#aboriginal veteran

[whymsiee]

Ao3/ff things that bug me

• a/b/o, not bc it's weird, im veteran ff reader so I'm used to it, but because when that word is written without slashes it's the same as a slur that refers to aboriginal/indigenous Australians. Sometimes I see it in fic recs or summaries and it catches me off guard everytime T^T

• when I'm trying to find a crossover fic but all the fics have multiple tags of the same fandom, (I.e. both chainsawman manga and chainsawman anime) it makes it so much harder to find crossovers ;-;

• PPL USING THE DEAD DOVE TAG WRONG,, like I feel like ppl have started using this tag for the smallest reasons like 'Oh no character a is kinda toxic in this I need to tag it with dead dove' like stooooppp

• the fact that sioc has been basically replaced by x reader,, like nothing against x readers or short like smut fics or whatever, but if you're writing a slowburn, Canon divergence ff about y/n, its not even the reader anymore??? Like,, just give them a name so I don't have keep getting ripped put of the immersion everytime I see (y/n) or [your name], at least write it in 2nd or 1st person

• this one's kinda petty, but when people tag a fic as slowburn when it's barley even 10k, like how is that a slowburn ??

#ao3 #ao3 fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #wattpad #lol sorry for just ranting the whole time #but i read way too much ff and my friends have stopped listening to me complain

[spiderdreamer-blog]

FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992)

Environmentalism in kids' entertainment in the early 90s is kind of a funny thing. Earth Day was a big focus, as was animal conservation and "doing your part" in terms of individual activism about picking up trash or planting trees. Captain Planet ruled the roost, with a multi-national team fighting grotesque stereotypes who bragged stupidly about how pollution was just so much fun even beyond the monetary value it might bring them. (looks at our current class of failson tech bro billionaries Actually that last part might not be so inaccurate...)

Looking back and with the looming specter of climate change reshaping our world, it seems almost quaint. Yet I wouldn't say all of that was wasted effort, nor were these unworthy causes. And a movie like FernGully: The Last Rainforest, corny as it might seem in places now, is both a reflection of that strange time and an interesting effort all its own. How does it hold up? Let's take a look.

Set in the titular, fictional Australian rainforest, FernGully tells the story of Crysta (Samantha Mathis), a fairy being tutored by Magi Luna (Grace Zabriskie, a good ways away from her work in David Lynch's repertory company). Magi informs her (and us) of the history of Ferngully and the evil spirit Hexxus (Tim Curry), who nearly wrought its destruction before Magi sealed him in a magic tree. Crysta, being a 90s teenager, is impatient and flies off to hang out with friends like Pips (Christian Slater, reuniting with Mathis from Pump Up The Volume and before their third collab in 1996's Broken Arrow) or Batty Koda (Robin Williams). But she soon discovers strange creatures encroaching on the forest: humans, who've long passed into legend after leaving Ferngully. More specifically, she meets Zack (Jonathan Ward), a young man working with a logging company. (Interesting/amusing observation: while we see Zack has an Australian driver's license, he has a very thoroughly Southern California accent. Possibly an expat?) After a mishap where Crysta accidentally shrinks him, Zack begins to learn more about the world of Ferngully and becomes increasingly enchanted with the place (though having a very cute girl express quite a bit of interest in you doesn't hurt, I imagine). Good timing, too, since Zack's co-workers have inadvertently released Hexxus from his prison and he's down for some payback...

The most striking thing about the movie remains its look. Director Bill Kroyer and his team, including his wife Susan Kroyer on art director duties, give the Australian landscapes true beauty in the use of bright, vivid colors and exceptional lighting. Ferngully truly does seem like a magical place even before you add the fairies, and Kroyer smartly makes use of blended CGI with the 2D animation that holds up remarkably well in expanding the landscapes or depicting machines like the ominous Leveler. (It helps, of course, that he was already a CGI veteran at this point, having been one of the pionnering animators on films like TRON). Outside of the lovely Aboriginal-art-inspired prologue that puts one in mind of Watership Down's famous dream sequences, the character animation itself is much in the Disney or Don Bluth models of the time, and not quite as detailed, but there's a lot of good character touches. In particular, Kathy Zielinski (who'd animated characters like Ursula or the snake form of Jafar in Aladdin, and would later supervise Frollo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame) gives Hexxus a gleeful, vibrant quality that's almost seductive. You know that had to be difficult to figure out given he's alternatively made of oil, smoke, and a bitchin' Chernabog-esque skeleton form at the climax.

The film is also deftly written and acted, which helps it stand out from the crowd that included either the hilarious melodrama of Captain Planet or the cute-but-boring Once Upon A Forest. In particular, I like how naturally Ward and the script makes Zack's journey; in addition to some great incredulous deliveries (like my favorite line in the film, "Great, I've been shrunk by an AMATEUR!"), Zack opening up his perspective to truly see the world around him is handled with a light touch because he's ultimately not that bad a guy. I appreciate too that the reveal of his initial lie that he wasn't helping cut down trees is played with genuine remorse and owning up to it, as well as an immediate desire to set things right. Mathis matches him well, making a character concept that could've easily been insufferable (she might as well have "90s Tinker Bell" written on her model sheet) into genuinely winning and heartfelt. She even manages to sell a line like "Can't you feel its pain?" about a tree, which easily could've gotten a bad laugh. The ending is nicely bittersweet, with Zack and Crysta parting ways because they know how important it is that they do the work to build a better future on each side. (It's kind of the same ending as Princess Mononoke, when you think about it).

On the supporting end of things, Williams is actually a lot less of a scene-stealer than you'd think. Oh, he gets a few comedy impressions in, notably in a rap number (we'll get to that) and the climax, but otherwise he mostly dials into Batty's nervous-wreck dealing with trauma from being a lab animal characterization to great effect. (This is not to knock his work in something like Aladdin, where he gives arguably one of the best voice performances of all time as the Genie, but there is a notable difference). Curry, too, is less prominent than you'd think, only getting a few big scenes to sell his villainy. But his musical number "Toxic Love" is unsurprisingly a highlight, and he gets a lot of his patented "best evil laugh ever" in the screentime he DOES have. Everyone else is on point: Slater gets some nice sardonic jabs in, Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong have a couple funny bits as some biker gang-esque goons who ride beetles, and Zabriskie navigates the cliches of Ye Olde Doomed Mentor with aplomb.

Musically, the film has an...interesting pedigree. In addition to a lovely, understated score by Alan Silvestri of Back to the Future fame, there are eight songs throughout, three by Thomas "She Blinded Me With Science" Dolby and the remaining five all by other artists/songwriters. This is not inherently a bad thing; while most musicals benefit from a standardized production team, having a number of different voices who can work in different genres can be novel. And I wouldn't say any of these are outright bad, but it does lead to some "the hell?" moments.

Dolby's songs are the opening "Life Is A Magic Thing", which takes us below the canopy into Ferngully, and it's a pleasantly bouncy number easing us into things courtesy of Jimmy Clegg's vocals; the aforementioned "Batty Rap", which is very white-guy-rap, if buoyed by Williams' enthusiasm and the horrific implications of the backstory (which are further expounded on in the twice-as-long soundtrack version); and "Toxic Love", a properly bluesy, boozy villain song that Curry throws himself into with abandon. (That one too is expanded on the soundtrack, which removes any doubt about the sexual connotations of the character and his motivations). We also have the inexplicable "If I'm Gonna Eat Somebody (It Might As Well Be You)", where a goanna voiced by gravel-pit-toned rapper Tone Loc serenades Zack as he's about to devour him (that was co-written by...Jimmy Buffet??? Would've loved to see that conversation); "Raining Like Magic", a brief quiet interlude by children's singer Raffi; our big awards bait song "A Dream Worth Keeping", co-written by The Last Unicorn's Jimmy Webb and belted out with gusto by Sheena Easton like she's looking over her shoulder at Celine Dion; and "Some Other World", the first animated movie song by Elton John that plays over the credits and is fine if a bit generic. (There's also a diegetic cover of "Land of a Thousand Dances" that issues forth from Zack's stereo as he leads the fairies in a dance party because some cliches aren't just old, they're prehistoric)

I goof on FernGully sometimes because it really is so painfully earnest that you can't help but roll your eyes on occasion. But that's hardly the greatest sin a children's film can commit, and I appreciate that it's, essentially, a better Lorax movie than the actual Lorax movie in its messaging (sincerely, forever and always, fuck that movie). The film ends with an epigraph of "For our children, and our children's children", and I can't knock that sincerity. Maybe it's important to remember.

#ferngully #analysis #reviews #ferngully: the last rainforest #robin williams #animation

[journeyneverends]

Perhaps a tradition will be started. I signed a brick on the inside of the community center in Hachita. The building was a merchantile that opened in 1903 and serves as a final resting spot for many before riding to the border. It was a good place to pause and reflect before re-entry into the other world.

I have heard, I don’t know where, that the aboriginals of Australia pause on long journeys to let their souls catch up to them. It seems like a good practice. I’ve come across a fair amount of data that shows that savoring experiences is much better than long term happiness than buying things. I also have noted that the notion of resetting one’s hedonistic set point can boost happiness and gratitude as well.

After a long journey like this I feel grateful for a lot of things I begin to take for granted. I think heading the list are friendships.

This wheel states “This will also change” a concept that change is inevitable and constant. Reminding myself of this seems simple but sometimes tricky.

The old Hachita water tower. A beacon for the last stretch.

Owner of the food mart and veteran of the divide trail, Jeff provides a valuable service to north and late season south bounders like me.

#journeyneverends #gdmbr

[oliviaandkiley-blog]

GOING BEYOND THE TEXT - Indigenous Studies Blog :0

Hello. We're Olivia and Kiley. We are 15 years old & this is our Social Blog! We will be talking about the settlement reached in 2001 decided by the federal government & the First Nations war veterans.

Many Indigenous people had hoped their wartime service and sacrifice would increase their rights in Canadian society. But Canada did not treat them the same as other Veterans after they returned to Canada. They were denied full Veteran benefits and support programs. Despite serving on the front lines together, Indigenous Veterans were left behind compared to their non-Indigenous comrades. This treatment made their transition to life back home even harder. This discrimination had a negative impact on many brave Indigenous people who had given so much in the cause of peace and freedom.

