in politics and realising how politics impacts on every single facet of their life. I honestly felt like their proud Aunty! Anyway I digress….back to election night…. I could not sleep…optimism in my heart had me glued to my TV screen for the entire night. Was this really happening??? The results started to roll in and it was becoming clearly evident that the Exit Poll was indeed correct! Yes, I punched the air a few times as Labour Gains across the country materialised including Scotland where we took seats from the SNP. Canterbury went red after being Conservative since 1918! The Tory MP Jane Ellison was ousted in Battersea by Labour’s Marsha de Cordova! It was a stunning 10% swing from the Tories to Labour. The Tories dreadful manifesto author Ben Gummer gone! Nick Clegg gone! Amber Rudd was onto her 5th recount and almost had people rummaging through the bins for votes when it became clear that this was shaping up to be an extraordinary night for Corbyn and Labour! Long standing Labour activist Eleanor Smith made history by becoming the West Midlands’ first African Caribbean MP in a seat that used to be held by the racist Tory MP Enoch Powell! He of “Rivers of Blood” infamy. Kensington and Chelsea where the average house prices are 1.4 million now has the red flag flying high! The same constituency where Dacre’s Daily Mail HQ aka The Daily Heil sits in now has a Labour MP! Oh the irony…. Labour’s success saw it almost completely wipe out the Tories in London and more than double majorities in seats that were previously considered marginal. Remember that Theresa Mayhem had promised again and again that if she lost six seats, Jeremy Corbyn would be walking into number 10! On election night the U-turn Queen lost more than that yet is still desperately clinging on to power! Blaming everyone but herself for taking a reckless and arrogant gamble in calling a General Election that no one wanted. She has also lost the mandate for a hard Brexit and solidified just how weak and unstable a leader she actually is. British politics has suffered a Youthquake! Corbyn offered a real vision and hope to a younger generation who had often felt marginalised by politics. He connected with their aspirations and they mobilised and came out in force! Big up the #Grime4Corbyn campaign and all the Grime artists and rappers who helped inspire young people to go out and vote. This is just the start! Let’s build on what we have achieved! I am so proud to see the young voices rise up and just want to send heartfelt thanks to all the young people up and down the land who came out to vote. I am an actor and a movie geek so here is what I think: Corbyn in many ways epitomises Obi-Wan’s classic line in Star Wars - A New Hope: “If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.” I’m serious. Why do I make this correlation? Well Corbyn has survived strike after strike! He has survived constant attacks and challenges from within the Labour Party as well as vicious, poisonous and relentless assaults from the Tories and their right wing media cheerleaders and he has always comes back stronger than before and with a bigger mandate than before to boot! It is clear in this election that the more people saw of Corbyn the more they liked what they saw. Calm, compassionate, dignified, principled and always on the right side of history. Also the Labour Manifesto with the vision “For the Many Not The Few” successfully resonated with so many across the country. Hope, a feeling last seen in British politics in 1997 is on the rise again. In contrast Maybot decided to base her election campaign around herself under the “Strong and Stable” robotic mantra. She ducked away from the TV debates like a coward, tried as much as she could to avoid the public and trotted out soundbite after soundbite to the point that she sounded like a Dalek. It was either “Strong and Stable” or “Nothing has changed.” Repeat!! She relied on the tabloid press to sing her praises and was in desperate need of reboot but it never happened. The more the public saw of Maybot the more they did not like what they saw and the more they realised how distant, insincere and indecisive she was. The Conservative Manifesto was a disaster and the U turns kept coming soon after. It was clear you could not trust a word uttered. So here we are. People will say “but the Tories won! They got the most seats.” The reality is Mayhem was humiliated! She called this election with a 24 point lead over Labour and was so arrogantly complacent that Tories would win a landslide and Labour would be demolished at the ballot box. Mayhem did not get the majority she needed so she went with her begging bowl to the hard-right, racist, sexist, homophobic, terrorist linked and thoroughly unpleasant DUP to ask them to prop up her tory government. This in itself reeks of desperation and is doomed to fail. It also highlights her blatant hypocrisy. Jeremy Corbyn is a ‘terrorist sympathiser’ we’ve heard the right wing tabloids and their sheep shriek. So what now do you call Theresa Mayhem getting into bed with the DUP??? This is a regressive alliance with potentially far reaching implications for Northern Ireland and progressive politics in general. Instead of clinging on for dear life it would be far better if she resigned with what little dignity she has left. I have my popcorn out watching this mess unfold! Recriminations, resignations and Tory civil war no doubt! No matter which way you look at it this is the beginning of the end for Mayhem. She is toast! Anyway I am very encouraged by Labour’s election result. My support for Corbyn has never wavered and for the first time in ages I feel optimistic about what politics can achieve. First phase for Labour was winning UKIP votes back, attacking Tory seats/votes and galvanising young people which has worked brilliantly for us as we out performed expectations at this Election. The next phase now is securing a Labour victory at the next General Election which may well be sooner than you think….. Time for unity within Labour, this is our time. We must continue to organise and be a strong opposition! We must be the powerful voice for the many that this country so desperately needs. @gloss80

#Corbyn #Labour #GE2017 #JC4PM #Grime4Corbyn