On National Aboriginal Day (June 21) 2001, the National Aboriginal Veterans monument was unveiled by the then- Governor General, Adrienne Clarkson to commemorate the contributions of Indigenous peoples in wars & peace making. They were also given $20,000 in compensation.

We believe that money and monuments cannot undo the unfair treatment the Indigenous Veterans have suffered. Money should never be considered a way to bring peace and equality.

Sources:

Veterans Affairs Canada

National Aboriginal Veterans Day

#school #indigenous #veterans #education

[incomingalbatross]

Scattered thoughts on Tales of the TARDIS shorts, since I finally watched them:

On the one hand, the framing device is so vague and handwavey it's basically incoherent. On the other hand, the content's pure fanservice fluff so I don't mind watching it without worrying about the canonicity.

Still, though, I'm watching a lot of this more as the actors getting to goof around with their well-loved roles. Especially the Big Finish veterans.

I mean, Seven played the spoons on Ace?? That's not a thing they did in-character, that's a thing they do at cons. Very cute, though.

Tegan going "HM, have you considered the TARDIS is trying to get you into therapy?" felt fun. felt in-character.

Saying she campaigned for the environment is a significant downgrade from the SJA namedrop where she was involved with Aboriginal rights, though. :/ I like that one a lot better.

Colin did not even SHAVE for this? That's funny.

Going with Warrior-Queen Peri as canon is... an interesting choice, but I guess if these were primarily framing devices to introduce TV stories then it wasn't really the place for all the Other Peri Timelines. :P

Clyde Langer my beloved. Can we talk about how wildly successful his original comics would have to be for him to get picked up for a live-action TV adaptation before he's thirty. YEAH.

Wish they'd mentioned Maria and Sky, though :(

This one's also really sad, though, because like. They had to bring Daniel Anthony in because 90% of the people who were actually in Three Doctors with Katy Manning are dead.

(Though why not John Levene? Not that I mind seeing Clyde but. still)

Steven and Vicki is maybe my favorite. :') Love Steven's protective instincts kicking in immediately, and Vicki still trying to give him a heart attack. Also Matriarch Vicki is everything I wanted for her. (well, ALMOST everything, she also needs a pack of massive dogs to satisfy her critter-adopting instincts)

LOVE the restraint shown in NOT having David Bradley there I was SO RELIEVED by that.

#i can't really vibe with the 'clap your hands if you believe' of it all but. they're cute

[morticiaslittlemadhouse]

E-416 Headcanon's

.Pamela Isley is Javanese' and a Trans Woman

.Abner Krill has a case of Tritanopia

.Jonathan Crane was very close with his paternal grandfather' Tecumseh Crane

.The Joker is Afro-Cuban and has Vitiligo

.Garfield Lynns is an Aboriginal Australian Immigrant

.Kirk Langstrom has a case of Albinism' and the bat he used the DNA of for his experiments was a Spectral Bat

.Victor Zsasz is a Hungarian Immigrant

.Jeremiah Arkham is Jewish and Polish

.Roman Sionis is half Italian half Japanese' and is still very close friends with Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent

.Jervis Tetch is Non Binary and fine with any Pronouns

.Solomon Grundy is the tallest rogue at 8'8"

.Mary Dahl is the shortest rogue at 3'1"

.Drury Walker is a Military veteran and suffers from a case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

.Waylon Jones cherishes a Fedora Oswald gave him for his birthday

#earth 416 #gotham rogues #headcanons #character info #pamela isley #abner krill #jonathan crane #joker #garfield lynns #kirk langstrom #victor zsasz #jeremiah arkham #roman sionis #jervis tetch #solomon grundy #cyrus gold #mary dahl

[myrfing]

lol. arknights syndrome. so the game likes to evade taking a stance itself on anything but welp i just finished twilight of wolumonde and it has the same. arknights syndrome. what the story established as its fact is:

- the aboriginal people of the region were all more or less considered by the protagonists to be wiped out. the last remaining “true” i.e. pureblooded winterwisp is an old dying-dead guy who now believes his previous resistance to lethanian occupation amounted to nothing more than “killing innocents”, and he has a fascination with the “civilized progress” of the iron cities as much as he simultaneously loathes them and sees it almost like “simple progress that could not be averted”. though he maintains his grief at the loss of his home and people, he is marked mainly by regret at his attempts to fight (portrayed as an obsession with empty vengeance that is the main story theme here) instead of assimilate

- the “non pureblood” (lol) descendants of the winterwisps are not considered true aborigines of the mountains and are mostly portrayed to be idiotic, angry, short-sighted, and self-obsessed “regular citizens” who co-opt the old resistance of the “true winterwisps” and use their racial identity as a flimsy political justification to join the mad chaotic leftist mob. they had not helped the original cause of the “true” winterwisps and left them to be wiped out (which is kind of weird to say because they would have been babies back then but whatever)

- said radical leftist mob mostly has the same substance: they’re a coalition of infected, people of winterwisp descent, and workers who are dissatisfied with the management of the town (which is shown to be…..well-meaning but at the whim of the national government) and its continual bowing to the lethanian nobility. overcome with mindless, shortsighted anger, lit aflame by the murder of dr. atro and her patients, they wreak havoc on wolumonde and uh are going to destroy the grain stores and cause everyone to starve and die because they are paranoid that the local government is withholding resources from them after the catastrophe. the mob is portrayed as wicked, somewhat given in to base instinct, itching to place blame on the wrong people, and desperate to wield the power of “the mob” for personal gain, as well as coopting the power of the mudrock squad by stealing reunion’s name and dragging them into the conflict. when shit goes south, they immediately start calling the sarkaz slurs and say these extremely on the nose lines:

- the sole point afforded to this mob is that they are rightfully angry at the nobility’s absurd treatment of wolumonde and that uh. they left wolumonde unpoliced lol. either way, everyone agrees the nobility is absurd, but the leftists are portrayed to be misdirecting their anger and vengeance on the local govt and causing pointless harm. it’s reiterated multiple times that the infected quarter has it really good or whatever, and experiences relatively little discrimination in wolumonde; RI even suspects discrimination but is refuted in the end and their struggles in the wake of the catastrophe are shown to be uh equally distributed throughout the entire town

- the local govt is headed by schultz severin, a gritty, suicidal, realistic, tired, centrist, loyal servant of the town, and a veteran member of the militia that wiped out the aboriginal people of the area (he displays a sort of melancholy about this and finds an odd connection with the last winterwisp survivor, who infected him, because he believes them both to sort of be the people who survived the penultimate result of “revenge”. it’s not really gone into deeper than this). He has given up everything and all personal morality for the ethical good and the order of the town, including questioning the murder of his own son. he stands above the identity politics of the mob as he hides his infection and sufferings. He’s recognized by mudrock and the last winterwisp as a “true warrior” and is on the side of the protagonists for the most part, and is shown to be noble, enlightened to the inner proceedings and consequences of the larger political field in a way the angry leftist mob is not, and is somewhat of a “good man in bad circumstances” martyr in the story, succumbing to injuries and his infection exacerbated by his passively suicidal habit of smoking in and the long fight against the angry leftist mob, and dreaming of an ideal world where everyone holds hands in the conclusion

- some of schultz and his men’s energy is also spent on trying to deescalate unrest from the side of a faction of noninfected business owners and other citizens who are pissed at the angry leftist mob and begin to take up arms and say things like “after all we’ve done for you people”; this is a huge thing in thr story where neither side in the conflict had really “done anything wrong”, tensions were just exacerbated by dire circumstances and now innocent-but-stupid people are now engaging in warfare

- the real spark of the conflict is tied back not to either side having done something of actual cause (previous to the senseless leftist rioting ig) but because of a catastrophe messenger who deducts that wolumonde will be left to die as a backwater town by the lethanian nobility and thus manipulates the town into civil unrest to draw the aid of outside intervention (RI, and later the larger lethanian govt?). he is said to have been a part of a shady ultra-utilitarian faction within the messengers who use the contingency contracts and the relative neutrality of them to carry out the nebulous and esoteric goal of “fighting catastrophes”. They (in ayerscarpe’s pov) conflate catastrophes with manmade horrors and thus combat them with extremist methods like what they did here at wolumonde. this messenger is theorized to have either colluded or been in leagues with a very skilled lethanian caster— which implicates a noble or someone higher up in the lethanian hierarchy than wolumonde itself. the nature of catastrophes and what they symbolize in the arknights universe is up for debate so I’ll leave it out of this recap but this leaves this architect of the events in a very ??? either or zone

- this story is threaded through by the internal conflict of folnic, who seeks to avenge her murdered coworker and friend. she is on “the side of truth”, so she is disapproving of severin’s lack of regard for it, and is even harsher in the mindless, uninformed leftist mob, and is quick to brutalize them to seek it. folnic has an interesting past with grappling with vengeance and its outcomes, with her mother having died to carry out her vengeance and leaving her alone in the care of kal’tsit. it’s something that she feels has defined her life and something she is compelled to find meaning in and thus carry out even if she knows it’s ultimately futile and meaningless, and she spends most of the event in turmoil, ultimately realizing she herself is much like the angry leftist vengeance mob, who seek an outlet for their pain at the expense of what may be right or reasonable. this does not change her approach of anything, but it’s something she just uh acknowledges and her verdict of drawing a parallel between her selfish personal pain and the aims of the faux-reunion mob isn’t questioned further

- suzuran is there to be an innocent and pure child who sees the simple nature of things to contrast the violence and senselessness of the angry leftist mob. she and the others from RI, as usual, side with law enforcement to put down the “insurgents” and restore law and order to the settlement

so uh. where do I even start

#arkn #well. 😁 time to gun down more protestors - the RI creed #or wait fancifully pull batman mercy mode of grace against the stupid masses

[sambargestuff]

I watched a couple episodes of Ten Pound Poms yesterday and, well.  I’m not watching anymore.  My expectations weren’t high but I was imagining a feel good story about immigrants getting on and building a life in a new place.  I was hoping for good dresses and inoffensive stories.  Also, as a fan of Andor, I wanted to support Faye Marsay, but she’s on her own here.  She’s a good actor and does what she can with the material but you can’t make a silk purse from this sow’s ear.

All I could think while watching is that they should emigrated to Canada.  Here they wouldn’t have had to actually immigrate.  As British citizens, they could have just walked in and, if they felt like it, written to the Canadian gov’t to sort out their Canadian citizenship while they got down to the business of getting jobs, good houses, and secure futures. No sacrificing of passports or visas required; they’re British, for god’s sake.  They’re more Canadian than we are.

My uncle was a tradesman who immigrated to Canada from Italy in 1955 and he got a job in his trade immediately.  That’s WHY they let him immigrate. But, according to this TV series, a British skilled builder can’t get a job in Australia in his trade. Really?  The only job he can get is as a ditch digger on a crew that is, at least at the outset, all white and all Australian-born.  Really?  In the middle of a labour shortage none of these white, able-bodied, Australian-born men could get an easier job with better pay, even though most of them seem to be war veterans.  Really?  And in the post-War home-building boom, a skilled builder couldn’t get any other job than digging ditches. REALLY? 

It’s going to take some willing suspension of disbelief to watch this show.

And I haven’t even gotten to the part where the British immigrants are shocked - shocked, I tell you -  by the racism they witness in Australia.  They’ve never heard tell of such things in Manchester.  Prospective Asian immigrants are roughed up in full view of the immigration queue because, as the immigrant official makes clear, Australia is for “white’s only.”  Nobody thought to tell the Asian immigrants that they wouldn’t be allowed to enter the country before they got on the fucking boat for a 6 week journey?  Because, I imagine that would be something that would have come up.

And don’t even get me started on the British disapproval of the racism white Australians have for aboriginal Australians.  Where did these white Australians even come from with those sorts of attitudes?

Apparently they didn’t have sexism in Southport either because that comes as a huge, distasteful shock as well. 

I guess the plucky Brits are just going to have to band together and lead their Italian and German fellow immigrants through this racist, sexist hellhole to a bright, sunshiny future.  I guess. I won’t be watching to find out. 

#ten pound poms #is not good #faye marsay #can do better than this #it's no #andor

[christowill]

Australian 2022 Election -Senate Parties Described in 10 Words or Less

Sometimes party names are not a true reflection of what a political party represents. To try to help navigate, I have put together a simple, and hopefully bias free, guide to all on the senate tickets across the states (except the ungrouped)

Source: ABC Election Guide and Candidate Websites

Animal Justice Party: More regulation protecting animals & reducing conditions that cause pandemics (ACT, NSW, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Australian Christians: Promoting linkages of laws to Judeo-Christian beliefs and personal freedom (WA)

Australian Democrats: Evidence based governance, integrity in government, and sustainable planet platform (NSW, QLD, SA, VIC, WA)

Australian Federation Party: Protecting individual freedoms. Promoting small government and government accountability (QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Australian Labor Party: Bolstering services like health, childcare, national broadcasting. Alternative to Liberals (ACT, NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Australian Progressives: Seeking to abolish poverty, end climate emergency, and dismantle corruption (ACT, VIC)

Australian Values Party: Individual freedoms, rule of law, Equality of opportunity. Leadership integrity (NSW, QLD, VIC, WA)

Citizens Party: Banking reform focussed on community needs instead of market speculation (NSW, NT, QLD, SA, VIC, WA)

David Pocock: Community led government and ACT Rights focussed (ACT)

Derryn Hinch's Justice Party: Victims' rights. Justice that is more reflective of communality views (VIC)

Drew Pavlou Democratic Alliance: Human rights (esp. in China), anti-corruption, climate, end poverty (QLD, SA)

Federal ICAC Now: Establish a federal independent commission against corruption (NSW, QLD, WA)

FUSION: Science, Pirate, Secular, Climate Emergency: Climate action, anti-corruption commission, investment in technologies (NSW, QLD, SA, VIC, WA)

Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia: Indigenous rights, ecology, significantly reduce indigenous incarceration, better indigenous housing (NSW, QLD)

Informed Medical Options Party: Remove all restrictions based on vaccination. Investigate vaccination damage impact (ACT, NSW, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Jacqui Lambie Network: Veterans' rights, anti-corruption, Australian jobs and Australian sovereignty (TAS)

Kim for Canberra: Political accountability, Climate Action, women's safety, ACT Rights (ACT)

Legalise Cannabis Australia: No cannabis arrests and expunging personal use convictions, legalise growing (ACT, NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Liberal or Liberal / National or LNP: Facilitation of wealth, strong families, rule of law. Small government (ACT, NSW, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Liberal Democrats: Individual freedom, personal responsibility, private property rights, and voluntary association (NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

National Party: Investment in regional communities. Strong forestry and mining industries (SA)

NT Country Liberal: Strength in mining, forestry. Surveillance, policing to reduce youth crime (NT)

Pauline Hanson's One Nation: Less refugees, increase Australian ownership, climate change scepticism (NSW, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

Reason Australia: Rights of indigenous, refugees, LGTBIQ, prisoners. Secular politics, climate action (NSW, QLD, VIC)

Rex Patrick Team: SA regional issues. Save the Murray-Darling River (SA)

Seniors United Party of Australia: Aged and retiree issues. Servant leadership -leader there to serve (NSW)

Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party: Responsible firearm use. Expand local fishing. Expand farmland (NSW, TAS, VIC)

Socialist Alliance: Revolutionary change away from ruling elite. 100% renewables. Tax billionaires (NSW, QLD, VIC, WA)

Sustainable Australia Party - Stop Overdevelopment / Corruption: Reduce rate of population growth. Cap immigration. Citizen initiated referenda (ACT, NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

The Great Australian Party: Abolish income tax and super. Anti-globalisation. Zero immigration (NSW, NT, QLD, SA, VIC, WA)

The Greens: Treaty, 100% renewables, expand Medicare, affordable housing, free education (ACT, NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA)

The Local Party: Reconciliation, climate action & corruption. Issue and scientific based voting (TAS)

TNL: Incentive based economic development, climate action, anti-corruption commission (NSW, QLD)

United Australia Party: 15% Export Licence. 3% interest rate cap, remove Covid restrictions (ACT, NSW, QLD, SA, VIC, TAS, WA)

Victorian Socialists: Democratic control of the economy, equality, social justice. Wealth Tax (VIC)

WESTERN AUSTRALIA PARTY: WA regional issues. Greater share of federal tax revenue (WA)

Unregistered F NSW: Max Boddy lead candidate: ‘Socialist Equality Party'. Overturn capitalism. Anti-militarism/ war (NSW)

Unregistered A QLD: Len Harris lead candidate: Wants to revert to paper deeds, not electronic ones (QLD)

Unregistered H QLD: Steve Dickson lead candidate: Local issues. 'Putting the people’s interests ahead of all else' (QLD)

Unregistered I QLD: Mike Head lead candidate: ‘Socialist Equality Party'. Overturn capitalism. Anti-militarism/ war (QLD)

Unregistered E SA: Bob Day lead candidate: 'Australian Family Party'. Ban on gaming ads, pornography, abortion, euthanasia (SA)

Unregistered M SA: Harmeet Haur lead candidate: SA based independent. No available detail (SA)

Unregistered O SA: Nick Xenophon lead candidate: Greater regulation on gambling. Funding for health, aged care (SA)

Unregistered B VIC: Damien Richardson lead candidate: Government, media, big pharma are not truthful. Likes cash economy (VIC)

Unregistered R VIC: Morgan C Jonas lead candidate: Ban Jab mandates, less government, direct democracy (VIC)

Unregistered T VIC: Susan Benedyka lead candidate: Climate action, better disaster response, better CSIRO funding (VIC)

Unregistered Y VIC: Peter Byrne lead candidate: ‘Socialist Equality Party'. Overturn capitalism. Anti-militarism/ war (VIC)

Unregistered K WA: Gerry Georgatos lead candidate: Social justice, prison reform, homeless rights, suicide prevention (WA)

Unregistered P WA -Cam Tinley lead candidate:

'No Mandatory Vaccination Party'. Remove vaccination laws in WA (WA)

#auspol #election 2022 #democracy sausage #senate

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 11.8

Holidays

Abet and Aid Punsters Day

Aboriginal Veterans Day (Canada)

Day of Baku Metro Employees (Azerbaijan)

Days of History and Memory (Kyrgyzstan)

Feast of Pamphleteers

I Hate to Cook Day

International Day of Radiology

International Human Animal Bond Day

Intersex Day of Remembrance (Australia)

La Almudena (Madrid, Spain)

Merchant Sailing Ship Preservation Day

Moon Festival (Elder Scrolls)

National Aboriginal Veterans Day (Canada) 

National Ample Time Day

National Dunce Day

National Loneliness Awareness Day

National Parents As Teachers Day

National S.T.E.M. Day (a.k.a. National S.T.E.A.M. Day)

Octave Day of All Saints (Anglicanism)

Personal Liberty Day (Chicago celebration of Prohibition's repeal)

Pohnpei Constitution Day (Micronesia)

Rorschach Test Day

Shakespeare Authorship Mystery Day

World Pianist Day

World Radiography Day (a.k.a. X-Ray Discovery Day)

World Town Planning Day

World Urbanism Day

X-Ray Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Cook Something Bold and Pungent Day

Harvey Wallbanger Day

National Cappuccino Day

National Pupusa Day (El Salvador)

Try a New Recipe Day

2nd Tuesday in November

Election Day (US) [1st Tuesday after 1st Monday]

National Young Readers' Day [2nd Tuesday]

Skeptics Day International [1st Tuesday after 1st Monday]

Independence Days

Montana Statehood Day (#41; 1889)

Feast Days

Appreciate Your Loved Ones Day (Pastafarian)

Big Bird’s Daddy (Muppetism)

Elizabeth of the Trinity (Roman Catholic Church; Blessed)

Feast of the Mania (Ancient Rome)

Festival of the Mania (Ancient Rome)

Four Crowned Brothers (Christian; Martyrs)

Full Moon [11th of the Year] (a.k.a. ... 

Beaver Moon (Amer. Indian, Colonial, Traditional)

Dark Moon (Celtic, North America)

Digging Moon (Traditional)

Flower Moon (South Africa)

Freezing Moon (Alternate)

Frost Moon (Alternate)

Hunter’s Moon (North America)

Ill Full Moon Poya Day (Sri Lanka)

Loy Krathong (Floating of the Lamps Festival; Thailand)

Palden Lhama Festival (Tibet)

Rutting Moon (Traditional)

Sassafras Moon (Choctaw)

Snow Moon (England, Wicca)

Southern Hemisphere: Corn, Flower, Hare, Milk

Tazaugmone (a.k.a. Thasaung Mong; Festival of Lights; Myanmar)

That Luang Festival (Theravada Buddhism; Laos) 

Trading Moon (Cherokee)

Tree Moon (Neo-Pagan)

Whitefish Moon (Traditional)

White Moon (China)

Godfrey of Amiens (Christian; Saint)

Isabella of Castille (Positivist; Saint)

Johann von Staupitz (Lutheran)

John Duns Scotus, Blessed (Christian; Saint)

Mae West Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Mania Festival (Old Roman)

Saints and Martyrs of England (Church of England)

Synaxis of the Archangel Michael and the other Bodiless Powers of Heaven (Eastern Orthodox Church)

Tysilio (Christian; Saint)

Willehad of Bremen (Christian; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Shakku (赤口 Japan) [Bad luck all day, except at noon.]

Premieres

Ace of Spades, by Motörhead (Album; 1980)

Days of Our Lives (TV Soap Opera; 1965)

8 Mile (Film; 2002)

Everybody’s Talking’, recorded by Harry Nilsson (Song; 1967)

The Goodies (UK TV Series; 1970)

Jailhouse Rock (Film; 1957) [Elvis Presley #3]

Led Zeppelin IV, by Led Zeppelin (Album; 1971)

Midway (Film; 2019)

Night School, 21st Jack Reacher book, by Lee Child (Novel; 2016)

Sacred Arias, by Andrea Bocelli (Album; 1999)

Sheer Heart Attack, by Queen (Album; 1974)

Stairway to Heaven, by Led Zeppelin (Song; 1971)

Surfing’, by The Beach Boys (Song; 1961)

Thor: The Dark World (Film; 2013)

Today’s Name Days

Gottfried (Austria)

Angel, Gavrail, Gavril, Mihaela, Mihail, Ognyan, Ognyana, Plamen, Plamena, Rada, Radka, Radko, Rafail, Raia, Raika, Raina, Rangel (Bulgaria)

Bogdan, Bogoljub, Gracija, Gracijan (Croatia)

Bohumír (Czech Republic)

Cladius (Denmark)

Nele, Nella, Nelli (Estonia)

Aatos (Finland)

Dora, Geoffroy (France)

Gottfried, Karina, Willehad (Germany)

Angela, Angelos, Gavriel, Michalis, Stamatis, Stamos, Taxiarchis (Greece)

Zsombor (Hungary)

Goffredo (Italy)

Agra, Aleksandra, Sandors, Sandra (Latvia)

Domantė, Gotfridas, Severinas, Svirbutas (Lithuania)

Ingvild, Yngvild (Norway)

Dymitr, Godfryd, Gotfryd, Hadrian, Klaudiusz, Sędziwoj, Sewer, Sewerian, Seweryn, Wiktor, Wiktoriusz, Wiktoryn (Poland)

Bohumír (Slovakia)

Godofredo, Segundo (Spain)

Vendela (Sweden)

Michael, Michaelina, Raphael (Ukraine)

Geoff, Geoffrey, Jeff, Jefferson, Jeffery, Jeffrey, Mercer, Montana (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 312 of 2022; 53 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 2 of week 45 of 2022

Celtic Tree Calendar: Hagal (Constraint) [Day 11 of 28]

Chinese: Month 10 (Lùyuè), Day 15 (Yi-Chou)

Chinese Year of the: Tiger (until January 22, 2023)

Hebrew: 14 Cheshvan 5783

Islamic: 13 Rabi II 1444

J Cal: 12 Mir; Foursday [12 of 30]

Julian: 26 October 2022

Moon: 100%: Full Moon

Positivist: 4 Frederic (12th Month) [Isabella of Castille]

Runic Half Month: Ngetal (Reed) [Day 14 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 47 of 90)

Zodiac: Scorpio (Day 17 of 31)

#Holidays

[wsl-chelsea]

Remember when Lindsay horan spoke in the ceremony. I’m not even Australian and I was so mad because Americans are always so mad when you don’t respect their “culture“ which is compared to australia showing respect to aboriginals in America being patriotic about a fucked up country

THAT PISSED ME OFF SO MUCH.. exactly lindsey would be the kind of person to preach respecting american stuff like the anthem or. idk veteran respect (tryna think of stuff off the top of my head) but she couldnt extend that to respect for our indigenous people

#i guess she must not have known but i wouldve hoped that she would yk

[cinema-tv-etc]

Seven Indomitable Women of World War II

9/2/2020 by Tara Moss

Women’s deeds and sacrifices deserve to be known as widely as their male counterparts.

In these times of unrest, lockdowns and change, and on the 75th Commemoration of the End of World War II, it feels more appropriate than ever to see what lessons we can take from pivotal moments in history, and the actions of those who came before us. After all, as George Santayana wrote in 1905: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” 

In looking back on history, it is imperative we re-examine, expand our understanding, and in some cases, take inspiration.

I have long had a passion for history’s under-told stories, in particular the extraordinary women of the WWII era—and there are so many women who we have not heard enough about.

In recent years, with evidence of rising fascism, and even Nazi symbols proudly displayed at marches, the hard lessons of WWII and the postwar period continue to resonate, spurring me on to write my thirteenth book, The War Widow, which I dedicated to my Oma and Opa—ordinary citizens who did extraordinary things to escape the Nazis in occupied Holland. The War Widow is a novel in the hard-boiled tradition, but with a twist, and is unashamedly centered on ordinary people—not generals, royals and politicians—but on the women who are too often overlooked in our retelling of history.

In it, my main character—war reporter turned private inquiry agent Billie Walker—pushes against the workforce prejudices of 1946 Australia, as does her informant and friend, Shyla, a Wirajuri woman who deals with the compounded prejudices experienced by Aboriginal women. The world these brave women inhabit is one of danger, massive social and political change, disabled and traumatised soldiers returning from overseas, and ongoing racial and class divisions. It is a world torn by war, and where injustice continues.

While my novel doesn’t take directly from any one woman’s real-life story, the characters are inspired by the indomitable women of the period who rejected the entrenched prejudices of gender, race, disability and religion, to achieve incredible feats.

Below, I share a brief look at just a seven such women. Their deeds and sacrifices deserve to be known as widely as their male counterparts.

In no particular order, here are seven indomitable women of WWII you should know:

Florence Finch

Tortured by the Japanese army with electric shocks and confined to a tiny cell, Finch refused to talk.

“Women don’t tell war stories like men do,” Florence Finch’s daughter, Betty Murphy recently told the New York Times after her mother was buried with full military honors after passing away at the age of 101.

In the case of Finch—the Philippine-born daughter of an American father and Filipino mother—practically no one outside of her family knew that she was a highly decorated veteran, having received the Medal of Freedom in 1947, the nation’s highest award to a civilian.

Finch was working as a stenographer for army intelligence headquarters in Manila, when it fell to the Japanese. She then convinced the occupying forces that she was Filipino and got a job writing gas rationing vouchers, which she cleverly used to aid the resistance movement. Her job enabled her to divert fuel supplies and sabotage Japanese shipments. 

She later went on to smuggle food to starving American prisoners before being caught by the Japanese army and tortured, confined to a two-by-four-foot cell. Despite being tortured with electric shocks, Finch refused to talk. She survived only to be sentenced to hard labour, and when American troops finally freed her on February 10, 1945, Finch reportedly weighed just 79.8 pounds.

The Coast Guard named a building on Sand Island in Hawaii in her honour in 1995.

Virginia Hall

It is perhaps ironic that Virginia Hall’s bid to work as a diplomat with the American Foreign Service was denied because of her disability, yet by the end of WWII she had become the SOE’s first female resident agent in France and had proved herself a fearless spy.

An American who worked in German occupied France as a British espionage agent, Hall lost the lower part of her leg in a hunting accident before the war, and used a seven-pound wooden prosthetic that she lovingly nicknamed ‘Cuthbert’.

To the French, Hall became known as “la dame qui boite“—the limping lady—and to the Germans she was “Artemis,” one of the most dangerous Allied spies. Among other feats, she worked undercover posing as an American journalist from the New York Post, planning and organizing resistance movements.

Later in the war she worked mostly alone, as a wireless operator—a highly dangerous job at the time—disguising herself as an elderly peasant and even filing down her teeth to make her disguise more convincing. When she was forced to flee her position as Nazis closed in on her in 1942, she set out on a three-day journey over the Pyrenees mountains on foot in heavy snow, despite having only one leg, and eventually became the most decorated female civilian in WWII, and one of the first women to work for the CIA. It again goes to show you shouldn’t discount the more than one quarter of the population who have disabilities. You may well be turning down the best talent for the job.

Jane Vialle

Jane/Jeanne Vialle was born in what is now the Republic of Congo, but raised and educated in France. Like my main character Billie Walker, she worked as a journalist when WWII broke out. Vialle joined the French resistance in 1940, gathering intelligence on Nazi movements across France.

In 1943 she was arrested in Marseille and charged with treason. The Vichy French prosecutor stated that her communications were so expertly coded that even when the Nazis raided her house, they couldn’t crack them. Vialle was sent to a concentration camp, and later a women’s prison, but she survived to escape or be released. (Records differ on this. As is the case with too many black women’s histories, their stories are untold or incompletely documented.)

Her actions during the war earned her the Resistance Medal by the French government, and after the war she was elected to the French Senate as a representative of Oubangui-Chari (today’s Central African Republic) and co-founded an economic cooperative called L’Espoir Oubanguien (Oubanguian Hope).

Vialle was a staunch supporter of women’s and girls’ rights, and in 1948 founded l’Association des femmes de l’Union française d’outre-mer et de métropole (Association of Women of the French Union) to encourage and support the education of girls from France’s colonies.

Lee Miller

New York-born former Voguefashion model and surrealist muse, Lee Miller was an accomplished photographer and correspondent during WWII.

I am often asked if women in the 1940s really were private investigators or indeed war correspondents. There were, in fact, many—though in terms of war correspondents, almost all of them were with the U.S. forces, as the British Army would not allow women reporters to be accredited. Lee Miller stands out for many reasons, not least the quality and power of her images, and the fact that she saw many battles up close.

At the siege of St. Malo in 1944, Miller was the only photographer present and she covered the battle alone for several days. After the battle, the U.S. Army arrested Lee for violating the terms of her accreditation, which banned her from covering conflict because she was female. Despite this, Miller went on to continue to take some of the war’s most compelling and important images, including piles of bodies and skeletal survivors at Dachau and Buchenwald concentration camps, which shocked the world.

She was also one of few to witness and document a NAPALM bomb, though her images of it were censored and forbidden to be shown until after the war.

Arguably the most famous portrait of Miller was taken by David E. Scherman when they were in Adolf Hitler’s apartment and she took off her dirty boots, covered in filth from documenting the atrocities at Dachau, and took a bath.

Her son, Antony Penrose, told the UK’s Telegraph:

“She was sticking two fingers up at Hitler. On the floor are her boots, covered with the filth of Dachau, which she has trodden all over Hitler’s bathroom floor. She is saying she is the victor.”

Noor Inayat Khan

Noor Inayat Khan, also known as Nora Baker, or by her code name, “Madeleine,” was born in Moscow to a noble Indian Muslim family and raised in England and France. Noor believed that if Indians distinguished themselves in the war it might break down the racial prejudice against them, and so joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force, becoming the first female wireless operator to be sent from Britain into occupied France during WWII.

A pacifist, influenced by the teachings of Ghandi, Noor wanted to serve, but she didn’t want to kill anyone. She felt that volunteering for this dangerous position was the best way she could serve the British, improve the status of Indians in the Empire and maintain her ethical principles.

Noor was sent to France, but there was dissent within the cell that received her, and she was sold out to the Nazis. Khan was arrested, interrogated and tortured, and tried to escape twice. After her second attempt, she was kept in shackles and in solitary confinement for 10 months – still refusing to give up her colleagues. Ultimately, Noor was among those executed at Dachau. Her last word is said to have been “Liberté.” For her brave service she was posthumously awarded the George Cross and the Croix de Guerre with silver star.

Josephine Baker

Josephine Baker is famous as an American-born French entertainer and spy, and may be the only recognizable woman on this list.

A talented dancer and singer, in 1927 Baker caused a sensation performing at the Folies Bergère in Paris in a skirt made from bananas. In 1934 she also became the first African American woman to star in a major motion picture.

Her ongoing popularity in Paris in the forties gave her access to parties, embassies and ministries where high-ranking officials gathered, and rather than simply enjoy her position and focus on her career, Baker used her access to extract valuable top-secret information and pass it on to French military intelligence.

Once the Nazis occupied France, Josephine moved to the South of France and worked with the French Resistance, sheltering refugees and supplying them with visas and other support. Among other ingenious methods, she smuggled military secrets out of Nazi occupied France and forwarded it to England, written in invisible ink on her sheet music.

She had many close calls during her time as a spy, but Baker reportedly laughed off the danger, saying, “Who would dare strip-search Josephine Baker?” Her work with the French Resistance earned her the Croix de Guerre and the Lègion d’honneur.

Baker later returned to the U.S. after the war and went on to actively support the Civil Rights Movement, participating in demonstrations and boycotting segregated clubs and concert venues, arguing, quite rightly, that if African Americans could not attend her shows, she would not perform.

Nancy Wake

Known by the Nazis as “The White Mouse,” Nancy Wake was born in New Zealand with English and Maori ancestry, and raised in Australia. Like my main character Billie Walker, Wake witnessed the rise of Hitler, Nazism and anti-Semitism in Europe in the 1930s, and some of Billie’s ‘recollections’ in the novel are based on Wake’s.

Wake was in France when it fell to Nazi Germany in 1940, and she joined the Resistance as a courier, smuggling messages and food to underground groups, sheltering Allied airmen and buying an ambulance to help refugees fleeing the German advance. Eventually her work became too well known and she was forced to escape to England, but her French husband was captured and executed.

Despite her husband’s death, Wake continued to resist, joining the British Special Operations Executive that worked with the French Resistance. She was trained in espionage, bomb making and hand to hand combat and eventually parachuted into the South of France. During her time there, Wake became known for ensuring resistance groups in the region were well-armed and equipped.

Among other feats, she famously cycled over 300 miles past Nazi checkpoints to deliver a report, was involved in a battle between the Resistance and the Germans, and killed an SS sentry with her bare hands. After the War, she received the George Medal from the United Kingdom, the Medal of Freedom from the United States, the Légion d’honneur from France, and medals of recognition from Australia and New Zealand, becoming the Allied forces most decorated servicewoman of WWII.

It is said that when she was dropped behind enemy lines, Wake ensured she had a handgun, a satin cushion and her favorite red lipstick.

dhttps://msmagazine.com/2020/09/02/seven-indomitable-women-of-world-war-ii/

#World War II #Spies #Resistance #Women Spies #Espionage #World War Two

[brookston]

Holidays 4.27

Holidays

Abolition Day (Mayotte)

Autism Super Mom Day

Babe Ruth Day

Battenberg Day

Button Mushroom Day (French Republic)

Celebrate Teen Literature Day

Day of Russian Parliamentarism (Russia)

Day of the Uprising Against the Occupying Forces (Slovenia)

Drone Safety Day

Ed Balls Eve (UK)

Flag Day (Moldova)

427 Day

Freedom Day (South Africa)

Free Feral Cat Spay Day

International Crow and Raven Appreciation Day

International Donor Conception Awareness Day

International Hyena Day

Koninginnedag (King’s Day; Netherlands)

Lapu-Lapu Day (Philippines)

Local Yarn Store Day

Marine Mammal Rescue Day

Matanzas Mule Day

Mayotte National Day

Moehanga Day (UK)

Morse Code Day

National Alicia Day

National Back Office Heroes Day

National Bubble Butt Appreciation Day

National D.J. Day

National Domestic Workers’ Day (Brazil)

National Little Pampered Dog Day

National Patricia Day

National Pimp Day

National Pneumatics Day

National Transportation Safety Day (Iran)

National Veterans' Day (Finland)

New Beginning Day

Poetry Day (Ireland)

Resistance Day (Slovenia)

Rogers Hornsby Day

Sleep Day

State Flag Day (Moldova)

Teach Your Children to Save Day

Tell A Story Day

Treasurer Day (Ukraine)

Trevithick Day (UK)

UnFreedom Day (South Africa)

Victory Day (Afghanistan)

Woody Woodpecker Day

World Bath Bomb Day

World Design Day

World Graphic Design Day

World Tapir Day

Write An Old Friend Today Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Battenberg Day

Chips with Everything Day

Learn To Make An Apricot Cream Pie Day

Marselan Day

National Devil Dog Day

National Gummi Bear Day

National Prime Rib Day

Saison Day (Allagash)

World Marselan Day

4th & Last Saturday in April

Beer Clean Glass Day [4th Saturday]

Bob Wills Day [Last Saturday]

Canadian Independent Bookstore Day (Canada) [Last Saturday]

Celebrate Trails Day [4th Saturday]

Children’s Day (Colombia) [Last Saturday]

Day of Trees (Colombia) [Last Saturday]

Doo Dah Parade Day (Pasadena, California) [Last Saturday]

Eeyore's Birthday Party (Austin, Texas) [Last Saturday]

Go Birding Day [Last Saturday]

Independent Bookstore Day [Last Saturday]

International Marconi Day [Saturday closest to 4.25]

International Sculpture Day [Last Saturday]

International Table Top Day [Last Saturday]

National Day of Puppetry [4th Saturday]

National First Ladies Day [Last Saturday]

National Go Birding Day [Last Saturday]

National Herb Day [Last Saturday; also 1st Saturday in May]

National Kiss of Hope Day [Last Saturday]

National Pool Opening Day [Last Saturday]

National Prepare-A-Thon! Day [Last Saturday; also 9.30]

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day [Last Saturday]

National Rebuilding Day [Last Saturday]

National Sense of Smell Day [Last Saturday]

Penguin Day [Last Saturday]

Save the Frogs Day [Last Saturday]

World Aboriginal and Native Sacred Ceremony and Dance Day [Last Saturday]

World Activism Day [Last Saturday]

World Disco Food Day [Last Saturday]

World Healing Day [Last Saturday]

World Healing Meditation Day [Last Saturday]

World Reiki Day [Last Saturday]

World Sufi Day [Last Saturday]

World Tai Chi & Qigong Day [Last Saturday]

World Thespian Day [Last Saturday]

World Veterinary Day [Last Saturday]

World Yoga Day [Last Saturday]

Weekly Holidays beginning April 27 (4th Week)

Antigua Sailing Week (St. Johns, Antigua, Barbuda) [thru 5.3]

Just Pray No Weekend [4th Saturday] (thru 4.28)

Independence & Related Days

IKwaZulu-Natali (Declared; 1994) [unrecognized]

lundren (a.k.a. Viscounty of lundgren; Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Sierra Leone (from UK, 1961)

Togo (from France, 1960)

Festivals Beginning April 27, 2024

The Appomattox Oyster Festival (Concord, Virginia)

Austin Blues Festival (Austin, Texas) [thru 4.28]

Between the Bluffs Beer, Wine & Cheese Festival (La Crosse, Wisconsin)

Cherry Blossom Festoval (Monterey, California) [thru 4.28]

Clayton Art and Wine Festival (Clayton, California) [thru 4.28]

Comic-Con Cape Town (Cape Town, South Africa) [thru 5.1]

Craft Beer Festival (Long Grove, Illinois)

Dessert Wars (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)

Downtown Waterloo Sip-n-Stroll (Waterloo, Iowa)

Endless Mountains Maple festival (Troy, Pennsylvania) [thru 4.28]

Florida Taco Battle, A Fiesta Affair! (Boca Raton, Florida)

Gnarly Culpepper Block Party & Brew Fest (Culpepper, Virginia)

Hard-Pressed Cider Fest (Hood River, Oregon)

Lodi Beer Festival & BBQ Championship (Lodi, California)

Maifest (St. Louis, Missouri) [thru 4.28]

Mountain Mushroom Festival (Irvine, Kentucky) [thru 4.28]

National Cornbread Festival (South Pittsburg, Tennessee) [thru 4.28]

New Jersey Folk Festival (New Brunswick, New Jersey)

North Carolina Pickle Festival (Mount Olive, North Carolina)

Oklahoma Renaissance Festival (Muskogee, Oklahoma) [thru 6.2]

Oregon Cheese Festival (Central Point, Oregon) [thru 4.28]

Ozarks Beerfest (Springfield, Missouri)

Riverside Tale Festival (Riverside, California)

Sacramento Grilled Cheese Festival (Sacramento, California) [thru 4.28]

Schubertiade Vorarlberg )Hohenems, Austria) [thru 5.1]

Taste of Claremont (Claremont, California)

Thirsty Orange Brew Extravaganza (Johnson City, Tennessee)

Tweed Run (London, UK)

Waikiki Spam Jam (Waikiki, Hawaii)

Wine Fest (Kemah, Texas)

WineFest (St. Michaels, Maryland) [thru 4.28]

Feast Days

Alan Reynolds (Artology)

Anastasius, Pope (Christian; Confessor)

Anthimus of Nicomedia (Christian; Saint)

Assicus (Christian; Saint)

Beltane Quinoa Salad Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

86400 Seconds Day (Pastafarian)

Ennead Sail Through the Land, The (Ancient Egypt)

Floribert of Liège (Christian; Saint)

Furze-Hopping Event (Shamanism)

George Petty (Artology)

Hanuman Jayanti (Birthday of the Monkey God; Hindu)

John of Constantinople (Christian; Saint)

Liberalis of Treviso (Christian; Saint)

Olive (Muppetism)

Peter Canisius (Christian; Saint)

Pollio (Christian; Saint)

Rafael Arnáiz Barón (Christian; Saint)

Shemp Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Theodor Kittelsen (Artology)

Turbos of Mogrovejo (Christian; Saint)

Tyi Wara Festival (Mythical half-man, half-animal that teaches Farming to the Bambara Tribe; Mali])

Virgin of Montserrat (Christian; Saint)

Walpurgisnacht, Day V (Pagan)

Xenophon (Positivist; Saint)

Yom HaShoah begins (Holocaust Remembrance Day; Judaism) [27 Nisan; 8 Days]

Zita of Lucca (Christian; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Lucky Day (Philippines) [23 of 71]

Sakimake (先負 Japan) [Bad luck in the morning, good luck in the afternoon.]

Premieres

Anna Karenina (Film; 1948)

Apollo, by Igor Stravinsky (Ballet; 1928)

Avengers: Infinity War (Film; 2018)

Can You Take It (Fleischer Popeye Cartoon; 1934)

The Chinese Nightingale (Happy Harmonies Cartoon; 1935)

Chips with Everything, by Arnold Wesker (Play; 1962)

Cold War (Disney Cartoon; 1951)

The Dish (Film; 2000)

The Fabric of the Cosmos, by Brian Greene (Book; 2004)

The Five-Year Engagement (Film; 2012)

Für Elise, a.k.a. Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor, written by Ludwig van Beethoven (Piano Music; 1810)

Goofy News Views (Phantasies Cartoon; 1945)

Heavy Cream, by Cream (Compilation Album; 1973)

Hooked Bear (Disney Cartoon; 1956)

Hoots Mon! (Film; 1940)

The Hungry Astronaut (Deputy Dawg Cartoon; 1963)

In His Own Write, by John Lennon (Poetry Book; 1964)

Justice Society: World War II (WB Animated Film; 2021)

Kill the Umpire (Film; 1950)

Koyaanisqatsi (Documentary Film; 1983)

The Krays (Film; 1990)

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (TV Series; 2014)

Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans (Children’s Book; 1939)

The Manchurian Candidate, by Richard Condon (Novel; 1959)

Mary’s Little Lamb (ComiColor Cartoon; 1935)

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Film; 1975)

Mrs. Robinson, by Simon and Garfunkel (Song; 1968)

Music for the Royal Fireworks, by George Frederic Handel (Orchestral Suite; 1749)

Now Hear This (WB LT Cartoon; 1963)

Personality, by Lloyd Price (Song; 1959)

Pink in the Woods (Pink Panther Cartoon; Theatrical; 1979)

The Pirates! Band of Misfits! (Animated Film; 2012)

Roméo et Juliette, by Charles Gounod (Opera; 1867)

Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla (Grammar Rock Cartoon; Schoolhouse Rock; 1976)

Seventeenth Summer, by Maureen Daly (Novel; 1942)

Shape Ahoy (Fleischer/Famous Popeye Cartoon; 1945)

Shōgun (TV Mini-Series; 2024)

Spaced Invaders (Film; 1990)

The Streak, by Ray Stevens (Song; 1974)

We, by Yevgeny Zamyatin (Novel; 1924)

This Week with John Oliver (TV Series; 2014)

We’re Not Gonna Take It, by Twisted Sister (Song; 1984)

Today’s Name Days

Petrus, Zita (Austria)

Euzebije, Ozana, Polion (Croatia)

Jaroslav (Czech Republic)

Ananias (Denmark)

Haldi, Haldja, Halja (Estonia)

Meea, Merja (Finland)

Zita (France)

Montserrat, Petrus, Zita (Germany)

Zita (Hungary)

Zita (Italy)

Inars, Klementīne, Raimonda, Tāle (Latvia)

Anastazas, Aušra, Gotautas, Zita (Lithuania)

Charles, Charlotte, Lotte (Norway)

Anastazy, Andrzej, Bożebor, Kanizjusz, Martyn, Piotr, Teofil, Zyta (Poland)

Simeon (Romania)

Jaroslav (Slovakia)

Montserrat, Pedro, Zita (Spain)

Engelbrekt (Sweden)

Laverne, Sam, Samantha, Sami, Sammy, Samuel, Samuela, Ulises, Ulysses, Vern, Verna, Verne, Vernon, Zita (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 118 of 2024; 248 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 17 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Saille (Willow) [Day 14 of 28]

Chinese: Month 3 (Wu-Chen), Day 19 (Xin-You)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 19 Nisan 5784

Islamic: 18 Shawwal 1445

J Cal: 28 Cyan; Sevenday [28 of 30]

Julian: 14 April 2024

Moon: 86%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 6 Caesar (5th Month) [Phocion]

Runic Half Month: Lagu (Flowing Water) [Day 3 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 40 of 92)

Week: 4th Week of April

Zodiac: Taurus (Day 8 of 31)

#calendar #Holidays

[rediscoverhearing]

Tinnitus Treatment Perth

Getting the right Tinnitus Treatment Perth starts with booking an appointment with a qualified and accredited audiologist. During the initial consultation your audiologist will discuss your symptoms and perform a hearing assessment which may include audiometry and/or tympanometry (the insertion of ear moulds into the ears to detect air and fluid pressures in the middle and inner ear).

Your audiologist can then diagnose any underlying issues that might be contributing to your tinnitus and formulate an action plan for you. This may include changing medication that is causing your tinnitus, or wearing hearing aids to improve the transmission of sounds into your brain and reduce the intrusion of your tinnitus. In some cases tinnitus is caused by the blood vessels that supply your ears with oxygen becoming narrowed and this can be relieved with acupuncture or treating neck problems like tension, headaches or migraines.

In other cases your audiologist can use sound masking, tinnitus retraining or desensitisation techniques to help you learn to ignore your tinnitus and distract yourself with more pleasant sounds. In the most severe cases your audiologist may recommend you visit an ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgeon as they have specialist skills to address the causes of your tinnitus such as repairing damage to the hair cells in your cochlear.

Achieving tinnitus relief may take time but it is important that you seek help early. It is common for people to experience anxiety and depression when they first experience tinnitus and it can become more debilitating over time if left untreated.

Tinnitus is very common, with estimates suggesting that 1 in 3 people will struggle with it at some stage of their lives. It can cause a great deal of distress and can affect many aspects of your life such as your sleep, concentration, mood and relationships. In some cases it can be difficult to live with tinnitus and in some extreme cases tinnitus can cause you to consider suicide.

Based in Osborne Park, Perth Hearing & Tinnitus Clinic is an independent audiology practice owned and operated by audiologists Bev Eintracht and Tennille Crooks. They have been working together in the areas of hearing loss, hearing aid advice and tinnitus support for over 25 years. They both specialise in tinnitus and provide a holistic approach to their patient’s needs. Their focus is on patient engagement and education and they provide world-leading hearing solutions through teleservices, online platforms, in-home visits and at over 166 hearing centres across Australia. They collaborate closely with individuals and aim to make their services accessible for everyone, including young adults under 26, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, pensioners, and veterans. Their mission is to improve the quality of Australians’ lives through their world-leading hearing solutions and tinnitus management programmes. They also support their patients’ wellbeing through a wide range of wellness and rehabilitation initiatives. They are passionate about their work and strive for clinical excellence. For further information on their service offerings please visit their website here.

Rediscover Hearing the Joy of Hearing with Your local & WA owned Independent Audiologists. Your local Hearing Aid and Tinnitus Specialists. Combined experience of 38 years.

#independent audiologists australia #independent audiologist australia #hearing aid repairs #tinnitus treatment perth

[thecoverblog]

Stan Lee’s Daredevil Begins

Origins

In the early 1960’s Stan Lee was hoping that the people would see the light, and superhero comics would ramp up in popularity. The likes of Fantastic Four and Spider-Man were captivating the masses, and importantly, their pockets. As outlined in Sean Howe’s Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, Lee was frantically capitalizing on recent growth in the market in an attempt to court both financial stability and overall legitimacy for himself as a writer and storyteller. Perhaps more impactfully he was striving to have those attributes applied to the comics as a medium itself.

Fans of the emerging Marvel universe were as caught up in the names behind the characters, than the costumed adventurers themselves. The likes of Steve Ditko, Stan himself, and certainly Jack Kirby, were attracting readers in an early form of fandom. In an effort to expand past the limited roster of both heroes and creators, Marvel comics began trying out fresh faces both off and on the page.

It would turn out that the faces really only needed to be fresh to the readers for the most part, as a good number of those recruited into the business at this time were veterans of sorts of the comic book industry. Along with himself and Kirby, Lee recruited artist Bill Everett to help with the creation of one of the new superheroes. Leaving right after the debut issue, creation would turn out to be the main contribution from Everett.

Slightly conflicting accounts of the design of Daredevil exist from all three of the regularly credited creators, as described by Mark Evanier on the Jack F.A.Q. at POVONLINE. Suffice to say Lee, Everett, and Kirby all seem to be wholly worthy of a co-creator credit. The full truth is most likely lost to the time, but the seemingly plausible explanation, as told by Marvel Comics’ former editor-in-chief Joe Quesada is that Lee, Everett, and Kirby significantly contributed to the initial character production. Artists Steve Ditko and Sol Brodsky also came in to help at least finish the issue, but their exact contributions have not been reliably expounded on. The starting point for Daredevil is precisely known however, as he originates from a former comics superhero named… Daredevil.

The original Daredevil was a Liv Gleason Publication character, created by Jack Binder in the 1940’s, and was slightly reworked early on by writer and artist Charles Biro. This costumed crime fighter would begin mute, equipped with a boomerang, and wearing a spiked metal belt over his superhero tights. The mute angle would quickly be dropped, and a background of being raised by an aboriginal community in Australia would be established, presumably to explain the boomerang shtick. The modern Daredevil would inherit the concept of a disability, though he would persist being blind, as opposed to his counterpart’s muteness. This, coupled with his evening status of costumed vigilante, were about all the shared crossover from the two heroes besides their moniker.

Early on in Lee’s run, Daredevil may appear to rip from the in-house hit of Spider-Man more than even the progenitor of his name. Using his billy clubs to swing around the city in lieu of webs, coupled with the signature quippy nature of Lee’s dialogue, it would take a bit for Daredevil to really break the mold. Many villains would be borrowed or generic, and honestly a lot of early Daredevil feels like it is re-treading ground a bit. As the series develops the relationships between the main characters do shine through, and that is where a lot of the title’s charm is derived.

For twenty four issues, the first half of the first volume of Daredevil only focuses on three characters in any depth. Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson are best friends and law partners, who start up the office of Nelson and Murdock. Karen Page is brought in immediately to act as their secretary. This small group and the overly dramatic connections between them, are the heart of the series.

Matthew Murdock

Matthew Murdock, The Man Without Fear, the titular Daredevil. Matt is a blind lawyer by day, and a crime fighting superhero by night. He has a superhuman radar sense that gives him increased perception abilities, and a vast array of related (and unrelated) powers. He received his blindness and radar sense from a truck spilling nuclear waste onto him as a child, while he was trying to save an old man. Also as a child, he was kept inside by his father relentlessly, in an attempt to keep Matt safe and successful in school. Matt’s physical prowess and fighting abilities are a combination of his radar sense and an intense training regiment he engaged in as a youth, in defiance of his father’s will.

Matt’s father, Jonathan ‘Battling Jack’ Murdoch was a boxer, who knew the dangers and downsides of a life of fighting for survival. These drawbacks would eventually end Matt’s father’s life and inspire the creation of the Daredevil persona. “Battling” Jack Murdock was ordered to throw a fight by the mob boss known as The Fixer. He refuses to do so in part because his son was in attendance of the fight and he felt a need to set an example. Jack would be taken out in a hit organized by The Fixer for this, and subsequently Matt would create his alter ego. This all happens in the first issue, prior to the climactic finale.

While hunting down The Fixer, Daredevil gets the villain into a pursuit, on foot and barrel. In the excitement, the mob boss has a heart attack and dies, but reveals that it was his lackey, Slade, who actually pulled the trigger on Jack Murdock. Daredevil finishes the night by turning Slade over to the police, announcing his name as Daredevil and running off into the night, promising to return. It’s a bizarre and weirdly tragic story that in many ways would define Stan Lee’s run on the title.

In the well-known origin of Spider-Man, Peter Parker’s refusal to act against a criminal results in the heartbreaking death of his uncle. This instills in him the responsibility of using his powers when they can make a difference. For Matt the situation is a bit different, as he actively trains and equips himself with the goal of going against a specific person. He does so, and from his own view he is quite successful. There is little to no worry over the death of The Fixer, and Matt seems to be having more fun than anything else towards the end of his introduction. He does not labor over guilt from the death at his hands, instead he throws himself fully into the Daredevil alter ego, even when it is not convenient in his day to day life.

Taken at face value, after becoming Daredevil, Matt is a callous jerk who routinely acts in defiance of basic decision making. He is much more concerned with quips and flips than being effective. This of course is all in service of playing the part of bouncing, energetic superhero. In many ways this archetypal personality would be reflected years down the line in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with the headliners of Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and Captain Marvel. The witty, headstrong protagonist is something the Marvel fan base will continue to gravitate to time and time again. There’s nothing all that unique about the characterization of Matt, as compared to other similar main characters that permeate the industry, especially at his origins. He becomes much more of a flawed individual, when viewed as a human who often hides his own intent and emotions. Sometimes from himself, intentionally or otherwise.

Matt experienced the terrible murder and loss of his father as well the traumatic accident of losing his sight early on in life. These events obviously deeply affect him, as he makes the decisions to train and reach physical peak, while running around doling out vigilante justice with billy clubs.This is clearly eccentric, but is also self sabotage, as his endeavors consistently jeopardize his day job of the ostensibly upstanding defense attorney. He is almost obsessed with his vigilantism, as he continually throws himself into mortal danger, risks his financial stability, and deceives those closest to him, all while gleefully offering never ending puns and sarcasm.

Accepting the main character’s behavior as erratic and manic makes the entire reading experience more enjoyable, and is encouraged by the plot. Future developments, such as the introduction of yet another alter ego for Matt Murdock further play into the idea that he is a bit more disconnected from reality than he realizes.

From the main presentation, it could be said Matt comes across as a boilerplate protagonist, a bit generic. This is subverted in a couple of notable ways, but foremost amongst them in terms of notoriety is the disability that spawns his superhuman abilities.

Despite it being his most famous characteristic, it can hardly be said that being blind is a focal point of the series in any way. Matt can’t see, but with his radar-sense it’s demonstrated that he has far greater and more precise perception than his sighted peers. This is the crux of his ability to be a superhero, but also could be seen to undermine his integrity a bit. Since he has the capabilities, he isn’t really needing the extra concern and care he is given from those around him. He is omitting parts of the truth.

Following that line of interpretation is shallow though, because the reality is those with disabilities are indeed capable, they just face individual obstacles that severely impede them. Matt does not go into depth on the real day to day hardships he faces, despite his radar-sense, but then he is not exactly the most self-aware at all. Matt as a character, much like the entire series, comes across more fleshed out when taking into account the struggles he, as a fictional personality, would omit when retelling. The small moral conundrums and stark dichotomies in Matt’s life come together to create someone who, at the very least, is an excellent vehicle for melodrama.

Foggy Nelson

The other half of the law office, Franklin ‘Foggy’ Nelson is Matt’s best friend as well as coworker. He is petty, jealous, and overall a bit immature. He constantly feels inadequate, comparing himself to Matt despite the fact they are of very similar means. Add on top his pining over their secretary Karen Page, who is more interested in both Matt Murdock and Daredevil each, and Foggy can come across as an unlikeable guy. Irrational at times, and frequently self-serving, the quirks of his character thankfully come across as lighthearted thanks to the light hearted tone of the series. The problematic nature of much of Foggy’s behavior is rendered at least comical and at most justified in relation to the context of many of the convoluted situations. Foggy deceiving his friend’s by pretending to be Daredevil is forgivable and funny when juxtaposed to the fact that Matt does the opposite on a daily basis.

Appearing slightly shorter and more portly than his superhero friend, Foggy’s realistic character design is a welcome rarity on the comics scene. Unfortunately this serves for a few cheap gags, but does differentiate Foggy from his superhero friend, and the usual muscle bound foes Daredevil goes up against. The limited cast in the series almost forces the story to push and pull the main characters around their respective moral spectrums, and being more reflective of the everyman works in Foggy’s favor.

The heart of the relationship between Matt and Foggy is complicated at times, but sort of redeems them both. His best friend is not just keeping him in the dark in an attempt to keep him safe, along the lines of Superman or Spider-Man. Instead Foggy’s bff is actively lying about his disability, and frequently using his powers irresponsibly or inappropriately. Daredevil consistently leads villains to the law office, and occasionally uses his super hearing to listen in on his colleagues private conversations, and then subsequently deceive them. While this spin is not the focus of the series, it does help to shine a redeeming light on a character some might find a bit off putting or bland at times.

Karen Page

The third member of the law office is secretary Karen Page. Coming across as relatively likable and normal, her backstory is certainly the least explored of the main cast. She is the typical comic book stereotype of a 1960’s woman, written by a man. At times immature and boy crazy, Karen can come across as juvenile frequently, despite her not being notably young or anything of the sort. In the contemporary X-Men series, Lee sometimes gets away with awkwardly misogynistic depictions of the singular woman character, Jean Grey, by specifying she is younger and less experienced than her teammates. Besides potentially an education in law gap, there is no real scapegoat in place for Karen.

Karen is immediately smitten with Matt Murdock, but laments the perceived inherent truth that a blind man could never marry a woman who can see. It’s a weird thought process that both Karen and Matt have, just patently refusing the idea of a blind person finding love. Along with her crush on Matt, she falls for both Foggy, Daredevil, and the idea that Foggy could be Daredevil.

Some of Karen’s thoughts and dialogues are seemingly results of a man trying to replicate those he has seen from others, but does not quite understand. A more practical depiction would likely touch on the power imbalance of both her bosses having romantic interest in her as soon as she is hired. Of course this is a superhero comic book from the 1960’s, and as mentioned previously there are only three main characters, so they each have to stretch and fill narrative slots. The constrictions of the format pad out the lesser writing job done for Karen, much like it softens the blow from some of the other two’s more outright malicious or nonsensical actions.

At the end of the first twenty four issues, Karen has a lot of tropes and associated baggage placed on her that has to be overlooked, but if that is possible, she has a few shining moments. She comes out a bit inconsistent and not always likable, but compared to many comic side characters and romantic interests particularly, Karen Page has a burgeoning personality and seems poised for positive character growth.

Year One

Daredevil comes right out of the gate stumbling. The first issue is drawn by Bill Everett, and while it is well done, it’s the only one he ends up completing. After the debut, Joe Orlando picks up the next three without too jarring of a change, but the first four issues as a whole leave a bit to be desired artistically. While completely inoffensive and passable, the art’s largest drawback is that it is seemingly trying to replicate Kirby and to an extent Ditko, to varying levels of success. Both Everett and Orlando’s Daredevil can look like a posed mannequin instead of an acrobat in motion more often than not.

The stilted depiction is accentuated by the signature flowery dialogue of Lee. There is a definite sense of trying to cram the product with content in the opening few issues. The scenes are rapid and all over the place, but filled with tons of text to stretch the reading time and each scene out longer. While fighting Electro, Daredevil manages to fly a spaceship into space and back down to Earth in the span of a couple of pages. These types of hijinks are the heart of this era of Daredevil. The tone is the epitome of classic costumed vigilantes and that has to be accepted and enjoyed for the series to have a positive impact in any way.

Bolstering the borderline corny setup is the monster of the week structure taken by the comics. While not uncommon to comics at the time, it is notable that storylines barely stretch over multiple issues, and the villain is usually unique for each of the first ten or so issues. This adds to the memorability of the villains since they get books entirely dedicated to both their origin and fight with Daredevil. However it can suppress interest in the established cast of the book, as they don’t make many lasting or impactful decisions during this stint. The small bits of lasting continuity tend to happen in crowded word balloons over a single page of conversation between Matt, Foggy, and/or Karen bookending the issue.

The plots can be overly melodramatic, but also compelling, such as when Karen insists Matt get an experimental surgery to cure his blindness. However since he is scared it could turn off his Daredevil powers he does not want to go through with it. The biggest drawback to these dilemmas specifically is that the crux of the problem tends to just be that Matt can’t date Karen because he is blind. The inherent idea from both of them that a relationship is out of the question is so manufactured for the plot it feels barely plausible. To be fair though,The world of Daredevil, and Marvel comics in general, does not necessarily thrive in the plausible.

One of the more notable aspects of the first half-dozen issues is Daredevil’s costume. He is sporting a garish yellow and black color scheme as opposed to his usual muted shades of red. The original suit is passable, and gets points for more resembling an acrobat costume, which is the inspiration. However as soon as the new crimson costume appears on the page, it feels more natural for The Man Without Fear. Along with the red apparel comes creator Wally Wood, who puts in a distinctly personal run on the title.

Still being the 60’s, there is no escaping the attempts to build off Kirby’s influential artistic style, but Wally Wood is the first on this series to make the style his own. Daredevil begins to move through the space a bit more like Spider-Man, making the dynamic motions appear more believable and natural on page. The ‘Marvel method’ of making comics (art done first, dialogue inserted second) clearly comes through with Wood, more so than the previous Orlando. Arguably there is a wide array of pages that are more understandable when simply parsing the art, and ignoring the dialogue altogether. Lee’s signature verbosity can just over explain exactly what has been drawn, and frequently slows the book to a crawl. Given the weight of the story which is held up by the art, it’s only slightly surprising to come across the tenth issue of Daredevil. Unlike the rest of the first fifty, this issue is not written by Stan Lee, but instead Wally Wood.

The tenth issue is a bit of a breath of fresh air, being distinct in style from the surrounding bunch. While clearly intentionally keeping with Lee’s signature tone, the plot of the issue is more complex to start. The story involves a group of villains, The Ani-Men, who should feel generic with names like Frog-Man and Ape-Man, but they each have a lot of charm. There is a more clear arc, and the writing feels more purposeful than the previous stories, which were more concerned with explaining the page rather than advancing the plot. There is a case to be made that the issue benefits from the singular writer/artist, as opposed to the usual tag team approach. The entire story is a setup to a mystery that will be concluded in the next one, while claiming that all the hints the readers need are there if they can find it. Even a small gimmick like that feels innovative given the context.

This is not to try and elevate the comic too much and say that it is some masterpiece, or even to say it is not clearly replicating Lee. However it shows, at the time especially, that Lee is not the only person who can effectively write his characters. It proves in some cases a fresh perspective brings new life to a series. By the next issue though it is clear these are not the takeaways, at least from those behind the scenes.

The eleventh issue, and all those that follow up to number fifty are given back to Stan Lee’s pen. Wally Wood departs from the book, and the second half of his story is given to Lee to wrap up, cliffhanger and all. In an awkward move, Lee decides to print in the comic a message to the readers about the situation. He proclaims that Wood left it to Lee to finish the story without giving him the ending or any notes. He was clearly both covering in case the story came out subpar, but was also publicly shaming Wood. The wrap-up is fine, and honestly would have been more enjoyable if it was not undercut by the meta commentary informing of its potential flaws.

At this point in the narrative, Matt decides to give Murdock and Nelson the same treatment Wood gave Marvel, and he gets out of there. Bob Powell does pencils with Wood, and does a few issues on his own in the aftermath of the departure.

John Romita Sr, comes in after Powell and brings a striking look to the book. Under Romita’s pen the comic gets darker, and more detailed in a borderline striking departure from form. This won’t last too long, but is another welcome shake up to the already formulaic series. The evolution and maturity of the stories does ramp up with the new art, and the second year of Daredevil ushers in a new rhythm for the title.

Year Two

Arriving at issue twelve of Daredevil, the Marvel Universe as a whole is picking up in quality and it’s noticeable. While Wood’s art was fantastic, the book just did not really ever take off on his run, possibly due to the creative challenges behind the scenes. For Romita and Lee, the chemistry seems to be there from the start, and the mindset on how to present the stories has changed up. Multi-issue arcs become quite common, and some light plot throughlines begin persisting and progressing instead of snapping back to a hard set status quo after each caper.

While the first year of comics had a tendency towards introducing and defeating villains in a single issue, the second year sees a lot more recurring antagonists. The building of storylines and slowly growing complexity of the series is starting, and welcomed. Prior, the narrative felt like it was spinning its wheels trying to establish a consistent status quo. In the second year, there is more of an emphasis on character development. Daredevil also starts to come up against obstacles that are simply too large for one man, fearful or not.

With his reputation growing, the story sees Daredevil develop into a more understood threat by those around him. His enemies, such as the Masked Marauder and the Owl, begin employing muscle to try and head off Daredevil instead of opting to face him themselves. While inspiring fear may bring him some level of respect and acknowledgment, it also highlights the sheer ineffectiveness and overall futile effort of Matt Murdock to deal with crime.

As one man, no matter how good he can punch and kick, he is unable to physically take down multi level crime organizations that are embedded into their communities. Arguably, Matt could have better luck utilizing his law degree to elicit local change, rather than punching people. This dichotomy of breaking and enforcing the law in order to better society is recurring and compelling, but rarely explored in depth.

Closing Arguments

The first two years of Daredevil’s existence are the epitome of a beginning comic book superhero. Tropes and plot contrivances are abundant, the tone swings from lighthearted to surprisingly dark, with Stan Lee’s wise cracking dialogue shepherding the story along. Compared to modern books, there is not too much from this classic that hasn’t been seen before. However with services like Marvel Unlimited, the series becomes as accessible as any app, and Daredevil comics become a fun and easy way to waste time instead of the horrors of social media.

For the most part, the audience for this in the current day is mostly folks capitalizing on nostalgia or interested in the history and development of Daredevil. Arguably there is a lot of fun to be had, the book just requires a certain approach and limited expectations. The reader who idolizes their hero, and wants a paragon of virtue or a stone cold badass, will be disappointed. However the reader who is ready for melodramatic plots, severely flawed characters, and is willing to skip some text in the never ending fights, will have a solid experience.

Citation Station

The Cover Original Article

Daredevil, Issues 1-24

1-9, 11-24 written by Stan Lee

10 written by Wally Wood

1 art by Bill Everett

1 art by Jack Kirby

2-4 art by Joe Orlando

5-10 art by Wally Wood

9-11 art by Bob Powell

12-19 art by John Romita Sr.

Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, by Sean Howe

Newsarama

The Jack FAQ

#comics #comics review #books #book review #marvel #marvel comics #review #book blog

[thalkonvotes]

Rico Cortez Dukes

Statement of Candidacy Filed on 8/17/21

Identification Number: P00011163

Party: American Independent Party

Political Committee: TheyFearTruth (C00700591)

Political Committee Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

Political Committee Website: www.2024ricodukes.com

Vice President Choice: None Stated

From: Plano, TX

Rico Cortez Dukes was born in August 26, 1979 in Shreveport Louisiana. He was raised by Robert Charles Dukes and Teretha Meritt. He is the only biological child of Dr. Huey P Newton, who was the founder and leader of the 1966 Black Panthers Party for Self Defence. He also ran for congress (information unverified(link))

Here is a news link that supports the above mentioned facts, although I don't feel that the pictures are incredibly reliable. (link)

This article, seems to support above claims, although is written by Rico Dukes (link).

Courtcase mentioned in the article linked in above paragraph has a supporting court document for Dukes v AA Bail Bonds and Denton Court (link)(link)(link).

I've fallen down a rabbit hole. Another court case document that has a listing of other court cases that you can look up yourself, as I need to move onto other people. I may come back to this one and do more research in the future. (link)

Rico states that there is a documentary coming February 17th, 2024 titled Bloodline Documentary. There is also a book written titled "True Story of a King Son of Huey P Newton: A King Story by Rico Cortez Dukes (link), you can read a sample through the link I provided. There is also another book, which was written before the aforementioned book, titled "Ultimate Family Betrayal: Betrayal by Rico Dukes (link), there is also a sample included on the link provided.

Key Campaign Issues

Legalize Recreational Marijuana Nationwide

End Felony Job Discrimination

Raise the Hourly Wage to 16-20 Dollars an Hour

Herbal Medicine Healing

Fight to end Human Trafficking

End the Age Limit to collect Your Retirement Money

Build Better Schools for the Minority Communities

Provide Free Health Care to Those Who Make Under 40,000 a Year

Increase Veterans Pay

Better Care & Protection at Elderly Homes

Reparations for All Indigenous Aboriginal Native Americans & African Americans

Free the Black Panthers Members & Political Freedom Fighters Who Stood of the People

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#Rico Cortez Dukes #Rico Dukes #Presidential Candidates 2024 #American Independent Party